The Globetrotters eNewsletter
eNewsletter Archive

At university I read War Studies and Theology. Whilst this
makes me a complete weirdo it also means I can write very
interesting newsletter articles. I have done one on Religion
in Tanzania so now for the bit that keeps St Peter busy, War.

Little is known of East African warfare before the arrival of
Europeans but we know the Arabs would have been developed
whilst any combat involving the natives would have been small
scale using edged weapons like swords (pangas), spears, bows
and possibly shields. A look at the contemporary Massai or
watching Zulu (great film) will give you some idea of what
this would involve. Some Kenyan pangas from the Mau Mau
uprising are on display in the Imperial War Museum. The
Swahili’s first contact with gunpowder was from the
Omani Arabs and then the Portuguese. However, most of the
European-Swahili conflict occurred from 1884 onwards with the
arrival of German occupation. The huge technological and
military advantage enjoyed by the German’s meant that
they were going to win most rucks. The British-Dervish battle
of Omdurman (1896) with rifles, machine guns and artillery
left 30,000 of the Sudanese spear chuckers dead or wounded
for the cost of fifty British dead. However, the Europeans
did not always have an easy day of battle.

The Hehe tribe had become one of the largest in
Tanzania by the time of German occupation and opposed the
colonists. In 1891 the heroic Chief Mkwawa led his tribe in
battle at Lugalo and gave the Hun a good thrashing. A bit of
a one off though as he was up against the finest offensive
troops in the world and was soon on the run. He committed
suicide and his head was cut off and sent to Germany where it
remained until British diplomatic pressure saw it returned to
Tanganyika in 1954.

By 1905 the Swahilis had been forced into labour and as a
result of the appalling conditions, rebelled. The rebellion
was known as the Maji Maji rebellion (maji = water) as the
natives believed the Germans’ bullets would turn to
water after firing. If their knowledge of ballistics was
somewhat more developed then they would probably not
have suffered such terrible casualties. The Germans
reacted harshly but effectively using scorched earth tactics
which resulted in wide spread famine and malnutrition. Mass
executions of tribal leaders especially to the fearsome Ngoni
tribe mopped up any remaining resistance. About 100,000
natives perished. Fortunately, the German colonists changed
their stance and relative peace prevailed. Until 1914…

German East Africa (GEA) was surrounded by the British to the
east in Zanzibar, the north in Kenya, the south east in
Nyasaland, by the Belgians in the Congo and the Portuguese
were honouring England’s oldest alliance and,
therefore, the Germans were hemmed in from the south by
Mozambique. This unenviable position was defended by Paul Von
Lettow Vorbeck leading at any point about 3,300 Germans and
15,000 locally recruited levies. It was an impossible
position really – his armaments were mostly obsolete
and re-supply from the sea was going to be problematic.

The German Kriegsmarine’s ship Konigsberg managed to
out fox the Royal Navy (RN) and was able to land supplies and
wreck the Pegasus as she cleaned her boilers off Zanzibar.
She fled up the Rufiji River where her shallow draft meant
she could escape from the RN’s guns. If you have seen a
particularly shocking Roger Moore film ‘Shout at the
Devil’ (nothing compared to Moonraker, “I think
he’s attempting re-entry”), then it shows the
idea a little. However, the response was not to get a poor
quality actor to black up with boot polish and take an alarm
clock attached to TNT to blow the ship up. The British got
two shallow draft monitors with long range howitzers to shoot
it. Before sinking, the Germans landed the guns and
ammunition and the Captain later defended Lindi.

Lettow Vorbeck employed hit and run tactics often deep into
the surrounding colonies and was still being supplied by the
Kriegsmarine. The RN blockaded the coast and supported the
movements of the army along the coast. By 1916 the combined
allied force outnumbered the Germans considerably and was led
by the South African General Smuts. The Germans were rolled
up and slowly encircled but the fighting continued in
earnest. On 13th September a naval bombardment preceded a
land attack on Mikindani. The impressive Customs House was
shelled and wrecked and Mikindani claimed its only death of
the war, sadly a forgotten villager. It appears the Boma was
not attacked and resistance was not offered.

After a long game of cat and mouse and many casualties
to malaria and dysentery the brilliant military campaign of
the charming and brave General Von Lettow Vorbeck came to an
end. He heard of the armistice two days after its signing and
gave up his sword honourably on 25th November in North
Rhodesia as a truly great soldier. GEA passed into British
administration under a League of Nations mandate and became
Tanganyika. The coming of the 1939-45 war did not result in
any domestic combat but Tanganyikans did volunteer for
service in the King’s African Rifles and the population
as a whole suffered from shortages and rationing as Britain
pulled her Empire into the war. Roald Dahl’s
‘Going solo’ provides an interesting account of
life in Tanganyika at the outbreak of war (as well as great
snake and decapitation stories).

