travelnet One good source of package deals is the airlines themselves. Most major airlines offer air/land pack

One good source of package deals is the airlines themselves. Most major airlines offer air/land packages, including American Airlines Vacations (& 800/321-2121; www.aavacations. com), Continental Airlines Vacations (& 800/301-3800; www.coolvacations. com), Delta Vacations (& 800/ 221-6666; www.deltavacations.com), Southwest Airlines Vacations (& 800/ 423-5683; www.southwest.com and www.swavacations.com), and United Vacations (& 888/854-3899; www. unitedvacations.com). And don t forget

Pho H a Value VIETNAMESE Although it s only a few blocks off Union Square, the walk to this simple cafeteria-like Vietnamese restaurant in the downtrodden Tenderloin travelnet District is quite an adventure, often characterized by crack- smoking loiterers (literally) and plenty travelnet of people down on their luck. Thing is, the arrival promises huge, killer bowls of Vietnamese soup with all the classic fixings (basil, bean sprouts, and the like) at absurdly low prices. Any of the dozens of selections is a meal in itself, be it my favorite the seafood soup with rice noodles or those with beef balls (not literally), chicken, shrimp, or flank steak. There are also rice dishes with beef, vegetables, deep-fried egg rolls, or barbecued pork and intensely strong iced coffee.

Famed humorist and storyteller Mark Twain penned vivid tales during California s Gold Rush era, including one of his most popular works, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County (an annual Gold Country competition that still has legs). Other good gold-rush reads include Bret Harte s The Luck of Roaring Camp, a sentimental tale of hard-luck miners and their false toughness, and J. S. Holliday s The World Rushed In, one of the finest nonfiction accounts of the Gold Rush still in print.