Geo: 1.28941, 103.853.5 hour connection then the Airbus 330 to Brissie.... read more

Geo: -33.9262, 18.422The weather has turned and it's windy and rainy outside. Luckily we have completed all of our planned sight seeing. After a brief shopping excursion we have spent much of the time lazing inside.We finalised our ring search this morning and settled on an oval Tanzanite stone that a jeweller set into a ring by 3:30pm. I wonder why this should be impossible in Australia.Our pickup is 7am tomorrow for the long journey home via Joburg and Singapore. We are due in at 7:30pm on Sat, after 28 hours travelling. Apparently the plane is full so sadly we won't get the bonus of spare seats to spread out. C'est la vie!Shades of Franschhoek, our ride nearly got hijacked again! Our very enthusiastic driver turned up 35 min early, and we saw him and said ... read more

Geo: -34.3568, 18.4733A stunning 23 deg day, and we had a great day tour in a mini van with a Brit family and a US couple. Our driver Gerry (a black, 10 year veteran of the tourist industry) was charming and knowledgable and never stopped talking. Had another drive down the Atlantic Coast past all the beaches and beautiful peoples' mansions, a stop at Hout Bay, then down the Cape Peninsula. Stops at the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point, the penguins at Boulders Beach then finished with a walk around the botanic gardens. A long day, and Gerry stopped briefly in town at a Tanzanite vendor so we could take a look at their wares.Saw our first wild ostrich and a pair of eland in the Cape Reserve. There are huge numbers of painted ... read more

Geo: -33.906, 19.1148After a good breakfast we headed off for the 30 min drive to Franschhoek (French Corner). The place was jumping as Bastille Day celebrations were underway - markets, bunting, food and wine, everyone wearing red or blue berets, etc. The area was settled in the 1680s by Huguenot families escaping Catholic persecution, and their roots are still evident. There was a hiccup when our driver arrived early at the hotel and mistakenly picked up a Dutch couple who were waiting for a different tour. After a while they realised their mistake and returned to the hotel. No harm done.We visited a couple of vineyards via the "Franschhoek Wine Tram" which was a little disappointing. No commentary and it was a bus, not the tram shown on the brochure. We tried a chocolate and wine ... read more

Geo: -26.3093, 31.1477We left at 7am for the 45 minute drive to the Kingdom of Swaziland. Picked up a young Dutch couple and our guide Nick (another Marloth Park lodge owner/operator) gave us a good running commentary along the trip.At the border (passports needed) we saw a traditional village and got an explanation of village life. Then many of the chief's 25 children gave an exhibition of singing and dancing that was quite stirring. A stop at a local crafts village (weaving, mainly), across the Maguga Dam then another tourist stop based on a glassworks. A candle factory and lunch at Malkerns.The Kingdom's main agriculture is timber, with extensive eucalypt and pine plantations. Added to the other tropical fruits grown in this non-tropical area(?), Swaziland also has large pineapple farms.We've been told a couple of times ... read more