Category Archives: archive

Masai and Back in a Day

In a forest. In a bee suit. In the middle of Tanzania. 100 miles away from Mikindani. With Tony Herbert’s reputation. Most contrapuntal by anyone’s standards but after spending five days with our beekeeping mentor we knew better than to be surprised by such a situation. Our quest to obtain two stocks of bees had started on Tony’s arrival on the Saturday but this particular episode had begun at 5am that very morning.

The objective of our trip to Masasi, a settlement known for its history of beekeeping, was to purchase two hives and colonies of bees to get the apiary up and flying. With six of us packed tightly into the Land Rover we set off West with the sun on our backs basking in the ever more magnificent African sunrise. After breakfast at Mnazi Mmoja (literally translates as “coconut one” but why, no one seems to know) we reached the Regional Resources Office in Masasi at about half past ten following another particularly bruising journey on the roads of Tanzania. After being promised a meeting with the regional beekeeping liaison you can imagine our surprise to find out he had left the office not more than half an hour prior to our arrival. Needless to say, his phone was either turned off or more likely, out of signal. Had our quest for the holy pair of hives been scuppered by the absence of one man?!

Despite this set back, we were offered a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel by a man named Rodney, the temporary liaison for Natural Sciences in the Masasi district. He knew of a small village called Lipupu, around 50 miles beyond Masasi that was notorious for its beekeeping activities. It was a long shot but with Tony on board we knew that anything was possible and so the decision was made to press on.

Beekeepers

Sure enough, faith has its rewards. We found it without any problems and were pointed straight towards the village beekeeper’s house, signified by the array of unused bee hives and interesting looking logs suspended outside his house. One problem… occupant was nowhere to be seen. We were ushered in to the woods by a group of locals keen to show us the hives kept by the owner of the intriguing house and were promised that he was not too far away and that he only left about half an hour ago. Despite being sure that we had heard those words before that day we set off in to the middle of nowhere to investigate the bees that we had been promised. We could not believe our luck when the owner of the hives appeared from within the bush and after many furrowed brows, tense looks and careful negotiation we purchased our two colonies of Apis Mellifera Scutellata, the African honey bee, to be complemented by a further two log hives worth of sting less bees. After all the setbacks of the day we felt we has earned our luck in finding this beecon (sic.) of beekeeping in an otherwise uninhabited part of Tanzania. So, as we set of widdershins, driving in to the rain, spirits were through the roof. The smile on Tony’s face produced by this accomplishment never disappeared for the rest his stay and it really was the culmination of a tiring but wonderfully productive and enjoyable week. For this we will be eternally grateful for the hard work and never ending enthusiasm of one man. Thank you Tony.

Answers to Flag Quiz

Find the answers

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1. Argentina

2. Bosnia- Herzegovina

3. Cook Islands

4. Estonia

5. Honduras

Fave Websites

If you are interested in forest conservation, then take a look at this: http://forests.org/

This website provides news from around the world on issues in countries about the protection of forests to volunteer positions.

Also, spotted by Padmassana: Christopher Rogers

He does some fabulous pictures of London, showing all the buildings, they come with a “Key” so you can pick places, buildings etc out.

Our Friends Ryanair

Fly Ryanair and gamble

Ryanair’s latest potential cash generating scheme is to provide in-flight gambling. No fills Ryanair already charge for the ‘frills’ such as food, luggage and movies, and, more famously ice if they could get away with it, are now considering providing gambling on board its planes. News reports say that gambling operators have expressed interest, although there are no formal talks underway.

Ryanair’s Chief Exec warns of reduction in low cost operators

Ryanair and easyJet are widely credited to have helped transform Europe’s low cost airline industry. Ryanair’s chief executive Michael O'Leary recently warned the World Low Cost Airlines Congress that “there will a bloodbath in Europe this winter” in the budget air sector. “The bloodbath will reach all the companies,” said O'Leary, who has previously predicted that only one or two large low-fares airlines will be left flying the skies of Europe in the medium term. Competition in the low cost, no frills airline industry is intensifying. In 2000 there were just five low-cost airlines in Europe, now there are 49, according to Wolfgang Kurth, president of the European Low Fares Airline Association and chief executive of TUI's no-frills carrier Hapag-Lloyd Express. Webster told the conference that low-cost airlines could take advantage of short-haul routes likely to be neglected by the larger, established carriers.

