THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 8, 1995 TAG: 9501060072
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E3 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: TRAVEL-WISE
SOURCE: STEPHEN HARRIMAN
LENGTH: Long : 138 lines
WHEN I WAS a boy and traveled through the American West, I thought one of the most exciting things in the whole world would be to live in a tepee or a hogan with real Indians.
Later, sleeping under a clammy Army shelter-half, I lost all desire to sleep on the ground again. And I have learned, gradually, that the life of an American Indian is often far from an easy one and is hardly ever romantic.
But there are obviously those who wish to have that Indian Experience, because an organization called Journeys into American Indian Territory has announced a series of tours for adventurous travelers.
The programs, held in Oklahoma, Arizona, Wisconsin and Massachusetts, are designed to provide a full immersion in the lifeways - both past and present - of various tribes. The journeys, now in their eighth year of operation, range from three days to one week.
Participants camp in tepees or other traditional houses, learn tribal dances, eat native foods, participate in ceremonies, learn traditional beliefs and share a slice of life with members of many tribes, including the Comanche, Kiowa, Cheyenne, Arapaho, Apache, Ojibwe and Pima.
Journeys begin in February and run through November. Cost is $795 per person for Oklahoma and Arizona programs, $545 for the Wisconsin program and $245-$295 for the Massachusetts program; included are lodging, lectures, admission to all events, two meals a day and ground transportation.
Info: Robert Vetter, P.O. Box 929, Westhampton Beach, N.Y. 11978; (800) 458-2632. FROM HERE TO THERE
Old Dominion University professor Dwight Allen, who will lead a 14-day Zimbabwe safari May 12-27, will discuss the alumni-association sponsored tour at 6 p.m. Monday in the River Rooms at Webb Center on the ODU campus. Info: (804) 683-3097.
Tidewater Community College is offering a seven-day, partially escorted study trip to London, May 8-15, worth three hours' credit if you enroll in History 299. It's open to anyone; registration deadline is Feb. 15. Included in the $998 cost is international airfare from Norfolk, bed and breakfast at a family-run guest house in the Pimlico district of London, ground transportation and all tours under the direction of associate professor Derris Raper. Info: (804) 427-7100 or 427-7207.
The Norfolk Botanical Garden Society will sponsor a three-day trip May 10-12 to five outstanding estate gardens on the East Coast. The host will be gardening columnist Robert Stiffler. The tour will visit Dumbarton Oaks in Washington and Longwood Gardens, Winterthur, Hagley Museum and Mt. Cuba in the Brandywine Valley. Cost: $360 per person, double occupancy, includes bus transportation, hotel, admission, guided tours, baggage handling and gratuities plus most meals. Reservations deadline is Feb. 24. Info: Maggie Gardner, Lynnhaven Travel (804) 486-1911.
The Virginia Living Museum in Newport News is offering an 11-day wilderness expedition to Alaska, July 12-23, led by two biologists. Highlights include hiking, canoeing, whitewater rafting, Kenai Fjord boat trip and Alaska Railroad excursion to Denali (Mt. McKinley) National Park. Reservation deadline is May 1; space is limited to 16 participants. Cost: $3,100 includes all land and boat transportation, hotel accommodations and most meals; not included: airfare to Alaska. Info: (804) 595-1900. JANUARY CALENDAR
You don't have to go off to California or Alaska to watch whales. They're right off our own coast. The Virginia Marine Science Museum sponsors two-hour cruises to observe humpbacks off the Virginia coast from Friday through March 5. Info: (804) 437-4949.
If you're wrapped up in the Lost Cause, this month is the time to honor two of Virginia's most revered heros: Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. Lee's 188th birthday will be observed Jan. 19 (9-5) with a free open house at his birthplace, Stratford Hall, on the Northern Neck; info: (804) 493-8038.
At Lexington, where both Confederate icons are buried, celebrations will run from Jan. 19 through 21, Jackson's 171st birthday. Lee lived in Lexington the final years of his life (1865-70) as president of Washington College (now Washington and Lee University), and Jackson taught for a decade at Virginia Military Institute before the Civil War, in which he died. Lexington is a wonderful place to spend a weekend. Info: (703) 463-3777. EUROPEAN BARGAIN
New Frontiers, the American division of France's largest travel company, is offering low airfares to London, Paris, Frankfort and Madrid from Norfolk, plus a wide variety of a la carte hotels starting at $27 per person, double occupancy, in Paris, and car rentals starting at $19 a day, three-day minimum.
Travelers from Norfolk can fly Continental to London for $199 one way (based on round-trip purchase, which would be a very cheap $398). Round-trip prices to Paris and Frankfort are $438, to Madrid $538. These prices are good through March 31; they do not include airport taxes. Info: your local travel agent or (800) 366-6387. MOSTLY FOR SKIERS
Want the latest info on Virginia ski areas? Call Wintergreen near Charlottesville, (804) 325-2200; Massanutten near Harrisonburg, (703) 207-6277; Bryce Resort near Woodstock, (703) 856-2121; or The Homestead at Hot Springs, (703) 839-7721.
For reservations at more than 150 homes, cabins, inns and mountain lodges near major ski resorts in Colorado, call (800) 748-2666.
Sleep slopeside, ski free at Jay Peak, Vt. Five nights in a Jay Peak Condominium or at the Hotel Jay, including lift tickets, costs $738 for the entire family. Through Feb. 17 and after March 19. Call (800) VERMONT.
Aspen Gay Ski Week holds its 18th annual celebration Jan. 21-28. For info: (800) 925-9249; for packages, call BW Travel (800) 288-2589. Gay Ski East '95 at Mount Snow, Vt., will be held Feb. 24-27. Packages from $230. Info: (810) 673-3733.
Seniors ski free in New Hampshire. Mount Washington Valley's five alpine areas offer free skiing Jan. 23-27 for people 50 or older. Learn downhill, cross-country or snowboarding with your free lesson, lift ticket and equipment rental. Info: (800) 367-3364.
Hostelling International-American Youth Hostels allows travelers of any age to stay in their 30-plus hostels for skiers - Killington, Stratton, Vail and most other major ski areas. The nonprofit organization adheres to the International Youth Hostel Federation standards. Info: (202) 783-6161. WINTERTIME IN CHINA
HoliAsia tours offer two air-inclusive packages from $968. Fly New York to Shanghai, visit Shuzhou's gardens, Nanjing and cruise on the Grand Canal to Wuxi in an 8-day package. Or take the ``Last Emperor's Route,'' a 12-day tour tracing Pu Yi's steps - Harbin, Dragon Lake, Beijing; winter festivals and more. Info: A local travel agent or (800) 553-3533. MEMO: Travel-wise is compiled from wire-service reports, news releases, trade
journals, books, magazines and the deepest recesses of the writer's
mind. Send comments to Travel-wise, The Virginian-Pilot/The Ledger-Star,
Norfolk, Va. 23501-0449. by CNB