The Globetrotters eNewsletter MEETING NEWS
Sunday, April 27th, 2003Meeting news from our branches around the world.
Archive for April, 2003
Meeting News from London
Sunday, April 27th, 2003Globetrotters meeting on 5th April by
Our first speaker Thomas Bourne showed us slides of Chile, Patagonia,
Antarctica and South Georgia. Thomas had spent his gap year on board
a 55ft ketch as a “Cabin boy”. He started his voyage in Chile,
showing us wonderful views of the Chilean lakes, volcano’s and the
San Rafael glacier, which is the earth’s furthest glacier from its
respective pole. Thomas also showed us the local wildlife including sea
lion, dolphins and albatrosses. He sailed south in his boat and called
in at Ushaia. This seemed a veritable metropolis after weeks at sea.
After rounding Cape Horn and transiting the Drake Passage he headed down
to Antarctica, reaching a very impressive 66 degrees and 3 minutes south.
We saw pictures of massive tabular icebergs that had weird shapes carved
out of them by the elements, though Thomas pointed out that it was the
small “bergy bits” that float just under the surface that
are a more serious threat to the safety of small craft travelling at 6
Knots. Our final views were of South Georgia, which has been visited
by less than 100 yachts. This made Thomas feel that he had been very
privileged to have spent 12 months doing this exciting trip.
Our second speaker was one of Padmassana’s favourite travel writers,
the intrepid cyclist Anne Mustoe. On this her second visit to the Globetrotters
Club, Anne took us from Kathmandu in Nepal to Kandy in Sri Lanka, following
the route of the epic Indian Ramayana story. Anne’s journey took
her via many of India’s famous sights including The Residency in
Lucknow, where 2000 Britons were killed during the Indian mutiny. Anne
couldn’t see India without visiting Agra and the stunning Taj Mahal.
Anne introduced us to her Agra rickshaw driver on whom she took pity and
ended up doing an impromptu shopping expedition around Agra in order that
her driver received a 5 Rupee tip from each shop, which went towards the
daily hire fee of his vehicle. Anne continued south often staying in
less than desirable accommodation, however she occasionally splurged such
as when she stayed at the Taj Hotel in Mumbai, where the doormen had the
opportunity to “park” her cycle instead of the BMW’s
and Mercedes that they were more used to. Anne took a number of British
winters to complete this epic trip down India before eventually ending
up in Sri Lanka her goal accomplished. Visit Anne’s website for
more details
Coming up: Saturday 10th May
Windy Baboulene - The Blue road Windy left school at 16 and travelled
the world for 4 years working on cargo ships. The “hilarious and
bizarre” true story of his adventures has been published entitled
“Blue Road” and is the foundation for his talk. John Harrison
- Amazon adventures John has made seven canoeing expeditions to the
Amazon, besides travelling lengths of the Niger and rivers in Europe and
North America. His expeditions travel without radio or back up, exploring
some of the Amazon’s remotest tributaries with the old style “risk-adventure”
approach. John has chaired RGS Tropical Rainforest workshops, written
“Up the Creek” an Amazonian Adventure, been the subject of a
TV documentary “John Harrison Explorer” and has made several
programmes for BBC Radio 4.
London meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court,
behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden at 2.30pm the first Saturday
of each month. There is no London meeting in August, but we will be back
in September. For more information, you can contact the Globetrotters
Info line on +44 (0) 20 8674 6229, or visit the website:
Meeting News from New York “Ladakh: The last Shangri-la?”
Sunday, April 27th, 2003“Ladakh: The last Shangri-la?”
“In the forbidding terrain of the Himalayas, a robust people embellish
their frugal lives with rich endowments of faith” (Thomas J. Abercrombie,
National Geographic). Experience the beauty of this exotic land through
a slide show by Kenneth Axen, PhD, research scientist, graphic artist,
and serious amateur photographer.
For details of forthcoming meetings email
or register for email updates,
at our website.
New York meetings are held at The Wings Theatre, 154 Christopher
Street (btw Greenwich St and Washington St), to the right of Crunch Fitness,
in the Archive on the first Saturday of each month at 4 pm.
Meeting News from Ontario
Sunday, April 27th, 2003For information on Ontario meetings, please contact Svatka Hermanek:
or Bruce Weber: tel. 416-203-0911 or Paul Webb: tel. 416-694-8259.
Meetings are held on the third Friday of January, March, May, September
and November. Usually at the Woodsworth Co-op, Penthouse, 133, Wilton
Street in downtown Toronto at 8.00 p.m.
