New Zealand – 31st Oct 2008 - Day 8

Today marked the inaugural event of the Tour de Auckland cycling event. So, we had a quick breakfast where we told Karina all about our Africa trip as she is very interested in visiting the area.

After breakfast, we drive back to the Westin hotel, where we are staying tonight. We dropped off the car and headed to the Ferry Terminus to catch the 9am ferry to the Island of Waiheke, where the bike event was set to start.

There were no spectators or bunting, probably due to the fact that only Fiona and I were in the event!

We struggled to find the bike rental shack. Once located, nobody could be found to rent us some mountain bikes. After going back to the ferry terminus and then back to the bike shack, someone arrived and we rented a couple of bikes.

Fiona had decided that cycling to a place called Stoney Batter could be good, as there was good hiking to he had. So, we started our bike journey.

Within a few minutes we hit our first hill. It went on for a while before dipping down to the coast before going back into a steep hill. This pattern of steep hill with steep decline continued for three hours!



Some of the hills were so steep, they were both painful and very slow to climb. We eventually hit dirt roads which also went up and down, up and down. After three and a half hours, we decided we would not be able to reach our destination in time. We need to catch the 4pm ferry back to Auckland as we are meeting Fiona’s university friend in town at 6.30pm.

We sat down for a few minutes, ate some ham, took some pictures and then set off back. On the way back, Fiona thought it would be good to use a different coastal route. This route turned out to be even harder. We met up with some chaps who we had seen at the bike rental hut earlier in the day. They were from Singapore although one was American. They were faster than us, which really hurt!



We ended up at Palm Beach Bay, where we had a cup of coffee. We set off up the hills yet again. Eventually we had to get off the bikes as the hills were simply ridiculous.

We saw some wonderful feathered friends, a small bird with a bright yellow head and some brightly colored parrots, which we were far to quick for us to photograph.

We wanted to taste some of the local wines, but the vineyards were at the top of another huge hill. We just managed to climb it, collapsing in the wine tasting room of Cable Bay Vineyards. The wine lady was very understanding, giving us water to quench our thirst.

After regaining our breath, we tasted seven of the wines they produce. Very good indeed, so good in fact, that we ended up purchasing six bottles, four Rose and two Chardonnay.



The problem now was to get them back to the port. We managed to stuff the bottles into our back packs and set off down the hill to the port.

We arrived in time to meet the chaps from Singapore. There was nobody at the cycle shack, so we used our chains and popped the keys into the letter box. We jumped on the ferry exhausted. This island is NOT ideal for cycling at all. It is very pretty with some wonderful, new, contemporary houses being built in the costal areas.

We staggered back to the hotel, checked in and relaxed in the massive bath for as long as possible, before dressing and walking across Auckland to a Thai restaurant where we met Elaine and her husband Steve.

We had an enjoyable evening with them, catching up on 19 years for life. The last time we met was in a Chinese restaurant in Edinburgh, just before they left to live in NZ. They came back to our hotel for coffee where we chatted for ages. They eventually had to go as Elaine had to be in work for 7am the next morning.

Elaine mentioned that they would love to visit Europe, especially Italy, so we hope to see them again soon.

New Zealand - 30th Oct 2008 - Day 7

Sue and Steve gave us a tasty breakfast, Steve popped a CD full of some of his best photo’s into Johns hand on the way out. He has so many, some of which he sells during the winter in local art gallery’s.

We said our goodbye’s to Sue, Steve and Sheba and headed off to the west coast for some hiking. We really enjoyed our stay with them, especially the sailing: (See http://www.kingfishercharters.co.nz/) .

We stopped at a house high up in the forest to ask for directions, as the roads had become narrow, rally type, dirt tracks. Great fun to drive!

John went into the court yard to be met by two locals. The husband was about 7 foot tall and built like a lumber jack on steroids. His wife was much more impressive!

They were very interested in John’s request for directions to the hiking areas. He warned John not to go too far into the forest, due to the numerous wild boars. He then showed John his mornings work.

A huge, freshly gutted, male boar was sprawled across the ground, his guts sitting in a neat pile next to his severed head. The knives glinting in the sun.

His wife was extremely proud of her husband. She was grinning from ear to ear, showing all three teeth! They gave more mixed directions, a few more wild boar warnings and wished John well on his hiking. Lovely, warm people who live off the land and don’t bother with dentists.

Half an hour later, we arrived at Waipoua forest, where they have some of the largest Kauri trees in New Zealand. They put Giant Redwoods in the shade. The walks were quite short, but the trees were magnificent, the biggest being 16.8 meters wide.





After almost two hours of forest walking, we jumped back into Brian (our very old Nissan estate) and drove to Matakohe, where they have a museum dedicated to the Kauri tree. This tree has extremely hard wood. They make a whole range of utensils and art from this stuff, most of which costs an arm and a leg.

We also drove through some pristine examples of NZ rain forest (including the rain). The tall fern trees are unique to this part of the world. At this time of year, some of the giant, hairy fronds are still unfurling. They look surreal.





After a cuppa, Brian took us south to Devonport, our next B&B stop. We are heading back to Auckland for Friday, so we can go out with Fiona’s old University friend Elaine Veale, who has lived in NZ for over twenty years.

We drove through heavy showers, arriving at Karin’s Garden Villa early evening. (See http://www.karinsvilla.com/). Karin comes from Germany and loves cats. It would have been good to know as John has an allergy to cats. Everywhere else in the area is booked out, due to the Auckland marathon on Sunday.

We are hoping to find better walking in this area. The hiking so far has been less challenging than we had hoped for. We both need the exercise, as we have put on weight over the last few months, which needs to be off in time for the 2009 skiing season.

Our initial impression of New Zealand? It is certainly a unique part of the world. A cross between England, Canada and the Aussie rain forests. The people are very friendly and everything is spotless and well maintained. The food is average and, due to getting almost three NZ dollars to the pound, it’s relatively good value for us Brits. Weather wise the best time to visit is February and March. We are still very much in their spring time and the weather is unpredictable. Outside of Auckland the radio stations are rubbish, unless you love Iron Maiden, Deep Purple or Cliff Richard. On balance, it is a good place to be!

We walked to a local pizza pad, recommended by Lonely Planet. Wonderful Pizza.

New Zealand - 29th Oct 2008 - Day 6

Having seen the weather forecast the previous night we were expecting clouds and rain today. So, yes, you've guessed it, the sun was out!!

We sat in the Sue and Steve's lounge updating the blog, before sitting down with a German couple who were very big in every way. We had heard the husband vomiting yesterday evening , not very pleasant when your reading your book, eating Bombay mix!

Anyway, he was not looking much better this morning and only had a cup of coffee for breakfast. His wife in the other hand compensated for his lack of eating and had everything going, and more!

Steve showed us the weather map which hinted at rain, but he was sure it would remain dry. So, we agreed to go sailing around the bay of Islands for the day.

Wed met Steve & Sue down at the quay. A couple for mates of theirs from Auckland had driven up for a few days. So Gary and Brenda joined us for the day. Gary is also a very keen yachtsman as is Brenda.



What a fab yacht she was. We were soon zooming out of the bay and into the open water, passing small islands on the way. The water was a mixture of blues and greens and very clear, if chilly this time of year.



Flash backs to our Greek sailing holiday came flooding back. However, compared to the sails on our much loved Greek yacht, Babette, the sails in this lovely were huge. Steve and Gary did most of the hoisting whilst Fiona and I directed operations!!!

After some tea and wonderful home made fruit muffins, we anchored off Army bay and walked up to the top of the Island and then down to one of the beaches, where Brenda began breaking off fresh oysters, cleaning them in the crystal clear waters and then quaffing them down. John also joined in the feast, but stopped after one. They tasted OK but nothing to write home about. Brenda on the other hand would have continued given the chance.



Steve had gone back to the yacht to fix a broken winch, so he came back to the beach in the dingy, picked us all up and took us back to the yacht.

Sue presented us with a wonderful lunch of cooked meats, cheese, home made bread, salad, fruit and various drinks.



