We had a great meeting in Chester last Saturday the 19th of March, we are getting a regular stream of people now between 35 to 40 on average and we certainly hope that this is going to continue so by the end of the year we will have a little money saved up to go into 2012.
We had two wonderful speakers again, the first talk was about a cycle journey from Scotland to Italy for charity – Saol who is originally from Mexico and now lives in Chester had lots of interesting and funny stories about his experience on this trip. Saol had wonderful photos to show and everyone really enjoyed his adventure. The money that was raised during the ride went to help with schools in Nepal and Mexico.
The second speaker, last year’s Globetrotters’ travel award winner, Doreen Taylor did her talk about the journey she made to India – it was a journey back in time, following in the footsteps of Rudyard Kipling. The journey included the Golden Temple and some interesting train journeys, especially into the mountains. Doreen kept us captivated with her personal experiences and quiet a few tips on where to go and things to see, it was a very enjoyable afternoon and while chatting to other Globies after her talk it seems that she has wetted a few appetites.
We had a good turnout again with lots of people meeting in the tea break, talking and exchanging experiences and tips.
Our next date for your diary is 28th May the talks will cover “My time in Hong Kong” by Madeleine Anderson who has lived there for some time, plus African Brew HA-HA a Motorcycle Quest from Lancashire to Cape Town by Alan Whelan
We look forward to welcoming fellow travelers and others on that day!
Thanks again for your help
Kind Regards
Hanna
Chester meetings are held at The Grosvenor Museum, 25 – 27 Grosvener Street, Chester, CH1 2DD.
Tickets £3 including refreshments.
For more information contact Angela, Hanna or Eve for further information of this & future events at Chester via email atchesterbranch@globetrotters.co.uk
Friday 27 May : “Egypt and Jordan” by Jay Wopperer & Linda
Saturday? July : summer picnic, details to be confirmed
Friday 16 September : “Argentina” by Eduardo Barnett
Friday 18 November : “Guatemala with Horizons of Friendship” by Bruce Weber
Toronto meetings are held at 8.00pm on the third Friday of January, March, May (4th Friday), September and November, at Old York Tower, 85 The Esplanade, in downtown Toronto.
What a night, such a night, a night out a couple of days before a big party at my daughter’s, to celebrate her returning to see friends and family, as she now lives with hers in China.
Slowly like an old meandering river, the red wine flowed out of the bottle swirled slowly around, into this very large glass and the owner said, “Free for you, if you finish it” !
“I’m British”, I said, in my very best French and thought I saw her face blanch ! The locals all stopped their card playing and chatting, to watch this group make a fool of ourselves. My daughter and her friend joined in the fun and shared a large glass of white ! Half way through drinking this good red wine, I began to wonder if I would make the restaurant and the bar began to feel as if it was my front room with lots of friends of mine enjoying themselves. Considering this was very close to little Francesca’s party, I thought of it as training for the big one. We did get to the restaurant and food was sumptuous and I only drank a little but even so, I think I was well oiled and the way home was thanks to my son in law, Bernard. By the way I did finish the large glass of red and I think the landlady will check the nationality of the tourist next time – Just in case they turn out to be Brits.
All – Committee member Jacqui Trotter received this kind email from charity Arthritis Research UK, following on a from a talk by sailing adventurer Sarah Outen at the London branch. After being entertained so well, the audience contributed to an ad-hoc collection that has been well received by Arthritis Research UK 🙂
The Ant
Dear Miss Trotter,
On behalf of everyone here at Arthritis Research UK, thank you again for your very generous donation of £165.00. Your support is so valuable to us as it means we can continue to fund the vital research that’s needed to take away the pain and distress of arthritis.
It is very kind of the members of The Globetrotters Club to choose to support our cause following a talk given by Sarah Outen who did a sponsored event in our favour, we greatly appreciate this generosity.
Your gifts are helping to fund research to stop the pain of arthritis and hopefully prevent future generations being affected by this devastating condition.
Our pioneering research is helping to identify the genetic factors that lead to conditions such as osteoarthritis, which affects over 6 million people in the UK alone. Your gifts are also helping our top scientists to look at how taking supplements, like vitamin D, could stop the progression of life-changing conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis.
If you want to find out even more about arthritis and what can be done to ease the pain, please visit our website www.arthritisresearchuk.org. If you suffer from arthritis yourself, you can share your experiences with others. And you’ll find a wealth of useful information about our research projects, different types of arthritis and much more.
Many thanks once again from all of us here at Arthritis Research UK for your kind donation.
This time round I thought I’d have a little look around about Mac in the internet world and I’ve found these two articles that might interest you…so have a read and get to know more about our intrepid US based contributor 🙂
This time round Mac discusses the “Happiest countries in the world”…
10. Luxembourg – 7.6 points.
Living in the world’s richest country inevitably puts a smile on your face! This small landlocked European country has an army of 800 people (yes, 800). They don’t have a navy nor an air force but together with Belgium they can afford to own 1 military cargo plane. Beat that US!
According to the Guinness Book of World Records Luxembourg holds the world record as the country that consumes most alcohol in the world per citizen.
9. Guatemala – 7.6 points.
This Central American country borders with Mexico in the north and is located between the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. This location makes it a very difficult country to stay happy in – Guatemala is frequently ravished by hurricanes and earthquakes that often kill thousands of people. Main exports of Guatemala include coffee, sugar and bananas. The latter is probably why they are so happy – have you ever seen someone that can stay sad while eating a banana?
