Sleeping next to a toilet is the kind of thing you’d expect on a rough trip through Africa, but not on the very first night in the City Lodge next to ORTambo!
Earlier that day, we’d flown from King Shaka, where our families had gathered to send us off. I was travelling with my son Ryan, friends Pete Meyer and Paul Kalil, and Paul’s son Josh.We had dubbed our month-long adventure“Africa –Wild & Untamed”and I’d picked my travel partners carefully.
Pete is an old Durban business associate of mine; I’ve known him for years. Paul and Josh work for their family packaging business, also based in Durban. I have six children but Ryan is the only one left in South Africa so he was the lucky one who could join in easily. He’s a game ranger at Manyoni Private Game Reserve in Zululand.
The five of us arrived at the City Lodge in Joburg only to find out that Pete somehow didn’t have a reservation – and the place was fully booked!We begged the lady at reception to allow one of us to sleep on the floor of the room. She agreed and I sacrificed my bed for Pete and made a nest on the floor.
So far, so good, but 20 minutes after lights out, Pete started sawing down a plantation! The man is an erratic snorer and I’m a light sleeper, so I movedmy floor-bed into the rather snug bathroom. At first, I lay my head next to the toilet bowl to fit into the limited space, but the smell of Toilet Duck singed my nasal cavities. The only other option was to put my head inside the shower cubicle with my toes in Toilet Duck territory.
Africa –Wild & Untamed was off to a wild start!
Geladas in the Highlands
Denne historien er fra October/November 2023-utgaven av go! - South Africa.
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Denne historien er fra October/November 2023-utgaven av go! - South Africa.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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My best holiday ever
Most holidays are enjoyable, but some stand out for different reasons. Something on that trip - be it a destination or an experience - stays with you. Seven writers tell us about the getaways they'll never forget.
Choose a wild life
Africa is the home of the safari, and who unlocks this experience for tourists? An experienced, knowledgeable field guide, that's who. But how does it feel to sit behind the wheel of a Land Cruiser twice a day, answering the same questions over and over?
The day I almost became a Himba bride
Why do we travel, asks Sophia van Taak? One reason is to see how other people's lives differ from our own. But sometimes it's what we have in common that's most surprising.
BIRDS
NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS FOR BIRDERS
Benin for the Bokke
By late October 2023, adventurers Jean Cooper and De Witt Oosthuizen were somewhere in the middle of Nigeria. Their plan was to be in neighbouring Benin in time to watch the Springboks play in the final of the Rugby World Cup. But they ran into roadblock after roadblock..
There's something about White River
White River is on a hill between Mbombela and Hazyview. You're a bateleur swoop from the Kruger Park, the Panorama Route and the Sudwala Caves, but why rush through? Come see what the town has to offer.
A farm stall? Here?
The Tankwa Karoo usually looks like Mars. It's an empty landscape where you can sometimes see the outline of a springbok shimmering in a distant mirage. It's remote. The main road, the R355, cuts a lonely 250 km slice from Ceres to Calvinia. The last thing you expect to see is a farm stall...
SKRIK VAN RONDOM FARM STALL, REDELINGHUYS
The road from Piketberg to Elands Bay leads from the Swartland through the Sandveld to the reeds of Verlorenvlei.
In a holy land
English explorer William Burchell stopped recording his southern African exploration at a Tswana settlement called Litakun, in the koppies north-west of modern-day Kuruman. As we make our way there, it becomes clear: South Africa is a sacred place.
Two's company
If you could park two Fords in your dream garage, which would they be? Most of us would pick the mighty Mustang and an apex bakkie like the Raptor, but there's also an awesome new Tourneo minibus that throws a spanner in the works...
