How a tea estate is helping to conserve Rwanda’s rich biodiversity September 27, 2019 There are only two things that most people think about when they hear “Rwanda”: the country’s unfathomable genocide, the 25th anniversary of which is in 2019; and, to a lesser extent, the critically endangered mountain gorilla. But Rwanda is unrecognisable from how it was in the mid 1990s, and although the gorilla population is steadily [...]
How the fall of Mugabe allowed Zimbabwe to reclaim the future of its tourism September 2, 2019 We discussed him in hushed tones, out of earshot of anyone else. Always the conversations were the same: “one day, maybe…,” swiftly followed by, “don’t say this where anyone else might hear.” Mugabe’s spectre loomed over even the most innocuous of chats, just like He Who Must Not be Named. And then, 24 hours later, [...]
How one man defied Stalin and risked death by firing squad to conceal outlawed art from the Soviets July 24, 2019 If you had to hide a work of art, where would you put it? And what if there were 80,000 of them, you needed to keep them safe for an indeterminate but undoubtedly lengthy period, and the penalty for discovery was imprisonment in a Soviet gulag, or even death? The man who accomplished this feat, [...]
Trek across the ice fields of Finland on a Northern Lights tour June 24, 2019 The fire fox runs at such great speed across the sky that sparks fly from his tail, streaking bright colours across the heavens. If you check out the Mozilla search engine logo, you will note how he wraps himself around the globe; but to see the fire fox’s resplendent light show in all its glory [...]
The unspoilt ski slopes of Gudauri in Georgia are Europe’s best kept secret October 12, 2018 The Georgian Military Highway winds its way from Tbilisi towards the Russian border, passing UNESCO churches, scenic reservoirs, and the somewhat over optimistically named Friendship Monument, a late 1980s celebration of Georgian-Soviet relations. As the road climbs higher, the forests cloaking the slopes grow thinner until you emerge above the treeline and they’re replaced completely [...]
Safari From Above: We take to the skies over Botswana for a whole new perspective on African safari July 20, 2018 Viewed from above, an elephant is a curious sight. Longer and considerably heavier than the light aircraft I was flying in, each member of the herd was unperturbed by the fact that our descent onto the dirt airstrip was only a few tens of metres above their heads. In fact, the only one who was [...]
For King and Country: As Swaziland celebrates 50 years of independence, the king took to the stage to make an astonishing announcement June 8, 2018 Portraits of the Lion and the Great She Elephant — King Mswati III and his mother — stare down from the wall of the immigration office. The animal print pattern of the king’s tribal dress seems a world away from the border-bureaucracy of entry stamps and customs forms, but it’s part of the dichotomy of [...]
Feeling brave? Then try bob rafting on the slopes of La Plagne March 23, 2018 If you’re the kind of skier for whom speeding backwards down a black run in an ice storm no longer delivers the requisite adrenalin kick, you need to try bob rafting. Mooted as an amateur’s alternative to bob sledding or the luge — which really should only be attempted by those with a death wish [...]