We had a great time on our South African venture. Cape Town was beautiful and we saw much in the way of scenery that was picture post card beautiful! The hand’s-on cooking workshop in the Malay Quarter with a chef and hostess in their Bo-Kaap home was a real highlight of our Cape stay. We drove into the Winelands with the large fields of vineyards. Although we did not do any actual wine tasting we did have some great cheese and chocolate tastings. The Franschhoek Country House was terrific and their restaurant top-notch.
In Johannesburg we met our guide named Valentino, from Pretoria. This young fellow was excellent and we had a marvelous time with him as our private guide for three days. Soweto and the Apartheid Museum were an emotional viewing for us and we could have spent more time in the museum, but it really was overwhelming. We drove north an entire day to the town Sabie and spent a restful night at the Lone Creek River Lodge. The following day we dodged rain showers as we drove along the spectacular Panorama Route. We were excited to start the last leg of our journey onto safari.
Our first stop was at the Makalali Lodge and it was quite rustic in appearance. The accommodations are a private ” hut” with an outside shower, a fancy inside soaking tub, pillars with slabs of rock protruding from them on which you hang your clothes and set your things on the rock ledges. There was a private dining area for breakfast and lunch, and the evening meal was served by a large campfire. The food was excellent. Elephant Plains Game Lodge at Sabi Sands Game Reserve was a different type of facility altogether and more conventional. This stay was the highlight of our entire trip. All of the game drives were exceptional and we saw a lot of wildlife. The animals were most cooperative and photogenic!
Our private driver would take us to places the ordinary tourist might not see, we had over the top accommodations, and our own personal source of information on South Africa from our tour guide! This was a very rewarding trip. –Dr. and Mrs. Betts, South Africa, October 2014
