Open Jaw: Baja California, Magic in Ladakh, 48 Hours in Milan and Isabella Bird

Where readers write back

Local tip: the Gallerie d'Italia in Milan

Border muddle

In 1991, I took the train to San Diego in California, then rode the "Tijuana Trolley" to the border. Being so close to Mexico, I thought it would be good to go over. I had left my passport at the hotel but walked through with not a single US or Mexican border check. After a short walk around, I joined the queue back. I then came face to face with a US border guard. He looked at me hard and said "Boy, you've made a big boo-boo" and directed me into a room full of what looked like illegal entrants. Eventually, he gestured me out of the room and said, "Don't ever try that again, off you go."

Paul Haywood

Baja California

On a flight from Chicago, I asked for The Independent. I was eager for news as I had spent several weeks kayaking in Baja. Those sea lions off Espiritu Santo [which Simon Calder wrote about on 26 April] are something else but the islands further north feel much more remote.

Kevin Mansell

Magic in Ladakh

My favourite place on Earth. If you visit this magical part of India, do a trip to Lake Tso Moriri and Lake Tso Kar. The landscape is like nothing else I've encountered.

"LogoMomo"

48 Hours in Milan

As a Milanese, I found this article well written, if succinct. Of course there's more: the Gallerie d'Italia in La Scala square is not just a "grand building" but a magnificent art museum. The newest attraction is the Porta Nuova district. Its heart is the new Piazza Gae Aulenti. Finally, it's true that "aperitivo happy hour" is a sacred rite, but now the Milanese prefer the Arco della Pace area.

"hyperdanny"

Isabella Bird

I thoroughly enjoyed reading about her travels in Colorado. I have studied her since my trip to Estes Park and love her style of prose. I believe she would have pronounced this review as "sublime"!

"Hughman"