As the Beetle was planning a little diving trip to the Philippines, she thought she’d check out the FCO’s travel advice for the area.

The UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office advises against all travel to central, southern and Western Mindanao, to Basilan, Tawi-Tawi and the Sulu archipelago, where military and police operations against terrorist and rebel groups are continuing and where kidnappings and bombings have taken place.

There is a high threat from terrorism and kidnapping throughout the Philippines. There continues to be threats against Western interests and there is a danger of collateral damage from terrorist attacks targeted at others.

You should also be alert to the risk of street crime.

Penalties for illegal drug importation and use are severe and can include the death penalty.

We strongly recommend that you obtain comprehensive travel and medical insurance before travelling.

A 31 year old Canadian man recently tried to buy a one-way ticket on a Qantas flight from LAX to Sydney, but was turned down because he could not supply a valid credit card. Later, he managed to climb over an airport fence, topped by three strands of barbed wire, without injury and was spotted by an airport worker “running, naked, full-speed” toward the plane. He climbed into the wheel well of a moving Qantas 747. Pilots of the Qantas Airways flight stopped the plane. The man was coaxed out of the wheel well and arrested for trespass. An airport spokesperson said: “

”.his was an extremely dangerous thing for him to do. If he had continued to cling in there with the aircraft taking off at over 200 miles (320 kph) per hour, he might have fallen out and could have been sucked up by an engine.”

”.f he had survived that and was in the wheel well when the landing gear was retracted, he could have been crushed by the mechanism. And if not he very likely would have frozen to death during the 15 1/2 hour flight at 30,000 feet (9,150 metres) while wearing no clothes.”.

Just a sober warning for anyone considering using Europcar at Malaga airport.

Earlier in the year we hired a car, left credit card details as is normal, checked car for damage prior to leaving airport (around midnight) and got on our way. Didn't notice until at the outskirts of the airport that the fuel tank was only half full. Took car back with three quarters of a tank (more than when we picked it up) and explained to the check in girl what had happened. She accepted that I didn't need to rip them off for a few litres of fuel and said all would be OK.

Got home and about a week later received a bill for 25 litres of fuel and a 12 euro charge for “Special Equipment Replacement”. Total bill 39.15 euros, not a fortune but a rip off none the less.

Tried to contact Europcar with very little success, they eventually agreed that they had only put 17 litres of fuel in the car and will refund the difference, I wouldn't mind betting that they left it as it was and ripped off the next unsuspecting customer. The user prior to us must have had the same problem and they certainly didn't fill it up then !!

Still no explanation of the “Special Equipment Replacement” so be warned. EUROPCAR IN MALAGA AIRPORT MAY WELL ROB YOU!!!

A US appeals court ruled that an airline that forced an elderly woman to check a bag with her medical devices must bear responsibility for her subsequent death after losing the bag. A lower court ruled in 2002 that Americans Airlines parent company AMR and BWIA International Airways should pay USD$226,238.81 to Caroline Neischer's relatives because she died soon after her bag was lost. Mrs Neischer’s said it was the first case of its kind. “The significance of the case is that never before has an airline been held liable for the death of a passenger caused by delayed or missing baggage.” Mrs Neischer, who spent most of her life in her native Guyana, died at age 75 after flying from Los Angeles to Guyana in 1997. After Mrs Neischer transferred from an American Airlines flight in New York, a ground agent forced her to check a bag that contained a breathing device to treat her respiratory problems. The agent promised she would be given the bag immediately upon arriving in Guyana. However, the bag was lost and Neischer died days later.

From January 7 2005, London Underground Piccadilly line trains heading for Heathrow's Terminal 4 station will not go beyond Hatton Cross.

Passengers will have to take a shuttle bus from Hatton Cross to Terminal 4.

Piccadilly line services to the Heathrow Terminal 1, 2 and 3 station will not be affected, although there will be no direct service to this station on the weekend of January 8 and 9, 2005.

The long-term closure of Terminal 4 station is due to work on the Piccadilly line extension to the under-construction Heathrow Terminal 5. London Underground have said that during the 20-month period, the Terminal 4 journey should 'only take about five minutes longer than now', while trips to Terminal 1, 2 and 3 will be slightly quicker.

Around 2,500 people travel to and from Terminal 4 by Tube each day.

Air passengers flying to the US may have to board their planes an hour before take-off to allow for more rigorous security checks. US Homeland Security undersecretary Asa Hutchinson said the current practice of airlines giving the names of passengers to US officials 15 minutes after take-off did not make sense. Officials want the information earlier so they can check travellers' details against those of suspects on their security watch lists before the plane is in the air, he said.

The airline industry responded by saying any proposals needed careful discussion, adding that they could cause problems with connecting flights and increase the number of passengers who book seats on flights and then fail to show up.

Under a deal signed in May 2004, the United States is able to access personal information on every passenger flying from the 25 European Union countries, and since October 2004 most visitors to the United States have needed scans of their faces and fingers taken under its new US-VISIT program.

Anne writes in: I've been living in Mexico City for 8 months and I'd like to communicate to all the travellers to Mexico the address of a great French Bistro located in one of the most popular area of Mexico City, la Condesa.

Its atmosphere is warm and friendly, and the menu counts with delicious French and Mediterranean specialties. Moreover, the restaurant presents

fantastic photo exhibitions by Mexican and foreign artists, which change every 2 months, the photos being auctioned to the benefit of children living on the streets of Mexico City.

The prices are affordable (32 pesos for soups and salads, from 48 to 165 pesos for main dishes), the service excellent.

To get there:

PHOTO BISTRO Calle Citlaltepetl No. 23 (at the corner of Avenida Amsterdam, between Ozuluama and Campeche, close to the Chilpancingo metro station) Col. Hipodromo Condesa Mexico, D.F.

Tel : 5286 5945 Fax : 5211 9806 Email : photobistro@att.net.mx