While surfing the web for information on Guizhou Province before visiting the villages of the Dong, Miao and Geija minorities in south-west China I came across “Bonding Via Baby Carriers: The Art & Soul of the Miao & Dong People”. It was written by a three generation Taiwanese family to commemorate the thirtieth anniversary […]

Cool shoes, cool clothes and an inquiring mind are what you need in the historical town of Melaka, south of Kuala Lumpur.
Taking advantage of a long weekend we caught a coach from KL’s Puduraya bus terminal, which needs an upgrade. You enter on the first floor, where the ticket counters and a variety of shops […]

Thaipusam is a Hindu festival celebrated every year around the end of January at full moon by thousands of devotees in a kaleidoscope of colour, noise, and religious fervour.
It took place at the Batu Caves about 12km out of Kuala Lumpur - I was going and really didn’t know what to expect.
We stepped from the […]

Kuala Lumpur is a city of contrasts and one that lives 24/7.
We were last there for 6 months in 2007 and four years later there are plenty of changes.
The biggest, probably related to the global downturn, is that life on the streets is much quieter. In some areas of the city you can see visible […]

(Photo opposite: Typical thatched house in Elim)
Boxing Day 2009,- Hermanus,
7.30am I’m out the house - the weather is good and cliff path buzzing with fellow runners and walkers.
With the weather good we decided to head south taking the gravel roads from Hermanus in the direction of Elim. The farm roads are well maintained and […]

(Figure 1 Cape Horn lies off to the right as dawn breaks.) The ship’s blast sounded as we entered the channel surrounding Hornos Island at dawn. At the briefing the night before, the lead naturalist spelled out the sobering facts. “We never know if we can make a safe landing by zodiac at the […]

The Cederberg – in the Western Cape is a rugged, arid wilderness home to great hiking, fine wine and a legendary cat called Garfield.
The mountains cover some 130 hectares of rugged terrain between the towns of Ceres, Citrusdal and Clanwilliam. The region is one of eight protected areas making up Unesco’s Cape Floral Kingdom World […]

(Figure 1 The magnificent Pia Glacier in the Beagle Channel) Having made it successfully through the Straits of Magellan, I reflected on this waterway’s namesake. On Magellan’s first circumnavigation of the globe, what did he think while searching for a way through the tricky Chilean Fiords back in 1520? Now we had reached the […]

(Figure 1 The small ship, Via Australis weaves its way through the Straits of Magellan) Eagerness, coupled with anticipation showed on the faces of our co-adventurers as we pulled into the Chilean port city of Punta Arenas at latitude 53°. Here we boarded the 100 passenger small ship, Via Australis for a five day expedition […]

(Photo opposite: All suited up, we hiked to a lake during a snow squall) As our bus climbed in elevation, the Andean peaks seemed to envelop us on all sides. The flatness and stark emptiness of the Patagonian steppes, our companion for days, gave way to Beech tree forests of Torre del Paine National Park. […]

(Figure 1- Guanaco herds crossed the deserted roadway.) We left civilization behind in El Calafate, as we headed overland into the emptiness of the Patagonian steppes toward the Argentine-Chilean border. Safely in the custody of Overseas Adventure Travel Experts, we and 15 other adventure seekers entered the phase of no return. No doctors, no […]

(Photo opposite: Dustin in the middle) Traveling in Tanzania in September was a treat, the weather was very cooperative and allowed me to move from place to place without any delays. I began my trip in Dar Es Salaam, the coastal port city lacks any substantial landmarks that put it on the map, but it […]

I am Costa Rican and I have been living in Panama for the last 11 years.  I have to admit that I miss my country a lot.  It’s amazing (and I don’t know if the same happens to all of us foreigners) how my desire to return to my home land […]

(Figure 1 The Perito Moreno Glacier in Los Glaciares National Park in Argentine Patagonia stuns onlookers.) A slow, muffled wheeze of labored breaths echoed in the crisp air. Creaky noises rippled through the mass, as if old bones were snapping under pressure. Then a calamitous thunder exploded, rocking onlookers with its intensity, as jagged pieces […]

The 9km trail which takes you around Robberg Peninsula has it all - beauty, danger, nature and history are just a few of its assets.
It is a nature reserve and marine protected area about 8km south of Plettenberg Bay on the southern coast of South Africa.
“Rob” is Afrikaans for seal and the reserve has […]

(Figure 1 the barren Patagonian steppes at the base of the Andean range) While planning our recent odyssey - I can’t bring myself to call it a trip - to the tip of the South American Continent, I found Cape Horn referred to, in a romantic sense, as “the end of the world”. I pondered […]

“Yes,” Anne said, “If the mother dies, or if for any reason, the family cannot care for the child, the child is brought to the orphanage.” We were visiting the toddlers in the Catholic Orphanage, the last stop on my ‘Accidental Guide’s’ impromptu tour of Kontum.
I had come to Vietnam because of my interest […]

Wildlife, rugged beaches and a step back in history are just some of what the Western Cape’s Garden route has in store for those who travel this way.
It’s one of our favourite places and this year we based ourselves at the Beacon Island Lifestyle Resort, where I have timeshare.
The hotel is located on what is […]

Singapore - steamy, sultry, a shoppers’paradise and full of surprises.
We disembarked at Changi airport, a city in itself and were struck by the humid heat - like walking into a deliciously warm sauna.
We took a taxi to the Pan Pacific hotel where we would spend the next three nights. The taxi like most of Singapore […]

A highlight of a recent trip to Umbria, a hilly, rural region of Italy located between Rome and Tuscany, was the sampling of many fine wines and comestibles. Six friends gathered to experiment with the many superior house wines (and remarkably few duds) typically available in the small cafes and dining establishments of the various […]