Ryanair adopts a school

Cause related marketing is a live and well. Ryanair’s Head of Communications Paul Fitzsimmons recently said: “It’s back to school time for parents everywhere, and we’re giving people an opportunity to grab a back to school bargain with flights for ONLY 10p on many of our routes from Stansted and at the same time help our adopted school Mountfitchet High School. We will sell 200,000 seats at this fare, which means we can donate £20,000.00 to the school. It is fitting that as http://www.ryanair.com is Europe’s biggest travel website, that Mountfitchet High School is to use our donation to further upgrade their IT facilities for pupils. We would urge passengers to book quickly as demand will be huge and to remember that not only will they fly with Europe’s No.1 low fares airline, but they will also be helping school children further their computer education.”

Announcing the support for Mountfitchet High School at a photo call in the school, Mountfitchet High School Headmistress, Jo Mullis said: “We are delighted to have been chosen by Ryanair as their adopted school. Ryanair’s support comes at an important time, because with this help we can buy computer equipment for our pupils, which will help us to achieve our goal of becoming an IT merited school. We hope lots of people will buy their Ryanair flight knowing that Ryanair are donating the entire fare to our school project.” Pass the sick bag, somebody.

Ryanair told to pay back EU subsidy

No-frills Irish airline Ryanair has said that it would repay EUR4 million in subsidies it received to operate from Belgium's Charleroi Airport, pending an appeal to the European Court of Justice. In February, European Union regulators told Ryanair to repay EUR3.9 million (USD$4.97 million) to the regional government of Wallonia in southern Belgium, which had offered Ryanair cheap rates at the region's Charleroi Airport. “(Ryanair) agreed to repay EUR4 million in an escrow account until Ryanair's appeal is heard,” the airline said in a statement. The money will go into a blocked account, to which Ryanair will regain access if it wins its appeal. “We remain very confident that we will win,” Chief Executive Officer Michael O'Leary told a news conference in Brussels. O'Leary said the airline reserved the right to quit Charleroi if an adverse ruling raised costs, but said he intended to keep operations at their current level until then.

Eurostar to Close Waterloo

You got used to catching the Eurostar from London Waterloo to Paris or Brussels? Well, in 2007, all cross channel trains will no longer use Waterloo station, which was opened in 1993 at a cost of £130 million. (Note, Waterloo was the scene of one of France’s greatest military defeats in 1825!) Instead the Eurostar will start from St. Pancras station in north London and a depot near Stratford, east London, that has yet to be built. The decision was made because Eurostar believes the cost of running two London bases would be too much.

Travel Quiz: Acadia National Park

The winner of last month's Moon Guidebook on Peru is: Jane Thomas congratulations!

This month, win a Moon guidebook on Acadia National Park. See www.moon.com for info on Moon guide books.

Some people have said the quiz is difficult, we say do some research: try google.com or Ask Jeeves, if you need help with the answers.

Quiz

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Meeting News from Ontario

For information on Ontario meetings, please contact Svatka Hermanek: shermanek@schulich.yorku.ca or Bruce Weber: tel. 416-203-0911 or Paul Webb: tel. 416-694-8259.

Meetings are held on the third Friday of January, March, May, September and November. Usually at the Woodsworth Co-op, Penthouse, 133, Wilton Street in downtown Toronto at 8.00 p.m.

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New Tunnel under the Bosporus

Work on a tunnel and rail system under the Bosporus Strait connecting Europe and Asia in has just started in Istanbul.  The tunnel will be 13.7 kilometres long, (8.5 mile) tunnel and 1,400 meters of the tunnel will be underwater.  The Bosporus Strait, a 32 km waterway connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara, separating European Turkey from Asian Turkey.  It bisects Istanbul as it flows by historic Ottoman castles, mosques and parkland.  The tunnel will become the third link between the city's European and Asian sides.

