If you've been enjoying this newsletter please pass it to a friend…it's as easy as this…

1: Hit forward
2: Put your friends email in the “TO” field.
3: Paste this ahead of the newsletter…
Hi [name],
I really like this free monthly newsletter by the Globetrotters Club… I'm sure you will too… sign up at: www.globetrotters.co.uk
4: Sign the email and send.

Please, do not send the newsletter to anyone you don’t know. Spam is one of the worst aspects of the Internet, and we don’t want to be part of it

.

A big thank you to Moon Handbooks who have donated this months' huge and highly informative Moon handbook on the South Pacific, written by David Stanley as above. See www.moon.com for more details.

The winner of last month's Moon Handbook on Guatemala is Mike Shawcross.

Whilst over eighty thousand British nationals visited Kenya last year, the vast majority enjoyed a trouble-free stay. Nevertheless, all visitors should be aware of potential risks and should exercise sensible precautions.

Muggings and armed attacks can occur at any time, particularly in Nairobi and Mombassa: be alert at all times. Do not accept food or drink from strangers, as there have been instances of it being drugged. Avoid travelling after dark in isolated places, particularly empty beaches. Do not carry valuables or wear jewellery in public places. Do not carry credit cards or cash cards unless you must, people have been forced by thieves to withdraw cash. Beware of thieves posing as police officers; always ask to see identification. Outbreaks of political violence are normally localised and rarely affect visitors. It is best to avoid political rallies or meetings, which are usually well publicised. These are likely to become more numerous in the run-up to general elections, widely expected to take place in December 2002, though the timing of the polls may be delayed into 2003. Incidents of armed car-hijackings are more prevalent in Nairobi and Mombassa but can occur in any area of the country. Do not attempt to escape from hijackers or resist their demands.

Game reserves and other tourist areas are generally trouble-free, but tourists wishing to visit reserves should use reputable tour operators and arrive at their destination in daylight hours. Visitors are strongly advised not to buy safari tours from touts but only through reputable agencies or from their hotel. There have been some fatalities when people have gone on foot in game parks and visitors should conform closely to park regulations and wardens' advice. Bathing in rivers and lakes is forbidden in National Parks and is best avoided elsewhere due to the dangers from both wildlife and water-borne disease.

For security reasons, and also because of the condition of the roads, visitors to Lamu Island are strongly advised to travel by air. Buses and other vehicles on the road to Lamu have been attacked by armed robbers and must travel in convoy on the Malindi/Garsen/Lamu section. Avoid the North-Eastern Province, in particular areas near the Somali border, the Tana River District of Coast Province and the Isiolo and Marsabit Districts of Eastern Province where cattle raids are frequent. Cattle raids have also occurred in Trans Nzoia district and armed robbery has affected the Kapenguria to Lokichokio road in Rift Valley Province.

Take care if driving, especially at night, as road conditions and driving standards are often poor. There have been a number of serious accidents involving Kenyan long-distance bus services. Vehicles are often poorly maintained, and driven at excessive speed even on poorly maintained roads. Visitors are advised to check with any bus operator on the standards they observe before using this form of transport. Another common form of public transport is the matatu, usually a minibus plying a specific route. Though very cheap to use, matatus are notorious for being poorly maintained, badly driven and in some instances do not have proper insurance cover. There are frequent reports of matatus being hijacked, or of passengers being robbed. Visitors are advised to think carefully before using matatus.

Source: www.fco.co.uk

Overlooking the River Thames, Tate Britain was originally founded through the philanthropy of the sugar magnate Sir Henry Tate. The Tate legacy now encompasses three other galleries around the UK, including Tate Modern in London. Dedicated to showcasing Britain's artistic talent, Tate Britain is home to the greatest collection of British art from 1500 to the present day. Since it opened in 1897, the collection has expanded to include works from Blake, Rossetti, Spencer and Stubbs. Visitors will be treated to a visual feast in the Turner gallery, discover the ever-popular The Kiss by Rodin and be mesmerized by the visionary work of William Blake. The works have recently been re-arranged according to six core themes ranging from Literature and Fantasy to Public and Private. As a result, historic and modern paintings now hang together.

