My husband’s family has invited us to join them on a cruise from San Diego to Acapulco. My first and last cruise was more than 35 years ago from New York to England. We hit stormy weather and I was violently seasick.

I never wanted to cruise again, but everyone says it won’t happen again this time. If I go, how can I keep from getting sick? MLB, Waco TX

A: First, Mexico’s Baja Peninsula cruising is usually much calmer than on the Atlantic Ocean. Also, with advanced technology, today’s cruise ships sail more smoothly. That said, here are several simple ways to avoid mal de mer.

1. Cruise meals are elegant, but overeating can cause upset stomachs. Eat simple, fresh food and go easy on seconds. Wash your hands thoroughly before eating or drinking. Also, limit the wine and booze. When you go ashore in tourist areas, please do not eat anything from outside carts nor drink local water.

In today’s ever-more complex air travel world, we’ve all experienced the frustration. Too often senior passengers are caught in sudden cancellations, missed connections, denied boarding due to overbooking and other unexpected problems they didn't cause.

In flights to and from Europe, many senior travelers have been left emotionally stranded concerning their rights, confused about effective ways to seek compensation. They may be familiar with laws that require airlines to meet their legal obligations in such cases, but can’t nor don’t want to do all the necessary direct contacts and paperwork. Help is on the way: Refund.me

If you're from Lake Chaubunagungamaug in Massachusetts or Punxsutawney in Pennsylvania, this sign may not be a problem for you to interpret. When traveling recently in Wales, we happened on this sign above the train station's retail store. Although we did have special thoughts, we couldn't understand what it meant.

Travel tip: Whenever roaming from our Hollywood headquarters out of the US, we take a dozen or so pens and pencils imprinted with our town’s familiar name. The inexpensive little give-aways are great conversation starters with cabbies, desk clerks, porters and waiters. Also, when we need to stop a cop or someone else on the street to ask directions, the gifts express our thanks for the courtesy.

We suggest yours to have inscriptions of your home town, state, workplace, profession and/or other friendly personal message. If you’re visiting several foreign destinations, inscribe groups of pens in appropriate languages.