The Globetrotters eNewsletter
eNewsletter Archive

Win a Frommer’s guidebook on Spain 2003. See "http://www.frommers.com/">www.frommers.com for info on
Frommer’s guidebooks.

Some people have said the quiz is difficult, we say
do some research; try google.com
or Ask Jeeves, if you need help with
the answers.

The winner of last month's Frommer’s guide
is Pippa Manley.

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.

Need help? Then write in with your question, and we’ll
try and 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.

Need to convert currency?

Take a look at "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.

Three US airlines have been fined $750,000 between them
over failure to offer adequate facilities to passengers with disabilities.
America West, JetBlue and Southwest Airlines were
found not to have provided enough space for storing wheelchairs on their
flights.

Australian airline, Qantas, has denied reports
that it is considering arming its planes with anti-missile devices.

Australia's second largest airline Virgin Blue
has unveiled a new low cost carrier, Pacific Blue. The airline
will be based at Christchurch in New Zealand and plans to start flying
on February 1 next year. It aims to offer heavily reduced fares on routes
to Australia and South Pacific destinations.

Bankrupt United Airlines has announced that it
intends to launch a low-cost carrier. It will be competing with Frontier,
JetBlue and Southwest, in the US and Ryanair in the UK all of whom have
grown quickly despite the economic downturn. The new airline, not named
as yet will initially fly from its Denver hub to Reno, Nevada, Las Vegas,
Phoenix, New Orleans and Tampa. Tickets will go on sale in November.

British Airways have planned 20 farewell Concorde
flights between Saturday, October 18 and Friday October 24. The last flight
on which customers can buy seats will be the BA001 London Heathrow to
New York JFK flight on Thursday, October 23. Thinking of taking a final
Concorde trip? The one way trip between London and New York costs £4,350
($7,165) and the round trip is £8,292. ($13,658).

UNESCO has hailed as “a major step forward”
the pledge made by the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM)
– comprising 15 of the world’s largest mining and metal producing
companies – not to explore or mine in World Heritage sites. The
sites include Kakadu National Park (Australia), Kakadu National Park (Indonesia),
Huascaràn National Park (Peru), Huascaràn National Park
(Spain), and the Greater St. Lucia Wetlands Park (South Africa).

Our webmaster likes: the "mailto:http://www.thebanmappingproject.com/">Theban
Mapping Project a website that allows you to go on an interactive
tour of the tombs of the Valley of the Kings, complete with film and commentary,
explore the Theban necropolis and find out more about the history of the
Valley of the Kings, its tombs and Thebes today.

London based human rights group Amnesty International
has openly criticised the government of the Maldive Islands and asked
them to end what it calls systematic political repression. Amnesty says
torture, unfair trials and abusive power by the security forces are endemic
in the Maldives, contrasting somewhat from their image of romantic holidays
on beautiful coral atoll islands with white sandy beaches.

Amnesty are asking for an urgent radical reform of the
criminal justice system. One opposition website has said that the security
forces detained more than 100 people, but other sources put the number
lower.

A Sri Lankan teacher who spent three months in jail
in the Maldives last year said it was common for inmates to be tortured
- hung upside down on bars and beaten on their feet or submerged head
first in water. He said after the beatings, the guards would throw sugar
on the prisoners so they'd be bitten by ants in their cell, and he
said political prisoners were kept in the same cells as ordinary criminals,
where powerful lights would be kept on to make sleep difficult.

Under 30? A member of Globetrotters Club? Interested
in a £1,000 travel award?

Know someone who is? We have £1,000 to award each
year for five years for the best submitted independent travel plan. Interested?

Then see "http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/legacy.html">our legacy page
on our Website, where you can apply with your plans for a totally independent
travel trip and we'll take a look at it. Get those plans in!!

Aviation enthusiasts, get ready! Air France is set to
auction 200 parts from its retired Concorde fleet at Christie’s
Paris auction room in October. After 27 years of service, everything from
the famous nose cone to smaller pieces of memorabilia will be for sale.
The proceeds will go towards children's causes supported by Air France.
As a price guide, the famous drooping nose cone is estimated at EUR10,000
(USD$11,000) to EUR15,000 but prices for other mementoes, such as photos
and models are as low as EUR20. There are no reserve prices, so everything
must go.