Opening hours: 10:00-17:50, closed 24-26 Dec.
Tube: Pimlico or Vauxhall. Enquiries: 020 7887 8000 Entrance: FREE except for some special ex

hibitions.

A recent UK Sunday newspaper ran a brief report about a five month study the Lithuanian government has just conducted.

As a result of the study, the government has scrapped a law that required women to take a gynaecological examination before they could be issued a driver's licence. Government officials argued that certain diseases in women could cause sufficient pain to hinder driving. “This requirement made our country look more than strange” said a health ministry spokesman.

Strange, indeed, says the Beetle, wondering what if any examination the men have to undergo.

London Waterways week takes place between 7-15 September.

The event will start with the Great River Race and finish with the Mayor's Thames Festival. Many waterside attractions are taking part in the festivities offering special events and discounts. A special leaflet with details of events and discounts is available from London Tourist Information Centres and libraries from mid-August or by calling +44 (0) 20 7286 7306.

The Beetle has been having an interesting e-mail conversation with Peter in the US, but British, about what counts as having visited a country. He says that he visited Czechoslovakia, but now it is two countries. Does his visit count as 1 country or 2? The same must be true of the former Yugoslavia.

Which other counties have split? And what do you think?

Email the Beetle

Under 30? 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!!!

Why risk the uncertain weather of the British climate? With airfares low and hotels reasonable, why not go to Boston to watch the match?? There is a big Irish community there, we'll find a pub to watch the game and do some sightseeing and shopping. What a brilliantly extravagant idea! I couldn't resist.

Shops are all over, although the Prudential Centre was close by the hotel and the tower definitely gave the best all round view of the city. Eating at Bonmarche was great, although be warned, the American sweet tooth and French toast combine to give truly disgusting results!

Across town in the North-West region was Quincy market, more shops and a fine food hall. The New England Aquarium is also located here with a brilliant tower fish tank. Also worth a visit was the science museum and Newbury Street on a Sunday afternoon.

It was a brilliant break. A combination of sightseeing, shopping and sore feet. The people were friendly and helpful, even when Wales won.

PRÓXIMA VIAGEM want to hear from you! Próxima Viagem is a Brazilian travel magazine that sells around 70 000 copies a month. For the special birthday issue of their magazine they want to publish a poll of the top travellers in the world, people who have been to more than 100 countries and are members of some travellers club. The poll is to ask travellers about their favourite small-charming cities in the world. It is a “travel is peace” kind of article.

Please send Denise your top 10 small cities that are very special for you and a brief biography of yourself, focused on travelling and the number of places you visited.

contact Denise by e-mail

As noted by our eagle-eyed Webmaster, Paul Roberts, this is a facility whereby you can send faxes via the web or email – rather handy! Take a look at The Phone Company website.

You can also receive replies with a free efax.com number.

Dr Livingstone is walking through the jungle and comes across a clearing with a huge hippopotamus lying stone dead in the middle of it. On top of the hippo is a pygmy. Dr Livingstone approaches him and asks: “Did you kill that?” The pygmy replies: “Howrya. Yes, I did.” Dr Livingstone is surprised by this and continues by asking: “How did you kill it?” “With my club,” replies the pygmy. Dr Livingstone asks: “How big is your club?” “Oh, there's about twenty of us at the moment,” says the pygmy.

US Airways, the sixth biggest airline in the United States, has filed for bankruptcy protection. Under the so-called Chapter 11 procedure, the company will continue to operate while it attempts to restructure its business and return to financial health, estimated to be the first quarter of 2003.

Last month US Airways pilots agreed to pay cuts amounting to $465m a year, in an effort to keep the company afloat and the company is also attempting to save $1.3bn in annual expenses from labour, suppliers, lenders and creditors.

All of the US airlines have experienced a downturn in air travel since 9-11, but this is the first carrier to file for bankruptcy. Part of the reason is that whilst US Airways did not lose any planes on 11 September, its main hub, Reagan National Airport, near Washington DC, was shut down for three weeks and reopened with only a limited schedule.