After lunch we made our way back to Russell and still the sun was shining and the sky mainly blue.

The wind was up and we reached the harbour at 4pm. After taking our kit back to the B&B (Villa Russell), we took Sheba the villa doggy for a walk up to Flagstaff hill, a steep walk which offers great views of the bay and surrounding area. Sheba is a very strong doggy and on a few occasions she took John for a walk into the bushes down very steep banks. Man, is she strong!!



In the evening, we sat on Steve & Sue's porch watching Steve in a yacht race in the bay below. Every week 6+ people from the town have a weekly race in the bay. The wind was blowing hard and the angle of some of the yacht's was impressive.



As we watched the racing, the expected rain wandered slowly around the bay. It had been a great day, it was wonderful to get back onto the water again after our fun in the Greek sun.

We continued to watch the yacht race from the sun terrace. Steve and his mate easily won the race. They have a super yacht witht a racing hull. Steve has been saiing since he was in nappies, and it shows.

Tomorrow we leave the Bay of Islands and head south west to walk in Waipoua forest and then we head for Devonport for a days cycling on one of the lslands.

New Zealand - 28th Oct 2008 - Day 5

We had planned some outdoor activities today, so, as expected the weather was cloudy! Grrrrrrrrrrr!!! We had a leisurely breakfast talking to our hosts who have a daughter living in the UK. Steve is into photography in a big way. He showed us some of his snaps which were taken using a MASSIVE lens.

We jumped into the car and headed for a beach that Sue had recommended called Matai Bay. When the arrived the sun came out. The views were magnificent. We were the only people on the entire beach which had the whitest sand, clear cool water and lots of amazing shells. We walked the entire length of the beach, had a paddle and took in the views.

We drove back inland to a forest area which our map suggest had some walking. The roads became very dusty as we twisted through the thick forest. They have trees here that look like palm trees but are in fact massive ferns. The forests are covered with them, they look very tropical.

We eventually found the walking centre where the management were running a first aid course in the car park. At first we thought it was real. A chap was on the floor covered in bandages, looking in a very poor state. One of the chaps came over to us and said it was just an exercise!

He was a very friendly chap and he told us where we could do a short nature walk through the forest. There were longer walks, but we did not have time for that.

The walk took us through dense forest where they had the fattest, tallest trees we have seen so far this year. These trees must be three meters wide and extremely tall.
After the walk we headed back to our B&B where we were met by Sheba, the B&B resident dog. She is a very sweet natured Labrador, Boxer cross. She gave us a great welcome as did Sue.



We had dinner at a restaurant called Gannet. We both had the lamb which was yummy.

We discussed the next few days activities due the weather forecast not looking great. It looks like we are not going to get the best of New Zealand weather as it is a little early in the year for that. New Zealand is all about outdoor activities, so the weather is an important factor.

New Zealand - 27th Oct 2008 - Day 4

Sunshine at last. The sky was blue this morning and Auckland looked good. After breakfast we jumped in the car and began our long drive to our next destination, Russell. This little town is further North than Auckland.

As we drove out of Auckland the temperature began to rise. After a few hours we came across some beautiful sandy bays. We stopped at one and John managed a quick paddle. It was a shame that on such a great sunny day we were sitting in the car.
We tried to find some other bays to stop at on the way but were foiled by the roads which managed to miss the best bays.



We arrived at Russell for about 4.30pm. The town was very cute and the bay looked wonderful in the sun, with all the yachts.



Our B&B has a great view over the bay and harbor. We popped down to town for a bite to eat and hit the sack, tired and grumpy after a long, long drive!

New Zealand - 26th Oct 2008 - Day 3

Sun streamed into the room this morning, so we decided to get up and have an early breakfast so we could drive to the west side of Auckland and do some walking.



By the time we had finished breakfast the clouds were moving in. By the time we set off in the car it was beginning to rain and the air was cold.

We drove for over an hour trying to find the walking area. John ended up using his iPhone to find out where we were.

The rain began to tip down. We ended up stopping at a garage. Luckily the lady knew exactly where we needed to go. We not that far at all.

When we reached the beginning of the walk, the sun began to peep out from behind the clouds. However, after half an hours walking the heavens opened and the heavy rain and hail began to batter us. We tried sheltering under some trees but the rain soon came through.

After ten minutes we were soaked through, so decided to make our way back to the car. By the time we reached the car the rain had stopped but the cold wind was still making things unpleasant.

We drove to a near by beach. The wind was blowing the dark sand along the beach, stinging our legs.





We thought about trying the first walk again, but the wind was too cold. It was strange to experience this weather as this is rain forest and it looks as if it should be hot and sticky.

As we made our way back to Auckland the breaks on the car began making a terrible sound. we stopped off at the car rental office, again! This time we upgraded to a newer model. It is still very good value but we feel better in the new car.

In the afternoon the weather began to clear, so we drove to Devonport, the other side of the inlet. The walk was bracing in the strong wind, but we found a beach and bay which were out of the wind. By now the sun was out so we warmed ourselves on a beach bench.

The weather so far has not been that great. Auckland is a nice enough place, but the bad weather does not show it off at its best.

In the evening we went to an Italian restaurant called Da Vinci's. However, the restaurant was at the very top of Auckland. It took over half an hour to walk too and the last ten minutes were almost vertical. By the time we arrived John was sweating and knackered.

The meal was very poor. John had a pizza which looked and tasted like a frozen job. Fiona had a steak with tomato and Cheese which tasted of nothing!! Not a great recommendation from our hotel staff at all!

On the way home we brought some sweets as we still felt hungry. We watched another video and fell asleep.

New Zealand - 25th Oct 2008 - Day 2

The wind and rain had been keeping us awake during the long night. Jet lag had kept us awake for some of the night. At 3am we watched BBC news over a cuppa. At 6am we woke up properly and had breakfast at 7.30am but not before taking some photo's from our view of a very surreal looking Auckland Tower. The cloud was low enough to touch the top mast and the pink lighting gave the whole tower a strange look.





The boats opposite our room looked great in the dawn light.



The rain was not too heavy so we decided to take the car to a local aquarium, given a good write up in the Lonely Planet guide to Auckland.

On the way to the Aquarium the clouds grew blacker and the heavens opened. It threw down rain for half an hour. We arrived at the Aquarium which was OK, but not as wonderful as we had expected. They have a large indoor penguin enclosure with water, snow etc. The under water walkway was good fun. They have some large sharks in the tanks including a brown one.


The penguins were quite large but our favourites were the tanks of sea horses.

When we came out, John realised he had left the car lights on. Yes, the battery was flat!!

Luckily we had the mobile, so John called the rental company who dispatched a chappie to jump start the car. we had decided earlier to change the car due to a number of noise issues.

We went to the car rental offices and, after a long wait and a cup of coffee, were given our replacement car. It's identical in make and model but this one only has 156,000 miles on the clock and is much less noisy.

We brought the car back to the hotel, changed and headed for the tourist info office in order to find some good local walks. Walking is a good way to get over jet lag (according to Fiona).

We chose our walk and headed off. The weather was now not so good with frequent heavy showers. we walked through the local park, via the huge University campus and up to Mount Eden, which had wonderful views over the city. Well they would have been wonderful had it not been for the heavy rain and strong winds!!

We headed back to the City visited a few shops and returned back to the hotel in the pouring rain.

We had walked for four hours and the jet lag was not so bad. Well done Fiona!!

We rested, watched the city and the rain from our huge windows and then dressed for dinner. We had decided on a local Indian restaurant.

The restaurant was on the Quay front but it was not that good. The waitor was on another planet and the Chicken Tikka Massala we had was very hot and not that flavoursome.

Still, the beer and wine was good!!

We watched a horror movie, called Shutter, in bed and drifted of to sleep.

New Zealand - 24th Oct 2008 - Day 1

Travelling long distances is never much fun but the flights from London to Auckland via Singapore and Sydney were not too bad.

