Blogs from Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa, Africa - page 37

Friday (19th) we drove into Johannesburg. Our last day on the truck. Sad! It's going to be weird to not be living out of the truck and in tents! We had our last group meal in the evening at Moyos, an African restaurant. The food was amazing! I had Ethiopian beef and vegetable samosas and they were delicious! Especially the Ethiopian beef! Leftovers for dinner the next day as well! The restaurant itself was cool too! Nice ambiance, decorations, etc. They also had people who sang for us and painted our faces. Good way to officially end our trip! We're staying at the Backpackers Ritz. It's alright, only one computer though which is lame! It's pretty quiet, not much activity, not much to do, but good for packing. Saturday (20th) we did some last minute shopping ... read more

Far too quickly for us the day to depart came around. I had a last morning shopping with Lynor going round some of the shops I hadn’t seen, I just like to walk around and see what they have, a lot more than we get in Ashford. We weren’t able to book in online unfortunately so left plenty of time for checking in. As we arrived we could see a huge queue snaking around for the desks we needed to go to. They are doing some building works at the airport and maybe that was the problem. Normally we check in our baggage and have a leisurely last drink and chat with Aaron and Lynor but that wasn’t possible this time so we said a very sad goodbye and joined the queue. They had about 6 ... read more

Again, having trouble uploading photos, so will try again later. My final few days in SA - a quiet day in Jozi (as its affectionately known by the locals - I don't feel quite the same affection, although it really wasn't the frightening experience I'd been expecting) was followed by a busy day - an interesting trip to Soweto, including a visit to the Hector Peterson museum (the 13 year old boy famously photographed after he was shot in the 1976 student uprising), lunch at the house of a lady named Pollina - how some locals make money, running a kind of restaurant from home - mutton and rice. Some policemen were having lunch too and said that Soweto has changed alot in the last couple of years - the guidebooks and the outside world are ... read more

The journey from Port St Johns to Sani Pass lodge was a long one, involving 4 different motor vehicles - but for much of the way the scenery was interesting enough to make it enjoyable. After a shuttle from the hostel up to Mthatha, then the Baz Bus to Kokstad, I was met by "Sani Pass Couriers" - a sweet man called Ian and his van - he was also picking up his son from the Greyhound, back from University for study leave, so for most of the journey to Underberg I eavesdropped on the lovely conversation of a father and son catching up. Sani Pass Lodge is a quiet spot - serious hikers only here. And bikers. They seem to be following me. I signed up for a trip up the Sani Pass and into ... read more

Well technically we are in Moranbah (or as my bro calls it Butt Fcuk Junction) Queensland, but due to a lack of reliable Internet access in Africa we were unable to keep the travel blog going. So instead here is the lowdown of our African adventure....and what an adventure it was! Tanzania It all kicked off with a very dodgy taxi from the airport in Dar Es Salaam. The windscreen was taped on and the wheels must have been bald as everytime we braked or rounded a corner the squealing noise and fishtailing was very scary. Alysha's introduction to Africa was a little rough and she would have been justified in feeling more than a little concerned. However, she took it all in her stride and once we reached our beachside accommodation we were able to ... read more