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GT Travel Award

Are you inspired by all this talk of travel ?

Are you ready for you own independent adventure ?

Or do you know someone who could benefit from a helping hand into the wider world ?

What is the award ?

Each year the club offers up to two £1,000 awards to give out for the best independent travel plan, as judged by the club’s Committee.

The deadline to receive applications for the next award is 31 May 2011.

See the legacy page on the club’s web site for more details, where you can review previous winners’ trips and/or apply with your plans for a totally independent, travel trip.

If your idea catches our eye we’ll take a closer look at what you’re proposing and give you feedback & maybe a helping hand on your journey of a lifetime !!

Write in (2)…the travel world of Mac

MacThis time round Mac recalls time in Hong Kong & Macau…

“I made several trips by boat to Macau from Hong Kong and when I was there they had several casino boats for gambling but no elaborate casino or hotel…

There was a “noodle” priest in Hong Kong that from donations of flour from the US & Canada he had noodles made by I believe Canadian nuns in Hong Kong. It was better to give noodles to the poor in Hong Kong rather than sacks of flour as they could just dip the noodles in hot water.

On our trips to Hong Kong I volunteered to help pass out these five pounds of noodles.  Someone would canvas the poor and give them a ticket & told to appear at such a place – then I or some volunteer would give them a five pound sack in exchange.  It got to be quite the social in thing for Ambassadors wives etc to be a volunteer for this duty.

One time it was the Ambassador from New Zealand who had a small girl and the three of us did the duty. The girl had taken a Chinese name like Ming Ling which means beautiful and she would answer her Mother only if the Mother called her Ming Ling. I was doing the lifting in the hot sun and I fainted which was embarrassing as here is was this well fed Caucasian handing out these sack of noodles to these thin people !

I did this several trips until the priest (I think maybe he was Italian) invited me to go to Macau where they made the noodles. He had a motor scooter and took me all around Macau on his motorbike and to the border of China where Chinese soldiers were looking over at us. He said they sometimes fired their arms in the air to let us know they knew we were watching them through binoculars.”

The night in Macau made it look more like Las Vegas than I experienced it but maybe it has been built up since. One time getting on boat to go Macau the Chinese lady next to me got sea sick and was ill on me..we hadn’t left the harbour yet.

Macau must have changed since I was there but then the whole world has.  Hope you get a chance to enjoy the wonderful Chinese…

News in the world of travel

· Spotted by Matt Doughty on the BBC’s web site – http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-11578463.  It would certainly be a unique experience if the plan comes to fruition !

· And another more serious travel news item from the BBC, about the impact of different cultures on our wider world – http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-11901904

· David Stanley at Avalon Travel Publishing has just issued the latest edition of  Moon Tahiti…a well received series of travel books.  See more details athttp://www.southpacific.org/tahiti.html

·Greetings from Bike the Earth:-

Dear Globetrotters

Wonderful to get your news as we are in mid Australia on BIKE THE EARTH –http://www.biketheearth.net (Please check out at least the first page of our website).

We have done 3500 km, connecting communities, inspiring initiatives, on ABC Television, on the radio, and in the media, with some great testimonials for the work we are doing!

Warm wishes for the Christmas season!

Regards

Chris Le Breton

lebreton1@gmail.com

Write for the eNewsletter

If you enjoy writing & travelling, why not write for the free Globetrotters eNewsletter !  The Ant 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 15,000 people currently subscribe to the Globetrotter eNewsletter.

Email The Ant at  theant@globetrotters.co.uk with your travel experiences / hints & tips / questions. Your article should be approximately 1000 words, feature up to 3 or 4 jpeg photos and introduce yourself with a couple of sentences and a contact e-mail address.

Write in (2)…Three things about Mac

Via an email from R. Dale Anderberg, Mac came up with these answers to some interesting questions about the life he’s enjoyed so far. Just a bit of harmless fun but it does help to explain our American friend The Ant

A. Three names I go by:

  1. Billy (when young)
  2. Macsan (Japan)
  3. Your Excellency

B. Three places I’ve lived:

  1. Japan (five and one half years (military)
  2. McCool Junction, Nebraska
  3. Have been in over 150 countries both in]

and out of service.

C. Three places I’ve worked

  1. In Nebraska and California Railway mail service
  2. New York City (mafia)
  3. Everywhere taking travel notes.

D. Three things I love to watch:

Not answered what happened Mac ?

E. Three places I have been:

Not answered what happened Mac ?

F. Three people that email me regularly:

  1. Toogood
  2. Janis, Marilyn, Carol, Betty, Ann, Linda, Kay, and all the other nieces.
  3. World War 11 llths Armd Div buddys

G. WHAT I LIKE TO eat

  1. Dunkin Doughnuts and their coffee (prefer it to Starbrucks)
  2. Italian Wedding Soup
  3. Peach pie with icecream

H. Three things I am looking forward to:

  1. Richard Haddocks new book
  2. Any new travel thing Pico Iyler writes.
  3. To be able to travel again.

I. Three people I think will respond:

  1. None
  2. Maybe all of the above.
  3. The Beetle, The Ant, and Padmassana (Globetrotter people)

Gulf coast tourism officials say the real problem with the spill has been perception.

TravelMole US Editor David Wilkening explains how misconceptions are causing further damage to tourism in the Gulf Coast.

“Damage forecasts soon after the BP Gulf oil spill were bad. But then they got worse. Dead birds. Soiled beaches.

The reality, however, is that the spill led to the deaths of less than one percent of the number of birds killed in the Valdez spill.

The spill was enough oil to fill about one- sixth of the Louisiana Superdome.

