Mysteriously Mystifying Malawi
In all fairness, I must advise you, dear reader, that my experience of Malawi is subjective and prompted by our mood and Butch's bout of malaria. Imagine you have a reservation at Passionné in Paris. It’s been a dream to dine there for ages, but the night before the big day, you’re kept up with...
Our Final Fling In Mezmerising Mozambique
After our week of running around being tourists on Ilha de Mozambique, we were exhausted and needed to chillax on a quiet beach, just the two of us, before setting off on the long road to Malawi through Nampula Province. Our friend, Pai Diesel, being the gentleman he is, wouldn’t let us...
No Man(It)’s An Island – Ilha De Mozambique - It Was Love At First Sight
As good as his word Pai Diesel was waiting for us at the boom and entrance gate as he’d agreed. We understood that heavy vehicles like the Honey Badger would not be permitted to cross the 4 km bridge built in the 1960s, linking Ilha de Mozambique with the mainland. He said it would be...
All Aboard, We’re Taking The High Road To Ilha De Mozambique
It’s a long way to Tipperary and we’re taking a “wye Kaapse Draai” en route to Ilha de Mozambique which could be likened to driving from Worcester to Cape Town via Johannesburg. It was an adventure we might’ve missed had we stuck to the potholed EN1. We had an extra month to...
Caldeira And Ferreira Went To Beira
“Caldeira and Ferreira went to Beira”, is what we’d chant as small children. We were probably being brattish, but to our credit, the Ferreiras proudly joined in. “What did you do for the holidays” was a question on all our lips when we returned to school. Teachers, friends and rival gangs...
Gorongosa National Park - 15 Shades Of Green
On the breeze and on everyone’s lips are two words. Gregory Carr. We had no clue who he was. From the smallest blade of grass to the tallest trees seemed to whisper his name. Revered by everyone involved at the Gorongosa National Park, he certainly is. Therefore this blog is not possible...
Potholes, The Kindness Of Strangers And Miraculous Guardian Angels - Mozambique
Our official time in Mozambique was running out fast, and we needed to get our passports stamped, allowing us another thirty days to explore this magical country. After much consideration, we opted for the southern Zimbabwe border post-Forbes/Machipanda near the Mozambiquan town...
The Good Knight Nurse’s Health Report
A health report from a Knight nurse who's no Nightingale. The patient, although uncomplaining, shows signs of fatigue and exasperation. His night sweats are uncontrolled, forcing the Good Knight Nurse to seek other sleeping options. This, in a 7.2mX2.5m (18sqm) truck, poses a problem. She...
Setting The Bar – Inhassoro
Inhassoro is a small fishing port in Mozambique’s Inhassoro District of Inhambane Province. The town has 11,297 inhabitants and is on the Indian Ocean coast about 20 km from the EN1 highway. Inhassoro, which looks out at Bazaruto, Santa Carolina, or Paradise Island, is a developing...
Repressing Memories In Vilankulos
Here’s the thing with human memory. It’s short and has a life of its own. I have photographic memories of places I’ve been to and I realised; I remember the photographs and the feelings those places conjure. I can recall the smells, colours and experiences but not the lay of the land or...
Paradise Is Pretty Pomene - Mozambique's Best Kept Secret
An urban legend claims Ernest Hemmingway would fly into Pomene, stay at the hotel on the dune and do marlin fishing there. I doubt it, but I wish he had. It’s such a good story. Romantic. It would’ve suited the daredevil he was, and he would’ve caught tonnes of marlin. Once again, driving up...
The Fab Four Do Tofo – It’s A Dream Catching Up With The Knights
Our best times have been with Percy and Sue; they’re easy, fun, and organised. This time their Hedgehog was behind bars at home while they jetted in to spend time in Tofo. Although we were excited to see them, we hesitated to infringe on their privacy, knowing they were holidaying with...
Currently Going With The Warm Mozambique Flow - Zavora
Being on the East coast of Africa, suffused in the Mozambique channel’s warm currents, brings a certain lightness to the soul. In this sub-tropical climate, every day feels like summer. Blue skies, puffy white clouds, here the gentle breezes and the ocean are warm. Precisely what the...
