Sense Africa - Tailor-made Safaris and Holistic and Well Being Holidays to Africa

Swaziland? Don't you mean Switzerland?

2012-02-06T09:45:00.000-08:00

I have recently spent an exhausting 6 days working on an exhibition stand at the Adventure Travel Show and the Destinations Show in London, promoting the Kingdom of Swaziland and Sense Africa. After only 1 day it dawned on me how limited the general public's knowledge is about the Kingdom of Swaziland. I had all sorts of questions thrown at me, and a lot of people avoiding me because they didn't want to admit that they had no idea where the Kingdom of Swaziland was in the world. The fact that they were standing in the Africa section might have given the continent away.

However, there was one person who really tested by patience. The gentleman in question approached me on the third day.

'So, tell me about Switzerland.'
'Well, Switzerland is a country in Europe, it is very mountainous, often has a lot of snow and people enjoy their skiing there. Swaziland,' I continued in a jovial yet sarcastic manner, 'has plenty of mountains but doesn't often have snow for skiing because it's so warm in Africa.'
'So this isn't Switzerland then?'
'No, This is Swaziland, you are in the African section,' I said through gritted teeth and a wonderful smile, while standing in front of a 2m high picture of an elephant and an African boy in traditional dress dancing.
'I don't want to go to Africa', was the gentleman's response. I said nothing, but I suspect my look of exasperation said it all, the gentleman in question ambled off towards the Middle East.

After six days, I like to think that I've got my Swaziland promotional speech down to a fine art. So here it is…

"Swaziland is a Kingdom about the size of Wales, located in Southern Africa, bordering South Africa and Mozambique. It is easy to get around Swaziland, travelling distances are small and the country is relatively stable (in an African sense) because it is an absolute monarchy and all the people are from one tribe. It is a wonderful place to visit and gives you that up close and personal experience in Africa.

"It has three main things to offer: stunning scenery, captivating culture and wonderful wildlife viewing.

"The scenery ranges from mountainous regions to low land bushveld, where you can walk in wildlife reserves (where the larger animals do not reside), unaccompanied and at your own pace, discovering Swaziland for yourself. If you are into your walking this is one of the few places in Africa where you can follow marked trails in game reserves, enjoying Africa to the full. The scenery has also created an adventurous aspect to the Kingdom and you can mountain bike, whitewater raft, zip wire, trek and horse ride to your hearts content.

"Swaziland is also steeped in its culture, and you will see Swazis in their local dress practically every day and there is always the opportunity to see traditional dancing and singing. You can experience the 'real' Africa by letting locals show you around their own homestead and have a traditional healer throw the bones for you. The Swazis are an exceptionally friendly nation and are always happy to have a conversation about their heritage, welcome you into their homes or even play a game of football with you.

"And as for the wildlife, there is the opportunity to see the Big 5 in Swaziland, but there are only 12 leopard in the kingdom, and I have never seen one there. However, you can see elephants, rhino, buffalo and lion in Swaziland. Swaziland is reputedly meant to be the best place in the world (said in a Carlsberg accent) to see white rhino. If you go to both Hlane Royal National Park and Mkhaya Game Reserve, and you don't see rhino, you will probably have had your eyes closed for the duration!

"Swaziland is a safe place to travelling, whether it be with family or as a self drive. But if you really want to have that personalised up close experience, then I would recommend going with a reputable and knowledgeable tour operator. And of course that is with me."

I found the days challenging, but I love a challenge, and I hope that I have made a few more people interested in Swaziland. And of course that they would use Sense Africa to organise their holiday for them.

Fingers crossed.

At times it is Cold in Africa too...

2012-01-19T02:03:00.000-08:00

I am often surprised to hear that people think it is always hot in Africa, this is far from the truth. It can get exceptionally cold at night and I have been pleasantly surprised to discover a hot water bottle in my bed while staying in one of the lodges in Swaziland. I have to admit, I was not expecting this, so it was rather a shock when I got into bed, I mean, there could have been a dangerous furry animal residing in my bed, admittedly unnaturally overheating to a deathly temperature and also inanimate.

Africa does have a winter as well, although maybe not the extreme temperatures that we are experiencing at the moment in the UK. But you do have to be smart when packing for a safari, especially when it is during the winter time, as it can be quite chilly whilst on a morning game drive.

I particularly remember a game drive in Botswana, this was around April time, when we were advised to dress warmly for the morning game drive. We were camping in Moremi Game Reserve which borders onto the Okavango Delta, and the temperature that night had been particularly cold, I'd even worn my woolly hat in bed. When I pitched up for the safari with woolly hat, fleeces and my sleeping bag, I did get rather a lot of strange looks and a few sniggers. However, I was the one laughing as I sat snug as a bug in my sleeping bag, nice and toasty warm, whilst the others braved the inclement temperature. It was only halfway through the game drive when I bravely emerged from my cocoon.

I enjoy the winter in Africa because this means cold nights, which makes sleeping easy, with cooler crisper days and bright blue skies – excellent for photography. Often it is shorts and t-shirt weather during the day, it's just shortened slightly.

My advice would be to make sure you are aware of the temperatures whilst you are away on holiday. A woolly hat is definitely advisable, along with a warm fleece for the evenings, and maybe some warmer trousers. Just in case there is a cold snap and you are caught unawares.

The best thing about the African winters is the chance to sit round an open fire, under the African stars, toasting your feet and listening to the noises of the African bush. Perfect.

Breaking Bungees - part of African Adrenalin?

2012-01-10T07:33:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I watched in horror as Erin Laung Worth's bungee cord snapped over Victoria Falls. It brought back memories of the three times that I had bungee jumped from exactly the same spot on Victoria Falls Bridge. I felt sick watching it, it was exactly how I felt when I jumped, all three times. To date there have been no accidents at this particular bungee jumping launch pad, and this time the company, as well as Erin, were very very lucky.

All over the world there are numerous adrenaline sports that those of us that are crazy enough to participate in, addicted to the rush of adrenaline coursing through our bodies. I have participated in white water rafting on the Zambezi in Zimbabwe and the Pacuare in Costa Rica, I have sand boarded on a sheet of plywood, reaching speeds of 70 km/h in Namibia, I have canyoned through a flooded river to get to clients in South Africa, jet boating in New Zealand, been the guinea pig for a new zip wire in Corsica (I was the third person to use it) and I have climbed into the crater of an active volcano in Vanuatu. Sometimes I'm surprised I'm still alive today.

As I get older, the need for this adrenaline rush diminishes, or maybe I am just getting wiser. Wisdom comes with age doesn't it? I had said to myself that I would never ever bungee jump again, and watching this footage completely confirms it. I am also not too partial whitewater rafting any longer and climbing into the crater of an active volcano, well, been there done that.

Nowadays I find that a trip to Africa provides all the action and excitement that I need in my life; close encounters with rhino, being in the middle of the African wilderness (sometimes by myself), trekking in the bush been mindful of the Big 5, baboon spiders and buffalo thorn, walking back to my accommodation in the middle of the African night and driving on the African roads. It is all an adventure in itself. This is certainly one of the great things about Africa, it can cater for everybody's level of adrenaline rush, from whitewater rafting to quad biking and walking safari to camping in the bush, tailor-made for everybody.

I'm looking forward to taking people on a Yoga Safari to Mozambique, pure relaxation in itself, and hopefully not too much adrenalin. Having said this, I will be doing a 13 section zip wire this year, along with camping wild in the bush... on my own. Well, I couldn't really miss out on a small amount of adrenaline could I do?

The Hamerkop - The Harbinger of Death?

2012-01-02T10:21:00.000-08:00

The hamerkop has a curved beak and a head with a crest at the back which is reminiscent of a hammer, hence its name. Another creative naming for a dull brown bird of Africa. Or is it that dull?

Remarkably this average sized brown bird has numerous myths, legends and local beliefs surrounding it. It seems to have taken far more than its fair share of mystical stories and sayings, making it rather an interesting sighting in the bush. However, most seem to be about your own death, death of your family, death of your neighbour or contracting some hideous disease.

The first legend that I heard was that if you ever looked into thewater at the same time as a hamerkop, it would be the harbinger of death. I was not too sure whose death it would be, but it makes me think twice about looking into the water with a hamerkop in the vicinity. Other legends state that if a hamerkop flies over your house it apparently indicates that someone close to you has just recently died. It is also believed by the Malagasy that if you disturb a hamerkop's nest you will develop leprosy and the Kalahari bushmen believe that if you rob eggs from a hamerkop's nest you will be struck by lightening. All of which, in my mind is, is a bit of doom and gloom.

In some cultures it is also known as the 'lightning bird', a mystical bird which can take the form of a black-and-white bird, the size of the human, that can summon lightning and thunder with its wings and talons. The 'lightning bird' is said to have vampire qualities, having an insatiable appetite for blood, and is associated with witches and witch doctors. So not really a bird you'd like to mess with.

Despite all these weird and wonderful beliefs, I can't help but congratulate it on its own self-preservation. Wherever these beliefs have stemmed from we may never really know, but it certainly helps in the protection and preservation of the species.

Would you risk disturbing a hamerkop nest, with the very, very minor possibility of contracting leprosy?

Christmas in Africa

2011-12-19T03:53:00.000-08:00

It is funny how we all try to create a Christmas that we are used to at home, even when we are overseas in some exotic country. I know that our Antipodean friends have Christmas cards with snow on then, it is the height of their summer for goodness sake, and I have just received a Christmas card from Zimbabwe with a Christmas tree on it – there are no spruces in Zimbabwe.

I have to admit that I have fallen into this category (quite happily), and in particular I remember a Christmas that I had in Zimbabwe, exactly 20 years ago. I had invited nine friends of mine to spend Christmas with me in the African bush. I had a house which could accommodate everyone and we'd all just finished an expedition for Raleigh International. And so we all threw our heart and soul into a British Christmas in Zimbabwe. The fact that we had no Christmas decorations (let alone a Christmas tree), the house had hardly any furniture in it, I had not got enough crockery to feed 10 of us and turkeys were tricky to find, did not deter us. We were all adaptable people, and none of these problems were ever considered an issue.

On the way to my house in the African bush we had stopped off to buy all our provisions for a true British Christmas. However, the shops were not that well-stocked for the items that we were searching for. The year was 1992 and the drought had hit Zimbabwe in a big way, so there were a reduced number of provisions on the shelves and items such as crackers, baubles, tinsel, turkey stuffing and Christmas pudding were nowhere to be seen. We did however manage to buy a turkey, it was one of three turkeys left in the freezer and we were now the proud owners of the largest one. Just enough to feed all 10 of us, well, enough to feed probably 20 but we did all have large appetites.

The journey was a long one, and this was not helped with the numerous police checks along the way and the fact that we were travelling in a vehicle designed for six and our turkey was defrosting quicker than we had anticipated. Arriving at my home in Save Valley Conservancy was a blessed relief.

We then set about getting everything sorted. Some of the guys were on Christmas decoration duty and went out in search of a suitable branch or small tree that remotely resembled a Christmas tree. Others began to fashion Christmas decorations out of tinfoil, ping-pong balls, coloured bits of paper and anything else that we had managed to accumulate on the way. Being a lover of food I set about organising our Christmas dinner.

It was then that I realised my schoolgirl error. The turkey would not fit into my oven, it was too large. My stove was a wood-burning stove, designed for one or two people and not for an enormous turkey. And I was not prepared to hack the turkey into pieces.

So the next best option was to build a big enough oven - obviously!

The hot water for my house was supplied by a Rhodesian boiler. This is an antiquated yet very effective system, where a large oil drum of water is heated up by a log fire that burns beneath it. This is all done in a small brick construction, located outside the house, and often tended by the 'houseboy'. It only takes an hour or so for the water to reach boiling point, which then provides piping hot water in my house. My Rhodesian boiler system was relatively new, the old one still standing but no longer in use. And this is where the plan for a new oven grew from.

I could use the construction from the old Rhodesian boiler, the oil drum had obviously been removed, so there was the oven, and there was plenty of wood to provide the heat. All I needed to do was to block the hole where the oil drum had been taken out, and hey presto, there was my oven. Simpler said than done. An hour later I had fashioned my oven and was calculating a guesstimate for the cooking time. I guessed about three hours cooking time, and the potatoes could possibly go in there as well.

The following morning was Christmas Day and all sorts of preparations were made for our meal. We had gone to town on the foods, we had our turkey which was already cooking in the Rhodesian oven, roast potatoes in the more conventional wood burning stove, vegetables ready to be cooked and even stuffing had been made. The so-called Christmas tree was an old branch decorated in the handmade angels and paper chains. I have to say so myself, it all looked pretty good.

However, the timings of the turkey did not go quite according to plan. I'm sure you would have guessed this by now. It took longer for my 'oven' to heat up and although I could adjust the temperature by the number of burning logs in the fire, it still was not that accurate. We had planned to eat at around 5 o'clock, but by this time the turkey was still a little bit underdone, consider raw being a more applicable description. By 6 o'clock the turkey was looking more like a Christmas turkey, by 7 o'clock I decreed that the turkey might be edible, the potatoes and vegetables certainly were! I was right, 6 hours later the turkey was delicious, albeit a bit singed on the outside.

That was a Christmas to remember, although it was slightly quirky!

Happy Christmas everyone, where ever you are.

Yoga Safari to Mozambique....in pictures

2011-11-14T07:22:00.001-08:00

Yoga Safari to Mozambique

Your neighbours in Gorongosa

Luxury tented accommodation in Gorongosa

Visitors to Explore Gorongosa

Yoga on the beach

Your accommodation in Guludo - barefoot luxury

Sense Africa for Yourself

Sleeping with Felines....

2011-10-27T09:11:00.000-07:00

I am not really a cat person but they do seem to like me. Normal moggies seem to find my lap attractive, as do the not so normal ones - I have woken up to find a cheetah lying across my legs. Admittedly it was used to taking advantage of people, being cared for at a cheetah sanctuary, but I had lost the feeling in my legs. The very same cheetah had licked me on the face the previous night, which was quite painful as their have sandpaper for a tongue. But my most memorable experience was having a fully grown male caracal curl up and fall asleep in my lap. Caracals are cats with very pointy ears with black ear tufts, there are 20 different muscles in their ears allowing them to detect prey from all around.

So why was this rare cat snuggling on my lap without a care in the world? This particular one had been brought in to be cared for due to an injury it had sustained on the reserve I was working on, and it was going to be released back into the wild when fully healed. I was truly enjoying the novelty factor of zizzing with an African lynx. Caracals are quite large cats to have sitting on your lap, they are commonly known as the Persian Lynx or African Lynx, despite the fact that they not a lynxes at all. And I came to appreciate the size of it, the longer it sat on my lap. These cats are tenacious hunters and they have been known to bring down an ostrich, the fact that they can keep up with an ostrich is a surprising fact in itself. The caracal mainly hunts rodents, birds (which it can catch in flight by leaping into the air), antelopes, gazelles and rabbits. But this one was living the life of Riley by being hand fed cubes of impala.

A few days later my new furry friend was put into a large holding cage to allow him to get used to his natural surroundings, rather than a sofa, blanket and prepared steak. Incredibly after two weeks he had no memory of his past luxurious life and his friend - he hissed threateningly at me from the back of the cage, ears back , tail up and teeth showing. A week later he was released back into the wild fully recovered, having completely forgotten about impala steaks, a secure bed and about little ol' me.

He might have forgotten me but I certainly won't forget him.

Trapped by African Wildlife

2011-09-26T07:40:00.000-07:00

It was a typical morning in Africa with Karen, we had got up early with the sun, been down to check the hippos that Karen was studying and were back at the house by breakfast time. I call her place a 'house', in fact Hippo Haven is more than a house, it is beautiful thatched home on the side of the River Turgwe in Zimbabwe, built and sculpted by herself and her able husband Jean. There is no glass in any of the windows, just lots of frames of mosquito netting so the house is really cool in the heat of the day and filled with light.

Karen and Jean have a lot of cats, and these are kept inside for most of the time to protect them from the African wildlife. Domestic cats are high up on the snack stakes and they also do not have much bush sense, being a bit soft around the ears when it comes to surviving in the African wilderness.

So there I was sitting inside with the sun streaming into the sitting room, surrounded by cats and contentedly reading my book. The cats were animated and attentively looking out through the mesh of the front door and playing games with each other, hissing, swiping and cavorting along the window ledges. Arthur, the very large warthog, had come visiting and was munching through pony nuts outside the back door. Karen often feeds wildlife that come to visit, and Arthur had a special place in her heart. He came to the back door and was fed on a regular basis, the back door area was his. The thing was that only Karen was allowed into Arthur's area, anyone else, including Jean, was charged by him, and that is a pretty scary experience. A large warthog could break your shins, and Arthur certainly fell into that category!

Living where they do, Karen and Jean have a bathroom in their house - minus a toilet, the actual toilet was still the old long drop from when they had camped in the bush. They did not want to build a sceptic tank, so the toilet was not part of the house. And at this point I needed the loo.

I am not too sure how I managed to escape near death, but I am alive and kicking today. As I opened the front door and headed right towards the long drop, my sixth sense kicked in. I glanced back over my shoulder to the left, and there, only 2m away from me, was a Mozambique spitting cobra. It was standing at about chest height, its hood was out and it was not best pleased. All this information I took in at record speed and my brain engaged into retreat mode. I must have looked like Scooby Doo, I am sure that I retreated in mid air, whilst doing those circular motions with my legs, and I slammed the door shut, making sure that all the cats were safe inside.

