Tag: October 2002

It may be cheap (but not always), but it certainly isn't
clever. And it definitely isn't funny! Flying Ryanair is
not the fantastic low cost and cheerful option that it is
made out to be. First, the low cost airlines (Ryanair, Buzz,
and Easyjet/Go) have made Stansted their main hub.

Stansted is a major pain to get to and from as it is situated
some 68km north of Central London and the principal way, to
get there using public transport, is on the Stansted Express
from Liverpool St in Central London. A return ticket from
Liverpool St in central London costs £23 – not
cheap for the 50 minute journey each way. If you arrive back
into Stansted after midnight, the chances are that you will
have missed the last train, because they do not always wait
for the last flight, so the alternative to travel back to
London is by expensive taxi – we are talking £60+
(or $100+). Now that the Stansted Express no longer runs on
Sundays due to rail works, you have to take a painfully long
coach journey that takes around 2 hours.

Secondly, one of the particularly unendearing habits
practiced by BAA (British Airports Authority) at Stansted is
to be selective as to which flights they decide to put up on
the flight information screens. This lack of info seems to
apply particularly to Ryanair flights. This means that you
could be sitting waiting in the check in area for your flight
check in information to appear on screen and it never does. A
weary frequent Ryanair traveller warned the Beetle that this
happens frequently, so a lesson learned is to occasionally
prowl around the airport to check that your flight hasn't
already started checking in. This happened to the Beetle
going to Trieste, resulting in a late check in, only 15
minutes before the gate closed, reducing the amount of time
available for foraging for duty free chocolate (and other
Beetle fodder) to a minimum!

Thirdly, Ryanair do not give you a boarding pass with a
printed seat number – it is free seating. What a
nightmare, all those people with their sharp elbows.
Dignified British queuing (um, no!) turns out in reality as a
training opportunity for a rugby scrum! Is it really too much
trouble to put seat numbers on a ticket?

Once you have wrestled your way on board, you may think about
reading material to while away the excessive amount of time
spent on the runway awaiting clearance to depart. You'd
be disappointed. There is no reading material whatsoever; no
free newspapers or magazines to read. The staff do hand out a
brochure with pictures of perfumes and silly Ryan Air models
(as if!!) and then when you approach landing, you are
requested to hand them back again! (There really isn't
anything worth reading in them anyway all, unless you like
looking at pictures of grey coloured pearl necklaces.) Buzz,
by contrast have excellent info brochures with information
about your destination, what to see, where to go,
recommendations on where to eat, day trips away etc.

Fifthly, forget on-board entertainment or headphones, music
or films – the only entertainment to be had is to
observe the no frills service you are paying for, for
example, watching the faces of the uninitiated when they are
asked to pay £4 ($6) for a sandwich, and £1.50
($2) for a small and nasty coffee. For her trip to Oslo, the
Beetle took a flask of coffee, much to the envy of fellow
passengers and the annoyance of the air crew. (Buzz do the
best and very drinkable coffee if you have a choice! Also
recommended by our Webmaster!)

Even for someone of limited height, (5'2”), the
seats are cripplingly unrealistically tiny with next to no
leg room. Even the Beetle's knees touched the seat in
front.

Sixthly, presumably also to cut costs, passengers are
responsible for cleaning; whilst I agree with our webmaster
that passengers should be tidy and take their rubbish away
with them at the end of their journey, the Ryanair way is to
have 2 “hostesses” walk down the aisle with a big
bin liner open. You are required to lean over your fellow
passengers and throw your rubbish in the bin liner as they
walk by. Talk about target practice. It is one of my
nightmares that one day, someone will actually use the sick
bag provided (the only object to be found on your seat
pocket) and be too embarrassed to try and throw it into this
walking bin bag, so they'll leave it for me to find,
whilst thinking oh, that's strange there actually is
something in my seat pocket, I wonder what it is!

Seventh: the staff. My theory is that people who work for
Ryanair failed to pass the Aeroflot entrance exams. Rudeness,
ability to glare and make unnecessarily snotty remarks are
all prerequisites for hiring. As for the pilots, flying
Ryanair for them must be their first job out of pilot school.
The Beetle has never, ever had a smooth two tyred landing on
the handful of flights she has been with them.

