It was only after I returned to South Africa in early 2012 – after living abroad and travelling for two years – that I truly began to explore Johannesburg as a tourist would. And that’s when my love affair with this city began. Here are 11 things…
This year I was hoping to participate in the fifth Put Foot Rally, perhaps I’ll go next year. My cousin, Pawel Motylski, and his team, The Polar Bear Express, won ‘Best Crew 2014’ and they told me all about their adventures. As seen in the…
Inner-city Johannesburg is an open-air gallery and international street-art destination – and it’s right here in our backyard. Graffiti writers work by the light of streetlamps and conceal their identities because of strict by-laws that govern vandalism to private and public property. Yet the walls…
I recently spent a few days in Durban – named the most underrated South African city by CNN in 2014, which saw numerous publications and news agencies follow suit. And in case you didn’t know, it’s also been rated as the South African city with the…
Welcome to the new home of my blog Eager Journeys. That’s right it’s a pun on my name Iga, how could you not love it? ;) Now that it’s finally launched I want to celebrate, besides it’s my blog so I can do whatever I want,…
Victoria Falls The Zambezi River, which straddles the border between Zimbabwe and Zambia, is the lifeline of the Victoria Falls and all the tourism it attracts and opportunity it creates for both countries. Even along the main road into town from the Victoria Falls International…
Victoria Falls Safari Lodge I celebrated the Victoria Falls Safari Lodge’s (VFSL) coming of age – its twentieth birthday celebration – in the company of the honourable Walter Mzembi, the Zimbabwean Minister of Tourism and Hospitality, and key players in the local and international travel…
I was last in Zimbabwe in 1994, as a wide-eyed seven-year-old, who had just entered the first grade; therefore I think it appropriate that I return two decades later, in the week of my Master’s graduation. I am staying in Victoria Falls – which the…
There are few reasons why anyone would agree to wake hours before the sun. A sunrise hot air balloon flight over the Magalies River Valley in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site, well, that’s reason enough. Silence. This is the place of morning calm,…
These black and white, long-exposure captures of the Johannesburg skyline paint it in a different colour, to reveal the relaxed atmosphere that enveloped the cityscape at twilight on New Year’s Eve. Few cars were seen navigating the street grid that stretches below Randlords. One of…
Three thousand artworks hung pegged to twine as hundreds weaved between them, like a needle sewing thread. They stopped. They stared. They smiled. The historic electric workshop in Newtown – which houses the Sci-Bono Discovery Centre – was transformed into a walk-though art gallery for the “Night of…
It’s known as the ‘Supermoon’ to us non-astronomy types, but to those who study the night sky and beyond — as they peer into the past — it’s the Perigee moon. ‘Tis the largest full moon of the year, due to its proximity to the…
There aren’t many more satisfying ways I can think of than to spend a Sunday afternoon on the rooftop of the City of Gold. Randlords, on the 22nd floor of South Point Towers in Braamfontein, offers splendid panoramic views of the Johannesburg skyline. The bustle below…
The end of one day merely ushers in the beginning of another Some find hope in the end; some find hope in the beginning And so one never knows whether it’s the sunrise or the sunset that is more beautiful And perhaps there is no…
Now I can say that I’ve visited one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. Country number 22 on my travel list was Namibia: the 34th largest country, which only boasts a population of 2.32 million. The former German colony was mandated to…
To celebrate the Lunar New Year and the start of the year of the dragon, I visited the Nan Hua Buddhist temple in Bronkhorstspruit, which is approximately 100km from Sandton. The stalls which attracted so many hungry customers really did give me the impression that I…