Mapping Maputo And Bilene – Our Travels Into Mozambique
Bom Dia como está? One of my favourite countries to visit is Mozambique. Its flavour, vibe and people are distinctive and have a characteristic rhythm not found anywhere in South Africa. With Serulian skies my Mozambique is everything a weary traveller yearns for. Once again we crossed the...
Mushy Mossy Magic In Magoebaskloof
Magical, mysterious and misty Magoebaskloof in the Limpopo Province between Tzaneen and Polokwane is a lush green mountainous area carpeted by an indigenous evergreen subtropical forest and vast plantations. Mist, rain and humidity are how I would describe the climate. Definitely seductive....
Catching Up, Last Days And Cyclone Freddy
We needed an entire month to organise ourselves before entering unknown territory. I told Butch, “fine,” he said, “you can have February.” And so it was that we decided to take up a February special offered, by the ATKV (Afrikaanse Taal en Kultuur Vereeniging) resorts’ Die Eiland...
A Childhood Revisited – The Lowveld - Hazyview
Childhood memories should be like a field of daisies. Bright yellow sunshine. Perfectly designed blooms that radiate simplicity, joy, and create happiness. Pick a petal at a time to see if he loves you "loves me, loves me not, loves me..." Some people vow never to return once they leave a place...
Hats Off To Hoedspruit - Highlighted By Our Antares Bush Camp Experience
When we heard our friends from England, who lived in the New Forest, decided to pick up sticks and move, lock, stock ‘n barrel to South Africa, I was impressed, but when we heard Hoedspruit was their first choice to settle in, I had my doubts. More fool me. A reasonably sized town surrounded by...
Kruger National Park And The Story Behind The Story
It is an undisputed fact that the Kruger National Park is our national treasure, and SANParks is probably one of the few state-run enterprises that works and has improved over the years. They have all my support and admiration for doing a sterling job. My photographs are just a random,...
Highways and Byways to Hoedspruit. Places We Saw And Friends We Met
Maun is not my favourite place, possibly because it’s a neither-here or there sort of place. It could also be the flashbacks I have of our off-road caravan’s demise and the dreadful trip back to Cape Town we had. Our poor caravan was in a dire state and looked like a sardine tin with a...
One, Two, Three, Four-tee-Four Elephants - Elephant Sands - Nata -Botswana
My Sister-in-law Lol is a loyal follower of our travels. When she realised, we were at Elephant Sands. She wrote, “I’ve often been to Elephant Sands near Nata, a lovely spot, but in all the years, we never saw one elephant! Good luck." While Butch was doing our registration, I...
Drotsky’s Cabins with Kat-‘n-The-Four-Kin-Airey’s – Botswana
Skedaddle is what we did to meet up with the Aireys who were in search of a Honey Badger. Nothing beats meeting up with family, particularly when you’ve been starved of your familials like we have, especially over the festive season when we all experience a little slump. Sometimes, late at...
Rain, Subtropical Gardens And A Host With The Most
When rain falls, one can expect the vegetation to change, the dry air cools, and humidity takes over. Our travels in the desert were ending as we climbed the plateaus. Small wizened trees gave way to taller, leafed trees, and game farms made way for subsistence farming. Dry riverbeds...
How Etosha Got Its Name - A Lesson In Following Our Daydreams
Once upon a time, when pharaohs were building Pyramids, a guy called Noah from Goa (just kidding, Mesopotamia) got it into his head to build a ship. Why? The message in a daydream was clear. “A flood covering the whole earth is nigh. Build a ship, Noah!” Noah proclaimed it would be made...
Visiting A Himba Cultural Village
It was my idea to visit the Himba Cultural village, and Butch obliged. He paid the R400, and arrangements were made. The guide would be alerted all in good time for preparations. We’d go for our bike ride. En route back to Oppi Koppi, we’d pop in as it was on our way. We arrived on the...
Patio Prattle and Die Vingerklip– Oppi Koppi Rest Camp
An Extract From My Notes “I’ve positioned myself near the electrical plug and hotspot, hoping a solid Wi-Fi signal will enable me to write. I must catch up with some emails, update Polar Steps and write two blogs. My fingers are poised just above the keys, ready to strike the first letter. My...