"Karen, there is a large snake outside the front door, and its not too happy", I yelled.

I peered out of the front door and the snake was still there, still looking rather hacked off with life. The cats were not helping the situation by hissing through the netting and agitating the snake into an even worse mood that is already was in. We struggled to keep the cats away from the windows, the cobra may have been able to spit its venom through the netting, who knows, I was not really ready to find out.

It was then that I realised my dilemma, I need the toilet but I could not go to the long drop out of the front door for fear of meeting the cobra (it was a big one) and I could not leave the house by the back door because of Arthur. I weighed up blindness with broken shins, and came to the conclusion that neither was an attractive option.

I could not really hold on for long, and from past experiences this wildlife situation might be around for a while. I came up with an alternative, it was the only option.

"Karen, I am going to have a pee in your bath."

Hungry Hippos

2011-09-05T06:02:00.000-07:00

My first time in the African bush was in Zimbabwe and the whole experience was something never to forget.

I was staying with my good friend Karen Paolillo, the person who I was to later describe as the Dian Fossey of hippos. She single handedly saved a pod of hippo during the drought of 1992 in Zimbabwe, as well as countless animals in area, and it was during this time that I met her and had my first 'true bush experience'. I stayed with her for 5 days, to learn about the bush so that I would be up to speed when I started my job as Ecologist for Raleigh International.

Karen and her husband Jean were working in Save Valley Conservancy and only had a caravan to stay in. Near the caravan they had erected a small open sided shelter where they had moved their bed and a small table and chairs. Usually only their cats slept in the caravan, but for the next few nights it was going to be my home too. It would be just too much for me to sleep out in the open this time around!

My first day in the bush was a dramatic one. Karen had identified this pod of hippo that was seriously affected by the drought - they had no water to use during the heat of the day and food was diminishing. Hippos need a lot of food to sustain them, mainly bulk such as grass, and they also need water to protect their delicate skin from the fierce sun. Some of the hippos had blisters on their backs and many were certainly on the verge of starvation.

In the morning we went to feed a young mother who had moved away from the rest of the pod. This involved me carrying a large sac of grass and pony nuts, Karen with another one and the two of us walking into the bush. And there could have been anything in the bush waiting for us, as well as a hungry hippo. After a good half an hour of walking into the middle of nowhere, with Karen using her in-built compass and me totally relying on the fact that Karen knew where she was going, we arrived at a dry river bed. Karen told me to wait where I was, not to move, and she left me guarding the sacs of food.

I waited, for what seemed like ages. My mind went wild with the thought of me being watched by beady eyes, eyeing me up for food, with crazy thoughts that Karen would not come back for me and I would have to make my own way out of the bush. My thoughts were interrupted by a large crashing of branches and the sound of a very very large animal coming my way.

Which way to go? Which way to go? I chose neither, stood my ground and waited whilst holding my breath, I was frozen to the spot through fear. Then there was a deathly silence and, what felt like 20 mins later, Karen appeared. She was impressed that I had stayed where I was guarding the food - little did she know that it was due to my inability to take any action that I had remained fixed to the spot!

The crashing had been the mother, charging through the bush in order to protect her young calf. We knew that they were around and left the food on one of the banks, at her normal feeding point, and hastily retreated back to the relative safety of the bush camp. That was task number one done. Task number two was to feed the rest of the pod. This was much nearer but more labour intensive as there were more hungry hippos to feed.

Karen had a wonderful method - the hippos were given a giant 'sandwich' of grass, hay, molasses and pony nuts. Each hippo would stand next to its neighbour and eat downwards through this 'sandwich' getting all the nutrients and bulk that a hungry hippo needs. As Karen knew all the hippos she knew which hippo was happy eating in a group and which weren't, and where to put the 'sandwiches'. It was a well thought out process.

I helped with the laying out of each element of the 'sandwich'. We were a bit later than expected so we had to work quickly, and I was told to keep any eye out for greedy ones that came early. I could empathise with this as I was getting hungry too, it been an exhausting day saving hippos. Out of the corner of my eye I sensed a movement, just a slight one, but one that was out of the ordinary. This sense has developed over the years and has helped me spot wildlife for miles around, and get me out of trouble too. I turned slowly and there was a hippo approaching the 'sandwich' that I was building.

"Er, Karen, there is a hippo here", I said as calmly as I could. Adrenalin was pumping through my body as the hippo swung its head from side to side and then locked onto us.

"Move slowly backwards and get into the car" Karen said, and we both carefully walked backwards towards her battered old car. I was praying that it would start first time this time, it was not that reliable. "If it charges, run." I didn't need much more telling than that. And then the hippo started moving forwards, picking up speed and opening its mouth, building up into a full blown charge.

"Run!"

We belted for the car, I leapt into the car and slammed my door shut although I did not really feel that much safer inside the vehicle. Luckily the clapped out car reacted as she should have done, roared into life and Karen reversed it at break neck speed away from the hippo and the 'sandwiches'. The hippo was having none of this and continued to move faster towards us. Karen could not see the hippo, she was looking behind us to ensure that we did not hit any trees, so I gave her a helpful commentary of how we were doing.

"Faster Karen, faster, its gaining on us, Oh my God, faster, Oh my God!" were my helpful comments as the hippo bumped the car's bonnet. It was far too close for comfort. Eventually the hippo gave up on its chase and decided that food was a better option. It turned around and lumbered back to its meal, leaving two wide eyed women in a car with hippo saliva on the bonnet.

Karen looked at me, her face must have been a mirror to mine - mouth open and eyes bulging, and we burst into nervous hysterical giggles.

"And that is why hippos can be pretty dangerous", gasped Karen between laughter. I think I got the message there....

That night I went to sleep to the melodious sound of honking hippos - what an introduction to life in the bush.

I was going to love it here.

Alternative Top 10 Items to Take on Safari

2011-08-26T03:45:00.000-07:00

I am often asked what people should take whilst on safari. There are the normal things such as mute and natural coloured clothing, sturdy walking boots and decent sunglasses, but there are other things I always take that you might not think of. So here is a list of my Alternative Top 10 Items to Take on Safari:

1. A Warm Hat. It is often assumed that Africa is always hot, not so. A warm hat is greatly appreciated for those early morning safaris. To get the best game viewing you may find yourself up even before the sun and sitting in the back of a landrover can be a bit of chilly experience!

2. Gifts. A gift of clothes, biros or even a football makes an enormous difference. Giving to the local community benefits them and ensures that you are a special part of that community. It also breaks the ice and you may even find yourself being invited into a homested.

3. Binoculars. By the end of your trip your binos will be stuck to your eyes! It is better to bring a not so good pair than none at all. You will be amazed at how more rewarding it is having your own pair of binos, and you will probably end up using them to spot all sorts of animals and birds. Binoculars could add enormous value to your safari.

4. A Decent Camera. If you have a pretty good camera, thing bring it. So may people ask me whether it is worth bringing a digital camera (and all the lenses) and what the likelihood is of it getting damaged. Yes, it might get damaged (although this is unlikely), but wouldn't you rather create some incredible memories of your safari than not at all? It is also a great way of engaging with the local people, showing your pictures of them makes it is easier to strike up a conversation, enriching both yours and their experience. Just make sure that you ask whether you can take a picture of them first.

5. Head Torch. Once used you will never go back. You will never have to put a torch in your mouth again when looking for that essential bit of kit! A head torch makes life so much simpler.

6. Copies of Documents. Having a copy of your passport, insurance certificate and your airline ticket give you a bit of a safety net in the event that your real documents are lost or stolen. It makes life easier when being issued a new one or if you need their details.

7. A Bird Identification Book. You may think that you are not a twitcher, but after visiting Africa you may want to rethink this! There is no way that anyone can ignore the fact that the birds in Africa are much more colourful, more dynamic and have fascinating and quirky habits. By the end of the holiday you will be using your binoculars to spot yet another bird. Twitchers unite!

8. Hand Gel. Hand gel is a great invention and handy to have when out and about in Africa. Using hand gel before eating helps to seriously reduce the risk of you catching something whilst on safari and potentially putting you out of action for a few days. Better to be safe than sorry.

9. A Good Book. There is always time for relaxing and taking time out and reading a book by a waterhole, it is a small pleasure in life. You may even need two, or three...

10. A Small Day Sac. To put all the above in!

Sahara Trekking - more than I had anticipated for

2011-08-18T02:05:00.000-07:00

I love the desert, the large wide open spaces where the distance never seems to end and the heat on my face warms my soul. I love it how the warmth bounces up from the hot sand and makes my skin prickle from the sweat and the smell of dust and sand is intoxicating to me. That was what I was looking forward to in my Sahara trek, travelling through one of the last true wildernesses of the world. Little did I know that I was going to get more than I had bargained for, much more.

I was leading a group of people, for Across the Divide, on a five day trek through the desert, a maze of golden sand dunes, rocky valleys and wide wide open spaces which could take a day to cross. I arrived a day earlier than the group in order to meet the in-country agents and ensure that everything was arranged correctly. The group was made up of 42 people, so I had to get it right. The route was in order and all the right food and provisions had been packed away. It was all looking ship shape.

Our first day involved a journey in a dilapidated truck that would take us from the outskirts of the desert into the dunes of the Sahara. The general consensus was that the Sahara was a sea of dunes, how wrong we were.

The Sahara is one of the hottest, driest and most inhospitable places on earth, and covers an area larger than the USA. It is made up of sand dunes but also boulder strewn plains where ceaseless winds and ferocious sandstorms have weathered rocks into weird sculptures. There are rocky plateaus, canyons and dried up river beds and small oases with date palms giving a minimal amount of shade. It is not a place for the faint hearted.

We had two good days of walking before the Sahara showed her true force, and there was nothing that we could have prepared ourselves for it. A wall of sand bore down on us in the middle of day three and remained with us for a gruelling 36 hours. Luckily we had all bought local scarfs and these were tied around our faces and over our noses so that only our eyes showed - from behind sunglasses. Our sunglasses took a real hit and have never really been the same since!

I made sure that everyone knew who was in front of them and if they lost sight of them then they should not move until the people behind had all caught up. The local agents were brilliant and we kept everyone in a tight group - I was not going to loose anyone in this storm! With myself at the back I would be sure that everyone was in front of me - although I could only see three people at any one time, the rest had been swallowed up by the sand storm. It was very disconcerting not being able to see the whole group but I trusted that they were all sensible and would follow my instructions.

The wind whistled by us, tearing at our clothes and blasting sand at us. At times the sheer force of the sand being thrown at us was very painful. The worst thing was when you opened your mouth to talk, and if your face was not well protected there was a mouthful of grit that played havoc with your teeth - akin to having your nails scratched down a blackboard.

Fours hours of purgatory later we found our campsite, all ready for us, and everyone spent the rest of the evening in their tents to escape the wrath of the desert. One tent blew down so we had to dig in every tent to ensure that it did not happen again. There was sand every where, even in my mint tea - how did it get there? Showers are not common in the desert, water being a rather valued commodity, so baby wipes were the order of the day. Never have so many baby wipes been used on an expedition. I needed five just to clean my face!

The wind was relentless through the night but in the early hours of the morning its tirade on us dissipated and it disappeared to persecute some other poor unsuspecting souls. The quietness was deafening. What a memorable experience, seeing the true soul of the desert. Despite this, I still loved her.

Back in England I discovered the Sahara in all sorts of places; my sleeping bag, my boots (although I could have sworn that I had cleaned them out), my toothpaste (?!) and there was still mementos coming out of my ears and nose.

I will never underestimate the Sahara. And I would go again, even if it was for a repeat of the same experience. Wonderful.

Sleeping under the African stars in the wilds of Botswana.

2011-08-10T08:40:00.000-07:00

I love spending a night out on the salt pans, it's an out of this world experience. Nothing really seems real. Imagine spinning around and around and around and the view simply not changing at all, just a white expanse of nothingness. This is what it is like out on Makgadikgadi Pan in Botswana.

The first time I spent a night out on Makgadikgadi Pan is still a fresh memory.

We travelled in two vehicles - I was in the one behind and I learnt from this mistake for the future. The dust from the vehicle in front often prevented me from keeping my eyes open but I could still see the odd ground squirrel scampering for cover and a couple of lone jackals searching for something tasty to eat in the harsh environment. An eagle circled in the sky waiting for some hapless creature to succumb to the searing heat bouncing of the white sand and the vegetation diminished until there was little more than grass, grass which was yellow and with little hope of surviving into the next month.

The horizon expanded even more, if that was at all possible, and I am sure that I could see the curvature of the earth. The sky was full of wispy zebra (horse) tail clouds galloping across the sky, it would be a perfect night. And then the salt pan filled my vision. A vast sea of white, flat as a pancake and exceptionally difficult to ascertain how far you could see. There was nothing to gauge distance on it at all. This was once a lake and had dried up leaving behind a superficial maze of enormous curling salt flakes and not much else. We drove out onto the pan and into 'nowhere', where we stopped for the night.

'Nowhere' was our planned destination; there were a few logs left behind from a previous visit and these were lit along with more firewood from the truck. A toilet was dug, a whole in the middle of 'nowhere', and an awning erected around it. Not much to hide behind here! By now the fire was blazing and the aroma of sizzling steak being grilled over the braai made me drool like Homer Simpson. Sitting as the sun sank into the horizon was also out of this world - it seemed to be larger, brighter and redder than I had ever seen before.

Tents are not needed here, it is one of the few wild places in southern Africa where you can sleep out under the stars without the fear of an unwanted slithery guest in your sleeping bag in the morning or the fear of an attack from scavenging animals . A roll mat and your torch will do.

So after supper, I picked up my sleeping kit and marched out into the void of Makgadikgadi Pan. Well, marched was not really the word I would have used, more tentatively walked into nowhere feeling sure that I would come across something scary. I felt rather vulnerable as the light of the fire diminished to a small spec. Why was I doing it I hear you ask? Well why not? It is not often you get the chance to sleep literally in the middle of nowhere, to have the peace and tranquility of Africa wrapped around you, and with the knowledge that you are safe. It takes a bit of guts as it is the fear of the unknown that ties you to the fire, but once stretched, or even broken, it is remarkable experience.

I had a great nights sleep that night, although I have to admit I was a bit twitchy to begin with, complete quiet can be very disconcerting.

Silence is deafening.

When was the last time you slept and only heard your own breathing?

Biltong is like Marmite, you Love it or Hate it.

2011-08-02T04:49:00.000-07:00

Biltong - you either love it or hate. And I love it. But then I am a bit of a carnivore and I love cured meats of any kind.

Biltong is a kind of cured meat that originated in South Africa. Many different types of meat are used to produce it, ranging from beef to game meats to fillets of ostrich. It is typically made from raw fillets of meat cut into strips which are dipped in vinegar and then have salt and a variety of dried herbs rubbed into them. The strips of meat are then left to dry for about 4 days or until ready to eat.

This was the way that meat was preserved in the olden days to prevent flies laying their eggs on the meat and to stop the meat from rotting in the intense heat. This method is still used today and it is a popular snack for eating on the move or with gin and tonic in the evening.

The first time I ate biltong was on a journey through Zimbabwe and we had bought some 'wet' biltong. Wet biltong means that the meat has not been dried all the way through and is still soft, whereas normal biltong is completely dry and can be quite brittle and tough to chew at times. I loved the wet biltong but a limit was imposed on me as to how much I could eat - this was not because I was going to demolish the whole lot, although this was possible, but simply because there is a lot of chewing involved, eating too much if you were not used to it can result in serious jaw ache! I did moan about this, ate too much and got jaw ache, but it was worth it every minute!

I remember the first time I made biltong. I was given an impala carcass and as I had not got enough room in the freezer for it all I decided to make biltong, like one does whilst one is in Africa! It was quite an easy process, although it did take a long time to cut the meat up into suitable strips. I used coriander and black pepper as my seasoning and hung the meat from a makeshift washing line in my veranda by clothes pegs. I can proudly say the end result was delicious. I did, however, physically see the reason for the vinegar – it kept some very fat blue flies (with bulbous red eyes) off my tasty snacks whilst they were drying. Three days later they were ready to eat, and there was no one there to stop me from getting jaw ache!

Biltong anyone?

Swimming with Whale Sharks

2011-07-18T02:12:00.000-07:00

I am off to France for a holiday on Monday, and I am really excited. It will be the first beach holiday which I have had a for a long time and I can not wait; the sun on my face, feeling warm, reading books and swimming in the sea. I was contemplating taking my snorkel when I realised that the last dozen times I have been in the sea I have been with the most extraordinary creatures and that the Mediterranean may not have the same sort of creatures!

Mozambique is a great place to snorkel and an even better place to SCUBA dive. The coral reef is spectacular there and you can see clown fish swimming in amongst colourful corals, sea fans at great depths and even manta rays at 'cleaning stations'. Magical. I have been on a dive when I could have sworn that I had seen a great white, even the instructor had rather larger eyes than usual, I have seen manta rays with wing spans of over 4m and I have seen squadrons of devil rays, all swimming over us like planes in WWII. The fish are curious and not scared of divers allowing me to have incredible sightings of all kinds of fish ranging from powder blue surgeon fish to red fang trigger fish and clown fish to scorpion fish. However, the best fish sighting was a whale shark.

