Package Tours South Africa

TU News : MyCiti bus service launch applauded

2011-05-16T10:10:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:nice

MyCiti bus service launch applauded

The inaugural service of Cape Town's MyCiTi bus transport system has officially been launched. The first phase, which was introduced on May 9, runs between Table View and the city centre and signalled a milestone for the transformation of public transport in Cape Town.

It services Bloubergstrand and Table View and accommodation providers in the area are excited about the launch.

"The schedule looks great and it is very affordable for our international guests," says Johannes Stiefel, Owner of the three-star Alpha du Cap Guest House. "It is the first time that our guests will have a real alternative to taxis. Before now, transport was always a problem with inadequate services here. Taxis cost R170 to R200 one way, which is more expensive than car hire."

And accommodation providers who are not within walking distance of the stations are pleased about the system. Says Claire Dinnie, General Manager for the Sir David Boutique Guesthouse: "It will open the area up for tourism by improving access to the Table View and Bloubergstrand areas."

"This is great news," says Fraser Johnston, General Manager of the Dolphin Beach Hotel. "It is not only beneficial for tourists but also for our staff."

The second phase kicked in on May 14, which saw the full trunk service operating with the buses stopping at all stations along the trunk route. The interim inner-city feeder route - the Gardens-Civic Centre-Waterfront route - has also begun operating. It runs between the Civic Centre and Green Point, the Waterfront, the Loop and Long Street areas and Gardens. Tickets for the feeder routes cost R5 per trip but travel on the feeder routes is free when used in conjunction with a trunk route trip, which costs R10.

Over the weekend of May 21-22 all the Table View feeder services will also start operating. These will cover the areas of Big Bay, Table View, Parklands and Blaauwberg - also linking up to the trunk service.

"The phased route launch of the MyCiti bus service will greatly enhance Cape Town's reputation as a world-class tourism destination," comments Calvyn Gilfellan, CEO of Cape Town Routes Unlimited.

Clarissa Hughes

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

This service is provided by Tourism Update, an online tourism product, news and destination platform for overseas and local trade packaging Southern Africa.
Should you wish to register for free access to this site, please visit www.tourismupdate.co.za and click on the 'Register' link. Your registration will be processed within one day.

Contact editor@tourismupdate.co.za for further details.

Outliers - The story of Masibambane High School

2011-01-31T16:43:00.000+02:00

Thursday, 27 January 2011
By Helen Zille, Premier of the Western Cape

In his best-selling book Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell seeks to unravel "the story of success" - exceptional success, not just great achievement.

He defines an outlier as a "statistical observation that is markedly different from the norm" and asks: why do some people achieve so much more than others? How come they lie so far outside the ordinary? What is the secret of their success? He tries to find the answers by examining the lives, times and circumstances of legendary figures like Bill Gates, the Beatles and various sports stars.

In each case, he finds the fortuitous combination of three key factors:

* Opportunity;
* Natural ability combined with enormous personal effort; and
* The proverbial "hand of fate" - a confluence of circumstances that make exceptional things possible.

I decided to test Gladwell's thesis after the recent release of matric results. It is appropriate to use the term "Outlier" to describe a 17-year old boy, who lives in a backyard shack with his single mother and three siblings, and achieves 7 distinctions in matric, including 97%for Higher Grade Mathematics and the top award in the Western Cape for Life Sciences.

A shy, finely-built young man, Asavela Rawe arrived at the annual "matric achievers" ceremony in the school uniform of Masibambane High School. As I handed him his award (in my capacity as Premier), I resolved to find out what lay behind his exceptional achievement. When his classmate Monde Simbosini (three distinctions and 98% for Higher Grade Mathematics) was also honoured, I was even more determined to find out more about the school that serves the poverty-stricken community of Bloekombos and achieved a 95% pass rate with 24 subject distinctions.

The purpose of my investigation was to address this simple question: what is the government's role in creating the circumstances that offer children the opportunity to excel? If this can happen in Masibambane, what must we do to enable it to happen elsewhere? How much of Asavela and Monde's academic success can be attributed to opportunity, intelligence, personal effort, and plain good luck?

During my investigation, I concluded that all these factors played a role, each a tributary flowing into a river, reinforcing one another to create the momentum for exceptional achievement.

Having sourced the cell number of the school's principal, Mr Rajan Naidoo, I gave him a call. I apologised for phoning him on a Friday evening during the school holidays.

"No, no," he replied. "I am at school. We always start the matrics a week early, so that they settle into the learning programme before the other pupils arrive."

That said a lot about the ethos of Masibambane.

I asked Mr Naidoo if I could visit the school, and possibly meet the keymatric teachers and the chair of the governing body. I also enquired whether it would be possible to speak to Asavela and Monde as well.

"Come tomorrow morning at 11," he replied without hesitation.

The next day, Mr Naidoo welcomed me to the school accompanied by his daughter, Vinolia, a second year law student. She reminded me that we had met before at the opening of the state-of-the-art operating theatresat Red Cross Children's hospital. I then recalled the lovely, petite young woman who had given a moving speech about the doctors and staff that had saved her life through a combined liver and kidney transplant.

While doctors were battling to save his daughter's life, her father, then a deputy school principal in Durban, had applied for teaching postsin Cape Town, so that he could be near his desperately ill child. He was appointed principal at Masibambane in 2003, at that time one of the weakest schools in the Western Cape.

"The hand of fate", I thought to myself as I applied Gladwell's thesis.

On the final weekend of the holidays, the school property was a hive of activity - a gardener weeding, a cleaner sweeping and a handyman painting a classroom. "We are preparing for the opening of school next week" he said as he showed me the stacks of text books and stationery ready for distribution on day one.

He proudly walked me around his school, formerly a derelict provincial building which was converted into a school in 2001. He explained how he had driven each improvement, including a sports field with an embankmentwhere pupils can sit and cheer their teams. There is a computer laboratory, a science laboratory, a small library (with a rack for dailynewspapers), a kitchen for the feeding scheme, a new hall and toilets. The absence of any sign of vandalism was striking.

"Opportunity," I thought to myself. Decent basic facilities are necessary to create opportunity, but entirely insufficient on their own.What Mr Naidoo said next, delivered in his characteristic matter-of-fact way, demonstrated why Masibambane is a school capable of producing "outliers".

"When Vinolia came out of hospital, I wanted her to be near me, so I enrolled her here, at Masibambane," he said. "I believe principals should be prepared to enrol their own children in their schools, to showthey have confidence in the quality of the education they are providingfor other children."

He paused and added: "Vinolia was probably the first Indian child to attend a township school."

We entered the new administration building, where a small gathering was waiting at a table laid with refreshments.

There I was introduced to Mr Yusif Sium, the school's Mathematics teacher; Mr Andre Kleinschmidt, who teaches Physics and Life Sciences; Mr Shimeless Zeleke the Maths Literacy teacher; Mr Phumzile Dosi, the English teacher and Grade 12 co-ordinator; Mr Thabiso Motsana the Life Orientation teacher; and Mr Michael Vena, the Chair of the school governing body. There were also the star pupils, Asavela and Monde, together with Asavela's mother, Lungiswa, who works at the "fruit and veg" section of Checkers in Kraaifontein. She told me she had not seen Asavela's father since her baby was one month old. "That is why I say hedied," she said. Monde's parents were visiting family in the Eastern Cape.

Mr Naidoo told me he and the governing body applied a strict "merit selection" policy when recommending teachers for positions at the school.

It was not always that way.

"When I came to this school, I confronted a governing body that had a different approach. Some were even prepared to accept bribes from applicants to be nominated for positions. Everything was politicised. Itwas difficult to change that approach. We had some conflict about it. But I knew the school would only succeed if we applied merit selection."

He recalls the backing and support he received from an outstanding senior circuit manager, Mrs Ntombi Dwane, who helped him implement the new policy.

"Today I follow a strict policy of keeping party politics out of this school. We take decisions on their merits. We employ our staff on the basis of their ability to teach our pupils," Mr Naidoo emphasised.

This was immediately apparent as I spoke to the teachers. Their own stories show an astounding confluence of excellence and effort, influenced by the inevitable "hand of fate". Mr Sium, for example, is an Eritrean studying Actuarial Science part-time at the University of Cape Town. He earns his living as Masibambane's Maths teacher.

The team ethos and mutual support were tangible. But the greatest insights came from the pupils themselves.

Asavela and Monde told me how they were able to stay at school until 9 o'clock at night, so that they could study in an environment conducive to learning. They negotiated the after-hours use of their classrooms with teachers, and worked in groups to assist others with their homework. Prefects were given the responsibility of locking up when they left. They were accountable for the state of the premises the next day.

Then Asavela made the following observation: "Monde and I would not have done so well if we were not competing with one another. We are good friends, but also competitors. That helped a lot. We will carry on as friendly competitors when we go to university." Both will study Actuarial Science at UCT next year, and Mr Sium has made a commitment to continue teaching and supporting them.

I asked Asavela's mother, Mrs Rawe whether we could visit her home - two shacks in the backyard of a RDP house in Bloekombos. Her baby was asleep on her bed. She told me the tiny premature boy had spent 5 months in Tygerberg Hospital, where she had remained with him. With his mother away, Asavela had spent most of his matric year taking personal responsibility for his younger siblings as well as himself. All of his belongings, including the computer he had won as a prize for his matric results, were neatly stacked in a small pile at the bottom of his narrow bed. I realised that he had come to the matric achiever's function in his school uniform because it was probably the only suitable outfit he had.

Above his pillow, he had written on the shack wall in red koki: "A true gentleman is a true genius in calculation. A true legend lives on". Those words gave him inspiration, he told me.

We then went on to visit Monde's house. He lives with his siblings in a backyard shack of his parents' RDP house, where he shares a bed with hisbrother.

The rest of the space in the shack is taken up by a rickety home-made table on which stands an ancient Dell computer.

"You must never get rid of that computer," Asavela said to Monde. "That computer helped us to succeed."

Monde told me that his uncle had been given the computer by his employers when they upgraded their systems. Together Monde and Asavela set it up - and through their own efforts turned this stroke of luck into yet another opportunity. At school, during the day, they downloaded matric papers and worked on them late into the night, on the old computer in the shack. "The computer kept freezing, but we kept starting it again," said Monde.

That comment captured it all.

We often talk about the "opportunity" society. On that Saturday I saw what this idea can mean when opportunity meets singular human effort. The key priority of any government is to create real opportunities for all, so that people can use them.

It is true that "Outliers" like Asavela and Monde cannot be used as the yardstick for the rest of society. But the story of Masibambane as a school is a demonstration that many young people, of average ability, can become part of the "story of success". There is no reason why this cannot become South Africa's story too.

Huge Savings with Package Tours!!

2010-11-03T13:54:00.006+02:00

Calling travellers of planet earth and beyond!! For the month of November, selected safaris in Southern Africa will put BIG money back into your wallet. Huge saving are available on selected safaris and departure dates. To avoid major “bummed-out-emotions” aka disappointment enquire now at info@packagetours.co.za or visit our website www.packagetours.co.za for more amazing special and discounts which are updated monthly.

The below savings are valid until the 30^st of November.

Tour Name	Type	Date	Price	Saving
Cape To Vic Falls 20 days	Camping	2 Jan 2011	R 11,655	R 1,295
	Camping	9 Jan 2011	R 11,655	R 1,295
	Camping	19 Jan 2011	R 11,655	R 1,295
	Camping	26 Jan 2011	R 11,655	R 1,295
Cape To Vic Falls 20 days	Accommodated	8 Dec 2010	R 19,755	R 2,195
	Accommodated	5 Jan 2011	R 20,655	R 2,295
	Accommodated	12 Jan 2011	R 20,655	R 2,295
	Accommodated	19 Jan 2011	R 20,655	R 2,295
	Accommodated	26 Jan 2011	R 20,655	R 2,295
East Africa Adventure North 21 days	Camping	12 Jan 2011	R 10,755	R 1,195
	Camping	26 Jan 2011	R 10,755	R 1,195
	Accommodated	12 Jan 2011	R 15,705	R 1,745
	Accommodated	26 Jan 2011	R 15,705	R 1,745
East Africa Adventure South 21 days	Camping	30 Oct 2010	R 9,585	R 1,065
	Camping	8 Jan 2011	R 9,675	R 1,075
	Camping	5 Feb 2011	R 9,675	R 1,075
	Camping	19 Feb 2011	R 9,675	R 1,075
	Accommodated	8 Jan 2011	R 13,005	R 1,445
	Accommodated	5 Feb 2011	R 13,005	R 1,445
	Accommodated	19 Feb 2011	R 13,005	R 1,445
The Kruger Big Five 4 days	Camping	4 Nov 2010	R 4,185	R 465
	Camping	22 Nov 2010	R 4,185	R 465
	Camping	2 Dec 2010	R 4,185	R 465
	Camping	9 Dec 2010	R 4,185	R 465
Okavango & Chobe Trail – North 8 days	Camping	7 Dec 2010	R 5,355	R 595
	Camping	21 Dec 2010	R 5,355	R 595
	Camping	4 Jan 2011	R 5,895	R 655
	Accommodated	4 Jan 2011	R 7,335	R 815
Okavango & Chobe Trail – South 8 days	Camping	16 Jan 2011	R 4,995	R 555
	Camping	30 Jan 2011	R 4,995	R 555
	Accommodated	16 Jan 2011	R 6,705	R 745
	Accommodated	30 Jan 2011	R 6,705	R 745
South African Explorer 20 days	Camping	10 Jan 2011	R 11,655	R 1,295
	Accommodated	16 Dec 2010	R 16,785	R 1,865
	Accommodated	13 Jan 2011	R 17,955	R 1,995
Discover Mozambique 14 days	Camping	22 Nov 2010	R 8,775	R 975
	Camping	3 Jan 2011	R 8,955	R 995
	Camping	17 Jan 2011	R 8,955	R 995
	Camping	31 Jan 2011	R 8,955	R 995
	Accommodated	3 Jan 2011	R 11,385	R 1,265
	Accommodated	17 Jan 2011	R 11,385	R 1,265
	Accommodated	31 Jan 2011	R 11,385	R 1,265
Namibia Experience 12 days	Accommodated	8 Dec 2010	R 12,555	R 1,395
Kruger and Swaziland 7 days	Accommodated	16 Dec 2010	R 8,055	R 895
Lesotho and Addo 8 days	Accommodated	23 Dec 2010	R 6,705	R 745
Lesotho and Garden Route 13 days	Accommodated	23 Dec 2010	R 9,765	R 1,085
Garden Route 7 days	Accommodated	30 Dec 2010	R 6,705	R 745

TU News : SA awarded 27 Blue Flag beaches

2010-10-29T09:56:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

SA awarded 27 Blue Flag beaches

South Africa was celebrating 10 years of the Blue Flag programme in the country this year with 27 beaches being awarded Blue Flag status for 2010/2011, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, the Minister of Tourism, said this week.

"Blue Flag has grown from only three beaches in the first year to 27 for this, the tenth year of the programme. Growth has been significant and sustainable for most coastal municipalities and each year sees new beaches being introduced to the programme," the Minister said at a ceremony held at Santos beach in Mossel Bay.

"Our government, in close co-operation with the tourism industry, is continuously investing in tourism services and facilities in order to provide domestic and international tourists with an exceptional experience. The success of the 2010 World Cup must motivate all of us to continue to strive towards the highest standards.

"I have always maintained that tourists vote with their feet and if the latest arrival figures to South Africa are anything to go by, our country is getting a resounding vote of confidence from visitors. Foreign arrivals for January to July 2010 show an increase of 18,1% across all markets compared to the same period in 2009.

South Africa was the first country outside of Europe to implement the Blue Flag programme and it was launched here in November 2001 as part of the South African Government's CoastCare initiative.

Van Schalkwyk said research had shown that the investment coastal municipalities made in meeting and sustaining the international quality assurances that Blue Flag accreditation brought, paid off.

