The main development at Karibuni has been the introduction of some exciting weekend trips – presenting the same Karibuni philosophy of sightseeing and adventure but in smaller bite-size pieces. The weekend trips start on a Friday evening in London, and run through to Sunday evening giving you the most chance to enjoy the adventure and activities on offer.

Many of these weekend trips visit destinations from the full 9-day tour, but are designed for those who don’t have the time to see Britain in one go. The weekends also have a strong activity focus and allow you to try your hand at some great outdoor pursuits – join us for sailing, windsurfing, climbing, horse-riding…. the list goes on!
Some of the trips use hostel accommodation but still feature the all-inclusive idea which delivers great value and removes the need for costly extras.

The next few weekend trips coming up are:-

Lake District Adventure Weekend
Learn to sail, climb and kayak. All-inclusive = £115.
25-27th May (still a few places left)
1st-3rd June (fully booked)

Best of the Shires Weekend
Ancient Wiltshire and Avebury, Cotswolds, Stratford upon Avon and punting in Oxford.All-inclusive = £80
15-17th June

New Forest Adventure Weekend
Mountain biking, coastal walk and learn to windsurf. All inclusive = £100
22-24th June

York and Sherwood Tour
Visit York, the Moors, Whitby and Sherwood Forest. Hostel trip = £85
29th June – 1st July

The situation with the foot and mouth disease is finally looking brighter, and so we hope to be able to bring you more weekends shortly – these will cover some walking and trekking trips as well as horse-trekking. Please keep looking at the website for the latest developments and destinations on offer.
Hopefully coming soon – Walking in Snowdonia, Cornwall and Minack Theatre, Canoeing on the River Wye, and maybe coasteering in Wales.

For further information on all weekend trips visit the weekends page on the website or drop us an email to info@karibuni.co.uk

Also – if you are interested in a luxury day out at the Henley Royal Regatta (4/5th July) please email info@karibuni.co.uk for more details– a champers, full-picnic, affair at one of the events of the social calendar.

Crop circles
As most visitors find out – Britain can be a strange place, and has its fair share of mysteries. One classic example of this must be the phenomena of crop circles. These range from simple circles to the most intricate of designs and have been appearing in the fields for the last twenty years or so – with a strong concentration in the Downs of Wiltshire and around Avebury. Although they have been much studied and debated, nobody really has a definitive answer to what – or who- created them.
Join us to explore some of these little “quirks” and mysteries that makes Britain so interesting - the Karibuni 9-day tour and the “Best of the Shires” weekend spend a night in the Vale of Pewsey at a pub which has now become the unofficial centre of the “crop circle” phenomena in Britain. The Barge Inn has a whole room dedicated to the mesmerising shapes known as “agriglyphs”, and conversations at the bar are often about the strange discoveries in the cornfields.
In 1996 a team of German ufologists camped out with infra-red cameras, sound detectors and night vision glasses – but they failed to see what, on day 5 of their vigil, built the vast crop circle just across from them near Alton Barnes. Some circles are undoubtedly the work of hoaxers, but many more do not fit with this explanation – how can the detailed deigns be built in the space of a few hours and with no sign of entry or exit, and without noise or the benefit of aerial views. A detailed article considers many of the tales, looks at the science and still concludes that we don’t know what makes them – a good read covering the theories and counter-theories of this mysterious topic. Read the article

The shapes and designs are often complex with multiple circles, intricate geometry and very crisp and exact production – a great website from Avebury has details of all the recent year’s patterns. Click here to view last years crop circle which was within metres of the Barge Inn pub – and also search through great photos of all the circles from the last few years.

This mystery will run and run for sure, and lets hope that the summer of 2001 brings more intrigue to the crop-circle communities of Wiltshire and some similarly spectacular designs for us to look at this summer.