Meeting News from Texas
Sunday, April 27th, 2003Globetrotters meeting on 12th April by Christina
The April meeting in Texas provided a plethora of travel tips - from
the virtues of ziplock bags to the uses of duct tape when travelling.
Each month new people attend this branch meeting (3 in April) and eagerly
state they are looking forward to the next meeting.
Coming up May 10th at the New Braunfels
Public Library
The May meeting will provide a magical mystery slide trip. Attendees
come from Austin, San Antonio, the Texas Hill Country and even Corpus
Christi. The May meeting will be at the New Braunfels Public Library,
conveniently located 1 1/2 miles from IH35.
Come one, come all. Make new friends and see old ones. Keeping in tradition
with the London meeting, the Texans adjourn to the Hoity Toit for more
fun and fellowship following the monthly meeting.
Come see us, y’all! Second Saturday at 2 p.m.
The Texas Branch of the Globetrotters Club will meet Saturday May
10th, 2003 at the New Braunfels Public Library – note
back to old location.
If you like independent, adventuresome, fun, daring, exciting, “off
the beaten path” travel, this club is for you. Our meeting begins
at 2 P.M. Come early so you won’t be late! Enjoy handouts, travel talk
time, and door prizes!
Dates of future meetings: June 14th
Mark your calendars
For more information about the Texas Branch: please contact
or register for email updates at our website (
or call Christina at 830-620-5482
If anybody would like to enquire about meetings or help Christina, please
contact her on: texas@globetrotters.co.uk
Write for the Globetrotters monthly e-newsletter
Sunday, April 27th, 2003If you enjoy writing, enjoy travelling, then why not write for the free
monthly Globetrotters e-newsletter! The Beetle would love to hear from
you: your travel stories, anecdotes, jokes, questions, hints and tips,
or your hometown or somewhere of special interest to you. Over 7,500
people subscribe to the Globetrotter e-news.
To see your story in cyber print, e-mail the Beetle with your travel
experiences, hints and tips or questions up to 750 words, together with
a couple of sentences about yourself and a contact e-mail address to Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk
Airport Profile: London Heathrow
Sunday, April 27th, 2003Heathrow airport is one of four airports that are almost dotted like
the four points of the compass in and around London. There’s London
Gatwick to the south of London, City Airport in the east of London and
the Beetle’s most hated airport, Stansted, and home of the infamous
Ryanair to the north of London. LHR or London Heathrow is some 24km or
15 miles to the west of London.
Before WW2, the airstrip at Heathrow was little more than a grass strip
and a tent a little walk away. Back then, it was called The Great Western
Aerodrome and was privately owned by the Fairey company and used largely
for test flying. London’s commercial flights took off from nearby Heston
and Hanworth Park airfields.
As was the case with many airports in large cities, WW2 changed the nature
and importance of these otherwise small airstrips. The UK Air Ministry
requisitioned the airstrip in 1944 with a view to it being developed as
a major transport base for the Royal Air Force. The war ended before
the work was completed but this new airstrip with its modern amenities
lent itself to cater for the massive post war demand for civil aviation.
One runway was ready for use and when the Ministry of Civil Aviation took
it over in 1946 a tented terminal was quickly put in place. By 1947,
three other runways had been completed and work on another three, subsequently
abandoned as unnecessary, was going on. A new and permanent building
arose in the central area at the start of the 1950s, replacing the army
surplus tent.
In 1955, Terminal 2 was constructed to cope with the ever increasing
demand for flight travel. Next came the new Oceanic terminal handling
long-haul carriers, a function it still performs as Terminal 3, followed
by the opening of Terminal 1 in 1968. Increased congestion in the central
area led to the birth of Terminal 4 in 1986 on the south side of the airport,
a 10 minute transfer away by tube.
Today, Heathrow is one of the world’s busiest airports and has
60,000 workers.
Terminal 1: is for all domestic flights, most UK airline departures
to Europe plus EL AL and South African Airways flights.
Terminal 2: is for most non-UK carriers’ flights to Europe and
some long haul destinations.
Terminal 3: is the long haul terminal for US, South American,
Asian and Asia Pacific airlines plus most African carriers.
Terminal 4: is for British Airways long haul and Concorde flights
and BA flights to Amsterdam, Athens, Paris, Moscow and Tel Aviv. KLM
and Qantas also use T4.
Leaving Mikindani by Richard Densham
Sunday, April 27th, 2003Richard was a volunteer working in Mikindani, Tanzania for a UK based
charity, Trade Aid.
It is with mixed feelings that I am about to leave Mikindani, although
I would hasten to add that the vast majority of those feelings are positive.