He announced that the South African beaches that have received Blue Flag accreditation for the 10th year of Blue Flag in South Africa were:

MacDougall's Bay, Port Nolloth
Yzerfontein Main beach, Yzerfontein
Clifton 4th beach, Cape Town
Camps Bay, Cape Town
Muizenberg, Cape Town
Strandfontein beach, Cape Town
Mnandi beach, Cape Town
Bikini beach, Gordon's Bay
Kleinmond beach, near Hermanus
Hawston beach, near Hermanus
Grotto beach, Hermanus
Lappiesbaai, Stilbaai, Southern Cape
Witsand at the mouth of the Breede River
Santos beach, Mossel Bay
Hartenbos beach, Mossel Bay
Robberg 5 beach, Plettenberg Bay
Dolphin beach, Jeffrey's Bay
Humewood beach, Port Elizabeth
Wells Estate, north of Port Elizabeth
Kelly's beach, Port Alfred
Kariega Main beach, Kenton-on-Sea
Umzumbe (Pumula) on the south coast KZN (new)
Lucien beach near Margate (back in the programme)
Trafalgar beach, south coast KZN
Marina beach, south coast KZN
Ramsgate beach, near Margate
Margate beach

There are currently 14 beaches that have applied to run a pilot or developmental stage of Blue Flag.

"The success of the Blue Flag programme in South Africa over the past 10 years can be attributed to the commitment of participating municipalities to provide beach-goers and holiday-makers with world-class beaches offering safe, clean and well-managed facilities," said Alison Kelly, WESSA's Blue Flag Programme Manager.

An ongoing challenge for many South African beaches will be the need to manage the damage caused to infrastructure and the coastline as a result of changing climatic conditions. Notwithstanding these challenges, municipalities participating in Blue Flag have devoted resources to the rehabilitation of these beaches and the standards necessary to fly the Blue Flag have been quickly re-established.

Blue Flag as an environmental programme also brings significant benefits in terms of improved environmental management of our coastline. This is clear in the highlighting of issues relating to bathing water quality and the need to ensure that infrastructure is effectively managed to minimise impacts on coastal environments. A significant potential threat to Blue Flag sustainability into the future will be the potential negative impacts of land-based pollution on sea bathing water quality.

"We are noticing slow deterioration in bathing water quality along most of the coast and this appears to be related to poor sewerage and stormwater management within the broader catchment that leads to the beaches," said Kelly. She noted that water quality in rivers and estuaries was deteriorating markedly.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Taking a stand against poaching? Tell us about it!

2010-09-21T11:28:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Taking a stand against poaching? Tell us about it!

Another five rhinos were brutally slain by poachers in the Pilanesberg Nature Reserve over the past weekend. The rhinos, found with their horns sawn off, bring the total number of rhino deaths since January to a startling 210, a 50% increase from last year's total of 140, and an average of almost 18 deaths a month.

Today, rhino poaching operations are slick, well-funded and professional, with the use of night-vision scopes, silencers and even helicopters regularly used to carry out their illegal and cruel missions.

Desperate times have called for desperate measures, with many operations, including most recently, Likweti Sanctuary in Mpumalanga, taking the difficult decision to dehorn its rhino population. Others have taken an even more controversial approach, with threats of injecting cyanide into rhino horn to drive down demand, which mostly stems from Asia.

Wednesday, September 22 is Rhino Day, a campaign spearheaded by the World Wildlife Fund and several partners to encourage the public to help support South Africa's rhino warriors. The WWF is calling on all concerned citizens to dust off their vuvuzelas and make as much noise as possible at 13h00 to send a message to leaders that the time to take serious and effective action against rhino poaching is now.

The time has come for industry to come together and take a stand against poaching. We want to hear from you, email us at editor@tourismupdate.co.za and tell us what you're doing to combat poaching and we'll publicise your contribution.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

2010 - The year it became fashionable to do good

2010-09-17T09:21:00.002+02:00

As we welcomed 2010, the year of Africa's first ever Soccer World Cup tournament, all eyes turned to the countdown of what is the world's most watched event. As a nation, our focus and energy turned to nation branding and nation building. But the months leading up to June 2010 were uncertain as we battled our own doubts and European tabloid newspaper reports of "machete-wielding gangs". We battled predictions that crime would make it the most dangerous World Cup yet. We battled reports of low foreign ticket sales and empty stadiums. But as you well know, we surprised the world and ourselves, and FIFA President, Sepp Blatter gave us a 9/10 rating for our hosting success.

But something else happened; something which wasn't predicted or prophesied. The World Cup created a tipping point for many in our country. But it's not a tipping point that political analysts or economists are able to quantify, or will even talk about. It's the tipping point that has mobilised the real South African citizen in the movement for good (I say "real" because there are many who claim to own South Africa but don't know a thing about being citizens).

It wasn't only government who made the World Cup a success. It was the 15 000 citizens who volunteered. It was the construction workers who built the stadiums, the men who built the Gautrain, the hospitality industry staff who made tourists feel welcome, the everyday South Africans who were friendly and accommodating wherever they encountered foreigners, and the taxpayers who paid the billions to host the Cup.

South Africans experienced patriotism like they hadn't felt in years, or maybe ever. The camaraderie and shared experiences of ordinary citizens gave strangers a sense of belonging and left us with the realisation that we are able to achieve what we set our minds to. The world gushed about 'ubuntu' ("I am what I am because of who we all are") as we marvelled that not all is 'doom and gloom' in South Africa. Our new self-image and the positive media reports boosted our confidence. The South Africa citizen could say, "I can make a difference".

Following on from there, we have seen a movement for good spreading throughout the country, so much so that it has become fashionable to do good. The launch of LeadSA on August 4th has seen some 20 000 South Africans signing up to the Facebook page within the first two weeks. During August's three week public sector strike action that brought hospitals and schools to their knees, South Africans came out in numbers to assist (http://bit.ly/cTsTG5). I loved that for the first time ever, I had a compelling sense of urgency, rather than a nagging sense of obligation, that I was needed by my country and I was able to volunteer after mobilising some non-medical friends like myself, via Facebook.

And there's more coming: Heartlines' much-anticipated Forgood platform that aims to mobilise citizens through a "Facebook with a purpose" is being launched before the end of September. A "Bless the City" initiative, organised by Christians in Johannesburg for the weekend of 12-14th November, is an opportunity for citizens to initiate or join projects and activities that will impact the city for good.

A personal example I have, also speaks of this "for good" wave: I am being featured in the November 2010 edition of Oprah magazine where I have the opportunity to share on "How I LeadSA" - sharing how I, an everyday South African, do my bit for my country, not how I keep fit or how I build my success! Never would I have imagined that doing good would become quite so fashionable.

Studies have shown that the people who suffer the least depression and hopelessness in life are those who give of their time to help others. Personally, getting swept up in the movement for good has given me a new passion in life. I'm a multi-tasker and have always wanted to connect my work with exercising my faith at a grassroots level and the movement for good has finally made this sense of duty a reality. My journalism career is now feeding into nation-building activities and I am able to give around one day per week to serve my city. I am stronger, more focused, more diligent than before and I have a new sense of calm in my career as I've discovered what motivational speakers call the "sweet spot".

A country where it's "each man for himself" leaves each of us powerless to overcome our challenges. But who knows what good is to come of all we're investing - if we can ride this wave long enough, "for good" may very well become more than just a fashion trend.

by Julie Cunningham Editor: SA - The Good News

2010-09-15T09:07:00.001+02:00

Zimbabwe and Zambia plan to work together to rebrand Vic Falls
08 Wed, Sep 2010

The tourism ministries of Zimbabwe and Zambia have pledged to work together to review and renew plans for the management and marketing of the Victoria Falls as a key tourism destination.

According to a report in Zimbabwe's The Herald a recent visit from a Zambian delegation to Zimbabwe resulted in plans for the governments to work together rather than rely on private investors.

The report says the tourism ministries are considering a paradigm shift in the perception of the World Heritage Site status of Victoria Falls, as currently the destination is not making significant economic gains as a result of its status. Also under review is the name 'Victoria Falls'.

Ross Kennedy, member of the GotoVictoriaFalls.com campaign says he is aware of the ongoing discussions by authorities from relevant ministries with consultants to relook at the Victoria Falls Master Plan that was launched many years ago by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). "This plan sets out to ensure that development is within current best practice and recognises the World Heritage and iconic status of the Victoria Falls," says Kennedy.

Regarding the role of the private sector in promoting the destination, Kennedy adds: "The private sector has always, and will always play a key role in interfacing with all relevant authorities with regard to tourism development in the region. GotoVictoriaFalls.com is a shining example of the collaborative efforts within the greater tourism body in Zimbabwe to support and enhance the marketing efforts of the tourism ministry and the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority to promote Victoria Falls' status as a regional tourism hub."

2010-09-03T13:03:00.001+02:00

Red flags, scenarios and our future
By Steuart Pennington of www.sagoodnews.co.za 3 September 2010

During the past week, I came across the opinions of four South African influencers that showed just how difficult it is to decide what is perception and what is reality!

The first was that of Gavin Lewis of the DA labelling me as "indefatigable but muddled in my pursuit of 'good news' " as I wrote about the Business Day's reluctance to engage in the Media Tribunal debate. Make of that what you will, but as Judge President Steyn (caretaker of the Namibian Independence handover) said when criticised about his role, "it's like a duck's water running off my back!"

The second was an article by Allister Sparks, "The swift trashing of our World Cup image" (Business Day 18 August 2010) in which he claims that "a few weeks later (after the World Cup) our government seems to be going out of its way to blot out our new image of investors beginning to reassess us as the realisation spread that South Africa was different from the rest of what many still perceived to be 'the hopeless continent' by delivering a series of public relations disasters".

I am not sure that Africa is a "hopeless continent" anymore, but read on!

The third was an article on a talk delivered by Adrian Gore at the Discovery Invest Leadership Summit earlier this month, "We're our own worst enemy" in which he points out how dramatically the world is changing, in many respects to South Africa's advantage, and in which he laments that "paradoxically, South Africans remain negative and skeptical". He says "we are caught in a 'will we, won't we survive' paradigm where we are constantly seeking affirmation of inevitable decline. It is my view that South Africa's problems lie in these negative attitudes, not in its fundamentals. Importantly these attitudes are not always rational". (I wonder if Gavin Lewis read this?)

The fourth was a business breakfast I attended addressed by Clem Sunter "South Africa's economic prospects post 2010" where he did his scenario planning review which he has become so well-known for, claiming, "it's better to be vaguely right rather than precisely wrong!" In summary he pointed to three possible global scenarios:

Scenario 1: "Hard times 'til 2016"

Scenario 2: "New balls please recovery in 2012"

Scenario 3: "Living in a two-speed world"

Essentially he pointed out that there is a growing difference in the economic prospects of the developing versus the developed world and that the economic growth prospects for Asia (+/- 5%), Africa (+/- 5%) and South America (+/-5%) are significantly greater than that of Europe, UK and USA (+/- 1.7%) and that this is good for us.

In turning to South Africa he used the soccer analogy of Premier League, Second League and Failed State.

Premier League	Second League	Failed State
57 Countries (SA 44th)	+/- 120 countries	+/- 50 countries

He pointed out that we are part of the Premier League of the top 57 nations of the world, that we had moved from 33rd to 52nd and were now on our way back at 44th and that after the success of the World Cup, we could well emerge back into the lower 30's.

But he warned of 'red flags' that could move us towards a failed state (reminding the audience that Zimbabwe up until the mid 90's had growth at +/- 7%, then...land grabs propelled the nation in five short years into 'Failed State' status).

The 'red flags' in South Africa's case are:

Violence

Threats to media freedom

Land

Mines nationalization

Sunter then reviewed the challenges we need to deal with to stay in the Premier League:

 Inclusive leadership, patriotism and national pride. "We give Mr. Zuma a tick in this regard; so far he is demonstrating the characteristics of inclusiveness".

 Exploiting our pockets of excellence rather than smothering them with mediocrity. "We are truly capable of world class performance in so many areas, we must leverage this, and we must celebrate our successes".

 Building an inclusive outward looking economy. "We remain an exclusive economy, we need to concentrate on adding value to our rich resource base, building our tourism based on our World Cup success and establishing ourselves as the pre-eminent 'gateway to Africa' ".

 We absolutely must "incentivise our ability to become an entrepreneurial state, entrepreneurship is the engine-room of growth".

But it was the audience's reaction that confounded me!

I think the audience was genuinely astonished at his optimism and his message that "we have it within us to grow in stature as a member of the Premier League". Certainly, if the questions are anything to go by, some people came to the presentation with a 'we are in the Second League and slipping' mindset and others with a 'get real Mr. Sunter, we are already a failed state' mindset.

Which, finally, brings me to my point. We had a magnificent 'jol' as a nation during the World Cup and the world moved from an afro-pessimistic perception of our country and continent to one of growing afro-optimism. I personally received several letters, slideshow presentations and articles from foreigners who, as one correspondent said "I knew of your www.sagoodnews.co.za website but thought it was 'sunshine journalism' I could not have been more wrong, you live in an incredible country with amazing people, even you don't appreciate how fortunate you are!"

I don't think that these perceptions will change because of strikes, proposed media curbs (which won't happen), and mutterings from the youth about mine nationalization. These things happen in all countries in one way or another most of the time (during the 2007 Rugby World Cup there was a 'flat-out' municipal transport strike in Paris - no underground, no buses, no taxis, hardly anyone outside Paris noticed and the local newspapers were not full of 'PR blunder' doom. And, check out strike records in both the developed and developing world - South Africa does not stand out, in fact, we hardly even feature when comparisons of work days lost are made).

So who is right? Gavin Lewis and Allister Sparks or Adrian Gore and Clem Sunter? Maybe that is an unfair question, maybe we should say they all are, but it does raise the question of what informs our national narrative?

The National Planning Commission

National Planning Commission Minister Trevor Manuel and thirty or so intellectual heavy-weights are tasked with spending the next 18 months developing our 2020 Vision. They are going to need to take us along with them, we need an informed narrative, one which understands and focuses on the 'fundamentals' as Adrian Gore refers, one which creates a shared debate on the different scenarios that confront us as Clem Sunter refers, and agreement on what 'red flags' there are out there that could get in the way.

In my view our biggest 'red flag' is how we talk about ourselves; how we talk about our challenges; how we maintain perspective and how we talk of our future. Negative and/or positive self-fulfilling prophecies are a reality.

We must not allow 'bad news' to be the only thing we talk about, write about, and read about! It is not ALL that is happening!

POST SCRIPT: I couldn't help being amused by one of the conversations I had with an enthusiastic German visitor at the Billy the Bums pub in Durban prior to the Spain/Portugal game. He said, "Bad news is like ze toothache ja, it is briefly of great concern, needs dealing wis urgently, creates panic unnecessarily, and is felt accutely! But when it is over, it is quickly forgotten but, everyone has zis...ja - nobody holds zis against you - and no-one dies from zis!

Good news is like ze losing weight ja, no-one is interested in your progress, no-one talks about how you are doing, no-one applauds your efforts, but everyone wants to be part of your result". In Germany we have zis all the time...ja!

As a nation we will suffer from toothaches often and we will need to lose weight regularly, but staying healthy is what remains central to all of us permanently!

TU News : Winelands go "Google-eyed"

2010-09-01T11:12:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Winelands go "Google-eyed"

South Africa is leading the world by having its wine estates listed on Google Street View to create the most comprehensive database of wineries imagery in the world.

Google is currently adding 19 more South African wine estates to Street View after 12 were loaded in June when Google launched Street View in South Africa ahead of the Soccer World Cup, says Google SA's Communications Manager, Julie Taylor. Its initial offering in South Africa also includes amongst others 27 towns and cities, seven soccer stadia, the Kruger National Park and Kirstenbosch botanical gardens, totalling about 65 000km of images.

Street View - offered free by Goggle to invited destinations - adds another dimension to Google Maps with 360-degree street-level images taken by Google cars and trikes, which take nine pictures every 10m. It allows Google users to view and navigate through streets and cities and now also through vineyards and historic farm buildings. Google is also running workshops for Cape wine farms to teach them how to use its geo tools to improve their online presence.

South Africa is the first country in Africa to get Street View imagery in Google Maps, the most popular map service worldwide. Launched in 2007, Street View is now available in more than 100 countries, on more then 350 000 websites and in 40 languages, now also including Afrikaans and Zulu. It is the largest photographic project ever done by mankind.