BA managed to put us right in the middle of the club cabin on the first leg of the journey and would have put us back in the same seats for the second leg. However, John managed to get the check in staff to swap us out for a window seat.

By the end of the last flight we were beginning to flag. We arrived at Auckland, picked up our bags and took the free bus to our car rental office. We had booked the cheapest possible car hire and boy did it show.

The Toyota was very old, had 176,000 miles on the clock, made a wining noise but had character. We drove into the centre of Auckland and found our hotel on the quay side area.

The Westin is a new hotel and very nice to boot. Our room has a harbour view and is light and airy. (See: www.westin.com/auckland) .

The weather was shooty shiny but dry. We fought the jet lag and walked around the trendy dock area, checking out the restaurants, bars and other activities. Earlier we had watched people throwing themselves off the side of the Auckland Tower in a kind of ab sailing event.

John was feeling very fatigued with the jet lag. We walked for about two hours and then headed back to the room for a bath and a snooze. First impressions of Auckland are favourable. Very English, very clean and trendy in places.

We ordered room service, watched a video and fell asleep.

Africa – 10th Oct 2008 – Day 40

We had booked our tickets for the infamous Robben Island, Nelson Mandela’s place of incarceration during the apartheid years, over a week ago, so popular is the Island and the hunger for understanding the madness that was apartheid.

After a quick breakfast, we headed for the docks. As usual, we arrived too early, so we had a coffee and watched seals in the dock area. Suddenly, they announced the bridge was to close, leaving us stranded on the wrong side. We legged it across and were soon queuing for the fast catamaran across to the Island.

We sat up top in the sun. Bad move! After just 5 minutes from port we were being freeze dried by the Atlantic ocean. We persevered, arriving at Robben Island like a couple of blocks of ice.

Once on dry land we soon warmed up and walked with about 50 others to the first stop of our tour, the infamous jail where the political prisoners were held. Our tour guide was an ex inmate who had supported the ANC. The tour was actually quite disappointing, as many of his stories were about his experiences in other jails.

We saw the cell in which Nelson was held for 18 years. He had a hard time, with a very slim mat and just three blankets to sleep on all year round. They were forced to endure 8 hours of hard labour a day, breaking lime stones. Nelson went partially blind during his experience.

The amazing thing, is that these ex political prisoners do not preach revenge or hatred. Just that we all learn from the experience and are able to forgive and reconciliate.

We returned to the mainland, but this time inside the boat.

When we reached the hotel, we chilled out around the pool deck. Unfortunately, a live band was playing badly just down the beach, so we had to endure three hours of that. It was so loud that even the iPod could not drown the noise.

We showered, changed and left for the airport. We checked into the BA lounge (from where l am typing this blog entry) and awaited our return to the UK, reading the very down beat news about the UK. Ho hum!!

Heathers picture (on the laptop) managed to lift our spirits, as did the wine and bubbly. We have enjoyed Africa, but six weeks has seemed like a long time. Maybe, its due to us getting towards the end of our year off. Traveling is great fun and not working is even better, but maybe, just maybe, you can have too much of a good thing…….. Or maybe not!!

We have certainly missed Heather.

New Zealand is next.

Africa – 9th Oct 2008 – Day 39

Smoked salmon on toast in the morning sun, sitting under a pagoda of vines. What a great way to start a day. The weather was perfect this morning, so we made the most of it before checking out of our hotel. It’s a great place, our room was perfect.

During breakfast a visiting dog came into the court yard, to be met by the owners four dogs. For a while we thought blood would be spilt. Certainly teeth were on show and a lot of growling. It ended without too much violence!

We drove down the N1 towards Cape Town, but came in the wring side, so it took a lot of Fiona’s navigation skills to get us on the correct path to Camps Bay and our next hotel, The Bay Hotel.

We checked into the hotel, swapped our back room for a beach front room and then drove to the beginning point for out hike up to The Lions Head. This impressive peak, stands on its own besides Table Mountain.

We began the hike easily enough, passing a launching pad for Para gliders on he way up. We had seen a couple floating down to the bay below.

To start with, we had assumed you could not walk to the very top as it looked far too steep. However, we met a couple coming down who informed us otherwise. The hike began harder and steeper until we found ourselves by a long metal chain. Luckily for ud a local couple were about to scupper up it. They assured us it was safe, so we began our ascent up the rock face, holding onto the chain for dear life.

We made it too the top of the chain. The hike continued up very steep rock until we reached the top of Lions Head. What an amazing view of the bays below, cape town, the twelve apostles and table mountain.

We met a local chap, who took a couple of photo’s of us. He had been in the UK in March to see some football matches. He was amazed how cold it had been!!

The walk down was equally as challenging and we reached the bottom, three hours after the start.

We drove back to the hotel, shared a sandwich and then went down to the beach which is opposite the hotel. John wanted to swim in the Atlantic. However, the water was incredibly cold, much colder than the UK. It took him a while to get under the water but the large waves helped with the process.

We made our way up to the sun deck and pool area and chilled for the rest of the afternoon. It was very pleasant and the sun was not too hot.

We then made our way to one of our favorite restaurants in Camps bay called Tuscany Beach. They gave us a window seat which had a fantastic view but all the windows were open, so after a few minutes Fiona got very cold so we asked to be moved to some where a little warmer. The waiter told us they wanted to close the windows but 2 guys sitting at one of the tables had to leave before they could do this as the doors were concertinaed against their table.

We had a lovely meal, and even at the end the 2 guys hadn’t moved so they still had the windows at the front of the Restaurant open, at this point it was really cold, so we were very glad we had asked to be moved.

We got back to the hotel at about 0900 and decided to watch a video.

Tomorrow is our last day in Africa, we have had a fantastic time, we have seen so much on this leg of our trip but we are ready to come home for a few days before our next adventure to New Zealand.

Africa – 8th Oct 2008 – Day 38

Better weather greeted us this morning. Cloudy nut dry. So, after a wee breakfast, we headed down town, purchased our hiking day permits (£1.50 each) and drove up to the park.

The walk began slowly, but after a while the weather began to improve. We reached the mountain ridge where we came across a very wet part of the walk.

We turned back and walked back down. As we descended the sun came out. As we neared the last mile, a large troupe of baboons joined us. The walk ended in brilliant sunshine.

Fiona had an idea, what about visiting a few vineyards by pedal bike????

We drove down town, hired two bikes and began pedaling to our first location. Bad idea Fiona!! The cycle was all up hill. We arrived at the first vineyard, hot sweaty and out of breath. John was not in the mood for a tasting, so Fiona tasted three which were fine.

We decided to visit the place where Nelson Mandela was released, but after cycling for almost an hour, we realised it was too far. So we checked the map and found a route taking us through some breathtaking country. The road soon turned into a dirt track.

We climbed a huge hill and ten down the other side to arrive at our hotel, where we sat in the sun and recovered over a cup of coffee and tea.

We cycled back into town, dropped of the bikes and had a wee glass of bubbles to celebrate our three hours of hard hiking followed by three hours of cycling up hills. Shauna would have been impressed!!

We read our books on the sun loungers, before watching Shrek 3 on the TV.

We had a pizza in town. Great pizza but not much atmosphere!

Tomorrow we are driving back to Camps Bay and the next day our Africa adventure ends.

Africa – 8th Oct 2008 – Day 37

The sound of heavy rain greeted us this morning. We pulled back the curtains, the valley was shrouded in black cloud, the wind was light but the rain was falling in torrents.

We had breakfast and decided that it was too miserable to go for a hike. Fiona thought it would still be a good idea to go for a walk into town. John tried to delay things by doing emails first.

Sky News was playing in the lounge area and the news was particularly depressing. The UK government had just announced a £200 Billion bail out for the banks, but the markets were still falling. More banks had said they were in trouble and a big Icelandic bank has gone to the wall with 350,000 UK deposits at risk. What a bloody mess. One minute the banks are paying their top brass tens of millions in bonus payouts, golden hellos and platinum goodbyes, the next minute they expect us to bail them out. What a nerve!!

