Issue 6
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Links in this issue may be out of date | Issue 6 |
COMET - SEPTEMBER 1998 - ISSUE 6 For people who like their travel news down loaded, not loaded down. Brought to you by Lonely Planet (http://www.lonelyplanet.com) IN THIS ISSUE The Scoop - A Handful of Headlines In the Spotlight - Singin' the Blues Compass - Buddhist Art Two Cents Worth - Come In Spinner Top 5 - Etiquette and the Art of Smelly Burps Soapbox - Deep Fried Delicacies Q&A - Talking Turkey You Said it - Travellers' Tales What's New On the LP Web Site Talk 2 Us How to Subscribe and Unsubscribe *** THE SCOOP News On the Run France It's border disorder throughout Europe as transport unions in Spain, France, Italy and Luxembourg start flexing their industrial muscles. Roads throughout Western Europe could face chronic blockage in the next few weeks. Most of the strikes will take place on the borders between France and Germany, Spain, Luxembourg and the Channel Ports. While most transport workers plan passive action rather than a complete blockade of roads, French transport workers, who have never been averse to a good blockade, say they will disrupt traffic along France's borders. This week's strike is the first in a series planned for the next few months unless drivers' demands (which include a reduction in the number of hours they work per week) are met. Philippines Health officials in Manila have advised of a number of new dengue fever 'hot spots' in the Philippines. San Pablo City, Legaspi City and parts of the Camarines Norte Province, all on the island of Luzon, are now considered high risk areas for dengue fever. The disease can be fatal if not treated, and so far this year more than 200 people have died from dengue fever in the Philippines. USA The US Department of Transportation has issued an order to airlines that requires them to provide a peanut-free protection area for any passenger who notifies the airline in advance that they have a peanut allergy. The airlines say no problem but the peanut farmers (and their politicians) are up in arms about this bit of legislative fluff. Find out what else is happening on your planet: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/news/newsweek.htm *** IN THE SPOTLIGHT In the Grip of the Homecoming Blues They're as much as part of travel as handwashing crusty underwear and making new friends. They leave you feeling like the world's greatest misfit even if they only last a week. You can't explain them to your family, hide them from yourself or wish them away. They're the Post Travel Blues. You know the drill. Once you touch down from your big trip no one gives a toss that you saw the face of God on a Bhutanese mountain. Your friends' eyes glaze over when you talk about trekking in Tibet. So what if you fell in love in Paris in the spring? If you're feeling off-balance after your travels, chronically depressed or fatigued, headache-prone, teary or want to withdraw from the world, you may be suffering from the Post Travel Blues. These blues manifest themselves in ways comparable to a syndrome called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), which afflicts millions every year. Some cases of the PT Blues bear a clinical component, as do cases of SAD, so it's not necessarily something you can just 'snap out of'. Depression is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain that results in a decrease in production of neurotransmitters such as seratonin and norepinephrine. If enough of these chemicals aren't sparking your synapses, you'll be depressed. These chemicals also assist your body to metabolise fats and help regulate blood sugar levels. Unmetabolised fats and wavering sugar levels can leave you feeling generally unwell. Your energy will drop and you'll find it onerous to pack up your troubles in your old backpack and smile, smile, smile. Before you read this you may never have heard of neurotransmitters, and now you realise you can't get by without the things, so how do you get the neuros to transmit again? As tough as it sounds, exercise is a natural and effective way for your system to produce endorphins, the body's natural anti-depressants. Some claim that the B complex vitamins, as well as vitamin C, can boost seratonin levels. The pituitary gland in the base of the brain makes seratonin, and it will step up production if you get a good dose of sunlight. If you've been hanging around airports and aeroplanes, visiting Iceland in winter or dropping into Dhaka during Monsoon, then a stay in a sunny beach resort or anywhere else with a lot of sun could help - Death Valley, perhaps. That suicide rates in many countries increase during winter isn't exactly news. A lot of interest has recently been sparked over St Johns Wort, a herb that many people claim may be a natural anti-depressant. Some have even gone so far as to label it 'nature's prozac'. Chromium may also help to regulate your blood sugar levels. Of course, there are many other medical possibilities for your depressive symptoms. If you're really low, forget self diagnosis - go see a doctor. Other possible causes for your blues may include low thyroid function, anaemia (troubles with red blood cells), mononucleosis (troubles with white blood cells), diabetes, adrenal problems or the traveller's scourge, hepatitis. More likely, though, clocking back into suburbia after thriving on the infinite possibilities of life on the road has left you with a case of common, garden-variety reverse culture shock. So what do you do about it? Find yourself a 'real' job and spend your weekends going to auctions? Smoke a lot of dope on your old single bed at your parents' place? Marry the first vaguely stable-looking person who comes along? Or re-pack your bags and hit the road again? Back in August Lou asked the Thorn Tree 'Is there life after backpacking'. See what some fellow travellers say: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/ind/cjtt.htm Other related links: Depression http://www.algology.com/DEPRESSION-1.htm Depression and Beyond http://www.ecnp.nl/html/node58.html Am I blue or just `S.A.D.'