Comments Cape Town Tourism CEO, Mariëtte du Toit-Helmbold, "With the success of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, it is important to keep the momentum going and continue to showcase what South Africa - and particularly Cape Town - can offer as a tourist destination. The expansion of winelands imagery on Street View will no doubt encourage local and international tourists to come and explore this part of the country further."

Richard Cheary of Afrozaar, a mobile and web solutions company, sees the marketing capabilities of Google's geo products expanding. "Google Maps and Street View capabilities provide a powerful platform to be creative, for example, the creation of downloadable virtual tourism tours, incorporating multimedia. This can be complemented by mobile applications, comprising travel directions and preloaded tourist information." He says all tourism businesses can benefit from Street View technology by embedding Google Maps directly into their website free of charge, helping them to promote their services.

How to use Google Street View
In areas where Street View is available, you can see the images on Google Maps (on a PC or Internet-enabled mobile) by zooming into the lowest level, or by dragging the orange "Pegman" icon on the left-hand side of the map onto a blue highlighted street. By moving the mouse you can take a virtual walk through a street. To get directions from Point A to Point B, your route will be highlighted in blue on the map. Street View also incorporates images uploaded by Internet users through other websites such as Flickr, the image hosting website. This enables users to blend the Google imagery with the other images for a more detailed view of the virtual surroundings.

Google says to safeguard privacy Street View only contains imagery that is already visible from public roads and features technology that blurs faces and license plates. Users can also flag images for removal that they consider inappropriate by clicking on "report a problem". To learn more about Street View, visit www.google.co.za/streetview.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

Fifty facts about a remarkable nation

2010-08-27T11:53:00.020+02:00

Economy

1. The rand was the best performing currency against the US Dollar between 2002 and 2005 (Bloomberg Currency Scoreboard)

2. South Africa has 55,000 high net-wealth individuals holding at least US$1million in financial assets (World Wealth Report 2008)

3. South Africa has the 27th biggest economy in the world, with a Gross Domestic Product of US$254 billion (World Bank)

4. South Africa accounts for almost 25% of the GDP of the entire African continent, with an economy more than twice the size of the second biggest – Algeria. (World Bank)

5. Gauteng is South Africa’s smallest province but produces 34% of South Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (Stats SA)

6. The JSE Securities Exchange is the 14th largest equities exchange in the world, with a total market capitalisation of some R2.3 trillion (JSE)

7. More than 12,000 'Black Diamond' families (South Africa’s new black middle class) - or 50,000 people - are moving from the townships into the suburbs of South Africa's metro areas every month (UCT Unilever Institute)

8. The black middle class grew by 30% in 2005, adding another 421,000 black adults to SA's middle-income layer and ramping up the black population's share of SA's total middle class to almost a third. Between 2001 and 2004, there were 300,000 new black entrants to the middle class (Financial Mail)

Infrastructure
1. South Africa generates two-thirds of Africa’s electricity (Eskom)

2. South African power supplier provides the fourth cheapest electricity in the world

3. Chris Hani-Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto is the biggest hospital in the world

4. Durban is the largest port in Africa and the ninth largest in the world.

5. There are 39 million cell phone users in South Africa (International Telecommunication Union)

Tourism
1. The number of tourists visiting South Africa has grown by 200% since 1994, from 3 million to over 9 million in 2007 (Dept of Environment and Tourism)

2. The Singita game reserve was voted the best hotel in the world by the readers of a leading travel magazine (Conde Nast Traveller)

3. The world's best land-based whale-watching spot is located in Hermanus in the Western Cape.

4. In 2002, South Africa was the world’s fastest growing tourist destination. In 2006, South Africa’s tourism grew at three times the global average.

Sport
1. South Africa hosts the largest timed cycle race in the world (the Cape Argus Cycle Tour), the world's oldest and largest ultra-marathon (the Comrades Marathon) and the world's largest open water swimming event (the Midmar Mile).

2. South Africa will become the first African country to host the Soccer World Cup in 2010 … and only the second country in the world to have hosted the Cricket, Rugby and Soccer World Cups.

3. Since the 1940s, South African golfers have won more golf majors than any other nation, apart from the United States.

4. In 1994, we won 11 medals in the Commonwealth Games. In 2002, we won 46.

SA Teaching the World
1. South Africa houses one of the three largest telescopes in the world at Sutherland in the Karoo

2. South Africa is the first, and to date the only, country to build nuclear weapons and the voluntarily dismantle its entire nuclear weapons programme

3. South Africa Constitution is widely regarded as being one of the most progressive in the world, drawing from the experiences of the world’s most advanced democracies

4. The South African oil company Sasol has established the only commercially viable oil-from-coal operations in the world.

5. Two of the world's most profoundly compassionate philosophies originated in South Africa – Ubuntu (the belief in a universal bond of sharing that connects all humanity) and Gandhi's notion of "passive resistance" (Satyagraha), which he developed while living in South Africa.

Education
1. Almost a quarter of South Africa’s non-interest budget is spent on education

2. The University of South Africa UNISA is a pioneer of tertiary distance education and is the largest correspondence university in the world with 250,000 students.

3. Our learner to teacher ratio has improved from 1:50 in 1994 to 1:34 in 2004

4. South Africa’s matric pass rate has improved from 49% in 1994 to 70% in

2004, but student’s receiving university exemptions has remained at 18%

5. The first MBA programme outside of the United States was started by the University of Pretoria in 1949 (Gordon Institute of Business Science).

Social
1. Over thirteen million South Africans (a quarter of the population) have access to social grants (Department of Social Development)

2. Since 1994, 500 houses have been built each day for the poor and 1,000 houses per day have received electricity

3. Seventy percent of South Africa’s population is urbanised

Environmental
1. The Kruger National Park supports the greatest variety of wildlife species on the African continent

2. The Cango Caves near Oudsthoorn is the world’s longest underground cave sequence

3. South Africa is the only country to house an entire floral kingdom (fynbos), one of only 6 on the planet

4. In 1991, South Africa became the first country in the world to protect the Great White shark.

5. South Africa has the oldest meteor scar in the world, at the Vredefort Dome near Parys. The scar is 2 billion years old.

6. South Africa has the 3rd highest level of biodiversity (SA Tourism)

7. The Cape Hyrax’s (dassie) closest relative is the African elephant

8. South Africa has embraced the concept of trans-frontier ‘peace parks’, linking ecological reserves across national borders

General
1. The Western Deep Levels is the world’s deepest mine at 3777 metres

2. South Africa has the world’s largest deposits of gold, chromium, platinum and manganese

3. The only street in the world to house two Nobel Peace Prize winners is in Soweto. Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu both have houses in Vilakazi Street, Orlando West.

4. South African Breweries (SABMiller) ranks as the second largest brewing company in the world. It supplies up to 50% of China's beer.

5. Cape Town has the fifth-best blue sky in the world, according to the UK's National Physical Laboratory

TU News : The end of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe?

2010-08-26T11:56:00.001+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

The end of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe?

Transnet Limited has announced that the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe train service operating between George and Mossel Bay will be terminated.

In its announcement Transnet said that it identified the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe service as one of its non-core assets in 2007. Following extensive studies and stakeholder consultation, the company decided to follow an open tender process to find a new operator for the service.

"Unfortunately, this process could not identify a new operator and as a result, Transnet was left with no option other than to terminate the service subject to the required approval by the Minister of Public Enterprises in terms on the Public Finance Management Act - this has since been finalised." the statement said.

The Outeniqua Transport Museum in George will remain open to the public.

The George-to-Mossel Bay Line, on which the Choo-Tjoe service is currently operated, is part of the Southern Cape cluster of branch lines that have been identified to be concessioned to a private operator. This concessioning process is being undertaken by Transnet through an open, competitive process. Further announcements on branch line concessioning will follow in due course.

Transnet and the MEC for Finance, Economic Development and Tourism of the Provincial Government of the Western Cape, have been in discussions regarding the George-to-Knysna railway line, which was severely damaged in 2006 by seasonal floods. The intention is to ensure that tourism and other opportunities are unlocked on this line through the facilitation of the Provincial Government. Further details of this process will be announced in due course.

Commenting on the announcement Alan Winde, Western Cape MEC of Finance, Economic Development and Finance said that despite Transnet's announcement he remains resolute in his commitment to reviving the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe service and ensuring that it remains a vital part of the South Cape's heritage and tourism offering.

Winde continued to say that Transnet's decision comes after an open tender process did not yield any positive applicants to take over its operations, which they state have become financially unviable.

However, Winde said that he is "eagerly" awaiting the final outcome negotiations with Transnet to take over the George to Knysna line. He concluded by saying that he will also keep a close eye on further developments regarding the privatisation process of other branch-lines.

*What are your thoughts on Transnet's announcement? Let us know by sending your comments.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Table Mountain half price at sunset

2010-08-25T10:32:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Table Mountain half price at sunset

Sip sundowners on top of Table Mountain for half price this summer. The new Summit Lounge at the Top Station recently opened just in time for summer.

Table Mountain Aerial Cableway's Sunset Special starts on Monday November 1 and runs until the end of February 2011. Visitors pay R90 per person return every day after 6pm. Children under 18 years pay R45 per person return after 6pm only.

The Cableway operates weather permitting. For information call (021) 424 8181 or visit http://tablemountain.net/

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

What is Lead Sa?

2010-08-05T12:54:00.001+02:00

Our country has just finished hosting the biggest sporting event in the world and if there's one thing that stood out, it was our Ubuntu, our warmth and our leadership. The question on our minds is how to keep growing that spirit of unity and respect for one another. Lead SA is an initiative that aims to to remind us that it is in our power to change ourselves and our country, that we all have the ability to lead. It's up to you to Stand Up for South Africa and our future.

www.leadsa.co.za

Yes, South Africa can!!

2010-07-19T16:10:00.010+02:00

July 10 2010 at 08:24AM By John Carlin

It's been a spectacular success. Everything according to plan, smooth as silk; South Africa successfully re-branded; no unpleasant surprises, and plenty of pleasant ones.

Not a cheep, for example, out of the ludicrous Julius Malema, who the ANC wisely locked up in the attic, as you do with the mad live-in relative when important guests come around.
No reports of any new Zuma off-spring, or even wife. As for the bigger and far more important picture, the games all started on time and were broadcast live around the world without a hitch (though I gather there were some power-cut problems in England "mercifully, perhaps" during one of their national team's relentlessly hapless displays). No massacres of foreign visitors, either, as long advertised in the foreign press.Crime generally seems to have sunk to Swiss levels of innocuousness during South Africa's four-week World Cup honeymoon.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu famously declared on April 27, 1994, the day all South Africans went to vote for the first time: "It's like falling in love!" Well, 16 years later, it was a renewal of the marriage vows; it was South Africa falling in love with itself all over again.
All those stories, promoted by Fifa, among others, about this being Invictus II, about 2010 being the 1995 rugby World Cup all over again, about healing racial wounds, uniting the fractured nation and so forth, were off the mark. It was much, much better than that.
What we saw was just how united and racially healed South Africa really is, how far we've advanced since the nervy Nineties 1990s. The word for what we have seen in these past few weeks is consolidation. Nothing new, these past years, to anyone who has walked about South Africa, done ordinary everyday things, in seeing black and white people getting along just fine.
All the racial tension stories that surfaced after the death of Eugene Terre'Blanche ("South Africa on the brink of racial war" etc), have been shown to be, as a British friend of mine who knows the country well, succinctly put it the other day, "just so much bollocks".

I've been to watch loads of games at the stadiums, but by far the best memory I take away from the World Cup was the atmosphere at Melrose Arch, in Joburg, during the South Africa-France game. From what I saw there, and from reports of friends and fellow journalists who have taken part in identically joyous events of this kind up and down the country, I'd like to ask a question: "If South Africa is not a united country, then what country is?"
As I have written in these pages before, the thousands gathered before a big screen at Melrose to watch Bafana Bafana's heroic exit from the competition knew in their hearts that it was a lost cause, that their team would not make it to the second round of the competition. But the solidarity was absolute. People of all colours and religions, in what until not very long ago had been an exclusively white residential area, heaving and swaying and singing, celebrating their common South Africanness with proud, unforced energy: what a blow for the legion of dismal sceptics that flood the opinion pages of this country's newspapers!

Never mind black and white, there were a number of Jewish people with yarmulkes on their heads at Melrose and a number of Muslim men with long beards and Muslim women wearing veils on their heads. Where else in the world would you see such people mingling without tension, their national identities trumping ancient religious divides? Not too many places, believe me.
And the great thing is that the world has got to see all this the rebranding really has kicked in.
Via 15 000 fellow journalists that have descended on this country (please, don't anyone tell me ever again that the World Cup was a waste of money!), the entire planet has got to see South Africa's best face - in my prejudiced view, the best face in the world.

I have spoken in the past four weeks to journalists from Mexico, El Salvador, the USA US, China, India, Britain, Germany, Spain - you name it. The first thing that has has surprised them has been the total absence of racial friction. Most of them being white, or white-ish, they concurred that the contacts they had had with black South Africans had been consistently civil, cordial, respectful, good-humoured, even fun.
As for the the panic in their hearts at the prospect of murderous hordes chasing them down dark alleys, the predominant sensation among those who acknowledged they had succumbed to these terrors was embarrassment.

I did a bit of work early on in the competition for a big US television channel, some on-air punditry about South African politics and society. The recording studio was at Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton, just above the big statue of the great man. About 100m away was the television station's tented base of operations.
I and an American producer walked from the studio to the base camp and back half a dozen times. Our trajectory was through a crowded mall. The only potential peril I was aware of was that we might trip on the mechanical escalators and bang our heads.

But you know what? The television station's rules required that on each of these strolls we should be accompanied by a beefy security guard - a dark-suited Nigerian, in this case. The producer I was with honourably squirmed at the timorousness of his employers. The Nigerian kept a poker-face, but inside he was laughing, all the way to the bank.
Worse was the case of the English journalists covering the England camp. The bus they travelled in always had one security escort in front and one behind; four Afrikaner former police officers or soldiers kept watch on them everywhere they went.
At first the journalists were not displeased to have them around. I heard that before the World Cup the bosses of one major British newspaper (won't tell which, but it wrote about the looming racial bloodbath following Terre'Blanche's death) had the brilliant idea, in these troubled economic times, of hiring a security consultant to address the South Africa-bound troops.

A man with a briefcase appeared (presumably working for the same outfit that would later provide the detachment in South Africa) and rattled off the figures for violent crime in the purportedly benighted country, for murder, for rape - not excluding male rape. He put the fear of God into the poor journalists. Four weeks later what they feel is deeply embarrassed.
Talking of journalists, on a less foolish note, the way Fifa and the Local Organising Committee set up the bureaucracy of accreditation and general facilities was a dream.
Cleverly aware of how critical we often unsavory characters would prove in the marketing of South Africa, they set up a wonderfully smooth operation.

Getting your tickets for games was straightforward and the staff were as cheerful as they were efficient. At the stadium media centres and the press seats the internet connections (journalists' lifeblood these days) were excellent, whether you were in Rustenburg, Bloemfontein or Joburg's Soccer City.
I covered the World Cup in Japan in 2002: this was incomparably more hassle-free. I heard the same from journalists who covered the World Cup in Germany four years ago.

Oh, and let's not forget the Fan Walk in Cape Town, a two and a half kilometre 2.5km vaudeville show from the centre of town to that beautifully elegant Coco Chanel hat of a stadium, along which the massed hordes, thousands of children included, were bursting with bonhomie - so much so that for the semi-final on Saturday the love in the air breathed unexpected life into the sails of old Holland.
The long-buried historical connection with the Dutch (Jan van Who?) suddenly surfaced in the Mother City in a riot of orange. I went up to one orangeman and woman after another, a number flying Dutch flags, and, to my astonishment, all the ones I spoke to turned out to be South Africans.
They were happy Holland won, not least because they avenged Uruguay's unspeakably cruel victory over Ghana. But what they were happiest about was, I think, that they had reclaimed the streets. Save for the odd case of pickpocketing (you get them in Vienna), nothing to fear.