After emails and two cups of tea, the rain was still heavy. We walked into town with an umbrella each. We booked a restaurant, visited the Tourist Information office and then walked back. The day was cold and wet, not what was expected.

Driving seemed the only option, so we went to Stellenbosch, another wine producing area near by. The weather over there was better but the town was a real disappointment. It is more of an industrial wine production centre than a pretty wine producing area.

We wanted to find a particular producer called JC L’Roux. Whilst trying to find the place we drove into a large shanty area just outside of the centre.

It’s the one thing that has disappointed us about South Africa. They may have dumped the worse aspects of apartheid, but the black population are still woefully poor compared to the Whites, which still seem to own everything. The shanty’s are a disgrace to this country. Black people regularly beg on the street, especially children. All menial work is undertaken by the blacks. South Africa has a great deal of changing to do, but nobody seems in any rush.
We found the vineyard and enjoyed the £2 tasting event. We ended up buying two mini bottles of a sparking red, which John loves. We also bought a bottle of bubbles for Johns Dad.

We came back to our Hotel and snoozed for a few hours, due to the effects of the wine tasting!

In the evening we went back to The Salmon Bar for s light evening meal.

We watched a weird film called 300. We only managed about an hour before turning off the TV and zonking out.

Africa – 7th Oct 2008 – Day 36

Today began a bit later than usual, due to us being woken during the night by a very nasty odor. The smell was so bad, that it woke John up.

He looked around the room trying to find the source of the smell which woke Fiona up too. Fi agreed that the pong was not good, so John continued to search the room. After a while, John opened the main door to the garden. The pong was coming from outside. We shut all the windows and eventually drifted back to sleep.

In the morning the pong was gone. Either it was an animal or maybe some plants. It’s a mystery.

After breakfast, we checked out of the B&B and headed to our next destination, The Auberge Clermont Hotel in the wine town of Franschhoek. The drive took us through some very pleasant countryside. We stopped to get some petrol. A few minutes after leaving to petrol station, a sheep lorry started to flash us furiously. We did not want to stop but eventually decided too. The chap at the garage had left our petrol cap undone and our fuel door wide open. We thanked the lorry driver and continued on our way.

We decided to travel to Franschhoek via the mountain pass, instead off the tunnel. As we climbed the pass we hit cloud level. The area looked similar to the Alps as we descended into the valley below.

Franschhoek looked great in the sun and we soon found The Auberge Clermont and checked into a wonderful room. Huge with a massive bath and enormous bed. Our room faces the rows of vines and the whole places nestles in the valley.

We had a cuppa and then chatted to the host about the various wine routes. He also recommended a restaurant for tonight and a spa where we can get a massage (Still aching from yesterdays hike). Everything is such good value here, even the massage!

We handed on some laundry and then walked into town for a spot of lunch. We found a very nice Salmon bar which flies it’s salmon in from Loch Duart in Scotland. We had a small baguette of salmon bites, a glass of wine and a glass of bubbly…. £6.50 the lot!

We booked our massages and walked back to our hotel for a relaxing afternoon around the pool. However, as the afternoon drew on, the clouds increased. So, we relaxed in our room and then sat in the lounge area where we could update the blog. The phone rang to inform us that our massage had been double booked. So that was the end of that.

In the evening we made use of the massive bath with candles, Champagne and bath salts. Very relaxing indeed.

We popped into town for another great value meal. The pound has strengthened even more, we now get over 15 Rand to the pound. Amazing! You can buy a very large four bedroom detached luxury pad here with masses of land for less than £200K.

Africa – 6th Oct 2008 – Day 35

After a typical South African breakfast of yogurt, cereals, toast, cold meats and cheese we put on our walking clobber and hit the trail for 8.45am.

We had decided today would be an exercise day, John had chosen the trail, a 16k hike to the top of a mountain, just outside the town, called Blaupunt.

The weather was sunny but cool. We found the park area, crossed three fords and began the hike. It took a while to find the trail, which was marked by White pained foot prints. After half an hour we came across the sign marking the trail to the top. On the way we walked through some great flora and forna, including hundreds of large white lilies. Some of the flowers were 9” across. At some points on the valley floor, we were walking up small rivers, managing to keep our feet dry using well placed rocks. A lot of trees were down, making some of the path quite tricky to navigate. We came across many different brightly coloured flowers. The over riding scent was of curry, mint and lemon given off by the plants and bushes along the trail.

Once off the valley floor we began the upward hike which went on for almost two hours. At times we were on our hands and knees navigating the endless switch backs up to the top of the mountain. Near the top, we came across a form of heather with the most flowers we have even seen.

We reached the top at just after mid day, exhausted. It was probably one of the most tiring hikes we have every done. The views were amazing but the wind was blowing a hoolie. After a 15 minute stop, be started the trip home. To begin with, the trail was OK, but as we walked further down the trail became very steep and we became more and more exhausted as the heat of the day increased.

As we reached the valley floor, we came across lots of frogs, a few deer and a troop of noisy monkeys.

We eventually reached the park office where we had to pay 40 rand. Luckily the lady had plenty of water as our water bottles had run out.

We eventually reached our B&B a full 7 hours and 10 minutes after we began.

After a shower and a quick rest, we walked to the local café for coffee and cakes.

We chilled around the pool and then walked to the local posh hotel for our evening meal which was awful. The hotel was like something out of the 50’s and the food tasted like it had been in the oven all that time.

We walked back to our B&B and did not see anyone. This place is a little spooky, it had the feel of a deserted town any time after 6pm.

Africa – 5th Oct 2008 – Day 34

Today we left Hermanus for our next destination, Montagu, in the wine region, north of the coast. The lady at La Fontaine suggested we visit another bay en route. So we drove along the coast to Arniston, the most southerly point in Africa.

As we drove the clouds began to build. When we arrived at Arniston, we were not that impressed. The bay was very pretty and Whales were around. We walked into one of the old parts of the town and quickly regretted it. The place was full of small stone cottages, littered with old bikes and fridges and full of fighting dogs.



We walk out of the area back down to the bay where we befriended a collie dog who wanted to play. He followed us up the beach until we threw stones which he quickly fetched back to us.

The sun began to come out so we sat on the stone bench looking for the Whales. Suddenly a large Whales breached, heaving about 70% of his bulk into the air, crashing down with a huge splash. As always the camera was in the bag!!



We jumped into the car and drove to the other side of the town. What a contrast. We came across a wonderful bay, with white sand, turquoise sea and yet more Whales. John went for a paddle in the sea which is both the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean, as this is where they meet. The sea was very cold, but some people were swimming anyway.

We left Arniston, heading north for Montagu. The clouds quickly melted away as we drove North along the 319 and then the 317. This route is wonderful, starting with wide open rolling hills, full of sheep, cows, horses, ostrich and these amazingly pink flowers.

The roads are very long and very straight snaking up and over the rolling hills. The colours of the fields were constantly changing with the odd peaty river meandering through the countryside. As we neared the mountains the vista grew wider and wider.

We stopped at smallish town called Bonnievale for a drink. However, we decided to have a small snack. Fiona had a chicken pitta and John had a Chicken Liver Pitta. However, when they arrived they were huge and delicious and cost £2.50 each. The whole meal came to £6.50 including a tea and a water. South Africa is such good value for us Brits.

We finished our meals and phoned our respective parents. Good news. John’s Dad is beginning to feel better and is now back home. Fiona’s Mum & Dad were also fine but not too impressed with the Scottish weather and lack of blog!!

We drove to Montagu and found our next B&B, The Malherbe Guest House
(see http://www.malherbe-guesthouse.com/ ). We have a great garden villa opposite the swimming pool and main garden. We settled in, walked into town and then crashed out around the pool enjoying the sun and the higher temperatures than we experienced along the coast.

It being a Sunday, many restaurants were shut, so we went to one of the few that were open and had a small meal.

