Best SA travel blog in May 2009
In May 2009 we showcased the following southern African travel blog postings:
2 May 2009 |
Dad & daughter from Detroit, USA, find themselves as honoured guests being expected to eat fish eyes in Zambia. |
9 May 2009 |
In Bulungula Timothy pays a local $4 to take him fishing, and thinks about becoming vegeterian as he watches his catch gasping for oxygen and tensing up every 30 seconds. |
16 May 2009 |
After enjoying some Kulula humour on a PE-Cape Town flight , Phil enjoyed "unbelievably cheap" Cape Town (which he compared to Dubai). |
23 May 2009 |
Larch took an interesting photo of his legs on his Mango flight from Johannesburg to Cape Town, where he attended the Obz Festival. |
30 May 2009 |
Amy & Kate took some fantastic photos in between doing medical research in Mozambique. |
And Amy & Kate, the intrepid fourth year medical students from Van der Bilt are our May winners - the power of their pictures of Africa won us over. Here are our favourites:
On their way up to Uhuru Peak in Tanzania. |
Quelimane, Mozambique, street scene - man with chicken meets man with goats whilst others sit around liquor store doing nothing (except drinking). |
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Getting together with villagers to discuss HIV/AIDS. |
Mount Ile. |
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HIV community activist meeting in Lugela. |
Fishermen in Mozambique. |
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Beach fun at Zalala. |
Buried on the beach - these gals also know how to have fun! |
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Best April 2009 Southern African blog
Expat's visit to the Sani Top Chalet pub for her Mom's birthday (actually, a little after her Mom's bday - being a teacher, the visit needed to coincide with school holidays). Before flying from Johannesburg back to snowy cold London in uncomfortable cattle class, Expat & Mom loaded up the 4x4 and headed towards the mountains that breath with dragons (Drakensburg) - or uKhahlamba (barrier of spiers) in the vernacular of the never-been-conquered Lesotho Mountain Kingdom. They stayed first at Mkomazana Mountain Cottages before taking the trip up the notorious Sani Pass - a dirt road with sheer drops and hairpin bends into the impenetrable Lesotho Mountain Kingdom. The Sani Pass has some interesting names like “the St Peters bend” (more people pray on this bend than they do in church) and “the whiskey bend” (you need a whiskey after turning this bend).
Best March 2009 travel blog posting
Alexis Grant's tale of Abdul & Mahesh's unwanted week at Douala Airport, in Cameroon. We've all heard stories of having to bribe officials in African countries, but this one trumps all others. On inspecting the mens' travel documents, officials at Cameroon's airport realised they had been invited by a diamond company (they are diamond cutters), and insisted they pay a "fee" to board their place (4000 euros at that!). Abdul & Mahesh refused to pay the bribe and the uniformed officials refused to let them leave. For a week they slept in the only chair in the airport (see photo), until their company and the Cameroon government came to the rescue.
Best Feb 2009 travel blog posting
Our favourite travel blog posting in Feb 2009 is Marie's - not many tourists get wedding proposals (including one to become a 3rd wife!) whilst here, and even fewer take photos of butchered cows' heads which help remind me why I'm vegeterian! Add that to the fact that she met up and conversed with Hector Pietersen's sister Antoinette, and I get the feeling she soaked up plenty SA culture during her stay her.
Best Jan 2009 posting
January's winner was Colleen's blog of her expedition to go teaching in Lesotho, which started with her having to jump airport lines to make her connecting flight from Johannesburg to Bloemfontein. Below is a photo of her on top of Thaba Bosiu (translates to "Mountain of the Night" in Lesotho), a sandstone plateau where all but one of the Basotho kings are buried, and which King Moshoeshoe used to defend his nation from Zulu invaders (colonialists?) in the 1820s. Colleen has been teaching grade 1 - education is the cornerstone of the civilised world and from us at SouthAfrica.TO, we'd like to congratulate you on making a difference - you are a great example for others to follow.
Best travel blog posting in 2008
With dreadlocks forming from a buildup of Namibian sand in his hair, braving a cruel 12 hours in a combi-trip from hell (filled with sweaty people), and having chats with a philosophising englishman amongst Swakopmund's lego-like structure; Sebastian Modak's account of his Namibian travels was our travel blog of the year for 2008.
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