Zip line thrills, Iran surprises, Jane delights

— -- Best experience

One. Two. Three. Wheeee! I got to channel Jane of the Jungle in the Colorado Rockies this summer, signing up for five hours of zip-lining amid 300-year-old ponderosa pines at Soaring Treetop Adventures near Durango.

As an adrenaline addict who had already tried skydiving and hang-gliding and sampled the zany sport of zip-lining at its birthplace in Costa Rica, I wasn't expecting to be wowed by a high-end resort that targeted indulgent grandparents. But swooping through a tunnel of quaking aspens and twisting head over heels 50 feet above the roaring Animas River turned out to be a blast — and so was watching the reactions of those lucky grandkids.

Worst experience

If Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich winds up in the slammer on "pay for play" corruption charges, I've got the perfect punishment: daily forced feedings of Springfield's biggest claim to culinary fame, the horseshoe sandwich. (Candidates for runner-up include the hot dog on a stick and chili topped with beef fat.)

Invented at a local hotel 80 years ago and wildly popular in the state capital ever since, the horseshoe is a stomach-churning concoction of toasted white bread, some variation of meat (typically hamburger) and cheese sauce, topped off with a blanket of soggy french fries. Midwest comfort food at its finest? Not to this Midwest gal, who managed three forkfuls of a smaller "pony" version before fleeing to the nearest Subway.

Most unexpected experience

In a post-9/11 era of swaggering, "bring 'em on" foreign policy, getting rock-star treatment is surprising enough for an American tourist abroad. Being mobbed by posses of swooning schoolgirls in the heart of the Axis of Evil? Astonishing — and a regular occurrence on my two-week tour of Iran this fall.

During one of my encounters, at the Shiraz garden and tomb of the 13th-century poet Sadi, I passed a flock of chattering students, sparrow-like in their white headscarves and drab brown uniforms.

Amid the choruses of "Where are you from?" and "Welcome to Iran!" one of the girls girl shyly asked me if I would write my name in her notebook.