And yes whale sharks are fish, despite their size, in fact the largest confirmed individual was 12.65 metres long and the heaviest weighed more than 36 tonnes although unconfirmed claims report considerably larger whale sharks. Whale sharks have spots all over them and is known as "pez dama" or "domino" in Mexico for its distinctive patterns of spots. It is a deity in Vietnam and is called "Ca Ong", which literally translates as "Sir Fish". But the best name is from Kenya, Africa, where it is called "papa shillingi", coming from the myth that God threw shillings upon the shark which are now its spots and in Madagascar the name is "marokintana" meaning "many stars".

My first sighting of a whale shark was off the coast of Mozambique when I was going to Manta Reef to do my last deep dive for my Deep Diver Speciality Course. It was a long boat journey out, well 40 mins, and we were told that there were often chances of seeing dolphins as well as whale sharks along the way. I had been keeping my eyes peeled for a whale shark for ages and had yet to see one.

My luck was in that day in 2003, as a whale shark suddenly loomed up from the deep below to surface very near our boat. We had been briefed that if one did surface we could get in the water with it and swim close to it, but not to touch it. Touching the skin could damage it as we could pass on chemicals that might affect the shark.

I didn't need second telling, as soon as the boat cut its engine I elbowed my way past everyone else to get into the water first, I never thought I had it in me! It was a wonderful moment as I snorkeled up to this giant fish and watched it as it swam leisurely past me. It was enormous. Despite its size, whale sharks do not pose significant danger to humans and although massive, whale sharks are docile fish and snorkelers can swim without risk, apart from unintentional blows from the shark’s large tail fin! So I kept well away from its tail and spent a glorious 10 mins with this whale shark before it dived into the deep blue sea.

Memories of a life time.

Meerkat Magic

2011-07-12T03:42:00.000-07:00

I was recently working in Swinley Forest and had the opportunity to hold a meerkat..... again. I know that it seems a bit of an odd place to find a meerkat, near Bracknell, but I was working on a team event called 'I am a Team Player, Get Me Out of Here', loosely based on the very similarly named popular TV show. We were providing a scaled down version of the hit series and there was a guy who pitched up with £5,000 worth of creepy crawlies and other exotic animals in the back of his van for 'animal encounters'. This included a Chilean rose tarantula (which I gingerly held - I have a bit of a phobia about large hairy spiders so it was a big thing for me), a vat of crickets, a number of snakes including an impressive albino python and two adorable meerkats.

The last time I held a meerkat was in the back of beyond in South Africa, a rescue meerkat from the bush, and as I cradled the one in Swinley Forest whilst it made a chirrup purring noise, it brought back memories of my wonderful meerkat experience.

I had been working with a game capture unit and we were based at a farmstead where we were trying to catch inyala. There was obviously a caring side to the owners as there were rescue animals of all shapes and sizes living in the house, ranging from wild cats to meerkats. All things fluffy and cuddly and I fell in love with the place.

It may not seem much, but I was asked to look after the new addition, a meerkat, a small bundle of fluff that needed constant supervision and needed to be kept warm. I was offered this rather important roll and this small male pup instantly became attached to me, and me to it. Meerkats go around in groups called a 'mob', 'gang' or a 'clan' and I like to think I became part of his 'gang', with him tucked into my fleece to keep off the chill of the cold African mornings.

Meerkats are intriguing animals, they can dig as much dirt as their own body weight in a couple of seconds, they are immune to the poison of snakes and scorpions and they are such good hunters that some have been tamed to become rodent catchers. However, they are the favourite food for eagles and hawks and with a sharp shrill from one of the meerkat sentries the whole clan will disappear into their burrow network - young meerkats are so afraid of predatory birds that even airplanes will send them diving for cover!

And that was where I came in. I protected this bundle of joy from 'airplanes', kept him warm from the harsh African weather and spoke to him as a team member. It was a joy that only lasted for two days but provided memories for a life time.

You never forget when a wild animal accepts you into their pack, despite its size.

Tick Blitz

2011-07-03T02:06:00.000-07:00

Getting a tick is not high on any ones list.

There are over 850 tick species in the world, of which 100 are capable of carrying a disease such as Lymes disease or Tick Bite Fever. Ticks are not born with a disease, they pick it up from their hosts. They are quite clever really, in their adult form ticks will climb up vegetation and use their forelegs to feel/grab for a host, using carbon dioxide, scent, body heat and other stimuli to find the host. Ticks are usually found from ground level to three feet above the ground.

These past few days I have been walking in the North Wessex Downs assessing Silver Duke of Edinburgh groups and I didn't really appreciate how rife the ticks were in the area. I spent a good while removing ticks with carefully selected tweezers. I found these ticks much harder to remove than the ones in Africa, these ones were much smaller and once they had really buried their heads into the girls flesh they proved to be difficult to remove. Ticks have not got good biting mouth parts so have to bury their mouth and head into their host in order to get to the blood vessels. Charming creatures.

African ticks also come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but seem to be easier to remove. I remember advising a group of girls that walking through the bush in a strappy top was not a good idea, the bush was over head height and they were off the beaten track walking transects across a game reserve. But they wanted a tan and it was too hot..... They only needed to to be advised once; that night I spent many an hour meticulously picking ticks off from around a number of bra strap lines! Once you get the hang of the method - twist and pull, it can be quite therapeutic.

Ticks can be avoided with insect repellent but the best thing to do is to wear long trousers and a long sleeved shirt - also helps with preventing sunburn when in Africa, and the UK (at the moment)!

Life whilst on Game Capture

2011-06-06T10:00:00.000-07:00

Last week I was watching TV and as I was flicking through the channels I stumbled across 'Great Animal Moves'. There was a translocation team moving two large bull elephants in Malawi, from one game reserve to the next, and it brought back great memories of when I was working with a game capture unit in South Africa. Imagine my surprise when the camera panned round and there was Kester Vickery organising the loading of one of these elephants - it had been Kester's team that I had worked with!

I had been asked by a good friend of mine, Jason De Carteret, to join a game capture unit and to give some feedback on the viability of a business idea. Jason was the helicopter pilot working alongside Kester's game capture unit and I spent a very happy month living in the bush, manhandling animals of all shapes and sizes, loading them in and out of crates and driving them across the African wilderness.

I was certainly thrown in at the deep end; I found myself feeding captured rhinos whilst they were in their crates, walking in a line through the African bush trying not to step on any unsuspecting snakes (and in the process shepherding game into specific enclosures), picking ticks by the dozen of my overalls and rugby tackling antelope before injecting them with a sedative. It was the stuff that dreams are made of. It was hard work though, we were getting up before the sun rose and after a quick breakfast we were on the move in the bush for the whole of the day. There was no time for those that could not keep up and if you made a mistake you certainly knew about it!

The most enjoyable time I had was capturing nyala. Admittedly this did not involve the use of the helicopter, or chasing after semi sedated giraffe in vehicles across bumpy terrain or watching rhino been manoeuvred from one crate to another, nyala capture was even more exciting, it is done by hand.

Nyala are dense bush dwelling antelope and cannot be rounded up by vehicle or helicopter, it is all achieved by manpower. A large net about 3m high and 30m long is set up in the bush, in an area where nyala are known to frequent. Then a handful of people called spotters, which often included myself, hide in the bush in front of the net, and wait. You have to have incredibly patience doing this as you could be waiting a while before the action starts. And any movement can spook nearby game. Meanwhile, a few kilometres away, the rest of the team form a long line and start 'beating' the bush to flush the out the nyala and push them towards the trap.

At this point my adrenaline levels were normally overloaded as I could hear the game in the bush moving nearer to my hiding spot. As the animals got closer the tendency to hold your breath got greater and I found that my senses, especially my ears and eyes, were heightened. And then a dozen or so nyala would run past me, so close that I could touch them, and fall into the trap of the netting. Then the action began.

Immediately the spotters would be upon the animals bringing them physically to the ground, lying across them and blindfolding their eyes. If an nyala did not hit the netting it was a bit of a free for all - nyala were rugby tackling to the ground! Lying on the animals and blind folding them calmed them down and prevented the antelope from damaging themselves. At this point a vet sedated nyala to prevent further stress. Once sedated you can walk the nyala as if you are pushing a bicycle, one hand on an ear and the other hand grabbing the hair on its shoulder, and you can steer it towards the truck or container. A very odd experience all round!

I had a wonderful time working alongside Kester's team. You never really knew what type of game hit the net. More often than not it was nyala, although we did once have a rather unhappy leopard. We decided to leave her to untangle herself!

A Cheetah Kiss

2011-06-01T06:58:00.000-07:00

I was in a meeting with three incredible business women, Samantha Mant of Three Sixty Services Ltd, Rebecca Tregarthen of rejoove and Deb MacLeod of DMM Consulting, and we were having a great discussion about social media and subject matter. Luckily for me, Sense Africa subject matter is pretty much limitless and there are so many stories, anecdotes and facts about Africa that I can impart. Finding factoids about plumbing, business development and client relationship consulting can be a little bit harder and my friends have to be much smarter with how they get their message across.

I can talk about Africa until the ~~cows,~~ cats come home and wildlife experiences are always a great topic, well it is for me. So here is a cheetah story....

I was doing some research into cheetah projects in Namibia a few years back and found myself visiting a farm which took in problem cheetah. These cheetah had, more often than not, killed cattle and were therefore considered a pest species. The cheetah were then captured and relocated to a farm in the north of Namibia where they were fed and looked after and, if possible, new homes were looked for.

I arrived by car and got out to open the gates. There was a fenced area, like with all homesteds in Africa, where the land around the house is fenced in to prevent wild animals getting too near to the home. Just as I was opening the gates I noticed two cheetah lolloping from around the back of the house. I promptly closed the gate for fear of letting them out, but more importantly, for fear of them getting too close to me. This was not really what I had expected, most people in Africa have dogs guarding their house, not cheetah.

Chris then came out of the front door, luckily he had been expecting me, and he shouted that it was OK to come in. I have to admit I was a little bit reserved in opening the gate, I was now only 2m away from what I perceived to be very wild animals. It was all rather surreal. The cheetah lost interest and walked away whilst I gingerly got my bags out of the car. This was going to be an memorable stay!

Cheetah are interesting animals, they are easily domesticated and in the olden days were often used as pets. However, once cheetah are familiar with man, they lose their hunting and survival instincts and cannot be reintroduced back into the wild. These two cheetah had been taken in when they were cubs and had therefore become used to living in a semi-domesticated state. They were fed carcasses on the back lawn, sharpened their claws on the garden trees and wandered inside the house as if they owned it – which in my mind they probably did.

That night it was Chris's birthday and we celebrated by having champagne outside under the wonderful starlit African sky. The steak was on the braai and we were listening to the sounds of the African wildlife, I was truly content at that moment. What more could a girl want?

Chris asked me a question about the projects I was running and I turned my head to the right to answer him whereupon I found myself being eyeballed by one of the cheetah, 20 cm away from my nose. I opened my mouth slowly to answer his question (sudden movements are not good) when the cheetah leaned forward and licked me on my arm. I know that cats have rough tongues, but this felt like I was being electrically sand papered with nails, I was surprised to find that my skin was still intact.

What more could a girl want? A cheetah kiss was suffice.

Camping with Elephant & Hyenas - Too much Excitement for One Night...

2011-05-25T05:39:00.000-07:00

I have recently organised a family holiday to Botswana for Joy Harcup and her family. They are travelling in August and having just gone over their itinerary I am very envious that I am not going too!

There is something magical about Botswana, it has this peaceful air about it, probably because Botswana is a destination for the more discerning traveller, staying in exclusive lodges and in the tranquility of the African wilderness. It has taken luxury to the extreme.

One of the best ways to see wildlife in Botswana, especially in Moremi and Savute, is to go on a mobile camping safari. I remember the last time I was camping in Botswana was in Savuti campsite, where Joy and her family are staying, and where I saw a host of animals just by sitting in my campsite. The first animal to be spotted was an elephant, this one was busy digging at the ground right in the middle of our campsite. As we approached our tents I could see that the elephant had dug a hole to locate the underground water pipe, which he had smelt out, broken the water pipe and now there was a small watering hole in the middle of the campsite! Close encounters of elephants can be good but when going to our tents we made sure we were as far away from this drinking hole as possible! The elephant did not seem too bothered by us, he just wanted a drink of cool water.

As we had supper we saw wildebeeste, impala, kudu and zebra, we didn't even have to get up to see them, they just walked past us on the way to their water hole. It was all a bit surreal.

Our last known visitor was something special. Night had fallen and we were sitting around our campfire watching the twinkling stars and listening to the noises of the African Bush, it was a beautiful night that night. We had got used to elephants and other animals coming into drink at our waterhole, but when yelping and growling were heard we knew we had some new and exciting visitors. I gradually trained our spotlight onto our waterhole to see four bright blue eyes glaring back at us. The eyes seemed to be the same height as I was when I was standing and then there was that familiar 'laugh' which gave our visitors identification away. I could not believe how enormous these hyena were, we all had our mouths open watching them.

It had been an incredible evening and as I lay in my tent I realised how lucky I was to see these animals - and in my own campsite. It is not often that you say you shared your campsite with an elephant and two hyenas, but then these sort of things happen in Africa.

I am looking forward to hearing about Joy's safari to Africa, I hope they all have some incredible memories too.

The Lioness and My Bacon

2011-05-17T06:53:00.000-07:00

Mana Pools, Zimbabwe, is an extraordinary place and I would certainly classify it as one of the true wildernesses of Africa.

A few years back I camped in one of the remoter campsites of Mana Pools. In order to use the wilderness camps you must have a registered hunter with a firearms licence in the group - you really are stuck out in the middle of nowhere. We had this wonderful campsite, overlooking the River Zambezi, with the most incredible vista along the floodplains.

And it was here that the excitement began.

During the night there was a lot of lion activity down on the floodplains; roaring lions throughout the night, clashes between nervous lionesses and the mewing of cubs caught in the fracas. It was a surprise anyone got any sleep at all - I certainly didn't.

In the morning I tentatively got out of my tent to find Stewart, gun in hand, standing on the outskirts of our campsite checking out the area. There was a large male lion defending his pride from a younger male, all happening about 200m away, it was quite extraordinary.

I started the braai (BBQ) for our breakfast of bacon and eggs, whilst Stuart kept an eye on our distant neighbours. The bacon was on the braai, sizzling away and the eggs were boiling, perfect. There were five of us in the group and we all stood cleaning our teeth, like sentinels, watching the lion saga unfold.

"If any of the lionesses breakaway from the pride, get into the vehicle immediately", said Stewart, " do not think about it, just do it." We all nodded, completely understanding the implications if we didn't act quickly.

Of course this is what happened, two lionesses broke away from the pride, coming in our direction at a steady trot, and we clambered over each as we dived in through the windows to get to safety. It did not take the lionesses long to cover the distance and before we realised it they were in our campsite. Unbeknown to us there was also another lioness in the area with her two cubs, protecting them from the incoming male. They were not a threat to us, they were keeping their distance from the newcomer, but it was still quite a hairy experience having these five visitors, and so close too.

And then they smelt the bacon… inching closer to my breakfast wondering what that mouthwatering smell was.

There was no way I was going to leave my breakfast to these cats. That was not an option. Luckily I was sitting in the drivers seat and I decided to take direct action. With some careful manoeuvring I managed to position our vehicle right next to the braai so that I could finish cooking breakfast through the driver's window, in complete safety.

And that is my memory of Mana Pools; me dispensing breakfast as if I was in a Drive Thru, surrounded by salivating lions.

Weird Bird Names

2011-05-09T09:42:00.000-07:00

I sometimes wonder who on earth was given the role of naming birds.

I understand that there are a large number of birds in the world but sometimes their names do not seem to do them justice. For instance, why the African Wattled Lapwing is named as it is whilst the White Crowned Lapwing has much larger wattles - this can cause some confusion at a waterhole. And why does the African Pitta sound a rather dull and boring bird when, in my opinion, it is one of the most colourful birds seen in Africa. And as for the Broad Billed Roller, don't get me started, it has extraordinary lilac/purple underparts, but those aren't mentioned are they? Its bill is not that broad really, but its lilac chest is something to sing about...

Then there are all the exotically named birds such as the African Paradise Fly Catcher, the Gorgeous Bush Shrike (which really is gorgeous) and the Greater Double Collared Sunbird, now they are named correctly. I think that after a while the person naming the birds got a little bit bored and resorted to naming them after their more obvious characteristics - the Red Winged Starling has red wings (although I would probably call them russet,) the Yellow Billed Stork is a stork with a yellow bill and the Long-tailed Paradise Whydah does in fact have a very long tail.

There are also some wonderfully named birds where you would have had to have taken something illegal to think of these names – the Secretary Bird which has some plumes sticking out of the top of its head which may or may not resemble a pen behind the ear, the Twinspots which have two white spots on every small feather but you would have had to captured them to find this one out and the Tambourine Dove has not a musical instrument in sight and does not sound like one either.

Whatever your thoughts on birds, Africa does actually bring it all to life, and once you have got your head around the unorthodox names you will become a twitcher - be proud of it!

