The Globetrotters eNewsletter
eNewsletter Archive

Whilst we are talking about insects: spotted by
webmaster Paul, US Entomologists Quentin Wheeler and Kelly
B. Miller recently had the task of naming 65 newly
discovered species of slime-mold beetles and named three
species after the US president George W Bush, vice
president Dick Cheney and defence secretary Donald H
Rumsfeld. The newly found beetles are respectively called:
Agathidium bushi Miller and Wheeler, Agathidium cheneyi
Miller and Wheeler, and Agathidium rumsfeldi Miller and
Wheeler. Naming the beetles after Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld
was intended to pay homage to them, said Wheeler, who
taught at Cornell University for 24 years and now is with
the Natural History Museum in London.

The Beetle has bad memories about sharing a room with
what seemed like a thousand cockroaches in Gilgit in
Pakistan a few years ago and was afraid that they would fly
on to her bed. (Before you ask, no, Beetles are not friends
with cockroaches, they are sworn enemies, but we try and
live and let live.)

Did you know that most cockroaches have wings, but they
can only fly when temperatures are quite high. And what’s
more, cockroaches are omnivorous, i.e. they will eat
anything, including each other if there is nothing else
available.

One internet source, maybe urban myth, states that a
cockroach can live up to nine days without its head before
it starves to death. They have amazing scuttling abilities:
one US study showed that cockroaches are capable of running
at 50 body lengths per second on a treadmill - the
equivalent of Carl Lewis doing the 100-meter in 1.09
seconds!

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

When: Saturday 18th June, 10.30am-4.00pm

Where: The Newsroom, The Guardian

60 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3GA

Cost: £85.00

A day of two intensive workshops:

Travel Writing - How to do it and how not to with Dea
Birkett, the Guardian’s Travelling with Kids columnist and
author of Serpent in Paradise and Off the Beaten Track

Fact, Fiction and Creating a Traveller’s Tale with Rory
Maclean, author of Falling for Icarus and Stalin’s Nose

The workshops are followed by practical writing
sessions. Participants should bring pen and paper - they
will be expected to write! The emphasis is - whether you
are a beginner or already have some writing experience - on
developing skills which can be applied to both articles and
books. Our aim is that, by the end of the day, each of you
will have the tools to produce a publishable piece of
travel writing.

For further details and application form contact: href=
"mailto:travelworkshops@deabirkett.com">travelworkshops@deabirkett.com

For further information:

• www.deabirkett.com
• www.rorymaclean.com
• www.guardian.co.uk/newsroom

I am writing a book about a little known but stunning
town in Australia called Airlie Beach. I am desperately seeking globetrotters who have visited this region. I am seeking submissions from them based on their time and experiences in the region.

Did Airlie Beach make an impact on your life? It’s the
kind of place that is, ‘Once seen, never forgotten.’ I am
looking for submissions from people, of all walks of life,
on their favourite Airlie Beach experience. Everybody who
has been there has one.

As a long time local, I have countless priceless memories,
and nobodies amazing memories should be forgotten. Whether
it is a funny anecdote, a poem you were inspired to write,
a crazy story you heard, a picture of paradise you just
can’t forget.

I am publishing a book and will consider: stories, poems,
e-mails, snatches of conversation, diary entries, day in the life of, family
history, dreams, artwork, photos, drawings etc.

Please contact me on: "mailto:airliebeachkatie@yahoo.com.au">airliebeachkatie@yahoo.com.au

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/index.php">Mutual
Aid

So You Think You’re Well Travelled?

Here’s a little Beetle quiz based on capital cities. See
how many you get right! Go on, have a guess!

What is the capital city of the following countries:

1. Chile
2. Finland
3. Kiribati
4. Israel
5. Comoros

For the answers, see at the end of the eNewsletter.

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.

Spotted by Mac, a new travel website:
http://www.travelpost.com/

Two new bus services linking Muzaffarabad in
Pakistan-administered Kashmir for Srinagar in
Indian-administered Kashmir. The new service has been
hailed as a major boost to India and Pakistan’s developing
peace process. The inaugural service on 7 April was the
first in nearly 60 years. Before you get too excited, it is
still dangerous to visit this region and there is heavy
security all along the route including decoy buses,
escorted by the police and parafamilies forces. The
historic bus services has been welcomed by most Kashmiris,
many of whom have been divided by the decades-long
conflict. Many of them have defied the militants’ call to
avoid boarding the bus. “The desire to meet separated
relatives is proving stronger than the fear of death,” a
trader in Srinagar, Zaffar Ahmed, told the BBC News.