Podcast

The Most Luxurious South African Safari – Mala Mala

Mala Mala in a Minute
October 25, 1981 was the exact date I was introduced to Mala Mala, the premier South African safari. A small article in the New York Times travel section about safaris in South Africa by esteemed author Joseph Lelyveld entitled Mala Mala: Posh in the Wild would come to embody my idea of the perfect luxury safari for the next few decades. That yellowed, crispy article is still stuck to my fridge by my Welcome to Venice magnet purchased in Italy at roughly the same time I was reading this article.

I had discovered the joy of traveling upon that first trip to La Serenissima, a love has lasted the test of time. Europe was close at hand, but Africa seemed so far away, becoming the […]

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September 21st, 2015|Destinations, South Africa|0 Comments

A Bit of South Africa – Franschhoek

(These coasters made me laugh – isn’t that Vegas’s saying?)
Can you really get to know someone in just one date? A little light conversation over lunch, a run ‘round town and a sip or two of sparkling wine as the afternoon sun begins to set? Why not! If the stars are aligned, all these ingredients have the potential to add up to at least a second date. 

That’s how I hoped it would go on my first date with Franschhoek, our next stop in the South African Winelands. Our conversion began as we soon entered the gates of the divine hotel and working winery, La Clé des Montagnes (the Key of the Mountains).

As we wandered in and out of their four delightful villas, we discovered how glorious […]

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June 24th, 2015|Destinations, Franschhoek, South Africa|0 Comments

A Bit of South Africa: Stellenbosch – Majeka House & Makaron

After recovering from the dizzying heights of Cape Town’s Table Mountain, I was ready for some luxurious TLC and the night ahead offered me nothing but! I didn’t have to wait long as our first stop was Majeka House, the intimate hotel snuggled cosily in the vineyards of Stellenbosch, one of the best places in the world to go wine tasting.
Only 50k outside of the big city, Stellenbosch is the second oldest city in South Africa (after Cape Town) and one of the first wine producing towns in the world, now manufacturing about 1 billion litres of wine each year.

If you’re coming for a Stellenbosch wine tour, then you’ll need some place to say and that place would be Majeka House!  Lloyd van der Merwe, the owner, greeted us with a […]

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June 5th, 2015|Cape Town, Destinations, South Africa|0 Comments

A Bit of South Africa – 24 Hours in Cape Town

Although Table Mountain is one of the great wonders of the world and any visitor to Cape Town is guaranteed to have it at the top of their GO NOW list, I would have been just as happy to sit at its base gazing at its wonder from below. Unfortunately for vertigo-challenged me, that’s not exactly how it was to play out…

Earlier that same day, we had been waved off the Blue Train.  I still don’t understand why I couldn’t just ride back and forth from Pretoria to Cape Town, sipping cocktails and snacking on biltong for the rest of the week. Still I would have missed out on Cape Town and, more importantly, we had been asked to lunch at the One & Only Cape Town. Best Bits […]

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May 7th, 2015|Cape Town, Destinations, South Africa|0 Comments

A Bit of South Africa – The Blue Train

I may be watching too much Downton Abbey, but I could’ve bet money that I heard the conductor scream, “All Aboard” as we headed down the platform of Pretoria’s central station. Stepping back in time to the days when train travel was the only way to go is why you take the Blue Train in the first place. Twenty-seven hours seems like a long time to get from Pretoria to Cape Town, but I relished my time away from the tweets, likes and friend requests. Relinquishing your constant wireless access sometimes can seem like a blessing, but when biltong and burgundy are on the menu as well, that’s the trip for me!

At one time, the Blue Train was the only transport available from Cape Town to Kimberely, the vortex of the […]

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April 13th, 2015|Pretoria, South Africa|2 Comments

A Bit of South Africa: Fun Things to do in Tshwane (Pretoria)

“I had a farm in Africa.”
I knew it wouldn’t be long before I felt the same soil beneath my feet that Isak Dinesen had so many years before. No, I don’t have a farm and I was nowhere near her Ngong Hills in Kenya, but the people and the warmth that emanated from them made me fall in love as she had so many years before. Unlike Isak, I only had 2r hours to find the fun things to do in Pretoria!

As a travel blogger, I am always seeking the unknown and am slightly embarrassed that my travels have not yet led me to the Central, East, West or Southern African. Only the very top of the continent, Morocco and Tunisia, have I experienced. So […]

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March 26th, 2015|Destinations, Pretoria, South Africa|6 Comments