Like much of South Africa the West Coast is just waiting to be explored. Far away from the hustle and bustle of city life the West Coast transports you to a world of endless sandy beaches and pretty villages. Summer days are long here and in Spring the landscape is transformed into a colourful sea of spring flowers. Typically the wildflowers will bloom from August to the end of September.
From Cape Town the best route to take is the R27 coastal route which takes you all the way up to Velddriff but the secret is to stop along the way at the numerous villages to really uncover the beauty of this part of South Africa. Although not as well trodden as the Garden Route the quality of accommodation along the West Coast is excellent with lots of self-catering establishments to choose from. (more…)
Ramsgate
The stretch of coastline to the south of Durban is commonly known as the South Coast or sometimes the Hibiscus Coast. No matter what the time of year tourists and locals flock here in their thousands to soak up the sunshine that lingers long into the winter months of June and July.
At the heart of the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast scene is Margate just 130km south of Durban. This is a real holiday town perfect for family holidays where the beach takes precedence. Its’ sandy beaches are filled with tanning bodies during the holidays along with the aroma of coconut sun-screen which seems to be everywhere. (more…)
www.janegoodhall.co.za
The Jane Goodall Institute has just launched a Volunteer Programme in April 2013 at their chimpanzee sanctuary close to Nelspruit, South Africa. The sanctuary rescues chimpanzees from circuses, zoos, the bush meat trade and also takes in orphaned chimps from all over the world. The dedicated team at Chimp Eden provide a safe and loving environment where chimps are given the best treatment possible.
Early beginnings
Jane Goodhall is an extraordinary woman having dedicated nearly her whole life to learning more about chimpanzees and working tirelessly to spread her message. Her fascinating life really took off when she was 22. Having saved very hard as a waitress she bought a round-trip ticket to Africa leaving England in 1957. She went to stay with her friend’s family who lived on a farm in Kenya and within a few weeks had met and become friends with the famous archaeologist and palaeontologist Louis Leakey. He hired Jane to work for him as an assistant and asked her to set about studying a group of chimps that lived on the lake shore in Tanzania. At the time not much was known about chimpanzees and Luis Leakey was keen to understand if they could help him with his work on evolution. (more…)
Given the choice of catching the Cable Car down Table Mountain or abseiling down 112 metres of this iconic landmark I know which option I would choose. However, for the adrenalin-seeking junkies out there, this and shark-cage diving have to be the ultimate way to get your extreme adventure fix in Cape Town.
How much does it cost?
It costs just R650 per person but this doesn’t include the cost of taking the cable car to the top. Of course you could opt to pay R799 per person and you then get a 2 to 3 hour guided walk up Platteklip Gorge and then get to abseil down.
What to expect
(more…)
Earth Hour 2013 will take place on Saturday 23rd March between 20h30 and 21h30 throughout the world.
www.earthhour.org
The first Earth Hour took place in Sydney, Australia on the 31st March 2007 and was started by the WWF Australia. The original idea was to raise awareness of climate change and to promote discussion and was initially called the ‘Big Flick Off’. It is important to understand that the event isn’t designed to be an exercise in energy or carbon reduction but a symbolic event.
In 2008 the event marked its anniversary by going international with 35 other countries joining in covering over 400 cities. The growing awareness created by Earth Hour also helped to align other initiatives which had already begin in cities like San Francisco which had been running its own ‘Lights Out’ event in October each year. San Francisco dropped this October event in support of Earth Hour. (more…)
