The most contented hours I spent in college were in my little study carrel tucked in the back of the library book stacks. I could read, study, think (and doze) to my heart's content, lost in the world of learning.
I relived those halcyon days recently when I attended my first Elderhostel, a study-oriented travel program for people 55 or older and their travel companions. It was almost like being back in school, except I didn't have to take exams or turn in term papers.
Elderhostel is just made for people who love learning, whether it's studying flora and fauna on a bicycle tour through Umbria, cooking in Provence or watching drama in a reproduction of London's Globe Theatre in the small, theater-rich town of Cedar City, Utah.
The 28-year-old Elderhostel program has a network of more than 2,000 educational and cultural institutions in the United States, Canada and 70 other countries. Its plump, newsprint catalogs offer study programs year-round for people 55 or older and their companions.
About 300,000 people a year take Elderhostel programs, some of them attending sessions back-to-back-to-back.
Our southwest Utah program was Drama in Dramatic Settings. We saw five plays - two Shakespeares and three Broadways - in four days, took a tour of historic St. George, gaped at the sheer cliffs in Zion National Park and spent glorious hours with college faculty members, professional actors and play directors talking theater.
It was the 78th Elderhostel for fellow student Jim Mahlbacher of Lake Worth, a retired U.S. Postal Service employee who said he often goes to first one and then another of the sessions without ever returning to home base. Others had been to a dozen or more sessions.
Elderhostel programs might not appeal to those whose idea of a great time is lounging on the poop deck. Elderhostelers can be roused out at 8 a.m. for a two-hour lecture comparing comedy, drama and tragedy or to take a bullet train from Kyoto to Hakone, Japan, to study the Hakone Barrier built by the Shogun in 1619.
Example from my program: early breakfast, attend a two-hour theater class, drive to Shakespearean Festival, quick lunch, matinee performance of the musical 1776, dine at the Royal Feast at the King's Pavilion, then on to preplay orientation, and, finally, at 8 p.m., Shakespeare's Measure for Measure, with informal discussion afterward.
Collapse in bed at midnight.
There's no boundless cruise ship buffet, either.
We had nourishing breakfasts in the lobby of the Dixie College Inn where we stayed and modest lunches at cafeterias or lodges as we toured. Our only gustatory indulgences were cookouts and feasts before three of the plays and musicals. This tour is about instruction, inquiry, questing, enlightenment.
Most Elderhostels are at college campuses and conference centers; some are held in national parks, game reserves, even a chateau in France. Usually, hostelers stay on campus or in modest hotels or motels. There's a roommate matching program for singles, though many programs offer single rooms at a modest additional cost.
The tuition usually covers all meals, housing, events, lecturers, guides and transportation to and from events. Foreign programs usually cover airfare from a few cities, but most domestic ones don't, so you have to make your own airline, train, bus or auto arrangements. Tipping the staff is strictly a no-no, tipping guest tour guides is optional.
A few programs have optional trips at extra cost - most don't. Prices start at $350 and go up to more than $5,000, depending on location and duration. Some Elderhostels are three days, others up to 24 days.
There are no prerequisites - except an inquiring mind - to enroll in Elderhostel. Even so, you're expected to attend the academic sessions and participate if you have something to share. Much of the joy of Elderhostel is the knowledge and companionship of kindred spirits.
Our group included a cousin of playwright Neil Simon, who shared delightful anecdotes about growing up with him and meeting famous theater people through him. We had one diehard Shakespeare enthusiast who had attended numerous Shakespeare plays and could offer cogent remarks about the comparative quality of the current offering.
All of us were theater lovers who wanted to see and learn more about theater.
The easiest way to find out about Elderhostel is to call toll-free 1-877-426-8056 between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. weekdays Eastern time and ask for a catalog. (The TTY number is 1-877-426-2167.)
Or you can write to Elderhostel at 11 Avenue de Lafayette, Boston, MA 02111-1746 or see the Web site at http://www.elderhostel.org
