A report from Malaysia's Star newspaper gives examples of how soaring fuel costs are impacting on air fares in certain instances. They gave two examples: a return ticket to Colombo, Sri Lanka from Kuala Lumpur costs RM400 but the fuel surcharge is RM450. Another bargain – a two-night return package to Bangkok from KL on Thai Airways costs RM399 but the fuel surcharge, airport tax and insurance will cost an additional RM323. With the rising demand for oil and hurricanes hitting the United States, world oil prices are not expected to come down in the near future. One Malaysian travel agent commented: “It looks like the days of cheap air travel are over as the high fuel prices are here to stay.” Another agent said: “Some of the fuel surcharges are so expensive that they make a mockery of their special cheap short flights from KLIA to regional destinations like Jakarta and Bangkok.”

Spotted by Webmaster Paul, here’s a satellite photo from Google of the Tower of London

US scientists have found that all modern varieties of potatoes can be traced back to a single source – a potato grown in Peru over 7,000 years ago. The team, led by Dr David Spooner of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who spends two months a year collecting wild potatoes on treks in South America’s mountainous regions analysed the DNA of about 360 potatoes, both wild and cultivated. Dr Spooner said archaeological finds had shown potatoes were being grown in Peru by farmers “more than 7,000 years ago”. Potatoes were brought back to Spain by the conquistadors around 1570, and spread throughout Europe. They were later introduced in North America by British colonists.

Singapore has just lifted a 40 year ban on gambling to build two new casinos. One of these has caused public complaints as it is to displace Singapore’s only horse riding school.

Travellers are advised to review any plans to visit Zanzibar during late October and early November 2005. Tanzania will hold a general election on October 30, 2005. Previous elections generally have been peaceful on the Tanzanian mainland, but following the 2000 elections, violent demonstrations occurred on Zanzibar (and Unguja and Pemba) and many people were killed. The demonstrations were not directed at tourists and no foreign visitors were hurt.

Tensions are already rising in Zanzibar during the run up to the October 2005 elections. Opposition party leaders have threatened to stage massive demonstrations if their conditions for a free and fair election are not met. The opposition is calling for peaceful demonstrations, but things can turn violent with little or no warning. If demonstrations do occur, they are not expected to target foreign tourists, however, they could disrupt transportation and communication systems.

A new airline, Maxjet Airways, will launch an all-business class service between Stansted just north of London and New York’s JFK airport as from 1st November. There will be daily flights except Saturdays. One-way fares are expected to start from £599, excluding taxes. Seats have a 60in pitch and service will be similar to other airlines’ business-class services.

American soldiers in Iraq claim they uncovered evidence of a terrorist bomb plot targeting the US. People in New York City are warned to remain on alert amid fears of a terrorist attack on the New York subway system. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered increased security on the subway system and warned that the threat – which includes the use of explosives packed in baby strollers – suggested New York’s underground train network and its 4.5 million daily passengers could be attacked within days.

Spotted by the Beetle. I like this: www.entrances2hell.co.uk

Spotted by webmaster Paul: three robot fish, created by robotics experts from Essex University can be found at London Aquarium. They move around the tank like real fish, and have sensor-based controls, so they can move around the tank, avoiding objects and other fish, and reacting to their environment as a real fish would. Professor Huosheng Hu, of the university’s computer science department, said the aim of creating the fish and having them on display in a public place was to increase awareness about robots’ capabilities. He said the robotic fish, which took three years to create, could also be used in the ocean such as including seabed exploration, detecting leaks in oil pipelines, mine countermeasures, and improving the performance of underwater vehicles.

Helvetic Airways has begun operating a twice-daily service between Luton and Zurich. The first 10 seats on each morning and evening flight are available from about £15, plus taxes, from www.helvetic.com

A tagged great white shark (called Nicole, by researchers – after shark loving actress Nicole Kidman) crossed the Indian Ocean from South Africa to Australia and back again in just nine months. The act of tagging a great white is something of an achievement; several people need to hold the creature still while the satellite tracker is attached.

The conservationists were investigating how far great whites swim, to see what protection measures might be needed to save them from extinction. Great whites were once thought to keep to coastal regions, but this was a trek across a vast expanse of open ocean. The journey was very direct, not some aimless wandering and the stay near Australia was only brief.

The researchers say the fact that they saw a shark make the journey at all – after observing only about 20 animals – suggests it is common behaviour. Their concern is that such migrations make the great whites vulnerable to long-line fishing. It is already known that lesser sharks do get captured and killed this way.

You can now hire Gems, or Global Electric Motorcars in Cordoba, southern Spain as a safe, convenient, and environmentally friendly way to see the town. Gems are made in the US by a division of Daimler-Chrysler. A fully charged car can travel around 50 miles, (80km). Each car comes with a touch-screen computer system mounted in the dash. By using GPS technology, the computer keeps track of exactly where you are in the city. When you pass a certain landmark, the computer then knows to display the appropriate text, audio and video information about that landmark on the screen. Through a USB port, you can plug in a flash drive containing information on Cordoba in Spanish, English or French. Hire costs are around US$50 for a two-hour rental period.