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Educational Support in Mikindani by Tim Dench

When Tanganyika – as it was then – gained its independence it was praised for the devotion and priority it gave to education. Its then president, Julius Nyerere was known as Mlimu (teacher) and 40% of GDP was devoted to teaching. Things have changed with the passing of years and now Tanzania spends the least of all sub-Saharan countries on primary education.

The provision of all levels of education is woeful and unfortunately wealth and geography all too often act as a barrier. The standards of teaching are on the whole terrible as the teachers are poorly educated, trained and motivated as a result of extremely low salaries. This is exacerbated by a lack of teaching resources, textbooks and classrooms, laboratories and other facilities. For example only one school in Mikindani has an adequate, year round water supply. As a result of all of this the levels of education achieved are very low.

Mikindani as a political entity is made up of five ‘wards’ each of which has its own primary school. These are in theory free but actually are not. The nearest secondary schools are in Mtwara city, one of which is a fee paying state school  and there are also several private schools with higher fees and lower entry requirements. The catchment areas for theses schools are huge and the number of places available are very few in relation to the number of potential pupils. As a result of these factors and poverty not all children go to primary school and very few go to secondary school or beyond.

To try and rectify this there are three separate charities working in Mikindani and co-operating under the umbrella of the Mikindani Education Group (MEG). These are the Danish Schools Project (DSP), EdUKaid and Trade Aid – partly via its Gender Equality Project (GEP). Trade Aid has always supported the three main primary schools in Mikindani by volunteers teaching, the tree nursery and other projects.

Beyond this MEG is responsible for the sponsorship of individual pupils and supporting the schools directly. Primary school sponsors are asked to pay to provide essential items for pupils to go to school as well as providing building funds, resources etc for the schools. DSP have sponsored pupils and the primary schools of Mnaida, Singino and Mchuchu for several years. EdUKaid have just started supporting the outlying wards of Lwelu and Mitengo and their respective primary schools.

The cost of sending a child to secondary school is relatively high and so the three MEG members are also addressing this by paying for fees, desks, uniforms, transport, books etc. All have come from different viewpoints but the result is that all graduates from the Mikindani schools are guaranteed a place at secondary school. EdUKaid are responsible for all pupils from Lwelu and Mitengo, Trade Aid’s GEP deals with all female graduates from the three Mikindani schools whilst DSP deals with all the boys from there. Confusing with so many acronyms but it works fine on the ground under the stewardship of Mr Namadengwa, a teacher from Mikindani who acts as liaison and general worker for the MEG members.

We are still a long way from our respective aims but the benefits are already being felt and the gratitude of the pupils reflects this. If you would like any more information or are interested in sponsorship please contact us at the following:

Country Statistics

Rank Country Description
1. South Africa 0.74 per 1000 people
2. Colombia 0.52 per 1000 people
3. Thailand 0.31 per 1000 people
4. Zimbabwe 0.04 per 1000 people
5. Mexico 0.03 per 1000 people
6. Costa Rica 0.03 per 1000 people
7. Belarus 0.03 per 1000 people
8. United States 0.02 per 1000 people
9. Uruguay 0.02 per 1000 people
10. Lithuania 0.02 per 1000 people

Source: www.nationmaster.com

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Answers to: So You Think You're Well Travelled?

What's your score?

  1. Bulgaria: Sofia
  2. Ghana: Accra
  3. Mauritius: Port Louis
  4. Tunisia: Tunis
  5. Maldives: Male
  6. Yemen: Sana

0 out of 5 – you need to get out more!

1-3 – not bad

4 – very good! You are a Globetrotter!

5 – are you sure you didn’t sneak a look?