The one experience that will definitely stay with me will be home stay;
it was an experience that was both extremely valuable and informative.
It has certainly changed the way I think, especially about the lives we
lead back in England (sorry the “UK” for all you Irish, Scots
and Welsh)
There have been many other interesting, frustrating and somewhat bizarre
experiences whilst I have been here. Perhaps the most interesting experience
has been the teaching, (the little that I did due to all the predictable
reasons, i.e. no teachers or pupils). This has certainly provided me
with an insight into the village, the good chances it has for the future
and also more realistically, many of the problems that need to be overcome.
The will is there, it just needs to be taken advantage of and used. Trade
Aid has done a lot towards that.
This interesting experience also ties in with one of the most frustrating
experiences, there were many exhausting mornings spent cycling to various
schools only to find that they were locked up and not a soul was to be
seen, (the previous day was usually spent arranging a time to teach that
day with the headmaster). A familiar experience I’m sure for many of
the volunteers, patience and calm are certainly a virtue here. I do hope
that none of the villagers witnessed my minor temper tantrums when this
happened! However the best way to chill out after days like these was
always the time honoured Trade Aid method of unwinding. Bingwa!
Work here has included continuing staff training; this was certainly
an excellent way to get to know them, and yet again another good way to
gain an insight into the village. The one thing that impressed me the
most was the staffs enthusiasm to learn and their professionalism toward
the guests. As patronising as this sounds it is something that has been
mentioned by many of the guests at the Boma. I think that my time here
in Mikindani has done many things for me, it has certainly opened my eyes
to a very different corner of the world, and it has also made me far more
aware of the problems facing the third world. However, it has also moved
my views away from the slightly candied images and views we hear and see
in the West. I do not mean this in a bad way, just that my views have
become more realistic as opposed to simplistic. Africa has many problems,
and what I have realised that it’s a two man job to help areas like Mikindani,
help from the outside is fine, but the people on the receiving end need
to be prepared to help themselves. Thankfully this is what’s happening
in Mikindani.
The big question I find myself asking now is how will I feel when I get
back to the UK. I have been told by some that it is odd getting used
to all of the things that you do not find in Mikindani, and that you have
adapted to, such as no Tanesco at inconvenient times, and no hot water.
However I have no doubt that I will very easily get used to hot baths
again and the sweet, sweet smell of bacon. So goodbye Mikindani I certainly
shan’t forget you.
For more information about Trade Aid, volunteers and their work, please
visit their website www.mikindani.com
or e-mail Sherie on tradeaid@netcomuk.co.uk
Bumsters in The Gambia
Sunday, April 27th, 2003A recent report by the UK newspaper, the Independent said that the Gambian
Tourism Association is fed up with reports saying that 60% of visitors
to the country would not return after they found themselves the target
of harassment by bumsters (beach boys). Some tourists, who were quoted
as saying that The Gambia offers a wonderful and ideal holiday experience,
said the bumster menace presents a frightening blot. The Gambia Tourism
Authority (GTA) has announced that they are adopting tougher measures
against the presence of beach boys (bumsters), through the temporary use
of the National Guard.
Comments from tourists reported by the Independent include:
‘I found The Gambia excellent apart from the hassling, not only from
the people outside, but also from the staff at the hotels, which should
be stopped’, said a tourist who was ending his holiday.
”I found it difficult to cope with the harassment outside the hotel
and the constant begging. There were times when I did not to go outside
the hotel’ another complained to the Independent newspaper.
Other tourists were however more interested in the brighter side of the
country, saying that in spite of harassment from bumsters they will return.
The bumsters said that the approach adopted by the GTA, having armed
guards patrolling the beaches is a curb on their freedom. They noted
that since the start of the tourist season soldiers are seen in every
part of the industry armed with guns and arresting any individual or group
of people on sight. However they said people arrested around hotels are
taken to the Fajara military barracks, where they are subjected to hard
labour and their heads completely shaved. According to them even girls
found around the TDA are not spared. They are rounded up and forced to
do laundry.
Despite the bumsters, the Beetle wondered what there was to do in The
Gambia and has come up with the following suggestions.
When to Go:
The Gambia is a popular winter holiday destination. The best time to
go is between November and March when it is dry and cooler than the searing
hot summer months. The rainy season is June to October. Visitors no
longer require a Yellow Fever certificate, (unless you are arriving from
a country where Yellow Fever is endemic.) Most visitors from Europe do
not require a visa for stays of up to 28 days. There should be no jet
lag coming from the UK, as Gambian time is (theoretically!) the same as
GMT. The Gambians have a reputation as being a very friendly people,
but watch out for the beach boys, locally called “bumsters”
– see above - who have a tendency to harangue, hassle and generally
ask tourists for money.
