That's The Badger

Choosing a holiday destination is always a difficult task. There are so many different things to think about nowadays – Do they have a decent travel network? What are the local beaches like? Does the place have a decent nightlife? And is there any chance of political or social upheaval throughout the country, which could potentially result in a revolution or uprising?

Obviously the 4th question isn’t normally something you tend to consider when flicking through the travel agent brochures, however after the events in Egypt and Libya, researching into the socio-political stability of your holiday destination is now more important than ever.

Egypt – Safe to travel?

The kingdom of the Pharaohs is, and always will be, a popular tourist attraction. Every year millions of tourists and holiday makers fly into Egypt, hoping to take a cruise up the Nile, or to visit any number of Egypt’s important historical sites, such as the temple at Luxor, or the pyramids.

The recent disturbances which resulted in the end of President Mubarak’s 30 year reign caused a number of problems for Egypt’s extensive tourism industry. Presently there is a nationwide curfew in effect in Egypt, which currently extends from 00:00 – 06:00. However, according to the Foreign Office the curfew is not in effect around the Red Sea area or Luxor, meaning that the majority of tourists are not affected by the restrictions.

In addition to the curfew a number of disturbances on the 8th and 9th of March occurred in Cairo and Alexandria. With the political situation in Egypt still uncertain, the Foreign Office is continuing to urge caution and keep a close eye on news and radio reports, as well as avoiding large gatherings and demonstrations, especially those held on Fridays.

With the military now firmly in charge it appears that Egypt is once again getting back on track. Yesterday the Interior Minister dissolved the State Security Investigation Service, a notorious tool used to oppress the population and allegedly tied to hundreds of human rights abuses.

Travel

The majority of carriers and services have continued to operate as normal, despite the uncertainty. Travel is currently unrestricted, unless you want to cross into certain border regions, such as the Sudan or Gaza.

If you are thinking of taking a quick break to Egypt then you may to want to consider looking into the UAE carrier Etihad. The airline is currently running a 25% discount on flights for those enrolled in their Etihad Guest programme. Etihad currently runs a number of services to Egypt, including routes to Abu Dhabi from Cairo and services from Chicago and Dubai, as well as a number of other routes to Alexandria.

This week the Cricket World Cup, co-hosted on the Indian sub-continent between India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, triumphantly kicked off to the sound of Bryan Adams and a thousand cricket fanatics.

This time round the competition has been somewhat condensed compared to the 2007 World Cup format held in the West Indies. The number of groups has been halved to two and the controversial Super-Eight system has been removed in favour of a more traditional knockout stage, followed by quarter and then semi-finals.

All in all 14 teams will participate in the competition. Group A consists of New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Australia, Zimbabwe, Canada, Kenya and Pakistan. Group B consists of India, Bangladesh, South Africa, West Indies, England, Netherlands and Ireland.

Thousands of cricket fans from around the world have already picked up flights to India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in anticipation of the contest; unfortunately for England and India supporters thousands of followers were forced to change travel plans and flights, after one of the most awaited fixtures, that of India versus England, was transferred away from the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata, due to concerns over the grounds readiness.

The competition is of course already underway and as I write England are currently bumbling along chasing a Dutch total of 292, having once again made life difficult for themselves with a mix of erratic bowling and poor fielding. Despite England’s difficulties hosts India produced an impressive display on the first day by scoring 370-4, beating co-host Bangladesh by 87 runs; Sri Lanka similarly looked in fine form as did Australia.

The competition continues with matches held virtually daily and concludes in Mumbai on the 2nd of April.

Cycling can be a fairly dangerous activity, especially if you live and work in bustling city such as London. Commuting to work can be fraught with peril; riders often have to negotiate their way past buses, taxis and the occasional dopey pedestrian.

According to solicitors Access Legal the total number of fatalities in 2009 dropped to 104 last year. However, according to the legal firm there were 2,606 serious cycling injuries in 2009, making a total of 17,064 reported casualties. Cyclists appear to be the only road user group to see an increase in casualties, an overall increase of 6%.

The rise in casualties has also led to an increase in cycle accident claims. According to the legal firm the two most common contributory factors for cycle accidents are 1) A failure to look properly, otherwise known as SMIDSY (Sorry mate I didn’t see you) and 2) Drivers passing to close to cyclists when overtaking.

One cyclist, Ben Porter from London, experienced so many problems riding through town that he decided to buy a helmet camera and film his journey around London. After one particularly nasty case of road rage involving a white van and an irate driver, Ben decided to push through a complaint, the result of which saw the driver fined £300 and receive a 5 point penalty.

It seems that a number of other London cyclists have also started wearing helmet cameras; most of the footage appears to be ending up on the Metropolitan Police’s RoadSafeLondon website, resulting in a number of convictions. According to DCI Nick Chalmers: “The greater the number of cameras covering London’s roads the more likely we are to secure a conviction for what are very serious offences. I think head-cams will help produce more considerate driving but video footage does not always show the full picture and the police will only prosecute if the evidence is clear.”

Remember motorists – big brother is watching you, and now he has wheels, breaks and 21 gears…

A tad to extreme...