The Birth of a (very small) Hippo

2011-04-18T02:59:00.000-07:00

I have just been watching some incredible video footage by my friend Karen Paolillo of the Turgwe Hippo Trust. The video shows the antics of a very newborn hippo and its mother – video footage that has probably not been seen before, I never have.

Karen single-handedly saved a pod of hippo during the 1992 drought in Zimbabwe, and since then she has become a bit of a 'hippo whisperer'. My first experiences of Africa was with Karen when I went to stay with her for five days, my first five days in the African bush. I was very naive, but those five days taught me a lot about Africa, the wildlife and how to survive in the African bush. Karen's house is very rustic, is in the middle of nowhere and wildlife has the right of way. There were warthogs near the back door, monkeys sitting on the roof, Mozambique spitting cobras in a number of places around the house and kudu browsing on the nearby trees. It was like being in a ground-based Noah's Ark. I learnt how to track animals in the bush, how to watch hippos from a safe distance and how to avoid a charging elephant. It was stuff that dreams are made of.

The melodious sounds of honking hippos to me is the essence of Africa.

Cockroaches - Cunning or Critter?

2011-04-11T09:24:00.000-07:00

This last weekend I was enjoying the sun in Chris and Amanda Cowley's (of RedPR) back garden, and the subject of cockroaches came up. I know that this is not a normal conversation over tea, but our conversation wasn't normal anyway. It was geared around Africa and other exotic destinations. Chris had mentioned that whilst he was overseas, a cockroach had crawled over his face, and he had waited in James Bond style whilst this cockroach moved on before he could take his shoe to the little critter.

I feel as if I am quite well versed on the subject of cockroaches and happily recalled the time that I had spent many a night squashing cockroaches in a seedy youth hostel bathroom in King's Cross, Sydney. Little did I know at the time, that if the cockroach is female, the eggs are jettisoned and can hatch at a later date. In order to prevent a massive infestation the best thing to do is to cover the whole place with bleach to prevent cockroach world domination. I didn't know this at the time, and we narrowly escaped a cockroach coup.

I do feel a bit of an expert on cockroaches, partly because I've spent a lot of my life in areas where there are vast populations of the critters and partly because I have spent many an hour reading up about them. I have to say, for my defence, that the reading up about them was because I had nothing else to read. Whilst I was living in Vanuatu I found a bookshop which had three English books in its, the rest were all in French. I am a bit of a bookworm and was delighted to find an alternative to the books that I'd been rereading. These were "The Three Musketeers", "Much Ado About Nothing" and "Laboratory Experiments on Cockroaches".

The book on experiments on cockroaches proved to be quite fascinating, as well as rather macabre. For instance, did you know that you can freeze a cockroach in a tub of water, defrost it, and it will carry on as if nothing has ever happened to it? Cockroaches can also survive a vacuum (for a very short space of time), will continue to move for a number of days once decapitated, can survive high voltage electrocution and are one of the few animals on earth that could survive a nuclear holocaust. Now that certainly has to show something cunning about these creepy crawlies.

I personally do not like them, they resemble something out of the Alien films, but you do have to give them their due. They have managed to survive in a number environments and I suspect there is a master plan to conquer the world.

They are nasty little critters, in my mind, but I am sure they have a 'cunning plan'. Beware.

A Roan Licked my Mirror

2011-04-05T04:11:00.000-07:00

Whilst out in Swaziland I was in Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary, enjoying the peace and tranquility of the reserve. There is something about Mlilwane that makes me feel as if I have come home, it is a wonderful place where you can get away from everybody and take time out for yourself.

I was driving around the park with my friends Terry and Vicky, looking at the animals that were housed in the endangered breeding area. Ted Reilly, who set up Mlilwane after recognised the demise of Swazilands' wildlife, is trying to re-introduce species that were once roaming wild in Swaziland. We had already seen red duiker hopping amongst the undergrowth, watched sedentary eland and heard the booming calls of the blue crane. But the most remembered sighting was of a roan antelope.

"Stop, stop, I'd like to take a photo", said Terry and I pulled the car over to watch the approaching roan.

Terry had his camera on zoom trying to focus on this particular animal, and it obliged by walking closer to us. And closer, and closer until the roan completely filled his view finder. Terry took his camera away from his face only to realise that the roan was eye-balling him, only 1m away! This did not stop the brazen animal, it leaned towards the open window and stuck its head right into the car and began to nibble on the mirror adjuster knob! I was speechless, until I realised that its horns could get caught inside the car. This could not only get messy but the rental car company would not be happy, let alone my bank balance.

With some verbal persuasion, the roan removed its head from our small mazda, licked the wing mirror as a passing shot and nonchalantly walked off to graze on more wholesome grass.

Terry never really got his award winning picture, he was too busy laughing.

Expect the unexpected in Africa!

A Taste of Africa - Bobotie

2011-03-28T08:03:00.000-07:00

This weekend I will be out on the hills in the Lake District checking up on students who are practicing for Ten Tors and Gold Duke of Edinburgh. It will be good to be out in the fresh air. However, sometimes camping food can not be that great and I know I will be craving healthy, wholesome food.

My great friend Ed Tuffin gave me this receipe and it is delicious, I am sure that I will be dreaming of it. Ed is also accompanying me on Sense Africa's Rejuvenation Safari to South Africa in September providing more delicious receipes and gourmet meals to tantalsite our taste buds.

Try this Bobotie and tell me what you think. It is also cheap and cheerful, which is what we all like.

Chickpea and Lentil Bobotie with turmeric and cinnamon rice with toasted almonds.

Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons- Olive oil
1 Large red onion, diced
1 Clove garlic, crushed
1 Large grated carrot
1 Large grated apple
1 Tin green lentils(250g)
1 Tin chickpeas (250g)
1 Teaspoon curry powder
1 Tsp Ground coriander
1/2 Tsp Ground ginger
1 Tsp fresh or dried chopped mixed herbs
1 Tsp Turmeric
1/2 Tsp Cinnamon
1 Tsp Sugar
1/2 Tsp Fresh chopped red chilli or Cayenne pepper
1 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp black pepper
Juice and rind of 1 Lemon
2 Slices of white bread soaked in water,lightly squeezed and mashed
2 Bay leaves

Topping:
400 ml Greek or thick yoghurt
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 Tsp salt, pinch of pepper

Rice:
250 grams rice
625 ml water
2 Cinnamon sticks
2 Tsp Turmeric
1 Tsp Salt
Handfull of toasted flaked Almonds

Method:
Heat oil in a pan and fry off onions and garlic. Add chickpeas and Lentils. After about 2 minutes add grated carrot and apple then add spices and continue cooking briefly to develop spice flavours.
Add lemon juice and zest, Bay leaf and the mashed bread mixture.
Spread the mixture out into an ovenproof dish.
Beat together the topping ingredients and pour onto the Bobotie. Bake in an oven at 190 degrees c (375 f)(Gas mark 5) for 35 minutes until golden brown and firm.
Put the rice, water, turmeric and cinnamon in a pan and boil until done. When cooked, drain rice well, remove cinnamon sticks and mix through the toasted almonds.
Spoon onto warmed plates with Bobotie and a big green salad!!!!

Now tell me that your mouth is not watering!

Painted Wolves

2011-03-21T10:33:00.000-07:00

I was at a wonderful party last Friday evening, at Mimi Avery's, of Avery's Wine Merchants of Bristol. So obviously the wine was pretty good that evening. There were a number of people there that had been to Africa and even someone from the BBC who is in the process of managing people filming out in Sierra Leone – rather them than me.

Anyway, we were discussing wild dogs. For those of you who are keen wildlife spotters, you will know that seeing wild dogs is something of a treat. I have only been lucky to see them a few times, but I will never forget my first sighting of a pack of wild dogs - the painted wolf.

It was in Zimbabwe, during my time in Save Valley Conservancy, and I was driving back to my mud hut which really was in the middle of nowhere. (My first night there I had not slept a wink for fear of being eaten by a passing leopard.) An impala bolted across the road in front of me, swiftly followed by three wild dog. I've never seen anything like it. They caught the impala about 10 m from the road whereupon the remainder of the pack descended upon their evening meal. The impala didn't stand a chance. There didn't seem to be any semblance of order, all the dogs just tucked into this impala, squabbling and fighting over tasty morsels. You had to admire the way they devoured their prey, within half an hour only the horns and a few bones were left. And I was dehydrated as my mouth had been open for the duration!

As the light was fading, these satisfied and satiated animals trotted quietly into the bush like ghosts, leaving little behind to show that they had been there in the first place.

It was a memory never to be forgotten.

Yoga Safari to Malawi - shown in Pictures.

2011-03-14T05:20:00.000-07:00

This yoga safari to Malawi offers a holistic approach to well-being, placing the same emphasis on your body, as well as your mind...

Give yourself a treat...

Give yourself a rest...

Spend time watching the wildlife and find peace in the serenity of the African wilderness...

Listen to the honking of hippos in The Shire River...

Leisurely float by sun bathing crocodiles and watch the herds of elephants drink from the river...

Stay in inspiring accommodation and get back to nature...

Eat healthy and nutritious food...

Become motivated in wilds of Africa...

Learn more about African wildlife...

Practice yoga over looking the African savannah....

Feel re-vitalised....

Snorkel in the aqua marine waters of Lake Malawi...

Feel the sun caress your face...

Explore the tranquility of Africa...

Practice pilates on the white sands of Lake Malawi...

Take time out for you...

Relax mind, body and soul.

A Picture Paints A 1000 Words

2011-03-07T04:06:00.000-08:00

I am really excited about the new trip that I've just put on my website - a Rejuvenation Safari in South Africa.

The pictures speak for themselves.

Take time out to soothe an aching body in the luxurious setting of White Elephant Bush Camp....

Explore Pongola Game Reserve, a private game reserve set on the banks of Lake Jozini where four of the Big 5 animals can be spotted as well as a host of other exciting and wonderful wildlife....

You never really know what you are going to see....

Have 1-2-1's with a professional expert to help you with your well-being programme....

Spend time participating in group relaxations sessions....

Restore your mind, body and soul...

Stay in exclusive accommodation, privately situated in the African wilderness and away from the hubbub of mass tourism....

Taking time out for yourself....

Track elephant and rhino on foot, lazily float by boat on Lake Jozini and watch the honking hippo or simply lie beside the pool and feel at one with nature....

Experience tranquil settings....

Spend time by the sea....

Revitalise yourself....

Re-energise yourself....

Sense Africa for yourself.

Tapping for your Health

2011-03-03T07:25:00.000-08:00

I was recently reading an article in the Natural Health magazine and was instantly drawn to an article called " Tap your Way to health". I know there are non-invasive techniques known as health tapping, but I did not realise how many techniques there are to naturally combat a variety of common health issues. We all use health tapping without even realising it, such as gently rubbing the place that hurts. This is a very primitive form of tapping, but in essence it is still the same thing.

I was amazed that with tapping we can help ourselves to relieve pain, reduce stress, combat colds, reduce lethargy and control migraines, all by tapping different areas of your body. So here are a couple of useful methods to help you with your day;

1. To help relieve anxiety or stress place your first three fingers just below your belly button and pushed gently for the count of three and release for the count of two. Repeat this five times.
2. To reduce lethargy put your thumb on the palm of your other hand, near where your thumb and index finger meet, and put your index finger on the opposite side of your hand to your thumb. Using your index finger, tap the opposite side of your hand for the count of 10 and then gently squeeze this area for the count of three. Repeated as often as you want to.

Now that is better than taking some tablets isn't it?

Give it a go, nothing ventured nothing gained.

Young and Invincible

2011-02-23T05:53:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I look back at my life and I wonder how I have managed to stay alive. I have made some ridiculous decisions.

One of these decisions was to hitchhike from Zimbabwe to Malawi, via Zambia, by myself. Malawi is said to be a fantastic country, with its aquamarine gem of Lake Malawi balancing out the forested northern highlands, it is reputed to be a magical place and I wanted to find out for myself.

So I packed my bags, got dropped off on the outskirts of Harare, and with a sign with 'Malawi' written on it, waited for a ride to Lake Kariba. That first section was pretty easy, I was in familiar territory, I knew Zimbabwe very well and I got a one-stop ride all the way to Kariba. After an overnight at Kariba I managed to easily gets across the board into Zambia having got a ride from a very pleasant lady and her daughter. I was in luck, as they were driving all the way to Lusaka.

However, I did not realise that they were born-again Christians (not that I take a particular dislike to born-again Christians), but they were over zealous in my protection and it took me three days to break away from their place in Lusaka. I mean, three days! They were concerned about my welfare and were trying to find me a ride, but after 48-hours it was becoming a rather painful process. I eventually persuaded them to drop me on the outskirts of Lusaka where I would try and hitch a ride through the eastern section of Zambia to the Malawi border. Unfortunately they dropped me in the afternoon – it is a six-hour drive to the border, with nothing much in between, and it was at this point that I questioned my decision-making process. I also question their decision-making, as they were concerned about my welfare and had left me in the middle of nowhere with a rather unachievable goal.

I waited. I waited in the searing heat. I waited in the searing heat and consumed most of my water. When I started drinking my second bottle of water I mentally began to look at my options. Whilst in thought, a large pristine white vehicle pulled up and a guy got out and asked me where I was going.

" Malawi," I said, "or anywhere near the border would be great."
"You are in luck," said Andy (whose name I found out later), " where are the others?"
" What others?"
"Well surely it is not just a you travelling, where are the other hitchhikers?"
"No, it is really just me."

Andy could not believe this, picked up my bag and put it in the back of the truck, whilst still looking surreptitiously into the undergrowth for the rest of my group. When he realised that I actually was travelling by myself, we set off along the potholed road towards Malawi.

"Fancy a drink? There are cold beers in the fridge." The fridge happens to be between the driver and passenger seat. Lady luck was certainly travelling with me.

I was young, I was invincible and I was so terribly naive. But I made it to Malawi (in one piece), and it is a magical country and Lake Malawi is an incredible place. I loved it so much that I spent six weeks there, and that was just the first of many a glorious time in Malawi.

'Sense' Malawi for yourself.

Sun Salutations on Safari

2011-02-17T06:32:00.000-08:00

Picture this, you are sitting on the edge of the plunge pool, your legs dangling in the cool water and the warm sun heats your tired bones in your back. You look up, and there in the distance is a herd of elephants, gradually making their way towards you and the waterhole below you. You don't really have to move, you can just sit there and watch the elephants plod to the waterhole for their afternoon drink.

Pure heaven.

Hairy Spiders, a Pick Axe and a Blade of Grass

2011-02-09T04:00:00.000-08:00

Many years ago I lived in the Zimbabwean bush, in a small round mud hut with my own small vegetable patch and in the middle of nowhere. I did spend many nights by myself there, which at times was rather disconcerting as there was no door on my mud hut, and I had heard a leopard 'coughing' nearby. Most of the time, however, I was project managing a group of volunteers who were helping me with my scientific survey work. When they arrived the area changed and became a sea of tents – living quarters, medical tents and cooking areas. And it was outside one of these tents that a mini adventure began.

Late one night I was walking over to the medical tent when I noticed four big, fat, hairy legs poking out of a hole in the ground, right in front of the entrance into the medical tent, typical. This was going to be trouble.

The next morning I called Epheus over to get his opinion on the matter. Epheus was my camp guard, a wizened, elderly, local guy who had worked in the area for Lord knows how many years, and was an oracle in all things in the African bush.

"Aah, it eez not gud", said Epheus while shaking his head. "This eez very bad", he said, peering into the hole.
"I know that" I said frustratingly, " But can you do anything about it? And you mustn't kill it."

Epheus smiled and walked away leaving me dumbfounded. He then returned with a pick axe and a blade of grass - not the usual implements for removing a big fat hairy spider, but he was my expert after all, so I watched with curiosity. By now there was a growing number of people peering into the hole and shivering at the thought of a rather large fat spider just outside the medical tent. Ironic really, as this particular spider, at the baboon spider, had a very nasty bite.

Epheus looks at me, with a knowing smile, and delicately put the blade of grass into the hole and jiggled it around with his left hand. Meanwhile his right hand was raised above his head, brandishing the pick axe. His left hand was still working hard with the blade of grass and then all of a sudden he froze, and we held our breath. The pick axe came down with full force and he started digging up a considerable bit of the area before throwing the pick axe away and surveying his destruction.

And then out of nowhere loomed the spider, boulders cascading off its back and probably not too happy with its current situation. Epheus pounced on the spider, laying his right hand flat across the thorax of this monstrosity, and then manoeuvring his fingers round so he could pick the spider safely up without getting bitten himself. The spider was nearly as big as his hand, with its legs outstretched, and as Epheus brought it close to my face I could see its poisonous biting mouth parts pretty well. too close for my liking, far too close.

I did not flinch. This was not the desired effect that Epheus wanted from me, so he turned to Lucy, did the same, she shrieked, providing the right effect. The result was Lucy being chased by an old wizened man hobbling after her with a spider, it could've resembled a Benny Hill film. I was just glad that it wasn't me.

