The Globetrotters eNewsletter
eNewsletter Archive

Need a vacation but don't want to stay around town? 
Want to go somewhere exotic, somewhere different?  Want to
fly but worried about the airfare?  Sourcing the cheapest
airfare available has been made easier with competition growing
between travel agencies as people realize that a vacation need
not be all that expensive.  With so many travel companies
vying for your business, securing a cheaper airfare is a given!

The airline companies set airfare prices, with travel agents
adding a mark up to the wholesale price. You should always check
whether the advertised price of an airfare includes government
taxes or duties, so you may need to add these into your airfare
budget.

Aside from the airline companies and travel agencies setting the
price, it is important to be aware that many things determine
airfare prices, but the most important influence on price is the
final destination. Other influences include but are not limited
to:

• The type of airline class you prefer; do you want comfort or
  are you ok with being a tad squashed
• The location of your seat; window seat or inside
• The time of day you are prepared to travel; day or night
• How close you book to your departure date - booking closer to
  your departure date may increase your airfare unless you secure
  a last minute deal
• Whether your airfare is part of an all inclusive holiday
  package; more often than not for these all inclusive packages
  the airfare has been given with a huge discount as a deal
  between the resort or hotel, the airline and travel agent.

Therefore, being the money savvy person that you are, you should
take into consideration all of the above points before you start
searching for an airfare that fits within your budget.
 Researching airfare is critical to securing the cheapest
rate and these days, research is made a good deal easier thanks
to the internet. 

Increasingly, last minute deal websites are being developed and
there are some great bargains to be had particularly with regard
to airfare rates. Checking often and subscribing to these last
minute deal web sites will ensure that your vacation is one to
remember without the added burden of over spending on airfare!

Corsa Dirfes is the owner of href="http://www.airfareson.com%22"
target="_blank">http://www.airfareson.com which is a premier
resource for Airfares information.  For more information, go
to target="_blank">http://www.airfareson.com

I can totally understand why people rave about Bali - a truly
wonderful place - loved it - so serene - and very quiet. I took a
flight from London to Singapore that took 12 hours, then a 2 hour
wait in Changi - could be far worse places to wait! And off to
Bali, on a low cost airline, Australian Airlines. It only took 2
hrs 5 mins, so only a hop and a good airline experience.

We were met at Depensar airport around 10pm by a very good
natured man from the resort I'd booked and we transferred in
an air con'd jeep that had seen better days to the north part
of Bali, cutting through the mountains, past dark reflective
lakes and rice terraces, past lush rain forest and neat houses
adjoining the road and the silhouettes of Hindu temple after
temple. Even in the dark, it all looked very clean and
fascinating. It took two and a half hours, but we were later to
realise that this was a very good time to do the transfer as
during the day, the roads are unbelievably congested with men on
motorbikes, men and whole families concertina-d on motorbikes,
men and women riding side saddle on motorbikes, small stall
holders with their wares on motorbikes, ancient lorries dripping
with all manner of contents churning to get up hills and the odd
short mini bus, but no tourists.

Got to the href="http://www.mimpi.com/mimpi-menjangan-info.html">hotel
about 1am, full of beans and explored the grounds, saw the sign
saying do not feed the monkeys, dipped my toes in one of many hot
springs and was up early the next day to sort out diving.

The place we stayed in had several natural hot spring pools: some
really, really hot, some just very hot and some varying between
just right to cold - total bliss. After 2 nights of staying in a
very nice room, with a semi open air bathroom surrounded by
tropical plants, I came back from diving and was met by a very
excited friend, Marian, who told me that we had been upgraded to
our own villa with its own hot spring tub kind of thing. It was
very posh, and we spent hours in our own little natural spring
hot tub in our own courtyard surrounded by tropical flowers and
banana, mango and papaya trees - total bliss!

src="http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/2005//200508-enews-image013.jpg"
alt="tropical fish" class="pic" hspace="12" />Very good
diving, all drift diving, some strong currents, including down
currents - hhhmm - oh, and dynamite fishing whilst we were in the
water! This was a little scary. The previous day we'd been
out diving around Menjangen Island when we unexpectedly came
across several men diving along side us, breathing in compressed
air from an umbilical cord leading from a boat on the surface.
They had a couple of weights wrapped around their waist but no
other safety equipment, like a gauge to tell them how deep they
were or how long they'd been in the water.

This is extremely dangerous, as they were doing hideous dive
profiles, see-sawing up and down is a great way to get air
embolisms, not to mention the bends if you are in the water too
long. Not only were they carrying spear guns, but they were
stealing tiny baby colourful tropical fish - for sale in
aquariums. The three pictures show a baby puffer fish and a clown
anemone fish, both the type these pirates were trying to catch.

