Traveller Letters: I expect dodgy police in some countries, but not this one

Oh, Vienna

I was warned of potential problems for tourist drivers with Mexican police when I travelled there last year, but I did not expect to encounter it in Austria. Having been stopped for “speeding at 70 in a 50 zone” (it was a 70 zone) and being told I had to pay an on-the-spot cash fine of €35, I asked to be taken to the police station to pay.

Don’t trust Austrian police, says one Traveller reader.Credit: iStock

After 20 minutes of haggling I agreed to be escorted to an ATM to withdraw the cash and then pay at the police station. After further delays by the police officers, I decided it was easier to pay the fine (it went into the police officer’s wallet) and continue my travels. I then discovered the police station was only 150 metres down the road. If you think you are right don’t trust the Austrian police and insist on being taken to the station.
John Pens, Clontarf, NSW

Letter of the week: Go-slow in Slovenia

Bohinj Lake and the Church of St John the Baptist, Julian Alps, Slovenia. Credit: Getty Images

Lake Bled is, as Julie Miller discovered, a remarkably beautiful place, as is so much of Slovenia (Traveller, November 4). Recently I rode 300 kilometres with my daughter from there to Italy, through the magnificent Triglav National Park and the unspoiled Julian Alps Biosphere Reserve. We made relatively slow progress because the scenery is so spectacular it was hard not to have regular -stops to take photos of timbered farmhouses and small chapels in alpine villages, wooden barns, beehives, glacial lakes and waterfalls, emerald-green rivers running clear over white stones, with always those magnificent mountains as a backdrop. Slovenian drivers were thoroughly respectful of us as bike-riders, and the population evidently is proud of their forested environment – even very small towns have specific recycling bins which are used conscientiously by all residents.
Marie Goldsworthy, Geelong, Vic

The wander years

Jim Darby’s article on Yellowstone National Park (Traveller, November 21) brought back cherished memories for me. In 1972, aged seven, I was lucky enough to travel to the US with my parents. It was a month of extremes. Imagine visiting Disneyland wild-eyed, spending a week in Las Vegas untethered at the now sadly demolished Landmark Hotel while my parents were at a convention, and staying in Yellowstone National Park in a wooden lodge where I watched colour TV for the first time and saw a wolf at night walking down the street outside the hotel. Not to mention buying root beer from a vending machine and giggling to myself for ages.
Jae Sconce, Moonee Ponds, Vic

Right to connect

I read with great interest Lee Tulloch’s article (Traveller, November 19), about the enriching Indigenous cultural experience at El Questro in the East Kimberley. Being guided by Indigenous people to understand better “our relationship with nature” is so important for us all. In Sydney, the wonderful Indigenous cultural tour offered at Barangaroo left me in awe of the people who have so much to teach about what really matters.
Kerrie Wehbe, Blacktown, NSW

I’ve seen the lights

The Northern Lights: a spiritual experience.Credit: iStock

It’s my sixth attempt to see the Northern Lights – Greenland, Iceland twice, the Faroe Islands and a month in Lapland last year – and my goodness it was the spectacular exhibition I had hoped for. With a wonderfully experienced guide, driver and helpful assistant we went on an all-nighter four hours south-west of Tromso where I’m staying for six weeks, into Finland. Our third stop to view the lights provided two hours of what was for me, a spiritual experience. It was noticeably silent standing in minus 10 degrees on the snow and we were all fixated. The stars were incredibly bright, particularly Sirius. We were an international group of 14, eight nationalities, and I was the sole Aussie. Amazing.
Dr Christina Westmore-Peyton, Kew East, Vic

Let’s be friands

While I agree with your comments on the French National Treasure of baguettes (Traveller, November 8), I strongly object to your calling the 20th arrondissement of Paris “obscure”. While Menilmontant is mostly known for the Cimetiere du Pere Lachaise, it has fabulous multicultural neighbourhoods and lovely parks – from pocket-size squares to Parc de Belleville. By no means obscure. And Au Levain des Pyrenees on the rue des Pyrenees has other excellent friandises apart from baguettes.
Katharine Stevenson, Pyrmont, NSW

Right hand, right foot

Mark Daffey’s article (Traveller, November 22) reminded me of a Catholic primary school I taught at, where staff travelling overseas were encouraged to bring back the most kitsch religious ornaments they could for display in the staffroom. My contribution was Jesus playing soccer with a group of small children. It resulted in a bag search by a bemused customs officer at Cleveland airport, but thankfully it made the journey home in one piece. And for those of you wondering… Jesus is right-footed.
Damian Gunn, Montmorency, Vic

