Did you know that beekeeping has been promoted as a low cost, sustainable and environmentally friendly activity to help lift people in Southern Africa out of poverty? Some of the reasons include the fact that beekeeping can be undertaken even with a small landholding on poorly tillable land; it is low cost and sustainable; and the product is reliable and valuable.

Become a beekeeper! Buy a bumblebee for $7!

Did you know that mermaids sightings have been reported in South Africa? In fact, these sightings are said to occur every few years in the most unusual of places: the Karoo, a region of semi-desert more than 100 kilometres from the coast!

Buy your Mermaid Traveller now for $9! http://www.littletravellers.net/specialty-travellers

“To mark World AIDS Day, Little Travellers and Medi peace are holding three simultaneous rock concerts in Seoul tomorrow to spread awareness about the illness.

Last year saw a similar event. More than 1,000 people attended, raising 12 million won ($10,000) for the Little Travellers organization.”

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2009/12/04/200912040005.asp

http://theseoultimes.com/ST/?url=/ST/db/read.php?idx=9115

Celebrate family with this Mama & Baby Traveller pair. This is a great gift for the women in your life – mothers, gogos (grandmothers), wives, aunts, sisters, daughters, nieces and friends.

Purchase it online here: http://www.littletravellers.net/specialty-travellers

Did you know that South Africa is the world’s leading gold producer?  It is also the leading producer of platinum, manganese, titanium, chrome, zirconium and vanadium. In fact, in 2000 mineral resources accounted for 47% of South Africa’s exported goods, and the mining industry is South Africa’s biggest employer.

Johannesburg – South Africa’s biggest city – has historically been the epicentre of the gold mining industry, and men from across the country including rural areas in KwaZulu-Natal, where the Little Travellers are made, moved here to work in the mining industry. Johannesburg is known in Zulu as “eGoli”, meaning “The Place of Gold”.

Buy your Mineworker Little Traveller today! They cost $7 each.

http://www.littletravellers.net/specialty-travellers

Specialty Travellers are limited edition Little Travellers that have been specially designed and created by the crafters of the Hillcrest AIDS Centre. They are a celebration of ingenuity and incredible skill. When a crafter creates a new design for a Specialty Traveller, they get the rights to all future orders for that particular design – thus rewarding creativity and innovation. Specialty Travellers cost a bit more than regular Little Travellers because of the added amount of time and work that goes into creating them.

Remember, no two Little Travellers are alike, so the one that you receive will not be identical to the photos you see. Little Travellers are as unique as the artists who make them!

Our first: The Soccer Player

Hobbies: Playing “football”

Fun Facts: South Africans love playing soccer, and they also love having guests to their beautiful country. This is why it is so exciting that the 2010 FIFA World Cup is in South Africa next June & July!

Did you know that South Africa’s national men’s football team is nicknamed “Bafana Bafana”, which is Zulu for “The Boys, The Boys”? The women’s team is called “Banyana, Banyana”, meaning – you guessed it – “The Girls, The Girls”.

The crafters who make Little Travellers dolls were asked to create a 4 metre beaded map of Africa for one of the soccer stadiums at the World Cup! What an amazing opportunity!

If you can’t make it to the games in 2010, having the first soccer Speciality Traveller is definitely a great way to be involved in the fun!  This Specialty Traveller is a great gift for all sports fans.

Soccer Player Travellers are $8 each. Collect your team now at http://www.littletravellers.net/specialty-travellers

And the next: The Working Girl

In Zulu culture, women are responsible for carrying out many domestic chores, including collecting firewood and water, cooking, cleaning, raising the children and looking after the sick or elderly. Because many homes lack electricity or running water, women often must walk many kilometres to a forest for firewood, or a well for water. This can be very time consuming, and physically gruelling.

It is very common in South Africa to see women walking in town or along the highway with bundles of wood, baskets or buckets balanced on top of on their heads.

Little Travellers Fun Fact: There is over 100 beaders participating in making Little Travellers! That means that more than 100 families are being supported by the project.

Working Lady Travellers cost $7 each. Collect yours at: http://www.littletravellers.net/specialty-travellers

Where: Lulu’s Restaurant, 956 St. Mary’s Road.

Check out their website for more information and for parking: www.luluswpg.com

When: Monday, October 19th 7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.

What: Drop in anytime.

**Around 8:00 there will be a short volunteer presentation to help you
understand the history and background of Little Travellers, how the
organization works and what our success to date has been. At 8:30 p.m.
you can relax and enjoy half an hour of our special musical
entertainment guests.