They had long metal rods and were poking around behind coral and
in the crevices, they knew exactly what they were after - baby
lion fish and butterfly fish, but very, very small ones. They
coaxed or frightened them out from their hiding places, caught
them in a butterfly kind of net and then put them into plastic
bags and tied them to themselves. It was not a good sight.

src="http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/2005//200508-enews-image014.jpg"
alt="tropical fish" class="pic" hspace="12" />This was not
quite in the protected WWF marine reserve where I mostly dived,
but they most definitely should not have been doing this. They
were no more pleased to see us than me and the dive instructor I
was with, were to see them. They knew they were 'in the
wrong' and it was a very awkward situation under water, a
little aggressive and certainly very threatening. When we got
back to our dive boat, and were returning to our hotel, the
Japanese instructor (a tiny little thing, with the strength of
Goliath) said in Indonesian (which I picked up a fair bit of!) to
the guys on the pirate boat that she was going to call the
police. They were not impressed.

src="http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/pictures/2005//200508-enews-image015.jpg"
alt="tropical fish" class="pic" hspace="12" />The next day
we dived in a different part of the same marine sanctuary, when
we heard this massive boom. There is only one sound, that, even
under water sounds like that - explosives. I was rather scared,
to put it mildly! Someone close by was dynamite fishing. It was
not a good feeling, and I thought that maybe, just maybe, my time
was up, and this is how it was all going to end - making enemies
with Indonesians stealing tropical fish who dynamited us out of
the water for revenge. But, as you can see, they did not dynamite
us, but there were four explosions on that dive and they were
further away than I first thought, but it was still very scary,
the whole water and landscape seems to vibrate and shake, almost
as if it was crying.

Apart from the dynamite fishing, I can whole heartedly recommend
the unvisited northern and north east part of Bali, it's
beautiful, the people serene, friendly and a privilege to have
spent time there.

src="http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/newsletter/images/mac-small.jpg"
align="left" height="100" hspace="12" width="64" />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
reminiscences about China.

Beijing, China. The Imperial Palace in the Forbidden City in
Beijing has 9000 rooms.  We agreed that if we got lost and
separated from each other we would meet in the Hall of Heavenly
Purity (if they would let us in.)  At the time I was there,
the military did not wear rank on their uniforms (don't know
if this still applies or not.)  You could kind of get an
idea of who outranked who by the number of pockets they had on
their blouse of uniform.  Someone with four pockets would
have their baggage carried by someone with one pocket or no
pockets.

In the hotels the orchestras (In the Peace Hotel in Shanghai I
think they had some of the members or orchestra from the 30s)
would play songs they thought we would like.  Oh Susannah
from a couple of decades ago seemed to be making a comeback, as
well as Turkey in the Straw and and Auld Lang Syne.  At the
end of each number the players would put down their instruments
and applaud us in the audience.  We could hardly wait for
the Tuba player to unwind from his Tuba to applaud us.

Our Chinese guide in Wushi kind of had a high opinion of himself
(unusual for Chinese) and thought he was hip in Western
ways.  He liked to show off and showed us how he was
proficient in Tai Chai.  Blonde vivacious Liza asked him to
dance with her.  He said that no he could not dance with a
client but that he would arm wrestle her!  He told long
involved stories about the Kingdom of Wu and Dragons and such.
George whispered: “I wonder what he would say if we told him
we didn't want to hear any more dragon stories?” 

In 1977 I got in on a deal on a trip to China.  A western
cruise ship had not gone into China in twenty seven years but
suddenly a Swiss outfit got permission and an ad was in the LA
paper one day only and participants had a very short time to get
on trip.  I had to fly to Singapore and get on Norwegian
Rasa Sayang ship.  Why it did not leave from Hong Kong I
don't know.  Everything about that trip was
strange.  On board we were arranged into 24 groups of 24
people and in each group they arbitrarily chose a responsible
person.  This was the person the Chinese dealt with to give
us bad news to pass on to us others.  Your tour has been
cancelled.  Unpaid thankless job.  Our Chinese guides
had names that phonetically sounded like Mr Shi, Mr Ee and Miss
Ou.  They met us at gangplank with Miss Ou carrying a banner
with number 13 the number of our group.   24 buses were
there to meet us.  It was like a military operation although
we were all supposed to be civilians.  One Australian before
we left ship asked if it was alright if he wore walking
shorts.  He was told “You are going to look so strange
to the Chinese that is makes no difference what you wear”.