I have a theory - I actually had it, rather more wishfully, before the World Cup - that the criminal classes would go on a patriotic strike during the tournament, doing their bit for Brand SA.
Whether that was it, or whether it was a pragmatic calculation that what with the emergence of these swift and severe World Cup courts and the flooding of World Cup venues with the men and women in blue it might be best to keep their heads down, the fact is that the country has been more relaxed and at peace than it has been for a long time - maybe ever.

Actually, to be serious, huge credit has to be given to the police. I came across loads all over the country and they were, without exception, polite and efficient, oozing civic responsibility. One that I met off duty in a bar in Bloemfontein sang me a symphony of racial brotherhood, banging on - in his cups, a little - about how South Africa was a piano. The black and white keys had to play together, he said, or not at all.
Obviously we'll have to see if all this lasts after the World Cup is over. Enough people have vented their views on this already and there is not much more to add.

Though it will be intriguing to see if the police turn out to be as assiduous in protecting the foreign Africans here, against whom murder and mayhem is threatened (especially in jolly old Cape Town), after the final whistle blows on Sunday night, as they have been in keeping the rather more welcome World Cup visitors safe. We'll have a test case right there of whether it's all been a dream or not.
Which brings us to the first lesson of this World Cup: the primary purpose of government is to protect its citizens. Well, let's absorb that thought and act on it. Sustain the good work that's been done after the show is over and watch this country go.

The second lesson, not at all unrelated to crime, is that if South Africa really puts its mind to something, it can do it, it can make a plan. Fifa has got a pretty bum rap from people in this country for its autocratic ways, but the Swiss-Germanic rigour that's flowed from Zurich has definitely sharpened up levels of efficiency and organisation round here, not to say - the big South African "d" word - of delivery.
Someone who works high up in the Local Organising Committee told me how at first it had been a big culture shock to work with these Swiss; they did not understand each other at all. But in time they established a rapport and the fusing of African ebullience with old European discipline ended up doing the job admirably.

The big lesson I take away from all this is one that I already knew but had forgotten, amidst the distracting babble we read about in the press and , hear and see in the broadcast media from the political classes, chatterers and newspaper columnists.

South Africa is much better, brighter and bigger-hearted than you'd think from paying attention to all that lot. The society is great, and it is the reason why (never mind the safari parks and the fairest Cape) so many of us foreigners who've spent time here find this country more beguiling than any other on Earth. Ordinary people have so much more wisdom, grit, resilience, invention, courage and generosity than you find in most countries.

And some of these ordinary people are to be found, for sure, in the ANC. Even in the upper reaches of the government, if you look hard enough. There are the looters, the hypocrites and the frauds, too, as we all know. We can just hope that the experience of the World Cup might have awoken their better angels, brought out the good that lurks in many of them, that sparked their commitment to politics in the first place.
Failing that, as a friend here says, let's pray that they remain content with taking just five or 10 percent of the national cake, instead of 30 percent or the full damn monty.

Your Julius Malemas - and I use him as a generic term for all that's rotten and silly about the South African political scene - are best ignored. Or rather, friends in the media, try, if you can resist the temptation, not to publish and broadcast what he says. Delve deep, rather, into what he and his like do.
As for Zuma, he is a nice guy and has many of the best instincts of the best South Africa. The problem is that he lacks gumption and sexual maturity. Not much we can do about the latter, but maybe we can prod him to show a bit of principle and character and lead the ANC back to what it once was, abandoning its lootocratic ways. A leader must not be a jellyfish, said PW Botha. Heed those words, Mr President.

Though, perhaps, he won't. In which case, let's take comfort in the knowledge that the country is, I repeat, bigger and better than the state.

If the state does not get in the way, if it actually helps, as it has done with this World Cup (notably the policing, but also the building of infrastructure) then great.
If not, well, South Africans have it in them to make a plan. The big message from this spectacularly successful staging of the greatest show on Earth is that, yes, South Africa can.
Now, with more confidence and pride and calm than ever before, get on and do it.

* John Carlin was the correspondent for the London Independent in South Africa between 1989 and 1995. He has returned to South Africa frequently since then, including nine times in the past 18 months, chiefly to work on television documentaries. He wrote Playing the Enemy, the book on which the Clint Eastwood film, Invictus, is based. The book has been translated into 16 languages, including Spanish and Dutch.

Photo Credits: http://www.shine2010.co.za

Cape Town does it again!

2010-07-08T13:35:00.008+02:00

Cape Town has once again made it onto another global list for its exceptional beauty. This time, Forbes magazine has named Cape Town one of the twelve most beautiful cities in the world.

The Forbes list, released earlier this year, puts the Mother City on a par with Paris, Vancouver, Sydney, Florence, Venice, San Francisco, Chicago, New York City, Cambridge, Tokyo and London.

Cape Town is the only city from a developing nation to have made the cut, and the only one on the African continent.

Forbes was particularly impressed by Cape Town’s open spaces. According to environmental engineer Raymond Levitt, the city was also singled out for its small ecological footprint compared to sprawling metropolises like Tokyo and New York.

The list is drawn up in consultation with experts from a range of relevant fields, including architecture, urban planning and sustainable development.

These experts included Amanda Reynolds of the UK-based Urban Design Group, architect Michael Kaufman of Goettsch Partners in Chicago, and Raymond Levitt, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Stanford University. UK urban designer and architect Tony McGuirk, J Hugh O'Donnell, CEO of engineering firm MMM International, and Ken Drucker of the New York office of architectural firm HOK also provided input.

The view of Cape Town from the Table Mountain cable car station .A 2010 Fifa World Cup host city, Cape Town is gearing up for the tourist influx with a host of infrastructure upgrades, such as the Integrated Rapid Transit system and the impressive new Cape Town stadium and its associated Green Point Common, which is being developed now that the stadium is fully functional. The common is expected to become an important social gathering site once complete.

Cape Town also hosts a number of other popular sporting events, such as the annual Cape Argus and Cape Epic cycle tours and the Two Oceans ultramarathon. Participants from all over the world descend on the city to pit their skills and endurance against the best athletes in these taxing sporting disciplines.

Renowned English sea navigator Sir Francis Drake once referred to Cape Town as the fairest cape in the world. The city has an abundance of unspoilt beaches and is home to one of South Africa's most famous landmarks, Table Mountain.

The mountain is part of the 30 000ha Table Mountain National Park, administered by South African National Parks, and is home to a wide range of animals and birds. The park is also popular with thrill-seekers who are able to hike, climb, cave, and base-jump from its many cliffs.

Further inland, the Cape winelands offer award-winning wines from many world-renowned estates, some of them possessing an ancestry that dates right back to the early days of the Cape’s colonisation by the Dutch.

Cape Town is also known for its bustling nightlife, highly rated hotels and fine restaurants. Some of the top establishments in the country are to be found here, a number of which have also won international acclaim.

To view the full list, go to www.forbes.com

2010-07-08T13:00:00.001+02:00

Let's blow our vuvuzelas for a bright South African future
by Boris Johnson, Mayor of London
Telegraph.co.za published 20 June 2010

I wish you could have come with me yesterday as I ran through the delightful district of Westcliff, one of the richest square miles in Africa. The sun was taking the chill off the winter morning. The sky was blue. The urban forest of Johannesburg was a winter symphony of brown and green and gold.
Among the trees, on either side of the well-kept street, I passed the kinds of homes you normally associate with Beverly Hills. Here was the honey-stoned palazzo of a diamond executive. There was the schloss of the most successful boob-job exponent in the neighbourhood.
Each villa was the size of a country club, and through every set of gates you could see the carob-shaded tennis court or the ultramarine ping of the sunlight on the pool. Every property overtly proclaimed the determination of the haves to resist the depredations of the have-nots. Great brown Rhodesian ridgebacks snuffled behind the electric fences. Chubb security vans cruised quietly up and down. Fixed to the wall beside virtually every nine-foot impregnable gate was a sign announcing that any intruder would be met with an "Armed Response".
I wish you could have been there, to soak up the splendour of the lives of the affluent Johannesburg professionals. Then I wish you could have come with me to another neighbourhood, a township called Cape Flats, nor far from Cape Town. Then you would have understood the vast economic disparity of South Africa the wealth gap that helps to prompt the security fences of Westcliff.
Here there was no tarmac on the streets. No one had cleared up the piles of rubbish. No one had painted the battered grey breeze blocks of the flats or mended the panes in the washing-hung windows. Of the hordes of unwashed kids who came out to compete for our presents badges and trinkets hardly any seemed fluent in English.
A nice one-eyed woman called Mary took us in to see her flat, and though she was immensely proud of her two chipped-eared china dogs, and though her lino floor shone with mopping, she had almost none of the amenities that are taken for granted by the poorest families in modern Britain.
She had no hot water. She had no cooker except for a couple of electric rings. She had no system of heating or air conditioning, and though Mary and her family were avidly following the World Cup, they were listening to the commentary on a crackling old radio. They had no television, and nor did any of the neighbours. Above all, she had no job, and neither did her husband. It was years since he had last worked as an upholsterer for motor cars, and the same applied to all the hundreds of other men and women who swarmed out of their flats to welcome the delegation from London. They had no job, and no hope of a job and yet these people, Mary and her neighbours, were lucky by the standards of many in South Africa. Mary lives in breeze-block luxury compared with the inhabitants of the "informal settlements" shantytowns to you and me of which there are 230 in the vicinity of Cape Town alone, providing homes to about 500,000 people in a population of 3.5 million.

It is when you have such inequality, and such grinding poverty, you cannot be surprised that some pessimists have asked whether it was sensible for South Africa to take on the difficulty and expense of hosting the World Cup. That is why I have spent the past few days posing the legacy question to just about everyone I have met.
What happens on July 12, after the captain of the winning team has waved the Jules Rimet trophy in his sweaty palm? What will people say when the last fan has traipsed home and the last journalist has composed his last philippic against his defeated national team and when the last vuvuzela has parped its last melancholy parp? What will this World Cup leave for South Africa? I have asked barmen and journalists and politicians such as the remarkable Helen Zille, premier of the Western Cape province. I have ended up feeling like those Monty Python characters who were so foolish as to question the benefits of the Roman Empire. The World Cup not only gave jobs and skills and hope to thousands of local people.

The tournament gave an absolute deadline to South Africa for the introduction and improvement of all kinds of infrastructure not just sports grounds, but roads and bridges and airports and bus lanes that would otherwise not have been built and which will benefit the country for decades to come. Above all, the World Cup has given this country something intangible but priceless: a deep sense of pride that it has taken on something difficult and done it well.
When they look at themselves in the approving mirror of world opinion, South Africans of every race agree that the first African World Cup is a joyous success, and that success breeds confidence. The rand is rising. South Africans who left for Australia or Canada are starting to return to a country whose banking system largely escaped the recent crisis.
The sheer number of visitors about half a million will help to open the eyes of the world to South Africa and its potential for trade and investment; and get this crime, the crime that has been supposed to be one of the drawbacks of living here, is down 90 per cent in central Cape Town, and there has not been a single serious incident of crime or violence in any of the fan parks.
Of course there will be disappointments, and no one could pretend that the World Cup will solve the economic or political problems of the country. But it offers a sense of unity and confidence to a place with a tragic past. It should help to build the taxpayer base that is so essential to narrowing the wealth gap. It gives potential wealth creators at least some of the infrastructure they need.
Fifa took an inspired decision to give the World Cup to South Africa, and South Africa has responded brilliantly.

2010-06-23T13:15:00.001+02:00

Trying to Capture the Flavor of South Africa
New York Times June 23, 2010, 12:09 am By JIM LUTTRELL

There has been the constant drone of the vuvuzelas and pictures of elephants blocking traffic, but one Arizona restaurateur wanted to capture a little more of what he thought was the atmosphere in South Africa. This from the Associated Press:

An Arizona restaurant owner dreamed up a novelty meal to give customers a South African experience during the World Cup. But serving burgers made with African lion meat has generated protests.Cameron Selogie said his Il Vinaio restaurant in Mesa has received a bomb threat and more than 150 e-mails from protesters. He said African lions are on the protected list, but are not endangered.
The restaurant ordered 10 pounds of African lion meat from a U.S.D.A.-regulated, free-range farm in Illinois, which, Selogie said, he researched to make sure the farm was humane. The lion meat is mixed with ground beef, and the restaurant said it's serving about 15 burgers a day.
A U.S.D.A. spokesman said lion meat is an uncommon dish, but he knew of no prohibitions against it.

2010-06-23T12:14:00.001+02:00

South Africa Rolls Out the Ubuntu in Abundance
The Huffington Post - Shari Cohen

International development worker in the public health sector

Posted: June 15, 2010 11:35 AM

I went on a rant the other day regarding the cost of the 2010 World Cup versus all the critical needs South Africa is facing and whether or not the most vulnerable of this country would gain anything from having the World Cup hosted in their country. At that time, I also had some very positive things to say about our hosts for the 2010 World Cup and I wanted to share that side of the coin as well, because it is equally important.

To say that I have been blown away at the hospitality South Africa has shown the rest of the world would be an understatement. I think back on recent Olympics and struggle to remember much reporting in the USA of athletes from other countries. I remember when a Togolese guy won a bronze medal in kayaking and NBC reported it and I thought to myself, "where are all the other fascinating stories like this one...like the Jamaican bobsledding team." In today's America, sadly, we have drifted so far towards being so US-centric that we only seem to root for the Americans.

Not so here in South Africa. I've been here since early May and each week I have become more and more impressed with the global embrace that South Africans have offered up to the world. On the way to the airport a couple of weeks ago, I heard a radio program that said each day they would focus on one country that would be coming to South Africa for the World Cup, and they would explore not only that sport's history in soccer, but also their politics, religion, and socio-cultural practices. On the television, I've seen numerous programs that focus on a particular country and it's history of soccer and how the history of that country is intertwined with their soccer history. I've seen programs on India, exploring why India enjoys soccer but hasn't really excelled at the global level... yet. And I've seen shows on soccer in Muslim countries. Maybe it's planned, maybe it's unplanned, maybe it's by chance, but it is happening. It's not just about South Africans showing off their varied and multifaceted culture to their global guests, it's also about using this opportunity to educate South Africa on the rest of Planet Earth's inhabitants.

As I moved through my work here in the provinces over the last six weeks, I had a pivotal meeting with the Board members of a rural NGO. They were explaining their guiding program philosophy of Ubuntu. No, not the Linux program. I'm talking about the traditional African philosophy of Ubuntu that essentially says, "No man is an island."

I found a better explanation from Wikipedia:

Archbishop Desmond Tutu further explained Ubuntu in 2008:

One of the sayings in our country is Ubuntu - the essence of being human. Ubuntu speaks particularly about the fact that you can't exist as a human being in isolation. It speaks about our interconnectedness. You can't be human all by yourself, and when you have this quality -- Ubuntu -- you are known for your generosity.

 We think of ourselves far too frequently as just individuals, separated from one another, whereas you are connected and what you do affects the whole world. When you do well, it spreads out; it is for the whole of humanity.

To me, Ubuntu is the acceptance of others as parts of the sum total of each of us. And that is exactly what I have experienced during the lead up to, and the initial days of this World Cup. There is nary a South African citizen that I've met on the street, or in shops or restaurants or hotels, that hasn't gone out of their way to greet me and make me feel like I am home. And I don't mean that in the trivial, "Oh, aren't they nice, homey people here... " sort of way. I mean real, genuine interest and questions. People seriously want to know where I come from. What it's like where I live. How does it compare to where I am now. What do I think of South Africa. Oh yes, and what do I think of Bafana Bafana... The questions and conversations are in earnest. They are honest. And they are had with enthusiasm and a thirst to know more. South Africans are drinking deeply from the cup of humanity that has been brought to their doorstep. I would never imagine that an American World Cup or Olympics would ever be this welcoming to the rest of the world. And that saddens me for the state of my home country, but it also makes me feel the pride of the South African people.

I have been truly humbled on this trip. And while I have my gripes regarding development here, I cannot say one negative thing about how South Africa has handled its duties as host and hostess to the world. If I could say one thing to sum up being here during this once-in-a-lifetime experience, it would be that I've learned the value of Ubuntu, and that when found and offered in abundance, the world is indeed a better place to live in.

