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Show and Enjoyed It More How We Toured for Less The breakfasts were great on waistlines, but every so often came the dawn when Biddie and I would look at each other and say, "Bacon and eggs, toast and coffee!" And off to the motel restaurant we would go. What, we called a "breakout" usually cost us about $1.40 each. Lunches were generally a delight, de- pending somewhat on the setting of the highway rest stop. Dining in Colorado with the evergreened Rockies for a backdrop and a rippling brook for musical effects was no comparison to being freeeasy-o- n squeezed into an easy-of- f, At that particular spot in way drive-iColorado, I was tempted to toss in a fishing line while I ate but remembered I had no license. Basic to the open-ai- r, noon repasts were lunch meats and cheeses. Then there were sometimes potato chips and cookies, always fresh fruits (ah, those Georgia peaches!) and milk. The average cost was about $1.10. p lunchA special dividend to ing is talking with other tourists. In a restaurant, you don't; at a rest stop, you n. rest-sto- fflostTlorsheim styles $19.95 to $29.95 Most Imperial stylos $39.95 do. Also, shopping in grocery stores and bakeries or at roadside fruit stands gives you an opportunity to meet the "natives." I can still remember the grocer in Dublin, Ga., for example, where the stores close every Wednesday afternoon so the folk can go fishing. When I fumbled for my money, the grocer said he would be happy to take my personal clieck. "You read in the papers all about crime and violence," he ruminated, "but most people are honest and good. Besides, I've got special trust in tourists Figure if a man can afford to travel, he's got money in the bank at home. Ya'U come back again real soon now." course, all our lunches were not t. Sometimes the weather has a say in things. Take, for example, the situation that developed at a highway rest stop south of Lubbock, Texas. The temperature was 102 degrees in the wind shade, and a turned our sandwiches to toast before we could lift them from plate to mouth. For the next three days, we ate lunches in restaurants or at drive-inAverage store-bough- s. " -- . , (continued rom vm ; room with an efficiency kitchen for ,$12 (the rate doubles in the winter). For three days we sunned or swam in the motel pool or the Gulf of Mexico, and hunted rare shells on the beach, famed as the third finest area in the world. In this unspoiled tropical paradise, the fact that we were beating the average all hollow particularly d food didn't matter. with In fact, nothing mattered. cost for the two of us: about $2.43. Dinners for two generally ran $5 to $6. Any trip, however, should include some loosening of the budget strings. Our token to extravagance was dining on pompano at famed Antoine's m New Orleans. It was sheer delight. Our bill came to $24.50 and was worth it. shell-collecti- Oest bargains in summer traveling were found in the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas, a delightful tropical area yet to be fully discovered by tourists. In Brownsville, seaport on the U.S.Mexican border, the waitress apologized steak dinner had because the just been raised to $2.25. Our motel was $7 a night On motels, we had two strict rules: 1.) The AAA rating had to be at least "good." 2.) The motel had to have a swimming pool. Generally, motels cost us $9 to $12. These were in small-tow- n or medium-size- d city areas. Their counterparts in large cities ran about $3 to $6 higher. Perhaps the real highlight of our budget trip was Sanibel Island, just off Fort Myers, Fla. Here we rented a motel ng home-cooke- Here is the way it all worked out on a per diem basis: We spent: The average: MEALS $ 8.82 $14.00 11.13 LODGING 14.00 MISC. 2.94 3.00 7.70 DRIVING-30- 0 MILES 8.50 Biddie and I give Biddie most of the credit trimmed off a total of T-bo- ne $312.90 from AAA's minimum estiy mate for the cost of the trip. And we enjoyed it more because of the way we did it. "More than $300," mused Biddie. "With that saving, we've already got the money for a week's travel next year. Let's start planning." $ 30-da- S ' . cuss 0 orarura x, rn ft One brand. One fine quality. But, over 250 stvles varvina frcm classics to authentic high fashion, and priced from an amazing $19.95 to an elegant $100. All with a look of obvious quality from premium materials and workmanship. Florsheim-f- or everything you've always wanted in shoes. Left: The BROADMOOR. 20277. . .$23.95 Center: The BROADMOOR, THE FLORSHEIM SHOE COMPANY 21 CHICAGO 150. . .$27.95 60606 Right: The BROADMOOR, 20268. . .$32.95 A DIVISION OF INTERCO INCORPORATED |