Helping Tiny Turtles, Fat Manatees in Belize

Adventure-minded assistants are needed on an 11-day expedition to Belize, Aug. 12, to work with a biologist in a hands-on turtle restoration project and to assess the distribution and habitat use of resident manatees. Gales Point is an important habitat for the largest Caribbean manatee population in Central America, and its beach is the primary nesting site in Belize for the endangered hawksbill sea turtle. Gales Point is on a peninsula extending into a complex lagoon that borders the Caribbean Sea. A new road has connected once-remote Gales Point to Belize City, and information is needed on manatee and turtle habitat use in order to manage the area responsibly.

Working in alternating teams, one group will set out in a small dory to survey the lagoon in order to map the distribution of the manatees. The other team will patrol the beach to locate nesting turtles, collect biological data and chaperon hatchlings to the sea. Team members will also help to build and repair turtle nesting cages that protect eggs from predators. Participants will stay in rustic village guest quarters or camping sites. Participants should be experienced with camping in a rugged environment and be generally physically fit. Cost: $1,290 per person, including air fare from Miami or Houston, lodging, sightseeing arrangements, guides, permits and most meals. Contact: Oceanic Society Expeditions; telephone (800) 326-7491.

Waves to Waterfalls

From the coastlines of Morro Bay and Monterey to Yosemite Falls, a five-day trip will take participants via motor coach to famous California sites July 17. The first stop will be in the Danish community of Solvang before continuing north to the fishing village of Morro Bay for a sunset dinner cruise around Morro Rock. Guests visit Hearst Castle, then ride to the Monterey Peninsula and the 17-Mile Drive, the Monterey Bay Aquarium and Cannery Row. The return trip stops at the national parks of Yosemite, Sequoia and Kings Canyon. Cost: $495 per person, double occupancy, including door-to-door pickup, some meals and all lodging. Contact: Main Street Tours, 1751 W. Torrance Blvd., Suite N, Torrance, CA 90501; tel. (800) 300-6246.

African Royalty

A queens and kings tour of Nigeria gives participants a chance to meet some of the royalty of the Edo Kingdom, who live in palaces built centuries ago. Three 15-day trips leave Oct. 20, Nov. 24 and Jan. 19. The groups will travel by road from the southern city of Lagos, head east through Benin City, north to the capital city of Abuja, then to Kaduna. At each stop there are opportunities to interact with villagers and participate in wedding and naming ceremonies. Cost: $4,250 per person, double occupancy, including air fare from Los Angeles, meals, hotels, ground transportation and guides. Contact: Ade Olowu or Edoba Asemota, Royal Heritage Tours, 16260 Ventura Blvd., Suite 610, Encino, CA 91436; tel. (818) 905-5974.

Eastern Europe

Arts, crafts, churches and monasteries are the focus of a tour to Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary Aug. 29 to Sept. 14. Beginning in Bulgaria, participants visit Sofia, the 2,200-year-old capital city, to see the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and Bashi mosques and the Rila Monastery, founded in 927; Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s second-largest city, to see its recently restored Roman amphitheater, and Veliko Turnovo, a charming city in the hills where you can watch weavers, potters, instrument makers and other craftspeople at work. In Romania, guests visit Bucharest to see the Museum of the History of Romania; Brasov in the Carpathian Mountains; Transylvania, where Bram Stoker placed the castle of the legendary Count Dracula, and Suceava, an area of rustic villages and mountain scenery. In Hungary, visitors tour Budapest by the Danube River. Cost: $2,600 per person, double occupancy, including land transportation, accommodations, two meals daily, admission to all museums and special exhibits, guides, visa fees and travel insurance. Not included: air fare to Sofia and from Budapest or Prague. Contact: Anytime Anywhere Travel, 940 South Coast Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92626; tel. (800) 542-1888.

Let’s Talk Turkey

Three 15-day tours of the Western and Mediterranean coasts of Turkey depart Sept. 16, Oct. 14 and Oct. 28. Guests begin the tour with two days in Istanbul visiting the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, the Byzantine Cistern and the Spice Bazaar. The tour travels to Kusadasi, where guests visit the archeological ruins of Pergamum and Ephesus, then on to the resort town of Bodrum on the Aegean. The tour continues down the Aegean coastline, visiting small towns and ancient ruins. The final stop along the Turkish Riviera is the resort town of Antalya, which serves as a base for exploring the ancient cities of Side, Perga and Aspendos. The tour returns to Istanbul for an additional two days, visiting St. Sophia Church and the Grand Bazaar, where guests can shop for gifts and mementos. Cost: $3,340 per person, double occupancy, including international air fare, hotels, most meals and two domestic flights. Guests also have an overnight stay in Rome on the return, with extensions opportunities available. Contact: Troy Tours, 6151 W. Century Blvd., Suite 1118, Los Angeles, CA 90045; tel. (800) 748-6878.

Taste of Italy

A 16-day tour Sept. 28 through Tuscany, Italy, takes guests on a gastronomic trip where they will have the opportunity to sample the cuisine of Tuscany’s award-winning restaurants. Guests will also meet growers and taste wines at various estates. Participants will also visit farms, where the art of making olive oil and cheese has been practiced since the time of the Etruscans. Stops are made in Siena, Florence, Arezzo, Lucca, plus the medieval towns of Montalcino, Montepulciano and San Gimignano. Also seen are some of Tuscany’s architecturally famous private gardens. Cost: $6,800 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles, accommodations in villas, ground transportation, guides, sightseeing, entrance fees, daily breakfast and dinner and most lunches, taxes and tips. Contact: Treasures of Tuscany, 5750 Valley Oak Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90068; tel. (213) 463-9269.

All Aboard

Luxury train travel between Beijing and Moscow on the Nostalgic Istanbul Orient Express leaves Aug. 10 for 15 days. The Art Deco carriages of the Nostalgic Istanbul Orient Express were built and furnished in the 1920s and ‘30s. After World War II, they were restored to their original form. The train pulls 15 carriages, including sleeping compartments with upper and lower berths, vanity with hot and cold water, luggage racks to accommodate two or three suitcases, hot shower stalls and a piano bar. The route begins in Beijing and continues to the China-Mongolia border, to Ulan Bator and Ulan Ude in Mongolia, Irkutsk, Novosibirsk, Yaroslavl in Russia and ending in Moscow. Arrival in each city is in the morning. Breakfast is served on board the train, then the group departs for a day of touring and lunch in a local restaurant. Cost: from $6,999, including air fare, hotels in Beijing and Moscow, most meals and all touring. Contact: Agneta Ekebrand or Craig Lasco at Scantours, 1535 6th St., Suite 205, Santa Monica, CA 90401-2533; tel. (800) 223-7226.

Mongolian Trek

Explore the nomadic cultures of Mongolia by horseback on a 21-day trek July 30 through the Tsagaannuur (White Lake) region in northernmost Mongolia. Participants need not be expert riders, but should be prepared to spend six hours a day in a Chinese or Russian cavalry saddle. Meals are cooked by guides and riders sleep in tents or yurts. Riders get many experiences meeting and sharing tea with nomadic herdsmen and their families. Two days are also spent in Beijing to see the major sites, including the Great Wall. Cost: $4,150 per person, including meals, equipment, lodging, and domestic air and ground transportation. Not included: air fare to Beijing, where the trip begins and ends. Contact: Boojum Expeditions, 14543 Kelly Canyon Road, Bozeman, MT 59715; tel. (406) 587-0125

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