? http://www.cybercouch.com/library/seas.dbp.html St John's Wort http://comportone.com/cpo/cpodocs/health/stjohn.htm *** COMPASS Name the place and nearby town described below and the province in which they are located and you could score yourself one of 20 prizes, each containing the new China guidebook and a Cantonese Phrasebook. The most impressive Buddhist cave art in the country is set into desert cliffs above a river valley about 25km southeast of a town that linked this country to the outside world during the Han and Tang dynasties. Some 492 grottoes are still standing. Think your internal compass is working? Email us at: comet@lonelyplanet.com.au And don't forget to include your name and postal address with your answer. Last month's winners correctly identified San Cristobal de Las Casas in Chiapas, Mexico. They were: Gil Anav, Colin Barker, John Drever, Patrick Egger, Susan Finlay, Jennifer Gaynor, Pamela Ginder, Niloufar Glosson, Louise Lander, Michael Lynch, Jimmy McGibney, Suzanna Mak, Marco Maudrich, Jackie Muske, Leif Nadbornik, Werner Nieke, Tomas Orozco, Robert Richert, Dorothea Schelch and Sabrina Vandierendonck. *** TWO CENTS WORTH You crazy, mixed up kids. When we asked you back in August about the ridiculous lies you've fallen for on your travels, we didn't expect them to be so plentiful or so, well, ridiculous. Thanks to all the good sports who wrote in and confessed, and to the sadists who are still chuckling about porkies they told years ago. We thought these few were too good to keep to ourselves. 'Whilst travelling in Northern Thailand, we took elephant taxis to a hill tribe village during a three-day trek. On the way up, I was invited to sit astride the elephant's neck, a la the handlers. This was most comfortable and the breeze generated from the flapping ears was quite pleasant in the humid conditions. My tour leader convinced me, however, that elephants ears were a prime source of the gonorrhoea virus and that I should get checked out as soon as possible. Needless to say I fell in hook, line and sinker.' (Stuart Cadden) 'I was in Tangiers at a restaurant when I asked the waiter where the bathroom was. He said, "May I see your passport, please?" Surprised, I said that I didn't have it with me. He said, "I'm sorry, but it's a very nice bathroom." Then he, along with everyone else at my table, started laughing hysterically.' (Amelie Cherlin) 'While travelling over the equator in Uganda, our guide had us convinced that there was a man at the line of the equator with two buckets and some water. Supposedly when the man stood on the north side of the line and poured the water from one bucket to the other that the water would flow counter clockwise, and if he stood south of the line the water would flow clockwise. It took us a while to realize that it takes many miles of distance before this change would occur.' (Sue Harvey) 'A Parks Canada employee was laying sod. After a whole day of tourists asking what he was doing, and many making rude remarks about "laying" sod, he got fed up. The next time someone asked what he was doing he told them, "Parks Canada policies require that we disturb the wildlife as little as possible. When the lawns need to be mowed, I cut the grass into strips, take the strips to Parks headquarters and mow them there. Now I'm just putting the mowed strips back."' (Jody Culham) 'A hotel waiter in a Varanasi restaurant told an outrageous lie upon delivering eggs to the table. Even after a somewhat lengthy discussion resulted in his clear understanding that it was "eggs up" we had requested, he said: "You know, this is the way chickens lay this season in northern India."' (Nancy H.) 'My sister, who had been to Amsterdam, told me to look out of the plane on the way in, because Schipol airport is in the shape of a swastika - a hangover from the Nazi invasion during WW2.' (Laurel Papworth) *** TOP 5 Ben Ramsden is a brave man. We awarded him a free guide this month for honour in the face of odour. Ben's Top 5 Tips for Eating Durian in Malaysia The Durian is the 'king of fruit' in Malaysia. Anyone who has experienced the disgusting smell (and, to many westerners, the disgusting taste) cannot fail to be fascinated by the Malaysians' love of this fruit. Eating durian is a major social occasion for all the family. My five steps to good durian consumption are: 1. Grab a small stool and sit on the front doorstep or in the front yard (in the shade) with the rest of the family in a small circle. Pile up the durians in the middle (like sacrificial offerings), spend several minutes picking each one up very carefully to avoid being spiked by the prickles, smelling it (yuk!), stroking it, listening to its sound when tapped, commenting