Shore thing

It is often said you should not book shore excursions via cruise lines, as they are too expensive. However, I recently booked a tour of Vava’u, Tonga, via a local operator, and the sea was so rough that the ship’s tenders could not make it ashore. While passengers who had booked tours through the cruise line received a refund, I did not. I could not even claim through my travel insurance, as the excess was higher than the cost of the tour. The lesson to be learned from this is not to book with local operators if there is a chance of a last-minute port cancellation, which is always on the cards if you have to get ashore by tender.
Kirsten Walla, Vaucluse, NSW

Know your ride

Over two weeks I have seen correspondents mistakenly call Bali’s Bluebird an Uber-like service and Malaysia’s Grab as a taxi service. In fact, the genuine Bluebird is a metered taxi service (although there are many imitators in similarly painted blue vehicles) and the Asia-wide Grab is an Uber ride-sharing service. Travellers should be careful to understand the difference.
Mark Berg, Caringbah, NSW

Clear it up

Follow the correct etiquette in Singapore’s hawker centres.Credit: iStock

Brian Johnston’s article on some of the “living traditions” that travellers can connect with was fabulous (Traveller, November 8), but I would like to provide an update on hawker-centre etiquette in Singapore. Tissues and other belongings are still used as the “chope” to reserve your table while you’re deciding what to eat, but clearing your table is compulsory and has been for a while with lots of signs asking customers to do as such. Take all your dirties to the clearing station and someone will help with disposal. It’s now made for a seriously clean and fun food experience.
Paul Weeks, Alstonville, NSW

Hits and misses

My experiences with booking.com have ranged from good to appalling. One booking at a seaside resort in Split failed to show the year-long renovation rebuilding the promenade resulting in bulldozers, trucks and cranes working all day. The hotel refused to offer any compensation although booking.com did at least refund their fee. The resort then posted some even more flattering and much older photos which booking.com happily accepted.
David Farrell, Erskineville, NSW

Tip of the week: Hike society

The Cinque Terre consists of five coastal villages that can be hiked, but there’s also a train option.Credit: iStock

I have visited Cinque Terre, Italy, twice, staying for three nights each time in a hotel in La Spezia. There is a train that runs regularly from La Spezia through the five villages allowing you to travel from village to village and which we caught to Riomaggiore (the Cinque Terre card allows train travel and access to the hiking trails). We then walked along the cliffs to Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and lastly Monterosso al Mare, a distance of 20 kilometres. We caught the train back to Manarola for a marvellous dinner in a restaurant we’d checked out earlier, catching the last train home at 10 pm. The next day we hiked the more challenging high track. On a second Cinque Terre visit I travelled with my daughter and 20-month-old grandson which affected what we did. We went on a boat trip from Riomaggiore to Monterosso al Mare then travelled by train to the other villages. We were able to walk stretches of the way with Oscar’s pusher.
Patricia Harrington, Kerang, Vic

Appy days

We recently returned from a trip to the UK and Spain during which we travelled extensively by rail. The ease of booking tickets in Spain with the excellent Renfe mobile app – Renfe is Spain’s national state-owned railway company – is in direct contrast to the complicated systems for ticketing on the UK rail networks. Spain’s high-speed train lines suited our ambitious itinerary of touring five cities in three weeks and we found it simple to obtain reasonably priced tickets at short notice on the app, a vast difference to other online booking experiences. When booking rail tickets for UK rail travel prior to our departure from Australia, we were forced to download three apps, and for one journey were bewildered to find we needed to collect paper tickets at the station prior to departure. Renfe restored our confidence by providing a simple system for booking on a mobile phone.
Chris Lee, Mentone, Vic

Tour de Paris

Michael Gebicki in his Tripologist column (Traveller, October 25) was asked about cycling tours. May I also suggest using Fat Tire Tours for Paris and further afield. One of the best experiences my wife and I have had was using the company. We met up with our oldest son and took the bike tour to Versailles. We rode through the streets of Paris with about 20 others, took our bikes on a train to Versailles, bought lunch in the market, rode around the grounds of the palace and then went on a tour inside the palace before returning to Paris by train and bike. A great day.
Phillip Flynn, Pottsville, NSW

Arabian nights

Saudia Arabia is worth considering as a destination, writes one reader.Credit: Getty Images

Some reflections on a recent tour to Saudi Arabia: when you meet with the locals they are friendly, have families and have many smiling eyes though niqab. It felt safe. I saw endless variations on what a desert is. The Nabataean city of Hegra is a fascinating companion visit to Petra. It is hot, so choose your timing. Women are driving, working, studying and this country is poised for change. For those worried about ethics, most countries have a chequered history, including ours. The Middle East is a large region and places like Saudi want tourism to open up and continue. Please consider.
Victoria Hayes, Hawthorn, NSW

The Letter of the Week writer wins three Hardie Grant travel books. See hardiegrant.com

The Tip of the Week writer wins a set of three Lonely Planet travel books. See shop.lonelyplanet.com