A recent ruling by Iran’s football federation banning players from sporting “unusual” and “foreign” styles is sparking debate in Iran’s football community. The Federation also said professional players should refrain from curling their hair or wearing ponytails, and from sporting necklaces, earrings, or rings and that players should not wear tight clothes, grow strange-looking beards, or copy foreign styles.

The ruling has upset football players like Ali Mansourian who shaves all his hair off, while some of his fellow athletes on Iran’s Esteqlal team have grown their hair long. “In my opinion, the appearance of a player is his own business,” Mansourian says. “If you look at Islam, for example, the Prophet Mohammad’s hair was long. He was very handsome.”

Need to convert currency?

Take a look at The Globetrotters Currency Converter – get the exchange rates for 164 currencies The Globetrotters Currency Cheat Sheet – create and print a currency converter table for your next trip.

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall will travel to the US next month on their first official overseas royal tour. The tour will include engagements in New York, Washington DC, and San Francisco. The couple will meet UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and have a lunch and a dinner with President George W Bush and his wife at the White House. The BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt said the visit to a country where Diana, Princess of Wales is still held in high esteem – was a “bold move”, representing the latest stage in the development of Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall as a senior royal.

If you are sailing around the world, you’d be advised to avoid Somalian water. Somali pirates have hijacked (another) ship with 10 crew on its way to the Somali port of El-Maan. The MV Torgelow was carrying fuel and food to a UN-chartered vessel freed last week by gunmen who had held it and its cargo of food aid for three months. The International Maritime Board says there have been at least 20 attacks on ships in Somali waters since March. It urges ships in the area to stay as far away as possible from the shore.

Tube and bus fares in London paid for with cash are set to increase January 1st 2006. A single Tube journey in zone one will cost £3 instead of £2 while a single bus journey will rise from £1.20 to £1.50, said Mayor Ken Livingstone. Fares will fall for holders of the Oyster pre-pay smartcards. With Oyster, a zone one Tube ride will be cut from £1.70 to £1.50 – half the cash fare. Mr Livingstone said the aim was for fewer people to pay with cash. Mr Livingstone said the increased fares to be introduced from January would raise about £80m but conceded the new single Tube fare of £3 would probably be the most expensive in the world.

NEW FARES FOR 2006

• Tube zone 1: £3 cash (£2 currently)
• Tube zone 1: £1.50 Oyster (£1.70)
• Tube zones 2-6: £3 cash (£2.10)
• Tube zones 2-6: £1 Oyster (£1.80)
• Bus (all zones): £1.50 cash (£1.20)
• Bus (all zones): 80p Oyster (£1)

The motto is – either don’t visit London or buy an Oyster card to use London’s public transport.

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Travel Facts

One in three adults aged 15-49 are infected with HIV/AIDS in Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Swaziland.

If you thought Antarctica was inhospitable, think again – its land area is only 98% ice. Reassuringly, the other 2% is categorised as ‘barren rock’.

The Mall in Washington, D.C. is 1.4 times larger than Vatican City.

Moldova has one of the lowest rates of movie-going of any nation, and the highest rate of death by powered lawnmower. Coincidence? Surely not.

In 2002, every 1000 Swedes made a bus.

· Looking for geniuses? Head straight to Iceland. There are more than 3.5 Nobel Prize Winners for every million Icelanders.

· People might eat oats when they’re hungry, but people from Hungary don’t eat oats.

· Japan’s water has a very high dissolved oxygen concentration – but not enough to prevent drowning in the bath.

· The four largest nations are Russia, China, USA, and Canada.

Source:

Visitors to Florida are being warned that they could be at risk due to a new state law that allows gun owners to shoot anyone they believe threatens their safety. A spokeswoman for The Brady Campaign to Control Gun Violence, said “tourists should be wary of getting into an “aggressive argument” during their stay”. The law which is now in force says that people in their house or vehicle do not have to become victims before shooting an attacker. Previously, they could only use their weapons if they had first attempted to withdraw and avoid a confrontation.

A spokeswoman for Visit Florida in the UK accused the Brady Campaign of employing scare tactics and claimed the new law would not have any impact on tourism to the state. “There are 28 other states that do not require people to retreat if they are being attacked, so it is just bringing Florida into line,” she said. “I don’t think many UK holidaymakers are going to attack someone in their car or their house, so they have nothing to worry about. It is not a real issue. According to the state’s annual crime report, Florida’s crime rate is at a 34-year low.” Florida is the most popular US destination for Britons, attracting 1.5 million people from the UK each year.