on its shape, comparing it with others you had from the same tree in previous years etc. 2. Father (always Father) grabs a large meat cleaver, cuts the stalk off one durian, balances it on one end and carefully makes a small chop into the flesh. Next, the more adventurous use their fingers and others continue with the cleaver to open up the entire fruit. While all of this is going on, a hush of anticipation grips the assembled crowd. At the moment the first flesh appears under the skin, a wave of excitement breaks out. The topic of conversation then moves to the colour of the flesh, it's likely taste and personal preferences with regard to flavour. The guest (often me) is then offered the first piece to taste and compliment the farmer on the quality of his durian and the sheer beauty of the flavour. Everyone then starts to take their own share of fruit. 3. A production line starts, with Father opening the fruit while everyone, including Father, eats. The rule here appears to be to open more fruit than anyone can possibly be expected to eat. With each new durian comes a different colour and taste and hence whole new conversations about how good they are and how they compare with fruits from previous years. 4. As the minutes pass, people wander off, ostensibly with the excuse of fetching tissues and a bag for the stones and skin. I suspect this also acts as a good excuse to escape from the feasting frenzy. The ultimate excuse seems to be to go and wash your hands. This continues until everyone has gone. Cue stage two, the 'recovery period'. 5. Durians are very 'heaty' so you have to have something cooling to neutralise them. What nicer to drink than a glass of saline solution? Once you have had this, which takes a while to get down as you can imagine, a fizzy drink is required. While this takes the salt taste away, the main purpose is evidently to encourage burping. Durian burps are considered to have a rather offensive odour, not surprisingly, so one is encouraged to do it in the company of people with a similar problem before facing the rest of the world. Very practical. The best durians in the world are said to come from Segamat in the southern Malaysian state of Johor. When my girlfriend and I recently announced our engagement, what better way to celebrate than with a durian feast? Send us your Top 5 and if we REALLY like it we'll send you a free LP guide and publish it in an up-coming issue of Comet. Email us at: comet@lonelyplanet.com.au Bog Epilogue Back in June we published Mark H Lewis's Top 4 Worst Toilet Paper Substitutes Offered at Rest Rooms or Gas Stations. Luckily for Mark, he never found a fifth nominee. Luckily for us, Alessandro Bonelli did, and wrote to us about it recently: a stone, to be rinsed afterwards, hanging on a chain to deter thieves at the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, Turkey. According to Alessandro, 'the stone is no more - somebody stole it after all?' *** Q&A Gavin Mooney wrote to Lonely Planet recently asking for information on travelling in eastern Turkey. LP author Pat Yale was in Turkey recently, and wrote an Upgrade on the current edition of the guidebook. According to Pat, most governments continue to advise against travelling in the south-east corner of Turkey except on urgent business. The most troubled area is bordered in the west of Diyarbakir and in the north by Bingol and Dogubeyazit. Many of the roads in the south-east are subject to 5 pm curfews, so you must plan accordingly. Passport checks are ubiquitous. On her most recent research trip she had no problems at all during a month spent in the south-east. Diyarbakir is probably the hardest place to cope with. As a result of the political problems in the area the town has grown enormously and many people have no work. You may feel that the risk of robbery is higher here than in most other Turkish towns. It's also very easy to get lost in the winding streets of the medina, and hard to shake off the crowds of children who follow you. There are no problems with visiting Nemrut Dagi near Kahta. Tours still go from outside Malatya Tourist Office although the road is rough - if you're driving yourself, stick with the route up from Kahta. Sanliurfa seems fine and is undergoing something of a tourism revival, with the brand-new Hotel Edessa and a wonderfully restored Hotel Harran. Look out for the excellent Harran-Nemrut Tours, Koprubasi Caddesi (Tel 414-215 1575), which offers day trips into the desert to see the remote ruins at Sogumater and the more readily accessible ones at Harran. You are not advised to take the road past Hosap Castle to Hakkari, where the two hotels are filled with refugees and construction workers. In any case you won't be allowed to go anywhere there without a police escort. Haven't finished talking Turkey? Check out the rest of the Upgrade: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/upgrades/up-tur.htm Or get some advice from other travellers: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/mea/axtt.htm http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/mea/eitt.htm *** SOAPBOX Care for a slice of camel tendon? Deep fried giant cockroaches, anyone? The folks on the North East Asia branch of the Thorn Tree got together back in April to compare notes on the strangest food they'd ever eaten, and they've been giving us all indigestion ever since. Some of the highlights include: jellyfish in Shanghai, fried