Africa – 4th Oct 2008 – Day 33

We woke up to a great sunny day, the wind had calmed right down. We had breakfast on the terrace with the glass windows open. The scene from the terrace is just amazing, yet again many Whales in the bay. We were lucky enough to see a Whale breach 5 times, yet again no camera to capture the event.

We walked down to the rocks near the hotel. Fiona searched for breaching Whales, John was mesmerized by the size of the waves crashing against the rocks. The waves here have been huge ever since we arrived.

We walked down to the small port for 10.30, where we paid our money for the Whale Watching boat trip.

The trip was very disappointing as we only went about 200 yards out of the harbor wall and watched five Whales with about 70 other people. We did see them slightly closer, but not much. Certainly not worth the money!!

We walked down to the beach front bar, Bientang’s Cave, and had a wee drink in the last of the sun. We watched a young chap jump in the sea and then struggle to get out. We could not work out why he jumped in as the currents here are very strong and they get the odd White Shark pottering around. At one time he was begin pushed against the rocks by the waves.

He eventually got out and then proceeded to try and dry off. Very odd!

The boat trip had made us quite cold, so we came back to the B&B, had a hot bath and then a quick snooze, before watching the Whales from our terrace.
We went to the Fisherman’s Cottage restaurant for our evening meal. We both had the sea food curry which was delicious. However, the restaurant was a bit chilly, even though they had a fire.

Africa – 2nd Oct 2008 – Day 31

The weather overnight had been very wet and windy but we woke up to blue skies and sunshine but still very windy.

We had breakfast then decided to go to a museum in Cape Town called district 6 (it had been recommended by a couple we met in Namibia.

The museum was very small but the message very poignant. When we got inside, 30 black school kids arrived and the main guy at the museum gave them a 30 minute presentation on the history of district 6. Basically all races lived there happily until the late 60’s when it was decided to move all coloured people to small council type accommodation outside cape town. This went on until the 80’s when eventually apartheid was got rid off. The guy doing the talk had lived through this process and was very interesting to listen to. We couldn’t happen but notice that all the teachers accompanying the kids were white which seemed a little odd.

When we came out of the museum the weather had improved, it was really sunny and the wind had reduced a lot, so we decided to make our way up to Table Mountain. You can either walk up or take a cable car, we decided to try the walk up. The walk up was really hard, it was made up of stone boulder steps which were huge, felt like you were taking 2 steps at a time. We climbed up for about 40 minutes then you start to climb through a gully to take you to the top, this was even steeper and we were totally shattered at the top, we met several people on our way up, it took about 1 hour and 40 mins. The fauna was also very varied, some great coloured cactus type plants and we also saw 2 sheep on the mountain side.

Once we reached the top we had a quick bite before heading towards the various lookout points where you can get stunning photo’s of both the Atlantic coast and Cape town. When we first reached the top it was misty and very cold so we made our way to the cable car where there was a café, we had a coffee and tea to warm up.

Once we left the café the sun had come out and the wind dropped and we got some really nice photo’s from the top of table mountain. We started our climb back down to the car park, the climb down was considerably easier than going up and we were down in about 1 hour 30 mins, but our legs were pretty weak by this point.

We drove back to Whale Cottage, then we took the video’s we’d hired the night before and got out Kite Runner which is based on a book a read some time ago.

We went to a restaurant called the 12 apostles for dinner, it is perched below the mountains with the same name and has great views. We sat down behind an English couple with a small child, and made our order, Fiona having fish of the day and John having a huge sea food platter. Whilst waiting for the main course we started to get a little fed up of the couple and kid behind, the little girl had a playstation type toy which was playing music very loudly, which we felt wasn’t really on. We spoke to the restaurant staff, who said they’d move us and that they fully understood. They moved us to a seat right by the window which was great. The food was yet again really wonderful and the wine.

We went back to Whale Cottage and watched the Kite Runner which was pretty close to the book, but much of the dialogue is sub titled which takes some concentration to keep up with the plot.

Tomorrow we are going to Hermanus where hopefully we will see lots of Whales.

Africa – 3rd Oct 2008 – Day 32

We had breakfast and said goodbye to Whale Cottage in Camps Bay.

We headed to the Kirstenbosch botanical gardens just outside of cape town centre. The gardens have a spectacular setting with the 12 apostles mountains as a back drop. The gardens are kept immaculate. The colours of the flowers were spectacular especially the Protea family which look a cross between a Scottish thistle and cactus.

There were also lots of very brightly coloured small birds having a great time collecting nectar from the protea flowers. Our legs were still suffering a little from the steep climb up Table Mountain the day before. Just as we were leaving the gardens it started to rain.

After the gardens we started our journey to Hermanus. The road signs here aren’t great but we managed to get onto the main road and headed out of Cape town. The road sides are filled with shanty towns, they went on for miles and miles. There are large signs saying that these shanty towns are to be redeveloped.

We decided to take the coastal route to Hermanus which was very pretty, the weather was sunny so showed of the scenery perfectly, the colour of the sea was deep blue. Right along the coast line you can see the outlines of Whales.

It took us 2 ½ hours to reach Hermanus. Our B&B, La Fontaine, is situated right opposite the beach. Our room (room 1) is huge and looks directly onto the sea where we could see the Whales. Our room has a massive bathroom and a massive dressing room and large balcony to sit out and watch the world go by. This is by far the best place we have stayed so far.

La Fontaine - Hermanus
We took a walk along the sea front, the waves were amazing, some of the largest we have ever seen. Before long we came to a viewing area where there were several Whales performing for us, we got some great shots of their tales being flicked up.

We headed to a bar called Beitang which Shauna had recommended. You get there by walking back into town from the B&B and walking down some steps to the bar which sits on the rocks. It has a fantastic view of the bay and the Whales which were only 30 feet away. There was a mother and baby in the bay having fun. The mother was rolling from side to side and seemed to love the large waves. After a relaxed glass of wine we headed back to the B&B.

Just before we went out for dinner, Fiona was sitting on the balcony watching the whales, when one lifted itself out of the water and ‘breached’, of course she had put the camera away so doesn’t have this on film but an amazing sight to watch.

We went to a small Italian restaurant just a few minutes from the B&B. It had a great atmosphere, the chef was also very good, we had the Pizza special which was fab.

We then retired back to the B&B for a nights rest as we were really tired.

Africa – 1st Oct 2008 – Day 30

After a great nights sleep, we had a healthy breakfast and then headed out to town to try and book onto a Robben Island tour (where Nelson Mandela) was jailed. We could not book for today, so booked for a trip on the 11th of October.

After a coffee, we found some great African pottery and ended up buying a Fish and a picture.

We headed down to town of Boulder to see the colony of penguins. They were great fun to watch up close although they don’t smell so great!!

We then headed down to the cape (the most southerly point in Africa) via Simon Town. The cape was quite impressive. We walked down a trail, stopping off to see a beautiful beach (dai beach). The waves were huge and we saw some seals in the surf.

We eventually reached the end point of the cape (Cape of good Hope) when Fiona spied a huge black rain cloud heading our way. We rushed back along the trail reaching the car just before the heavens opened.

On the way back we came across some more baboons. Some idiots were feeding them out of their car. We had seem some earlier in the day. A baby baboon had climbed onto our car bonnet before quickly sliding off and hitting the ground!!
We drove back to our hotel and kept seeing some large Southern Right Whales in the bays.

We had a great meal at the Tuscany Beach Restaurant. Fifi had this amazing fish kebab on a small sword like device which allowed you to dribble butter down the fish. Fiona thought the Kingklip fish was the best she had had. John had a wonderful Paella.
On the way back we visited a near by town called Sea Point to get a couple of DVD’s to watch in our room. We watched a film called The Bucket List, a very nice film indeed.

Africa – 30th Sept 2008 – Day 29

The alarm woke us with a start today at 6am, even though we had not asked for a wake up call!!

We eventually rose at 7am when the building works opposite the hotel kicked off. Wehad breakfast at 8am and then tried to log onto the BA web site to check in on line. The wireless network was still down. The manager came over and tried his PC but the network was broken.

