Ever had this problem? You’ve found a site on the World Wide Web that looks really interesting, but you can’t read it because it’s in a foreign language. Although language is one of the last barriers to the Internet, it’s crumbling thanks to programs like Transparent Language’s new Easy Translator ($49.95), a tool that can translate French, German and Spanish into–and from–English.
Whether it’s e-mail, a Web page or a text file, Easy Translator will take the passage and translate it. Although none of the translations was perfect, especially when it came to slang, if you’re writing standard English you’ll get more than the gist of a message and be able to respond in kind. If you’re studying the language, so much the better, for Easy Translator comes with Grammar Basics, a special Help file which explains grammatical concepts and terminology.
Easy Translator is compatible with popular Web browsers such as Netscape Navigator, Microsoft Internet Explorer for Windows 95 and NT, Spyglass Mosaic and NCSA Mosaic. The program is available on PC only and requires an IBM compatible PC 486 or higher, Microsoft Windows 3.1, Windows NT or Windows 95 operating system, eight megabytes of RAM and 15 megabytes of space on your hard disk. Call 800-752-1767 , or visit Transparent Language’s Web site (www.transparent.com).
– Transparent Language also has released Version 6.0 of its Language Now! programs ($49.95 each) which take an immersion approach to teaching Dutch, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish and Latin. Version 6.0 enhancements include an analysis of your pronunciation on the basis of articulation, loudness, pitch, timing and voicing. Whether you’re a beginner or fairly conversant, Language Now! will teach you from the ground up or build on your existing skills in the language of your choice. Available for Windows (3.1, NT or 95) and Macintosh (System 7.1 or higher).
– You can put these new language skills to work with a trip to the Continent–and you can plan your entire itinerary on your PC (Windows 3.1 or 95) thanks to PlanetWare’s Travel Planners. PlanetWare has taken the Baedeker guides for Northern Europe and the Mediterranean ($44.95 each) and packaged them on two CD-ROM disks. If you like to go your own way and avoid organized tours, these Travel Planner guides are a must. These exhaustively comprehensive programs will help you plan your trip, find places to stay and suggest the sites to see once you’re there. You can index for everything from Architecture to Zoos, and there’s plenty in between.
The Northern Europe disk includes Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland. The Mediterranean guide takes you to Greece, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, Cyprus, Malta, Egypt, Israel, Morocco and Tunisia. Call 800-281-9823 or visit the PlanetWare Web site (www.planetware.ca).
Iranian expeditions
Glacially improving U.S.-Iranian relations have prompted Absolute Asia to offer three tours to south-central Asia, including Iran. The Persian Route traces Iran’s rich history from the capital of Tehran over a centuries-old caravan route to Kernmanshah. You’ll also visit Shiraz, noted for its literature and architecture and Persepolis, which was razed by Alexander the Great. The 14-night tour, which departs June 27, Sept. 12 and Oct. 24, costs $3,125 per person double occupancy (single supplement $525).
The Heart of Asia to Persia tour follows the Silk Road through Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan with stops in Tashkent, Samarqand and Bukhara. The 18-night tour costs $3,995 per person double occupancy (single supplement $625) with departures April 9, May 7, June 4, July 9, Aug. 6, Sept. 10, Oct. 8 and Nov. 5.
The 18-night Persia to Pakistan tour says it all–you’ll start in Tehran and finish the tour in Lahore with stops in such exotic locales as Shiraz and Persepolis before pressing on to Pakistan. The tour departs May 2, Aug. 1, Sept. 26 and Oct. 31 and costs $3,150 per person double occupancy (single supplement $785).
All three Absolute Asia tours include most meals and privately conducted sightseeing but not international air fare. Call 800-736-8187.
Back to the roots
Jon Haggins International Tours is leading a group to the third annual International Roots Festival in Banjul, Gambia, June 11-20. You’ll attend the festival’s opening and closing ceremonies as well as carnival, family and naming festivities. The tour costs $1,845 per person double occupancy (single supplement $300) and includes round trip air fare from New York, all breakfasts and dinners a full-day city tour to Juffure, sightseeing in Banjul and other festival activities. Call 212-563-2570 or visit Haggins’ Web site (www.ulbobo.com/haggins).
Slaves no more
The history surrounding the movie “Amistad” comes to live as Heritage Trails, of Farmington, Conn., takes you on a tour of more than a dozen sites associated with the slave mutiny and subsequent trial for their freedom. Traveling in a 10-person minibus, you’ll visit the Congregational Church where the Mendi worshipped, the Mendi school at the Samuel Deming Store and the Amistad Mendi house where Cinque and Mendi lived. The 90-minute tours cost $15 per person and depart daily at 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m., 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. from the Farmington Commuter parking lot, exit 37 off I-84. Call 860-677-8867.
American under foot
You don’t have to head for England’s Lake District or the rolling hills of Tuscany for a first-rate walking tour. New England Hiking offers affordable and exciting walking tours to New England, the South, the West and Canada. For example, New England Hiking lists a five-night vacation in Virginia’s Shenandoah Mountains which include seeing Civil War sites and Thomas Jefferson’s home in Monticello. Shenandoah tours run May 10-15, May 17-22, May 24-29, Oct. 18-23 and Oct. 25-30. The tour costs $995 in May and $1,045 in October per person double occupancy (single supplement $200) from Waynesboro, Va., and includes all meals. Call 800-869-0949.
