I used to get paid to walk up Mount Sinai in the middle of the night to watch the sun rise up over the mountains. It explains why I’ve notched up a fair few trips to the top. The fact I still continue to take the camel path seems to perplex some of my friends, [...]
Archive | February, 2012
How to strategically overload a 150cc delivery bike
As far as we’ve been going, there have been two things that’ve stayed pretty universal. Firstly, the reaction to what we plan to achieve. The answer to the simple question, “where are you going?” is always met with the same reaction: disbelief. Secondly, it’s what follows this reaction, another question. “On this?!?” And the answer [...]
From the Guide’s Seat – Flooding Rivers and Flipping Rafts
Scenario #1: I could hear that familiar yet ominous thundering noise in the distance. It was the sound that gave me butterflies in my stomach every day, the sound that forced me out of my blissful, day-dreamy state on the calm water and into the present moment: the sound of white water approaching.
The Smell of Smouldering Fires – the future of Madagascar’s Spiny Forest
My very first impression of Madagascar was the smell of smouldering fires. I was more than ten miles out to sea in a 35ft catamaran, having just caught a ride across the Mozambique Channel with two fellow South Africans, when a musty aroma like wet ash permeated the fresh sea air. It was the first [...]
The Best of Moroccan Cuisine: an Introduction
If you are in the process of planning a vacation to Morocco, then it is important to have your finger on the pulse of the best restaurants and haute cuisine in Marrakech, Fes (a UNESCO World Heritage site) and Essaouira. Eating in Morocco is an experience that is second to none when travellers pair their choice of [...]
Mapungubwe belongs to all of us
Mapungubwe Belongs to all of Us from Green Renaissance. Abraham Ramonwana, head guide at Tuli Safari Lodge says: “if a mine develops in South Africa, it’s also going to affect Botswana and Zimbabwe”. The authorisation given to an Australian company called Coal of Africa Limited (CoAL) to construct an open-cast coal mine, called the Vele [...]
Three Bean and Tomato Soup
You’ll Need: 1 onion, roughly chopped a couple of cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced a good dollop of olive oil ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper ½ teaspoon Hungarian paprika 2 tins good quality whole peeled tomatoes 8 ripe tomatoes, quartered (skin and all) 1 tin chickpeas 1 tin sugar beans 1 tin butter beans [...]
A Nile crocodile in the ocean?
I was up in Sodwana Bay when we heard that a nile crocodile had been spotted in the surf. Imagine catching a wave and and coming across one of these guys in the barrel.
Expedition Disa – The pride of Table Mountain
We had been scrambling, hauling and puffing our way up the steep gulley for more than an hour, convinced we were on a wild goose chase – or rather a wild disa chase.
I do Africa!
I guess in order to start describing our plan, one must start at the beginning, which is precisely why we decided to start at the end… Morocco! Also known as المملكة المغربية or Al-Mamlaka al-Maghribiyya. The land of couscous and tajine, mosques, djellaba’s and history. Or maybe Egypt, Sierra Leone even possibly Ghana. The truth is, we have no [...]
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Sunburn: Casablanca to Joburg!
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Hope for the Future: a scary split-up and the completion of stage one
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Stuck in the Okavango Delta in a mini-skirt
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Mountain gorilla habitat under siege in DR Congo
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Hope for the Future: dramatic scenery and ‘the day with the sunrise’