Enjoy delicious ‘Tastes of South Africa’ complimentary finger food
including beef samosa, tuna frikkadels and spinach dhaltjie.

Why?

Because of the hard work and time that you have contributed to Little
Travellers!

Last year we sent over $100,000 to South Africa and in the past five
years we’ve sent over $250,000. That is incredible and is due to one
thing – selling dolls. We couldn’t sell dolls without you and we want
you to know how much we appreciate the time and energy, big or small,
that you’ve contributed. There are two types of people in the world -
those who talk about doing something and those that do it. Thank you
for being a doer.

RSVP by October 16th: Stevi Golden-Plotnik (stevi@littletravellers.net)

Moksha Yoga Winnipeg is located at 7-2 Donald St. in Winnipeg, Manitoba, or online at www.mokshayogawinnipeg.com. Their ‘karma’ yoga takes place every Wednesday and Friday evenings.

To learn more about the Little Travellers HIV/AIDS Initiative and for more fundraising ideas to help South Africans affected by HIV, please visit www.littletravellers.net.

Bake-Off!

The first event, a Little Travellers Bake-Off will be held Sunday, May 18 at Wien Cake House in Itaewon. Bakers who enter their delicacies stand a chance to win some awesome prizes. Cakes, muffins, pies, cookies or anything sweet and baked are welcome. For those who prefer to indulge: pay 10,000W at the door, receive your Little Traveller and get a chance to sample the desserts and vote for your favourite dish. Doors open at 3 o’clock.

Interested bakers should fill out the entry form on our webpage. Also, please read the rules and guidelines for the contest, also available on our website.

If there are any questions or request in regards to the entry-form or rules please contact: korea@littletravellers.net or phone 010-8694-6561 (English assistance) or 011-9029-3094 (Korean assistance).

A Common Cause!

May 31^st will see the Little Travellers largest event to date as it teams up with KHAP (Korea HIV AIDS Prevention Center) for “A Common Cause”. The Wolfhound, Rocky Mountain Tavern, and B One will host this special night. Cover will not be in effect, though patrons who pay 10,000 won at the door will receive their very own Little Traveller, a raffle ticket, and drink discounts at ALL the bars ALL night! An abundance of sweet raffle prizes will be up for grabs at each location. As for bang for your buck, The Wolfhound and Rocky Mountain Tavern will offer 5000 won house doubles, with B One selling Samubuca, Tequila, Jagermeister, and Jack for 3000 won to those sporting their Little Travellers. But wait, there’s so much more. Korea’s biggest youtube celebrities, EV Boyz will perform “Kickin it in Gumcheon” alongside their newest single “A E I love u”, at both The Wolfhound and Rocky Mountain. RMT will also host The Bellows in their last night on stage in Korea. Of course, DJ’s at B One will entertain the masses that dance the night away. To increase awareness of the AIDS situation in Korea, KHAP will supply free condoms and information leaflets.

Our Sponsors:

Thank you to The Wolfhound, Rocky Mountain Tavern, Mikes and Pita Time for sponsoring these events!

Anyone who has faced the formidable task of selecting a Little Traveller amongst dozens of his or her  may be able to sympathize with the judging panel’s task of choosing a winning photo from the amazing entries we received for our first ever Little Traveller Photo Contest.

Since launching our first ever Little Travellers Photo Contest in July, we’ve had photos pouring in of the very pettite voyageurs taking in sights of every corner of the globe!

Breathtaking photos were sent in of LT’s on the white salt-flats of Bolivia, the redwood forests of California, and the barren-yet-beautiful tundra of Nunavut (Canada); we received photos of LT’s on safari in South Africa, admiring ancient and modern architecture in Asia, sailing on the Indian Ocean off Mozambique, befriending the storied blue-footed boobies in the Galapagos, and experiencing the marvels of Europe. 

Amongst all of the talented and lovely photos that we received, however, there were three photos that the judges deemed were extraordinarily special.

 And so, the winners of the first ever Little Travellers Photo Contest are…

1) Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada – by Raphael Nepomuceno

2) Parliament Hill, Ottawa, Canada – by Albert Wisco

3) Na Pali coastline, Hawaii – by Sheldon Baines

Thank you to everyone who participated for taking your Little Travellers on a trip and for sharing your photos with us!  The number of entries we received was really encouraging, and the quality of the photos astounding!  We are so glad that so many Little Travellers are seeing the world and sharing their stories of unity, hope and courage in the face of harship and suffering. 

To see all the entries that we received visit our gallery at http://www.littletravellers.net/your-photos.  Please check back soon, as this was so much fun that we are bound to do it again soon!