So, if South Africa accomplishes nothing more on the playing field, it will still have won as a host country. I am a cynic, no doubt about that. And yet I have to admit, I'm a little teary just writing this because I leave for home next weekend and I will be leaving a little piece of myself here in South Africa. I just hope I have learned enough to bring back a little piece of Ubuntu to my homeland, where perhaps with a little caring and a little water, it will take root as naturally as it does here, in the cradle of civilization. It's funny, many people in America still ask me, "are the people in Africa very primitive?" Yes, I know, amazing someone could ask that but they do. And when they do, I usually explain that living in a mud hut does not make one primitive, however, allowing kids to sell drugs to other kids and engage in drive-by killings -- isn't that primitive behavior? I think it is. When I think of Ubuntu and my recent experiences here, I think America has much to learn from Africa in general, in terms of living as a larger village; and as human beings who are all interconnected with each other, each of us having an affect on our brothers and sisters.

As the 2010 Cup slogan goes, "Feel it. It is here." Well, I have felt it, because I am here. Thank you South Africa, for giving me this unexpected gift. I am humbled.

Nice

2010-06-14T09:56:00.001+02:00

OPEN LETTER TO OUR FOREIGN MEDIA FRIENDS

by Peter Davies 09/06/2010 09:09

Dear World Cup visitors,

Now that you are safely in our country you are no doubt happily realising you are not in a war zone. This may be in stark contrast to what you have been bracing yourself for should you have listened to Uli Hoeness or are an avid reader of English tabloids, which as we all know are only good for wrapping fish 'n chips and advancing the careers of large-chested teens on page three.

As you emerge blinking from your luxury hotel room into our big blue winter skies, you will surely realise you are far more likely to be killed by kindness than by a stray bullet. Remember that most of the media reports you have read, which have informed your views on South Africa, will have been penned by your colleagues. And you know what journos are like, what with their earnest two thousand word opuses on the op-ed pages designed to fix this country's ills in a heartbeat. Based on exhaustive research over a three-day visit.

Funnily enough, we are well aware of the challenges we face as a nation and you will find that 95% of the population is singing from the same song-sheet in order to ensure we can live up to our own exacting expectations.

We are also here to look after you and show you a good time. Prepare to have your preconceived notions well and truly shattered.

For instance, you will find precious few rhinos loitering on street corners, we don't know a guy in Cairo named Dave just because we live in Johannesburg, and our stadiums are magnificent, world-class works of art.

Which is obviously news to the Sky TV sports anchor who this week remarked that Soccer City looked ' a bit of a mess'. She didn't realize the gaps in the calabash exterior are to allow in natural light and for illumination at night, and not the result of vandalism or negligence.

The fact that England, the nation which safely delivered Wembley Stadium two years past its due date, is prepared to offer us South Africans advice on stadium-readiness should not be surprising. The steadiest stream of World Cup misinformation has emanated from our mates the Brits over the past couple of years.

If it's not man-eating snakes lurking in Rooney's closet at the team's (allegedly half-built) Royal Bafokeng training base, then it's machete-wielding gangs roaming the suburbs in search of tattooed, overweight Dagenham dole-queuers to ransack and leave gurgling on the pavement.

In fact what you are entering is the world's most fascinating country, in my opinion. I'm pretty sure you will find that it functions far more smoothly, is heaps more friendly and offers plenty more diversions than you could possibly have imagined.

In addition to which, the population actually acts like human beings, and not like they are being controlled by sinister forces from above which turns them into bureaucratically-manipulated robots.

Plus we have world's most beautiful women. The best weather. Eight channels of SuperSport. Food and wine from the gods themselves. Wildlife galore. (Love the Dutch team's bus slogan: "Don't fear the Big 5; fear the Orange 11").

Having said all that, Jo'burg is undoubtedly one of the world's most dangerous cities. Just ask those Taiwanese tourists who got out of their hire car to take close-up snaps of tawny beasts at the Lion Park a few years back. Actually, ask what's left of them. And did you know the chances of being felled by cardiac arrest from devouring a mountain of meat at one of our world class restaurants has been statistically proven to be 33.3% higher in Jozi than in any other major urban centre not built upon a significant waterway? It's true. I swear. I read it in a British tabloid.

Having recently spent two years comfortably cocooned in small town America, I'm only too aware of how little much of the outside world knows about this country. The American channel I used to work for has a massive battalion of employees descending on World Cup country. It has also apparently issued a recommendation to its staff to stay in their hotels when not working.

Given that said corporation is headquartered in a small town which many say is "best viewed through the rear-view mirror", I find the recommendation, if it's true, to be utterly astounding. In fact I don't believe it is true. Contrary to the global stereotype, the best Americans are some of the sharpest people in the world. The fact they have bought most tickets in this World Cup proves the point.

Of course I have only lived in Johannesburg, city of terror and dread, virtually all my life, so don't have the in-depth knowledge of say, an English broadsheet journalist who has been in the country for the weekend, but nevertheless I will share some of my observations gleaned over the years.

Any foreign tourist or media representative who is worried about his safety in South Africa should have a word with the Lions rugby fans from last year, or the Barmy Army cricket supporters (lilywhite hecklers by day, slurring, lager-fuelled lobsters by night). They managed just fine, just like the hundreds of thousands of fans who have streamed into the country over the past fifteen years for various World Cups, Super 14 matches, TriNations tests and other international events. Negligible crime incidents involving said fans over said period of time.

Trivia question: which country has hosted the most global sporting events over the past decade and a half? You don't need me to answer that, do you?

In addition. Don't fret when you see a gaggle of freelance salesmen converge on your car at the traffic lights (or robots as we like to call them) festooned with products. You are not about to be hijacked. Here in Mzansi (nickname for SA) we do a lot of our purchasing at robots. Here you can stock up on flags, coat hangers, batteries, roses for the wife you forgot to kiss goodbye this morning and a whole host of useful merchandise.

Similarly, that guy who runs up as you park the rental car outside the pub intends no malice. He's your car guard. Give him a buck or two and your vehicle will be safe while you refuel for hours on our cheap, splendid beer. Unless someone breaks into it, of course.

We drive on the left in this country. Exercise caution when crossing the road at a jog-trot with 15 kilograms of camera gear on your back. Exercise common sense full stop. Nothing more. Nothing less. If you want to leave wads of cash in your hotel room like our Colombian friends, don't be surprised if it grows wings.

Bottomline. Get out there and breathe in great lusty lungfuls of this amazing nation. Tuck into our world-class food and wines. Disprove the adage that white men can't dance at our throbbing, vibrant night-clubs. Learn to say hello in all eleven official languages. Watch at least one game in a township. You will not be robbed and shot. You will be welcomed like a lost family member and looked after as if you are royalty. Ask those Bulls rugby fans who journeyed to Soweto recently.

With a dollop of the right attitude, this country will change your life.

It's Africa's time. Vacate your hotel room. Join the party.

Waka waka eh eh.

TU News : World Cup fun in the winelands

2010-05-04T10:42:00.001+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

World Cup fun in the winelands

Vuvuzelas will meet fine wines and family fun when the 9th annual Stellenbosch Wine Festival kicks off a month earlier this year from July 1 to 5, offering football fans a wide range of 'off the pitch' activities.

Visitors can park their cars at any of several park-and-ride areas in Stellenbosch and catch shuttles operating between the 140 participating wine farms. There will be also be transport from Cape Town, or visitors can drive there as well.

This year's programme includes day trips, interactive winemaking, restaurant and accommodation deals, wine tasting and exclusive winemaker dinners.

Wine farms getting into World Cup spirit are Delheim, Jordan Wine Estate and Webersburg, which will have big screens showing the soccer. Idiom Wines of Helderberg will host a five-a-side supporters' football competition, a supporters' boules competition and wine tasting.

Villiera will offer game drives ending with Méthode Cap Classique tasting, while Waterkloof will offer wine tasting on horseback.

L'Avenir Estate will offer a host of activities celebrating French culture, ending with a performance by The Matthew Kruger Band, while Simonsig will have live music throughout the festival.

Tickets are available online or from the Information Centre at Doornbosch, Stellenbosch, at R150pp per day or R500 for a festival pass. Under-18s are free.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Winter family fun on Table Mountain

2010-04-23T09:41:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Winter family fun on Table Mountain

Table Mountain Aerial Cableway's family winter special will start on May 1, running until October 31.

Two children under 18 years will ride for free when accompanied by a full-paying adult. The special is valid over weekends and public holidays and every day of the following school holidays - June 10 to July 12 and September 24 to October 3.

A special holiday programme for kids will be running during the five-week long holiday which features a Winter Treasure Trail, spot prizes, magic shows, face painting and craft activities. Children will be entertained and taken on guided walks by the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway characters - Ernie the Explorer, Dale the Dassie and the Yeti. Additional activities include story-telling of the Myths and Legends of Table Mountain.

The Table Mountain Café is offering a delicious kiddies wonderland menu for R30 each, plus a free cup of hot chocolate or fruit juice.

Kids also stand a chance of winning their own Table Mountain Aerial Cableway beanie and scarf every month until October 31. Entry forms are available on the back of the Winter Treasure Trail map, available at the ticket office.

The Cableway's Family Winter Special ticket price is R160 per adult return and includes two children under 18 years travelling for free. The offer is valid on return fares only.

For information visit www.tablemountain.net

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : CTIA launches shuttle bus service

2010-04-19T10:34:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

CTIA launches shuttle bus service

A new shuttle bus system at Cape Town International Airport will transport passengers from the new Central Terminal Building to the new Civic Bus Station in Hertzog Boulevard at a cost of R50. Buses will depart every six minutes during peak hours and will be in operation from May 29.

Helen Johnston

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

Fw: Landmark Foundation Update

2010-04-12T12:58:00.001+02:00

Ladmark Foundation

Baviaanskloof Mega-Reserve: Leopard No 30 is killed!
6 April 2010

©The Guardian Newspaper

How many dead leopards do you see in this photo?
(For those of you who don't know, that is our president dancing at his wedding to his 5th wife in January 2010.)

In this newsletter:

Introduction
Legislation: Damage Causing Animal Norms and Standards
Hunting of a Leopard in the Eastern Cape by Provincial Conservation Department Staff
Production bodies like National Wool Growers, Red Meat Producers Organisation and SA Mohair Growers Associations continue to advocate barbaric and indiscriminate damage causing animal management strategies.
Eastern Cape Environment Department is reported to have decided to issue CITES permits to hunt damage causing leopards.
The authorities have in their possession a falsified permit of 2 leopard trophies, and the relevant hunting operator is yet to answer charges hereto.
Mr Nico "Rooibaard" Ferreira issues a death threat to Dr Bool Smuts, Director of Landmark Foundation.
What can you do?

The State of our Nation

2010 has not begun well for the leopard in South Africa, and especially not in its Eastern Cape Province. Neither has it done so for any other top predator species, worldwide, nor for that matter any of our biodiversity. Cultural pursuits, with its accompanying regalia as above, do not help such matters.

2000 years ago more than a million lion roamed Africa, in the 1940 this number was around 450 000, and today it is estimated that 20 000 remain as free ranging top predators! (2010, National Geographic)
3 200 tigers are estimated to remain in the wilds today, half of what remained a decade ago (2010, BBC). This is the so-called year of the tiger, and it may in fact be one of the last for the species. There are reports of a continued decline in these animals' numbers in the wild, both as a result of habitat destruction and direct persecution.

©AFP
Apt artwork for the year of the tiger, by artist Cai Quo-qiang!?

We can speak equally of cheetah, hyenas, snow leopards, clouded leopards, orang-utans, gorillas, chimpanzees, the wolf, and many other species.

These statistical trends can be repeated for most species occupying the apex of the food pyramid and many on other trophic levels, yet the cavalier and arrogant behaviour towards our natural world continues. While researchers and project managers, by the nature of their work, are only ever regionally active, when the global plight of our ecosystems is considered, the situation looks dire. While habitat loss and competition for resources are the measurable variables involved, the intangible and in our opinion the drivers to this are human attitudes, a lack of ethics, greed and cultural pursuits. This happens while many government and conservation bodies rush headlong on the "politically correct" and "never on a Sunday" kind of approach to issues, with their glossy publications, roundtable "stakeholder" meetings and big budgets, and little action to conserve these species. Indeed it would appear that we are on a path to oblivion, but certainly will be if ordinary decent folk don't mobilise and speak out against this madness. There are also many committed conservationists worthy of support and encouragement, make it your business to do so.

Regionally, our recent research indicates that only 30-35 individual territorially dominant leopards remain in the 300 000 ha Baviaanskloof mega-reserve, Eastern Cape, South Africa, yet some individuals in the region continue to relentlessly targeting and killing them, and in the cases assisted by state officials. Few are willing to speak out against this cultural arrogance for fear of victimization.

Global black market trade in wildlife products is estimated at US $10 billion annually (2010, World Bank). Further too, South Africa boasted last week about a massive US$300 million trade deal with China exporting, amongst other products, depleted or threatened species in fish and abalone exports to China.

This newsletter is overdue, but follows more than 6 months of our private investigations in our region, and failed attempts at getting government action on various matters. This newsletter thus tells the story of the state of our nation, from the interests of conservation. It reflects symptoms of a terminal disease in our society.

Ewald Gerber (a farmer in the Langkloof near Joubertina, Tel 042 273 1739) is reported to have illegally killed this female leopard on 10 October 2009. He was reportedly accompanied on this illegal hunt by Quinton and Marlene Horak (Tel 076 734 3946, email: qhorak@gamail.com), Herman Ferreira (a policeman from Paterson police station). Also accompanying them was Ewald Schreiber, Mackie Schreiber (both of Joubertina), a farm labourer of Ewald Gerber and another off-duty policemen (also from Paterson Police station whose name is not known to us) as well as a child of one of the policemen. The leopard was reportedly hunted with dogs and shot once the dogs chased the cat into a tree. This was an illegal hunt.

This is the 30th known kill of a leopard in the region since November 2002. (Probably only 50% of these kills are ever reported.) A further 2 leopards have been rumoured to have been killed since this event in October 2009 in the same area, all reportedly at the instigation of Ewald Gerber, who has a pack of hunting dogs for this purpose. He has boasted killing 40 leopards in this area over the years - he calls it the "national sport of the Kougas". This barbarism happened in spite of Mr Gerber, at the cost of the Landmark Foundation (R16 000), having all his sheep collared with protective Dead Stop collars and compensation offered for confirmed leopard depredation losses. For reasons below and already mentioned, there seems little point to expect the "authorities" to deal with these illegal activities.

These cynical events are amplified by a set of actions by government staff or production bodies that have affected our regional work in the Eastern, Western and Northern Capes over the last 6 months. Considering the above disregard for our biodiversity and the void of moral leadership in our country, it should come as no surprise to us all.

1. LEGISLATION: Damage Causing Animal Norms and Standards

The latest draft of the Norms and Standards pertaining to the management of Damage Causing Animals (read predators) by the National Department of Environmental Affairs has mostly ignored and disregarded more than 12 months of work of their own specialist task team (of which we are part) that had advocated the outlawing of indiscriminate and unethical means of predator controls. This latest draft thus permits the continued use of gin traps, poisons and hunting dog packs. In particular what is most cynical in these efforts is that the spin doctors in the "environmental affairs" department has proposed a name change for gin traps, somehow now called "soft catch traps". These traps are no different to conventional traps, that we propose should actually be called slaughter irons, after the Afrikaans name SLAGYSTER. This is a disgrace, and it would appear that it now calls on the general public to protest this blatant disregard for evidence-based management and the recommendations made by the specialist task team.

Photos: Anonymous by request

These gin traps are being "re-branded" as soft catch traps by current proposed government "norms and standards". These recent pictures from the Northern Cape indicate their indiscriminate, lethal and barbaric nature. All that can be said is that it is perhaps the norm and the standard of livestock production in this country.