But my biggest complaint about Ryanair: it's not just the
poor service, which is abominable, it's not the
supercilious staff, the lack of decent coffee or seat
numbers, it's the fact that to cut costs, they often do
not fly into the main airport in a city – and they
don't even warn you about it on booking! The Beetle finds
this practice offensively misleading. For example, if you
want to fly to Copenhagen in Denmark, you actually arrive
into Sweden and have to take a bus journey back into Denmark.

The Beetle recently flew Ryanair to Oslo. It was only after
she had booked the tickets when she investigated how to get
from the airport to the centre of Oslo, that she realised
that Torp airport, where Ryanair fly into is 100km away from
Oslo. At no time was this made clear when booking on-line,
even though the booking was for Oslo. Had this been made
abundantly clear, the Beetle would have gone elsewhere.

Not only is it 100 km away from Oslo, but there is no public
transport after 8pm to Oslo from Torp (and even then, it is a
very expensive taxi ride to the train station) as Torp is a
very small sleepy little town. The Ryanair dedicated coach
cost around £20 or $30 return and took 2 miserable
hours so that a 7.25pm Stansted departure resulted in the
Beetle arriving at her Oslo city centre hotel at almost 1am
– and it is a 1 ½ hr flight and a one hour time
difference. Do the math, as they say! The real airport in
Oslo, where all of the other carriers fly into has excellent
transport connections and takes less than half an hour from
Oslo city centre by train. Never again!

For more info on Ryanair, visit: http://ryanair.com/

What do you think? Do you have a fave or hated airline? Want
to get an airport or airline off your chest? Drop the Beetle
a line: beetle@globetrotters.co.uk

Lahore is located 288 km from Islamabad. This capital of the
Punjab is a city of gardens, parks and educational
institutions with a rich heritage. It is an ancient town rich
in historical monuments, including Mughal architecture.
Lahore is considered to be the cultural capital of Pakistan.

Places of interest include the Badshahi Mosque, Lahore Fort,
Old City Shrine of Data Ghanj Bukhsh, Anarkani Bazaar, Wazir
Khan's Mosque, National Museum, Sikh monument, Minar
Pakistan, the mausoleum of Jahangir, Nur Jahan and Asif Khan,
Shalimar Garden, Jallo National Park as well as (some two
hours drive from Lahore) there is a world's largest man
made forest Chhanga Manga. Lahore is famous for folk dances
(dhamal) with drum beating in a traditional way at shrines
with a totally different essence of mystic surroundings.
Visiting countryside and villages is an excellent experience
near Lahore. Lahori people are very hospitable and this
hospitality leaves unforgettable impression.

Badshahi Mosque

The city next crops up in literature in connection with the
campaigns of the Turkish dynast Mahmud of Ghazni against the
Rajas of Lahore between I00I and I008. Around this time it
established itself as the capital of the Punjab and
thereafter began to play an important and growing role as a
centre of Muslim power and influence in the subcontinent. Its
heyday was the Mughal era from the early sixteenth century
onwards and, as Mughal power began to decline in the
eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Lahore suffered a
concomitant period of ignominy and political eclipse. It was
here, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, that the
Sikh ruler Ranjit Singh declared himself Maharajah of the
Punjab and allowed his troops to desecrate many of the
city's beautiful Islamic shrines- including the Badshahi
Mosque which was, for a while, converted into a powder
magazine. By the time British occupied Lahore in I849, one
writer moved to describe the city as 'a mere expanse of
crumbling ruins'.

Lahore Fort

Nearby, the massively fortified walls of Lahore Fort speak
eloquently of the centuries of passing history that they have
witnessed. The fort antedates the coming of Mahmud of Ghazn i
in the eleventh century, was ruined by the Mangols in I241,
rebuilt in I267, destroyed a gain by Timurlane in I398 and
rebuilt once more in I421. The great Mughal emperor Akbar re
placed its mud walls with solid brick masonry in I566 and
extended it northwards. Later Jehangir, Shah Jehan and
Aurangzeb all added the stamps of their widely differing
personalities to its fortification, gateways and palaces.