That’s not exactly a drop in the proverbial bucket, but it’s a strikingly different image from one emblazoned in people’s mind by the early reaction,

Write for the eNewsletter

If you enjoy writing & travelling, why not write for the free Globetrotters eNewsletter ! The Ant 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 14,000 people currently subscribe to the Globetrotter eNewsletter.

Email The Ant at theant@globetrotters.co.uk with your travel experiences / hints & tips / questions. Your article should be approximately 1000 words, feature up to 3 or 4 jpeg photos and introduce yourself with a couple of sentences and a contact e-mail address.

Write in 4…Epic South Africa by Beryl

Hello The Ant,

We hope that you might find information about our Epic Enabled holidays and Accessible Epic Guest House in Cape Town useful for your members, if ever they want to travel further afield to Africa.

South Africa, the most cosmopolitan of the African nations, has long been renowned for its bio-diversity, wildlife and the breathtakingly beautiful landscape.

However, these amazing gifts of nature have always been little more than a dream for people stricken by disability. Until now! Epic Enabled offers accessible African Safari’s in South Africa’s famous Kruger National Park , and private game reserve close by, as well as day tours in Johannesburg , Cape Town the

GT Travel Award

Are you inspired with all this talk of travel ?

Are you ready for you own independent adventure ?

Or do you know someone who could benefit from a helping hand into the wider world ?

What is the award ?

Each year the club offers up to two £1,000 awards to give out for the best independent travel plan, as judged by the club’s Committee.

The deadline to receive applications for the next award is 31 May 2011.

See the legacy page on the club’s web site for more details, where you can review previous winners’ trips and/or apply with your plans for a totally independent, travel trip.

If your idea catches our eye we’ll take a closer look at what you’re proposing and give you feedback & maybe a helping hand on your journey of a lifetime !!

Web sites to muse about travel to:-

  • from Matt Doughty       about this year’s Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize winner see http://www.bbc.co.uk/ for more details
  • from Matt Doughty       about travelling an unusual way, on the way to Mecca http://www.bbc.co.uk/
  • from James       Robinson via Facebook about a popular & interesting travel blog…http://www.backpackingjournalist.com/

Write in (3) … Introducing the new Globe Editor, Chloe Marshall

Chloe - Globe editor.jpgRecently Dan James, the long standing Globe newsletter editor stood down from his role at the club and headed off to pursue a new life in Hong Kong. All at the club thank him for his time, energy & efforts on our behalf and hope to hear of him enjoying his new adventure …

Going forward Chloe Marshall will be taking over the Globe and working with the Committee to take the members only publication forward.

Chloe is a London based journalist and has a wide ranging interest in travel. She would like to receive your articles, questions and general travel discussions at editor@globetrotters.co.uk

Welcome Chloe and I hope you enjoy your time with Globetrotters – The Ant

News in the world of travel

News in the world of travel

  • From Debra Taylor at www.toucanmoon.com :-

    Hi – I am working on the promotion of a photography symposium taking place at London’s Royal Geographical Society on 22 & 23 October 2010. Hosted by BBC Springwatch presenter Chris Packham, WildPhotos 2010 promises to be as inspirational as ever with an impressive line up of international wildlife and environmental photographers led by keynote speaker David Doubilet (USA) including Mark Carwardine (UK), Danny Ellinger (Netherlands), Charlie Hamilton James (UK) and Stefano Unterthiner (Italy).

    I’d be very happy to send you further information and images.

    I look forward to hearing from you.

    Many thanks and best wishes

    Debra

    debra@toucanmoon.com

  • From the BBC – UK climbers make Afghan first ascents. Two Scottish climbers recount a trip to Afghanistan where they made two first ascents of mountains in the Wakhan District – http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/news/uk-scotland-tayside-central-11082815
  • From the BBC – New UK passport design unveiled. The Home Office unveils the design of the new UK passport, with enhanced security features to tackle identity theft and fraud – http://www.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/news/uk-11071998
  • From TravelMole web site, news about a series of travel awards that tries to promote sustainable tourism … see more details at http://www.travelmole.com

Write for the eNewsletter

If you enjoy writing & travelling, why not write for the free Globetrotters eNewsletter ! The Ant 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 14,000 people currently subscribe to the Globetrotter eNewsletter.

Email The Ant at theant@globetrotters.co.uk with your travel experiences / hints & tips / questions. Your article should be approximately 1000 words, feature up to 3 or 4 jpeg photos and introduce yourself with a couple of sentences and a contact e-mail address.

GT Travel Award 2010

Background – A member of Globetrotters Club and interested in winning a £1,000 travel award ? Know someone who fits these criteria ? We have up to two £1,000 awards to give out this year for the best independent travel plan, as judged by the club’s Committee.

Next award – Are you inspired with all this talk of travel ? Are you ready for you own adventure ? The deadline to receive applications for the next award is 30 October 2010.

See the recently revamped legacy page on the club’s web site, where you can review previous winners’ trips and/or apply with your plans for a totally independent, travel trip.

If your idea catches our eye we’ll take a closer look at what you’re proposing !!

Write in (2)

Hello,

Trailblazer is about to publish The Silk Roads: a route and planning guide 3rd edition.

It’s a practical travel guide to the Silk Roads, the greatest trade route of all time. Content includes:

* Planning your trip – information for all budgets whether you’re an independent traveller or joining a group

* Practical information for travellers in Turkey, Syria, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, China

* 55 city guides with maps – where to stay, where to eat and what to see

* Also includes lesser-known routes

* Extensive history of the Silk Roads

* Useful phrases in Arabic, Farsi, Russian and Chinese

The book is paperback, 450pp, with colour and B&W photos.

See http://www.trailblazer-guides.com/ for more details.