 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
EXCESS BAGGAGE
|
 |
|
 |
MISSED A PROGRAMME?
Go to the Listen Again page |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
 Listen to Excess Baggage for
01 July听2006听
COLLECTING COUNTRIES听
Patrick Reilly is a country bagger.听 He shares his tales of the practicalities and pitfalls of visiting as many countries as possible, each with a name starting with one of the letters of the English alphabet.听 His aim is to complete his Alphabet of Countries .
YOUTH HOSTELS
The Youth Hostel Association was started in 1909 by Richard Schirrman, a German teacher, in order to help the urban German youth have access to and enjoy the country side. The England and Wales Association was founded from walking and cycling groups shortly after.听 By becoming a member people got access to a network of hostels the association had set up. Accommodation was basic and cheap.
In the thirties and fifties there were hundreds of hostels around the country. There are currently 227 hostels and 53 camping barns and in the last few years a number of changes have been introduced to the way the YHA runs its hostels, including the closing of some 32 hostels over the next 3 years.
Sandi Toksvig is joined by Caroline Pare, Norman Stevenson and Anna Chapman three hostels enthusiasts to discuss how the move will affect the future of youth hostels.
Presented by Sandi Toksvig
Photo: , Wales
This week's guests:
听started his travels about 10 years ago and has so far visited 64 countries. What counts as a visit for Patrick is staying at least one night in a place or at least visiting something there.听 Flying over it, transiting through airports or stations, just putting your foot over the border doesn't count.听 After a while Patrick decided to try to get all the countries beginning with all the letters of the alphabet and has extended this idea to include the alphabet of capital cities.
Caroline Pare is a radio and TV freelancer.听 Caroline used to go youth hostelling in her youth. A couple of years ago she rediscovered it and this weekend she is visiting the Cambrian Mountains in central Wales with friends for her birthday and will be staying at Tyncornel, one of three bunkhouse hostels with no permanent warden in the centre of Wales.听 Electricity has recently been introduced to Tyncornel, bringing an end to years of gas powered heating, lighting and showering.听 But bunkhouse hostels are very remote and are on a list of about 30 hostels that the听 is planning to close.
The Trust was set up in May 2006 to save the three unique youth hostels in the Elenydd
Norman Stevenson began hostelling when he was a schoolboy.听 His time in the scouts gave him his first experiences of staying in hostels.听 He continued when he was teenager. This August he is taking some 15 members of his family, aged 11 upwards, to walk the Great Glen Way in Scotland from Fort William to Inverness and they'll stay in a succession of hostels.听
Anna Chapman is the Regional Manager for Wales Youth Hostels AssociationThe 大象传媒 cannot be held responsible for
the content of external sites |
|
|
|
|
| PRESENTER BIOGRAPHIES |
|
|
|
|
 Sandi Toksvig:
The daughter of a foreign correspondent, Sandi has been travelling all her life more info |
|
|
John McCarthy is a widely travelled journalist and presenter with a particular interest in the Middle East.
|
|
|
|
|
