Meeting news from our branches around the world.

Sebastian Hope gave us a delightful talk about fishing and the sea gypsies of South East Asia, peppering his talk with anecdotes of friendships he made on his various visits to South East Asia and glorious slides of azure seas and beautiful multicoloured tropical fish. Sebastian has written a book about his exploits called Outcasts of the Islands

After the break which included requests for information on places such as New Caledonia, Iguaçu, Cambodia, Mali and lots of other places too numerous to mention, Tim Burford gave us a talk centred on Romania’s wooden churches. He explained that although many are said to date from the middle ages, most are only a couple of centuries old. Tim went on to show modern Romanian architecture in Bucharest. Tim also explained Romania’s version of the Dracula story and advised us to visit soon as there are plans for a Dracula theme park.

On the 1st December, Jon Hornbuckle will be talking about Chile, Atacama Desert to the Land of Fire. Jon has spent the last eight years travelling world-wide in search of wildlife and cultural experience. Denise Heywood will be talking about Vietnam, descending the Land of the Ascending Dragon from Hanoi (a French Colonial city) travelling south through the great Cham Empire, to the Imperial city of Hue and Saigon, and ending at the Cambodian border – everything except the war!

For the month of December 2001, only, the London meeting will be held at 3pm at the Concert Artists Association, 20 Bedford Street, Covent Garden , the door is at the end of a long passageway next to the Springbok Bar. (This is the opposite side of Covent Garden to the Crown Court, our normal venue)

Other than in December 2001, all 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. For more information, you can contact the Globetrotter Info line on +44 (0) 20 8674 6229, or visit the website: http://www.globetrotters.co.uk

The November New York meeting was cancelled due to clashing with the New York marathon.

Laurie, our New York Chair says “Hello Globies! and Happy Thanksgiving!” Due to holiday parties, travel and cheer, we will not be holding a December Globies meeting.
We WILL resume in January with what promises to be a great line up of speakers!

More to come on that later.

New York meetings are held at The Wings Theater, 154 Christopher Street (btw Greenwich St and Washington St), to the right of Crunch Fitness, in the Archive on the first Saturday of each month at 4 pm.

As soon as we get information on the annual barbecue we will let you know what happened! 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.

The Globetrotters Texas branch held their fifth meeting on Saturday, November 10. Attendence continues to grow, with 19 happy people at the meeting. Brad and Mamie spoke and shared slides from their travels to Afghanistan in the early 70’s. Their separate stories were fascinating. The group discussed favourite travel websites and travel magazines. Most everyone learned about something new.

The door prize was a two volume Encyclopedia of World Travel – a classic from 1973. How appropriate that Mamie was the winner, as her presentation was based on her travels in 1973! Following the meeting, 11 people adjourned to the Hoity-Toit, a local beer joint for refreshments and fellowship.

The next meeting will be December 8. Everyone is invited! Christina’s advice is to come early so you won’t be late! Handouts and refreshments will be available. Anybody want to help Christina or enquire about meetings, please contact her on: texas@globetrotters.co.uk

Found whilst gratuitously surfing http://www.nps.gov/bela/html/morebear.html The following is an extract of the advice given if you see a bear. The principle is: avoid being in contact with bears if you can. Give the bear every opportunity to avoid you. If you do encounter a bear at close distance, remain calm. Attacks are rare. Chances are, you are not in danger – most bears are interested only in protecting food, cubs or their “personal space.” Once the threat is removed, they will move on. Remember the following:

Identify Yourself – Let the bear know you are human. Talk to the bear in a normal voice. Wave your arms and help the bear recognize you. If a bear cannot tell what you are, it may come closer or stand on its hind legs to get a better look or smell. A standing bear is usually curious, not threatening. You may try to back away slowly diagonally, but if the bear follows, stop and hold your ground.

Don’t Run – You can’t outrun a bear. They have been clocked at speeds up to 35 mph, and like dogs, they will chase fleeing animals. Bears often make bluff charges, sometimes to within 10 feet of their adversary, without making contact. Continue waving your arms and talking to the bear. If the bear gets too close, raise your voice and be more aggressive. Bang pots and pans and use noisemakers. Never imitate bear sounds or make a high-pitched squeal.

Surrender – If a brown bear actually touches you, fall to the ground and play dead. Lie flat on your stomach, or curl up in a ball with your hands behind your neck. Typically a brown bear will break off its attack once it feels the threat has been eliminated. Remain motionless for as long as possible. If you move, a brown bear may return and renew its attack and you must again play dead. If you are attacked by a black bear, fight back vigorously.