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Says Peter from California who wrote in to tell us about how he and his
partner, Leslie, traded vans and reaped the benefits of cheap travel.
“And we”d love to do it again! We put a letter to the Editor
in a caravan-owner”s magazine in England, saying we wanted to trade
our California van for theirs.

Four weeks before our 2-month trip, a nice gent from Norwich called to
say he”d consider it. After we traded references and information
about our vans and how they were outfitted, he welcomed us. We spent a
heavenly holiday travelling Britain, and then he and his wife came to
use our van to visit the great parks of the American west!

We saved thousands of dollars/pounds. Van trades are better than house
trades, because transportation is included and you”re not locked
in at one location! Campgrounds are very inexpensive and have nice showers
and laundry facilities.

We will soon have a new advertisement appearing in the Caravan Club Magazine–we”d
love to visit France for 2 months! Insurance is not a problem, as each
borrower gets their own to cover liability and collision.

In fact, if any of you fellow Globetrotters out there has a VW or other
van (fancy factory-outfitted vans are not necessary–we can sleep in a
bare tradesman”s van just fine), we”d love to trade with you.

Give me a call or an email: Peter Reimuller, Box 4, Point Arena, California,
95468; phone 1-(707)-882-2001; reimuller@mcn.org. And pack your bag–you”re
going to be in some wonderful places!

Sorry–April not available as we are taking our van to Indian Country
to visit the red-rock mesas and desert wildflowers.”

Easter would not be Easter without a quick diving trip. Last year the
Beetle went to the Red Sea on a live aboard, and this year, the Beetle
was at a loss to work out where to go. A Muslim country seemed like a
good idea because there would be fewer tourists going home to celebrate
Easter, but it had to be somewhere with good diving.

Oman came to mind as being an unusual destination with hopefully some
good diving opportunities. The Beetle contacted Trailfinders in the City,
in London, to enquire about availability, cost and timings of flights
to Oman. It seemed that there was quite a bit of availability, and the
price was not too bad, considering it was Easter. The next step was to
find a dive operation and a hotel.

A quick trawl on the net found a promising looking dive school that also
had accommodation, so the Beetle went back to Trailfinders to say that
she’d already be told of an Alitalia flight and read out the day and time.
The puzzled operative said, no, there are no Alitalia flights going to
Oman and quite honestly, it is all looking very busy, I can’t see the
flight you are referring to and I’m not sure we can get you there now.

The Beetle has been using Trailfinders for over 10 years and thought
this a little odd. Hang on a minute, just let me check something, the
operative said. He came back triumphant. Yes, we’ve got you going on a
flight to Amman, in Jordan! If the Beetle had booked the first time on
enquiring, she would have ended up in Amman and not Oman – a very
sobering thought!

The moral of the story is: no matter how experienced you think your travel
agent is, they are not mind readers, always state the name of the country,
even if you think it is obvious, like Paris, Texas, or Paris France, others
may not know!

Imagine swapping your normal holiday for a surprise trip that could take
you anywhere in the world doing almost anything.

Holiday Swaps offers you the chance to make this year’s holiday
an unforgettable experience.

Are you a UK based group of friends or a family planning an adventurous
holiday this year? Holiday Swaps are especially looking for you if you
are planning a safari, trekking or conservation holiday.

If you have a good sense of humour, enjoy a challenge and would be prepared
to give up your planned holiday for something completely different, then
we’d like to hear from you.

Email: holiday.swaps@bbc.co.uk

Tel: (+44) 0117 974 7840 (24 hrs)

Address: Holiday Swaps, PO Box 791, Bristol, BS99 1DD, United Kingdom.

Day 1. Depart Europe via Frankfurt, Lufthansa flights are cheapest, then
overnight flight to Seoul.

Day 2. Land around noon at Incheon Airport. Take the Airport limousine
bus into downtown Seoul, about 90 mins. After checking in to your chosen
accommodation, Yeogwans are good value simple accommodation go for a walk
to help ward off the inevitable jetlag.

Day 3. To get a first impression of Seoul you can take a city tourist
bus that goes around the city, stopping atthe major sights and areas.
A day pass costs 5000 Won ( US$ 6 ). In the afternoon go to Namsen Park
and ascend the Seoul tower for a birds-eye view of the city and to help
get your bearings.

If you are not too tired in the evening go to Itaewan district, for the
nightclubs, bars and markets.