There is always something unexpected to see in Africa, whether it be fat or thin, hairy or scaly, humongous or teeny, Africa has it all. Looking back at this event I realise that things can be put into perspective and what is important in life is often re-addressed. The smaller things are often just as important as what we consider the larger things in our lives, and being in the wilderness of Africa helps us to recognise this.

Gain a sense of balance in your life.

As I flew the Plane Hattie was Sick

2011-02-02T03:04:00.000-08:00

The Okavango is one of the world's largest deltas and often referred to as "the river that never finds this the sea". It is a peaceful and isolated oasis set in Botswana's harsh Kalahari Desert. A visit to Botswana, without visiting the Okavango, is a sin.

There are really only two ways to see the Okavango, by mekoro and by air.

A mekoro is a wooden dugout canoe made from local jackal berry, marula or sausage trees. These trees are used as they invariably grow tall and straight and have strong wood which is favourable for carving. Before tourists visited the area the demand on local resources for mekoros was relatively small, but with the onset of tourism there's been an increase in trips into the Delta. Luckily, a new type of mekoro has emerged which has a limited impact on the forest, these are in the form of fibreglass canoes, modelled on the original mekoro.

I remember the first time I settled into a mekoro, the poler pushed our mekoro away from the land and we glided into the clear waters of the Okavango. We floated past waterlilies with their bright white flowers opening up to the blue sky, past storks elegantly moving through the water and a herd of antelope galloping along the edges of the waterway. Our guide had very good eyes and was able to spot wildlife from far and it was not long before we saw an enormous herd of elephants drinking the cool crystal water. We had come down wind from them so we had not disturb the herd and we spent over an hour watching these animals in amazement. For most the members on this trip, this was their first ever sighting of elephants, and to see so many was a real treat. It was truly magical.

The other way of seeing the Okavango is by air. This is a completely different experience and not really for the fainthearted. You can charter a plane for about 40 min to take you over the Okavango, spotting vast herds of buffalo and elephant from the skies. My advice would be to make sure you sit next to the pilot, as the views are tremendous. The best way to engineer this is to get into your group of four, the plane only carries five people one of which is the pilot, and make sure you're last in the queue. This will ensure that you are sitting next to the pilot in the co-pilot's seat. And if you are very clever the pilot may even allow you to fly the plane for a bit.

That was when Hattie was sick. It is quite tricky flying a plane, keeping the horizon steady and also trying to see the animals at the same time. I probably only flew the plane for 10 min and by that time Hattie had been sick and the other two people were begging for me to hand over the controls!

So when you go to Botswana, make sure you visit the Okavango. Take time to spend at least a day in a mekoro and when you get into a plane make sure I am not sitting in the co-pilot seat!

How to Avoid Being Charged by an Elephant

2011-01-18T02:27:00.000-08:00

I recently sent out my newsletter with the email heading of 'What to do if Charged by an Elephant'. I never realised how many jokers there were out there! Admittedly I did send the email with the hope of a few amusing replies but the response was astounding.

"Lawyers answer: refuse to pay! Or outrun everyone else."
"What happens if I am charged by my bank manager?"
"Great advice! Before reading this if I'd been charged by an elephant I would probably just have paid him rather than standing my ground. I might have tried haggling a bit to bring the price down but I would never have thought of playing dead. Do they take credit cards or just cash?"
"I would call Jenny 'Lara Croft' Bowen from my sat phone."

The list was endless and very amusing and it brought a very large smile to my face each time I opened my e-mails up.

When you get it right, it doesn't take much to make someone smile.

And for your information, I don't carry a small mouse around in my pocket to deter charging elephants, that would just be ridiculous........

What Sense Africa Is Not...

2011-01-14T02:13:00.000-08:00

Last night I went to a talk by a well known company that specialises in 'adventure' holidays. I would have never gone if I had not been asked to go with a friend of mine, she thought it might be a good idea to check out the competition. Definitely a lesson there!

It was interesting to see the demographics of the people attending (Becks and I were certainly in the younger age spectrum) as well as what was on offer. It was a lesson in exactly NOT what Sense Africa is all about. They said that they had small groups of 70 - 100 (!), there was considerable travel each day, purely functional accommodation, a group participation itinerary and very early morning starts - it appeared that each day you were up to see the sun rise. I know that seeing the sunrise over the plains of Africa, the Taj Mahal and the Amazonian rain forest are sights not to be forgotten, but surely not every day. I was exhausted just looking at the itineraries and I got the feeling that a holiday would be needed after the holiday. I know that it is not for everyone, there is a market for all tastes, needs and hobbies.

We ran out of the room in case we were stopped to be asked whether we enjoyed the talk - all 2 and a half hours of it.

Despite all this I am glad that I went as it has clarified what Sense Africa's holistic holidays are all about. Personalised holidays which are relaxing, flexible and away from the hubbub of life's fast lane. A holiday where you can choose to go on safari or stay by the pool, to join a small (6 - 8 people) yoga session whilst watching the elephants wander by or read your book, the choice is yours. And I would like to think that you would return home feeling refreshed, relaxed and revitalised.

Peace for your mind, body and soul. Sense Yourself with Sense Africa.

I feel better now....

Safaris Can be Likened to Life....

2011-01-06T06:40:00.000-08:00

Imagine that you are on safari in Africa, the sun is beating down on you and you are still holding your breath in the anticipation of seeing lion. Sounds great?

Putting this in a different perspective, you are hot and tired, you have been bounced around in the land rover for over 2 hours (and got the bruises to prove it), you have seen nothing, your nerves are shot to pieces waiting for that elusive animal, you are thirsty, hungry and you have just lost your lens cap to your new camera.

Sometimes life is a bit like that, exasperating, exhausting and with that feeling that you are chasing your tail - or even the lion's, both in your own life and also in business.

How about an alternative? Imagine that you are on safari, but this time you are sitting on the decking, in the shade of an acacia tree, over looking a waterhole. There are comfortable seats for you to lounge on, a table with your book, camera (complete with lens cap), a cool drink (water is beading down the outside) and some snacks are also on the table, you are reading a book when suddenly you see movement from the corner of your eye. The lioness and cubs stealthy approach the water, drinks their full and then quietly leave. And all you have had to do is raise your camera to your face and watch.

Don't you think that this is a lesson in life? There is no need to manically try to fit everything in, rushing around all over the place to achieve your objectives and getting stressed in the process. Sometimes what you are trying to achieve may just come to you, so just let it happen.

Of course, on safari in a land rover can be exhilarating, I love it and it is an African experience not to be missed. But it is your choice. And it is your choice how you approach life.

Sense Africa, restoration for the mind, body and soul.

Yoga Safaris with a Difference.

2010-12-20T02:49:00.000-08:00

It was about this time last year, just when it had started snowing, that I looked back over the year I realised what a roller coaster of the year it had been. The recession had hit me hard, there was little money in my bank account, I had had an emergency operation on my neck and there had been a bereavement in the family. So here I am sitting in my office, looking out of my window, and watching the predicted 8 inches of snow falling, and looking back over a completely different year. This year has been a great year for work, there is money in the bank, I am fighting fit and healthy and so are my family and friends.

So what makes this year different from all the others?

There are a number of things that have made 2010 a great year for myself. Firstly, the enforced timeout after my operation made me think about my priorities in my life, both personal and business, which I applied this year. It opened my mind to be able to identify opportunities when they revealed themselves, and not to go rushing around hunting those opportunities down. Instead I just let them come to me. It was inspiring how it all happened. Secondly, I spent a little bit more time with friends and family, although I have to admit I need to increase this in 2011 as the balance is still not quite right. Thirdly, I made more time for myself, me time is exceptionally important. And lastly, the most important thing of all, is that I had belief in myself and what I was doing, I had direction, I had focus.

Which is why I want to help others get back onto the right track and become successful too. Sense Africa has a Yoga Safari going to Malawi in May next year, where your holiday is combined with a time for self-discovery, a time for time out and a time to move forward. I do confess that I cannot provide all of this which is why Liz Foster, a professional coach and yoga instructor, is accompanying the trip. And you couldn't do this in a more inspiring location such as Malawi!

Sense Africa – restoration for the mind body and soul.

How To Use A Mosquito Net

2010-12-13T07:56:00.000-08:00

At times it may seem a bit obvious on how to use a mosquito net but when you are trying to disengage yourself from the clutches of a rogue one, these tips may come in useful.

1. First make sure that the net has been tied up above your head in a knot, as this will prevent anything from crawling into it during the day.
2. More often than not your mosquito nets will be arranged for you, but if this is not the case make sure that when you untie it there are no friendly bugs in it!
3. Doublecheck there were no holes in the net as this will defeat the object. Tape of any kind is an instant fix.
4. Pull the net taught over your bed and tuck it firmly under the mattress. This prevents the net brushing against your face at night. It is best to do this before supper, because after supper and the superb wines that you've consumed, it may make things a little bit more complicated.
5. Spray inside the net with insect repellent to kill any rogue insects, just to double check there is nothing unwanted sharing your bed with me.

Sleep well!

Guns, Beds and Mozambique Spitting Cobras

2010-12-06T02:26:00.000-08:00

My Land Rover was packed full of kit for living in the African bush. It was a short wheelbase Land Rover, had no windscreen, no roof and I'm not too sure whether it had any doors to begin with. It was certainly built for an African adventure.

I arrived late in the afternoon at Devuli Ranch where I had been told that a house had been put aside for me to use during my one year stay in Save Valley Conservancy. I drove into the compound with relief - I had pushed started my Land Rover twice on the way down. That was the first challenge over and done with. The compound consisted of about seven houses, dotted in the African bush, with a swimming pool as the central feature and all surrounded by secure fencing. This was to prevent wild animals from wondering into the area where we were living, making it a bit safer to walk around at night from one house to the next. It did not, however, exclude all the wildlife, which I was to later find out.

Derek Henning came to greet me and welcome me to the Save Valley Conservancy. He pointed out the house that I was going to use, and my eyes really popped out of my head. The entrance to the house had two vast wagon wheels either side of the gate and bright pink bougainvillea was growing over the wagon wheels. My house was enormous; there were five bedrooms, an enormous living area and the Veranda surrounding the whole building, it was a little bit more than I needed. It was the original house that had been built when the first white explorers came through the area and had not been lived in for a while.

"Jenny, how are you with snakes?" asked Derek.
"Well, not too bad," I murmured, nervously wondering where this conversation was going.
"Just that the house has not been lived in for a long time and Mozambique Spitting Cobras have been seen in the area. So what I would advise is that you take this and leave it in an accessible place."
I took the double barrelled shotgun from Derek rather gingerly. "Just fire from the hip", he continued, "because if you fire from your shoulder you will probably dislocate it. Do not worry about the house, it is fine if you pebble dashed the walls, just aim and fire."

My eyes were out on stalks by this time, this was certainly an interesting introduction to living in Africa.

For two years I slept with a loaded double barrelled shotgun under my bed. I never used it, but was certainly aware of its location and it took me a few weeks to get used to the idea that I had a gun under my bed!

Life in Africa is often unpredictable, which is also the charm of the continent. Prepare for the unexpected and your life will be enriched.

My First Experience in the African Bush

2010-11-29T04:03:00.000-08:00

My first real job after University was working for Raleigh International in Zimbabwe. I had been employed as an ecologist, for a minimum of the year, to set up a number of conservation projects in Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe was Raleigh International's new destination and I had eight months to set up a number of projects for the first expedition the following year.

I had never been into the African bush before, I was naive about all things Africa.

So, I drove down to Save Valley Conservancy to stay with a lady called Karen Paolillo - she had single-handedly saved a pod of hippo during the drought which Zimbabwe was in the clutches of at the time. It was June 1992, the early rains for the year had not materialised, people and animals were dying.

Karen and her husband Jean lived in a small caravan in the middle of the bush in Save Valley Conservancy. Jean had been prospecting land for minerals and Karen had come along with him, only to notice the plight of the hippos. Their caravan stood on the edge of the escarpment overlooking the River Turgwe, which should have been a river of glorious water but had been reduced to a couple of small puddles. Karen had become increasingly aware that the hippos no longer had water to drink or to retreat to in the heat of the day and little food to eat. The situation had become serious if these hippos were going to survive.

So Karen has taken it upon herself to feed these hippo, using the little savings that she had. Each day she would go out to find where the hippos were hiding in order to feed them. More often than not they were in dense riverine bush attempting to hide from the powerful rays of the sun. Hippos skin is very sensitive to the sun, which is why they need to submerge themselves in water during the day, otherwise the skin will crack and blister. Cracked skin, and the searing heat, can lead to the death of a hippo from dehydration.

So there I was, naive Jenny, carrying a bag of hay and walking through the bush. Karen was busy looking for a a young hippo and its mother which she had not seen for a while. We were searching a dry riverbed as Karen thought that this was where they would probably be hiding out. I was given strict instructions by Karen to stay in the middle of the dry riverbed whilst she went into the undergrowth to see whether she could locate the two hippos. All of a sudden there was this large crashing sound from the undergrowth, coming in my direction, and I became frozen to the spot. In the back of my mind I was looking for nearby trees to climb but my legs were not going anywhere. I was terrified! A few seconds later Karen emerged from the undergrowth, smiling. She was pretty pleased that I had done what she had asked me to do, which was to wait exactly where I was, but little did she know that my legs could not move anyway. What an adrenaline rush!

That was the first time of many wonderful wildlife experiences, where the heart gets a little bit of the workout. But I will never forget that particular moment, it was the first of many, and it is the one that sticks in my mind.

Coca Cola and Communication

2010-11-22T03:03:00.000-08:00

My brother Jason, had never been to Africa before, so the obvious solution was for him to come with me. This was a few years back when I was working for a gap year organisation, setting up conservation and community projects in Swaziland. He came out with me before my recce for the next expedition, and we had a two-week holiday – well a bit of a busman's holiday for me, but certainly a holiday for Jason. We had some memorable experiences; a full day by Mahlindza Dam watching the animals coming into drink, Jason spending a night snuggling up to some animal to keep warm in the night (whatever it was, it was on the other side of the tent and Jason had a good nights sleep) and the mist clearing giving the most spectacular view in Malolotja. But one of the funniest situations we had was a lesson in communication.

We decided to have lunch in Simunye Country Club – there is a swimming pool there which we were taking advantage of as it was extraordinarily hot that day. Before taking a dip, we decided to have a drink and Jason went to the bar to order them. A few minutes later the waiter came out with my Sprite and disappeared back into the bar area. Jason's Coke was not there. I was halfway through my Sprite before Jason queried the fact that his drink was missing. It was a hot day and he was parched.

"Not to worry", I said, and I went over to the bar to find out where his drink was.
"I was just wondering where our Coke was," I said.
"They're just making it now."
"They are just making it?"
"Yes, it will be ready in 20 min."
"A Coke takes 20 min to make?"
"Yes."
"Oh."

It then dawned on me what had happened. Jason had ordered a 'Coke' but the waiter had misheard and thought he had said 'cake'! I felt terrible, the kitchen staff were slaving away over an unwanted cake.

"What type of cake are they making?"
"Plain."
"Please could we have two slices of plain cake and also a Coca-Cola?"

Well, we couldn't really let the cake go to waste could we? And it was worth every minute of the 20 min wait!

How To Create Stunning Photos

2010-11-15T03:59:00.000-08:00

Memories of Africa are what we strive for whilst on holiday and the most popular way of remembering this is through photographic evidence. On returning from holiday, camera memory cards are usually full to the brim of useless photos and those award-winning photos that you thought you had, and which turn out to be uneventful blurs. I am a self taught photographer, and I am not that fantastic at taking pictures, but I love my end products and it gives me great joy. So here are some simple techniques that I have learnt to avoid photographic disappointment and to create photographic envy.

1. Always have your camera at the ready as you never know when you will see something of interest.
2. Whilst in a vehicle, hold your camera at the ready or have it on your lap. When on your lap the camera is cushioned from the vibrations of the vehicle – constant vibrations can jolt the camera mechanisms out of place.
3. Using a small beanbag or a window mounted tripod helps stabilise your camera and keeps pictures pin sharp.
4. If you're taking pictures of wildlife, focus on the animals eyes – if the either out of focus and you will lose 'picture' appeal.
5. And remember not to take too many close-ups of animals, create space in your photo and give the African backdrop a chance to shine, it is a fantastic photo in itself.

They say that patience is a virtue – all good things come to those that wait, and it does most of the time! And as a final thought, try not to spend all of the time looking through the camera lens, enjoy the surrounding so that you can really truly "sense" Africa.

Translocating Elephants

2010-11-09T02:54:00.000-08:00

When I was first in Zimbabwe (and that was many years ago) I was working in Save Valley Conservancy, situated in the south east lowveld. It was in 1992, the rains had not come, people were starving and animals were dying, it was not the best first impression of Africa. The earth was sun baked to such extremes that water holes had become dust bowls, river crossings were not longer needed as you could drive anywhere and the nearby swimming pool was bone dry as the local wildlife has drunk it dry with the help of evaporation, it was the time of extremes.

And where I was based was not the worst hit - further south in Gonerezhou National Park, the game there were suffering, horrifically. Gonerezhou was famous for teeming wildlife, in particular the massive herds of elephants inhabiting the area. It is a beautiful part of the country and exceptionally wild in some places, truly the essence of Africa. But in 1992, it was more accurately described as an elephant grave yard. Gonerezhou was littered with the skulls of elephant, it was a place of death and the stench was indescribable.