We call on all parties interested in dealing and affecting this matter to send the protest messages to the person behind the environmentally damaging drafting of legislation/regulations, Ms Magdel Boshoff (Tel: 012 310 3534, Email: MBoshoff@deat.gov.za) and copy her superiors: Mr Wadzi Mandivenyi (Email: WMandivenyi@deat.gov.za), Mr Fundisile Mketeni (Deputy Director General), (Tel: (+27 12) 310 3314/3315; Fax: (+27 12) 3206620; Email: FMketeni@deat.gov.za) and the Director General, Ms Nosipho Ngcaba (Email: NNgcaba@deat.gov.za)

We suggest that you object to the following in terms of the current draft of the Management of Damage Causing Animals Norms and Standards:

Recommendations from the Environmental Department's own specialist task team have been disregarded in the drafting of the Management of Damage Causing Animal (DCA) Norms and Standards. The recommendations were that gin traps, hunting dogs and poisons be prohibited as methods of managing damage causing animals.
The current definition of damage causing animals proposed in this legislation make all predators and in fact all wildlife "damage causing animals" (DCA), and thus open to legal persecution. Only repeated and regular damage caused by animals, in the presence of preventive measures being applied to the farmer's property, should qualify for an animal being classified as a DCA.
That gin traps are cynically re-branded as soft traps in the draft legislation.
That hunting dog packs are not prohibited in the draft legislation, and should be.
That helicopter hunting of predators, as is common now in areas such as the Free State, Northern Cape and Eastern Cape, should be prohibited in the draft legislation.
That captive holding of wild caught predators should not be permitted in the draft legislation.

Our research in the Karoo areas in the last 6 months have demonstrated the wide-spread decimation of our biodiversity that is ongoing in the process of livestock production, and Ms Boshoff et al, as our civil servants appear intent on legalising this persecution. We have conducted in-depth veterinarian analysed assessment of mortality amongst lambs on a karoo farm. On this farm predators have traditionally been blamed for 20% of lamb mortalities (which is representative of many other farms). In the past lambing season, we placed a veterinarian on this farm to do post mortem analysis of all deaths (100 in total). From the 60 carcasses that were located, merely 1 post-mortem indicated a probable death by predation, and 2 more were inconclusive.

Thus on evidence-based analysis it would appear that only about 5 percent of deaths normally attributed primarily to predation, are in fact the result of predators, at least on this individual farm. The other 95% would appear in fact to be the result of husbandry pratcices, poor mothering, exposure or other disease processes. In reality, past practices, and it appears that the management Ms Boshoff and her colleagues at the National Environmental Department seem intent on legalising, manages the wrong problem and continues to damage our biodiversity!

Photo: Greg McEwan-Kocovaos

Recent incident of a steenbokkie caught in a (government euphemism) soft catch trap in Prince Albert.

We ask of our government to institute legislation that is based on evidence and science, and in accordance with prevailing and acceptable ethical behaviour. The proposed legislation does neither.

We are grateful to the support of organisations like CapeNature, NSPCA and other conservation NGOs who have supported this move towards ethical and ecologically acceptable conservation legislation and actions.

2. Hunting of a leopard in the Eastern Cape by Provincial Conservation Department Staff

In December last year two Eastern Cape conservation officials, Mr Gerrie Ferreira (Tel: 042 292 0339; 0836546273, email: gerrie.ferreira@deaet.ecape.gov.za) and Mr Hennie Swanevelder (Tel: 042 292 0339; 083 406 3159, email: hennie.swanevelder@deaet.ecape.gov.za) participated in an illegal leopard hunt in the Baviaanskloof region with Ewald Gerber (who is reported to have illegally killed a leopard on 10 October 2009), with an illegal pack of hunting dogs. This occurred by their own admission and that of their seniors. Attempts to get further clarity on the departmental position in these illegal activities have been ignored despite numerous attempts to get clarity.

This hunt was illegal in terms of no permit being in place for this hunt of a TOPS animal (Threatened or Protected Species Regulations of February 2007), in terms of the current Eastern Cape hunting notice, and in respect of hunting with dogs in terms of the Animal Protection Act of 1962. Furthermore the hunt allegedly trespassed over landholding for which the hunt did not obtain permits or permission. Rumours abound that the hunt went into the protected area of the Baviaanskloof also.

In terms of TOPS regulations the following legislative requirements had been transgressed:

The provincial department had no jurisdiction to issue such a permit as they participated in the hunt (TOPS provision 3.3), nor in fact was a permit issued at all.
No logical consideration had been given to the threat on the survival of the species had been undertaken (TOPS provisions 10.g.iii, iv, vi, viii). Latest research indicates a precarious situation for the species in the area with only between 30 - 35 territorial leopards remaining in the area, and the species being regionally genetically isolated.
No consideration or effort was attempted to capture and relocate the animal (TOPS provision 14.2 a), and these services were available via the Landmark Foundation - free of charge.
No actual permit had been issued and no retrospective permits may be issued (TOPS provision 18.1 and 18.2). This department had offered and issued retrospective permits for farmers who have killed leopards in the past. (Refer: August 2007 when Mr Preez Du Plessis killed a leopard and was issued a retrospective permit, also from Mr Gerrie Ferreira).

In terms of these transgressed provisions of TOPS it would appear that state officials participated in criminally liable actions. Despite these issues being raised by us in correspondence to the department we were only informed of the following justification for the state actions: "Doing nothing was not a(n) option, that would be abdicating our responsibility. After much deliberation the option of a controlled engagement was the most feasible option." (Mr Jeff Govender; email: Dayalan.Govender@deaet.ecape.gov.za). The "controlled engagement" we assume being a hunt of the leopard Live capture (for GPS collaring and/or relocations), compensation mechanisms, non-lethal control methods were available but were not even attempted.

Photo: Anna Haw
Other spring-loaded device called a killer trap.

3. Production bodies like National Wool Growers, Red Meat Producers Organisation and SA Mohair Growers Associations continue to advocate barbaric and indiscriminate damage causing animal management strategies.

The production bodies (NWGA, RPO and SAMGA) have continued their call for the continued legal use of indiscriminate, unethical and lethal predator control methods of so-called damage causing animals in the form of gin traps (now being referred to by them as "soft catch traps"), poisons, hunting dogs, and several other currently legal control methods. This is despite the fact that evidence is abundant that these methods have not worked, are inhumane and actually have caused their problem. This results in thousands of animals dying torturous deaths, the majority (up to 95%) being innocent by-catch.

In the absence of logic, and willing participation in solving the problem we promote the market forcing changes on agricultural production and call on consumers to use their purchasing power by avoiding the purchase of produce that is tainted with unethical production practices.
It is sad that there is a void in leadership and example by those that represent industries. Industry "leaders" on this matter are:

Petrus de Wet, Chairman of the NWGA (TEL: 082 575 3231; email: blesbok@intekom.co.za)
Gerhard Grobbelaar, Chairman of the SAMGA (TEL: 082 573 4658; email: boerseun@telkomsa.net)
Gerhard Schutte, CEO of RPO (TEL: 082 556 7296; rpo@lantic.net)

4. Eastern Cape Environment Department is reported to have decided to issue CITES permits to hunt damage causing leopards.

Following the events reported above in 2, the Eastern Cape Government's Conservation department is reported to have agreed to issue CITES permits to hunt so-called problem leopards. This was after lobbying by farmers and professional hunters. It is noteworthy that these hunters have been restrained from hunting leopards in Namibia when this country placed an embargo on hunting leopards last year and they are now on the lookout for other opportunities to make money from killing leopards. It will be only a matter of time before every leopard becomes a "problem" leopard and will become a target for money. The department has been evasive about confirming this reported policy decision.

If indeed this is their new policy, it flies in the face of data that indicated that the leopard populations in the region can ill afford this assault on their numbers. The main population in the Eastern Cape is in the Baviaanskloof Mega-reserve, and constitutes 30 - 35 territorial adult individuals that are most probably genetically isolated already from other source populations.

Contact Mr Jeff Govender for further information on this matter:
Dayalan.Govender@deaet.ecape.gov.za

5. The authorities have in their possession a falsified permit of 2 leopard trophies, and the relevant hunting operator is yet to answer charges hereto.

In or about September 2009 a hunting operator in the Eastern Cape was implicated in a falsification of a trophy permit. Two leopard trophies occurred on the client issued permit counterfoil page (but not on the original permit). Two leopards were presented to a Graaff Reinet taxidermist for taxidermy services.

We have yet to confirm whether charges are laid against the said operator who is reported to be a prominent figure in the game industry. We have repeatedly requested information about this matter but have not been provided such. We will keep you posted and certainly continue to promote the prosecution of illegal activities.

6. Mr Nico "Rooibaard" Ferreira issues a death threat to Dr Bool Smuts, Director of Landmark Foundation.

On 17 March 2010 Nico Ferreira (Tel 042 273 9903/072 307 4694, Email: kougawild@telkomsa.net; Website: www.kougawildernis.co.za) issued a death threat, amongst several expletives, to Dr Bool Smuts, Director of the Landmark Foundation, for his advocacy actions against lethal and illegal controls of leopards in and amongst his local and neighbouring farmers. He indicated that either he or his neighbours would shoot Dr Smuts dead should he arrive in their area. Mr Ferreira is considered a prominent farmer in the area and is a representative for the farming community on the Baviaanskloof Steering Committee.

It is noteworthy that Nico Ferreira was the first recipient of protective sheep collars from the Landmark Foundation in December 2006 that protected his flock of sheep. For 3 years thereafter he reported only one lost sheep to predation. (His sheep roams isolated mountains and he checks on them once a year at shearing time!)

Nico Ferreira now wants to kill the leopards in his area, and those wanting to protect them. Noteworthy on his website, where he is promoting tourism on his farm, the presence of leopard in the region is a selling point for his tourism product. Tourists should consider their safety and appropriateness of supporting this destination owned by someone wanting to kill leopards and people wanting to protect them.

Vote with your wallets!

And now they want to hunt the conservationists too where to from here?

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

What is left for us to do if those tasked in authority to lead us is absent in actions or ethics? With legislation protecting our biodiversity either being ignored (by state officials and others), new legislation going counter to scientific based evidence or prevailing ethical norms, we are left with advocacy (which you could do through writing to those we have given addresses to here above), or to vote with your wallets.

We are trying hard to bring Fair Game Wildlife-Friendly Products to consumers. Through avoiding products that are unethical in production, you could use your cash to change behaviour. Support the brand, and the producers who abide by its audited standards, and avoid products that cannot guarantee ethical production practices.

Announcements will follow with the release of the brand.

We believe that many farmers who act ethically should be rewarded and not dragged down to the lowest common denominator of others of lesser ethics. Consumers have to power to change these things.

Additionally there are many individuals and organisations that go to great lengths to fight these issues detailed above. Go out and support them, and their causes, and stand up and fight these abuses, as we will only stop this through collective action.

©Landbouweekblad
Unethical livestock production practices: Slaughter Irons = Gin Traps = Soft Catch Traps

Issued by: Dr Bool Smuts, Director Landmark Foundation
bool@landmarkfoundation.org.za | www.landmarkfoundation.org.za | +27 (0)83 324 3344
unsubscribe
Having trouble unsubscribing? Please contact us directly and we will manually remove you from our records

No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 8.5.437 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/2799 - Release Date: 04/08/10 18:32:00

TU News : KZN beaches declared safe

2010-03-23T10:29:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

KZN beaches declared safe

KwaZulu Natal beaches have been declared safe and ready for the influx of tourists expected in June for the Soccer World Cup. Extra shark nets have been installed and will be checked once a day. Extra lifeguards and police will be on patrol on the beaches during the World Cup.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Branson forces SA-Oz fare dive

2010-03-18T10:05:00.001+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Branson forces SA-Oz fare dive

Meaningful competition on the South Africa-Australia route has already seen fares tumble 30% as V Australia launched its JNB-MEL service this week.

Addressing onlookers at the very first check-in of V Australia passengers in Johannesburg, a jovial Richard Branson explained how 16 years ago he had begged authorities for a licence to operate flights between the UK and South Africa to break the monopoly SAA and British Airways had enjoyed on the route for years.

"With SAA and Qantas acting as one airline there has been no competition on the Australia route but we're here to change this," he said.

V Australia ce, Brett Godfrey, highlighted that, as a result, fares to South Africa had been excessive in the past. "Since we announced our intention to fly to Johannesburg, fares have dropped 30% and today they're down an additional 10% as we launch our service. We're full tonight and we're full coming back," he said.

As a result of strong forward bookings on the route and pending the arrival of its next B777 aircraft, V Australia is boosting its schedule from two to three return weekly services from December 16. "And we aim to increase this to a daily flight," said Branson.

The new service to Johannesburg will mean passengers can, for the first time, fly around the world with one brand. "South African travellers will be able to fly to Australia and then across to Los Angeles on V Australia, on to New York with Virgin America, followed by a flight to London and then back to South Africa on Virgin Atlantic."

Currently, Qantas and SAA own almost 70% of the market flying from South Africa to Australia. Recently Australia's International Air Services Commission granted Qantas permission to renew is codeshare with SAA until December 31, provided the two airlines priced and sold their services on the route independently.

The airlines will also only be allowed to operate the codeshare if they have at least 10 return services per week.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Industry holds out hopes for last-minute WC boom

2010-03-12T10:17:00.001+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Industry holds out hopes for last-minute WC boom

Reports of sluggish sales for 2010 Fifa World Cup tickets and the releasing of thousands of rooms by MATCH has caused concerns that the event may yield very disappointing results for the local tourism industry. Despite this, many are optimistic that SA will experience a last-minute surge in demand for tickets.

Martin Jansen van Vuuren, director of Grant Thornton Strategic Services, says he expects that the release of room stock by MATCH, along with special rates being offered by airlines, will result in surge in late bookings for the World Cup.

A factor that may still be causing fans to hesitate, could be lack of confidence in SA as a host country. Daniel Velayutham, resident manager of The Westville Hotel, says once the international community becomes convinced of SA's ability to make the World Cup a reality, we will see an increase in bookings. "Once they see the development that has taken place and the achievements we have made, they will be less sceptical and the bookings will start coming in."

Gerhard Patzer, gm of the Hilton Durban, believes the fact that there are still tickets available for Round 16 is proof that we will see a surge in demand closer to the event. "I am also convinced that there will be late bookings for the earlier games as well, again due to the fact that there are tickets still available and the economic situation seems to be picking up and therefore there is extra money for last-minute decisions."

Another economic factor that may be causing fans to hold off on their bookings is the exchange rate. Gm of Jatinga Country Lodge and Restaurant, Marius Niewoudt, says although he believes many are waiting to see just what the exchange rate will do closer to the event, whether it goes up or down they will still book to experience the event.

So just how late will fans book? Some believe as late as two weeks into the event. Martin Wiest, ceo of Tourvest Inbound Operations, says he anticipates that we will see fans booking well into the tournament, provided that flights and tickets are still available. "This depends on who progresses in the tournament from Round 16 and the quarter finals," says Wiest.

Many anticipate that the biggest increase at the later stages will come from European countries with large fan markets, as well as South America. But others are expecting the biggest demand to come from African markets. Clifford Ross, ceo of City Lodge Hotels, says: "Ticket purchases have been difficult to date through the first four phases, due to the challenging process to obtain tickets. When tickets go on sale over the counter in April, the pace of purchases by the African team qualifiers will increase and accommodation will be booked."

What are your thoughts? Post your comments in the box below.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

Fin24.com: Your friend thought you might be interested...

2010-03-12T10:08:00.001+02:00


		Sent By: neil has sent you a link to an article on Fin24.com Message:

economy

Cape could get 500 wind turbines

2010/03/11 07:33:00 AM

Cape Town - Wind-driven power projects, which could involve the erection of up to 500 wind turbines, are being envisaged in the Western and Northern Cape.

This has emerged from recently published notices.

Moyeng Energy (Pty) Ltd hopes to erect up to 18 wind turbines near Darling as part of its projected Rheboksfontein wind energy plant.

An area of about 39km² is under consideration, within which this plant and associated infrastructure will be built, if permission is given. It will include access roads, a substation and a 132kV power line that will connect to the transmission network.

Moyeng Energy is looking to construct the so-called Suurplaat wind-energy plant close to Sutherland. The applicant is considering an area of 286km² for this wind farm.

