We were packed and on the road by 0900 hours. Previously I had picked up a brochure about the Riccarton Markets that are held every Sunday and are the biggest in NZ. Riccarton just happens to be on our way so we decided to stop for an hour or so. An older man sitting in his tent advertising palm readings caught my eye so I went in for a 20 minute reading. "you're a very keen traveller, but despite your adventures you lead a very mundane life at home," he prophetised. "your IQ is high and you work well in an office and on computers, but I should give it all up to persue my creative side," he went on to say. What can I say, but I think he was right on the money. I ... read more

Departing Perth at 0805 hours and arriving in Sydney at 1530 hours, I entertained an idea that we should spend our 4 hour transit time constructively by taking the kids to see the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge (we have already seen it several times), my husband who doesn't like to take risks, decided we might miss our plane. "Might miss the plane" has happened to me so many times that I quite enjoy the adrenalin rush and am proud to say that I have never missed a flight yet. However, as anyone in a relationship knows, one must compromise, so the next 4 hours is a protracted affair. It takes a whole hour just to get the International Terminal and once there, as always, it's a challenge to keep oneself entertained. After spending ... read more

Zimabawe is a beautiful nation which has the capacity to be self sufficient. However, under the rule of its current dictator, Robert Mugabe, who lines his owns pockets with extorted wealth, the supermarket shelves are empty and his countrymen and women are forced to eat scraps from rubbish dumps just to survive. Meanwhile rich government officials act as the mafia to local businesses. This is why I don't condone travel to Zimbabwe with the current situation. Inflation at this time was around 2000%, but now (2009) it is about 100 times that and typhoid fever is rife with no medicines the treat the masses. Despite this, my tour started in Victoria Falls, rather than in Livingstone, a couple of kilometres away across the Zambezi in Zambia, which would have been preferable. One can be forgiven for ... read more

With Zimbabwe being our final destination, the route via Malawi and Mozambique is the only safe option due to political instability in Zambia some 15 years ago. The mysteriously named ‘”Express” train takes 22 hours from Dar Es Salaam to Mbeya, the last stop before it enters Zambia. At Mbeya my compatriot, Pamela and I are still about 30 kilometers from the border and we discover there is no public transport. It is no time to be shrinking violets so we muscle our way onto the back of an enterprising man’s utility. He is quick to recognise the supply and demand dilemma to the captive consumers and demands a fee of USD$5.50 in Tanzanian Shillings, an exorbitant amount considering we paid the equivalent to travel the last 840km. We succumb to the extortion and manage to ... read more