Our first speaker was Simon Casson, who took us on a journey in the footsteps of his hero Butch Cassidy, riding the Outlaw Trail. Simon’s pictures portrayed the barren deserts through which the outlaws managed to stay one step ahead of the law. It was not an easy journey, made more challenging when Simon managed to buy a horse that was blind! Over the course of his trip Simon and his two companions got through a number of horses and also lost a couple. Simon finally managed to reach Canada some months later than planned.

Our second speaker was Calum Macleod, who took us Uzbekistan. The country only gained its independence from the USSR in 1991. We saw the beautiful cities of Khiva and Samarkand with their minarets and spires and wonderful blue tiles. Simon explained that the country is allegedly becoming easier to visit, so hopefully more of us will get the opportunity to visit these cities.

Mark your diary for forthcoming meetings:

Sat. 6th November

• Christian Tyler – Into the TaklamakanDesert – “Wild West China”
• Janet Street-Porter – Walking in Australia The Larapinta Trail [Alice Springs] and the Bay of Fire Walk [Tassie]

Sat. 4 December

• Amar Grover – North Pakistan – Kailash Valleys of Chitral to Gilgit via ShandurPass
• Matthew Leeming -Afghanistan OR Iraqi Marsh Arabs

Sat. 8th January 2005 (the second Saturday)

• Four Mini-talks and New Year Party

London meetings are held at The Church of Scotland, Crown Court, behind the Fortune Theatre in Covent Garden at 2.30pm the first Saturday of each month. There is no London meeting in August, but we will be back in September. For more information, you can contact the Globetrotters Info line on +44 (0) 20 8674 6229, or visit the website: www.globetrotters.co.uk Admission: Members £2.00 Non-members £4.00.

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