So action needed to be taken. And elephants saved. So the members of Save Valley Conservancy came up with this plan of translocating some of the elephants out of Gonerezhou and into Save Valley Conservancy. In Save there were alternative sources of water and the game were being fed to keep them alive, and if some of the elephants could be saved in the same manner, then it was worth a try.

So on an early African morning, there was a group of us waiting in the bush for the arrival of the largest elephant translocated in Zimbabwe. We had heard that an enormous bull had been captured, put into a crate, loaded onto a truck and was being driven up to Save by road. An incredible feat as at the time as it was the largest animal ever to be moved in Zimbabwe, and could potentially be the beginning of a mass move of elephants and other game out of drought stricken areas. So we were rather anxious as to how the elephant would react to its journey and to its new surroundings.

More often than not it is advisable to put a newly translocated animal into a boma for a while, or a holding pen, to allow it to get used to its new surroundings and become acclimatised to the different sounds and smells. However, with such a large animal, this was not going to feasible, so the plan was to open up the crate and allow the elephant to walk out into a remoter part of the Conservancy where there were little distractions and where the vegetation was similar to that of its previous home. So there we all were, waiting for the newest addition to Save.

He arrived in the mid morning, and the crate was positioned so that the entrance pointed into the bush. There were a number of trucks and cars parked at a respectable distance away and we all waited with bated breath. The door was opened..... and nothing happened. He just stood there, watching, waiting for what I do not know. He was not coming out, that was one thing for sure. Half an hour passed and nothing had happened. A few people had left but I still watched with anticipation to see the first elephant released into Save Valley Conservancy. Still he did not budge.

And then suddenly, with no warning at all, there was a trumpet and 4 tonnes of elephant charged out of the crate, scattering complacent viewers and leaving a wake of destruction in the form of broken trees and one dented truck. And then there was silence. That was it. One elephant introduced into Save Valley Conservancy. Rather an anti climax really.

But that is the excitement of being in the African bush, the unpredictability of life. In the blink of an eye it had all happened and there was now a bull rampaging around my stomping ground. I would have to be a bit warier when out in the bush now. And that made my life a bit more exciting in the following months as we met on a number of occasions!

Walking with Ostriches

2010-11-01T12:00:00.000-07:00

Last month I was out tracking rhino on foot. There were four of us, Africa our guide, Terry, Vicky and myself. I love walking in the bush, you never know what you are going to see and who you are going to be walking with. So we set off into the unknown making sure that we were quiet and that we knew where the good trees were in case of charging rhino or elephant.

I was bringing up the rear, making sure that the unexpected was expected and that none of the feisty elephants would sneak up on us. You may think that this is rather impossible, given their size, but an elephant's step is one of the quietest out there and it is mind boggling how you can loose an elephant in the bush, they blend in so well. But loose them you do.

So there I was, giving the landscape the old terminator scan, checking for elephant, when suddenly, looming over my right shoulder was the head of an ostrich. (My terminator scan was temporarily dysfunctional.) I have no idea where she suddenly came from, but there she was, walking behind me as if she was part of the tracking party. I have to admit that she did give me a bit of a scare and I did move pretty fast away from her to ensure my body remained in tact. Ostriches can disembowel a person if they choose to do so. However, this one was more concerned with being part of the group than removing my innards.

Terry and Vicky had a good laugh at my sudden erratic movements, until they got the same eyeballing treatment, and this ended up with all of us trying to get away from her. She was none to pleased with this and 'herded' us together taking over my job of bringing up the rear. Well I wasn't doing a good job was I? She stayed with us for 20mins, enjoying our company before moving off to find something more interesting to follow.

Walking with Dinosaurs? Ostriches can be far more eventful. And the rhino can wait...

Bee Keeing in Swaziland

2010-10-25T06:38:00.000-07:00

I pride myself in providing tailor-made holidays, and I do like a challenge. However the most recent trip to Swaziland I did have a rather odd request from Terry and Vicky - to look at a local bee keeping and to exchange methods and ideas. Knowing quite a few people in Swaziland I did a bit of asking around and came back with Bulembu. Bulembu is an old asbestos mining town in the highlands of eastern Swaziland which has a number of small industries such as bottling spring water, diary produce and honey production.

So we set off to Bulembu, along a rather bumpy, dirt road which is used by logging trucks hurtling along precipitous tracks. We had to stop, rather quickly, to avoid a falling tree that was being manoeuvred across the road. At times I was wondering whether the sump would still be attached to the car when we got there, it was a was a horrific road. We arrived in one piece, shaken but not stirred, to find Joel waiting for us to give us a guided tour of the honey extracting process. My learning curve was vertical and Terry and Vicky were fascinated with the similarities of bee keeping in Swaziland with that of England. The most interesting aspect was Joel's participation in it all. He had originally been involved with the asbestos industry and once it all closed down he had been transferred to start up the bee keeping. With just a book on bee keeping in Southern Africa and a bit of support he has built up a total of 900 hives in four years! Terry and Vicky could not believe it all.

After visiting a number of hives and looking at the combs and how they extracted the honey, discussing the problems of the honey badgers and other marauding animals it was time to return to Phophonyane Lodge.

The sump is still attached.

What Makes a Good Sunset?

2010-10-05T02:28:00.000-07:00

I was looking out of my window last night and was amazed at the sunset that I saw over Cardiff, probably in celebration of Europe winning the Ryder Cup. It is not often that you get to see such a fabulous sunset in the UK, whereas in Africa the sunsets are pretty spectacular and much more frequent.

African sunsets are memorable. This is probably because we often see them whilst over looking watering holes, with the sound of the wildlife in the background and with the taste of a sun downer on our lips. And this is probably after an incredible day of watching wildlife and experiencing the local culture. All truly romantic and breath taking.

But what does make a good sunset? Is it the colour? The vividness of it? Or is it the location? What ever it is to you, I find that sunsets are personal experiences. My favourite one was at Sossusvlei in Namibia when there had been a sand storm and the dust in the air made these flashes of red across the sky. Truly remarkable.

Packing Made Easy

2010-10-01T07:39:00.000-07:00

I love packing, it is the excitement of knowing that I am going away and that there is time for a rest on the plane! The whole idea of travelling agrees with me. However, packing can be a bit of a nightmare for some and to make life a bit easier here are some tips to remove the stress from the start of your holiday.

1. Have a list of the things that you need so that you do not forget anything. Sense Africa can provide you with a generic list if you want.
2. Start a few days before by just putting things that you think you might need aside in a safe place.
3. Use a soft bag as this is easier to transport around whilst in Africa and also is less cumbersome than a solid suitcase.
4. Keep things to a minimum, you will probably not be staying in one place for the whole holiday so the less you have the less you have to pack at each stage. And that means less stress!
5. Pack the larger items first so that you can squeeze the smaller ones around it.
6. Pack items in the same way each time so you know where everything is.
7. Put penknives etc in your main luggage.
8. Put valuables such as cameras and phones in your hand luggage.
9. Also have a spare set of clothes in your hand luggage - sometimes bags do go walkies for a while!
10. Have a book handy so when you get to the airport early you can relax.

With this in mind I have printed off my list and going to pack for Tuesday when I am off to Africa, happy days.

Swaziland's Merchant Navy - a land locked kingdom...

2010-09-20T01:28:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine, Robbie, who does voice overs, sent this through to me and it put a smile on my face. It is an extract from the The Star in Johannesburg, South Africa. It sums up the determination (with humour) of the African people when facing a curved ball;

"The situation is absolutely under control," Transport Minister Ephraem Magagula told the Swaziland Parliament in Mbabane . "Our nation's merchant navy is perfectly safe. We just don't know where it is, that's all."Replying to an MP's question, Minister Magagula admitted that the landlocked country had completely lost track of its only ship, the Swazimar: "We believe it is in a sea somewhere. At one time, we sent a team of men to look for it, but there was a problem with drink and they failed to find it, and so, technically, yes, we've lost it a bit. But I categorically reject all suggestions of incompetence on the part of this government. The Swazimar is a big ship painted in the sort of nice bright colours you can see at night. Mark my words, it will turn up. The right honourable gentleman opposite is a very naughty man, and he will laugh on the other side of his face when my ship comes in."

Love it.

Birding in Africa

2010-09-06T10:51:00.000-07:00

I am really excited as I have just got 'Roberts' Multimedia Birds of Southern Africa' through the post. I can see your eyelids closing...

I was never really interested in birds until I went to Africa. In the UK most of the birds are rather dull in comparison to their African cousins although at times those cousins do visit the UK but it seems that they have to possess a 'dull' passport to get here. No, the African birds are gloriously coloured (like this white fronted bee eater), often have some really quirky nature to them and are easy to spot. So after my first visit to Africa, many years ago, I got rather hooked on birding becoming a bit of a twitcher myself, and proud of it.

And most people who come on a Sense Africa trip also get the bug (or is it the bird?) and spend a lot of time pouring over bird books identifying all manner of birds around the water hole. Best done with a gin and tonic too, if you want to take the more light hearted approach at birding.

So back to my new found acquisition, where I can listen to bird calls of every bird seen in Southern Africa, and a host of other useful information to marvel at. Twitcher signing off.

Malolotja's Zip Lines

2010-08-30T03:22:00.000-07:00

Swaziland is opening up to be the place to go for adventure - whether it be white water rafting, horse riding, caving, hiking, abseiling or even extreme mountain biking, Swaziland seems to have a wide range of activiti4es.

And the the new adventurous activity is a collection of massive zip wires in Malolotja. Malolotja is a place of stunning beauty, and do not worry, this has not be spoilt with the addition of a zip wire. In fact, you can not see it until you are clipped in. There are 12 lines, of varying lengths and heights(!), the longest being 140m long and about 80m high. I have to say from an ecological perspective they have done a good job as there has a minimal impact on the surroundings. The zip line goes through the trees, rather than having them all cut down, the bases between each zip blend into the surroundings and the best thing of all is that you can get a birds eye view of Malolotja gorge. Stunning!

Give it a go if you dare.......

Giraffe Necking Duels

2010-08-25T09:50:00.000-07:00

Whilst in Swaziland last month I was on safari in Mbuluzi Game Reserve. Mbuluzi is a small and intimate reserve where you can drive or walk at your own pace. In my opinion, it is the place for giraffe sightings in Swaziland as it is where you can see them up close and personal, it is breath-taking.

It was the time of year where males were pumped up with testosterone, ready to take on some poor unsuspecting female. And if they had not got a female in their sights then they were fighting amongst themselves to assert dominance.

So on safari, one sunny morning, I came across two giraffe circling each other and trying to beat the other into submission....with their own heads. These two giraffe were sizing each other up, constantly walking around each other before unleashing their in-built mallet. I was amazed at the force that each of them mustered and the accuracy of the blows, at times the force lifted the other giraffe off its feet. The longer the neck and the heavier the head then the more damage the blow can inflict. And this maybe one of the reasons for the giraffes to grow a long neck, natural selection in action. Some of these battles can be fatal but more often or not one of the giraffe will surrender before anything serious happens. Despite the fact that these battles can be bloody, they often look graceful and choreographed, more like a dance than a duel. But then appearances can be deceptive.

Later that day I saw one of the giraffes again, and he had a bleeding horn, but I was not too sure whether he was the victor or not. Necking is serious business.

Reverse Culture Shock

2010-08-16T11:06:00.000-07:00

I find that coming back to the UK is often more of a culture shock than arriving in Africa. This could be because of the lack of smiley faces in London this morning, the unhelpful attitude of the people in rail ticket office (my flight had got in much earlier than expected so my pre-booked tickets had me waiting for 2 hours for my train home) or maybe just the grey overcast morning that I had arrived in. It made me want to turn right round and fly back out to Africa.

Despite the lack of sleep, which I am sure did not help my state of mind, I am genuinely pleased to be back and with a host of memories about the school expedition.

So, "when I was in Africa...."

Last Days - White Water Rafting in Swaziland

2010-08-07T11:47:00.000-07:00

This was our second to last day of the expedition and one that the girls were really looking forward to as most of them had never been rafting before. There was also a new dam half way down the stretch of river that we were rafting, so some of it would be new for me as well. The Great Usuthu River is quite a friendly river to raft as there are rapids followed by pools of calmer water to collect paddles, rafts and people and as we were doing this in two man inflatable croc rafts it was likely that we would be thankful for these brief sections of tranquility! I knew that I would be as I am not a fan of white water rafting.

Begi, our rafting guide gave us an amusing safety brief, along with a warning to everyone about the crocodiles which would be sharing the river with us.... The eight of us paired up and unfortunately poor Lexi was partnered with me, which she regretted as I got us stuck on the first rock we saw and fell out at the first rapid. This did not instil her with confidence in my white water rafting ability. The first stretch of the Great Usuthu River is pretty tame and we meandered past people washing their clothes and cows drinking at the waters edge. This was a chance to get to grips with paddling as a team - or not as the case maybe. Lydia and Menace spending most of their time going backwards.

The first major drop in water level was next to the weir by the new dam. There is a large weir with a gap for the overflow, this is about 7m high and forms a shute into the river below and we went down this. The scary thing about it is that you have no idea what the drop will be like until you are on top if it and by then it is too late to do anything about it. Looking back, that was the easiest rapid of the river, but at the time it was a BIG drop. The river then flows into a small gorge where it gets even more exciting. This is where carnage occurred and a few of us spent more time swimming than in the raft, myself included. I was gutted. The last rapid is the largest one and only Kate and Bex stayed in their raft and Jess managed to stay in hers whilst watching Ellen take a little swim. The rest of us, Lydia, Menace, Lexi and myself managed to fall out at the beginning of the rapid and between us all I think we managed to visit all the rocks in that stretch of river. We were pleased that it was lunch and all over! We all slept on the way back, a cumulation of shear exhaustion and a massive dose of adrenalin. But what a great adventure.

In the afternoon a visit to he Cuddle Puddle was on the cards where we soaked in natural hot springs, had a sauna and some of us even had a massage.

The last day was spent shopping for souvenirs in local markets, visiting Ngwena glass factory and the Swazi candles workshop. All rounded off with a fantastic last night meal at a nearby restaurant with time to reflect on the memorable parts of the expedition, which are many.

Thank you girls for a fantastic trip and I wish you all the best in the future.

The Opening Ceremony

2010-08-05T01:55:00.000-07:00

This was one of the best opening ceremonies that I have been to, really well organised by Ellen and with some unexpected surprises.

We left the camp at 8 in the morning, to prepare for the opening ceremony, which had been arranged for 11am. On arriving at our newly built kitchen we had time to make our mark by signing our names on the kitchen wall, above the entrance into the store room. The ladies, who were going to use the kitchen, had cleaned the floor from paint splatters and everything was newly swept out, it was ready for the official opening.

Benches from the classroom were arranged outside and the order of speeches was changed for the tenth time, the main issue was who was going to translate as December was taking a cultural tour around the community, and he was the best person for the job. Meanwhile, Kate and Bex had organised a tie dying workshop for the women from the resource centre for 10 o'clock. I had never thought of doing tie dying before - it was a great idea. To begin with there were three ladies and this swelled to eight participants and 40 on-lookers. Kate demonstrated the method using sign language and Bex mixed up two different colour dyes for the t-shirts. The ladies looked confused. Small coloured bundles of material were left to dry in the sunshine and it was explained that they could open up the bundles after the opening ceremony - which they had been invited to. They still looked confused but were very happy with it all!

Elizabeth, the lady in charge of the NCP building and the children with it, introduced us to an elder from the Shewula community. The chief had sent him to represent the elders and this was a great honour - he arrived in traditional dress.

Eventually the ceremony was ready to start, just that we were missing December (but he was in the vicinity as he had been crafty and brought the cultural tour for the Dutch people to our opening ceremony) and we were also missing Robert. Robert was the man in charge of the AIDS orphaned school and had helped with ordering sand and cement. December and Robert arrived at the same time, December with the Dutch people in tow and Robert also in traditional dress. It was going to be a big occasion. A large number of people were present, I guestimated around 150.

Elizabeth started the speeches and December translated it all, although I am sure that he added his own bits to the speeches that he translated! Elizabeth thanked the girls for all their hard work, thanked their parents for letting them come to Swaziland and for putting their trust in the Shewula community for looking after their children. The speech did last a long time as she was very grateful for the building. I then gave a much shorter speech, basically to thank the girls for raising the £1,400 to pay for the materials and for the wages for Matola the builder. I even began the speech in SiSwati but after two sentences had to resort to English! And then Robert gave a lovely speech about how happy he was to see this 'structure' and how grateful the community was for our assistance. Needless to say December must embellished what Robert was saying. Ellen then gave a speech on behalf of the group and gave books to Robert for the locally run school.

At this point there was an unexpected addition as the girls from the school did a traditional dance for us as well as a couple of songs, one of which had my name in it. I am not exactly sure want they were saying but I got the gist and it was very humbling. Shewula is my second home.

The girls then sang a song for everyone and they loved it. I think this is the first time that I have brought a group out that can really sing, they did Sense Africa proud.

The ribbon was cut, people crammed into the kitchen, juice and biscuits were served and more dancing was done. The ladies opened their tie dye t-shirts and loved the affect, and after an hour and a half it was all over.

