" I had a farm in Africa, at the foot of the Ngong Hills... The geographical position and the height of the land combined to create a landscape that had not its like in all the world. There was no fat on it and no luxuriance anywhere; it was Africa distilled up through six thousand feet, like the strong and refined essence of a continent. The colours were burnt and dry, like colours in pottery... The chief feature of the landscape, and of your life in it, was the air. Looking back on a sojourn in the African highlands, you are struck by a feeling of having lived for a time up in the air. The sky was rarely more than pale blue or violet, with a profusion of mighty, weightless, ever changing clouds towering up ... read more

"A militiaman came up to kill me. I was astonished because he was a friend. He used to come to our house every day. He farmed my father's fields...We used to play with him and he was like a brother to us, even though we were not from the same family. I asked him why he wanted to kill me when I had done nothing to hurt him. I begged him to take pity on me. He said nothing but just hit me on the head with a machete...when he thought I was dead, he left". Uwayisenga, 7, from the Genocide museum, Kigali. "The international community which passed laws fifty years ago with the specific mandate of ensuring that genocide was never again perpetrated, not only failed to prevent it happening in Rwanda but...actually helped create ... read more

"At least 18 supporters of the main opposition party in Tanzania's semi autonomous island of Zanzibar were wounded on Sunday after police opened fire on a crowd. "I heard the gunshots" said Salma Mohamed, a Zanzibar based reporter covering the political campaign there ahead of 30th October elections" IRIN url=http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=49441&SelectRegion=East_Africa,%20East_Africa,%20Great_Lakes&SelectCountry=TANZANIA irinnews "Welcome to paradise", said the hotel porter of the Africa House Hotel, Stone Town, Zanzibar. The Africa House, in an earlier incarnation was the colonial British Club. Mohamed the porter said this to me on Tuesday 11th of October. On the previous Sunday the police had opened fire on an unarmed crowd. So, I thought, but didn't say; paradise, yeah, if you're a rich tourist. The political unrest is not... read more

When you think of Mozambique, what comes to mind? Never ending dazzling white beaches, gorgeous turquoise blue lagoons, coral reefs, magical old towns and prawns the size of your fist. It doesn't? Why not? Probably, because the only knowledge you have of Mozambique comes from pictures on TV disaster relief appeals. Not only is Mozambique beautiful and the people welcoming, but it also has the added bonus that most of the world´s tourists haven´t made it here yet. A tropical paradise. But... there is trouble in paradise. The food security crisis that I mentioned in Swaziland in my last blog is also a problem in Mozambique. The problem is a regional one. In Mozambique 400,000 are at risk, in the region up to 10 million are estimated at risk this December. The problem is as much ... read more

It's been 3 weeks since my last blog, so this is going to be yet another lengthy article. In that time I've traveled from Cape Town to Durban along the coast, visiting places on the Garden Route and Sunshine coast. The Garden route, Sunshine coast and Wild coast are all marketing names for the stretch of coast between Cape Town and Durban. The first part of the coast is known as the Garden Route. which is very scenic coastline of indigenous forest, lagoons, dunes and beaches. Other highlights of my trip have to include the Cango Caves in Oudtshorn and the walking trail in the forests around Hogsback. Hogsback claims to be the inspiration for J.R.R. Tolkein's Lord of the Rings'. Tolkein was born in South Africa and is supposed to have visited Hogsback when he ... read more