The war passed as did British rule and now Tanzania is
defended by the Tanzanian People’s Defence Force (TPDF)
as well as a militia and a paramilitary police. I have
personally seen the militia drilling and was not overly
impressed. However, the TPDF proved themselves to be the best
East African army in the war to oust Idi Amin from Uganda in
1979. Needless to say if America wanted Tanzania I would put
money on the yanks, the TPDF’s budget would not buy a
single US fighter aircraft. There was an issue a few years
ago of Tanzania buying a high tech radar system from a
British firm, I am unsure of the outcome.

"http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/enews-01-05-image008.jpg"
alt=" " class="pic" border="0" align="left" />A walk around
Mikindani shows little evidence of current military activity
but the historical signs are more common. The Mtwara airstrip
was an RAF base, the customs house was destroyed by naval
artillery and subsequent neglect, the splendid hotel is a
fortified building. The Boma is no great castle but would
have been a hard nut to crack. The crenulations (saw teeth
type things you get at the top of castles) on the bastion at
the back are wide enough to accommodate the large water
cooled barrel of the Maxim machine gun whilst those on the
tower could only fit a rifle. Both employed at the time of
construction.

The now covered well shows that the adage is true that a
castle’s defence is only as deep as its well and the
witch doctor who dug a whole at the top of the Boma hill
looking for German treasure found only spent German rifle
cartridges. Using a chicken as a metal detector probably was
not the best method of finding treasure though. The fact that
Tanzania is relatively boring to a student of war belies its
greatest asset. The peaceable nature of its citizens.

There are several different types of antimalarial medication,
the choice of which depends on such factors as area to be
visited, length of stay, your own medical history, medication
you may already be taking, type of holiday (hotel, cruise,
trekking etc).

These drugs can be loosely divided between the older
formulations (Chloroquine and Proguanil) and the more recent
preparations licensed for antimalarial use (Doxycycline,
Mefloquine and Malarone).

Chloroquine has been used for around 50 years and during that
time vast areas of the ‘malarious world’ have
become resistant. As a 4-aminoquinoline derivative
chloroquine prevents nucleic acid synthesis in actively
dividing erythrocitic malarial parasites and thus DNA
synthesis is affected. The drug is taken as two tablets
weekly on the same day of each week, Countries still
sensitive to Chloroquine include Costa Rica, Belize and
Mexico.

Proguanil is a Biguanide which is metabolised in the body to
cycloguanil, an active form that blocks the production of
folic acid and subsequent synthesis of DNA. The human
cells are not affected by this action except during pregnancy
where your doctor will usually give a folic acid supplement
to counteract a possible shortfall in the mothers cells.

As with Chloroquine there is widespread resistance now to
Proguanil and it is often given in areas where the traveller
is unable to take Chloroquine for some reason (such as
sensitivity to the product). The Chloroquine and
Proguanil when combined in one pack as Paludrine/Avloclor
travel pack form a more formidable antimalarial and can be
used in many more areas where the individual drugs would not
be effective enough.

In the Travel Pack of Paludrine/Avloclor produced by Astra
Zeneca the dosage of Proguanil is two daily which would be
taken at the same time and the Avloclor (Chloroquine) is two
weekly, also taken together. (A calendar pack gives an
easy format and prevents mistakes in dosage whilst
away.) Proguanil/Chloroquine is used in countries such
as Sri Lanka, Nepal and most of India. These
preparations can be purchased without prescription from
Pharmacies.

The ‘newer’ group of antimalarials are helping to
prevent malaria in areas where resistance has become a major
problem, the malaria parasites being incredibly adept at
mutating and hence overcoming the drugs used against them.

Malarone is Atovoquone and Proguanil combined to give a
combination of an antiprotozoal and a biguanide. The
dosage is one tablet daily for adults usually taken one or
two days before entering the malarious area, during and for
seven days on leaving. There is also now a paediatric
formulation for children.

Lariam (Mefloquine) is a 4-aminoquinoline (as in Chloroquine)
and in adults is taken as one tablet weekly. To check
for side effects your doctor will often prescribe these at
least two and a half weeks before travel, during and for four
weeks on return.

Last but not least is Doxycycline a well tried and
tested tetracycline antibiotic given as the hyclate.
This was found to have marked antimalarial properties as well
as being an antibiotic. It is usually given one
week before travel (if it has never been taken before),
during and for four weeks on return.

These last three products are prescription only and can only
be obtained from a Pharmacy on supply of a private
prescription issued by your doctor or travel clinic.
Depending on your medical history etc., your doctor will
decide which of these preparations are suitable for your
travels.

