Weekend on the Vaal River
When I was a kid I spent many weekends on the Vaal Dam because one of my closest friends had a holiday home there. We spent most of our time in or on the water. So I was REALLY pleased to head back there for…
Category Archives: South Africa
Durban in the summer
Durban always makes me think of down time and summer holidays, frangipanis, Indian curry, puri pathas and bunny chow, but also its warm-hearted people – the tropical climate has obviously rubbed off on them, giving them a sunny disposition. In 2014 CNN named Durban South…
Volunteering in South Africa #ResponsibleTravel
The road to animal exploitation is often paved with good intentions and ignorance. If you’re considering volunteering in South Africa at a legitimate wildlife conservation project that’ll mean getting your hands dirty and no interactions with wildlife. This article was featured in Khuluma Magazine. Read…
Johannesburg’s Second Golden Age
When you explore eGoli, the city of gold, you’ll witness traces of the city’s early days from the 1880s when it was established as a gold mining town, and you’ll also see remnants of its fall, but know that you’re partaking in its rejuvenation, that’s…
Solo female travel tips from SA travel bloggers
In Art of Travel, Alain de Botton writes the truest of truths about solo travel. It goes something like this. “It seemed an advantage to be travelling alone. Our responses to the world are crucially moulded by the company we keep, for we temper our…
48 hours in Cape Town: free things to do
There’s really no time to waste if you only have 48 hours in Cape Town, so let’s get right to it. First off, make sure you plan a much longer stay in the Mother City on your next visit. A weekend getaway to Cape Town…
Gamkaberg Nature Reserve: Big Sky, Klein Karoo Country
Daréll Lourens of The Good Holiday invited Louise De Waal of Green Girls in Africa, Alfred Thorpe of Let There Be Light, me and a few others to join her on assignment in Cape Nature’s Gamkaberg Nature Reserve near Oudtshoorn, as she shot their new promotional video.…
Chrissiesmeer: South Africa’s Lake District
I’m sitting on the verandah of Just Country Cottage, with my legs propped up, looking out onto Lake Chrissie as I eat breakfast, when a quacking duck waddles past. Two more follow suit. I don’t think much of it as I am in the countryside,…
Wakkerstroom: The Country Life
Wakkerstroom is Mpumalanga’s internationally-renowned wetland and birding destination that many South Africans don’t even know about. This article featured in the January 2016 issue of FlySafair’s Inflight magazine. If you give 83-year-old Oom Chris Smit enough time, he’ll talk you through Wakkerstroom’s history, from the…
2015 in Photographs
This post is inspired by Gary Arndt of Everything Everywhere Travel Blog and his 2015: A Year in Photography post. I travelled around South Africa quite a bit in 2015, more so than I have in previous years, both for work and leisure – I’m a strong supporter of…
Val: South Africa’s Smallest Hamlet
Until my recent visit to Val, I hadn’t even heard of it. My excuse? Its size: it is the smallest hamlet in South Africa with only 12 permanent residents. And it’s probably the safest too, as there are 28 policemen based at the regional police…
An Ode to Nieu Bethesda
O Nieu Bethesda, thou breath of the Great Karoo nourishment in this desert land that lieth not far from Camdeboo with roads made of endless sand that leadth visitors along the compass– cardinal points: four to this, the place where owls kiss leaving everyone wanting…
Swimming pools in Johannesburg
After two sweaty weeks in humid Tanzania – which I loved, don’t get me wrong, most of all because I am now bronze – I was looking forward to getting back to Johannesburg’s milder summer. Yet, I returned to a sweltering heatwave caused by a strong high-pressure system with…
Graaff-Reinet: The Return To
Hundreds of South African Instagrammers and photographers packed their tripods, memory cards, and battery banks ahead of a cross-country road trip to Graaff-Reinet in the Eastern Cape Province. They drove from Cape Town, the Garden Route, Port Elizabeth, Durban, Johannesburg and elsewhere. The reason was…
The First South African National Instameet
If you love Instagram as much as I do, then you have to go to the first South African National Instameet. It’s happening in Graaff-Reinet from 24 – 27 September 2015 and everyone is invited! Here’s your chance to explore the little town in the…
Kwa Maritane Bush Lodge: Where Lions Roam
Two hours from Johannesburg, on the rim of an extinct volcano, lies Kwa Maritane – a four-star bush lodge in the malaria-free Pilanesberg National Park, where elephant footprints are tracked by day and lion calls are heard at dusk. A young wildebeest springs across the…
