TRAVEL WATCH: October 4, 1999 VOL. 154 NO. 13

Web Crawling

ALSO IN TIME

Seek Enlightenment, Off the Beaten Path Since the dawn of Buddhism, pilgrims have worn the soles off their sandals visiting the religion's hallowed sites Trend Spotting Not a fusty old guidebook, but a deck of cards, 53 of them, as user-friendly for visitors to Hong Kong as it is for residents Detour Cabbages & Condoms is no ordinary restaurant chain: it serves prophylactics in the place of after-dinner mints Off the Shelf Become the complete Richard Branson-branded traveler by picking up one of his new Virgin City Guides Web Crawling Doug Dyment's site is an obsessive's look at the joys of traveling light Hot Tip The world's top gymnasts will bounce, leap and vault their way into Tianjin, China, this fall for the World Gymnastics Championships

THE COMPLEAT TRAVELER
(www.oratory.com/travel)
LIGHT LOAD: Tired of carrying more than you need on the road? Doug Dyment's site is an obsessive's look at the joys of traveling light. Dyment has distilled the art of packing down to a sensible science. The go-light guru turns his critical eye on a cross-section of carry-ons, and offers his advice on the best bag for the job. If you're tired of unseemly wrinkles, give his "bundle packing" strategy a try. This easy-to-use site tells you what to take, what to take it in and how to get the zipper shut.

MAIL ON THE RUN
(www.mailstart.com)
ROAD MAIL: Mailstart's site allows Netizens to check their home e-mail accounts while on the road. You simply punch in your e-mail address and password and the free service goes to your ISP and collects your mail, as long as you aren't behind a significant firewall. You don't even need to sign up or remember a new password. You can reply using your regular address. It's faster and easier than logging on to your own mail-service provider.