Good morning!

Yes… once again we’re up before dawn during our holiday… What’s supposed to be a relaxing time to rest and recharge from a long year of hard ‘graft’, feels rather less-so at five a.m., I think to myself, standing in the open-air foyer of the hotel… But it’s about 23 degrees – nice and cool – and the stars in the sky mean it’s going to be a sunny day… Read the rest »

Waiting to be released from an Amsterdam traffic light, the corner of my eye forced my head leftwards to the side of the road. There they were … two magic little words I never thought I’d see … Bolshoi Ballet.

I couldn’t believe my eyes. I strained to read the poster. Carre Theatre. Swan Lake. Showing Soon. My heart leaped into the air as triumphantly as the man in red tights. Read the rest »

If you had told me back in 1999, when I’d first heard about Verona’s famous opera venue, that we’d be watching AIDA out in the open, under the stars and a cool Italian breeze, I’d never have believed you.

Living in South Africa, Europe and the European culture seems like such an enigma. One of those things you’d love to do, but doubt you’ll ever get the chance … our cultural fortune changed when we moved to Holland, and we’re now able to visit these “exotic places”. Read the rest »

Rob and Janet Cuthbertson work very closely with their local Zulu communities. They believe that low-impact tourism is an excellent way to provide much-needed employment in the area and to preserve the magnificent beauty of Zululand.

During our stay with them, they organised a guided canoeing trip for us with Temba, a Zulu guide who is perhaps the epitome of responsible eco-tourism. Not only has Temba set up his own tour operating company, he is also encouraging his community to become more involved in eco-tourism. Read the rest »

In the hot, baking sun we drudged ourselves, albeit rather willingly, behind two armed game rangers from Orpen Camp in the Kruger National Park. Our guides, Carol and Thomas, had fetched us in their open game-drive vehicle from the ablution facilities at Tamboti Tented Camp where we were staying. After introducing themselves and giving us a briefing of the walk, we headed out into the bumpy bushveld. Read the rest »

The Kawaza School Fund is a private fund started by Robin Pope Safaris in 1988 to assist in improvements at Kawaza Basic School, one of the local schools in the Nsefu Chiefdom. They sent us this article in the beginning of January 2008.

Huge improvements have been made at Kawaza since this time and the school is almost unrecognizable from the first photos that were taken. Over the past 5 years other schools have been added to the list of schools that Kawaza School Fund assists. Read the rest »

Marcel was born in Holland and grew up in South Africa as his folks emigrated in 1971. Fortunately over the years, Marcel learned how to speak Dutch from his parents.

Another real blessing for us, he lived in Holland for five years (from 1990) and then returned to South Africa, where we met and got married. At the end of 2001, we moved to The Netherlands. Read the rest »

“No matter where you come from, as long as you’re a black man, you’re an African. No mind your nationality, you have got the identity of an African“. ~ Peter Tosh

Albeit in reverse, Peter Tosh sings about the way I felt a lot of the time while growing up in South Africa with my pale skin – I felt out of place in my country of birth. The old apartheid “European Only” signs indicated that a white skin meant that we were European, but we felt African. So, who and what are we? Are we South Africans? Are we English? Are we Dutch? None of the above? Read the rest »