Struck by travel’s golden arrow

Published May 20, 2011

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“In the late afternoon we take a drive, then stop to listen to the sunset. In the early morning we walk with the Bushmen, who read for us the previous night’s newspaper.”

This delightful description, which comes from !Xaus Lodge in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, tells how guests do not just watch the sun sink below the horizon, but also listen for the change in noises in the bush as everything settles down for the night.

It also describes how the Khoisan interpret animal activities of the night before. While we city folk turn to the newspapers, they draw on their ancient skills.

Tales told by a representative of Boundless Southern Africa of walking for 18km in the Richterveld Transfrontier Park, as stars spangled the night sky, were equally evocative.

While the proverbial apple may keep the doctor away, for me travel is an unrivalled medicine. So while I did not exactly leap out of my sick bed after a bout of illness, it was with hopeful spirits that I headed for the famous Indaba travel fair in Durban last weekend.

Within minutes of arriving, the sparkle was back in my eyes, the spring was back in my step and eager anticipation replaced lethargy. Just the thought of travel was enough to work this minor miracle.

While delectable destinations beckoned on every stand, amazing photographs lured, and high-end lodges tantalised, I have singled out some of the more unusual travel offerings.

While it is mostly international visitors that buy into the concept of volunteer tourism, Voluntours would love to see more South Africans participate in this kind of tourism.

Imagine fetching building material for a project in a donkey cart; perhaps expressing your artistic skills by painting the wall of an Ndebele house with the geometric patterns for which they are famous; rescuing and medically assisting an injured leopard; performing an autopsy on a snake; helping a community set up business systems; teaching kids basic computer skills.

The options are unlimited, and while you are gaining insight into other cultures, you can have the satisfaction of doing something worthwhile.

At Inverdoorn Game Reserve & Safari Lodge in the Karoo, overnight guests can watch cheetah racing across the veld. The 10 000ha reserve is involved in the Western Cape Cheetah Conservation project, as well as acting as a genetic reservoir for endangered species. The daily run by the cheetah is to ensure they get the exercise so crucial to their wellbeing.

While there are many lodges at Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, Taita Falcon Lodge claims to be the only one downstream from the falls. Sitting on the viewing deck, visitors not only have a bird’s eye view of the gorge far below, but often find themselves on a level with the many raptors soaring the thermals.

A representative told how a peregrine falcon had taken a smaller bird right under the noses of guests on the deck. They say they have an arrangement whereby helicopters circling the falls avoid the Taita area, hence the preponderance of birds of prey.

Again it might appeal more to foreigners, but Lebo’s Soweto Backpackers offers not only accommodation, but an opportunity to gain insight into Soweto on a bicycle or tuk-tuk tour.

Interestingly, Durban’s Victoria Market was also exhibiting in style. Their representative said they had decided to go sleek, modern and contemporary, while not losing sight of the market’s 100 years of heritage and rich culture.

If a hike along the Wild Coast grabs you, the Wild Coast Meander (from Kob Inn to Morgan Bay), apparently the first slack-packing trail in the country, is still going strong. Then there’s the Wild Coast Amble from Morgan Bay to Glengariff just outside East London.

If you want to walk, but not venture too far, guests based at Mbotyi River Lodge can do the Pondo Walk, which goes out from the lodge either north or south along the coast, or into the interior, on short outings.

Maybe you might like a walk on the wild side with meerkats. A guide takes visitors on an early sunrise tour in the De Zeekoe Reserve, near Oudtshoorn, to get acquainted with these inquisitive little creatures.

A stargazing safari in the Kalahari sounded appealing; then there’s the world’s largest bird cage, with some 3 500 birds flitting about at Birds of Eden in Plettenberg Bay. The cage currently weighs 88 tons, but when new stainless steel mesh is fitted, it will shed 80 tons in weight but gain capacity.

Of course, it is those distant destinations that really give me the travel bug. The stunning beaches of Rodrigues Island in the Indian Ocean; the deserted beaches and soaring jungle-clad peaks of Sao Tome and Principe, off the west coast of Africa; Mozambique’s azure sea and snowy beaches; the Botswana Odyssey; the mystique of Namibia’s deserts; and a boat ride along the Nile River to the base of the magnificent Murchison Falls in Uganda, were all carrots to this willing traveller.

An interesting and tasty snack was the Venda vegetable biltong, made from dried pumpkin flowers, but I refused a dried mopane worm and some insect that looked suspiciously like a cockroach, despite being assured it was a delicacy.

The only downside to the day was that I lay in bed that night planning travel itineraries so fervently that sleep eluded me.

Some website and e-mail details:

!Xaus Lodge: www.xauslodge.co.za; [email protected]

Boundless Southern Africa: www.boundlesssa.com; [email protected]

Voluntours: www.voluntours.co.za; info@ voluntours.co.za

Inverdoorn Game Reserve: www.inverdoorn.com; [email protected]

Taita Falcon Lodge: www.taitafalcon.com; [email protected]

Victoria Street Market: www.victoriastreetmarket.co.za; [email protected] or [email protected]

Lebo’s Soweto Backpackers: www.sowetobackpackers. com; [email protected]

Wild Coast Amble/Meander: www.wildcoastholidays.co.za; The Pondo Walk: [email protected]

Meerkat Adventures: www.dezeekoe.co.za; [email protected]

Stargazing Safaris from Molopo Safari Camp in the Kalahari: e-mail: [email protected]

Birds of Eden, Plettenberg Bay: www.birdsofeden.co.za

Rodrigues Tourism Office: [email protected]; [email protected]

Sao Tome and Principe: Africa’s Eden www.africas-eden.com; [email protected]

Azura Retreats on Benguerra Island, Mozambique: www.azura-retreats.com; [email protected]

Botswana Tourism: www.botswanatourism.co.bw; [email protected]

Namibia Tourism: www.journeynamibia.com

Uganda Nile River trip with Wild Frontiers: www.wildfrontiers.com; [email protected] - Sunday Tribune

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