So, we checked that it was OK to walk down to town, found an internet café on the map, dropped anything of any value and went off on our travels. After 20 minutes walking, we realised that we had forgotten the BA login details, so we had to trudge back up the hill to get them from our room.

On the way back into town we received some very strange looks from the locals. They are not used to seeing a couple of Brits walking down the road. Some nodded to us another asked us for money. John gave a wee blind man 10N$ which will do him for the day.

We found the internet café which boasted that it was the biggest and best in Africa. We paid our 10N$ and tried to log into the BA web site and Johns email. Neither worked.

Eventually the shop owner moved us to a new PC and everything was fine. Even though BA had sent us an email saying we could book in on line, our flight did not allow for it.

John sent Audley travel yet another email complaining about sending us to a building site for our last days in Namibia. Much of our holiday has been great but they have managed to muck up quite a few things.

Just before leaving for the airport, John got chatting with a Newcastle lass who had just come back from a three week horse riding trek from Windhoek to Swakapmond. She really enjoyed it but 8 hour days followed by putting the horses to bed had taken its toll. She recommended a web site to us called www.inthesaddle.com .

At 12.30 the cab picked us up and stopped at some other hotels to pick up guests. Who should be coming to the airport with us but the English couple we met at Haub lodge.

We had a sandwich and drinks at the departure gate and bought some socks for Fiona and a couple of African candles. The flight was on time and everything went smoothly.

On arrival at Joburg, we collected our bags, walked to the domestic departures, checked in and waited for our next flight to Cape Town.

The flight went well. John had a young African chap next to him who had not flown before. John did his best to relax him, by telling him not to worry about any bumps!!

We landed on time, collected our bags and headed for the car hire office. We drove out of the office following the directions given to us by our next hotel.

However, we managed to get lost and ended up in the docks area. We retraced our steps and eventually found the road which took us to Camps Bay. We found the hotel, checked in and went to bed.

Africa – 1st Oct 2008 – Day 30

After a great nights sleep, we had a healthy breakfast and then headed out to town to try and book onto a Robben Island tour (where Nelson Mandela) was jailed. We could not book for today, so booked for a trip on the 11th of October.

After a coffee, we found some great African pottery and ended up buying a Fish and a picture.

We headed down to town of Boulder to see the colony of penguins. They were great fun to watch up close although they don’t smell so great!!

We then headed down to the cape (the most southerly point in Africa) via Simon Town. The cape was quite impressive. We walked down a trail, stopping off to see a beautiful beach (dai beach). The waves were huge and we saw some seals in the surf.

We eventually reached the end point of the cape (Cape of good Hope) when Fiona spied a huge black rain cloud heading our way. We rushed back along the trail reaching the car just before the heavens opened.

On the way back we came across some more baboons. Some idiots were feeding them out of their car. We had seem some earlier in the day. A baby baboon had climbed onto our car bonnet before quickly sliding off and hitting the ground!!
We drove back to our hotel and kept seeing some large Southern Right Whales in the bays.

We had a great meal at the Tuscany Beach Restaurant. Fifi had this amazing fish kebab on a small sword like device which allowed you to dribble butter down the fish. Fiona thought the Kingklip fish was the best she had had. John had a wonderful Paella.
On the way back we visited a near by town called Sea Point to get a couple of DVD’s to watch in our room. We watched a film called The Bucket List, a very nice film indeed.

Africa – 29th Sept 2008 – Day 28

After breakfast we said our goodbyes and drove to Winkhoek, a five hour drive. We had decided not to go to the mountains but to chill out by the hotel pool instead.

However, as we approached the hotel we saw a large cement lorry delivering a load right next to our next hotel. Yes, Audley has done it again. We had come here to relax by the pool but the pool was overlooked by a large team of workmen and the building work noise was constant. We tried to contact our travel agent but lack of phone signal and internet connection thwarted our attempts.

After settling into our very nice room, we drove down to town to get some Namibian Dollars as we needed to fill Winston up with Diesel and all petrol stations in Namibia refuse credit or debit cards.

We found a bank and John ran over and joined the security queue for the ATM machine. Here everything that has value is overseen by security men, including all ATM machines.

After returning to the building site, we sat around the pool, trying to relax but failing miserably.

We endured the conditions until 5.20 pm when the car hire man turned up, inspected Winston and then drove him away. We will miss Winni. He got us out of a few sticky situations and kept us safe and cool in Namibia.

John managed to contact his Mum this afternoon. Unfortunately Johns Dad is still in hospital. His hand and arm are improving but he has now had an allergic reaction to the new antibiotics so he is covered with a very itchy rash. They now want to keep him in hospital until they can sort out the rash and confirm that the infection in his hand and arm is under control.

At 7pm our taxi arrived to take us to Joe’s Beer Bar. As we came out of the car port we noticed some armed guards. They seem to guard certain areas of the city.

Our taxi took us too the door and we agreed to phone him and to wait for him to come into the bar and collect us once we had finished.

The bar was in fact a very good restaurant. John had prawn Chow Mein and Fifi had a massive beef fillet. Both meals were fantastic, Fiona saying it was the best steak she had ever had.

Our taxi arrived on time but it also had a German man inside who had asked for a ride!!

He had just arrived in Windhoek. He said we was addicted to the place. John said he was not surprised due to Namibia being so Germanic. He reacted badly, saying this simply was not true, as if John had meant it as a criticism, which it was not.
We sat in bed with a cuppa and watched the USA $700 Billion Financial Bail out Bill fail in congress. What a mess the banking world is in, and it’s all down to greed. At least one of the speakers said just this. We just heard that Bradford and Bingly Building Society have been Nationalised. Where has all the money gone? Where have all those billions of profits they have spent the last 10 years telling us about gone to???

Africa – 28th Sept 2008 – Day 27

After a good breakfast we said goodbye to the staff at the lodge and headed off to our next destination, Zerba River Lodge.

Our drive took us along some very bumpy road and we crossed our first real river in Winston who coped very well.

On the way we suddenly came across a couple of Springbok, a mother and baby. They bounded ahead of the car so we stopped to watch them. Suddenly the Mother panicked and flew off the road, running bang into a wire fence at great speed and getting her back hoof caught in the wire. We quickly jumped out and John went over to see if he could help. By now she was on her side and very still but still breathing.

John managed to undo some of the wire and release her hoof but she just laid motionless on the floor. For a while she was still breathing but then just stopped. We both felt very sad.

We moved away and looked for the baby. After a while we found the baby who was now running from one side of the road to the other bashing itself into the wire fence. There was nothing we could do to help as we could not have caught it. It was so disturbing to see that we decided the best thing to do was to leave in the hope it would calm down.

Not long after we came across a huge monitor lizard, probably three foot long.

When we got to the lodge, the owner phoned a friend who promised to go out immediately and see if they could find the baby.

After a drink we decided to do the five hour self guided walk around the mountains by the lodge. We set off with a packed lunch and five litres of water to boot.

The walk was very good with views all around. After an hour John was so hot and sweaty, he decided to commune with nature, so whipped off his clothes and walked for half an hour in his birthday suite before the roasting sun forced him to pop his shorts and shirt back on. He had read about some famous climbers doing the same to stay cool. It works!!

We shortly came across a couple of Clip Springer antelopes, who watched us walking for ages.

We hit a hard climb to the top of the plateau. The views at the top were spectacular. We sat down and had lunch. We then sang a couple of songs (one about Heather) and concluded that probably nobody else had sung so well at that location before, especially as only we know the song (and Heather of course).

We saw a great deal of Zebra poo, but no Zebra (we now know a great deal about African Animal Poo).

We stopped at the Quiver Tree, so named because locals used a part of the tree to make a quiver for their arrows. It is certainly a very good looking tree and very unique.

We headed down although we almost took the wrong track. We arrived back at the lodge after only four and a half hours. Good going. The lodge owner, Rob, was very impressed.

We had a quick beer and then sat moved into our room and chilled around the pool (yet another pool that is so cold you can hardly get into it. One of the three dogs they have loves the pool!!

