Need to convert currency?

Take a look at The Globetrotters Currency Converter – get the exchange rates for 164 currencies The Globetrotters Currency Cheat Sheet – create and print a currency converter table for your next trip.

The British Foreign & Commonwealth Office advise against all but essential travel to Andizhan in eastern Uzbekistan until further notice. An armed gang attacked a prison and a military unit in Andizhan in eastern Uzbekistan on 13 May 2005, releasing inmates, amongst them political prisoners. Around 2,000 protesters reportedly gathered in Andizhan town square, some occupying the Mayor's office. Government troops are reported to have opened fire on protestors. Local authorities have confirmed that several were killed. Eye-witnesses have put the figure of dead in the hundreds.

Uzbekistan's borders are potential flashpoints and some are mined. There were reports on 14 May of unrest on the border with Kyrgystan. You should avoid all but essential travel to areas bordering Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

There is a high threat from terrorism in Uzbekistan. Indiscriminate attacks could occur in public places where foreigners may gather including, but not limited to, bars, restaurants, hotels, nightclubs and bazaars. Pay attention to any security announcements by the Uzbek authorities.

On 13 May 2005, a suspected suicide bomber was shot dead outside the Israeli Embassy in Tashkent.

Suicide bombings near the US and Israeli Embassies and at the Uzbek Prosecutor's Office on 30 July 2004 reportedly killed four people and injured at least eight. We advise the local British community to be vigilant and stay in touch with the Embassy.

There have been occasional muggings and petty crime against foreigners, sometimes by off-duty policemen or those pretending to be policemen. Keep valuables out of sight and avoid unlit or remote areas. You should avoid obvious displays of wealth, especially in rural areas. You should avoid walking alone at night. We understand that since September 2004 there have been a series of assaults and murders of young children in Tashkent. The authorities are investigating the disappearance and murder of a number of young children between the ages of 9 and 14, some of whom went missing on their way to or from school. Therefore we would urge all those with children to be extra careful and to take precautions, such as not allowing their children to travel to and from school alone and explaining to children not to engage with strangers.

Artists Against AIDS USA will be in Melbourne 27 November 2005 to support “Rockin the Square” in Federation Square for their second World AIDS Day concert

Once again, we'll be sending our very own “Star Search” finalist (and Melbourne's new favourite crooner), Spencer Day who will be accompanied this year by the multi-talented Shayna Steele who just completed a successful run on Broadway with “Hairspray – The Musical”

In an effort to keep costs down, we are trying to get a jump on air-fares, hotel accommodations plus other events/venues where we might be of service while we are in OZ.

If you could quote us on your current airfare from the US to Melbourne (or thereabouts) and accommodations somewhere in the vicinity of Federation Square, it would be appreciated.

Questions, comments or press kit requests can be directed to Joe in our San Francisco via this email address: joe@a3usa.net

Artists Against AIDS USATeam SOHO www.a3usa.net

A member of Globetrotters Club? Interested in a £1,000 travel award?

Know someone who is? We have £1,000 to award each year for five years for the best submitted independent travel plan. Interested?

Then see our legacy page on our Website, where you can apply with your plans for a totally independent travel trip and we'll take a look at it. Get those plans in!!

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

I am looking for people to join me in trekking in Nepal – Mt Everest region. If you are interested, or you know some one who may be, please send me mail – lszymala@poczta.onet.pl

I am trying to find a trip to the Norwegian fjords. So far, all the trips on the internet are American, so prices reflect included transatlantic journeys. My trip to the Travel Agents was not enlightening as the choice is very small.

What I'm looking for is a coastal trip along the fjords for 6/7 days, with return flight to and from London, preferably Heathrow, after September 24th. The travel agents said it wasn't something people were after!! Can anyone give me any advice?

Thank you, Ipsita: ipsita_halder@hotmail.com

A Ukrainian team of nine caving experts has set a new depth record for caving. They managed to go 2,080m (6,822ft) underground at Krubera in Georgia, the world's deepest known cave. The team carried an amazing five tonnes of equipment and kept in touch with the surface base camp by rigging nearly 3km (two miles) of rope strung with a telephone wire. The world's deepest known caves are:

1. Krubera, Georgia (Abkhazia) 2,080m (6,822ft)
2. Lamprechtsofen, Austria 1,631m (5,354 ft)
3. Gouffre Mirolda, France 1,626m (5,335 ft)
4. Reseau Jean Bernard, France 1,602m (5,256 ft)
5. Torca del Cerro, Spain 1,589m (5,213 ft)
6. Sarma, Georgia (Abkhazia) 1,542m (5,062 ft)
7. Cehi 2, Slovenia, 1,533m (5,030 ft)

I am writing on behalf of an NGO out in Ecuador with whom I volunteered last year. This organisation is trying to find other volunteers. The organisation has experience of placing volunteers previously and is a registered NGO with the Ecuadorian government. I can be contacted on: andy_blake31@yahoo.co.uk

Dubai has always been the jewel in the United Arab Emirates crown, and Abu Dhabi considered a little quieter, more traditional and more conservative. Well, plans are afoot that may change all this. The United Arab Emirates is planning a 21 billion dirham (USD$5.7 billion) expansion of Abu Dhabi Airport in an effort to revamp the city's profile and attract millions of tourists. The new Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority said the emirate wants to attract over 3 million tourists a year by 2015, compared to 830,000 in 2003. Abu Dhabi has even tried to match Dubai's famed Burj al-Arab hotel, with its distinctive sail shape with its own Emirates Palace, where some suites cost USD$16,000 per night.

When: Saturday 18th June, 10.30am-4.00pm
Where: The Newsroom, The Guardian 60 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3GA
Cost: £85.00
A day of two intensive workshops:

Travel Writing – How to do it and how not to with Dea Birkett, the Guardian's Travelling with Kids columnist and author of Serpent in Paradise and Off the Beaten Track

Fact, Fiction and Creating a Traveller's Tale with Rory Maclean, author of Falling for Icarus and Stalin's Nose

The workshops are followed by practical writing sessions. Participants should bring pen and paper – they will be expected to write! The emphasis is – whether you are a beginner or already have some writing experience – on developing skills which can be applied to both articles and books. Our aim is that, by the end of the day, each of you will have the tools to produce a publishable piece of travel writing.

For further details and application form contact: travelworkshops@deabirkett.com

For further information:

• www.deabirkett.com
• www.rorymaclean.com
• www.guardian.co.uk/newsroom

Spanish airline Iberia is considering buying or setting up its own low cost airline. More than 50 million foreign tourists visit Spain every year, increasingly arriving on budget airlines such as Ryanair, easyJet or Lufthansa's Germanwings. Watch this space!