scorpions in Bejing, toad placenta in Hong Kong, stewed grasshopper and wasabi ice cream and baby salamander tempura in Japan. Adventure-Girl even confessed to trying broccoli once. Add a delicacy of your own: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/nea/ytt.htm Or start a new topic: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorn/thorn.htm *** YOU SAID IT Some of the latest UNVERIFIED reports & tips from travellers MADAGASCAR Banks and bureaux de change do not accept the 'old' (pre-1996) US$100 bills. The only bills that are accepted are the 'new' ones with a large head of Ben Franklin on them. The reason is that there are many fakes around and many banks/bureaux de change don't have verification machines. This has caused us a lot of trouble and we've had to resort to 'back of the shop' type negotiations at terrible rates. Also, Madagascar does not have an arrangement with Thomas Cook so these travellers' cheques are not accepted. Again, we learnt the hard way! Stephen Nelson, UK (Jul 98) SOLOMON ISLANDS Liapari Island no longer has accommodation. But a new resthouse near Vonunu at Melasde Village has just been opened. The only transport is by canoe from Gizo and it takes approximately one hour, depending on the seas. It's a good idea to radio the local clinic, school or church for bookings. Adrian Jowett, Australia (Aug 98) ZIMBABWE We went to stay with the Madanhire family. The Madanhires live in the Zaka communal lands, about 60km out of Masvingo. This was a really interesting experience, not least because it was one of the few times we managed to have any sustained conversation with African women. We paid only US$6 per person per day for accommodation, meals and activities: you can do as little or as much as you want there. We visited a school, hoed fields, played with farm animals, swam in the dam, cooked meals, helped kids with their homework and ate as much sadza and rape as I'd ever want to in a three day period again. That said, they do provide copious amounts of food, all of it well prepared. At night we played cards, seeing they didn't have electricity. We also went on a hike to a well-preserved set of Bushmen paintings showing impala, kudu and giraffe. The walk passes lots of traditional farms and huts, going through very hilly, attractive landscapes with large cliffs and remnant woodland. The women are very willing to talk about life in Zimbabwe, and they make handicrafts in what time isn't spent cooking, washing, weeding, etc. It's a very different experience of the country. Buses leave Masvingo musika daily for Jichidza mission at 12pm: ask to be let off at Gunguvu school for the Madanhire family. The phone number is now posted in lots of hostels to ring ahead, but there are lots of rooms if you just want to show up. Sean Wayman & Cameron Lindsay, Australia (Aug 98) Take me to your reader. For more travellers' tales: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/letters/postcard.htm *** WHAT'S NEW ON THE LP WEB SITE Destination Bhutan - it's dzongs aplenty in the land that time forgot. Step into Shangri-la at: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/dest/ind/bhu.htm Destination Yemen - if you're after adventure and keen for a chew, head for: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/dest/mea/yem.htm Green Dreams - Stephen Benz leaves more than footprints as he cruises the jungles of Central America and discovers ecotourism isn't all it's cracked up to be. Drop your dreamcatchers at: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/journeys/green/green.htm Eat your way around the Eastern Caribbean, check out China or amble through Australia - new guidebooks, fresh on the shelves at: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/prop/newlist.htm#out Keep your eyes peeled: next month's new releases include new editions Laos and Paris and the first edition of Indonesia's Eastern Islands. Get the full list at: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/prop/newlist.htm#soon You can find Lonely Planet on the Web: http://www.lonelyplanet.com On AOL (keyword: lp) And on Minitel (3615 lonelyplanet) *** TALK 2 US Is Comet the greatest thing to happen to travellers since a broke Swiss soldier decided to hock his knife, or about as useful as a backpack full of wet matches? Let us know how we're doing: talk2us@lonelyplanet.com.au *** SUBSCRIBE & UNSUBSCRIBE Subscribing and unsubscribing to Comet is dead easy. Do it all from your desktop. To subscribe: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/comet To unsubscribe: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/comet/uncomet.htm Don't have web access? Send us an email and we'll do it for you: comet@lonelyplanet.com.au *** Lonely Planet now produces two different newsletters: Comet (monthly via email) and Planet Talk (quarterly via snail mail and bookshops). If you're currently on the mailing list for Lonely Planet's quarterly printed newsletter, Planet Talk, but would prefer to receive Comet instead, let us know: comet@lonelyplanet.com.au *** COPYRIGHT All material in Comet is copyright (c) 1998 Lonely Planet Publications. All rights reserved. Although we have tried to make the information in Comet as accurate as possible, the authors and publishers accept no responsibility for any loss, injury or inconvenience sustained by any person using this newsletter.
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