The fort encloses an area of approximately thirty acres and
it is possible to spend many hours wandering there, lost in
contemplation of times gone by, trying to reconstruct in your
imagination a way of life that the world will never see
again. The buildings within its walls are a testament to the
gracious style of Mughal rule at its height, in which every
man knew his place and courtly behaviour had been refined
into an elaborately stratified social code. Much of the
architecture reflects this code. From a raised balcony in the
Diwan-e-Aam, or Hall of Public Audience, built by Shah Jehan
in I63I, the emperors looked down on the common people over
whom they ruled when they came to present petitions and to
request the settlement of disputes. Wealthier citizens and
the nobility were allowed to meet their emperors on a level
floor in the Diwan-e-Khas, the Hall of Special Audience-which
was also built by Shah Jehan, in I633.

Shalimar Garden, Lahore

Another magnificent remnant of the Mughal era, also partially
vandalized in the late eighteenth century by the invading
Sikhs, is the Shalimar Garden which stands on the Grand Trunk
Road about eight kilometres to the east of the old part of
Lahore. “Shalimar” means 'House of Joy'
and, in truth, the passing centuries have done nothing to
detract from the indefinable atmosphere of light-heartedness
and laughter that characterizes this green and peaceful
walled retreat. A canal runs the entire 2,006 foot (6II
meters) length of the garden and from it 450 sparkling
fountains throw up a skein of fresh water that cools and
refreshes the atmosphere, making this a favourite place for
afternoon walks for the citizens of modern Lahore. Lahore is
rightly regarded as the cultural, architectural and artistic
centre of Pakistan; indeed, the city is so steeped in
historical distinction that it would be possible to spend a
lifetime studying it without learning everything that there
is to learn.

Hameed's areas of specialisation include documentary
filmmaking, being a conservation leader from the WWF College
for Conservation leadership, graphic design, teaching
multimedia Arts at national college of Arts and he is a
regular travel column contributor to an English speaking
Pakistani newspaper. For more information on travel in
Pakistan, Hameed is happy to answer any e-mails: hameed@gandhara.org

If you are looking for a friendly, clean cheap backpackers in
Lahore, Hameed recommends the Regale Internet Inn in Lahore.
E-mail: Regale_internet@yahoo.com

Muir's Tours is committed to travel with concern for the
environment, the indigenous people and of course our clients.
Our name was inspired by John Muir, the “Father of
Ecology”. We are a non-profit organisation with
proceeds going to various charities. Your custom will provide
us with funds that are passed on to various charities and
projects.

We are looking for any help we can get, but most volunteers
fall into one of two categories. The Casual Volunteer
(CV) who will commit for at least a month and the Long
Termer who will stay at least 1 year. We offer the casual
volunteer on most of our projects food and accommodation at
low cost and practical / logistical assistance with travel.
All CVs must pay their own costs – these are minimal (e.g. in
India US$6 / £4 per day for food and basic accom, US$21
/ £15 train – Delhi / Dehradun / Delhi) together with a
registration fee of US$75 / £50 to help with our
admin costs.

The options are quite varied and the more popular locations
are detailed below.

North India – In Dehradun and Dharamsala we are
developing ways to help the Tibetan people help themselves.
In Dharamsala there is a well established craft workshop and
guest house and we are planning to set up others. We also
need people to help promote the sale of crafts back in their
home country. We want to establish homestays – a short
holiday living with local people – in the areas around
Dharamsala and Dehradun. Research work is needed to identify
additional suitable families / homes.

Near Dehradun in the small village of Rajpur is a home
for Tibetan children (mostly orphans) that have
escaped by foot over the Himalaya from Tibet – we want to
support this establishment by sponsoring individual children
for their education. You can help immediately by suggesting
to friends and relatives that they sponsor a Tibetan child,
most of whom are orphans. If you know someone who is willing
to pay $ 21 / £15 per month to educate, house, feed and
clothe a young Tibetan, please let us know.

