Be careful if you are planing to take a trip to Sri Lanka. Up to 400 people in Sri Lanka are feared dead or missing after floods have swept through the Southern part of the country – a region popular with tourists. The downpours have been region's heaviest for 60 years has also left around 100,000 people homeless and sparked a massive relief operation.

Globetrotters meeting 3^rd May by Acorn

Our first speaker, Windy Baboulene spoke to us for over 45 minutes, without slides or props, of his time as a youngster in the merchant navy and some of the outrageous escapades he got up to.

His first story concerned his favourite safari hat, and how one of his children had thrown it out of the car window whilst in a controlled safari park in the UK; was he brave enough to get it back? That would depend on whether his story of lone survival on the Serengeti Plains was The Truth or not. He went on to tell us the actual events behind his Kenyan safari so we could decide for ourselves. He and his fellow shipmates had been on safari, but had not taken it seriously. They had played “dares”, such as running away from the safety of the truck and dancing – on the plains in the Rift Valley – around an imaginary handbag, whilst the nearby wildlife watched on, amused. During Windy's turn at performing a dare, his 'friends' drove off and left him. Just for a laugh, you understand. Was he brave…?

Another one of Windy’s stories was about being caught out boasting about his skiing prowess and being taken by helicopter along with some new found friends to ski from impossibly sheer cliffs in the Rocky Mountains of Canada.

Windy's story telling was not just funny – it was interesting and engaging too. To know more, you’ll have to buy his book, The 'Hilarious and often Bizarre true story' (ABTA Travel) entitled 'Blue Road', available from Amazon – to take a look and to see more reviews, visit Windy Baboulene's Blue Road

Our second speaker, John Harrison spoke of his seven canoeing expeditions up the Amazon. His slides showed the beauty and also the dangers of being in such an inhospitable landscape. We saw how John and his travel companions occasionally suffered the ravages of tropical diseases, including malaria when they swigged quinine out a bottle – until they ran out – and Leishmaniasis, (a horrible parasitic disease transmitted by the bite of some species of sand flies) that causes huge sores. We also saw pictures of the Amazon, the river, its tributaries, undergrowth, enormous spiders and insects, of hidden tribes protected against explorers. John finished up by telling us of the trouble he got into with the French Guyanese authorities for having crossed over into French Guyana without a visa – they had after all travelled up the Amazon! The immigration officials in the capital, Cayenne gave him such a hard time, threatening all manner of penalties, including a spell in prison, until he realised that French speaking John was actually British, and being a part of the EU did not actually need a visa to travel into French Guyana!

Coming up in June

Saturday, 7th June
JACQUI TROTTER A Year travelling in South America – Jacqui, a regular London “Globie” enjoys a year travelling – sometimes with overland groups – and sometimes “solo.”

SIMON MYERS China – Simon spent five years in China before riding a Chinese motorbike and sidecar back from Beijing to London. His first book “Adrift in China” has recently been published.

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. There is no London meeting in August, but we will be back in September. For more information, you can contact the Globetrotters Info line on +44 (0) 20 8674 6229, or visit the website: www.globetrotters.co.uk

Britain's longest national walking trail, from Minehead in Somerset to South Haven Point near Poole in Dorset, will celebrate its 25th anniversary this year.

The 630-mile South West Coast Path takes in steep, ‘hog's back' cliffs rising to 800 feet, fishing harbours, pretty villages and unspoilt countryside.

There will be a wide variety of events between April and October, including guided walks, talks and displays of works by local artists, writers, musicians and other performers who have been inspired by the path. For more information, see http://www.swcp.org.uk/

Source: Britain Express

If you enjoy writing, enjoy travelling, why not write for the free monthly Globetrotters e-newsletter! The Beetle 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 7,500 people currently subscribe to the free Globetrotter e-news.

To see your story in cyber print, e-mail the Beetle with your travel experiences, hints and tips or questions up to 750 words, together with a couple of sentences about yourself and a contact e-mail address to Beetle@globetrotters.co.uk

Amateur and professional photographers alike, based anywhere in the world can compete for a share of the £45,000 prize package, and there's an additional competition to find the Young Travel Photographer of the Year, for those aged 16 and under. The Travel Photographer of the Year wins a trip for two people to the Islands of the Bahamas – where they can spend a day with respected underwater filmmaker Gavin McKinney. They also win £2,000 worth of prizes from Calumet, a UK photographic store and a bundle of Adobe imaging, web and design software worth approximately £3,000, a Lowepro Dryzone 200 waterproof camera backpack and a Manfrotto carbon fibre tripod. Individual category prizes include trips to Cuba, Iceland and the Galapagos Islands, and lots of other goodies.

The winner of the Young Travel Photographer title gets the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to receive personal photo tuition from one of the UK's most famous photographers, Charlie Waite. Their other prizes include Fujifilm's state-of-the-art S2 Pro digital camera with lens. Full details and entry forms from www.tpoty.com

Are you planning to drive across South America, take your family sailing around the Greek Islands, or to experience living in the Wilderness? An independent television company is looking for friends, couples or families who want to give up their existing lives for an adventure overseas. If this is for you, then e-mail Sarah and tell her where you want to go and what you want to do there, as she can help with the arrangements and provide some financial support. Her address is sarahg@ideallondon.com