LETTERS FROM READERS

A Little Language

Christopher Reynolds’ June 27 Travel Insider column (“How to Survive a Trip to Land of Rising Yen”) was right on the money but lacking in one important detail. In order to have a terrific trip economically, you need to travel on your own and “go native,” as he rightly recommends. But to go native, you need to be able to get along just a little bit in Japanese.

My wife and I took such a trip several years ago. We stayed at ryokan and minshuku ; we ate in the little restaurants that had plastic models of their foods in the window; we traveled by Japan rail pass. It was absolutely delightful, but had we not gone to a Japanese language class (evenings at a local high school) for a few months before undertaking the trip, we’d have been completely lost.

EVERETT DANIELS

Los Angeles

Kid’s Stuff

As a former Bostonian, I found two errors in the Taking the Kids article, “In the Cradle of American History” (June 27). The first is in the pronunciation of Faneuil Hall. It should be Fan-U-L not Fan-L. Second, the English king at the time of the American Revolution was George III, not George I.

SYLVIA WEINBERG

Los Angeles

* Reading your weekly Taking the Kids column, I was reminded of the trips on which my husband and I have taken our son Conor, now 2 1/2. One lesson rings true when remembering our trips: Be prepared.

We have taken Conor on many trips, including Colorado, Philadelphia, New Orleans, Bali and Jakarta. We always pack a night light, favorite books and bath toys. Particularly important are videotapes. In my son’s case, “Thomas the Tank Engine” tapes are de rigueur . (Luckily, most of the hotels we stay at have VCRs.) I have even taken his bedding if we were going somewhere distant so he has the familiarity of that smell. Also, we rarely eat dinner out.

LINDA FITZGERALD

North Hollywood

Better Pots Here

My husband and I have just returned from an extended tour of France by car. In your article “In Provence, a Galaxy of Ceramics” (March 21), it was suggested that ceramics at Alain Mourre’s Terre e Provence in Dieulefit, France, were worthwhile. We were terribly disappointed in the pottery and feel we have as good, if not better, in the U.S. and Mexico.

LINDA GIESY

Huntington Beach

Guide to Guides

Colman Andrews doesn’t have it quite right when he tries to distinguish between Lonely Planet’s “Travel Survival Kits” and their “On a Shoestring” guidebooks (“The Lonely Planet Guides: What’s Not to Like?” June 13). The “Travel Survival Kits” are for individual countries and the “On a Shoestring” books are for regions such as Southeast Asia or Scandinavian and Baltic Europe.

GARY SIEGEL

Trabuco Canyon

Colman Andrews replies: Carolyn Miller, publicity and promotions manager for Lonely Planet in the United States replies that, though the “On a Shoestring” guides do indeed deal with regions rather than individual countries, “they’re budget guides before they’re regional guides.” She also points out that some of the “Travel Survival Kit” titles also cover regions rather than single countries--for example, the “Arab Gulf States” volume reviewed in this column.

People Pleasing

Thank you for Jack Goldfarb’s piece, “Meeting Life’s Ebb and Flow on Calcutta’s Howrah Bridge,” May 16. It’s refreshing when a writer goes beyond the tour buses and guidebooks and immerses himself in the reality of a place. His emphasis on the humanity of the crowd he found himself part of was a very nice touch, too. I don’t care where you go; it’s the people who make it an interesting (or not so interesting) place.

WILLIAM M. TIMLIN

Cypress

Wildfowl Art

I have just returned from a dream-come-true. I visited the Ward Museum of Wildfowl Art in Salisbury, Md. Words can’t explain the beauty and delicate carving of birds, all from wood. You expect to see them fly away. If anyone is planning a trip to Chesapeake Bay, the drive from Baltimore to Salisbury, through the green trees and farmland on a wide highway that was beautifully kept, was a treat.

EMILY SCURLOCK

Carlsbad

Life of Ross

I am gathering material for a book about the life of the late Charles J. Ross of Los Feliz, who produced award-winning travel films between 1965 and 1982, and was awarded many local and national commendations. I am also in search of material about his now-deceased wife, Louise Townsend Ross, daughter of Louis A. Townsend of Glendale. The late Louis Townsend was an electrical engineer and an associate of Hubert Eaton of Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale. Charles and Louise Ross traveled all over the world to make the travel films. I would appreciate hearing from everyone who knew them personally. Please write: James Charles Ross, P.O. Box R, Los Feliz Station 90027.

JAMES CHARLES ROSS

Los Angeles

Frequent American

Having read many a horror story about airlines making it difficult to redeem frequent-flier miles, I was pleasantly surprised by American Airlines when I needed to attend a funeral in Chicago, followed by an urgent visit to Switzerland. I called their frequent-flier 800 number and was immediately booked on the flights of my choice. At no time did I get the impression that I was given less priority than a paying customer. All I paid was the advertised fee of $50--for last-minute bookings, which included overnight ticket delivery. On my return from Zurich they even let me change to an earlier connection out of JFK. This trip was just as smooth as all the earlier ones, during which I racked up the 60,000 miles in the first place.

LORENZ RYCHNER

Studio City

Letters to the Travel Editor should be brief and are subject to condensation. Send letter, including a telephone number, to: Travel Section, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square , Los Angeles 90053.