Chloroquine for example is not normally given if you suffer
from psoriasis or epilepsy. If taking Warfarin for
blood thinning always check this out with your doctor, and
likewise if pregnant or hoping to become pregnant then again
you must consult your doctor first before taking an
antimalarial drugs.

Your G.P. or Travel Nurse will check out the area you are
about to visit and together with medical history and
knowledge of the type of holiday will prescribe the relevant
antimalarial.

For prices and supply of any of these preparations you can
log on to "http://www.travelpharm.com/">www.travelpharm.com or ring
us on 01395 233771

The day not long born - Bloody hot already, the sun
reflecting off the tarmac and I could already feel the weight
of the heat on my back and head, even through my Tilley hat.
The fragile looking little single-engined plane, nicknamed in
Brazil a ‘Teko Teko’ because of its resemblance
in sound and vision to a child’s model plane driven by
elastic bands - It stood there and shimmered and glowed in
the sunshine while the temperature had not yet even reached
42 degrees Celsius.

In what seemed like slow motion a fat mechanic slowly hand
pumped fuel into the plane’s tank. The smell of
aviation fuel added itself to the tropical morning smells as
Adam Baines and I stood waiting nervously to load and board
this Teko Teko. Denis, the pilot, stood there in his
beautifully cut, fashionably faded Khaki. This
forty-something, athletic pilot exuded confidence as he
emerged from the cockpit holding a slender glass phial which
he dipped in the fuel tank. Denis looked at the yellow liquid
in the phial against the blue, blue sky. He slowly brought it
to his nose and gently sniffed it and rolled it under his
nose with the concentration of a wine connoisseur. In
Cruzeiro the pilot’s nose makes the final decision
between aviation fuel and anything else that could find its
way into tank!

Denis eyes turned to us, then drifted slowly over our
baggage. He was not in a good mood. We were last minute
passengers with extra weight, forcing him to remove all his
various boxes, destined for different jungle stops and reload
the craft again. On top of that we were going to pay the
$900-00 with travellers’ cheques instead of US dollars
cash. Denis looked us over. I could feel him wondering if the
traveller’s cheques would bounce. He starred at these
two Europeans and he probably wondered if we knew what we
were getting into. I said, “The traveller’s
cheques are paying for the return as well as the outward
journey and, if they bounce; you won’t have to bring us
back. Chief Biraci will vouch for us anyway”. Right he
said, looking at my waistline “Back to the cargo hanger
to get you weighed”. Finally, now having to believe
that I really did weigh 85 Kilos, we approached the plane
again.

Instrument checks done, the tower gave us clearance, chocks
away. Propeller whirling, he shouted above the engine in
English, let us sway. Mystified for a moment, then Denis
loudly said the Lord’s Prayer in Portuguese and asked
for the Lord to watch over our journey. A moment of reality
came through the excitement and I prayed to whatever gods are
up there, please keep an eye on us. The plane slowly surged
forward, gathering speed, it lifted off and skimmed above the
trees. Cruzeiro gradually disappeared behind us. At last, the
adventure was to begin as we soared up, up and away.

I saw a carpet of green under the sky blue canopy, the sea of
endless forest stretching as far as the eye could see to the
edges of the horizon. I had a feeling of how small and
insignificant are men in comparison to this wonder of nature.
We flew on, gradually leaving behind the amazing golden
beaches of the snaking river Jurua, so different from any
riverbank I had come across before in either Africa or
Australasia.

I was sitting in the seat by the pilot with my camera at the
ready. Ready for what? I looked down at the trees so tightly
packed together, my imagination was running away with the
thought of what might happen if our one motor took sick and
died. Chief Biraci had said, “There are no bad old
pilots in the Amazon. Bad pilots die young; and so do their
passengers”. Quickly glancing round I saw Adam starring
out of the window, obviously moved by the sight of such
beauty. Not the time to spoil his dream with a possible
nightmare, for at that moment a rainbow appeared across the
jungle and made what was already wonderful, magical. I looked
at the Chief relaxed in his seat. I began to feel some of
passion he had for his home, and also began to understand how
he stood up at a conference in Panama and caused
consternation by tearing up a prepared speech while shouting,
“The Yawanawa want their land back”.

This man, who had lived on the building sites of Rio Branco
and earned a pittance of money, had not only fed and clothed
his body, but also fed his mind and soul and to become a
survivor. At a time when most Indians ended up on the bottom
of the human scrap heap, became alcoholics and the low life
of the gutters of these fifth world towns. Chief Biraci had
educated himself, fought for Indian rights to become their
spokesman at the various conferences that became fashionable
in the 80’s when the 1st world became aware of
environmental issues. This plane journey was giving Biraci a
small escape from his almost constant responsibility for the
tribe. We had been in the air now for about 75 minutes, a
journey that would have taken about fifteen days on foot or
twenty by canoe.

