So, what was it like? Well here is ‘the tour’ of the
\ngood, the bad and the best.<\/p>\n
The exhibition was on three floors, dominated by trade
\nstands selling pretty much what you’d expect, like
\nholidays, trips, equipment, and activities for hot places,
\ncold places, anywhere you care to mention. “Have a
\nGo’s” included scuba diving in a large paddling
\npool, but there was nothing to see except blue walls and
\nthe instructors legs, and they weren’t worth getting wet
\nfor. The glider simulator was popular as was the
\npolystyrene ‘ice’ wall. You got to wear all the gear, ice
\nboots, picks, helmet the lot. I saw quite a few nervous
\nwomen being coaxed up by young and handsome instructors.
\nI’m pretty sure the same women went back three or four
\ntimes! Kids had their own climbing wall and were all over
\nit like demented squirrels.<\/p>\n
Good bits were free calendars from National Geographic
\nand an excellent photo gallery. Poor bits were coffee at
\n£1.60 a cup and no decent end of show bargains. There was a
\ndistinct lack of ‘chill out’ space. In fact the
\nGlobetrotters stand was the only place with table and
\nchairs where I felt you could sit, relax and chat to fellow
\ntravellers, like Dick, Iona and Matt.<\/p>\n
There were six talk rooms and a colossal 82 were
\nscheduled over the weekend. I was truly spoilt for choice,
\nbut concurrent sessions meant hard choices. I managed 15
\ntalks and that was going it some. Many were ”what to
\nsee“ and “where to go”, places like Peru,
\nJapan and others were more about the journey on two or four
\nwheels or on foot (or with a mule) and even longer RTW on a
\nkite or a horse. The practical talks on photography,
\nhealth, travel writing, survival, gap years and
\nvolunteering were standing room only.<\/p>\n
Overall the talks were excellent but some stood out for
\nother reasons. One speaker sat with his back square to the
\naudience. I was tempted to usher out the audience – he
\nwould not have noticed. Timekeeping wasn’t special either.
\nI made a mental note to write to the organisers and ask
\nthem to brief speakers on the basics, or better still pay
\nme to give them a lesson.<\/p>\n
Best in show? The talk titled ‘Near Death’ by Benedict
\nAllen, the explorer. He sported a pale blue shirt and beige
\ntrousers, the ‘relaxed, crinkled’ look. Launching straight
\nin, without notes, he recounted anecdotes from his many
\nexpeditions. Stunning images of people, animals, scenery,
\nclaustrophobic and desolate by turn, flicked upon the
\nscreen. We lived with him being shot at, learning jungle
\nskills from children, taking part in rituals, struggling
\nwith stubborn camels and making difficult decisions. Like
\nhaving to eat his dog to stay alive. ‘He was my friend’ He
\nadded quietly. I wondered how desperate I’d have to be to
\neat mine and couldn’t help a huge surge of sadness.<\/p>\n
Scary, funny, sad shocking, exciting and much more. He,
\nin his kind and easy manner, guided and supported us
\nthrough a world of experience and emotion. At the end I
\ncouldn’t work out why my eyes felt peculiar, dry, sort of.
\nThen I realized. I hadn’t blinked.<\/p>\n
I came away brimming with ideas, copious notes and lots
\nof inspiration. I couldn’t ask for more than that.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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