According to the relevant notice of the environmental impact review, this scheme involves up to 400 wind turbines, one or more 400kV power lines to connect to the transmission network, a substation and access roads.

Plans are also being devised to launch a commercial wind farm project at Britannia Bay on the West Coast. Terra Power Solutions Ltd, a Johannesburg company in the GEO Group, wants to erect up to 20 wind turbines about 2.3km south-east of the coastal town should it get approval from the relevant authorities.

Notice has been given regarding the review study process that needs to be done in this connection. The intended area for the wind farm is some 30km from Saldanha Bay.

All of the projects that government is seeking to supply about 10 000 gigawatt hours (GWh) of renewable energy by 2013 could be identified as early as the third quarter of 2010, Sake24.com recently reported.

- Sake24.com

For business news in Afrikaans, go to Sake24.com.

Comment on the story

A bit on a lot of Africa

2010-03-08T14:41:00.013+02:00

Get Lost in Stone Town - Tanzania
The historical port and former slaving centre of Zanzibar Island's Stone Town is renowned for it's labyrinthine street plan – perfect for loosing yourself in. As you dodge donkeys, market traders, craftsmen and robed Muslim women, look out for Stone Town's rich architectural blend of African, Arabic Indian and European influences. Beautifully-carved wooden doors are a speciality – some are studded with brass spikes, a throwback to an Indian tradition when doors needed protection from elephants.

Raft The Rapids on the Zambezi - Zambia/Zimbabwe
The rafts were fasten to the riverbank, fretting there mooring ropes like restless horses eager to stampede through the concertina of gorges below Victoria Falls. We'd barely cast off before I heard the first rapid, a steady thunder, like ocean surf. Suddenly the raft 50m ahead slid from view, it's crew paddling furiously, the skipper barking orders. A second later, there were bodies and paddles spinning away like wayward fireworks. We were next. Our rafts slid down a tongue of green water into the foaming maw of Morning Glory. There was a sickening lurch, then a crash as the raft careered into the rapid's perpetual breaker. Morning Glory had a good chew and then spat us out, like pips from a grape, into a calm stretch down stream.

Glide in a Mokoro through the Delta - Botswana
There is nothing on earth as restful as setting out into a bright Okavango dawn in the bows of a mokoro (dug out canoe). Soundless you glide forward. A lazy twist of the boatsman's pole, then nothing but birdsong, water lilies and ripples. Coucals bubble in the reed beds. Red lechwe splash across the flood plains; and all you have to do is sit back and go with the flow.

Climb the world's tallest dunes - Namibia
For every three steps you take up, you slide down two. After awhile you stop and look behind, to catch a breath and be reminded of the reason of for all your exertion. All around, dominating the view are sinuous sand sculptures; terracotta dunes forming perfect curves – each partly iridescent, partly in shadow. Sossusvlei is perhaps, Africa's most beautiful sight.

Star Gaze in the Kalahari – Botswana
First t emerge were the pointers, so called because they point to the Southern Cross. A shooting star flared overhead as Scorpio dipped it's curling tail to the east. The satellite drifted from the west, voyaging, across the Milky Way until it disappeared, snuffed out by the moon's glow. The only sound was the gentle pulsing of blood in my ears. There can be a few places left so totally removed from the noise, pollution and clutter of modern life. The Makgakgadi Pans are a rare wilderness, somewhere not

hing means everything.

Go Ngorongoro - Tanzania
The magic begins the moment the pristine clouds forests of the crater highlands close in around you. But nothing prepares you for the moment when you look down for the first time into the lost world below. The giant 23kn-wide caldera's 600m-high walls encircled a microcosm of plains, swamps, flamingo lakes and fever trees, complete with it's own resident lion prides, rare black rhinos and some of the biggest tuskers you will ever see.

Make Eye Contact with a Gorilla – Rwanda
Our eyes met. This is a mammal thing, the direct stare. With predators such as lions it send a chill down your spine, with prey animal you feel protective, but with a gorilla you are dealing with an equal; intelligence meets intelligence. There is no wild life experience like it.

Sand on the Roof of Africa – Tanzania
Climbing Mt Kilimanjaro is a slog by anyone's standards, but the panorama from Uhuru Peak, at 5896m, the highest point in Africa, Justifies every effort. You are standing on the rim of a volcanic crater, peering over the edge of a precipice. A thousand feet below, the crater floor is coated with rime ice. Behind this great white plain, stepped tiers of ice cascade towards the inner cone of the Reusch Crater. The ascent from arid plains through humid for ests and alpine meadows to this icy wasteland takes you on an extraordinary journey: fascinating flora, arduous trekking, extravagent scenery – utterly rewarding.

Feel the Earth Move at Victoria Falls – Zambia/Zimbabwe

As soon as I felt the crunch of the bow on land, I leapt ashore. But like me, Livingstone Island trembled. Perched on the very lip of Victoria Falls, this tiny island makes the spot where, in 1853, Dr Davis Livingstone first set eyes on The Smoke that Thunders. Deafened by the roaring cataracts and oblivious even to the sightseeing helicopters overhead, I shuffled to the very brink of the abyss. Dr Livingstone probable struck an epic pose when he stood here 150 years ago. But as I peered through the rainbows below, and saw the great plumes of white water cascading from my feet to explode in the gorge 100m below, I felt intrepid enough.

Experience the Great Migration – Tanzania
The Serengeti is quintessential Africa: big skies, rolling plains, prolific wildlife. Out here in this vast wilderness, roughly the size of Ireland, you can see for miles in any direction. But what really elevates the Serengeti above any other African highlight is the annual migration. Between May and June, over one million wildebeest and 200,000 zebra trek north towards Kenya. It is breath a breath taking spectacle – a free-spirited celebration of a bygone Africa; a place and time devoid of human barriers.

Why Africa?

2010-03-04T14:35:00.015+02:00

Why Africa?

Never been to Africa before, or contemplating a visit? Wondering what it is that makes people want to return time and again? Safari connoisseur and life long lover of Africa Brian Jackman explains why you should visit this most seductive of continents.

Africa, changes you for ever, like nowhere else on earth. Once you have been there you will never be the same. But how do you begin to describe it's magic to someone who has never felt it? How can you explain the fascination of this vast, dusty continent, whose oldest roads are are elephant paths? Could it be because Africa is the place of all our beginnings, the cradle of humankind, where our species stood upright on the savannah of long ago? Maybe that was what led Karen Blixen to say, in Out Of Africa, “Here I am, where I belong”.

Africa is so huge. Here, far from the 21^st century, you come face to face with uncluttered space and distance on a scale no longer found in Europe. Many of it's national parks and game reserves – Kruger, Kafue, Serengeti, Selous – are the size of small countries, and you can fit the whole of Yorkshire into the outermost corner of Mt Kilimanjaro and still have room to spare.

I knew I would love Africa because it was the fulfilment of a childhood dream. Yet even then, having read Blixen and Hemingway and the rest, I was still not prepared for it's impact, which has left me reeling to this day. For a start no one told me Africa could be so green. I thought it would be all heat and dust and flat-topped thorn trees as indeed it can be in Samburu and Tsavo and the Kalahari thirstlands. But when the thunderclouds pile up in the late afternoons, and you smell the earth after rain, when the dust is laid and the Masai plains are as green as Ireland, you loose your heart forever. What I most wanted to see were Africa's storybook animals: zebra and giraffe, elephant and rhino, the pinstriped kudu with it's spiral horns and the menacing, black-as-midnight buffalo. And as every newcomer I was desperate to see a lion.

Nobody forgets their first lion. Mine was in the Mara, a solitary male sitting on an anthill with the wind blowing through his mane. It was a cold bright morning, and although he was a long way off I could see his breath condensing like a stream every time he roared.

How often have I woken to the rumble of lions greeting the sun. It is at once the most awesome and most evocative sound in Africa, and to live in lion country is to breath the air of a vanishing freedom. To rise at dawn when the bush comes alive to the endless chanting of a million doves and set out into the a world whose horizons are as boundless as the ocean – this is an experience that has no equal.

If you are enthralled by the natural world, you will never be bored. From end to end, wild Africa heaves, buzzes and pulsates with life. It's nights, lit by the brightest stars you will ever see, echo to the whoop of hyenas, the chiming of Scops owls and the chiming of frogs, like ice cubes shaken in a glass, and from first light to sundown there is always something amazing to look at. Not just the Big Five but a cavalcade of antelopes and smaller mammals; porcupines, honey badgers, wild dogs, serval cats. All these and more, together with chameleons and fishing owls, and baobab trees older than Stonehenge.

And what lavish backdrops Africa provides for your encounters with the wild. In Zambia the home of the walking safaris, it might be the oxbow lagoons of Luangwa Valley or the winterthorn glades of the lower Zambezi. Botswana offers the Okavango Delta, that miraculous oasis in the northern Kalahari where fish eagle's cry echoes across 26,000km2 of islands, floodplains and crystal channels.

In Tanzania the Ngorongoro Crater will take your breath away. Imagine walking on the crater rim and gazing drown into that lost world of flamingo lakes and giant tuskers 600m below. Or driving out from the Ndutu woodlands into the Serengeti when the plains are black with wildebeest, towards a horizon that feels like the end of the earth.

But when it comes to utter remoteness and desert landscapes on an epic scale, nowhere can touch Namibia. If you don't believe me, fly north over the burned-out emptiness of Kaokoland to the desolation of nameless hills overlooking the Kunene River. Mass tourism has no place here, but hardier souls will pay for the privilege of coming to such a wild land.

I love the stripped-down safari life, the comforts of soft beds, cold drinks, hot showers and same day laundry, the taste of bread baked daily in a bed of hot ashes, the noontide siestas when the wood doves are calling, the afternoon game drives that stretch into the golden hour before sundown, lengthen and cheetahs emerge to hunt for gazelles and the last moments before bedtime, watching the campfire sparks flying up into the vast African sky.

Where will you stay? Glitzy lodges with private plunge pools are all very well, but what can compare with authentic atmosphere of a Zambian bushcamp, like Kutandala in North Luangwa, with hot bucket shower and fresh bread baked in a hole in the ground.?

One of the best ways to round off a safari is to relax beside the Indian Ocean . Loll in a hammock on Mafia Island or stay at Kizingo on the island of Lamu and go swimming with dolphins. Where ever you go, from the Lamu archipelago and all the way down the Mozambique coastline you'll find barefoot beach lodges (a uniquely African concept) where all you need is a kikoi and a sunhat – plus an appetite for fresh lobsters and mangrove crabs.

On the coast or in the bush, one thing remains constant, and that is the innate friendliness of the African people. The camp staff who bring you early morning tea; the cooks and drivers; the bush-savvy guides and the poler who steers your mokoro, all are so welcoming, so eager to please; and like the women you may see hoeing in their vegetable shambas, and the Masai herdsmen with their red blankets and shining spears, they possess a natural dignity and respect for the elderly that is sadly lacking in our society.

And if you are like me, when your safari is over and safely back home, not a day will pass when you don't think of Africa. Looking out of my window at the green hills of England, I wonder if it's raining in the Serengeti and if the lions are roaring across the Musiara Marsh.

TU News : Rate squeeze has ripple effect

2010-02-26T10:09:00.001+02:00

Hi

Neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Rate squeeze has ripple effect

Five-star properties have been putting pressure on four-star properties by significantly discounting their rates over the past few months, according to some hoteliers.

The four-star Peech Hotel in Melrose, Johannesburg, has been forced to discount its rooms because of rate pressure applied by five-star hotels, according to gm, Tarryn Scheuble. "As a small boutique hotel with only 16 rooms, to constantly discount our room rates to remain competitive is not sustainable. Some five-star hotels have been selling their rooms online at a quarter of the price they usually sell them for and the rates are, at times, lower than our corporate rates."

Tarryn says The Peech is working hard to create something special for guests, be innovative with specials, and keep its corporate rates competitive to retain corporate clients.

The four-star Quatermain Hotel in Sandton has also lost business to five-star hotels in the Sandton area, which, according to Rosey Chilewitz the hotel's gm, have been discounting their rates rather substantially. "We used to rely only on word of mouth and repeat business but have now had to employ a marketing person to knock on doors."

She adds that most four-star B&Bs have also been impacted, especially with respect to their corporate clientele who have opted to stay in five-star establishments where they can get a five-star room at four-star rates.

Brett Dungan, Fedhasa ceo, says all hotels in the industry are under rate pressure in the recessionary climate, and that five-star hotels are discounting rates out of necessity to maintain the occupancies they need to survive.

Phillip Couvaras, gm of Cape Town's The Table Bay Hotel and Fedhasa Cape Town chairperson, agrees saying that five-star hotels are dependent on international arrivals, which are a critical part of their business. "With arrivals down due to the economic disasters in the UK and US, these hotels will be suffering heavily and some will make the decision to drop their rates as they move focus to fill displaced business."

Five-star brands were particularly impacted during December as people downscaled, forcing hotels to discount their rates, says Danny Bryer, Protea Hotels' revenue management director. "Some of those hotels are still engaged in a price war, particularly those who don't have brand equity in the market and are looking to buy business."

The last thing a five-star hotel should do is get involved in a price war because it will take the hotel years to recover, says Danny. "The most important issue is to maintain brand standards and your five-star value in the mind of the customer. Hotels that are holding prices in the five-star market will succeed over time."

Clifford Ross, City Lodge Hotels ce, notes that the market is suffering the folly of overzealous developers who have not achieved the occupancies they've planned for because of oversupply and are therefore discounting rates. "These developers are threatening the viability of businesses that have been running good, healthy occupancies at achievable rates for years, and who are now being forced to discount their rates to get business because the market to which they are appealing is not there."

He adds that discounting does not necessarily result in more rooms being sold and could spell disaster for the hotel involved and the industry at large, as four-star hotels are pressed to sell at three-star rates, and so it spirals. "If you are priced right for the market to which you're appealing, you should not need to resort to discounting to get business."

Meanwhile, Phillip expresses concern over what is to come after the World Cup. "I have a feeling it's going to be very quiet. If hotels are feeling the pressure now, even while there's demand from the various interest groups involved with the World Cup, what is going to happen when those interest groups are no longer here?"

What are other hotels doing?

Brian Davidson, Legacy Hotels and Resorts group sales and marketing director, says that with so many new hotels opening in Sandton, there are a lot of interesting pricing strategies going on. "We don't get involved. The cheapest offer, which went out from The Michelangelo over the festive season, was for one-night weekends at R2 350 per couple per night, including dinner and breakfast. For The Michelangelo, The Michelangelo Towers and The Raphael Penthouse Suites, we maintained our rate integrity and grew our average rates nicely in 2009 compared with 2008."

Priya Naidoo, Southern Sun Hotels gm of communications, says that while there are many challenges in the current trading conditions, Southern Sun maintains its current pricing philosophy and continues to be brand focused. "Our dynamic pricing environment allows us the flexibility to price our hotels on demand and we continue to offer value-for-money packages such as our Sunbreaks offers that create great leisure specials for our domestic travellers."

Meanwhile, City Lodge does not involve itself in short-term discounting "solutions".

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Namibian border closed to overland tours

2010-01-29T10:24:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Namibian border closed to overland tours

Tourism Update Online has confirmed that Namibian border posts have been closed to overland tours as drivers are not being issued with temporary work permits to travel into the country.

As a result, tour operators' vehicles are standing stationary at border posts.

The Namibian Tourism Board is aware of the situation and is expected to release a statement this morning. Watch this space for more information as it becomes available.

If you are experiencing the same problem, then let us know at editor@tourismupdate.co.za.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Competition Commission investigates airline collusion allegations

2010-01-29T10:23:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Competition Commission investigates airline collusion allegations

THE Competition Commission has initiated an investigation against major airlines.

BA Comair, South African Airways, 1Time, SA Airlink, Mango and SA Express for allegedly colluding on prices and pricing strategies to be adopted during the FIFA 2010 World Cup.

The notice issued by the Commission states:

In its application SAA gave the Commission e-mail correspondence between the airlines in which there are indications that the airlines might adjust air fares ahead of the World Cup.