Denis, the pilot, banked the plane and we moved on to another
compass heading. He shouted over the roar of the engine in as
much of a conversational tone as possible, “Don’t
forget to be back on the grass strip on the date we agreed.
We were cutting it fine by planning to be back just a couple
of days before the start of the rainy season and the plane
would be unable to land if the strip was waterlogged. I had
already had a bad landing on a previous trip on a water
soaked landing strip, the plane had tipped up on its nose
– So, I had been there, done that and had no desire to
repeat the excitement. “I make two passes and then I
leave - That’s the deal”. I shouted back to the
pilot,” I won’t forget, nor will Adam we both
know that a seventeen day walk as the wet season starts could
be the end for us”. Denis smiled,”Could be? It
definitely would be”. “Thanks for the vote of
confidence”, I shouted. We banked again and Denis said,
“Sete Estrellas, time to land”. We swooped down
low, crossing the river Gregoria and making for the grass
strip by the side of the small group of thatched huts that
was the village of Sete Estrellas and the jumping off point
for our trip into the unknown.

1. The "http://www.nationmaster.com/country/us">USA has more
personal computers than the next 7 countries "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/med_Per_com&int=8">combined.

2. "http://www.nationmaster.com/country/us">Americans and href="http://www.nationmaster.com/country/ic">Icelanders
go to the "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/med_cin_att_cap&id=ic&id=ja&id=us">
pictures on average 5 times a year, while "http://www.nationmaster.com/country/ja">Japanese go only
once.

3. The
United States spends more money on its military than href=
"http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/mil_exp_dol_fig&int=13">
the next 12 nations combined.

4. "http://www.nationmaster.com/country/kz">Kazakhstan is
the "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/geo_are_lan&id=af&id=au&id=bo&id=bt&id=bl&id=bc&id=by&id=ct&id=cd&id=ez&id=hu&id=kz&id=kg&id=la&id=lt&id=mk&id=mi&id=ml&id=md&id=mg&id=np&id=ng&id=pa&id=rw&id=lo&id=wz&id=sz&id=ti&id=tx&id=ug&id=we&id=za&id=zi">
world's largest "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-B/geo_coa">landlocked
country.

5. Most people live in "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/eco_pop_bel_pov_lin&id=AFR">
poverty in most African countries.

6. Only two countries in the world are doubly "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-B/geo_coa">landlocked:
"http://www.nationmaster.com/country/ls">Liechtenstein
and "http://www.nationmaster.com/country/uz">Uzbekistan.

7. Senior gentlemen might consider a trip to "http://www.nationmaster.com/country/rs">Russia, where
there's two "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-B/peo_sex_rat_65_yea_and_ove">
over 65 women for every man.

8. Sick of crowds? Try "http://www.nationmaster.com/country/gl">Greenland where
there's 38 "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/geo_are_lan_cap">sq km
per person.

9. Sri
Lanka has lowest "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-B/peo_div_rat">divorce
rate in the world - and the highest rate of "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/hea_sui_rat_fem">female
suicide.

10. South
Korea is the "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/tra_hel">heliport
capital of the world.

"http://www.nationmaster.com/facts.php">http://www.nationmaster.com/facts.php

Michelle writes: I felt compelled to write about my second
visit to The Gambia, it was all so different and held so many
new experiences for me than from my first visit back in
February this year. I also appear to have
'dodged' the bumsters - as I got to know and befriend
a few the first visit - hey life is hard they need to live
yeh! And you fail to mention poverty in Gambia - as a
'developing country' in your news letter! I
appreciate bumsters can be annoying - I just tend to say
'no abaracca' (thank you) and emphasise I'm
staying at Kololi compound like a Gambian and they leave me
alone!

"http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/enews-01-05-gambia.jpg"
class="pic" width="320" height="221" alt="" hspace="8" vspace=
"8" align="right" />

Yes, I stayed at a compound/lodge (£6 per night) and
was no 5 star hotel - but if travellers want to experience
The Gambia, what better way than to live the true Gambian
experience? Ok sometimes it is a trickle from the cold
water shower, the electricity is on 50% of the time, the two
ring gas cooker is outside, and there’s a flea bitten
dog guarding the gates to the compound..but hey my Gambian
friends can visit - they are not excluded as they were when I
stayed on a complex. I'd also like to mention the
compound like the one mentioned below was moderately clean
enough!

The benefits of befriending Gambian people whether they are
bumsters or taxi drivers or people from my friend
Fakeba's compound - and they do not have the luxury of a
toilet or running water there (water from the well in
buckets) - or adequate schools for the children - (a tin
hut!) is sharing experience. One of the best true
experiences was sharing Koriteh holiday - the end of Ramadam
with 14 adults and 10 children all living in one compound
(about 8 one bedroomed houses) and sharing together excellent
food from 4 large bowls and green tea. The children so nice
and happy with no toys dressed in their Sunday best, the
women worked so hard to make the meal. And other
children and friends all come around from other compounds..is
sooo nice.