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Meeting News from Texas

We don’t have any information for upcoming meetings, but if you would like to attend a New Braunfels Globetrotters meeting, or obtain information about the Texas Branch: please contact texas@globetrotters.co.uk or register for email updates at our website (click here) or call Christina at 830-620-5482

If anybody would like to enquire about meetings or help Christina, please contact her on: texas@globetrotters.co.uk

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Electronic Ticketing

Paperless and ticketless bookings made more attractive by incentives, discounts and offers of air miles are fast becoming the way to travel.  Airlines are planning to stop issuing paper tickets in the next three years, a move that could save the industry up to $3 billion a year in running costs, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).  Some carriers are already ahead of the game: In the past year, more than 18 million customers have used e-ticketing services on Continental Airlines.  The move isn’t limited to airlines, hotel chains such as the Hilton, InterContinental, Sheraton, and Hyatt, are starting to automate processes too.  In Malaysia, you can make air ticket enquiries by SMS to a travel agent and in the case of budget carrier AirAsia you can book tickets by SMS.

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Teaching English In Portugal

Sally left the UK around two years ago to start a new life in Portugal.  She lives in a suburb of Lisbon, close to the sea and is now a TEFL teacher, teaching English to Portuguese children and adults.  So, if you are interested in a career in teaching English as a foreign language, here is an account of some of her work.

My children are still the same except one has now gone up a class so I am left with three – to be honest if I could shed this class I would, as it is not as enjoyable as teaching grown ups due to the fact that Portuguese children are not taught to read or write before the age of six – so, in a way I baby sit them twice a week.  We are making slow progress as Jorge (the four year old) tends to be disruptive when he is with one of the girls but fine with the other one!  I had to send him out of class to sit with the receptionist one week because he was so naughty.

Nuno, my other student, is still great fun.  His English has come on in leaps and bounds and he now proudly displays a sign in the front of the taxi he drives on Sundays in Lisbon, to say he speaks English.  He loves it when he gets an English passenger – he had one from Birmingham last Sunday so he had great fun chatting to him.  He is a Sporting Lisbon fan and very knowledgeable about them.  He is also very interesting and told me all about his upbringing in Cacem.  Cacem is not a very pretty place – mainly high rise flats and a lot of black people (I am not being politically incorrect – this is what they are called here).  He remembers it before all of this and is quite upset about the way it has become.  He lives in what was his parents’ flat (they died a few years ago) with his wife.  He went to university in Lisbon and did what all students did, i.e. drink and behave badly but still managed to pass his exams.  He is a strong family man and found Christmas quite trying and he still misses his parents and says although Christmas was at his aunts, it was not the same.  He is also very interesting about his childhood, playing in the cul-de-sac with his friends but says that he has lost quite a few to drink or drugs which has made him sad.  He is about 29/30 and still out of work although he has had loads of interviews – very like the UK, half the time he never gets a reply to either application or a reason for not getting a position.

I have also got two/three other students.  One, Senor Manuel, is a Graphic Designer who is going on a cruise on 21 March so needs some English to get by on it.  He has French and reckons he had no English but as usual he understands quite a bit.  We are getting on quite well and I think he will manage OK.  The other one/two is the husband of the Ambassador for a Caribbean country, and his daughter.  Both are lovely.  He has decided that he has to get his English sorted because his best friends over here are the UK Ambassador and the US Ambassador.  He is making swift progress.  His daughter just needs help with the reading and writing.  I teach the pair of them for two hours on a Saturday morning.

My Portuguese is coming along and I find that watching the TV helps.  Television is still dire but I am now slowly watching bits and pieces of Portuguese TV.  I got hooked on their version of Who wants to be a Millionaire – very entertaining as the presenter often gives them a clue!  I have been trying one of their telenovelas (soap operas) but it was so atrocious (think the UK’s Crossroads but worse acting and wobbly scenery) that I had to turn it off.  I am also getting much better at understanding the news.  Last week there was a wonderful piece on at lunchtime about a group of OAPS who had raided a disco in Abrantes (Pego Power Station) dressed up in glitter wigs, men dressed in drag etc etc to protest that dancing was for all ages and not just the young!  Some of the old men had grabbed very young, nubile young ladies and were swinging them round the dance floor much to their horror.  Good on ’em I say.  Great footage too of all the snow that has hit the north of the country and brought parts of it to a standstill.  Lorries trapped at the Spanish border, people stuck in cars for seven hours etc etc.

