Travel letters: Passports are needed for Canada, Mexico

Regarding the Sept. 21 “On the Spot” column on passports by Catharine Hamm: She neglected to mention that passports are now required for travel to Canada or Mexico. This is undoubtedly a factor in the dramatic increase in the number of passport holders since 1989.

Based on my own experience, timing is everything. I mailed a renewal application in February 2013. I received my new passport 10 days later (this was not expedited service either).

Gene Aker

Los Angeles

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I always enjoy Hamm’s articles, and her article on passports was no exception. However, in the first paragraph, she made what I consider an irresponsible comment: “You may not believe that the words ‘customer service’ and ‘U.S. government’ can dwell within the same sentence, but the State Department’s handling of passports is giving me cause for hope.”

Our government isn’t perfect, but I believe it works amazingly well, especially considering the chronic underfunding and the unreasonable demands placed on it by citizens who only want to sit on their couches and complain. Our government is us, and to write a comment like this in a reputable newspaper like the Los Angeles Times just confirms readers in their cynicism and lack of responsibility.

Please consider not writing things like this in the future.

Susan Grossman

Los Angeles

Downtown Las Vegas has never been the show-and-tell and ostentatious neighborhood that its big brother, the Vegas Strip, has always been [“Glitzy Revival” by Irene Lechowitzky, Sept. 14]. With small buildings, little casinos and sometimes dubious clientele, the two gambling venues have been like night and day when compared to each other.

However, it seems that a certain shoe salesman, Tony Hsieh of Zappos, is in the process of transforming downtown into something that will be in demand by investing in startups, real estate, arts and culture, education and small business. I have never spent that much time downtown, but one thing that did attract me is that the casinos are very close to one another. Should you decide to try your luck in another spot, access is out the front door, make a quick left, then a quick right and pick out a different slot machine.

I put myself through college by selling women’s shoes part time in the early ‘60s, but had I known that online shoe sales had such potential for a great future, I might have stayed in the shoe biz. It’s too bad colleges don’t offer courses in hindsight.

Bill Spitalnick

Newport Beach

Just a short comment on the travel article on Laos in the Sept. 14 edition of the paper [“Mind and Spirit in Harmony” by Julie L. Kessler]. My husband and I took a land tour to Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia. We ate fried insects in Laos — our guide called the eating experience the “real deal.”

In our free time, my husband and I were going to take a walk. We passed our guide, who was taking his motor scooter home to do his laundry. He had room for only one passenger and asked my husband if he would like to take a ride and see where he lives. I took the walk, and my husband went with the guide. It was one of the best memories he has of Laos and that tour.

Helene Weisblatt

Murrieta

I found the article in on tipping very interesting [“Tipping in Europe? Do as the Locals Do” by Rick Steves, Aug. 31]. One thing it did not mention, which I think causes tipping in Europe to be somewhat lower (in percent terms) than in North America is that prices, especially for restaurant meals, are significantly higher — I dare say 1.5 to two times higher for a similar meal in a similar restaurant. This means that in absolute dollar terms, a waiter in Europe getting a 10% tip is receiving a similar amount to his counterpart in North America getting a 20% tip (i.e. 10% x $40 = $4 and 20% x $20 = $4).

I often feel that sticking rigidly to a percent based on the total bill is wrong, as it produces anomalies when one diner orders a $30 bottle of wine while another ordering an identical meal orders only a $2 soft drink. Does the waiter deserve a substantially higher tip in the first instance ? I feel that a tip should be based solely on the bill, not including the beverage.

Robert J. Lewis

Mission Viejo