So I have my best soul mate Fakeba to show me around - I am
charged as a Gambian not as a tourist..and my money is going
into the local economy and not to the 'middle man' in
an hotel! This cuts my costs down by at least 50%.
So try the market in Serrekunda - I feel I was the only
white person there - but food shopping is much cheaper than
the supermarket - and as fresh - though the meat market was
something else! (Very hot with flies and smelled!) though the
food my friends cooked for me after - wow! So I return
in kind..it is not hard, what I can save I can give -
especially to the children. Please don’t ever go
to the Gambia without some clothes for them or stationery for
their school (special mention for Karin Nursery School,
Serrekunda). Or why not give stationery to the children
in a compound who do not go to school - less than 50% of the
children can read or write.

So my new experiences apart from those I mention above?
Seeing dolphins coming back from St James Island - look
out for them, and its a wonderful swim there! Seeing
the women going out on their small canoes to pick oysters at
Lamin Lodge.. my favourite place.. Seeing monitor lizards at
Bijilo (monkey park). I'd also recommend going to
Brufut fishing village - I rode by bike - but I’m sure
there are easier ways to get there - saw cows being herded on
the beach and the boats were so colourful - is sooo
beautiful.

I would say more about less beautiful encounters I witnessed
between my friends and the police…. but I may get censored!

I'd like to give a special mention to Kotu Point beach
bar..one of the best and only bars that does not discriminate
against Gambians trying to make a living by selling things..
or 'hanging out' there… the views are wonderful as
are my friends and the music there - and especially
'bongo man' who will teach anyone to play! I’d
also like to say to all you tourist not happy with Gambia -
please remember it is a developing country that does not have
the same access to health care, sanitation, education, social
security and employment we in the west are privileged to
have.. the culture is different - celebrate it along with all
the similarities of humanity we all share! Share a
smile on the smiley coast yeah – it is nice to be nice!
I'm going back for more smiles next March… and
especially looking forward to meeting my friend Fakeba's
family who are Mandinka 180 miles up the river Gambia:)

This is the first in a series of trip reports sent to the
Beetle by Globetrotter Steve who is travelling around South
America and Easter Island, the lucky chap! So, if you
are planning trip to Suth America or are interested in
knowing more about it, you may find Steve’s trip
reports of interest.

Life has it's ups and downs. On Tuesday I started the
journey with a tour to the Altiplano National Parks.
There were just three of us in the group, myself and two
Germans. We went first to the local farmer’s
market to stock up on fresh vegetables and fruit for picnics
on the trip. Then we headed inland for a view of
ancient petroglyphs showing herdsmen and llamas. There
was a tomato farm nearby where we bought fresh produce,
exceptionally huge tomatoes.

The next call was a Hari Krishne monastery where we had lunch
and then started to climb. It was the main road to La
Paz and there were some heavy lorries on the road, one of
which had started to roll backwards and had come a
cropper. We called at a fortified site over 2000 years
old where the entrance to a fertile valley was guarded by a
series of semi circular walls. The countryside was now
very dry and we climbed through an area of cactus found only
in that area of Chile. Near Socompa we went for a short
walk down an Inca roadway and we started to see the first
wild guanaco and llamas in the fields. We entered the
village of Sacompa and looked at the very old church with its
squat detached tower. From there we climbed to Putre
where we were to stop for the evening. Unfortunately
for me I was unable to eat the evening meal as I was feeling
light-headed and wasn’t hungry. I had a very poor
night’s sleep and was sick in the morning.
Nevertheless I set off with the group up to Lauca National
Park. There were spectacular views of the volcano
across the lake and vicuña to be seen. The group
went for a walk but I wasn't feeling well enough to go
and so stayed with the vehicle. In fact I slept most of
the time they were away. When they returned I was unable to
keep fluids down. We returned to Pucalpa as planned but
once there the group leader took me to a doctor who said my
blood pressure was dangerously low because of the altitude
and I needed to travel down to sea level immediately.
They tested my blood pressure before oxygen, while breathing
oxygen through a mask and then again after the mask was taken
off. It immediately fell to very low levels. And
so the tour leader drove me down to Arica immediately and the
tour carried on without me.