United Airlines, the second-ranking US carrier, has warned it may follow rival US Airways in filing for bankruptcy protection. They say that unless it succeeds in cutting its costs, it will also be forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from creditors. Interestingly, UA is 55% owned by employees. The firm has given itself 30 days to conclude talks with staff on rebuilding the carrier around a new business plan. Watch this space!

Blaming the problem on a slump in passengers, Chairman and Chief Executive Jack Creighton said: “The world has changed, revenue isn't coming back the way the industry expected. Demand isn't returning, fares remain low, and the industry is grappling with how to respond.”

Michael is looking for a cheap guesthouse, pension or hostel near Villefrance (halfway b/w Nice and Monaco) in France. He arrives in Nice on September 3^rd and leaves on the 28^th September and is looking for a cheap place to stay in both Italy and Villefrance. If you can help Michael, please e-mail him.

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: Mutual Aid

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. Travel Sized Bites

· The airport handles more international passengers than any other airport in the world and offers flights to many international destinations including 33 flights to Paris and 23 flights to New York each day.

· The most popular country for flights from Heathrow is the United States of America.

· The busiest routes are New York, Paris, Amsterdam and Dublin.

· The busiest day at Heathrow recorded this year was Sunday 29 July 2001 when 213,000 passengers passed through the airport.

· The airport covers approximately 1,200 hectares (3,000 acres).

www.baa.co.uk

OK, it's silly season! Earlier in the year, we saw Prince Charles (but not Camilla!) spend a night in a £25-a-night B&B called Yew Tree Farm, an 18th century farmhouse in the Lake District village of Rosthwaite in Borrowdale. Pre-divorce, Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise also used to stay in the Lake District, at Samling, a rambling Lakeland estate of stone cottages dotted across a fell overlooking Lake Windermere.

Michael Winner stays at Sandy Lane, Barbados. Kylie is known to holiday in Ibiza, staying at a £10,000 a week three-bed art deco house on top of a mountain, according to celebrity travel agent Earth. Julien MacDonald of Givenchy fame is alleged to prefer the Puri Ganesha villas on the beach at Pemuteran, a fishing village in the relatively undiscovered north-west of Bali, costing around £300 a night. Talking of fashion designers, Jean Paul Gaultier can be found at Dar Zellije, a four-suite riad said to have no frills other than its 17th century architecture where not all the bathrooms are en suite.

And last but not least, lets think about Brighton, that genteel (?), happening place and erstwhile Victorian resort on the UK's southern shore. Not only does Norman Cook, AKA Fat Boy Slim hold rather dubious free concerts on the beach, but Liam Gallagher was spotted staying on the seafront at Blanche House, described as a themed B&B costing around £100 a night.

If you are thinking of going to Santiago or Tahiti, did you know, you could take a flight to Easter Island? It's included in the famous Oneworld Explorer air pass. In addition, if you do plan a trip to Easter Island, David Stanley's piece on Easter Island is a good source of information to help you plan your trip. David's notes on Easter Island are taken from the Moon Handbook on the South Pacific.

Visit southpacific.org for full information on how to get there, what there is to see, how to get around, a brief history and other activities such as surfing and diving. David Stanley has earned his living from guidebook writing since 1979, producing guides to the South Pacific, Micronesia, Alaska-Yukon, Eastern Europe, and Cuba. His latest book, Lonely Planet Canada's Maritime Provinces, was released in July.

You may want to reschedule your visit to Madagascar: according to news sources, an outbreak of flu has killed at least 374 people with another 5,000 and more infected. Health experts from the WHO are due to arrive to investigate the cause. The outbreaks are mostly blamed on poverty and have occurred in the southern highlands, Fianarantsoa and in the western port of Tulear, a place used by travellers to visit the national parks close by.

Add this to the last 7 months of civil unrest, this does not make Madagascar a very attractive place to visit – which is a great shame, as the Beetle can attest it is a fabulously interesting country, hard to get around, but worth the effort, to see the different kinds of forests, the lemurs, practice speaking French, the old French style of architecture and boulevards etc. The diving is not bad, either!