Day 4.Today you could start the day with a pleasure boat ride up the
Hangang river that bisects Seoul, then spend the afternoon exploring the
Gyeongbokgung Palace. The Palace is made up of dozens of buildings and
museums. If the weather is unkind Seoul has many museums including a Rail
Museum, a Folk Museum and even a Currency museum, hope to see the Euro
in there soon!

Day 5. A day to escape the city, especially if it’s a Tuesday when a
lot of the museums and public buildings are closed. Take an organised
trip 60 Km north to Panmunjon on the DMZ, Demilitarised Zone. This is
an area where the cold war continues. UN soldiers guard this border between
the two Korea’s. You cannot go to this area except in an organised group,
and you have to sign a disclaimer in case you get shot! The tour takes
in the Freedom bridge and third Tunnel. You visit camp Boniface and are
on the borderline between the two countries. An exciting and different
side trip.

Day 6. Time to leave Seoul. Take a bus from the Seoul Express Bus station
and head south for four hours to Gyeongju in the Southeast. Gyeongju is
an historic city containing the best-preserved relics from the Silla dynasty.
This afternoon visit the Stone Silla Cheomseongdae observatory, one of
the world’s oldest and Anapji pond in town or take a taxi and visit the
standing stone buddhas, or the Abalone shaped watercourse south of town.

Day 7. Today take the 40 minute bus ride to Bulguksa temple that lies
east of Gyeongju at the foot of Mount Tohamsen. It is one of South Korea’s
premier tourist attractions, so get there early to avoid the heat and
the crowds. It is listed as a world heritage sight and is Korea’s oldest
Buddhist temple, the complex is made up of over 60 buildings. Contained
within are numerous treasures from the Silla era.

Day 8. Another short trip today, as we take the bus to Gimhe airport
in Busan ( Aka Pusan). The flight to Chejudo Island will take only 50
minutes ( US$ 50). You can alternatively take a ferry from Busan to Cheju
that takes 11 hours overnight, often through rough seas. The difference
in cost amounts to only a few dollars so the flight is preferable. Mid
afternoon arrival in Jeju. Take a walk to the Mysteriously shaped Dragon
Head rock on the edge of town, or go to the Moksukwon road and see the
optical illusion of cars rolling uphill.

Day 9. Take the bus to the Manjang cave area on the east of the island
and explore the world’s longest volcanic lava tubes. Take the bus to Songsun
Peak, so called Sun rise peak. If you want to be there as the sun rises,
then you need to spend the previous evening in the nearby village. Walk
along the beach and if you are lucky you may come across the “Sea
women”. These ladies dive for pearls without the use of air tanks
and are able to hold their breath for two minutes.

Day 10 Early bus to Sankumburi crater, famed for it’s diverse flora.
Then head south to Sogwipo city, the islands second city, and a venue
for this years football World cup. To the west of the city take in Yakcheonsa
Temple, which is made completely of wood, then stroll the 400m to the
Jusanjolli rock formations.

Day 11 Depending on time and tides take the ferry to Mokpo on the mainland,
this trip takes 5 hours. It may be preferable to fly. You may have to
spend the night at Mokpo if the ferry is late.

Day 12 Train or bus to Jeonju, a popular town with temples and pagodas
in parks to the east of the city, including the so-called Two Horse head
Mountain, that has a picturesque Temple at the foot of the mountain.

Day 13. Train or bus back north to Seoul. Arrive early afternoon. Last
chance for souvenir shopping and wandering.

Day 14. Morning at leisure before transferring to Incheon airport for
the flight back to Europe. With the nine hour time difference, you land
the same day, but your body may not agree!

If you would like to contact Kevin, please e-mail him on: Kbrackley@yahoo.com

This packed flower market is on one street and gets phenomenally busy.
It starts at around 8am on Sundays only and closes up around 1pm, so get
there early. Here you can buy everything from tiny cacti, bedding plants,
garden gnomes, terracotta pots to shrubs and palm trees. Close by there
are coffee shops, pubs, antiques shops, and restaurants so it is a great
place to browse on a Sunday, maybe buy some herbs and have lunch.

The market is in Columbia Road (between Gosset Street & the Royal
Oak pub), in Bethnal Green, E2. The nearest tube is Old Street tube/rail/
26, 48, 55 bus. Open 8am-1pm Sun; closed Mon-Sat.

