What to pack and what to wear on a Safari Holiday!

Hello Journeyers,
Now take a deep breath, I know you must be going into shock after seeing my blog pop onto your latest post tab. I'm back!
Still struggling but working on it.

Cedric and I love going to the bush, if we could we would probably be living there. With that we go on quite a few game drives. One of my pet peeves are what people wear on a Safari. You are in the bush, try at least to blend in a bit. Yes, that means leave that lime green and cerise pink scarf and jacket at HOME, or at least in your suitcase till you get to your next destination where it is appropriate to wear, like a island. And ladies - LEAVE YOUR HIGH HEELS AT HOME! Trust me, the animals don't care if you are 9inches taller or if you have perfectly painted faces. I spend my safari trips make-up free and in the most comfortable clothes! The bush is natural and so should you be!

I have compiled a list of items that I think are best suited for those holidays in the bush.

Source for woman outfits

Source for men outfits

 

What to pack: (These are based on SA Safari Trips & Weather)

Summer:

Lightweight clothing,
Long trousers and long sleeve tops,
Shorts,
t-shirts,
vests,
warm sweater for cooler mornings/evenings,
swimwear,
sunblock,
sunglasses,
sunhat,
walking shoes and socks,
sandals,
cap and raincoat.

Winter:

Long safari trousers and long sleeve tops,
shorts and t-shirts for during the day,
fleece,
warm coat,
gloves,
hat/beanie,
scarf,
thermals for particularly cold mornings,
sunhat,
sunblock,
sunglasses,
swimwear,
walking shoes,
socks,
closed comfortable warm shoes and sandals.

There you have it, pack these essentials and I'm sure you will bump into the Big 5 more often on those drives. Kidding. But you never know.

They might just be hiding from those brightly colored clothes.

Remember - less color and natural looks is MORE!

Have you seen some interesting outfits on a game drive? Share your story with me down below!

Disclaimer: As always all comments and opinions are my own. All of the content and images posted are my own unless otherwise specified / linked to the original source.

Mauritius {Part 1}

Happy Hump day Journeyers!
I cannot believe we are already in February and next week we will be celebrating the all so popular Valentines Day. To be honest, I have no idea how I feel about this day. On the one hand I fall for all the love going around and on the other hand I see it as just a big money making scheme!

Today I want to share with you guys the first few days of our amazing December holiday in Mauritius. This was the first year that I spent Christmas with Cedric, and well his family since we've started dating!
I was extremely nervous, like anyone will be when celebrating something this big with a family as big as his. And in all honesty I had such a wonderful time and the nerves just floated away as the first dinner approached.

Cedric surprised me by upgrading us to Business Class as part of my Christmas Gift. This was my very first experiece in BC, aside from working it in my Flight Attendant days and I was very impressed. I could sleep like normal. No neck cramps, embarrassing head nods or strange knees squashed to your chin moments. You are greeted in your seat with proper champagne or orange juice (I obviously went for the champers - have to do this right you know) and then I was out. Slept straight through food service and woke up just as we were about to land.

We were welcomed to a sunny and very humid Mauritius and it showed off a bit by giving us views and days like this. Although we were expected to get the after affects of a Cyclone that was passing we were lucky enough to not get it that bad. A bit of rain and cloudy days. But still humid and we could still enjoy the pool. Who's afraid of a bit of rain?
We arrived at 8am and Cedric's friends were expected to arrive at 12 for his surprise birthday party! SUCCESS!!! He was shocked and very surprised (no one spoiled it beforehand), his face was priceless and I loved watching him catch up with old friends. I also loved meeting most of the friends that I have not met before. The Mauritians truly are great people!

Our next day (22nd) we woke up and went for a nice walk through the property. I was running more as Cedric took me through low hanging trees with dried leaves covering the ground like a blanket. I did not trust walking through those leaves. My mind likes playing tricks on me and all the while I was thinking about what was going to jump out at me next. He just shook his head. But I did manage to take some beautiful photos. It's so green and fresh. And the COCONUT trees give you the ulitmate Island feeling. {Funny story. I properly hammered my name with a plank when I in all seriousness asked Cedric's father; "Are these melons on the tree ready to eat?" Him responding; "What melons" Me; "These right here on this tree." (me pointing to the coconut tree) Him; "Ummm {almost rolling on the floor with laughter} no that's coconuts, you know - CO-CO-NUT - CO-CO-NUT TREE" To which his mother replied; "Shame she's from the city". Not my best moment I tell you. And that's the story of how coconuts were called melons from that day on.}
After our hike we packed a few things and off we went to the centre of the island (Floreal) for the Festivities to begin.

On the 24th Cedric decided to go show me a different side of the island a bit and we stopped by his uncle on the West Coast to say hello. On our way back Cedric decided to take a different route and we went over the Chamarel Mountain on our way back.

We decided to stop for a nice lunch on the mountain at Le Chamarel Restaurant and the views litterally take your breath away. This truly is a beautiful place. Do yourself a favour. If you ever go to Mauritius go visit that part of the Island. It's something different. You can also find a very popular tourist attraction there - 7 Coloured Earths. We unfortunately did not stop there as I was starting to get car sick from all the twists and turns up to the mountain. So I just wanted to get off that mountain. I know but next time I will Take 2!