Our guide Miss Ou had pigtails, glasses no makeup and wore a bag
like Mao suit.  Most of our tour group dressed down, slacks
etc but one lady in our group wore high heels and a different
fancy outfit for each appearance as she said she wanted the
Chinese to see her clothes and how they could dress.

There was no tipping but on the second day I gave Miss Ou some
picture post cards of Washington, D. C.  She then gave me a
ten minute speech that she would accept hers as a signal of
international friendship.  I then became her pet and she
would come to me on pronunciation of English.  I, who have a
speech defect, ha!

At the Pan His Restaurant No 15l Hsiang Yang Rd (Kissinger ate
there,) Canton, where we ate one meal, Miss Ou would tell us what
was in each dish.  Duck, shrimp, vegetable and other
materials. When she saw some smile at “other materials”
she looked to me and I said other ingredients.

Wherever we went there would be Chinese on each side of sidewalk
waiting for us to come out of antique stores, whatever and they
would applaud us.  I thought it was voluntary but was told
that they had probably been ordered to do this and perhaps had
been there since five o clock that morning waiting for us to
arrive although they probably had no idea who we were or where we
were from.  I felt like Prince Philip viewing China and
found myself walking with my arms behind my back.  I bowed
graciously to my fans.  They have gotten so many tourists
now that they no longer applaud us.

On my first trip to China they said that five of each 24 group of
24 could witness acupuncture which was new to me so I raised my
hand.  Most of us did not realize that this demonstration of
acupuncture included watching five bloody operations in a
hospital where they used acupuncture as an anaesthetic.  One
lady passed out immediately and they put one of the needles
between her mouth and nose and she came right to.  We were
in a viewing area that looked down on the operating tables. 
One operation was to remove a goitre from an elderly lady. 
After they removed the goitre the size of a golf ball they passed
it up to us on a tray much as if they were passing around
something to eat at a cocktail party.  After the fourth
operation I felt woozy myself and so left room and climbed stairs
to roof of hospital.  Attendants came running after
me.  There was a church with a steeple nearby and I tried to
act like I had just gone up there for the view and to see China
as I wasn't seeing much of China in that operating
room.  I pointed to the church spire and said what is that
building? I was told “It is where they store useless objects
(religious statues, religious things).  Just wait until I
tell Father Murphy!

We were told that acupuncture did not work as anaesthetic unless
you had faith in it. The advantage is that there were supposedly
no after effects and one could eat after the operation. In fact
before the operation which I don't think is usual practice.
When the tumour was removed from the neck of the elderly lady,
they wanted to show us that she could navigate on her own. She
kind of slid off table looked up at us and waved and we waved
back. She then kind of stumbled out of the room.

Would I submit to acupuncture in an operation? Only if I could
have an anaesthetic as well.

I did later on another trip submit to this form a barefoot
doctor. They call them barefoot doctor (not barefoot) but those
that work helping those in communes and field. I paid something
like fifteen cents. It was to cure a cold. They then gave me a
certificate entitling me to free acupuncture care for a year.

British Airways whose tagline has been 'the world's
favourite airline' has been overtaken by our friends Ryanair
whom it has been recorded carried more passengers in August 2005
than the whole of BA.  This could have something to do with
the Gate Gourmet catering fiasco/strike and increasing
competition.  Ryanair's latest monthly figures for
August show that BA carried 156,000 fewer passengers than the
Irish airline which saw numbers soar by 27% to 3.257m.  As
usual, Ryanair's Chief Executive had something to say:
'It's official. Ryanair has today become the world's
favourite airline.  Last month, Ryanair's traffic
exceeded BA's worldwide passengers across its entire
network.'

Whilst the Beetle does not believe that just because
Ryanair's figures exceed British Airways' Ryanair can
take over British Airway's mantle of being the world's
favourite airline.  This seems a little excessive given that
Ryanair does not fly long haul, nor has anything like BA's
coverage, provides next to no in-flight service and benefited in
passenger volume particularly as a result of BA's strike
fiasco during the month of August.  Ryanair's success
was put down to growing passenger volumes due to Ryanair's
guarantee of no fuel surcharges.  And not forgetting that
Michael O'Leary likes to have the last word, he went on to
say: 'At least on Ryanair, customers can buy a sandwich with
the £100 they have saved over BA's high fares and that's
why BA are now officially just second choice'.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