Apparently there are just four archeologists staying with us tonight, so it should be an interesting evening!!

After a relaxing afternoon, we dressed for dinner and then sat outside our room taking in the wonderful views and the setting sun.

We then walked down to the main area and met the archeologists, two English men, a Dutch Woman and a Namibian young girl.

The older English chap seemed to be the group leader with the younger one being very English and a bit bumbling. We chatted about their work, but soon got a bit fed up with the topic which seems to be a bit flowery for our liking.

We went into the lounge for dinner which was a game stew with plenty of fresh veg. To start we had an asparagus salad, dessert was home made ice cream, very good indeed!!

After dinner we chatted for a bit and then went to our room, moved our chairs out into the garden and sat watching the starts and the milky way. We have never seen such a sky so full of stars. This area of Namibia is well known for it and it didn’t fail to impress us.

Africa – 27th Sept 2008 – Day 26

Today we awoke to a very strong and blustery wind blowing across the prairie. We decided to have breakfast indoors due to the vicious wind. Tim and Freda joined us and we had a good chat over a full English.

We said our goodbyes (T&F are off to South Africa today) and headed back to our room. John went to the office and connected his PC to the web and wrote the blog.

Afterwards, we headed down to the horse stables to say hi. They have great looking horses here. Very fit and very friendly.

The wind gradually dropped so we sat around the pool chilling.

Come 3pm, we jumped into Winston and headed to the Sossusveli Lodge for our evening quad bike nature trail. The lodge looked very nice indeed with a large pool, accommodation that is a mixture of brick and tent and a cool looking bar area. A film crew were there filming a documentary on African wildlife.

We drove to the quad bike area with a family of four Namibians. The father was extremely fat, the mother thin and the young girls OK. Turns out the father is a crown prosecutor for the Namibian government.

We were shown how the bikes worked, given 5 minutes to get used to them and then we were off.

The outward journey was fun but a bit tame. John kept taking his bike off tracks for a bit of fun, much to the amusement of the Namibians. At one point the girls were so slow, John got stuck in the sand and had to get off and push the bike up!!

We had a sundowner drink and chatted away to the Namibian family who could not get their head around us having year of travelling.

John asked the guide if the trip back could be a little faster. And it was!! We all set off at a fast pace with John racing the guide. These bikes are great fun and can really fly.

Towards the end we Fiona, John and the guide were having a great time, flying through the dust and sand towards the starting point.

We reached the end of the trip covered in dust but exhilarated.

As we drove back to our lodge, the sun began to set on the mountains. We just had to stop as the colours changed by the minute. Namibia has unique mountains which almost look fake.

After showering and changing we headed back for dinner. Alex (our main guide) had reserved a great table for us under the stars. We had a pork meal with not much pork. However the choir struck up and entertained us well.

Africa – 26th Sept 2008 – Day 25

At 5.30 our wake up knock at the door arrived. Far too early!!

We dressed in a daze, went to the lodge for a coffee and then jumped into the Lodge 4x4’s for our journey to Sossusvlei. Six of us ended up in one car, Tim and Freda plus a nice Dutch couple from Brussels. The dusty drive to the park gate took us 30 minutes. At 7am, the gates opened and we began our 60Km drive to our ultimate destination Dead Vlei. On route we stopped at some small dunes where two hot air balloons were passing near by. Our guide, Alex, talked us through Dune facts and figures and then said he would find us a White Lady spider and a side winder snake (much to Fiona’s disgust).

Whilst Fiona took pictures higher up on the dune, we looked for the spiders and snakes. Not long into our search, Alex found the tell tale signs including a smell! Within minutes he had found the snake. It looked amazing as it wound it’s way around the sand in a side ways movement. The snake is very poisonous so we had to keep our distance.

Soon after, Alex found the White Lady spider deep in the sand. After a while the spider relaxed and we took turn’s holding her.

We retuned to the 4x4 and drove past some wonderful dunes, arriving at the famous Dune 45, so called as it is 45Km’s from the park gate. We considered climbing it but decided to go to the largest Dune in the world. The famous Bid Daddy Dune, standing at 365 meters.

Alex dropped us off by a dry lake and we walked to the base of the Dune. As always, these things look bigger when get to the bottom of them.

We began our decent and soon realised we had bitten off more than we had realised. On a sand dune like this, it’s two steps forward and one and a half steps back. We reached the first stopping point. Tim and Freda were exhausted, as were we all. They decided to not walk further up, so Fiona, myself and the Dutch couple continued. Alex joined us half way up. We walked for an hour along the ridge of soft sand formed by the wind. The sand was soft but hard enough to form a kind of ridge path. We made frequent stops and reached the top after and hour and a half, a good speed according to Alex.

We were all truly exhausted but views of Dead Vlei below re focused our minds. The way down to the vlei (this means an area where water can collect however this vlai has not had water in it for 1000 years) below was the fun bit. It was a very steep sandy slope which resembled a black run in skiing. You just had to run down it vertically, the sand made a very strange noise as you tumbled down, a loud sort of squeaking noise. The sand was such that when you ran down it cushioned your steps and felt like you were running on air and in slow motion, it was FAB. It took us about 5 minutes to run down the slope to dead vlei.

Dead vlei looks like a white set of ceramic tiles and is made of lime and mud and is very hard, we walked across it taking pictures of the numerous dead trees which had a stunning background of the red dunes and the piercing blue sky. These made really great photo’s. At the edge of the vlei we met up with Tim and Freda who had walked around big daddy.

We all then headed back to the car, where Alex drive us a few minutes to a picnic stop under a large tree. Here he set up our brunch, which consisted of cereals, eggs, meats, cheese and Champagne. It was wonderful.

We then drove back to the gates, by now the heat was in the late 30’s and there was no one to be seen. When we arrived at the gate, Alex stopped to pay the entrance fee and get some petrol. He then drove us to Sossusveli Lodge so we could check out the quad biking for tomorrow, we booked to go on the sundowner trip which starts at 16:30. Whilst at the lodge we came across the tractor that is being driven by a 35 year old lady all the way from Holland to the south pole. On the way she met up with a dog and they now travel together. We also met her at Solitaire. For more info about her trip see www.tractortractor.org . We then drove the 30 minutes back to the lodge where we caught up on some sleep before meeting Tim and Freda for the sundowner horse ride.

We met our guide, Sam, who took us down to the stables to meet our horses. They were all very happy horses who looked in peak condition. Fiona was teamed up with Ubella, the turbo charged version. John had Johannas, a compact GTI.

Unfortunately John did not bring and jeans to Africa, so after 45 minutes of galloping, his calves were very sore. Still, the galloping was wonderful, even though Fiona’s horse kept stopping as he did not want to leave his friends to far behind!!

When it came to getting off the horses for our sundowner drinks and snacks, we all felt the effects of not having ridden for a while. We sat around our table drinking our G&T’s and watching the sun sink over the mountains. Suddenly, the chap who had been looking after the horses shouted that there was a large scorpion in the camp. We went over to the horses and here he was. About 7” inches in length, blackish crawling quite quickly. Again, we had to keep our distance as a sting from one of these is very painful indeed.

We finished our drinks and snacks and somehow managed to get back onto our horses for the return journey. We walked back due to the darkness closing in. It was wonderful to walk gently back through the dessert with the stars shinning above us. The peace and tranquilly washed over us all and by the time we arrived at the stables we were relaxed but stiff and very sore.

John had managed to rub the skin on his left leg. So, Freda went into nurse mode, promising to bring dressings to dinner.

We staggered back to our room, showered, changed and went back to the lodge to meet Tim and Freda and the Dutch chap who was on his own, due to his wife taking the horse ride and dessert sleep over trip.

During our meal, the staff began to sing local songs and entertained us for about half an hour with dancing and singing. At the end of dinner, Freda dressed Johns friction burns and we went to bed tired but very happy if a little exhausted.

Africa – 25th Sept 2008 – Day 24

We woke up at 8am, had a quick breakfast, checked out and hit the road for our long drive to Dessert Homestead.

