COUNTRIES VISITED Archives - Page 23 of 28

THAT FIRST RIDE OF SUMMER

Finally summer has arrived in our part of the world. It was time to get the dust off the bike and out of the garage after the long and wet winter months. The weather was perfect for a ride out with hubby as my usual riding buddy. Just to get the bum and hands in condition again we took a leisurely drive mainly on tar roads today and made some stops to log a cache or two. The camaraderie on the road by fellow riders, extending a nod in recognition no matter what the steed, always gives a warm feeling to my heart and just makes the ride more worth while. Everybody is enjoying the sun, the smells and the wide open roads our country has on offer and unlike a car you get to experience all the smells along the road which varies from the aromatic veld to the… Read more >

BRAKKEDUINE

Een van die beste plekke om jou bass visvang skills te kom bemeester is hier by Brakkeduine. Sommer net ‘n klipgooi neffens Port Elizabeth is hierdie juweel, in die hartjie van die Tsitsikamma, geleë en net reg vir ‘n vinnige naweek wegbreek wanneer die stad druk. Die grondpad vanaf Humansdorp verby Oesterbaai raak soms ‘n bietjie sleg, maar juis te meer maak dit van Brakkeduine meer spesiaal – dit is nie sommer enige Jan Rap en sy maat wat hier uitkom om te kom ontspan nie. ‘n Mens wil amper die plek geheim hou en dit nie met die massas deel nie. Hier is kinders welkom en kan hulle nog vry rond hardloop en na hartelus kerjarkker op die groen gras. Die foefie slide, glybaan, swaaie en swembad hou hulle ure besig en ‘n mens vergeet amper van hulle. En as die grootmense voel om ‘n slag weer ‘n kind… Read more >

BLUE SHED ROASTERY, MOSSEL BAY

Chocolate cake for breakfast! That sounds good to me, but not what my mom will regard as healthy. After all it is Sunday morning so anything is allowed for breakfast. We opted for the Blue Shed roastery, with a view over the harbour, in Bland Street, Mossel Bay which sells and serves a wide range of coffee varieties from countries such as Indonesia, Uganda and Ethiopia (the origin of coffee) to name but a few. You will even find a coffee liqueur neatly packed on the small counter. Not too shabby for this part of the world on the African continent! Without doubt this is where I will get my next quality brew for a cuppa or two. With the laughter of kids in the background enjoying themselves in the small play park my option this morning fell on a moist but very delicious chocolate cake for breakfast and hubby… Read more >

KABULA LODGE, ZAMBIA

It is early August in Africa. The days are not sweltering yet and the nights coolish, but not cold. Actually perfect weather for the African bush! Arriving rather late in the afternoon and after randomly meeting a fellow South African who runs a business in Livingstone we discovered a gem of a shop called Stop Shop (open until late) in the main street where we could buy everything from beer to fresh bread before heading to Maramba to make camp for the night. The next morning, after stocking up at the Shoprite in Livingstone, we were heading to Kabula Tiger Lodge in Western Zambia. Doing shopping at the Shoprite it felt like I was back home. Everything was familiar, organized and easy to find – you will even find good old Mrs Balls! Our aim was to do some tiger fishing and birding at Kabula Lodge (S17º02.404 E24º00.892). On arrival… Read more >

ST ANDREWS CHURCH, PLETTENBERG BAY

The story of St Andrews begins with the Newdigate family who lived in Piesang Valley and owned a couple of farms in the area. In 1851 William Newdigate realized the need, of his family and farm workers, to enrich their lives with the Gospel and constructed St Andrews of broad yellowwood boards, which was freely available in those years, and a thatch roof. The thatch roof was later replaced by the red tin roof as it stands today. The church served 17 people of the Newdigate family and their labourers during those early years. With its red tin roof and simple white cross at the top and setting amongst the lush green bushes of the valley it creates quite a romantic atmosphere. Today the church is still used for country weddings, baptisms and church services for the descendants of the original congregants. In the little graveyard on the grounds you… Read more >

SUNSET ON CHOBE

There is no other word that I can think of to describe the sundown cruise on the Chobe River better as magical. This is not going to be a very long entry into my blog. This will be short and sweet. Either you like the scenery or not – I am just going to do an overload of pictures, because it is difficult not to. By now you will probably be thinking well an elephant, is an elephant, is an elephant. – been there, done that, seen that! There are just so many animals and birds in large numbers that it is unavoidable not to take hundreds of pictures as your eye constantly takes in the view every time that the boat maneuvers to get close to the animals without scaring them. For me the most impressive part of the three hour boat cruise is the golden hour at sunset… Read more >

THE LITTLE CHURCH IN THE WOODS, KNYSNA

San Ambrosio Church is tucked away in the green heart of the Knysna forest. It is not glamorous or architecturally impressive, but rather tells the story of 32 pioneering Italian families that were brought to the forest to start up a silk farming industry, but then suffered unexpected hardships. In May 1881 the Italians were brought to Gouna with the intention and under the impression that there were an abundance of mulberry trees in the forest. They were to start up a silk industry on the African continent. It turned out that the mulberry trees that the woodcutters referred to were not related by any means to the real mulberry at all. After the project failed the families were abandoned by the government and had to make a living out of agriculture, cattle farming and some also became woodcutters. Thus in 1891 the small San Ambrosio Church was built to… Read more >