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Cycling Around the World

For all those cyclists out there, the founder of the Globetrotters Club, Norman Ford is an avid cyclist and has a web site: www.ktc.com/~blodwen which urges readers to tour the world by bicycle on their own. To give some ideas, he lists reports on about a dozen bike tours or bike vacations he’s taken in the past 5 years.

But the real heart of the site is the menu link to “Helpful Websites for Bicycle Touring” which links to just about every website for self-reliant bike tourists he could find and covers the world.

Moreover, if you are interested in knowing a little more about the history of the Globetrotters Club, when you go to Norm’s web site, have a look at the link at the bottom called www.globetrotters.co.uk which gives you an idea of what he’s been up to since 1945! It’s great reading!

Norm is happy to answer e-mail queries except during the fourth quarter of the year when he is away travelling the world by bicycle ~ now there’s an offer! Norm’ can be contacted via his web site.

Best Beach in the World

Best beach in the world (3) is Seven Mile Beach in Grand Cayman. Situated (strangely enough) in the west part of the island, about a 15 minute drive from the capital, George Town. Driving is British style, in other words on the left, and it is preferable to hire a car as the local minibus service can be cramped and infrequent, although cheap. It’s a great place to take children as it is a reasonably safe place. The beach itself is golden yellow is flat and gently sloping ~ no rogue waves here. Activities include sunning, swimming, snorkelling and diving. Most of the hotels and timeshare apartments are also in this area. The only downside is that it can be quite expensive to lodge, eat and drink.

Next month: The Beetle’s Top 3 Wreck Diving sites.

Did You Know…World Heritage Listed Sites for the US

Arizona: Grand Canyon Nat Park, California: Redwood Nat Park, Yosemite

Colorado: Anasazi Indian dwellings at Mesa Verde

Florida: The Everglades Nat Park

Kentucky: Mammoth Nat Park

Missouri: Cahokia Mounds ~ pre Colombian civilisation ruins

North Carolina and Tennessee: Great Smoky Mountains Nat Park

New Mexico: remains of the Chaco culture (1020 to 1110), Carlsbad Caverns Nat Park now some 81 recognised caves!

New York: the Statue of Liberty

Pennsylvania: Independence Hall in Philadelphia

Virginia: Monticelleo and the University of Virginia – architecture of Thomas Jefferson

Washington State: Olympic Nat Park

Wyoming: Yellowstone Nat Park

London:

Jason Lewis, spoke about his human powered journey to circumnavigate the globe, starting by pedalling across the Atlantic from the UK to Florida, in a specially designed boat, then across the USA, via roller blades and bicycle. TheX360 project is currently in Hawaii after pedalling across the Pacific whilst Jason raises sponsorship to continue the journey.

John Pilkington , radio presenter and broadcaster, spoke about his millennium journey, long planned, along the “Royal Road of the Incas”, which stretched 1,700 miles from Quito to Cuzco. John had many experiences along the way and made some surprising discoveries about both the Inca civilisation and modern Peru. (For talks, books and expedition updates visithttp://www.pilk.net

Next on May 5 it's Marion Bull, Into print – Images from Alaska to Zanzibar, Marion a freelance press photographer and travel writer will show a range of her pictures and Gina Corrigan, The Miau of South West China, Gina is a photographer/traveller who runs specialist textile tours to China.

Should be a good 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.

New York:

April's meeting was cancelled due to Passover and Easter.

Next, on May 5th, we have Bob Fisher. He is a contributing Editor to both Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel Online and Magazine and is a former Editor for Fodors. Bob is also an expert on Japan and Hong Kong.
He will be speaking on both those topics and will be talking about getting work as a travel writer. He should know, he takes seminars on travel writing!

We're looking forward to it!

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 3.30pm.

You want to visit?..Sri Lanka

You need to allow yourself at least two weeks to do this whistle stop tour! Arrive into Colombo and take a bus north east to Kandy a 100km so not too far. Take time out to see the Temple of the Tooth, explore around the lake, visit the botanical gardens, the elephant orphanage etc.

Then another bus to Nuwara Eliya, some 80km away, up in the hill station region of Sri Lanka. Great hikes here, visit tea plantations etc. Then by bus again to Dambulla, Visit the cave temple of Dambulla there are 5 caves containing 150 images of the Buddha you are going to be Budda'd out by the time you finish this!! Fantastic views from the top of the temple.

Take a bus to nearby Sigiriya (19km north-east of Dambulla about half an hour) where there is an amazing fortress built into and on top of a mountain. It is quite steep and if you have problems with heights, you may not be able to go all the way up the Beetle couldn't. It started as a fortress, then turned into a monastery sort of retreat. There are fabulous frescos of dancing women inside the cave half way up.

From here, go back to Dambulla and continue north by bus to Polonnaruwa. This takes about three hours. Visit the ruins of the ancient civilisation and see the enormous seated Buddha. After Polonnaruwa, take a bus up to Anuradhapura, (about four hours), the site of another ancient city, and there is a sacred Bo tree.

You've done enough cultural stuff! So take the bus all the way back down to Colombo – about five hours. Don't hang around in Colombo – it's not a nice place, but if you have funds and want to go to the Maldives, try the big hotels and see if they have any special deals – they can be quite good value. From Colombo, take the train to Galle (around three hours) and a taxi to Unawatuna and relax on the beach before returning to Colombo by train.

If you are interested in surfing, stop off at Hikkaduwa, a real hippy and surf place on the south west coast.

Did You Know World Heritage Listed Sites for the UK

In London: Westminster Palace and Abbey and St Margaret's Church, Tower of London, Maritime Greenwich.

Near London : Stonehenge and Avebury, Blenheim Palace, Bath, Canterbury Cathedral, St Augustine's Abbey and St Martin's church.

England : Durham Castle and Cathedral, Ironbridge Gorge (Shropshire), Studley Royal Park, (Yorkshire) incl. the ruins of Fountains Abbey, Hadrians Wall.

Wales : castles and town walls of King Edward in Gwynedd and Blaenarvon Industrial landscape (near Cardiff).

Scotland : the island of St Kilda (Hebrides), Neolithic Orkney.

Please contact Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk for your suggested country itinerary

MEETING NEWS

Meeting news from our branches around the world.

Ontario:

Meetings are held onthe third Friday of January, March, May, September and November.Usually at the Woodsworth Co-op, Penthouse, 133, Wilton Street indowntown Toronto at 8.00 p.m.

Best Beach in the World

Best beach in the world (2) has to be the Whitsundays off Queensland. The pale white sand is so pure there that it squeaks between your toes. To get there, you can take a boat from Cairns, Airlie Beach or even Brisbane.