51 holiday makers, mostly Belgians but including five Britons and
fifteen Germans, were told that their flight from Carcassone to
Charleroi airport, Brussels airport had been cancelled due to bad
weather and would not be replaced.  They were forced to hire
a bus and drive 600 miles home after they were told that the next
aircraft out of Carcassone would be in 10 days time.  The 51
passengers led by a Belgian window cleaner, clubbed together to
rent a vehicle for €4,000 (£2,700) to drive home to
Charleroi in Belgium. “They abandoned us there as if we were
dogs,” said Gauthier Renders, the 28-year-old window cleaner
from Brussels. “There were children there and even an old
woman with a walking stick. They didn't even give us a glass
of water.” He continued: “At the Ryanair desk they said
there were no available flights for ten days. Everything was
fully booked. They said that some of us could get home via Gerona
in Spain but that was 200 miles away and there were only 15
places available.   They also said they wouldn't
pay for us to get there. So I looked for a bus in the Yellow
Pages and we were on the road by 9pm.” The bus company
provided two drivers and after a 16-hour drive the coach arrived
in Belgium, on Tuesday.

“That's a long trip and everyone was pretty frustrated
when we got there. Ryanair said they would refund our return
flight - half the price of the original ticket - but said that it
would take three weeks for the money to arrive,” Mr Renders
said. “They don't care about the bad publicity; they
know they are a cheap airline and that people will use them again
just because they are cheap. But not me: my wife and I will never
fly Ryanair again.”

If you have enjoyed reading this e-newsletter, why not visit the
Globetrotter website, href="http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/">http://www.globetrotters.co.uk/
and have a look at a copy of Globe, the bi-monthly printed
newsletter sent to members only.

We also send members only a listing of all members, their contact
details and countries visited and any help they can offer.
Globetrotter members network by using this listing to contact
each other in over 27 countries around the world to ask for
travel advice, and possibly even meeting. As a member, you will
receive a reduction on any Globetrotter meetings in your area,
and will entitle you to have free Globetrotter calling cards to
give your details to other travellers you meet while travelling.

Just US $29 or €24 buys you membership for one year.
Contact href="mailto:membership@globetrotters.co.uk">membership@globetrotters.co.uk
for more information.

Countries with the Most Billionaires

Source: http://www.aneki.com/billionaires.html

Did you know, you can change the format of this e-newsletter?
This e-newsletter is available in 4 formats:

1. This format with 2 columns.

2. A single column print friendly version available online, see
the link in every e-newsletter (or click
here).

3. The text only version, if you'd like your e-newsletter in
plain text format, just send a blank email to href="mailto:text-enews@globetrotters.co.uk">text-enews@globetrotters.co.uk
Globetrotters Webmaster with “Text+Enews” as the
subject

4. Have a link emailed to you pointing to the online version,
just send a blank email to href="mailto:text-enews@globetrotters.co.uk">text-enews@globetrotters.co.uk
Globetrotters Webmaster with “Link+Enews” as the
subject

The British Foreign and
Commonwealth Office advise against all travel to
Uganda.  This is what they have to say:

We advise against all travel to northern and north eastern Uganda
because of rebel insurgency and tribal clashes.  In July
2005, there was an armed attack on a vehicle in the northern part
of the Murchison Falls National Park. We strongly advise people
not to visit this park.

There have been no incidents in Mgahinga National Park and those
parts of Kisoro District that border the Democratic Republic of
Congo (DRC) since early December 2004, but we advise travellers
to this region to continue to check our Travel Advice regularly.

Most visits to Uganda are safe. Kampala is a relatively safe
city. By day you can walk the streets and visit local markets.
But opportunistic crime such as burglaries, muggings and drive-by
bag snatches is on the increase in Kampala. We strongly recommend
that after dark, you avoid going out on foot. Do not make
yourself an obvious target for muggers and pickpockets. Do not
carry large sums of cash in the streets or wear expensive looking
jewellery or watches.

In urban areas keep car doors locked and windows shut at all
times. There have recently been a number of thefts of personal
property from cars and taxis while stationary in traffic. If
stopped by armed men, do not attempt to resist. Avoid travelling
outside main towns after dark.

Take care of your passport: theft of EU passports has increased
in recent months.

We strongly advise that you obtain comprehensive travel and
medical insurance before travelling.

You don't have to go far to encounter trouble!  New
research from the UK's Direct Line Travel Insurance indicates
that over one in 10 Britons has been robbed while on holiday and
a further 27 percent know someone who has. Spain is the country
with the highest number of thefts with 38 percent of those who
have experienced robberies claiming it happened there. 
France is next on the list with 14 percent, Italy seven per cent
and Greece five percent.

Money is the most frequently stolen possession (41 percent),
followed by purses, wallets, cameras and jewellery.

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 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!!