In South Africa, Surgery Tours Offer Beauty and the Beasts

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa — Dotti Ramos came to this southern African nation looking for a face lift and some face time--with a lion. By taking a trend-setting "scalpel safari," she's getting both.

The California civil servant and mother of two was tired of looking tired, and she wanted a holiday break that wouldn't break the bank. So when she learned of a South African package tour that offered surgery, wildlife expeditions and pampering at a five-star hotel--all for almost less than the price of just one surgical procedure in the United States--Ramos couldn't resist.

By ANN M. SIMMON