86 mainly teenage migrants from Ecuador and Peru, have been found by Costa Rican officials adrift in their packed boat for three days. They sent a message in a bottle saying: ‘Please Help Us’. It is believed that the group were abandoned by people smugglers when the vessel got into trouble. The smugglers stripped the boat of radio and communication equipment when they left it. The bottle, and the SOS message it contained, was found by local fishermen who alerted officials. The group was hoping to reach Guatemala, from where they wanted to cross the border to Mexico, according to a spokesperson for Costa Rica’s public security ministry.

Need help? Want a travelling buddy or advice about a place or country – want to share something with us – why not visit our Mutual Aid section of the Website: Mutual Aid

Pieces of a man’s body including the right leg, part of the spine and a hip, struck a garage roof of the home in South Floral Park, New York, before landing in the backyard are believed to have fallen from the wheel well of a South African Airways passenger plane bound for New York’s Kennedy Airport. A US customs inspector discovered the rest of the man’s body after Flight 203 landed in New York from Johannesburg. A South African Airways spokeswoman said it appeared to have been a stowaway attempt and that the plane had stopped in Dakar, Senegal, on its way to New York. During the flight, Smith said the pilot felt more “vibrating sensations and heard pounding, but nothing appeared wrong with the plane.”

Do not drink home made alcohol – anywhere, not just Kenya. Over 50 people have died after drinking home made alcohol laced with a substance believed to have been methanol in Machakos, south east of Nairobi. Local newspaper, The People Daily, identifies its own culprit. “The provincial administration and the police are squarely to blame. They have failed to arrest and charge individuals involved in the brewing and distribution of illegal liquors.” This is not the first time that such a tragedy has occurred. Just don’t do it!

John from London wrote in to share some information about getting to London Stansted airport. He says:

I share your frustrations about the cost and unreliability of the train service to Stansted, but do you know about the National Express bus service from Stratford BR/Underground station?

It costs £7 single and £12 for a return, (a saving of £2), it leaves every half an hour, even during the night and takes 45 minutes because it’s only a spit from Stratford to the M11.

For more information, see: NationalExpress.

Here’s a little Beetle quiz based on currencies. See how many you get right! Go on, have a guess!

Where would you find the following currencies?

1. Lek
2. Loti
3. Pula
4. Ruble
5. Cedi

For the answers, see at the end of the e-newsletter.

Have you ever wanted to present a travel programme? Do you see yourself as a budding Judith Chalmers or Michael Palin? Or, do you just have a passion for the Island of Ireland? If the answer to any of the above questions is yes, then this is the challenge for you.

We’re on the lookout for two friends to front Ireland’s first ever online ‘travelmentary’, filming daily reports on the trip of a lifetime for thousands of Internet users. A camera crew will follow the lucky winners as they are chauffeured around Ireland in their very own Tourism Ireland luxury ‘taxi’ and given the chance to win up to г10,000.

To enter, just send a one-minute video clip of you and a friend explaining why you should be chosen to enjoy the Taxi Challenge. For further details on the challenge and how to enter visit www.tourismireland.com/taxi

So, find a friend, get out your video cameras and send us a one-minute clip telling us why you should front the Taxi Challenge.

Remember all you have to do is visit www.tourismireland.com/taxi