The Globetrotters eNewsletter
eNewsletter Archive

If you have a travellers tale that your
aching to tell. Then why not visit the “Travel Sized
Bites” section of the Website and share it with the
world. "http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/bites/">Travel Sized
Bites

Here’s a little Beetle quiz based
on airport codes. How many did you get right! Go on, have a
guess!

Which cities are served by airports with
the following codes:

1. PHX
2. ATH
3. ZNZ
4. DPS
5. EZE

For the answers, see at the end of the
e-newsletter.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, we apologise
for the delay, but there is a security alert at Victoria
Station, and we are stuck here for the foreseeable future,
so let's take our minds off it and pass some time
together. All together now…. Ten green bottles, hanging
on a wall…..”

Simon, a single guy from the UK is
looking for a travel companion to join him from May 2003
onwards in his travels across the US, over to New Zealand
and to Fiji. Simon enjoys the usual things in life and is a
keen scuba diver. If you would like to join Simon, please
contact him direct on: "mailto:DISNEYBOND@HOTMAIL.COM">DISNEYBOND@HOTMAIL.COM

Don, a recently renewed member of the
Globetrotter’s Club is starting to research travel to
Mexico. He is seeking general advice on suggested places to
get off the beaten trail, visit with local people and
historic sites. He would likely launch the trip from a
popular locale (for best airfare rate) and venture away
from there. Any suggestions of places/regions to start my
research greatly appreciated. Also, anyone have info on
renting a basic mid-size motorcycle in Mexico and touring
the 'blue highways.' Don can be contacted on HREF="mailto:donelda@island.net">donelda@island.net

Need help? Want a travelling buddy or
advice about a place or country - want to share something
with us - why not visit our Mutual Aid section of the
Website: "http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/mutual/mutaid.html">Mutual
Aid

Last month we reported that both the
French and British authorities had decided to retire
Concorde. Now, Richard Branson, millionaire owner of Virgin
Airlines, has stepped by saying that he could make Concorde
profitable and more affordable. He said, “we believe
it has as many as 25 years good flying in it. Concorde is a
great ambassador to Britain and should be in the air, not
broken up and sold.” Under Virgin, the planes would
offer cheaper second-class seats while first class prices
would increase.

In last month’s Globetrotter
e-news, we spoke of 31 tourists being abducted and held in
the Sahara for over 2 months. In May, 17 of the foreign
tourists (10 Austrians, 6 Germans and a Swede) were
rescued, said to be unharmed and flown back to Europe. No
formal details of the ordeal have been released for fear of
jeopardising the safety of the remaining 15 tourists (10
Germans, 4 Swiss, 1 Dutch) who are still missing. The
Algerian newspaper El Watan claims that nine kidnappers
were killed in the dawn raid near the Sahara desert town of
Tamanrasset, 1,900 kilometres (1,200 miles) south of
Algiers and that the Salafist Group had kidnapped the
tourists for Preaching and Combat (GSPC).

The Globetrotters Club has just teamed
up with Oanda.com to provide people with information about
currency conversions and cheat sheets. To translate
currency or make a cheat sheet, visit:

"http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/converter.html">The
Globetrotters Currency Converter — get the
exchange rates for 164 currencies "http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/trav_cheatsheet.html">The
Globetrotters Currency Cheat Sheet — create and
print a currency converter table for your next trip.

The UK Passport Service plans to put
biometric chips into passports by 2005. The agency is to
run a six-month trial to “evaluate issues around
biometric capture using iris, facial recognition and
fingerprints to support the passport card development
programme.” An 'Omnibase' global database of
all passports issued will be created, along with a global
lost, stolen and recovered passport database which is due
by the end of this year.

If you have plans to visit India this
summer – never a good time to go – take note
that around 200 people have died during the heat wave that
is currently sweeping through Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and
Pakistan where temperatures have soared as high as 47.2C.
The high temperatures have led to a shortage of drinking
water and deaths through dehydration and sunstroke. Last
year, a heat wave killed more than 1,000 people in the
state and caused devastating drought. The situation should
improve with the approaching monsoon rains, which usually
reach the south coast in the first week of June.

If you're going to visit Japan on
business, or even if you are going for pleasure, this
website shows you how to you bow appropriately and how to
behave when you have been invited to someone’s home.
There are lots of hints and tips on appropriate presents to
take, how to use the washroom, and this is all animated
which makes it quite addictive to look at. Take a look at
animator and illustrator "http://www.ph-heidelberg.de/wp/krug/">Nora Krug's
web site – we like this!