Travelers' Intercom

During a trip to Portugal, Nov. 5-14, 2008 (July ’09, pg. 15), my husband, Kip, and I visited Madeira for some hiking and sightseeing.

Your TAP Portugal boarding pass will give you a free ride into Funchal on the express bus. Ask the driver to drop you off at the nearest bus stop to your accommodation. If it’s not near the bus route, you can take a taxi from the center of Funchal; otherwise, expect to pay about €25 ($32) for a taxi.

We were at first dismayed by the traffic and the sprawling development in and around Funchal plus the throngs of tourists, but our small hotel,...

We don’t have garage sales in the UK (see “Favorite Flea Markets,” Sept. ’11, pg. 39), but most towns do have car boot sales, where people sell unwanted items from the boots (trunks) of their cars, usually displayed on tables by the vehicles.

Some of these are out of town, possibly on a disused airfield, and may have hundreds of vendors. Other, smaller ones will be in car parks of school playgrounds.

Whilst many stalls are run on a regular basis by part-time amateur dealers, most usually attract independent sellers who simply want to make a bit of...

Regarding using walkie-talkies while traveling (May ’09, pg. 20), please be advised that it is often illegal in Europe to use walkie-talkies with US frequencies without a license. Fines, confiscation and other penalties could be the result of unlicensed use of preassigned frequencies.

Most European Union countries post the frequencies available for unlicensed public use. Contact the consulates, most of which will say you will need a license and must register that you will be using certain frequencies.

I am an entertainment engineer and have had to get special walkie-talkies...