The next day my appetite returned a little. I got a bus
to Iquique and booked into a hotel for a couple of nights
there. Iquique is a very strange city. It is set
at the foot of cliffs that must be above 3000 feet
high. An enormous sand dune extends into the Southern
part of the city. The old downtown area was very run
down and poor, but right next door are two large sandy bays
and a lot of quite wealthy looking seaside developments - a
casino, sailing club and smart hotels. In the old town
is one long street of big houses built when the city was
wealthy from the nitrate trade. This extended from an
Opera House where Caruso sang to the sea. The whole
street is listed and the buildings, built of timber shipped
from Oregon in the 19th century, are being restored. It
has all been pedestrianised with timber side walks, Victorian
era lamp posts and street furniture installed and a new horse
tram route is being constructed. Apart from these
features it was quite a dull place and so yesterday I boarded
another bus and spent four hours twisting down the
spectacular coast with cliffs and mountains on one side and
the Pacific on the other but nothing growing and no
settlement. The road then turned inland past the Santa
Elena Nitrate plant and an enormous copper mine to Calama
where I changed bus and travelled the last hour to San Pedro,
through the desert, as the sun set and the mountains glowed
in oranges, reds and gold.

As the bus pulled in I saw one of the Germans who had been on
the National Parks tour and chatted to him. I found
myself a pleasant hotel and then went out for a good dinner
in a restaurant with live musicians where I bumped into a
retired Irish teacher from Maidstone who I had met in Arica.

After the problems of the Andes, San Pedro proved a welcome
change. I took it easy on the first day, just going to
the wonderful museum. I chose the same time as a SAGA group.
What has happened to adventure travel? One member
of the group was so overweight she wasn’t able to
manage the whole museum tour and commented that the thin gold
used for face masks looked as though it had been made to
cover chocolate.

The next day I was feeling more adjusted to the altitude and
walked out to a pre-Inca fort 3km from town. I arrived
shortly after the SAGA party. The fort is built on a
steep hillside where the river leaves a gorge and forms the
oasis. The stonework was interesting, similar if cruder
than Inca work. There was a maze of rooms, passages and
who knows what leading up to an excellent viewpoint.
The SAGA group didn't get there. The area has
an interesting history. The Incas were only dominant
for 60 years. The local people just submitted to them
so were not defeated. However when news came that the Spanish
had defeated the Incas the community leaders decided they
weren't going to be dictated to about changing their
names to match a new not understood religion. They
therefore rebelled and retreated to their 11th Century fort.
The Spanish, with horses and assisted by some local
antagonistic neighbours defeated them in short time and
executed the leaders. San Pedro de Atacama then became the
sleepy backwater it remained until recently.

Next day, feeling full of confidence, I joined a tour to the
Salar de Atacame to see the birds. The Salar looked
like thawing snow, a grubby white and crunchy underfoot, with
surface water in places. In the distance the distinct
shape of the flamingos could be seen although even with
strong binoculars you couldn't tell what species of the
three found there were in sight. When they flew they
looked even pinker and had an unusual Concorde profile with
the wings far back along their bodies. In the distance
Volcano Lascar steamed. It erupts every four years, the
last time being 2000! It seems it throws out ash, not
lava, and the winds always take the ash into Argentina.
So that was alright.

The next stop was the isolated village of Socaire which had a
very small stone church and tower. The church had
become unsafe and so the community built a replica on a new
town square but were now repairing the original. Around
were terraces used for growing vegetables but slowly going
out of use. Local men work in the Lithium extraction
plant at the Salire and so the local economy is becoming cash
based.

From the village we ascended to the deep blue Lakes of
Miscanti and Miñques at above12,000 feet. We
walked along a ridge from one to the other with stunning
views and then back close to the shore. It was an
important site for the flamingos to breed.
They’re poor parents producing one chick which
they will abandon if disturbed. It was the breeding
season so we had to keep back from the lake shore. I
was pleased to manage the walking without breathlessness or
losing lunch!

The final stop was the village of Tocanao which is at the end
of a gorge with a stream flowing through it. The stream
is used for irrigating figs, quince, grapes and other fruit.
The contrast between the arid highlands and the deep
green of the valley was outstanding. It reminded me of
Dovedale with surreal colour enhancement. Walking along the
valley was a real pleasure after the heat and exertions of
the rest of the day.

San Pedro de Atacama has an odd mix of visitors. There
is a 'hippy' Chilean element, European gap year
students, young European Professionals and elderly Islington
or Baden Baden types having an alternative retirement
holiday. The restaurants are a little more expensive
than usual in Chile but have some adventurous combinations on
the menu and the wine is delicious.