If you would like to ask Sally any questions about living in Portugal or teaching English as a foreign language, Sally can be contacted on: pethybs@hotmail.com

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Answers to September's the Peru Quiz

Due to popular demand, we have included the answers to last month’s Travel Quiz.

We are inundated each month by people entering the quiz, and receive many correct submission answers.

Our webmaster collates all of the correct answers into a draw, and the Beetle selects a number at random.

1. The Incas were defeated by conquistadores from which country in 1533? A: Spain

2. The population of modern day Peru is around 8 million, 18 million or 28 million? A: 28 million

3. Cuy is a local speciality – what type of animal is it? A: Guinea pig

4. Maria Reiche was an expert on which lines in Peru? A: Nazca Lines

5. How many countries does Peru have international borders with? A: five

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Write for the Globetrotters monthly e-newsletter

If you enjoy writing, enjoy travelling, why not write for the free monthly Globetrotters e-newsletter! The Beetle would love to hear from you: your travel stories, anecdotes, jokes, questions, hints and tips, or your hometown or somewhere of special interest to you. Over 9,000 people currently subscribe to the Globetrotter e-news.

To see your story in cyber print, e-mail the Beetle with your travel experiences, hints and tips or questions up to 750 words, together with a couple of sentences about yourself and a contact e-mail address to Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk

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French Card Fraud

France has been ranked as the place where British holidaymakers are most likely to become victims of credit card fraud.  Barclaycard’s annual world fraud index shows that France is the top credit card fraud hotspot, accounting for 43% of spending on stolen cards.  Second is the USA, 3rd Spain, 4th Ireland and 5th Germany.

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The Great Unprepared by Paul at Travelpharm

Over the last few years it has become increasingly obvious that travellers (from all backgrounds, ages and levels of intelligence) come under two main divisions, those who are organised and those who are not.

The former group are well versed in what they need to take with them to keep alert, safe and healthy, whilst the latter group always leave you feeling rather edgy, concerned, and often uttering those immortal words: 'I don’t believe it !'

The teenager who is about to depart for several weeks to the Amazon with her partner and has just run out of her Contraceptive Pill, the man who is leaving the next day for Kenya who had no idea he would need antimalarials for that destination, or even worse the person who 'never' gets bitten by bugs so wont waste money on pills that will only put him off his beer!

The list of the great unprepared is too vast to attempt. UNPREPARED is described in the dictionary as: Having made few or no preparations; Not equipped to meet a contingency; Not steeled as to face a shock and there will be plenty of shocks for those who do not seek out the wealth of advice available.

The Governments FCO site (www.fco.gov.uk) will give you superb guidance on those who can supply Travel Insurance, Embassies to contact if in difficulty, doctors surgeries for those with medical problems, and security information such as places to avoid and measures to take to protect your belongings and cash.

There are lists of FCO partners who supply information on vaccinations and antimalarials if appropriate to your destination, local disease problems, equipment such as medical packs, mosquito nets, useful travel medicines, and very often a voice on the end of the phone should you wish to discuss anything.

As part of Travelpharm we will offer our help and support whenever possible as well as a range of the items just listed.  If we cannot answer your question we will find a man or woman who can.  Please don’t become one of the great unprepared, there is simply no excuse ………..!

Paul, a pharmacist can be contacted on: info@travelpharm.com or alternatively, take a look at their website: http://www.travelpharm.com

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Being Careful: Somalia

According to the UK Foreign Office, there is a high threat to Western, including British, interests from terrorism in Somalia, as there is in a number of countries in East Africa and the Horn.  You should be aware that a number of British nationals and Westerners have been killed and injured in attacks in Somaliland. The Somaliland authorities believe these were terrorist inspired. Two British nationals were shot dead in Sheikh in Oct 2003. In the same month an Italian aid worker was murdered in Boroma near the border with Ethiopia. On 19 March 2004, a Kenyan woman working for a German Government aid organisation was shot dead in an ambush on the Hargeisa-Berbera road. Her German colleague was injured in the attack. Several suspects have been detained for this attack and for the two earlier similar incidents. This latter attack resulted in the temporary withdrawal of international aid personnel.