Where to Go:
Most people come to the Gambia to stay for a week or two on one of the
beaches on the Atlantic coast. It’s pretty easy to get to as the
10 km stretch of hotels is only about 15km from Banjul International airport.
Popular resorts include Bakau, Fajara, Kotu and Kololi where you can find
many good class hotels with all the usual tourist attractions including
golf courses, water sports, cycle rental and good beaches for swimming
and sunning. Incidentally, the further south you stay, the better the
beach is likely to be for swimming. Banjul is served by a number of charter
and scheduled flights from Europe and other African countries.
Banjul, the Capital:
You might be tempted to step outside your hotel compound as there are
some interesting sites around The Gambia. Banjul, the capital city is
on an island at the mouth of the River Gambia, separated from the mainland
by a narrow creek. Because of its location, it has never really grown
into a large city and it is worth maybe half a day to wander around.
Take a look at Albert Market, a great example of an African market,
with its fruit and veg stands, shoes and clothes and household goods.
Close to the market on MacCarthy Square there is a War Memorial
and Fountain, erected to commemorate the coronation of Britain’s
King George VI in 1937. The Gambia National Museum is a bit decrepit
but has displays of photos, maps and text about archaeology, African people
and the colonial period. Close by is The Gambia’s tallest building,
the 35m (115ft) Arch 22 which was built to celebrate the military
coup of 22 July 1994 (led by Lieutenant Yahya Jammeh, who is still The
Gambia’s president). You can go up the arch – take a camera as
it has great views over the city and the coast.
Roots:
If you enjoyed reading the book Roots or seeing the film or TV series,
you could take a tour to explore Jufureh, a small village on the northern
bank of the River Gambia about 25km (15miles) upstream from Banjul. In
Roots, Jufureh is the place where Kunta Kinte, Alex Haley’s ancestor,
was captured here and taken as a slave to America some 200 years ago.
Today, Jufureh is very much on the tourist trail as it’s easily reached
from Banjul although there’s actually not a huge amount to see there,
but the locals put in an appearance, there’s an artisan’s
market and again, according to the Lonely Planet, an old lady called Binde
Kinte, (a descendant of Haley’s), makes a guest appearance at her compound.
Photos are produced of Haley and Binde Kinte and of the griot (storyteller)
who first told Haley the tale of his family. The tours you can take usually
include the village of Albreda. Here you can see the ruined ‘factory’,
a fortified slave house originally built by the French in the late 17th
century, and there’s a museum that tells you about the history of
slavery on the River Gambia.
Well, that’s Banjul visited! If you are a twitcher, there’s
good bird watching to be had around the mangrove swamps of Banjul Island;
there are plenty of tours. The Gambia’s largest town and de facto
capital is Serekunda. This is the transport hub and the economic centre
of the country. There’s not a huge amount to see here for the tourist,
but if you want to look around urban Africa, then this is it.
OK, so back to the Atlantic resorts: Bakau, the northernmost resort has
botanical gardens, if that is your thing. They were established during
colonial times and according to Lonely Planet it is looking “a little
dilapidated now, but it’s still a peaceful, shady place that’s good for
spotting birds”. Also at Bakau there is the Kachikaly Crocodile
Pool, a sacred site for the local people, who come here to pray, as
crocodiles among some tribes in The Gambia represent the power of fertility.
At the southern end of the coastal strip at Kololi, there is a
small wildlife reserve, Bijolo Forest Park, which has trails through
dense, shady vegetation, where you can often see monkeys and birds.
Getting Around:
It is pretty easy to get around in The Gambia. Green (Tourist) Taxis
are painted green with a diamond sign and a serial number on the side.
They are licensed by the Gambia Tourism Authority and dedicated to serving
tourists and other visitors. They are normally parked outside the hotels
in the resort areas. Yellow and Green taxis are mainly 4 passenger saloon
cars painted in these colours which run a shared taxi service between
short distances or park by the roadside for individual hire. Collective
(Bush) Taxi: The most common way of travelling in The Gambia is by Collective
Taxis otherwise called ‘Bush’ Taxis. These are mainly 7 passenger saloon
cars, vans and mini- buses and buses. They do not have a single colour
and operate everywhere.
The Beetle
would like to hear from you, if you have visited The Gambia – how
did you find it?