Resuming The Journey And Why I Wear A Hat - Munsterland Guest Farm - Khorixas
We’ve been on the road for five months. The Honey Badger is our tiny home; although snug, we have a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, and dining room, and here I sit and type in my “study”. It’s currently raining. We find summer rainfall quite a novelty. Whispy, feathery clouds build up into...
Boldly Bowled Over By Boulders - Spitzkoppe
The big smile and spring in Billy’s step when he entered the house couldn’t hide his happiness. He beamed. There was a new lightness about him. Like water cascading over smooth polished rocks, his zest bubbled and gushed, and words tumbled out excitedly. He’d just returned from a fortnight...
SMS –Sand, Mist, Swakopmund
Thirty years ago, before the SMS, my telegram to family, anxiously awaiting my safe arrival in Swakopmund, would’ve gone something like this. “Safe arrival. Sand, mist, Swakopmund.” The charge, twenty cents, the message would be relayed by telex or morse code to the Stellenbosch post office....
The Road
Our journey is nothing like The Road, a post-apocalyptic novel by Cormac McCarthy, where an ailing father defends his son as they slowly travel to the sea. The novel’s main themes are Faith, Trust, and Doubt. In the harsh world of The Road, everything depends on trusting or distrusting...
Finding Order Unexpectedly At Tsauchab River Camp
Have you ever entered a room and felt utterly overwhelmed by the décor, the sudden onslaught of colour or the furniture placement? I find antique shops with the clutter of overstocked bric-a-brac or art galleries where paintings hang too close together and where colours, textures, and...
First days in Namibia – Lapa Lange Guest Farm
Early this morning, before I could decide how the weather would turn out, my beloved left with our Honey Badger in tow to have new tyres fitted, have a bull-bar attached, as recommended by other overlanders, and to install a Thule storage container, our current one is far too heavy. He did warn...
The Joys of Travel Are A Mata of Taste – Mata Mata
We have to own our retirement, make the most of it, see the adventures, challenges and be unapologetically thrilled by all the opportunities thrown at us. You say. I say, who would’ve thought it possible that we could sit here, on a fine Sunday, my fingers flying over my keyboard, while...
The Company We Keep – The Da Silva’s - Nossob – Kgalagadi
Butch and I have just returned from the bird hide where we’d spent a few minutes in the hope of seeing and ticking off some birds on our list. There wasn’t one. Not even a laughing dove. We did enjoy the ground squirrels digging and dashing and chittering about though. This morning we'd...
Picture A Meerkat In The Wild
For one of my upcoming blogs I decided to delve into my photographs, download them, and while I have the opportunity, and a work day, do a quick search for the Meerkats, and then post them as a file. Here they are. I'll let them speak for themselves. This is the little family unit, or...
Nature Calls - Askam And A Meerkat Sanctuary
Before I start with this blog I must tell you why it’s published after my Kgalagadi blog. I always upload my Word documents onto my admin page, then I add my photographs individually. We are at the mercy of whatever Wi-Fi connectivity we’re in range of. At the moment it’s not good. Slow...
Sitting On The Fence In The Kgalagadi - Nossob
It’s midday, I'm sitting in the Honey Badger typing this blog. Now and then, I look up, binoculars at the ready, and see small critters sitting or clinging to our fence. They’re our pole dancers. My company is a lizard, Cape Glossy starling with a slurred warble, an ever-chatty...
Maintenance Steps, Malls and Mosquitoes in Upington
Although I am very much a creature of habit, e.g. I use the same brand of toothpaste and tomato sauce as I did when my mom did the shopping and, I still wear the same brand of knickers, and have used the same fragrance for 40 years, I am not keen to repeat experiences. Firstly, life is too...
Medjool Dates In Klein Pella
Upington feels like our home away from home. But first, we had to get there. It was Thursday, and I’d made a pinky promise a year ago that I would never spend another weekend in Upington. Come hell or high water, I was sticking to my guns. We left the Richtersveld on a bright sunny day,...
Rich, Richer, Richtersveld
Writing the Richtersveld’s story is way above my intellectual abilities, and articulating eloquently about this extraordinary place is an injustice to the reader and the Richtersveld. Often the less one knows is dangerous, and the more you know, the more intimidating the subject becomes. I am...