Motel Memo

I always read the Travel section because I usually find stories with interesting content, good writing, and great photos. But “Motel to Motel on a Budget--America All the Way”(July 2) really let me down. I cannot understand why four of the eight pictures were taken in Pennsylvania. For the photo captions to mention only one state after a writer crossed the country--covering 4,411 miles--seems pretty puzzling. West Virginia, Nevada, Colorado and Illinois all are in the story. How about a picture? It also strikes me as rather contradictory to take a budget trip and then grouse about a few inconveniences. For example, we all drink from plastic cups on occasion . . . isn’t Ellen Uzelac getting a bit spoiled? I have saved many excellent articles from the Travel section, but this feature missed the mark.

STEVEN D. KLEIN

Los Angeles