Well, I moved on to Antofagasta. Antofagasta is lack
lustre. It's just a busy city and a bit down at
heel. I decided to spend half a day looking at an
industrial museum a little out of town. At the bus
station this morning there were several ticket windows with
bored staff sitting behind them and closed signs firmly in
place. I went to the enquiry desk where three men were
assisting one customer. After a while one broke away to
see me. Can I have a ticket to Bacquedano I
asked. I was told to get on the bus already in the
terminal quickly and buy a ticket from the conductor.
After half an hour the bus left. (Why the hurry?)
“Bacquedano” I said to the conductor.
“Calama?” he replied. “No,
Baquedano.” I said. “Maria Elena?” he said.
“No. Baquedano,” I said firmly and pointed to it
in heavy print in my guide book. “Ah, Baquedano”
he said, “$1 000”. I paid.

The museum was hopeless, uncared for, vandalised and
derelict. I nosed around, did a sketch and went top the
village for lunch. I had a tasty empenada and a cola
for about a pound and then asked where was the best place to
get a bus back to Antofagasta. The cafe owner said they
were every half hour and you could flag them down infront of
the cafe. He would bring me a chair so I could sit in
the shade. As he was telling me this a bus went past.
I sat in the shade for an hour before the next bus
came. I waved. The driver and conductor waved back and
drove past in a half empty bus. I decided to walk up to
the police check point at the entry to town were all buses
and trucks have to stop. After half an hour of standing
in the early afternoon heat a bus came and I got on. He
then stopped and picked someone else up outside the cafe
where I had been sitting half an hour earlier.

Back in town I felt I deserved a coffee and lemon pie.
After quite a while the waiter returned with the coffee
but said there was no lemon pie. I’m going to
treat myself to a nice sea food dinner and white wine.
Wish me luck.

Next Steve goes to Easter Island.

We are sorry to say that Mac is not very well, but he is
still e-mailing strong and recently sent the Beetle a
collection of travel tips based on several trawls of travel
websites. Here are some of the tips Mac has garnered:

• 1. Put wallet in breast pocket of shirt and then put
  another shirt over it. Me: might want to have a
  second more accessible wallet to hand to any potential
  robber
• 2. One traveller wrote that he kept two thirds of his cash
  in a pouch by his underwear
• 3. Another person wrote in to suggest this: you get old
  white undies, create a fake crap stain in the appropriate
  place and lay over your valuables

And here are some items that travellers have listed as being
most glad they took: Gortex jacket, universal sink plug,
nalgene bottle, toilet bag, pocket knife and camera, hiking
type boots, backpack with pull-up handles and wheels, travel
pillow, toothfloss, Pitzi headlight (a couple mentioned
this), Ortlied folding bucket (a laundry bucket, bearing
service bucket, and hat all in one).

Nick O Neill writes in BootsNall.com some good advice.
Mac says that he stole his name Travel Nutter from
Nick. He evidently has travelled for years. Some
ideas I gained from Nick: when you shower pin your money belt
with a safety pin to your towel. (I don’t know
about that, I am so forgetful, I would probably leave the
shower room without my towel or the money belt attached to
it!)

On the subject of backpacks, Nick says he prefers a simple
pack without 75 pockets and straps. He takes a medium
sized pack that doesn’t encourage me to pack too much.
Beetle: I have a side zipped Lowe Alpine pack that
doubles up as a holdall that looks a bit less back packer-ish
for those odd occasions when checking into somewhere a little
more up market. Whatever backpack you use, try to get
one with a zip cover that hides away all of the handles as
these can get stuck in airport conveyor belts etc.

Nick says he has used an extra long North Face sleeping bag
for over a decade. Mac asks, does he own
stock? Mac says he uses a hollow filled bag while
heavier than a down bag, it will retain heat when wet.

Nick says that he carries three $l00 bills in his money belt
(the one fastened to a towel). He says he has even been
able to use them in a shack in the Himalayas.

Back to Mac: travellers who have had some military service
might want to check out the overseas military clubs that are
equivalent to the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign
Wars etc. In Australia and New Zealand and Western
Samoa they are RSL Clubs. I checked in at Cairns, told
them a little bit about myself, where I had travelled etc and
asked if they knew where the Catholic Church was, the time of
Mass etc. and if they knew any reasonable place to stay and
eat, asked about local bus transportation, what I should see
etc. They made me an honorary member of their organization
for the time of my stay in Australia.

In South Africa they are MOTH clubs (military order of tin
hats which started in WWI) and Comrade Clubs (British
oriented.) Again, I was made an honorary member and
even invited to some of the members’ homes. They like
to learn about you and you like to learn about them. In
the MOTH clubs the commander is always called Old Bill no
matter what his actual name is.

In Western Samoa, the commander of their RSL was an American
working in Western Samoa. I asked how he got to be commander
of this foreign club. He laughed and said he was about
the only one of its members that had been in the service, the
rest were associate members. Sometimes these clubs in some
places to keep them going take associate members without any
military service. Most of them are very hospitable and
good sources of information and kind of a security blanket.
Mac

The Athletic Clubs and other clubs in some of the countries
when you show them your passport will let you eat there and
use their facilities.

