— K. Do, Toronto
A: Hollywood has had its fair share of traffic woes. But if you decide to visit again, you’ll be in for a surprise. California’s Tinseltown has beefed up its public transit network. Locals refer to the The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) as the Metro or MTA (metro.net). You’ll find bus, light rail and subway services in this mix.
In addition, there are several other municipal transit services available. For example, in Los Angeles County you’ll find LADOT (ladottransit.com/), and Long Beach Transit (lbtransit.com/), among others. In Santa Monica it’s the Big Blue Bus (bigbluebus.com).
When I was in Hollywood, I communted to several landmarks. I checked out The Grove, a shopping and entertainment complex, Universal Studios and headed down to Venice Beach all via public transit. Locals transit riders are quite helpful in pointing you in the right direction and the concierge at your hotel can also provide tips. To download maps, visit metro.net/around/maps/.
Many venues such as Universal Studios — universalstudioshollywood.com/visitor_info_transportation.html — also have directions on their websites.
Q: Last November we spent two weeks in Cuba and were almost eaten alive by sand fleas. We would like to prevent this on our next visit. Are these bugs worse in some areas or a certain season?
— N. Kolman, Toronto
A: While you can get sand flea bites anytime, these nasty critters are especially active in early morning — when you might be out for a beach stroll — and as the sun starts setting.
I just returned from Cuba and thankfully had little problem with bugs. But I used mosquito repellant.
To prevent bites when sand fleas are present, try using a beach chair or sitting on a towel instead of perching directly on the sand.
If you do get bitten, products such as Afterbite, Calamine lotion, and an antihistamine cream or pill such as Benadryl can help soothe affected areas. Avoid scratching if possible. And if you are staying at an all-inclusive property, the resort doctor can usually assist.
Lastly, remember when travelling to Cuba, you will need medical travel insurance. This new entry policy kicked in May 1 but I’m not sure if it is strictly enforced at this time. Better to be safe than sorry though.
Q: I was going to book a flight with Spirit Airlines but heard they charge to use the toilets on board. How is that possible?
— T. Pelinsky, Toronto
A: Spirit Airlines is the largest ultra low cost carrier (ULCC) in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean. The Florida-based carrier is always looking for ways to keep fares low but has no plans to charge for using the toilets.
Instead, to raise revenue, the company is putting advertising on the washroom mirrors of its fleet of Airbus A319s and A321s.
Says Michael Pewther, sales director of Spirit Airlines’ Mile High Media: “The airline will not charge for things that are necessary during a flight, such as using the lavatory. We are thrilled to provide unsurpassed value for our advertising partners such as Fresh & Go to help cover our lavatory costs and we can pass these savings along to our customers by way of the ultra low fares they have come to know and love.”
Q: Once we leave our car at the hotel we’ll be staying at in Florida (it’s in Delray Beach) we really don’t want to take it out during our stay. Does the city have public transit?
— O. Kerr, Whitby
A: Downtown Delray is quite walkable with shops and restaurants lining the main strip along West and East Atlantic Avenue. The seaside town aso has a complimentary shuttle bus service called Downtown Roundabout. To access route information for the fleet of white buses and to download a map, see mydelraybeach.com. For phone inquiries, call 561-243-7000.
ilona@mycompass.ca
Turbocharging Equals Fuel Economy and Performance on Cruze EcotecPelee viewing expected to peak soon