North central Nepal – near the Tibetan border in and
around the village of Panglang. There is accommodation
available in a local home and in the tourist periods of March
/ May and Sept / Dec there is the luxury of a riverside camp
at additional cost. The camp is a permanent set up which is a
base for rafting and kayaking. Some prior study of the
language would be required as there are interpreters
available some of the time only, but a limited vocabulary
would not be too great a problem.

Mid central Nepal – near the town of Pokhara in a
Tibetan Refugee Camp. There is accommodation available in a
local home or in the community owned guest house. The camp
was set up in 1962 following the Chinese invasion of Tibet
and is now well established with brick homes, a fine
monastery, a school and a carpet factory. The NKF has English
speaking Tibetan staff permanently in the camp, so Tibetan
language study is not necessary.

Mongolia – famous for it's horsemanship and yet it
nearly lost its most precious horse breed. They are probably
the last remaining wild horse species in the world.
Przewalski horses almost become extinct with some horses
surviving is zoo's. After careful breeding they were
reintroduced in several Mongolian nature reserves. Only the
group in Hustain Nuruu Reserve was successful. We need to
monitor the horses to make sure they are adjusting to their
new environment and to gain a better insight into their
behaviour. You need to be able to work without assistance in
tracking down the harems on horse-back and compiling data on
their whereabouts and behaviour. You will need to help us
encourage conservation awareness in the local communities.

Eastern Nepal – The Makalu – Barun area. We have a
number of projects in this area in conjunction with The
Mountain Institute (TMI) and the accommodation would be in
local homes or lodges normally. Some prior study of the
language would be required as there are interpreters
available some of the time only, but a limited vocabulary
would not be too great a problem.

To find out more, visit Muir's Tours website on: www.nkf-mt.org.uk or contact
info@nkf-mt.org.uk

Mike is the winner of the Globetrotter Club £1,000
legacy available to members under 30 years of age for the
best independent travel plan.

If you are under 30 and are a member, please visit our legacy
page for details of how to apply. It is available to
anyone in the world, as long as they are a member of the
Globetrotter Club, have a great plan for independent travel
and are under the age of 30. Get those plans in!!

Mike is using his travel award to visit Vietnam, Cambodia and
Laos. Here's Part 1 of his travels:

We've been in Thailand now for about 10 days and thought
I should drop you all a line to let you know we're
actually alive and what we've been up to. We spent a few
days in Bangkok which was very different than I expected. It
was so much cleaner and more organised and the Sky train
makes it feasible to get across the city quickly. There is
lots of diversity across the city with huge modern
skyscrapers next to slums.

The Grand Palace is incredible and so are many of the other
sites but the food is by far the best aspect. You can pick up
great noodles on the street for only a few pence. We've
also tried Scorpion, grasshopper and loads of other things
that so far our bodies are accepting. The nightlife in
Bangkok is also a completely new experience and we had a
couple of wild nights out. We're also getting pretty
ruthless with the tuk-tuk drivers.

We caught the sleeper up to Chiang Mai the second largest
city where we had our Visas for Laos and Vietnam done whilst
we went off into the Jungle Trekking. The Trek lasted 3 days
and was hard work but well worth it! We met some hill tribes
and also did the very touristy elephant rides and white water
rafting. The weather here is mixed with some rain but always
very hot and within seconds of doing anything we're
sweating. We then headed up by bus to Tha-ton where we are
now which is a small town only a few kilometres from the
Burmese boarder.

It's been really nice staying here for a couple of days
away from the noise and pollution of Bangkok and Chiang Mai.
The views are amazing and we've only seen two other
westerners here. We've even spent an afternoon chatting
with a group of young monks about philosophy. We're
leaving in an hour by boat down to Chiang Rai where we'll
be spending a while exploring the northern tip of the
country. So far it's all gone really well (touch wood)
the people are very friendly especially when you get out of
the cities. The weather has been good and we've kept away
from trouble and illness.

We should be getting to Laos this weekend we think but
we're just taking it as it comes.