If you would like to contact Mac, he is happy to answer
e-mails: 'mailto:macsan400@yahoo.com'>macsan400@yahoo.com

Mike from the US wrote in to the Beetle to say that our
e-newsletter is always welcome and interesting, but that our
recent “Country Statistics - Crime: Assaults Top 10
Countries per capita” was a little misleading. It
puts the US on top with over 2 million crimes per capita. He
says that although we are a relatively dangerous destination,
we aren't quite that bad. He took a look at the source
website which shows that the table gives the per country
totals and would therefore be biased against populous
countries. Mike goes on to say that the per capita ranking is
more informative, so here is Mike’s link to this.
"http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/cri_ass_cap">http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/cri_ass_cap.
Quite right, Mike, apologies, we don’t want to
deliberately put the US in a misleading light, so here is a
better representation.

Thanks Mike – from the Beetle. We love hearing
from our readers, about any comments, complementary or a slap
on the wrist, please let us know!

Source: "http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/cri_ass_cap">http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/cri_ass_cap.

How did you do in our Flag Quiz

"http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/enews-01-05-image002.png" width="53" height="35" alt=" " border="0" />	"http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/enews-01-05-image003.png" width="60" height="37" alt=" " border="0" />	"http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/enews-01-05-image004.png" width="56" height="37" alt=" " border="0" />	"http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/enews-01-05-image005.png" width="54" height="36" alt=" " border="0" />	"http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/enews-01-05-image006.png" width="54" height="36" alt=" " border="0" />
Austria	Bangladesh	Chile	Egypt	Haiti

Not sure what to buy your loved ones next Christmas?
Why not buy a Ryanair cartoon? This one, see: "http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/r/ryanair_gifts.asp">http://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/r/ryanair_gifts.asp
shows a picture of a man booking a budget flight. The
booking agent is grinning frantically and says: the flight is
only 99p but it will cost another £120 if you want to
do it inside the plane. Yes, quite.

An interesting article in "http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=68464">http://www.indymedia.ie/newswire.php?story_id=68464
about a man in the US calling a help line to make a complaint
to Ryanair’s head office in Dublin. Before
calling he noticed that the charges were quite high - 1.75
euro from the Republic of Ireland or £1 from the
UK to call. The message clearly stated that the number was
for an Irish office. He called several times and each
time spoke with someone with an Italian accent and at one
point was told that he was calling Italy though other people
he spoke to denied this. So he decided to ask what was
the weather like in Dublin and not a single person could
answer him, so he deduced that he was actually calling
Italy. Eventually he managed to speak to a supervisor
who also has an Italian accent and they admit that the office
where all the calls were going was in Milan in Italy.
The supervisor could not explain why the staff were
pretending to be in Dublin while actually being in
Italy. She would neither confirm nor deny that they had
been instructed to lie when asked where they were.
Anyone know why?

Oh dear, it seems that Ryanair is coming under scrutiny for
poor working conditions. A new website has been set up
in September 2004: "http://www.ryan-be-fair.org/latestnews.htm">http://www.ryan-be-fair.org/latestnews.htm
to communicate with passengers and employees of
Ryanair. From this, the website says, two key issues
have arisen:

• Lack of respect and how staff are generally treated
• Salaries and working conditions being as bad as they are.

The International Union Federation said that the website has
attracted over half a million hits and revealed what it
described as a 'shocking catalogue of misery, low pay and
oppression' among the airline's workers.
Ryanair employees have used "http://www.ryan-be-fair.org">http://www.ryan-be-fair.org
to talk about the climate of fear that surrounds them, of 12
hour days without breaks, and of how they even have to pay
for the water they need to drink on flights. If you
have any information you would like to share about Ryanair,
contact the website - everything is strictly confidential,
and the website assures that they will not pass your details
on to anybody.

[Beetle: These links seem to be down at present, but you can read them via google's cache here and here]

Another interesting article in the International Herald
Tribune by a journalist who underwent the Ryanair
experience. "http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/01/06/style/flying.html">http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/01/06/style/flying.html

Globetrotter Steve spotted this:

The new partnership between Ryanair and Terravision, the new
low cost coach company, now ensures that Ryanair passengers
will be able to travel between Rome Ciampino airport and Rome
centre, Milan Bergamo airport and Milan centre, Pisa G.
Galilei airport and Florence centre quickly and comfortably,
but above all at a really low cost!

Look for the Terravision icon on "http://www.ryanair.com">http://www.ryanair.com to book
and purchase tickets and avoid queues or alternatively go to
one of the many Terravision booths located in 15 European
airports. Watch out for new openings in other European
city destinations on "http://www.lowcostcoach.com">http://www.lowcostcoach.com