Initially the drive was just flat as we drive through the dessert. However, this route, the C14 followed by the C19, turned out to be the best drive so far. Every half an hour the scenery changed. We drove through stunning mountains, twisting gravel passes and long. , long sandy roads. We passed through the tropic of Capricorn and a host of animals on our way to our half way stop at a very small hamlet called Solitaire. We tried the world famous Apple Crumble, not bad but not as good as we have had at home. By now we were in amongst the cactus and hordes of white butterflies.

After a rest, we hit the road again. As we continued the spoil became orange and red and we began to see some dunes appearing on the horizon.

After 5 hours of driving we found the Dessert Homestead lodge. We settled into our new room which has a fantastic view down the valley. We sat around the pool, relaxing. The temperature here is not as hot as other parts of Namibia.

Later on Tim and Freda joined us for a beer. They had also travelled the same stunning route and were staying at Dessert Homestead for a couple of days. We all booked to visit the dunes at Sossusvlei early tomorrow as well as the evening horse sundowner ride.

Freda is a nurse back in the UK, so John showed here is burnt nipples which were now quite hard. Freda said they were not burnt but probably a reaction to a couple of insect bites, one on each nipple! They have begun to itch like mad, but John has resisted scratching them.

We had a very good meal and hit the sack in preparation for our early start.

Africa – 24th Sept 2008 – Day 23

The alarm woke us up at 6.15am. Breakfast was a rapid affair. We jumped in the car and headed for Walvis Bay about 30 minutes drive along the coast.

The weather was calm but very foggy. This town has morning fog for almost 9 months of the year. The car heater was on full to start as the air is damp and chilly in the morning.

As we snaked our way along the skeleton coast, the fog lifted slightly, before coming in again at Walvis Bay.

We met our Kayaking guides at the Mola Mola Eco Kayaking hut, Jean and Barbara. We also met another couple of Brits from Manchester. Tim and his wife. We jumped into the 4x4 and began our journey to the launching beach.

At the beach, we could already see the odd seal face popping out of the cold Atlantic to take a look at us. We donned our kayaking kit, settled into the kayak and launched off into a mixture of sun and hazy fog on a very calm sea.

Immediately the younger seals began leaping around our Kayak, jumping and diving like small torpedoes. We turned right and headed up the coast to the seal colony. Once there the seals came to meet us in their droves. They are so inquisitive and up for fun. Fiona was in the front of the Kayak so received most of the splashes from the seals. They came up to sides of our craft and nibbled the oars. Some just chilled out whilst floating in the sea. The clasp a front and back flipper together and just float like a piece of drift wood.

After some time, we turned out to sea to find the local dolphins. They look quite different from your typical bottle nose.

After half an hour we found them, but they were shy. We managed to get in amongst a pod and had some swimming very close to us. Some other boats came near which excited them for a while. They were great to see in the open sea.

On the way back we were visited by hundreds of seals, both small and very large. They kept us entertained for almost an hour, coming right up to our hands and jumping just inches from the kayak. Suddenly, we looed up to see thousands of Cormorants heading our way in a huge flock. They fly just inches from the sea.

Once back on dry land, we took off our kit and supped some hot drinks. Somehow, Fiona had managed to get a very wet bottom! Just behind us a German couple got stuck in the sand in their vehicle. After much our effort our team managed to get them out. You have to let the air out of your tires and rev the engine in a high gear. Getting stuck out here in sand is not a good idea.

On the drive back, we came across some salt pans, but they were bright pink. The pans contain an algae that secretes a kind of natural dye. The pink water against the white salt and the blue sky looked amazing.

As we drove back to our lodge the fog closed in again as we decided not to quad bike here but to wait until we reach our next destination, Dessert Homestead where they also do horse riding in the dunes.

The kayaking had been great fun but exhausting. So we had a wee rest in our huge bed which we have named Bear, as it has a giant bear like fur top to it which is great to snuggle down into.

We then went into town for a coffee and a wander. We came across a few good shops where we purchased our African memento, a ceramic leopard called Lucy. We then walked back to The Stilts via the sea front where we picked up some lovely smooth pebbles for our earth collection. On the way back we stopped to watch a lone surfer, kite surfing in the strong winds.

After our rest, we showered and dressed in readiness for tonight’s restaurant at The Tug. As we sat in our hut, the sun began to set and wow, what a sun set. We have seen so many wonderful sunsets this year but this one was amazing. After the sun fell into the sea, we jumped into Winston and drove to the tug. However, when we reached The Tug the sunset was even more dramatic but we had left our camera’s at home. It looked as if someone had slapped some bright orange and pink sandy paint onto the sky. The edges looked like neon white paint.

We had the best table in the house, over looking the lapping waves. A great meal was had. A bottle of Brut bubbles in a top restaurant here is only £8.

Tim and Freda joined us later in The Tug. Luckily, they had stopped to photograph the whole sunset, so they will email them when they get back to the UK.

Africa – 23rd Sept 2008 – Day 22

We had a lay in today, 7.30am. After our breakfast, we paid the bill, dais our goodbye’s and hit the road. On our way out of camp, we stopped to take a wee boy to the local hospital. He was at the camp gate and worked at the lodge. He had problems with his eyes. We took him right to the front gates of the hospital. Our good deed for the day!!

Our drive to Swakopmund took us though rapid changes in both scenery and weather. After only one and a half hours on the road, the landscape began to flatten out and we could make out a cloud bank on the horizon. Later we took the C1991 dirt track which took us through an amazing moonscape. As we drove further, the land flattened and quickly turned to sand. We had hit the desert. Suddenly we came across the sand dunes. As we drove on they became larger and larger. As we came closer they looked more and more unreal. The look as smooth as plastic sheeting with many colours. As we drive down the road we saw cars coming directly at us on the wrong side of the road. We had to get off the road and let an enormous convoy pass by, carrying the largest dumper truck you can imagine. They mine a lot of minerals here, no doubt these mega trucks are used at the mine. Just as well we have a 4x4.

As we arrived in Swakopmund, Africa turned into a cross between a small German and American town. It is a strange place, with many German speaking chops and bars but with the locals still doing the poorly paying jobs. If feels like stepping back in time, like an aging seaside town with modern estates. It just doesn’t feel like Africa at all.

We found our next lodge, The Stilts, checked in and then went into town to check out restaurants for tonight. We had a tea and coffee, visited the local supermarket for toothpaste and then browsed some shops. Fiona eventually bought a couple of T-shirts.

We chilled out in our beach front villa (standing on high stilts – hence the name). Being on the coast has it’s draw backs. IT is too chilly and windy to sit on the balcony, Luckily our villa has big picture windows from which to look a the Atlantic waves crashing on the beach.

John has now managed to burn his nipples (can’t work out when) so is in some discomfort. His back is also still playing up but it is not as bad as it was. Namibia is a great place, but it can bite back!

In the evening we went to the sea food restaurant Der Kinder in town. Here you have to be back before 10pm and pay men to look after your car while it is parked up in town. It seems like standard behavior to the locals.

We arrived bang on 7pm for our meal at Der Kinder. We were only the second clients in the place. John had only paid the car minder 2 dollars on the way in and he did not look impressed. The lady serving us said we should pay 5, so John popped out and gave him another 3. He looked happy!

The wine in Namibian restaurants is very good value. About £1 for a large glass. We had a glass each and ordered our grub. John had baby octopus in a peri peri sauce followed by a delicious fish stew with rice. Fiona had deep fried camembert followed by he catch of the day. Also vey nice indeed.

Once back at the lodge, John managed to get a good phone signal, so phoned home to see how his Dad was doing. They had flushed both his arm and his hand out during some key hole surgery, but had not found anything conclusive which can explain the terrible pain he has now been in for five weeks. John’s Mum said that he was feeling more comfortable now. Rhidian (Johns second cousin who is also a surgeon) had spoken to Johns Fathers surgeon who had admitted that diagnosing the problem is proving problematic.

We hit the sack nice and early ready for an early morning alarm call.