Of Connemara by Matthew Doughty
Sunday, April 27th, 2003Sitting silently during the drive over from Rosleague Manor to Killary
Harbour, I reflected on whether this was one of those trips where I would
fail to write about what I could see. Despite being surrounded by striking
views, I was troubled on how find a theme with which I could connect an
article.
However as soon as I had dismissed any writing expectations I might have
had, our progression along the fantastically situated N59 immediately
provided the missing inspiration! As this west coast route ran along
side Kylemore Lough, it struck me that autumn Connemara is full of rich,
varied colours, which are vividly magnified by the ever-changing climates
of each weathered hill we passed. These colours instantly brightened
as the afternoon sun chased away the day’s heavy rain clouds leaving
a valley of wet, verdant grass to open up before our eyes. Further out
across the landscape of boggy fields and coniferous plantations, neatly
stacked and apparently drying (!) peat bricks helped contrast this lush
greenness. At this section of the N59, the road rises away from Kylemore
and up alongside the mitre shaped and wonderfully named Church of our
Lady of the Wayside! Across the horizon the dark, sodden clouds clung
to the high peaks of the distant Maumturk Mountain, lingering for simple
chance to return centre stage.
If I were ever to seek voluntary exile, Killary Harbour would be high
on my choice of havens! As the N59 drove us towards our initial view
of Ireland’s only fjord (can anyone provide a geological definition?)
I found myself surprised by what lay ahead. To the north the 817 metre
high Mweelrea shouldered this long, silver water along its winding course,
whilst the road, sheep and houses competed for footholds on the lower
hillsides of the southern shore. Despite this forcing of direction, Killary
itself still had space to be laned- off like a swimming pool by the blue
buoys of the local fish farms. At the head of this natural harbour sat
the scattered village of Leenane and the Aasleagh Falls, across which
the browned and fast flowing Erriff River flowed out and into the harbour.
To stop rather than peer round the next corner of our road was difficult
but the deep red and slowly settling Guinness of Gaynors’ allowed
us a splendid retrospective on what we had just taken in ! And even though
we were almost as far west as possible on the Irish mainland, Steve and
I found the hospitality of this whole haven to be of somewhere much more
cosmopolitan…
How else could these colours be surpassed? Later from our week of touring
I could offer up the small market town of Westport with its brightly painted
market streets or the tidally excluded Omey Island but I feel that our
journey to Inis Mór deserves is a highlight worth mentioning.
At the third time of asking we were able to catch the ferry across to
the largest Aran Island and spend the best part of a glorious day surrounded
by blue seas and bright, clear skies! A smooth forty five minutes later
we found ourselves spilling out in to Kilronan, where the majority of
our fellow passengers were swept up by the waiting horse and bicycle-hiring
locals towards the most famous Celtic antiquities. Steve and I had to
be different, much to the consternation of many, and as such we walked
in the opposite direction towards Killeany. My fellow traveller even
managed to add to the collection of colours in his own style – as
without notice he stumbled across the beach and had to issue expletives
and bloodied grazes to make himself feel better! All that our small tourist
map seemed to reward such stubbornness with was a ruined castle and a
very precariously perched church!
However reality and bright sunshine proffered sights of both that deserved
better depiction. Caisleán Aircín, built in the sixteenth
century, did not survive its Cromwellian ransacking and now exists solely
as a facade monitoring Killeany Bay. Aran Islanders have since stole
a march on twenty-first century recycling ideas by converting much of
the castle’s rear into small farm buildings and dry stone walls.
Though the claim to be one of the smallest churches known to exist could
be counter claimed, Teampall Bheanain did offer a wonderful perspective
across the eastern end of the island. According to myth and legend St
Bheanain, a successor to Ireland’s patron saint at Armagh, had this
small and unorthodox church built over one thousand years ago. Unusually
to those in the know, this church stands on a north-south axis, allowing
the sweeping weather to ride along its’ frame rather than across
any roof that it might have supported! Sitting up against one of its
granite grey walls we could understand why the founder soon accepted a
higher position on the mainland, even though his church had not been completed
too long ! The nearby airfield and its surprisingly regular prop driven
flights emphasised the battering that Inis Mór faces – how
could those small aircraft handle those constant winds?
Returning from our perch, the leisurely paced walk awoke me to the fact
that all journeys have to end and that our general direction was now eastwards,
all the way back to our home lives. Still time a plenty left to enjoy
an ever growing delight of mine in west Ireland – fresh seafood
washed down with another of Arthur Guinness’s finest at The Aran
Islander!
Contact the author of this article: Matt is happy to be
contacted if you’d like some more information about planning your
travels or about any of the places he talks about in his own travel planning.
E-mail