In May 2004, a remote-controlled landmine was found planted in a remote airstrip in the south of Somalia. UN and European Commission flights to Somalia are consequently now much restricted.

The Somaliland authorities have established a Special Protection Unit (SPU) which accompanies all UN missions outside Hargeisa. NGOs and individuals can also apply for an SPU escort at a cost of US$4.00 per day (or US$7.00 per 24 hours). British nationals who decide to stay in or visit Somaliland, despite our advice to the contrary, are urged to obtain details of the new system and to ensure that, when travelling, they take adequate security precautions.

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Padmassana Goes to Cambodia

After a long trip via Kuala Lumpur and Phnom Penh finally got to Siem Reap. After dumping luggage straight out to Angkor Wat, spectacular place and surprisingly not many tourists. I had a driver and guide to myself, which meant we went at my pace as I was really tired. Luckily my driver provided endless bottles of cold water, as we wandered around the ruins. I got back to hotel and slept for 12 hours! 

Interesting hotel breakfast including croissant, bacon and chips! I think they had better get a bigger tea urn with me in residence though!  Went out to Angkor Thom, again very nice, but agree with you (Beetle) that Ta Prom is wonderful out in the forest with the jungle threatening to take over, a truly wonderful place.  Went up to see the sunset from a temple on top of a hill, but clouds arrived so had to go back down.  It’s the rainy season just beginning in middle of May and we had a big thunderstorm last night.

wat thom monksThen next day went to Banteay Srei, 30km from Siem Reap, quite interesting, especially with a musical accompaniment provided by a band of land mine victims.  Also took in some other temples as well Ta Keo and Banteay Samre.  A free afternoon after that, so I spent it exploring Siem Reap, a typical backpacker town, good fun and they have cheap CD shops.  Lots of souvenirs available, but only bought a few.

This was a great time to visit, as there were very few tourists, you could see everything and take photos without heads bobbing up in the way.

I wanted to go up in the static balloon over Angkor Wat, but I had to abandon that as we had a spectacular thunderstorm last night, so had a Thai massage instead while the heavens opened.

I was due to just transit Phnom Penh, but Malaysian Airlines cancelled my flight and put me on a later one, so rather than get bored in an airport for 6 hours my Angkor guide rang his mate in Phnom Penh, who picked me up from the airport and got me round the major sights in 3 hours, phew – the time I had between arriving at the airport and leaving for KL.  I visited the Royal Palace, which was closed, the National Museum, which was good as it has some of the carvings that are missing from Siem Reap, then to Wat Phnom and to Tol Sluong genocide museum and killing fields, which is gruesome, but has to be seen. I will never forget the “Skull map” of Cambodia or the cabinets full of skulls.

If you would like to contact Padmassana, he can be e-mailed on: Padmassana@globetrotters.co.uk

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New Iran Island Resort

Iran is to build a 1.7 billion euro ($2.0 billion) luxury tourism project on the Gulf island of Kish designed to rival nearby tourism hotspot Dubai.  Kish is a small island with relaxed rules on women's dress and mingling of the sexes although women are still required to wear headscarves and cover their bodies when swimming, and alcohol consumption is banned.

The “Flower of the East” project , Iran’s largest tourism project since the 1979 Islamic revolution is aimed at attracting foreign money and diversifying its economy away from oil.  A German company has won the bid to develop a tourism, recreational and residential complex in KishIsland which lies some 125 miles (200 km) away from Dubai to the south. 

The complex will include a 7-star hotel to rival Dubai's 7-star Burj al-Arab, a marina, 27-hole golf course, sports clubs, shopping malls and 4,700 luxury apartments.  The project is largely aimed at Iranian expatriates seeking a holiday home in their native land, will be completed by the end of 2009.

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