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This is part 8 of the puzzle series. Part 1 is here.

Dear Puzzling,

Today I'm enjoying some quiet time after a long flight. As you know I'm at least as much a fan of places of worship as the next traveller, and the one I saw today is certainly worth the visit.

Some cells in the grid can contain two letters. The given letter counts indicate the space available, not the real length of the answer.

Wish you were here!
Love, Gladys.

enter image description here

Across
2. Request dividing wagers to small containers (7)
8. Losing heart? Refrain from being enthusiastic (3)
11. Liquid type of metal work (6, two wds.)
12. Strip the skin off captured steer? That's frivolous (7, hyph.)
13. Man's cigar that's imported (4)
15. Singer that's the shortest member in a group of five (6)
19. Solar system initially invaded by alien groups (4)
20. Many a doer of can can can's red hot? (6)
22. Department of a paramilitary organization is engaged in clandestine transactions at the front (11)
25. Employee finally – after retirement – encounters recognition (6)
29/24d. After the initial parts of festivities, one in fifty repeatedly caught a bug? (7, two wds.)
31. Raising matter of Titus regularly getting into leadership position (6)
34. Patrick's final novel was Aware (4)
36. Failure to recollect funny names, among other things (7)
37. Never mind redoing arrangement without gold finish (6)
38. Periodic selection of edgy red colour (3)
39. Articles about acts of repeating things from memory (7)

Down
1. News of Northern Ireland coming up (4)
2. Nonsense decree (4)
3. I was substituted in evening party by suitable piece of vegetation (8)
4. One Thousand and One Nights' ending involving woman essentially providing for island inhabitants (5)
5. Antelope hiding in the landscape (5)
6. Oxford head disappeared; British conservative put on trial (3)
7. 31 across perhaps on the rise, supported by a legendary tale (3)
8. First rage violently, then concede, finally yield assent (5)
9. Six hundred to surrender, at last, to champion (5)
10. Middle Eastern capital described by short quote of Homer's Iliad, part four (4)
14. Prosecco bottles? Dry wine (3)
16. Snake striking Malcolm Harris, a prominent runner (3)
17. Add in French cream, with nougat covering (8)
18. They say y'all in New England apply? (3)
21. Immediately rejecting amateurish performer, an actor named Jason (3)
23. Oddly, evenly swimming creature (3)
24. (See 29 across)
26. Retired American doctor in New York – or several? (5)
27. Article regarding that place (5)
28. Repeat note on microphone (5)
29. United Nations soldier supporting strong kingdom (5)
30. Lifting up bottom part of children's slide (4)
32. The US tax agency, needing no introduction for people inheriting fortunes (4)
33. Say, Manx female grabbing mouse's tail (4)
35. Uprising unprepared for armed conflict (3)
36. Saying "yes" to Lukashenko dropping out for a long time (3)

Gladys will return in Gladys's Mismatching Cryptic.

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1 Answer 1

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COMPLETED GRID

enter image description here

ACROSS

2. BASKETS = ASK + BETS
8. AVID = AV(-o)ID
11. NUT OIL = NU (metal, musical genre) + TOIL
12. FLY-AWAY = FLAY + YAW
13. GARTH = ciGAR THat's
15. PINKIE = PINK (singer) + IE
19. SETS = S_ S_ + ET
20. DANCERS = CAN'S RED*
22. SECRETARIAT = SECRET + (A + IRA)< + T_ (not sure how A + IRA gets turned about)
25. ESTEEM = _E + MEETS<
29. FELL ILL = FE_ + I (one) + LLLL (fifty repeatedly)
30. SKIDS = KID(S, lifting bottom part up)
31. HELIUM = tItUs + HELM
34. KNEW = _K + NEW (novel)
36. AMNESIA = NAMES* + IA (inter alia)
37. IGNORE = RE(-d)OING*
38. DYE = eDgY rEd
39. RECITALS = ARTICLES*

DOWN

1. INFO = (OF + NI)<
2. BULL &lit
3. SOAPTREE = SO(-i)REE + APT
4. KIWIS = K (one thousand) + I (one) + W (woman) + I (provIding) + S (nightS)
5. ELAND = thE LANDscape
6. TRY = T(-o, Oxford head)RY
7. SAGA = GAS< + A
8. AGREE = RAGE* + _E
9. VICTOR = VI (six) + C (hundred) + TO + _R
10. DOHA = DO (ditto...short quote) + H (Homer) + A (Iliad, part four)
14. SEC = proSECco
17. INCREMENT = IN + CREME + N_T
19. USE = "YOUZE"
21. STAT = STAT(-ham)
23. EEL = EvEnLy
26. SUNDRY = US< + N(DR)Y
27. THERE = THE + RE
28. MIMIC = MI + MIC
29. FUNGI = F (forte in music) + UN + GI
32. HEIRS = (-t)HE IRS
33. GAEL = GAL + _E
35. WAR = RAW< (RAW IS WAR!!!!!!!)
36. AGE = ADAGE - DA (per OP, original incorrect answer...AYE = ????)

THE REAL ANSWER

Of course, the doubled letters spell out Gladys's location: VIGAN CATHEDRAL

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  • $\begingroup$ Argh, you're right about 22a missing an indicator. Sorry about that! 36d was intended as rot13(NQNTR zvahf QN = NTR). Not my greatest clue, I admit... Especially with the "saying" part not being obvious, it would have been better to indicate the Russian word more clearly. I chose this one because it makes a topical surface. $\endgroup$
    – Jafe
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 6:52
  • $\begingroup$ @jafe No worries...I find it really tough to quality check my own cryptics, because I know what I meant and can't forget it :-) I'll fix up the answer for 36d: I see where you were going, and actually like the clue a lot, but using Lukashenko instead of, say, Putin threw me off a little bit. Thanks for the puzzle, great as always!!! $\endgroup$
    – Jeremy Dover
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 11:44
  • $\begingroup$ What's the parsing for 16 d? The definition and the answer fit, from a certain novel/movie, but I can't get the rest of the clue. $\endgroup$
    – Chris Cudmore
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 16:12
  • $\begingroup$ @ChrisCudmore Good question. I guess I skipped over it because the answer was fully checked. Don't think I got that one, and I don't see it off-hand. $\endgroup$
    – Jeremy Dover
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 18:50
  • $\begingroup$ @ChrisCudmore rot13("Uneevf, n cebzvarag ehaare" zvahf n fubeg avpxanzr sbe Znypbyz) $\endgroup$
    – Jafe
    Commented Oct 28, 2020 at 11:00

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