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Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Cape Town (South Africa) - The surprise packet

CAPE TOWN (South Africa)
12 December  - 13 December 2017

South Africa is not Argentina, but it didn't have to be.


South Africa did however become our surprise packet.

As a completely unlikely occurrence, a destination conjured up out of inspired inquisitiveness, we were fortunate enough to discover a remarkable country. A place with so much beauty, with an abundance of everything you could possibly want. I can only imagine that it's due to its geographic isolation that this country is not being raved about in the manner that I believe it should.

Likewise, Cape Town has it in spades. A city of stunning beauty, it engages you from the get go. There's so much here to like, so many ways that you can take part in what the city has to offer, from the outdoors, to nightlife, cultural attractions, sporting pursuits, etc. The city is captivating, dynamic and engaging.

Thank you Cape Town, thank you South Africa, we won't forget you in a hurry.

Monday, December 11, 2017

Mbabne (Eswatini, formerly Swaziland) - We've got you surrounded

MBABNE (Eswatini, formerly Swaziland)
11 December - 12 December 2017

When we arrived in Eswatini it was known as Swaziland, so in actual fact, we went to Swaziland. Why you ask?

Because we could!

A 3.5hr drive east of Johannesburg and you arrive at the frontier of a relatively unknown landlocked country, Eswatini. Being a British protectorate for a number of years, it regained its independence in 1968.  Knowing absolutely nothing about the country we thought that we might as well go find out a little bit about it on our own.

Literally the only photo we took of Mbabne - Eswatini 
This was taken near our hotel, so practically this photo is meaningless.


As a city, in all honesty, Mbabne is highly unremarkable. With a population just under 95,000 it would rank 20th on the list of largest cities in Australia, if of course it could be included on that list, but hey, anything can happen these days. With Australia in its 5th year in Eurovision and Japan constantly playing in the Copa America, why can't we adopt little Mbabne as our very own!? If we did it would nicelty sit between Bendigo (97,000) and Albury-Wadonga (91,000). Something to think about (or not).

Sitting on the Mbabne river and supported by the Mdzimba mountains, what Mbabne lacks in lustre and spark it kind of makes up for in aesthetic beauty. The mountains surrounding the town are quite appealing and I could easily imagine undertaking a few hikes in the area, with a bit more time to spare of course.

Still, Mbabne in Eswatini, whilst you're nothing more than an also-ran in the endless list of cities and towns on this planet, you are in fact a capital city, and that in itself can distinguish you into an elite group. Not even New York, Sydney or Rio de Janeiro can claim that.


Sunday, December 10, 2017

Johannesburg (South Africa) - Administrative purposes

JOHANNESBURG (South Africa)
10 December - 11 December 2017

Back in Johannesburg for the night and not a lot to write home about other than another visit to Emperor's Palace Casino as that's where we located a Hooter's in Johannesburg. Why Hooter's? Well, Inga likes the curly fries there and I like their Cadillac margaritas, so why not!?

Wednesday, December 6, 2017

Zanzibar (Tanzania) - Mercury Rising

STONE TOWN - ZANZIBAR (Tanzania)
06 December - 10 December 2017



How cool a name is Zanzibar!? How cool a name for a country would that have been? Actually, even when it became part of the United Republic of Tanganyika, it was still pretty cool sounding. It was one of those places on my global map that would always jump out at me as the mysterious named conjured up images of something exotic & unreachable.
Also, for those that aren’t aware of their rock history, Freddie Bulsara was born here in 1946, part of the baby boomer era, and if that name is still confusing you then just have a look at Live Aide from 1985 and spot the front man for Queen, that’ll give you some sort of clue as to the most well known export from the Sultanate of Zanzibar.


On the tarmac in Dar es Salaam - Tanzania
We were told that we couldn't bring our drinks onto the plane.
So we asked security to take our photo whilst we finished them - it was a WIN-WIN

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania
In the middle of an afternoon downpour 

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania


Considering the proximity for Johannesburg the idea of making it to Zanzibar was influenced primarily by dreams of turquoise waters, exotic heritage mix, spice trading and all things Stone Town related, which to me felt akin to being a version of Fez or Marrakech on the Indian Ocean.

In part that what Zanzibar felt like when we arrived. Certainly a tropical feel, but then you get hit instantly by the obvious mix of cultures, African, Arabic, Indian and a dash of European. That type of fusion always makes for a fascinating and engaging environment, one where the ebbs and flows of dominant cultures can be seen in the architecture, culinary offerings and social etiquette.


Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania
We had this guy make us up a painting exactly like that - it now has pride of place in the Inga's mum's living room

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

To me, more than anything, I had the feel that Stone Town was more Arabic than anything else, although my readings stipulate Swahili, which is a unique mix of Arab, Persian, Indian and European elements.  Still, when you walk through the narrow alleyways of the centre of Stone Town, lined with shops, bazaars, mosques and boutique hotels, I can’t help but thing of Morocco, which in itself is a mixture of Berber & Arabic.

The name of the town itself comes from the ubiquitous use of coral stone as the main construction material, which gives the town a characteristic, reddish warm colour. For me, both the warmth and the entanglement of passage ways/alleyways it what makes this a place of mystery and discovery. For me there feels like there’s always something new to discover behind every door, up every obscured staircase, in the back of every bazaar.

Slightly dishevelled and a little gritty in part, there has been a concerted effort in the last 20 years to undertake restoration work which will bring the true feel of Stone Town back to life.  From my perspective it’s working. Historically however, what I didn’t know before arriving was that Stone Town was the host to one of the world’s last open slave markets, presided over by Arab traders, until being shut down by the British in 1873.


Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania
This is what happens when your team gets beaten - you drink to forget

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania


Slaves were shipped in dhows from the mainland, crammed so tightly in confined spaces that many fell ill and died, being thrown overboard on their journey to the island. Again, its one of those things that you understand that happened but can’t in any real way put your mind to the sheer cruelty of action from one set of human beings to another. How there could be no understanding to the extent of human suffering, to the mental torment, to the total eradication of any freedoms.


Kendwa - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Kendwa - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Kendwa - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Kendwa - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Kendwa - Zanzibar - Tanzania
Love this photo - just managed to catch that bird in-flight to the right of the photo


All I tend to feel in situation such as this is overwhelming pity, and also, fury and rage for those that simply treated humans as a business transaction. How could you ever think this was the right thing to do? Where is the compassion?


Markets - Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania

Stone Town - Zanzibar - Tanzania


Outside of Stone Town, we took some time out to head up to the north of the island and spent a glorious afternoon on the beach in Kendwa.  A beautiful area on the calm Western side, this area has a number of stylish beach bars where you can laze out in the sun, order drinks, have a spot of lunch, and even indulge in some sheesha, which was quite an easy thing for us to do.

Getting on the water is also quite a pleasurable thing to do here, although options are still kind of primitive, we did manage to take a boat ride out to some of the nearby islands and spend a glorious afternoon on the water, doing not much really other than admiring the view.
Zanzibar is a marvellous place. I feel that on this occasion we didn’t quite get the most of it in that we spent a lot of our time in Stone Town without exploring the island entirely, but one day, one day we’ll be back, and its beaches will come under attack!

Tuesday, December 5, 2017

Johannesburg (South Africa) - The Emperor's new groove

JOHANNESBURG (South Africa)
05 December - 06 December 2017


Returning to Johannesburg after four days in Kruger allowed us a small amount of time for all the impressions of the park to settle, and also, a little time to reflect as a whole.

Again, staying close to the airport meant that we were actually a fair distance from the centre of Jo'Burg proper, but inevitably, the way my mum operates, she was able to find herself a casino close by - the 'world renowned', Emperors Palace Casino. In actual fact, it wasn't that bad, as the whole complex quite reminded me of something I'd seen in Las Vegas.

The next day it was time for us to head our separate ways. Mum was heading back to Belgrade and Inga & I were heading off to Zanzibar.

Monday, December 4, 2017

Kruger National Park (South Africa) - Out of Africa

KRUGER NATIONAL PARK (South Africa)
02 December - 05 December 2017

My entries are usually words that are supported by accompanying pictures of the events, but, seeing as though my last two Kruger entries were quite lengthy, I'm going to add mostly photos for this entry in order to cover the rest of our time in Kruger.

By the way, if anyone is interested - Robbie Williams of Nhongo Safaris, and, Robbie Williams Safaris, is the person you should be in contact with for all you safari experiences in Kruger NP.

Robbiewilliamssafaris@gmail.com

Here's a short pictorial digest.



Having a smoke in Kruger National Park - why wouldn't you!?

Kruger National Park - South Africa
No lions about this time....(this time)

I remember Robbie telling us that there was no sign of him feeling threatened or being alarmed
Never the less, he was ready to hit reverse 'at speed' if needed

There was something about the park, the atmosphere, I really don't know what, but it was a feeling that caught all of us by surprise.

Kruger National Park - South Africa 
Pretty exceptional to be able to get even this close to the rhino.
Poaching in the park is still a real issue and these poor guys are often the target

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa
A real zebra crossing

Kruger National Park - South Africa
The Lioness

Kruger National Park - South Africa
Munchkin hyenas learning what their life is all about

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa


Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa

Kruger National Park - South Africa