Empire State Wears Red, White and Blue

One of New York’s landmarks is doing its bit for the war effort.

In a departure from tradition, the uppermost reaches of the Empire State Building in Manhattan will be lit in red, white and blue colors until American troops return from the war in the Persian Gulf.

Normally, the building’s tower is lighted only in white, except for special occasions such as Washington’s Birthday, St. Patrick’s Day and Valentine’s Day.

Travel Quiz: Which country has the world’s shortest coastline? (Answer below.)

Italian Villa: La Posta Vecchia, the 17th-Century villa on the outskirts of Rome that John Paul Getty spent five years and a considerable amount of money restoring, is for rent.

The villa comes complete with an indoor swimming pool, superb floor mosaics, excellent cliff-top views and, most unusual of all, its own museum of Roman antiquities.

The rent? A mere $104,000 for a two-week stay.

Quick Fact: 30,000 of Hawaii’s 50,000 hotel rooms are at Waikiki Beach, Honolulu.

Mexican Gas: Travelers who take their cars to Mexico will find that unleaded gasoline now is available throughout the country. Called Magna Sin, the fuel has an octane level of 87, the highest ever offered in Mexico.

Pemex, the state-owned oil company, says the gasoline is comparable to the quality found in the United States. In an effort to reduce air pollution, all Mexican vehicles will shortly be required to be equipped with catalytic converters.

There’s Always a Catch: The Ritz-Carlton is offering its most luxurious suite for just $10,000 a weekend. At that price, naturally, the service is extensive, and includes:

--A limousine to and from the airport.

--Fresh fruit and flowers, truffles, champagne and caviar.

--Private shopping in your suite.

--Full use of all spa amenities.

--A seven-course dinner for up to four persons, prepared at your table by the hotel’s executive chef.

--A 24-hour butler.

The catch? The Ritz-Carlton is in Cleveland.

Quick Fact: There are five telephones for every 1,000 people in China.

Time Lines: Airline on-time performance improved somewhat in 1990, with major U.S. carriers averaging 79.4% on-time efficiency according to figures released by the Department of Transportation. The figure for the previous year was 76.4%.

Pan Am and America West led all domestic airlines with an on-time percentage of 83.8%. Next came Northwest at 82.1%, Eastern at 81.2% and USAir and Southwest, which tied at 80.8%. Falling below the national average were TWA and Delta at 77.1% and Continental at 76.9%.

Agenda Item: The California Governor’s Conference on Tourism will be held in Sacramento this week.

One of the items that perhaps should be on the agenda but probably won’t be is the fact that it would cost several hundred dollars less for Los Angeles-area residents attending the conference to fly to San Francisco or Oakland and then go by ground to Sacramento, than it would to fly there directly.

According to Travel Weekly, an industry newspaper, the least expensive advance-purchase, round-trip air fare to Sacramento is $374.

To get to the Bay Area, a two-hour drive from the state capital, the fare is $40.

Pacific Destinations: United Airlines has announced that it will begin new service to Australia, New Zealand and China starting in August.

Part of the plan calls for nonstop service between Los Angeles and Auckland, New Zealand, as well as extended service on to Brisbane on the Los Angeles-Sydney flight.

Senegal Calls: The West African nation of Senegal has decided to reopen a tourism office in the United States after an absence of six years.

The office, probably in New York City, will work to encourage more Americans to visit the country, whose capital, Dakar, is only a 6 1/2-hour flight from New York and is the closest African point to the United States.

The country, already popular among European travelers, attracted 290,000 visitors in 1989, half of them from France. Of those visitors, only 9,400 were from the United States.

Quick Fact: The oldest building in Athens, Ga., is the Old College, built 185 years ago. The oldest building in Athens, Greece, is the Parthenon, built 2,423 years ago.

Weightly Matters: A British company that offers equestrian holidays in Spain has come up with what London’s Sunday Times calls a new form of discrimination: “weightism.”

It seems the company, Aventura, limits participation on its horseback rides through the Sierra Nevada mountains to men weighing less than 175 pounds and women who top the scales at no more than 161 pounds.

These weight limits are increased slightly if you agree to ride a mule.

Quiz Answer: Monaco, which has a coastline of only 3 1/2 miles.