Next month: Leadenhall Market

The April 13 meeting will be at Cypress Bend Park, which is 4 blocks
from the library at the end of Peace Street. Peace St. is between the
library and the river – it is the only street on the same side as the
library. You will pass several cemeteries before you reach the park. Go
to the end of Peace St. and you will find Cypress Bend Park on the left.
Our travel time talk will be in a lovely outdoor covered pavilion instead
of the library (AARP are dong taxes in “our room.”) Rest rooms
are close by, and handicap accessible. The Texas branch of the Globetrotters
Club will have a potluck picnic in the park. The city of N.B. charges
$45.00 so we will have a Globie kitty at the March meeting to cover expenses.
If you are busy travelling in March and miss the meeting, c”mon in
April anyway. Committees are forming, so come and sign up if you are interested!
If you only want to talk about travel, come! The Globetrotters Club sparks
my life. I hope it sparks yours. Christina.

Meetings are held at 3pm at the New Braunfels Public Library, 700
E. Common Street in New Braunfels, Texas. The meeting ends at 5 p.m. If
you would like to continue travel talk on a more informal basis, we plan
to adjourn to the Hoity-Toit, a local New Braunfels establishment. If
anybody would like to enquire about meetings or help Christina, please
contact her on:texas@globetrotters.co.uk

The last Toronto GT meeting was on Friday, March 15 at 8 p.m. at the
Woodsworth Co-op Penthouse, (PH) 133 Wilton Street, Toronto. (Wilton is
a very short E-W street south of and parallel to Esplanade, east of Jarvis
– just around the corner from St. Lawrence Market). Presenter: Bruce Weber

Topic: “SAMPLER OF YUCATAN”

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.

Hello Globies! Our next meeting will be April 6th at The Wings Theater,
154 Christopher Street. 4:00pm sharp. We have yet, another exciting guest
speaker. Mary Russell, an import coming over from Dublin to speak to us
about her travel to the middle east, specificallyBaghdad and Damascus!
Mary is a travel writer, whose latest book will be published by Simon
and Schuster on June 1. Mary will be giving a slide talk to the London
Globetrotters in June, and we get the sneak preview this April! Her books
are “The Blessings of a Good Thick Skirt”, “Please Don”t
Call it Soviet Georgia”, “Amazonian” and, in June: “Journeys
of a Lifetime”. Mary has travelled to the Sahara and the Finnish
Arctic, the Eastern Caribbean, Southern Africa, Moscow, Tbilisi, Dublin
and Donegal.

Last year, she spent three months travelling around Syria on foot, by
bike and local transport. Last November, Mary returned to Damascus and
from there travelled overland to Baghdad. These two cities have strong
historical ties and her slides and talk will be about both places, with
up-to-day descriptions of what it”s like to travel in an Arab country.
(She was also in Israel last year, obviously she has a great interest
in the middle east!) Mary always travels solo and by shoestring. The last
two chapters of her next book “Journeys of a Lifetime”, are
about Syria.

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 always,
$8.00 for members, $10.00 for non-members.

Our first speaker was Phil Koniotes , who showed us some stunning glimpses
of Antarctica. Phil explained that on his trip he had the great fortune
to enjoy 4 sunny days, which is extremely rare and meant he was able to
take some fantastic photographs. His pictures of icebergs, many of which
come in strange shapes and spectacular proportions were breathtaking,
particularly those of the aptly named Paradise Bay. His photo’s also covered
the inquisitive penguins that inhabit this region, which come up to investigate
their human visitors. Photos of the penguins included their nest building
antics, which involves the penguins stealing pebbles from each other’s
nests to build their own. Phil also told us about the Post Office which
handles 40,000 cards each year, which depart with the prized Antarctic
postmark. This was a fascinating talk with some superb photographs.

Our second speaker Mark Elliott came to Globetrotters rescue after our
original speaker Juliet Coombe was involved in an accident in Australia
and was unable to return to the United Kingdom. Mark’s talk was about
the Kilum Forest in what he described as the most corrupt country on the
planet, Cameroon, in West Africa. Mark’s mission had been to photograph
the elusive Bannerman’s Turaco bird, which only lives in this part of
the world. His photos took us via a local tribal war and a photocall with
a local Chief. He showed us a local festival where the people dress in
costumes and actually become that person or spirit, Mark discovered how
literally they take this when one character relieved him of his umbrella,
his neighbour explaining that this character was called “The thief!”
Once up into the forest Mark and his guide trekked for a day and for one
fleeting minute espied the elusive bird. His guide was ecstatic, despite
living there, it was the first time in seven years even he had seen one.

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. There is no London meeting in August, but we will be back on Saturday
1^st September. For more information, you can
contact the Globetrotter Info line on +44 (0) 20 8674 6229, or visit the
website:www.globetrotters.co.uk

Meeting news from our branches around the world.