MESSAGE CENTER

Sunday, August 27, 2006

.

Louisville the Great

YOUR LONG OVERDUE article on Louisville ["Louisville Old and New: Either Way, It's a Knockout," Aug. 20] was most welcome to those of us who are fans of the city. However, you left out two of its most appealing attractions.

Every spring the Actors Theatre of Louisville holds the Humana Festival of New American Plays. This year, its 30th, the ATL produced 10 world premieres and drew critics, playwrights, donors, professors, actors and fans from all over the world to what is now acknowledged as America's leading festival of new drama.

The other is the Kentucky Museum of Art + Design, a few blocks down Main Street from the ATL. This small museum puts on exciting and impressive exhibitions by Kentucky atists. These two institutions alone would justify a journey to Louisville.

Robin Berrington, Washington

AS A NATIVE Louisvillian who can't wait to get back home, I wanted to say thanks for a great article. I miss the city's mix of Southern hospitality and Midwestern common sense, along with the fabulous restaurants, the notable park system and the feeling that you'll never meet a stranger. My husband, a native of the West Coast, says that Louisville must be the world's smallest big city because whenever we're in town we run into someone I know, no matter where we go.

The only thing I would have mentioned is that Southwest is the best way to get there, with multiple nonstop flights daily at the best prices.

Theresa Blackinton, Bethesda

I REALLY ENJOYED your article on my hometown. Louisville is a very special place to those who call it home, and you touched upon just some of the reasons.

Aaron Barnes, Richmond

Airline Security, Cont'd

IN YOUR ARTICLE on airport security [Travel Q&A, Aug. 20], you said to either leave your valuables home or lock your checked luggage. I have a bit of experience to share.

I have locked my luggage on three different occasions with Transportation Security Administration-approved locks, and the TSA cut all three locks to inspect my luggage. The TSA says that each inspection station has a set of master keys for the approved locks. So why did they cut them? The TSA had no explanation.

The answer is to pack items for which you might get a partial reimbursement from your home-owners' or renters' insurance, and ship your valuables via FedEx or UPS to your destination. Don't forget to insure your valuables with the shipper.

Kenneth E. Wray, Gaithersburg

I JUST WENT through security at BWI, Detroit and Milwaukee and handed a clear plastic bag to the TSA agent containing my 12 pills per day (for each of four days) in an unlabeled clear plastic case, with a doctor's- office-produced printout describing the contents. All agents waved me through without further inspection. Had they confiscated them, I had a duplicate supply in my checked baggage.

Altogether, the security lines were shorter and faster last weekend than they have been in the recent past. Only once was there a random inspection of carry-ons at the gate. The TSA inspectors appeared to pick on the women, but they were carrying the larger totes.

Paul A. Katz, Laurel

I PLACE MOST of my prescription drugs in small Ziploc bags. I then carefully peel the label from the original pill container and stick it on the bag. This greatly decreases the size.

I also label the bags in big print with a Sharpie pen to make them easier to read.

Always carry your meds -- lost luggage can be forever.

George Newbury, Alexandria

Write us: Washington Post Travel section, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071. E-mail: travel@washpost.com. Provide your full name, town and telephone number. Letters are subject to editing for length and clarity.