But what a tremendous achievement. Thank you girls for supporting a well needed project in Shewula.

Conservation Project in Swaziland

2010-08-02T08:18:00.000-07:00

Before even starting the conservation project we had two days in Hlane Royal National Park, looking for lion, elephant and rhino. This was the first time that we were camping and some were concerned about the proximity of the wildlife - there was only a very small barbed wire fence separating us from a herd of elephant. There were also a couple of small scorpions living in one of the showers, but these scurried away once the water was turned on.

Rhino were waiting for us when we first drove into the campsite, there were eight white rhino around the water hole, lounging in the mud or scratching themselves on a rubbing post. We were very lucky to have seen so many on the first day. Africa, our African guide for the day was waiting for us and we all set off to see what we could see. Lion were high up on the list so we went straight to where the lion were often seen. It was touch and go looking for them but eagle eye Jess spotted one of the lionesses from an extraordinary distance and just as we were leaving we heard the roaring of a male which we found as the sun was setting over the African sky. Magical.

Early in the morning there was a game walk to track white rhino. We were advised to make sure we were down wind of the rhino as well as always keeping an escape route in mind! So we spent most of the time eyeing up suitable trees just in case a rhino decided to charge. At one point we were within 20m of two rhino and got the world record for holding our breath and then our second game drive looking for lion was really exciting as we were within 5m of a lioness crunching bones from lasts night's kill. There were three if them demolishing a nyala carcass, we were watching them finish the last morsels.

It was then onto Mbuluzi Game Reserve for our conservation project. We had been asked to do a giraffe survey in the southern section of the reserve as they needed to know the ratio of male to female and adult to juvenile, it was going to be tough going for the next few days. On top of that we had also been asked to walk the trails in the reserve to check that they were free from fallen trees and clearly marked. The campsite was pretty rustic; in the middle of nowhere, no electricity and we had to cook over a fire. All new stuff for the girls. Anything could have walked into the campsite - and it did. On the last night we had a herd of zebra and eight giraffe.

For three days we surveyed the giraffe in the southern section of the reserve. To begin with it was pretty difficult to see the difference between one giraffe and the next, but Lexi managed to get to grips with it all and after two days was a giraffe identifying expert. Lexi and I were also very lucky to see two males fighting, which was a first for me. Meanwhile, Ellen, Bex, Lydia, Domenica and Jess walked the trails checking the routes and keeping an eye out for crocodiles along the river bank. There were a few unmarked trails which could have confused them but they had Ellens map reading skills.....

The manager of Mbuluzi was delighted with the work that we have done in the reserve and the giraffe results will be used for translocating animals into and out of the reserve.

Last night of camping in the bush before returning to Shewula to complete the community project. Will just check around the tents for unexpected guests....

Building a kitchen in Swaziland

2010-07-26T12:15:00.000-07:00

As with moist projects in Africa, there is the "hurry up and wait method". Having arrived at the project site in Shewula, Swaziland we discovered that there was no cement, even though it had been ordered and there were not enough bricks - welcome to Africa! So, Bex, Kate and I drove to Cash Build to buy construction materials for a kitchen. You can buy all the materials for a building in fell swoop, load it onto a lorry and ship it to where you are going to build. So that is what we did. Simple.

Matola, the builder, was there to give us direction for the building and we all got stuck into mixing the cement, which over the following eight days we became professionals at. It was hard work but in a week we saw the kitchen for the NCP building rise from it's foundations.

The NCP (National Care Point) is a place for children to be looked after by volunteer women from the community during the day and a place to get fed at lunchtime - for some children this may be their only meal of the day. Most of the children are AIDS orphans who are being looked after by extended family and can not afford to go school.

The project had been chosen by the committee as the most needed project for the community and we only realised the significance of this once we had got started. A number of people have been over to the building site to thank us for supporting them and yesterday we discovered that this was the last place in the whole community that needed a decent kitchen. The women had been cooking out of a shack that looked as if it was about to fall down.

The roof is now on the kitchen and the plastering has been completed along with setting the two very large and very heavy cauldrons into cement, suspended over a fireplace, and fitted by Domenica and Lexie. Matola is pretty happy with the work that we are doing, although our plastering leaves a bit to be desired - chunks of wet cement having a tendency to fall off the wall! Lydia and Jess have got that in order now.

On Sunday we all went to church with Nomsa and we were welcomed by the whole community. The girls sang a lovely song for the congregation and gave a short talk. The locals were surprised at their excellent harmonies, as was I and everyone shook hands with us at the end to show their appreciation.
We will be leaving the site tomorrow to let the plaster dry, but we will be back in a week to paint the building and for the opening ceremony which Ellen is organising - I suspect there will be a few songs by the children to organise.

Off to Hlane Royal National Park to track white rhino .... Another adventure in store for us all.

Bone Chewing Giraffe?

2010-07-07T01:30:00.000-07:00

Mbuluzi Game Reserve in Swaziland, in my mind, is the one of the best places to see giraffe - up close and personal. This is probably because I have spent many weeks tracking giraffe in the reserve and after a while I could identify each giraffe by its manner, who it was with and its individual markings. I was amazed at how different each giraffe is in character, scratches and nicks as well as the colour variation. There is one giraffe called Othello (right) who has the darkest colouration that I have ever seen in Africa, very nearly jet black. Astounding.

On the last Sense Africa trip we had a bizarre sighting. Clarence and Clarabel, who are often found together, were standing around a zebra carcass and at first it looked like they were eating the bones. Clarence had this enormous thigh bone in his mouth and was twirling it around with his black tongue, a bit like a majorette. If he had swallowed it I wondered whether we would see the bone descend his neck in true cartoon style! Needless to say the bones were not consumed but they were licked, sucked and chewed, the bones being used like a giraffe lollipop. I had not seen behaviour like this before, but I suspect that they were getting extra nutrients from these bones.

Bone chewing giraffes - not seen every day, even on safari!

Zealous Zobrani (Zebras)

2010-06-29T04:36:00.000-07:00

I am off to Swaziland in 2 weeks, well less than that, and I am looking forward to walking around Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary. Here you can trek wherever you want to and truly immerse yourselves into the African savannah. And I love to see the herds of zebra grazing out in the open and hear their whinnys in the early evening, it is enchanting.

Zebras are high up on the menu stakes. To counteract this, a group of zebra, or a 'dazzle' of zebra, bunch up together to confuse predators and mess with their perception, young foals can walk and run after an hour of being born and their eyes are on the side of their heads to give them a wider field of vision to keep an eye out for those pesky predators.

But what I did not realise is that zebras, or the plural for zebra being 'zobrani', do have a darker side to them. Zebras (sorry I can quite get the hang of calling them zobrani) form two types of herds; breeding herds and bachelor herds. Within the breeding herd there is one male and a number of females and foals related to the main man. Within the bachelor herd are a load of youngsters who have been literally kicked out of their original breeding herd and this is where boys will play. They fight by kicking and biting to assert dominance, and at times these skills are used elsewhere. When a younger male challenges an older male of a breeding herd a serious fight ensues. And if the younger male wins he may kick and bite the offspring of the previous males to the death to ensure his genes survive.

Maybe not so dazzling after all?

Welwitschia - living fossils of Namibia

2010-05-31T02:56:00.000-07:00

It is rather amazing that the Welwitschia has survived all these years; it grows in one of the most inhospitable places in the world, collects water only from dew and as it can reach over 2,000 years in age it is often sought after by illegal plant collectors. All in all, its survival does not look great.

Welwitschia are found in the deserts of Namibia and Angola, the plant population in Angola is fairing better as landmines prevent over zealous collectors. Each plant is made up of only two leaves, which split as the leaves grow, making it very difficult to discern where the leaves begin, believe me, I have tried. On these leaves there are approximately 22,000 stomata, small holes, per square cm (upper and lower sides) which are used in the exchange of gases during photosynthesis. These are also used to absorb moisture, in the form of dew, and during wet and foggy conditions these stomata remain open, unlike the stomata on the leaves of its counterparts. The species is also dioecious, meaning that each plant is either male or female, and insects are used for cross fertilisation. The plant ingeniously attracts specific insects to both plants by a delicious nectar that these insects find very attractive.

All in all a very weird plant. The big Welwitschia (pictured above) stands at 1.4m high and is aged at 1,500 yrs old, however there are some experts that claim it to be twice that age. It is a plant which is well worth the visit, permits required along with a sense of adventure. And remember to take water with you.

'Too' Close Encounters with Mozambique Spitting Cobras

2010-05-25T12:35:00.000-07:00

When I first lived in Zimbabwe, I was given an old farmhouse which the first Europeans had built back in the times when there were vast herds of game wandering across the plains of Africa. It was a beautiful five bedroom house, built out of teak, but had not been lived in for ages. I was not too concerned by this as it was four walls, (well more than four with all those rooms), and a roof over my head. With the house came an enormous garden that was over run, a large kitchen with a wood burner, the use of the swimming pool in the compound and a very large game fence to protect us from wildlife. Or maybe it was the other way around?

What I had not banked on was the wildlife inside the compound. As I moved into my new house, Derek, the land owner, asked me how I was with snakes. I was not too sure whether this was a trick question or not, I mean, I have not handled that many snakes but they do not give me the heebie jeebies if that was what Derek was asking. He promptly gave me a shotgun and told me to keep it under my bed - Mozambique Spitting Cobras had a penchants for this particular house and I was advised to shoot from the hip. I was told that if I shot from the shoulder I would probably dislocate it. I was left holding a shotgun with my mouth wide open. I did not sleep well that night, even with that loaded gun under the bed. No wonder the house was empty...or was it?

That was my first experience of not seeing a cobra.

My second experience was that I was far too close for the state of my own health. I was staying with a friend of mine called Karen Paolillo, who has single handedly saved a pod of hippo in the Turgwe River and in my mind is the Jane Goodall of hippos. She, and her husband Jean, have built a wonderful house over looking the Turgwe River in Save Valley Conservancy. One night, myself and Karen were at the house by ourselves. Karen was busy feeding the menagerie of animals that regularly came to her place to be fed during the drought, all completely wild, but the trust that she had gained from these animals was amazing. There was 'Arthur' the extraordinarily large warthog, contentedly feeding at the back door along with a few vervet monkeys, 'Jenny' genet (not named after me I hasten to add), a few baboons and her pet cats and goats.

I needed the loo and walked out of the front door to go to her long drop and to avoid disturbing 'Arthur'. My sixth sense kicked into gear. I have no idea why I looked back over my shoulder as I was passing through the door, but I did, and there, standing at full striking height, and at eye level, was a Mozambique Spitting Cobra. Its hood was fully inflated and it could have nailed my eyes with a shot of accurately spat venom. The chances of not been blinded were against me. There then followed a comedy moment as I reversed direction in mid air, slammed the door shut behind me and then let my knees buckle as I sat on the floor to recover. Once I had gained composure I calmly told Karen that I was going to wee in her bath.

Now that was too close for comfort!

Killer bees - part African, part European.

2010-05-17T12:21:00.000-07:00

There seem to be a lot of bees around at the moment which made me think about the African 'Killer' bees. These killer bees are a cross between the African honey bee and various European honey bees, mostly from Italy. Killer bees are descended from 26 Tanzanian bees which were accidentally released in Brazil and these mated with European bees that had been brought over from Europe in order to provide productive hives. Unfortunately the resulting cross were bees which swarmed more frequently, were more aggressive when there was a perceived threat, had a larger proportion of guard bees in the hive, deployed a greater number in the defence of the hive and had a larger alarm zone around the hive, thus making these bees more of a threat to humans and surrounding wildlife. These bees had a major impact in southern USA.

Back in Africa it has been seen that African honey bees can be more protective of their hives and when disturbed more guard bees will attack that threat. But these guys are not the same killer bees as in the States.
Their sting is not more venomous, it just means that you will probably be stung more often and therefore feel worse after the incident - believe me, I know. I have been chased by a swarm that had been accidentally disturbed and ended up with numerous stings all over my back. Despite all this, bees do tend to keep themselves to themselves, I was just rather unlucky.

The most incredible thing that I have seen are some local Zulus smoking out a wild hive of bees. After a lot of preparation and smoke, my eyes were steaming by this point, one (brave) guy inserted his arms into the depth of the tree trunk to emerge with his arm covered in sleepy bees and holding a dripping honey comb. He had not been stung once. The knowledge that these guys have is incredible, living in harmony with the wildlife, and the honey was as sweet nectar!

Impala Steak anyone?

2010-05-10T12:12:00.000-07:00

At the moment I am surviving on mass catered food courtesy of the Navy. It is not that bad, but I am getting a bit bored of knowing what I am going to get as the chef's special each day of the week - it has not changed over the past three years. It was scampi tonight. And the lack of really fresh food is making my body revolt against it all. What I am missing is some fresh African cooked food.

There is something special about the food that is cooked in Africa, it is fresh (probably picked, dug up or killed that morning), it is untainted from additives and pesticides and it always tastes better when you eat it outside. Fresh fruit and vegetables are available all year round, where they have not been processed, injected, shaped, sprayed, packaged, moulded or battered into what we are told that we like to eat. Instead, the fruit and vegetables come as they are, malformed, distorted, bobbly, non-conformist and pure and free of chemicals, you can certainly taste the difference in the misshappen African tomatoes to the perfectly formed, force ripened ones in the UK. My mouth is watering at the thought of it all.

But for me, the best thing is the choice of fresh meat - beef, lamb, impala (roasting in the picture - can you smell it?), warthog, kudu, crocodile, bushbuck, the list goes on. The meat is often fresh that day and the flavour is an assault on your taste buds. I suspect that it is all helped with the atmosphere; dining on decking, over looking a hippo or elephant watering hole, with the sound of the African bush in chorus around you and the African sky towering above, you can not help being sucked into romantic notions whilst you dine with everything tasting absolutely wonderful. And it is not just the dining experience that is memorable, it is also the the knowledge that it will all happen all over again tomorrow. It is a healthy eating with a healthy lifestyle.

Not so looking forward to the chef's special tomorrow now, it is mince.

Sleeping Hogs

2010-05-03T12:15:00.000-07:00

At the moment I am working with Dave Thomas down on HMS Raleigh, and we were reminiscing about our trip to Swaziland. Dave has travelled to Africa many times but Lori, his wife had not, and he wanted someone to organise it all for them both. The only thing Lori was not too keen on were the creepy crawlies, so I planned the trip to be in Swaziland's winter, when no self respecting bug would be seen out in the cold. So there were Dave, Lori and myself, sitting around the fire in Mlilwane, enjoying our after meal drinks and doing a spot of star gazing. We were the only people sitting out that night, it was wonderfully quiet.

Out of the corner of my eye I caught some movement, there was something out there. There then appeared three warthog from the inky blackness of the surrounding area, which approached us without a care in the world. The tusks on the mother were enormous and I curled by legs up under myself, as it just felt safer to do so! As they had come into our space and not the other way round, we made no sudden movements and watched with anticipation as to what would happen next. What did happen next took me completely by surprise, and also Dave - who has travelled nearly as extensively as I have in Africa.

One of the younger warthogs, which was still the size of a large Labrador and supporting very big teeth/tusks, pushed Dave's feet out of the way of the fire, dug a small bed shaped hollow in the ground and promptly lay down next to the fire to keep warm. This was obviously their bedroom for the night and we were in it. A snout lay gently on Lori's foot and the mother took stock of the situation, eyed me up, and then went to bed on the other side. I don't think any of us breathed for a minute. We sat there for a while with our mouths wide open, we then finished our drinks and quietly crept off leaving leaving our hogs snoozing by the fire.

Now that was certainly an African memory not to forget.

Charging Black Rhinos

2010-04-26T13:45:00.000-07:00

Black rhinos are formidable creatures, as I found out as I was tracking them in Zimbabwe. I was part of a team of people mapping out the location of all the rhinos in the area. Once mapped out, the de-horning team could fly in and efficiently dart all the rhinos and saw off their horns. Sounds a painful process, but it is a bit like cutting your nails, the horn is made of keratin, the same stuff that your nails are made of.

So there I was in the middle of nowhere, with a tracker, facing a family unit of black rhino. The male, which had a horn the size if the Eiffel Tower, knew that there was something up and was raised up on its haunches sniffing the air. They are not that good at seeing things but boy are they good at smelling and hearing. I held my breath for eternity as the male searched for the threat to his family. The mother and the very very small calf were getting a bit agitated as well. So we moved away from the family after recording data on each of the individuals.

It was then that then that the wind changed and the male pin pointed us. There was no hope but to run for it and climb the nearest tree. The tracker, Ndomiso, was like lightening and up the tree before I considered moving. And there I was, belting for my life as a ton of rhino bore down on me. It was at that point that I realised that I could have climbed a greased telegraph pole with the amount of adrenalin that was coursing through me. And I think I did as I do not remember getting into the tree but it was a long way down and I am not good with heights. At least I had not been gored.

And that memory will stay for a lifetime, and what a great memory to have.

Red-billed queleas - feathered locusts of Africa

2010-04-22T03:06:00.000-07:00

I was going through some of my African facts with my friend Robbie Stevens, who is an excellent voice over artist by the way. And one of the facts that he found fascinating was that red-billed queleas are the most abundant wild bird species and have an estimated adult bird population of 1.5 billion. Thinking about it I find that too many to compute and we tried to imagine 1.5 billion, and failed.

