Cambodia

Gosh! I can't believe it's almost July.  The sun is shining and it's going to be a beautiful day.

So what's been going on in the world of Ethical Adventures?  One happy customer is back from a unique experience in Cambodia.  Thanks to our connections with Duncan at Street Kids Rescue, we were able to link her up to visit a couple of orphanages.  It was a chance to see what their world is like and to donate some much needed things that we take for granted.  Leading a very busy life, she wanted some time to relax so she ended her trip with a few days of luxury in one of the beautiful boutique hotels on the coast.  Photos to follow...

Mid year resolution - blog more!

2010 and beyond

Hi!  What an amazing year it's been.  This time last year I was just about to embark on a trip of a lifetime.  Now I am writing from the comfort of our little house in Tunbridge Wells with a wealth of experiences rolling around in my head - from the humble Burmese to the exuberant yet equally as hospitable Americans, not forgetting the 'manicness' of Ghana and the wildness of New Zealand.

All this experience as well as various meetings and discussions with people has helped to shape our thoughts on what kind of 'Ethical Adventure' we can offer.  This will continue to change as our business develops, but at this stage, I call on all would be 'guinea pigs' that would like us to explore the World to find you an 'Ethical Adventure'.

Thanks for listening and here's to a great 2011.

Thoughts on Burma

I have copied the statement from Tourism Concern which we fully support.  In view of these changes, we are able to arrange private tours but we won't be arranging any group tours.  We would like to keep a low profile so that the people of Burma are supported by our efforts as much as possible, as opposed to the junta that continues to reign.

Extract from Tourism Concern's website:
On 4th November 2010, the National League for Democracy (NLD), Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s political party, announced that the full boycott of tourism to Burma should be lifted, and that those wishing to visit Burma in solidarity with the people - either as individuals or in small groups - are now welcome. Following this announcement and having taken guidance from the Burma Campaign UK, with whom Tourism Concern has worked since 1995, we have decided to also lift our call for a full tourism boycott to the country.

However, in line with the NLD recommendation, Tourism Concern continues to support a boycott on package tours and other large tourism operations, such as cruise ships, which are likely to accrue significant revenue to the Burmese junta. In a recent interview with The Times, NLD party leader U Win Tin warned that: “To have a very big cruise ship with hundreds of tourists coming in – that’s a lot of money for the regime, and so we don’t like such big business.”

“Tourism Concern calls on anyone visiting the country to recognise that it is not yet on the path to democratic reform and that people are not free to speak their stories”, says Tricia Barnett, director of Tourism Concern. “The NLD would like visitors to come in solidarity. We ask that people travel independently and ensure that they stay in small, locally owned accommodation, using only independent guides”.

In 2008, Tourism Concern produced a briefing listing hotels and resorts with known links to Burma’s military regime. These hotels are listed under the wider ban on doing business with the military junta established by the European Union.

Website up and running

Have a look at www.ethicaladventures.co.uk and let us know what you think.

Website coming soon etc.

It's not going to be the flashiest site in the world, but it'll give a rough idea of what we're all about.  Feel free to make any comments...

Tomorrow I'm going to see Ray Quarcoo, philanthropist and founder of 'The Bridge Foundation' - a charity which is dedicated to the cause of improving the social and economic well being of deprived and needy communities and individuals.  I'll be looking at ways we can get people involved with them.

Coming up in the next blog will be thoughts on the Burma situation.

A typical day in North Eastern Ghana

WARNING! This was written as part of a research trip to plan a 'volontour' to Ghana, which wouldn't involve getting on the back of a bike in the pitch black (unless you really want to...), or sitting in a tro tro for that matter.

What an adventurous day it's been..... rushing around at 5am hastened by the growl of Eric's motorbike, off I go in to the dark with my rucksack and a rather cumbersome new mat on the back of it to the bus station.  The rain hammered down almost all night - the evidence of its work shows up all too soon with the 1st lorry stuck - thank goodness for motorbikes!  Skirting around puddles and potholes we make it to a quickly filling tro tro (A tro tro is something like a VW transporter and a ford transit chopped in half and welded in some sort of fashion with extra seats and no seat belts)

So crammed with 15 people, 1 goat and quite a few yams, off we go.  Bumpety bump, clink clank, splish splash and a bit too much switching from one side of the road to the other for one woman who is now shouting at the driver.  All is quickly forgotten on sight of a yam truck and a minibus both stuck in the mud with a queue of tro tros forming on either side of the stuck vehicles.

2 or 3 hours later after much heave hoeing, digging and advice giving by passengers (many of which now covered head to toe in a very dubious smelling mud), we were on our way again.

It is now about midday... and I'm meant to be meeting Nelson in HoHoe and we're still a good few hours away and there's no phone reception.  

To be continued...


Hooray for HoHoe and normal roads again and another breath taking experience on the back of a bike.  It was surprisingly spectacular scenery with the mountains rising up in front of us.  On arrival at Wli falls we trekked through jungle until we were met with the roar of water - West Africa's highest waterfall.  With shouts from locals to keep to the right (people have been sucked through to the cave of no return by going too far left), I waded against the lashings of the waterfall trying to get as close as possible to the wall... but all too soon it's time to go before it gets dark.

The next morning I made my way back to Accra and was lucky enough to meet with Ray Quarcoo, President of the Ghana Amateur Boxing Federation and thoroughly nice chap.  Through his charity 'The Bridge Foundation' (dedicated to the cause of improving the social and economic well being of deprived and needy communities and individuals) I am hoping to be able to offer another volunteering opportunity to help develop the all round skills of potential boxers - it's not just about how well you box, they want to develop the person as a whole.