The Globetrotters eNewsletter
eNewsletter Archive

Police have busted a gang who used their jobs as baggage
handlers at New York’s John F Kennedy Airport to avoid inspection of mail
bags filled with cocaine and transported on commercial planes from South
America. Police officers officials announced that detectives arrested 13
people and seized USD$400,000, five vehicles, three guns and 110 pounds (50
kg) of cocaine in a series of raids. They were part of a drug trafficking
and distribution ring believed to have sold more than 1,300 pounds (600 kg)
of cocaine a year in New York with a street value of USD$75 million. Last
November, 23 mostly airport employees in the New York area were arrested on
charges of conspiracy to smuggle tens of millions of dollars of cocaine and
marijuana into the country on international cargo and passenger flights. Cocaine
was bought in Guyana in South America and sent to New York on commercial
airliners. The members of the gang who worked as baggage handlers
circumvented inspection of mail bags containing the cocaine. Profits from
the gang’s cocaine sales were returned to Guyana where other gang members
laundered the cash.

It is now possible to take a train from Vienna airport to
Wien-Mitte train station. The journey takes 16 minutes and runs every thirty
minutes. Single tickets cost 8 euros and return tickets cost 15 euros. This
makes life a lot easier to get to and from the airport. You can also buy a
ticket on-line: Vienna
city airport train_

South Korea has just launched its new bullet train service
which travels at 300 kph (185 mph. The Korea Train Express will nearly halve
the near five-hour trip, by conventional train, from Seoul to Korea’s second
biggest city, Busan, in the southeast. A spur line connects the city of
Mokpo in the southwest. After years of delay, the KTX is finally coming
online when neighbouring China has built a high-speed Maglev train in
Shanghai. Riding on a cushion of air and driven by magnetic fields, that
train tops 430 kph as the world’s fastest. The government says that some
day, the KTX will be a vital link to train services in China and even the
trans-Siberia railway. However, before this happens, North Korea will have
to cooperate to have tracks across its borders.

Spotted by our webmaster:

1. Does the crew sleep onboard?

2. What time is the midnight buffet?

3. Which elevator takes me to the front of the ship?

4. Do you generate your own electricity?

5. Is this island totally surrounded by water?

6. Is the water in the toilet salt or fresh?

7. What language do they speak in Alaska?

8. What do you do with the ice carvings after they melt?

9. How high above sea level are we?

10. How do we know which pictures are ours?

A drunken woman looking for a
place to sleep slipped past security and onto an aircraft at Aberdeen Airport
in Scotland where she dozed unnoticed for several hours, sparking a review of
security.

BAA, the airports owners, said that
it had launched a full investigation after the woman — reported by a
newspaper to be a scantily clad stripper — scaled a fence and boarded a
private jet. A UK tabloid said that 22 year old Soraya Wilson was discovered
eight hours after she passed out in the plane’s cockpit. She is reported to
have said: “I don’t know who was more embarrassed when they found me,
the security men or me, because I was just wearing my knickers and a little
top when I woke up.”.

If any Globetrotters member would like to start a branch,
whether it is in Aberdeen or Zanzibar, please see our FAQ or contact
Alan Kenningham, the Branch Liaison Officer via our Website at href="http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/meetings/meet_faq.html">Meeting FAQ.

The href="http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029390590&a=KCountryAdvice&aid=1013618385558">British
Foreign and Commonwealth Office have the following to say about Indonesia:
we advise against all non-essential travel to Indonesia. (Which is a great
pity as the Beetle is going to Bali very soon).

There is a high general threat from terrorism in Indonesia.
We continue to receive information that indicates terrorists are planning
further attacks, including against Westerners, throughout the country. If you
are already in Indonesia you should consider leaving if your presence is not
essential. If you choose to remain in Indonesia you should exercise extreme
caution in public places.

You should avoid large crowds and demonstrations, particularly in the run-up
to the Presidential elections on 5 July and 20 September.

The dengue fever mosquito is found throughout Indonesia including in Jakarta.
Visitors should be aware that there has been a significant increase in
reported cases of Dengue Fever in Jakarta over the last couple of months.
People should take elementary precautions against mosquitoes.

Mark from
Sittingbourne would like to form a Kent branch of the Globetrotters
Club. Meetings will be held on a monthly basis. Anyone interested should
contact him on 01795 554 567 or kiwisnest@yahoo.co.uk

For a while now postage costs to the EU countries have been rising
and has now reached the point where they are on a par with the
costs for our other members worldwide members (USA, South America
and Australia). We feel that it is unfair for one member to
subsidise another and have decided to abolish the EU price band.

The new fees will be effective from the 1^st June 2004
when the following fees will apply:

• 1 year subscription £18.00 (around €27)
• 2 year subscription £34.00 (around €51)
• 3 year subscription £48.00 (around €72)

Join or RenewHere

Yes, you can now renew your membership or join the Globetrotters
Club on-line.

It is secure and you can pay by all major credit, debit or charge
cards. Transactions will be in Pounds Sterling and your bank will
convert this to your local currency for you.

So, just href="http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/join/join.php">click here to
join and become a Globetrotter!

As a member, you will be a part of the oldest travel network in
existence and have the opportunity to make new friends who share
your interest in travel. Once you are a member, you will receive
our annual membership that lists all Globetrotters members around
the world.

You can contact fellow Globies and even stay with some of them or
offer to put fellow Globetrotters from around the world up
yourself!

So, just href="http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/join/join.php">click here to
join and become a Globetrotter!