I have seen these birds in action when I was living in Zimbabwe. This enormous flock, that blotted out the sun, arrived and began nesting in the Save Valley Conservancy, thousands upon thousands of small finch sized birds making nests in any tree that they can find, the noise was deafening. Vegetation from miles around was being stripped bare for nesting materials and seeds and flowering plants were being decimated for food. It was an extraordinary spectacle. They moved like locusts, leaving a wake of destruction as they crossed the savannah. The Conservancy was hit hard as these marauders spent more time than usual in the area.

But there were some species benefiting from this valuable food source, namely snakes and crocodiles. There were snakes galore in the area feeding off chicks that had inadvertently fallen out of their nests and also eggs from within the nest. But my most memorable experience was watching the crocodiles feeding on the quelea. They would remain just under the surface of the water and when the quelea came down to drink the crocodiles would launch themselves out of the water and snap up any unsuspecting bird. The crocodiles certainly got a few birds on each snap, but I wondered whether the energy used was worth the feathered popcorn bites that they got.

And then after a number of weeks this swarm of birds suddenly upt and left, leaving the African bush in a state of bewilderment from this feathered onslaught. What a remarkable species.

Ever had a Caracal sleep on your lap?

2010-04-12T03:26:00.000-07:00

This last weekend I had time in my own flat, for once! So I spent it lazing around like a cat, enjoying the sun, reading my books and watching the odd film. Perrrfect.

I am not really a cat person but they do seem to like me. Normal moggies seem to find my lap attractive, as do the not so normal ones - I have woken up to find a cheetah lying across my legs. Admittedly it was a house trained one but my I had lost the feeling in my legs and the same cheetah had licked me on the face the previous night (which was quite painful). But my most memorable experience was having a fully grown male caracal curl up and fall asleep in my lap. Caracals are the cats with the very pointy ears and black ear tufts and have 20 different muscles in their ears which enables them to detect prey.

So here was this rare cat, snuggling on my lap without a care in the world. Admittedly it had been brought in to be cared for as it had been injured, but it was going to be released back into the wild. Caracals are quite large cats to have sitting on your lap, it is commonly known as the Persian Lynx or African Lynx, despite the fact that it is not a lynx at all. And I came to appreciate the size of it, the longer it sat on my lap. These cats are tenacious hunters and they have been known to bring down an ostrich, the fact that they can keep up with an ostrich is surprising in itself. The caracal mainly hunts rodents, birds (which it can catch in flight by leaping into the air), antelopes, gazelles and rabbits. But this one was living the life or Riley by being hand fed impala.

A few days later my new friend was put into a large holding cage and after two weeks he no longer recognised me as he hissed at me from the back of the cage. He was released back into the wild fully recovered, having completely forgotten about impala steaks, a secure bed and about me.

A pretty adaptable creature.

Riding with Zebras

2010-04-06T09:01:00.000-07:00

I was in the New Forest over the weekend and there were a lot of very wet and miserable looking donkeys, braying every now and again to show their displeasure in the weather. I would have done the same as the rain was relentless. The noise of the donkeys did take me back to Africa (the weather certainly did not!), as zebra calls are similar to that of donkeys. But that is where the similarity ends.

Last time that I was in Zimbabwe I had an incredible experience of riding within a herd of zebra. I was with a friend of mine who suggested that we went riding on her horses, just before my flight back to the UK. I am not the best of riders but the idea of being out in the bush and seeing the wildlife from a zebra's perspective was an opportunity not to be missed. We spent the morning wandering on horseback amongst herds of zebra which were unfazed by the presence of a human being - we were part of the horse and we were truly accepted into the herd. I could smell the sweat of the zebras, hear the whinnying of the foals, watch them eating the foliage as I just sat at ease under the African sun as the world dawdled by. At times we were so close to the zebras that I could count each individual eye lash. A perfect end to a perfect trip.

Riding with zebras, better than walking with wet donkeys.

Unacceptable Bee-Eater Behaviour

2010-03-29T06:54:00.000-07:00

White Fronted Bee-Eaters are reputed to have the most complex family based social system in the birding world. Having watched these birds for hours on end in Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary, Swaziland, I am inclined to agree.

White Fronted Bee-Eaters live in large colonies where closely related birds help each other out. A breeding pair will accept help from non-breeding birds in the form of digging the nesting chamber, feeding the female whilst she is sitting on her eggs, incubating the eggs themselves and even assisting in the upbringing of the fledglings. Breeding pairs will accept the help of non-breeding birds, but only those which are most closely genetically related, thus building on family ties and ensuring the genetic continuation. Rather dedicated family behaviour if you ask me and puts us humans to shame.

However, on the down side, non-breeding males will ambush breeding females and force them to the ground and rape them. The egg laying females may then create eggs related to the rapist and not the adult male that is caring for them.

Rather unacceptable behaviour really.

Ground Squirrel Ingenuity

2010-03-26T06:05:00.000-07:00

I have just got back from the Lake District where I was amazed at how many signs there were stating that red squirrels were crossing the road, the signs were often accompanied by hazard markings. I kept my eyes peeled for five days and did not see a single one, probably as it was raining and no self respecting squirrel would be seen in the rain, let alone near to an all singing, all dancing hazard sign.

This can not be said for the ground squirrel of Africa, which is a very cheeky chappie. They are all singing and all dancing, well they have a high pitched whistle and can be pretty active during the cooler parts of the day. Ground squirrels often live in colonies of up to 30 squirrels, living in a network of burrows under ground, which they often retreat to when it is hot. The use of their tail is ingenious, it is used as an umbrella so that when these active creatures are out foraging for food they can have permanent shade.

Top that Mr Red Squirrel.

How To Track African Animals

2010-03-15T11:48:00.000-07:00

I have just got back from delivering a talk on how to successfully track African animals in the bush, to a bunch of 5 year olds. The challenge was not that they did not understand the difference between an antelope and a deer, or that an elephant weighs the equivalent of six short wheeled landrovers (6,000kg), the problem was trying to answer all the questions that were fired at me. It was inspirational. By the way, the height of an elephant is 2.5 times the circumference of the hind foot and there are four toes on the front foot and three on the back.

We went through various tracking techniques such as being quiet, remaining down wind of the animal you are following, looking for other signs of the animals you are tracking such as faeces, broken twigs, scraps in the ground and reading the movements of other nearby animals. I then gave information about twelve African animals and presented the challenge to match up twelve footprints with the twelve animals. Most of them got over half right, which was pretty impressive. Why don't you pit your wits against them and see how good you are? Are You An Ace Tracker?

And for those of you who are still wondering about the difference between an antelope and a deer - antelopes have horns which are permanent, whilst deer have antlers that are shed annually.

Weaver Birds - Fussy Homemakers

2010-03-10T03:37:00.000-08:00

Weaver birds build the most extraordinary nests, taking care, time and patience to achieve what I consider a feat in the construction industry. They build the most elaborate nests of all birds, they are natures engineers. The males build the nest, the females come in at the last moment to give them the seal of approval, or not.

First, the males find a suitable collection of branches for their new home. This has to be hanging in a well ventilated place, safe from marauding snakes and built to perfection. Normally two or three branches are tied together to form a basis for the nest - imagine trying to tie your shoelaces with your mouth. Then strands of grass, individually chosen, are woven around these twigs to form a nest in the shape of a carafe of wine suspended from the ceiling. It takes the male days to accomplish this, sometimes making up to 500 trips to collect suitable pieces of grass, whilst the female watches his every move.

Once the nest is ready, the female comes to inspect the nest. If it is not to a suitable standard she will destroy the whole nest whilst the male looks on in bewilderment. He must then start all over again, building a new one, and to a better standard than the previous one.

Sound familiar?

A Sea of Sand Dunes in Sossusvlei

2010-02-23T01:04:00.000-08:00

I have just got back from leading a trek in the Sahara in Morocco, where it did nothing but blow a gale. So I spent most of the time with a scarf wrapped around my head and face, sunglasses on and fully covered from head to foot. An odd experience since I was expecting blue skies, sunny days inducing heat exhaustion and cold nights so I could wear my down jacket. None of that. Instead we were against the elements and it was more of an endurance test.

I have spent time in the sand dunes of Sossusvlei in Namibia and these experiences have been the complete opposite to Morocco, it was what I had expected, and much more. More than I expected as I was spell bound by the sea of sand dunes stretching out before me which constantly change with the winds rolling in from the west. Dune 45, so called as it is 45km from Sesriem Valley at the park entrance, not very original I know, but even I would struggle to give names to all the dunes in the park, is the classic dune that we all imagine. Beautifully curved so that the sun rises and sets on either side of its ridge, giving us those sought after photographs that we all want on our wish list. All that is needed is a gazelle perched on the cusp of the dune, staring into the vast wilderness, to fulfill that ultimate vision.

Morocco was a memorable time, although a far cry from my favourite desert visit, but it will certainly not be the last. I may just make sure that it is Sossusvlei in Namibia that I go to if I want to see more than 15m in front of me.

African Honey Badger - The Most Ferocious Animal in Africa

2010-02-08T02:38:00.000-08:00

I was driving back late last night from a conference when I saw a dead badger on the side of the road. My heart always sags when I see once of these creatures as a result of road kill. Having spent many a night following 'Boris' the badger during my radio-tracking days, I feel as if I have a bit of an affinity with them. Well, I did spent every waking moment (or every night) with 'Boris' for 3 months, and I like to think that I got to know him quite well. They are very gentle creatures.

This can not be said for their African cousins, the honey badger. The honey badger is reputed to be, pound for pound, the most ferocious animal in Africa. I was rather dubious about this wild statement. They are not that large, seem to look pretty harmless and being quite secretive I suspected that they kept themselves to themselves and were therefore shy and retiring animals. However, two sightings of these elusive creatures blew that theory out of the water.

The first was in Mana Pools in Zimbabwe, where I saw a pair of these unassuming animals rip through the kitchen of some unsuspecting campers. The kitchen was an awning on the side of a camper van and these endearing badgers tore open tins of food with their teeth and claws, emptied out the cooler boxes, upturned the table with more food on it and even prised open a few bottles of beer. I have to say that was rather delighted in their choice of victim to wreak carnage on. These so called campers had brought a tv, a fridge (which hummed all night) and an enormous radio system into the quiet national park. These items were no longer of use, the honey badgers had made sure of that, and the African bush was returned to the noise of its own making.

The second time was in Etosha National Park in Namibia. This time I was travelling by myself. I had set up camp - there was no one there at all, which in itself was fantastic, however there was no backup for honey badger confrontation. I had a succulent steak cooking on the braai (BBQ) and was relishing a cold beer when a honey badger appeared from behind, my steak being the lure. Now nothing comes between me and my steak and I stood my ground. But only for a short while until it bared its teeth and I decided it was best to have the car between myself and the badger. There then ensued a comical 'Tom and Jerry' moment around the car, with me chasing the badger and the badger chasing me before it made off with my baked potato as a consolation prize. Luckily it was not the steak, that was on still on the braai, but rather over done.

I concede, the honey badger is the most ferocious animal in Africa.

Bone Throwing

2010-02-01T03:18:00.000-08:00

I took my shoes off, clapped three times and put a coin on the ground. I then entered into the gloomy but welcoming coolness of the traditional healer's mud hut. We all sat down in front of Jeluga, one of the traditional healers of the Shewula community. Nobody said a word - we were rather in awe of the apparition that sat before us. Jeluga was sitting in his refinery of traditional dress, sporting an incredible head gear of feathers and beads and holding a switch that resembled a zebra tail. Once I had grown accustomed to the dimly lit interior I began to take in my surroundings; jars of leaves and different coloured concoctions littered the floor, a few skulls of unidentifiable animals were nailed to the wall, bunches of leaves and twigs hung suspended from the ceiling and an enormous python skin circumnavigated the hut, it was an Aladdin's grove of treasures.

Jeluga greeted us, seriously, and we all smiled nervously and fidgeted as we sat down on the grass mats. He then took some snuff, snorted it, coughed and spluttered and then started to shake a a small purse, which rattled ominously. We were going to have the bones thrown for us.

It is a privaledge to be invited into a traditional healer's house. Traditional healers are revered in Swaziland and and 80% of the population will consult a traditional healer as they are considered physicians, herbalists, prophets, priests and diviners, all rolled into one. They therefore have a a great deal of responsibility within the community. Most locals will choose to pay for a traditional healer before consulting a doctor. So traditional healers are often very busy people and I was grateful that Jeluga had put time aside for our visit.

The bones were thrown on the mat and we all leaned forward in anticipation - not that we could 'read' the bones, but curiosity had over powered us. There on the mat were a couple of die, two dominoes, an assortment of vertebrae with different coloured wire around them, cowrie shells, toe bones complete with claws, some coins, glass beads, feathers and more bones of indiscriminate origin. Jeluga then moved some of the bones around, studied them and then communed with his ancestors for advice.

What was he saying? Who knows, but it was an experience of a life time and an opportunity not to be missed.

A Sting in the Tail

2010-01-25T02:08:00.000-08:00

Last night I watched the beginning of 'Die Another Day', the one where Pierce Brosnan is captured in Korea and imprisoned for 14 months in an unknown facility. His torture regime consisted of being stung by scorpions. Now I can relate to this, not the torture bit, but the part where he is stung by a scorpion.

My first job after graduating from Leeds University was in Zimbabwe, where I worked in Save Valley Conservancy. A lot of my time was spent camping out in the bush and I had my own rondavel, a mud hut, where I slept many a nervous night expecting every animal in the immediate vicinity to join me - there was no door, just a wide gap saying 'come in here and make yourself at home'. Needless to say, only the creepy crawlies came to stay, and luckily not the resident leopard that I would hear coughing in the bush nearby each night. Unfortunately, one over friendly scorpion made his way into my sleeping bag and and as I rolled on top of him, he responded, rightly so, with a sting.

You can tell the potency of a scorpion sting by the size of its pincers which are disproportionate to its sting. Large pincered scorpions have small stings as they can grapple easily with prey, relying on their size to secure their food. Small pincered scorpions have large stings and they rely on a quick, potent sting and then wait for their prey to die before beginning to dine. Luckily for me, my bedfellow was in the former category.

It has been 18 years since I was stung, and I still remember the pain, it was like having a red hot knitting needle relentlessly poking me. What I learnt is to make sure my mozzie net is tucked in when I lie on the floor of a mud hut in the middle of the African bush. Or alternatively, sleep in a bed - my more favoured option.

The 'Stench of Death'

2010-01-18T02:25:00.000-08:00

This morning I was looking though the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Portfolio, marveling at how some of the pictures had been achieved. The overall winner is a photo of a wolf caught jumping mid-flight over an old rickety gate into a farmer's enclosure. The patience that the photographer, Jose Luis Rodriguez, must have had to capture this ultimate shot is astounding.

But the photograph that really captured me is one of a lion, its whole head caked in blood, full to the brim with buffalo and staring straight down the lens and into the photo. I love the comment about the 'stench of death' which came from the carcass every time the lions moved it. It really brings it alive. The photo is captivating as the lion is looking into your soul - and seeing you as a chop as Alex the Lion saw is friend Marty the Zebra in the film Madagascar. It transported me back to the plains of Africa.

I have been lucky to see a lion kill, watch the pride descend on the carcass to devour it, the snarling and growling as the choice pieces are fought over and to smell the 'stench of death' as lionesses emerge from inside the body cavity of an antelope. It is a privilege to watch nature where life and death is often rolled into one. It is the raw nature of Africa and a fascinating spectacle to watch.

The Hippo is no longer the most dangerous mammal in Africa

2010-01-10T03:20:00.000-08:00

Most wildlife buffs and pub quiz bores will tell you that the hippopotamus is the most dangerous mammal in Africa. I would put myself in that category, not the bore bit, just the knowledge.

The lion has knocked the hippo of its perch for being the most dangerous mammal in Africa. Between 1990 and 2005 lions have been responsible for 563 deaths in Tanzania alone. However the data is a bit skewed as Tanzania has a very high population of lions and therefore maybe not be true for the rest of Africa. I would challenge this data.

Although hippos do not look that dangerous they have reportedly been responsible for a larger number of deaths in Africa. The reason for this is that during the day they spend most of the time in the safety of the water, but at night they come out to feed on grass. This is when the trouble begins. More often than not, locals will walk along riverside paths on their way back home at night. By doing this, they are putting themselves between the hippo and its safe haven, the water. The hippo feels threatened with this and charges back to the water, trampling anyone who happens to be in the way. And it is difficult to see a hippo in the dark!

From my experiences in Africa I can certainly say that the hippo is a pretty formidable animal, I have had the experience of being charged by one. I was working in Zimbabwe and I was helping a friend of mine called Karen Paolillo, who had single handedly saved a pod of hippo in the Save Valley Conservancy during the drought of 1992. She had been feeding the hippos and I was helping her at the time to put some food out for the hippo. Unfortunately, the hippos came early that day, and we were still putting food out. As 'Roberta' quickened her pace over to us we belted into the car and as we were reversing Roberta was head butting the front of the car. My eyes were the size of dinner plates, it was only my fourth day, ever, in the African bush!

And to this day, the melodious sound of a honking hippo represents Africa to me. I love it.

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