-
The Beetle
·
Padmassana Travels To Japan . Part 2
Padmassana went travelling around Kyushu in June/July time. Here is the second of three extracts from his travel journal. I left Beppu in more torrents of rain after a night of storms and went to Miyazaki. Miyazaki was a staging post on the way to Kagoshima and is famous for the Haniwa figures, clay statues…
-
The Beetle
·
SARS
There is huge relief among Asian airlines after the World Health Organization declared that the SARS virus has now been contained in all affected countries. Taiwan was the last area to be removed from WHO’s warning list. Taiwan's tourist authorities are also planning a USD$8.72 million publicity drive to tempt tourists back to the island.…
-
The Beetle
·
Bangladeshi Bus Bust
Police in Bangladesh have announced new measures to combat the organised gangs who are terrorising transport owners, workers and passengers into handing over money at many of the capital, Dhaka’s bus terminals. The Bangladesh Rifles have combined with a newly formed Rapid Action Team in an attempt to bring the practice to an end. 72…
-
The Beetle
·
The World.s Most Expensive Countries
1. Tokyo, Japan 2. Osaka, Japan 3. Oslo, Norway 4. Hong Kong 5. Libreville, Gabon London came 7th in the list. Source: http://www.aneki.com/lists.html
-
The Beetle
·
LAX Airport
Los Angeles’ mayor, Jim Hahn has revealed plans to make LAX “the safest and most secure airport in America.” This involves knocking down three of the nine terminals and introducing radical transportation ideas. If approved, the plan to rebuild the airport would be completed over 11 years and allow for an increase in passenger numbers…
-
The Beetle
·
Travel Quiz: Fiji
Win a Moon guidebook on Fiji. See www.moon.com for info on Moon guidebooks. Some people have said the quiz is difficult, we say do some research; try google.com or Ask Jeeves, if you need help with the answers. One submission, only, please! The winner of last month's Moon guide on Yellowstone and Grand Teton is…
-
The Beetle
·
An Insight into the Culture of Mikindani, Tanzania by Len Coleman
Tanzania has a multi-ethnic and multi-racial population that practices a wide variety of traditions and customs. In Mikindani, the influence of Shirazi Arabs from Persia and traders from the Indian subcontinent combined with the movement and mixture of different ethnic African groups have complemented each other to form a rich cultural heritage. This is something…
-
The Beetle
·
US passports to carry digitally signed Images
US citizens will be issued with “smart” passports carrying a digitally signed photograph by late 2004. The new passports will include an embedded microchip that stores a compressed image of its owner's face. These microchips will be designed to prevent tampering and each digital image will be cryptographically signed to guarantee its authenticity. Civil liberties…
-
The Beetle
·
Place Names
As a result of the item about place names, Tom from N. Carolina wrote in to add: in the US state of Georgia we have Cairo, Athens & Rome. There is also Moscow in the state of Idaho; Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, Frankfort, Kentucky and Odessa, Texas. The state of Connecticut has a bunch…
-
The Beetle
·
UK Air Rage
The UK Government is cracking down on air rage by imposing strict sentences on those found guilty of endangering an aircraft with disruptive behaviour. Serious air rage incidents have increased during the last year with 648 'significant' in-flight incidents reported last year, a rise of around 16 per cent. 40 per cent of incidents were…
The Globetrotters Club
The travel club for independent travellers.