Cinque Terre
What do you look for in a weekend break? If the answer is sun, great local food, interesting villages, friendly people and some walking then a hidden stretch of Italian coastline could be the answer.
Nestling in the stunning Ligurian coastline are five villages which until recently had no roads to link them – only the ancient footpaths or “sentieri”. The villages known as the “Cinque Terre” are Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiorre, and they all have a history strongly linked to the sea – even though in Manarola they have to lower the boats down 90 feet of rock, to the clear blue sea. Each village has its own character and style – whether it be architecture, history, food or people yet they all share the magnificent scenery of steep vineyards, olive groves and colour-washed houses. Click here for a map of the region and tourist information website.
Access roads have only recently encroached on the villages, and there is a dense network of paths which link the villages – some following the rugged coastline whilst others run inland scaling the forested ridge with views all the way to Corsica on a good day. The most famous stretch of path is know as “Via Dell Amore” or Lovers Walk from Manarola to Riomaggiorre, where lovers have scratched their messages into the rock – but don’t expect any great English ones other than “Winston was here!”
The total distance between all the villages is only about 13 miles although there are plenty of diversions and loops to keep you amused as well as the chance to travel by boat from village to village. Also a local train service connects the villages via tunnels.

May and June are good months to visit the region before it gets too hot, and while the vegetation is lush and the wild flowers in bloom. Getting to the region is easy with Ryanair flying to both Genoa (to the north) and Pisa (to the south) with some very cheap fares. From Genoa you can catch a train (make sure it’s a local train), which will take you to the Cinque Terre region, and each of the villages.
Check out one travellers description of the region and also arm yourself with the Lonely Planet "Walking in Italy" book and Liguria is yours for the taking.

Cheap flights – maybe even free flights
Despite it being the start of the summer season, there are still some great bargains to be had on the internet with cheap flights. Looking for the Cinque Terre region I found midweek flights to Genoa with Ryanair for just £7.50 each way – yes that’s right you could fly to Genoa and back for the price of a meal with wine!

Also this week, Ryan Air announced that they intend to go one step further in a year or so and actually offer free flights. Yep – on selected flights there will be tickets with NO charge. The explanation for this bold move, is that they intend to earn their revenue in other ways with sales of merchandising, refreshments, services etc. but as someone whose main requirement on a short flight is a book and bottle of water – I am a bit sceptical about how they would get their money from me! However, it’s an exciting idea and bound to cause some ripples throughout the air industry which may ultimately mean cheaper flights for customers.

Are you “gadget” mad?
If so then the new Petzl head torches are for you.
If you have ever used a head torch, then I am sure you will agree with how useful they can be – using 2 hands to do anything in the dark is always an advantage - whether it be exploring temples, night-trekking or just finding the toilet in a hostel. This gadget has now been revamped with the introduction of LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) which last up to 20 times longer and are extremely light. The LEDs don’t waste energy creating heat as conventional bulbs do and can last for ages off the 3xAAA batteries. They cost about the same as the conventional head torches (about £25) and look set to be a winner.

Global Quickies
A few quick snippets of news from around the world…..

- Water pistols have been banned in Cambodia after a spate of jealous love rivals took to filling them with acid and exacting their revenge.
- 4 Polish circus performers chose a Russian circus over a British one as they feared starvation because of foot and mouth
- Police in Delhi have been given orders to shoot on sight after the mysterious Phantom Monkey Man caused the death of 2 people who panicked after seeing the strange half-man, half-monkey figure with claws of metal. Fear has spread quickly, fuelled by frequent power-cuts and half-sightings – and led to the beating of a 4ft Hindu mystic who was performing rituals in a forest near Noida. The creature is still at large in Delhi.

…and a useful Travel Tip from Asef, in Turkey

“When anywhere in the Indian subcontinent, try to find out if any large festivals or general strikes are planned. Then avoid making any travel plans on those days!
I have had the misfortune of travelling by train when a major religious festival ended. The government declared free travel for the participants, who promptly stopped all travelling trains and clambered aboard, taking all available space and more besides”


That’s all for this time….I hope that you found it an interesting read and that you find the weekends a useful complement to the main 9-day tour. It really has never been easier to get out and experience Britain.


Many thanks, and happy travels

Paul