Travel Blog

Namibia has only been in existence as a country in its own right since 1990 when it gained independence from South Africa. Past names included German South-West Africa and simply South-West Africa when it was ruled by South Africa on behalf of Britain. The currency in the Namibian Dollar or…

A few South Africa facts. The population is around 55m with a land area five times the size of the UK. There are 11 official languages (only Bolivia and India have more). The top four rank thus: Zulu, Xhosa, Afrikaans and English. There are nine provinces and the largest city…

During the early part of the week the QM2 (fastest cruise ship in the world) was in port part way through its World Cruise which started from Southampton in early January. I saw some bewildered looking folk around town who were probably passengers. Saturday I was set adrift from the…

Cape Town is the second city of South Africa lying on the southwestern coast in the shadow of Table Mountain with a population of almost 4m. People from Cape Town are called Capetonians and about one third are white with English as the main language. Right now Cape Town is…

After an overnight stop in Graaf Reinet at the Obese Lodge, we continued south through the semi-Desert of the Great Karoo toward the coast and the Tsitsikamma National Park which was home for two nights. Our cabins were just metres from a lively sea with waves crashing against the rocks.…

We left the Drakensberg in glorious sunshine and the dramatic scenery continued along the entire journey - all 7 hours of it. As breathtaking a scenic drive as I’ve ever had. We stopped on numerous occasions for photos and bathroom breaks and enjoyed another splendid lunch in a lay-by Exodus…

The Drakensberg, meaning Dragon Mountains in Afrikaans are split into three areas: Northern Berg, Central Berg and Southern Berg. They border the mountain kingdom of Lesotho and are pretty spectacular. We are staying in the Northern Berg in the Royal Natal National Park in some thatched hillside cottages about 5000ft…

From our base at the Zululand Lodge we had a day out consisting of a boat trip and some time at the beach. Boat trips can be rather tedious after the initial excitement passes. A bit like jet-spraying. We were on the St Lucia estuary where we had two hours…

Things got a little fractious on Thursday morning over seat rotation. Hans, who has ignored the group directive so far was turfed out of his seat. In truth he’s been doing his own thing since the start and we’ve accommodated him. The problem is that he wants to sit next…

After binge watching Game of Thrones on my second Airbus 380 in a row I arrived in Johannesburg champing. I sat opposite a German chap from Bavaria on the flight and after initially trying to strike up a conversation about Bayern Munich I soon realised he wasn’t a chatter so…

Qatar occupies a small peninsula in the Persian Gulf with a single land border with Saudi Arabia. It gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1971 after 55 years as a British Protectorate. It came under British rule on November 3rd 1916 after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Of…

Friday  Back at the sports bar I had an evening of visual wonderment watching Jay on the pole. She's 35 and used to be a massage girl but now she's the star attraction in Oscar's Sports Bar. She gets paid 800 baht each night or £18.60. Ten minutes on the…

So after five nights staying in the rather reserved Kata Beach area I've moved up the island to Patong where the majority of the nightlife and denauchery is to be found. The hotel is right on the beach and aside from a malfunctioning bath plug my garden bungalow is simply…

Phuket is just an hour by plane from Bangkok and is one of the biggest resorts in Thailand. Phuket is one of the 76 provinces and is actually an island (the largest in Thailand) lying in the Andaman Sea although looking at a map it looks rather attached to the…

Bangkok has become one of my favourite cities and after three days here I feel my senses have been fully assaulted. I still wouldn't say I know the city even after three visits but I'm getting better at not getting lost.  On Monday Dom, the tuktuk driver delivered me to…

I had one last morning in Perth before heading for the airport and a flight to Bangkok. Something I didn't have time to do last time was Kings Park which is one of the main attractions of the city. I left the hotel at 7:30 on a beautiful sunny Sunday…

Astrid and I debarked and joined the world's longest taxi line. I was remarkably calm about it. Katy would have been proud of me. In fact I was so calm she probably would have taken me straight to a medical centre for tests. I was finally free of the ship…

Our final port call on this trip was Port Arthur and what a lovely place it was. Just a little further round the coast from Hobart is one of Australia's eleven World Heritage Sites. Not for the first time, the historical significance of Port Arthur centres around its function as…

We were due to stop at Burnie in Tasmania as out first stop however the wave height and wind speed meant aborting that plan and heading straight for Hobart. An unscheduled sea day was actually most welcome giving me time to recover from my cold a tad more. Medical professionals…

Melbourne has become one of my favourites cities and I was determined to be well enough for a mooch round. Astrid had gone on a tour and Ben had left early to go to the casino. Regrettably Ben asked me to come and join him and even more regrettably I…