8. Canada – 7.6 points.
Many people have no idea that Canada’s head of state is actually Queen Elizabeth II – the head of the British Monarchy. This meant that when Britain declared war on Germany in World War I, Canada was automatically at war with the soon to be Nazi country. Unlike the neighbouring US, Canada has never cancelled its relations with Cuba and has declined to take part from the Iraq War – instead, it has played a leading role in the United Nations peacekeeping missions and helped to launch a $1.5 billion initiative to help develop vaccines that could save millions of people in poor countries. It seems that happy people make a happy country!
7. Sweden – 7.7 points.
This “welfare state” model is an excellent example of effective national taxes. Among other things the state provides universal tax-funded childcare, parental leave, health care, education (including university), retirement pensions and sick leave. Including value added tax (VAT – kind of like sales tax), it is possible to pay up to 80% of your income as taxes. Contrary to popular belief, Swedes are quite OK with their high taxes. After all it gives them tons of free and high quality services – what’s not to be happy about!
Sweden is also the home of IKEA – the world’s largest furniture store. IKEA’s founder Ingvar Kampard is famous for being the 7th richest person in the world (Net worth $31 billion) and driving a 15 year old Volvo station wagon. It has been claimed that more people read the IKEA catalogue than the Bible – and that one in ten Europeans have been conceived on an IKEA bed.
6. Australia – 7.7 points.
The name “Australia” comes from the Latin word “Australis”, meaning “Southern”. Australia is the only country in the world, that consists of an entire continent. Between 1788 and 1868 the British used Australia as a colony to deport their convicted criminals – these people are the predecessors to many of today’s citizens. Australians are famous for playing rugby and calling each-other “mates”.
5. Finland – 7. 7 points.
This is the country that brought us Nokia – the world’s largest manufacturer of mobile phones. In 2003 Nokia accounted for about a quarter of Finland’s exports and in 2006 it generated more revenue than the entire budget of Finland. Before starting to make mobile phones Nokia made (yes, it’s true) rubber boots! Finland was also home to Simo Häyhä – considered to be the most deadly sniper through history with 542 kills. According to World Economic Forum Finland has the most competitive economy in the world. Plenty to be happy about!
4. Iceland – 7. 8 points.
This geologically active country is rich in volcanoes and geysers (A geyser is a hot spring that erupts water in certain intervals). Thanks to geothermal power Iceland gets its electricity and hot water dirt cheap. There have been occasions where steel has been shipped for processing from Australia or Africa and when finished shipped back to the originating country. Cheap local energy actually makes this cost effective. According to the Human Development Index, Iceland (together with Norway) is the world’s most developed country.
3. Austria – 8. 0 points.
Austria is the home to the popular energy drink Red Bull. This country is also one of the few in the world that allows legal voting beginning from age 16. Upon turning 18, all Austrian males have to take part of a 6 month military service. The country has declared itself formally a neutral country or a “perpetual neutrality” as they say it, but in reality it has taken part of various peacekeeping missions and also took part of the UN sanctions against Iraq. Thanks to the wide use of wind-, solar- and hydropower Austria produces around 80% of its energy from renewable resources. Education is mostly free, with the exception of an average semester fee of 583 dollars (370 eur) in universities. As you probably guessed, student loan debts are not an issue in Austria.
2. Switzerland – 8.1 points.
This cheese and chocolate producing land is the world’s 10th richest country. Switzerland’s neutrality helped their banks to raise some serious cash – for decades it was possible to open a bank account without having to identify yourself. Upon opening an account, you were given a special number that anyone could use to deposit or withdraw money. This law was later changed since it attracted illegal money. Switzerland is also one of the top garbage recyclers in the world (66% to 96% recyclable materials recycled). They achieve this by keeping recycling free, but asking money for regular garbage – thus giving people a financial incentive to recycle.
1. Denmark – 8. 2 points.
Just like Sweden, Denmark is a Nordic welfare state with most of its services free to the citizens. Expect to pay 72% of your money to the government on the highest income tax bracket. According to Wikipedia Denmark has the world’s highest taxes! When buying a car in Denmark one has to pay 25% VAT to the import price of the vehicle and then a 180% registration tax on top. That means when a car sells for $20 000, you have to pay an additional $45 000 as taxes for the government (total of $65 000). That’s why people in Denmark ride bikes or use one of the best public transport systems in the world. Denmark also has 2 autonomous provinces – the Faroe Islands and Greenland. The latter is over 50 times larger than Denmark but has about 100 times less people.
Greetings from Bike the Earth:-Dear GlobetrottersWonderful to get your news as we are in mid Australia on BIKE THE EARTH – www.biketheearth.net (Please check out at least the first page of our website).
We have done 3500 km, connecting communities, inspiring initiatives, on ABC Television, on the radio, and in the media, with some great testimonials for the work we are doing!
Or do you know someone who could benefit from a helping hand into the wider world?
What is the award?
Each year the club offers up to two £1,000 awards to give out for the best independent travel plan, as judged by the club’s Committee.
The deadline to receive applications for the next award is 31 May 2011.
See the legacy page on the club’s web site for more details, where you can review previous winners’ trips and/or apply with your plans for a totally independent, travel trip.
If your idea catches our eye we’ll take a closer look at what you’re proposing and give you feedback & maybe a helping hand on your journey of a lifetime !!
If you enjoy writing & travelling, why not write for the free Globetrotters eNewsletter ! The Ant would love to hear from you: your travel stories, anecdotes, jokes, questions, hints and tips, or your hometown or somewhere of special interest to you. Over 15,000 people currently subscribe to the Globetrotter eNewsletter.
Email The Ant at theant@globetrotters.co.uk with your travel experiences / hints & tips / questions. Your article should be approximately 1000 words, feature up to 3 or 4 jpeg photos and introduce yourself with a couple of sentences and a contact e-mail address.