All 3 Christmas Dinner/Lunch was amazing, the attention to detail with the table decor to the food was perfect and beautiful! Cedric's mother is very talented! She can turn something that I would throw away and see as junk into a masterpiece!
Every night turned into a early 2am - 3am party. On the 24th at 3am, I couldn't keep my eyes open anymore. We have been going bed early mornings since we arrived and it was catching up to me. And to be honest. If South Africans thought that we know how to party, newsflash, we don't. The Mauritians kicked my butt. And that's exactly what I told them as I said my good nights. I need to pack myself a case of Play's next time I go. But it was so much fun and I will do it ALL over again. With a Play in my hand of course!

And we had a pet! A giant tortoise who we called Timothy Traddle. I think. It actually had a few names between all of us. But it was so big and it reminded me of that cartoon I watched when I was young.

After all the family and friends get togethers we needed some alone time and decided to have a date night before my friends arrived the next morning. Cedric's father suggested we go for dinner at Anahita and both of us spent the evening communicating with hmmm's and ahhh's as we had our dinner. The food was impeccable and this was definitely the highlight of my holiday. If there are any big golf fans out there reading this. GO BOOK A STAY THERE NOW! With a Ernie Els designed Golf Course you are sure to have your socks knocked off by the beauty of this resort. You won't be disappointed. Trust me!

And with my bestie arriving the next day, we find out that there's another cyclone approaching. Let's pray the weather plays along for their part of the trip. To find out how it turned out. Stay tuned and watch this space...

You can follow our doings with the hashtag #ojte_travel

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Disclaimer: All expenses were paid for by us for our trip to Mauritius. As always, all thoughts and opinions are our own. All of the content and images posted are my own unless otherwise specified / linked to the original source. Please feel free to share photographs and material from this site but please link back to the original image or post. 

Farewell 2013!!!!

Hello Journeyers!
WOW I cannot believe that this is my last post for 2013!
This year has been filled with laughter and sadness, thank goodness more laughter!
After all the ups and downs I can still say it was a great year!

I hope that everyone has a wonderful Christmas and New Year.
For the ones that are travelling please be safe and take it slow! The roads are super busy!

Thank you to all the wonderful people that I've met this year (through blogging and outside of blogging), you guys made my life less empty! hehe!
I will treasure you guys forever!

Here's to an even better 2014!
P.S. - Some serious changes coming to you in the new year right here!

Cheers! To good vibes, laughter and loads of love!

Mini Holiday Time - Molweni, Adelaide

Hello Journeyers!
I am buggered, brain fried, tired, done...well you get the point! And I can honestly say that I am very excited to be without my phone or any TV's for the next 5 days (starting tomorrow).
We will celebrating Cedric's 29th 30th Birthday with his family on a Hunting Farm in Adelaide, Eastern Cape.

So yes, while staring at this for the next 5 days I will be missing all of you! I'm sure I will. I mean how can't I? Or wait, can I? See brain fried!

I will see all of you again Monday, fresh and ready to take on the world in full force again!
Keep safe and have fun!

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Disclaimer: All of the content and images posted are my own unless otherwise specified / linked to the original source. Please feel free to share photographs and material from this site but please link back to the original image or post. As always all comments and opinions are my own.

Mossel Bay - Quick Weekend Breakaway

Hello Journeyers! WOW we are more than halfway through August. And finally our busy schedule will die down a bit. Till November. But I'm not complaining! That only means that I can finally catch up on all the washing and house work! Finally! You know how bad it is when you get excited about doing laundry!
But first let me tell you about our weekend. Thank goodness I have a great boss and he said I can leave at 2:30 pm so that we can be on time for our flight! And as Murphy has it, we were extremely early and the flight was delayed by 30 min. So we sat and waited and waited some more!
We arrived safely and were off for dinner with the Parentals (as my cousin calls them) and my BFF (who also spoiled me to a super early bday gift) and her husband. (they are also our travel buddies for December) Cedric and I have been wanting to go to this restaurant since our December holiday last year and that's why we decided that we WILL go for dinner there. Cafe Gannet it is! :)

And this is how you receive your bill! haha

The company and the food was out of this world and service was great! The problem started when we walked out of the restaurant! Freezing wind hit us all leaving us catching gasping for breath! Well it wasn't that bad but I added some drama to it. *drama queen*

The Saturday morning Cedric had a meeting at Fancourt and once back home we packed our overnight bags and off we went to stay at my aunts house at Gondwana Game Reserve.
The house is beautiful and open with views you fall in love with. The only thing I was a bit worried about was that the Game roam freely and well I would not be happy when face to face with a lion. No thank you! But luckily for me the wind and freezing weather did not want to leave so we were indoors the whole time. Except for our own mini Game Drive that we went to go do. We didn't see much, a few Zebra's, Impala, Oryx and Giraffes.

We had a nice braai and made a nice fire to try and heat up the house a bit. But I think the alcohol helped more. hehe. The next morning we took it slowly and slept late and packed at our own pace. Unfortunately Joni picked up a tummy bug and was man down since that morning. (I hope that by the time she reads this she's feeling much better) My dad, Cedric and myself decided to go for a drive and a light lunch in town and we were entertained by the wind and waves playing against each other! I love the ocean!

And then the moment that I always dread. Goodbyes. I hate them! But it has to happen. So thank you to the Parentals for a amazing weekend and to my Boo for making it extra special by just being there! I love all of you!

Till next time!

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Disclaimer: All expenses were paid for by us for our trip to Mossel Bay. As always all comments and opinions are my own. All of the content and images posted are my own unless otherwise specified / linked to the original source. Please feel free to share photographs and material from this site but please link back to the original image or post.