In particular, the e-mail suggests that since there is no indication as to which flights will represent peak demand flights, airlines have the option to either not provide any inventory for sale until such time, or price all inventory at peak time rates until such time as they have greater certainty. This e-mail also suggests that airfares will have to be raised in order to cover various anticipated additional costs.

The Commission will investigate the allegations made by SAA and circumstances surrounding the allegations to determine if the airlines have colluded to increase prices or adopt similar pricing strategies ahead of the World Cup. If it finds that they have, the Commission will refer the case to the Competition Tribunal for a hearing and request an appropriate penalty.

Both SA Express and Comair have responded denying any collusion. SA Express spokesperson Dileseng Koetle says the airline has been involved in discussions, under the auspices of the Department of Transport, regarding capacity requirements for 2010, but added that this was simply to ensure adequate fleet planning.

Comair, said spokesperson Heidi Brauer, has not yet received the complaint from the Commission. "Comair neither practices nor supports any form of collusion and will cooperate fully with the Competition Commission once the complaint has been received."

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Great White shark warning in False Bay

2010-01-13T10:18:00.001+02:00

Hi

neil <stumble@iafrica.com> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Great White shark warning in False Bay

A Zimbabwean man is missing after he was attacked by a shark late on Tuesday
afternoon off Fish Hoek beach in False Bay near Cape Town.

Craig Lambinon, spokesperson for the City of Cape Town's Shark Spotting
Programme, could not confirm an earlier local radio station report which
said the man had been killed. The identity of the man and further details
were not immediately available.

The attack came hours after the City of Cape Town issued a warning about
an increased presence of Great White sharks along the False Bay coastline
between Sunrise Beach and Fish Hoek.

The city's Shark Spotting Programme said it was normal for sharks to hunt and feed along this stretch of coastline at this time of the year. Until this afternoon's attack, there had been no incidents this summer season and sharks had not been seen to come close to beaches or swimmers.

Shark spotters keep watch for sharks and, through a system of various colour flags, alert swimmers and surfers to the level of visibility.

Sirens are sounded when a shark is spotted.It was not immediately clear
from the report, if this had happened before the attack.

The city, in a statement, earlier in the day, asked bathers and surfers along the False Bay coast to be cautious and pay attention to the following:
· To always adhere to the safety warnings of the shark spotters.
· To leave the water immediately when shark spotters sound their alarm to
warn of shark sightings.
· To always exercise extreme caution to avoid increasing the risk of a
shark encounter.

The Shark Spotting Programme was introduced a couple of years
ago to reduce the number of shark attacks and shark encounters at popular
Cape Town beaches. It is been funded by the City of Cape Town's
Environmental Resource Management Department (R750, 000 over the past two
years) and the World Wide Fund for Nature South Africa (WWF).

For information on recent shark movements in False Bay, visit
www.sharkspotters.org.za <http://www.sharkspotters.org.za>.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : SA cities make Top 50 for top travel site

2010-01-08T10:07:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

SA cities make Top 50 for top travel site

Both Cape Town and Johannesburg have been named as new entries in Skyscanner's Top 50 destinations for UK travellers.

Both cities' sudden popularity is attributed to the country's hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in June and July. The site also offers tips on how travellers can use indirect flights to obtain cheaper rates to visit during the tournament.

Johannesburg was placed at 21st position, while Cape Town came in at 33rd.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Mozambique declares first marine protected area

2010-01-08T10:05:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

Mozambique declares first marine protected area

Mozambique has declared its first Marine Protected Area (MPA) that now links with the iSimangaliso Wetland Park in South Africa's KwaZulu Natal to create Africa's first transfrontier marine conservation area.

This now extends along 300 kilometres of unbroken coastline and pristine beaches from Maputo Bay in Mozambique to Cape St Lucia, the southern boundary of the iSimangaliso Park in South Africa.

The Mozambique MPA includes Inhaca and Portuguese islands, and the Maputo Special Reserve, stretching three nautical miles into the sea.

Fernando Sumbana, Mozambique's Tourism Minister, said the park was a vital step in protecting marine turtles that nest in high densities along the pristine beaches of the Maputo Special Reserve, as well as other rare or endangered species, marine mammals and ecosystems.

Activities such as industrial fishing, fishing on coral reefs or with explosives, and driving of motorised vehicles on theb each are now prohibited. The long-term vision is to create Africa's first trans-boundary marine World Heritage Site and Mozambique is applying for a listing with Unesco.

The iSimangaliso Wetland Park was listed as South Africa's first World Heritage Site in December 1999.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : Mountain Zebra National Park upgraded

2009-11-17T13:39:00.001+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:.

Mountain Zebra National Park upgraded

The Mountain Zebra National Park, in the Eastern Cape recently celebrated the opening of their upgraded facilities, including a new entrance gate and the complete renovation of its tourist roads.

"Visitors can now explore all areas of the park when viewing wildlife. The roads are now suitable for all vehicle types," said Lucius Moolman, South African National Parks ( SANParks) regional manager at the official launch.

Funded by the Department of Environmental Affairs Infrastructure Development Programme, the renovations included the upgrade of 42.7km of existing gravel road and the construction of 13.4km of new roads.

The new gate was sponsored by Sasol and was named accordingly, in recognition of the company's contribution to the park's expansion programme, other sponsors included The Barbara Delano Foundation, WildAid and Vesta Medicines.
The park expansion led to the reintroduction of buffalo, cheetah and brown hyena into the park.

Park manager, Lesley-Ann Meyer said the wider spectrum of wildlife viewing and landscapes had led to an increase in both day and overnight visitors.

"Visitor numbers have increased by a massive 40% and occupancy rate has increased from 61% to 70%."

An announcement was made that plans are underway to link Mountain Zebra National Park with the Camdeboo National Park in Graaf-Reniet .

For more information about SANParks, click here.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : 29 Beaches awarded Blue Flag status

2009-10-30T09:29:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:nice :)

29 Beaches awarded Blue Flag status

National Marine Month in October 2009 came to an end on a high note when the new season of Blue Flag South Africa was launched at Muizenberg beach yesterday with the announcement that 29 beaches had been certified prior to the 2010 Soccer World Cup.

Speaking at the launch, Minister of Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, said the increase of Blue Flag beaches from 19 last year to 29 this year was extremely good for tourism in South Africa. "In order for South Africa to optimise its tourism potential, it is critical that we offer both domestic and international visitors clean, safe and well-managed beaches."

"The main catalyst for the increase in the number of Blue Flag beaches has been the opportunities that have arisen as a result of the 2010 Soccer World Cup. Municipalities participating in the programme have seen the benefits of having Blue Flag beaches and wish to be in a position to offer and promote their Blue Flag beaches to 2010 visitors and those who plan to return to South Africa in the future. Six new municipalities joined the programme this year and all existing municipalities have added additional beaches to their suite of Blue Flag beaches," the Minister said.

"The success of the Blue Flag programme in South Africa can be attributed to the commitment of participating municipalities to provide beach-goers and holiday-makers with world-class beaches offering safe, clean and well-managed facilities," says Alison Kelly, the Blue Flag Programme Manager. "At a time in our country when there is great concern about service delivery at local authority level, these municipalities managing Blue Flag beaches are showing that high levels of excellence and delivery of services to benefit both local and international visitors are possible."

Research has shown that the commitment of municipalities to Blue Flag makes sound economic sense within tourism, e.g. research on Margate beach indicating that the value of Blue Flag status at the beach could generate income amounting to tens of millions of rands per annum.

Minister van Schalkwyk said research feedback had shown that both international and domestic tourists valued the quality assurances that Blue Flag beaches offered. "With a 23-year history of implementation in Europe, international visitors to South Africa are familiar with the Blue Flag brand.

South Africa was the first country outside of Europe to implement the Blue Flag programme and since 2001, the programme has become a truly global initiative with 38 countries participating and a further seven countries undertaking the feasibility stage.

The South African beaches that have received Blue Flag accreditation are:

. MacDougall's Bay, Port Nolloth (new)
. Yzerfontein Main beach, Yzerfontein (new)
. Big Bay beach, Bloubergstrand Cape Town (new)
. Clifton 5th beach, Cape Town
. Camps Bay, Cape Town
. Muizenberg, Cape Town
. Strandfontein beach, Cape Town
. Mnandi beach, Cape Town
. Bikini beach, Gordon's Bay
. Kleinmond beach, near Hermanus (back in programme)
. Hawston beach, near Hermanus
. Grotto beach, Hermanus
. Lappiesbaai, Stilbaai, Southern Cape
. Santos beach, Mossel Bay (new)
. Hartenbos beach, Mossel Bay (new)
. Robberg 5 beach, Plettenberg Bay (new)
. Dolphin beach, Jeffrey's Bay
. Humewood beach, Port Elizabeth
. Hobie beach, Port Elizabeth
. Wells Estate, north of Port Elizabeth
. Kelly's beach, Port Alfred
. Kariega Main beach, Kenton-on-Sea (new)
. Boknes beach, Kenton-On-Sea   (new)
. Gonubie beach, East London (back in programme)
. Trafalgar beach, south coast KZN (new)
. Marina beach, south coast KZN
. Ramsgate beach, near Margate
. Margate beach
. Alkantstrand, Richards Bay (new)

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : March launch for V Australia

2009-10-27T09:58:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:mmmm aussies in africa?

March launch for V Australia

Virgin Australia is to launch its twice weekly operations between Melbourne and Johannesburg on March 13, 2010.

According to Gordon Young, Virgin Blue Airlines manager: offline sales and interline, the three-class (economy, premium economy and business) service will run on Tuesdays and Sundays.

Young confirms that "very competitive" fares for the route will be launched on

Wednesday, October 28.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

TU News : LAM to introduce Johannesburg/Luanda flights

2009-10-16T09:33:00.001+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:

LAM to introduce Johannesburg/Luanda flights

FROM November 16, LAM Mozambique Airlines will commence flights from Johannesburg to Luanda, Angola, via Maputo.

The service will operate from Monday to Friday, departing Johannesburg at 08h40 and arriving in Maputo at 09h40. It will then depart Maputo at 11h00, arriving in Luanda at 13h40.

The return service will depart Luanda at 14h40, arriving in Maputo at 19h10. It will then depart Maputo at 07h00 the following morning, arriving in Johannesburg at 08h00.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

News from Bulungula

2009-10-13T15:22:00.001+02:00

If you cannot view the contents of this email please click onto www.bulungula.co.za/newsletter

	Community celebration for the launch of the Jujurha ELC
	Jujurha video completed
	Urgent appeal: addressing the water crisis
	The No-ofisi hall near completion
	News from the classroom
	Home grown delights
	The Jujurha library
	Visitors from Cedar House
	Expanding our sustainable livelihoods programme
	Toilets to write home about

	Community celebration for the launch of the Jujurha ELC. On the 22 September we officially celebrated the opening of the Jujurha Early Learning Centre. The centre had been operating from the new premises for 2 months and so the classrooms were beautifully adorned with the children's work. Read more
	Jujurha video completed Many thanks to Carlos Francisco of AHB Films for producing this inspiring clip, created to celebrate the launch of the Jujurha Early Learning Centre. It shows a day in the life of the school and includes interviews with Annette Champion and Sonja Giese. Click here to view
	Urgent appeal: addressing the water crisis Everyone has the right to water. For most of us reading this newsletter, this right is one which we take for granted. For many South Africans however, especially in remote rural areas, the right to a reliable and clean water supply remains unrealised. Read more
	The No-ofisi hall near completion After months of hard work, the beautiful hall at No-ofisi primary school is finally nearing completion. The building team have laid a concrete floor, hung doors and lime plastered the walls.This monumental structure will not only provide much needed additional classroom space and a community meeting place, it will also enable us to capture large quantities of rain water from the roof! Read more
	News from the classroom There was great excitement when the Grade R children spread icing on biscuits recently. They enjoyed the mixing and colouring of the icing and took the greatest care to spread it and then decorate each biscuit with the pretty 'sprinkles'. Read more
	Home grown delights We have also made progress with the establishment of our ELC vegetable and fruit garden. The garden has been terraced using stones, collected by hand, and wooden poles left over from the building of the classrooms. So far, we've managed to plant a selection of fruit and nut trees and a variety of veggies. Young shoots are now visible for carrots, butternut, beetroot, spinach and tomatoes. And the banana trees have taken root beautifully. Read more
	The Jujurha library With the generous support of the Raith Foundation, the Jujurha Early Learning Centre has just completed the building of a beautiful library. A wonderful space! We have BIG plans for this wonderful resource. Library activities will be built into the weekly routine for the 3 classes at the Early Learning Centre, and we will be using the library during our after-school tutoring programme for children from the local primary school. Read more
	Visitors from Cedar House The BI has had a long standing partnership with Cedar House a school in Cape Town. This partnership includes a scholarship for a child from our village (she has just completed her first year at the school and is flourishing!) and an annual visit by learners, to help out for a few days on one of our projects. This year the timing was perfect and the learners arrived a week before the launch of our Early Learning Centre. Read more
	Expanding our sustainable livelihoods programme The BI recently added an additional income generating project to our 'sustainable livelihoods' portfolio. It is one of ten new income generating projects that we will be piloting (and documenting) over the next 3 years, with the support of Old Mutual. The ten ideas were informed by research conducted in the village in 2008. The latest addition is a sewing project which currently provides an income to 5 families in Nqileni. Read more
	Toilets to write home about We recently welcomed the arrival of our long-awaited toilets at the Early Learning Centre! After much deliberation we decided to go with Ecosan toilets this magical invention comes as a ready made unit which is easy to install, and it converts waste into compost. Read more

P.S. Apologies to anyone who receives this email and doesn't know who or what Bulungula is.... this was sent to everyone in our address book, so it's possible you got this in error.

Subscribe: If you have been forwarded this newsletter and would like to receive your own copy in future,
please click here to subscribe.

Unsubscribe: To be removed from our database, please click here to unsubscribe.

To make a contribution to the Bulungula Incubator, please either
click the Donate button below or make a payment directly into our bank account.

Banking details:

Bank: Standard Bank
Account Name: Bulungula Incubator
Account Number: 07 066 1480
Branch: Thibault Square
Branch code: 020909
International SWIFT code: SBZA ZA JJ
Reference: your name

Contact details:

Website: www.bulungulaincubator.org | email: sonja@bulungulaincubator.org

cell +27 (0)82 870 7345 | tel +27 (0)47 577 8901

P.O. Box 52913, Mthatha, 5099, South Africa

The Bulungula Incubator is a Not-For-Profit Association

Department of Social Development reference no: 057-666 | SARS PBO number: 930029899

E-newsletter by Webfactory as a service to the community

No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 8.5.421 / Virus Database: 270.14.13/2432 - Release Date: 10/13/09 06:35:00

Choo Tjoe

2009-10-13T09:30:00.001+02:00

The Outeniqua Choo Tjoe, the Garden Route's iconic steam train, will return to service on October 19.

"The service was suspended for a while for necessary maintenance, but the Western Cape's Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Alan Winde, and about 60 invited guests will commemorate its return with a ride from George to Mossel Bay, where they'll enjoy refreshments as the guest of our Mayor, Alderlady Marie Ferreira," said Mossel Bay Tourism's Marcia Holm.

Holm said some "unfortunate" uncertainty had arisen during the maintenance period, but that she was delighted the service would be resumed in time for the coming summer holidays.

"We're not yet sure what the timetable will be, but we hope that the Choo Tjoe will again run three times a week in the quieter periods, and once a day in season.

"This will have to be confirmed by Transnet, and we will communicate with the tourism industry as soon as we have the final programme," she said.

According to Neels Zietzman, chairman of Mossel Bay Tourism, the Outeniqua Choo Tjoe suffered a serious set-back when floods damaged the George-Knysna line a few years back.

"Fortunately, though, and at the suggestion of Mossel Bay Tourism, the train was re-routed to the George-Mossel Bay line, and was thus preserved as a tourism attraction for the country as a whole.

"In the process, Mossel Bay Tourism paid for the construction of platforms at the Dias Museum, and, with the train ride starting and ending at the Transport Museum in George, began marketing the unique Museum-to-Museum Tour."

Members of the public wishing to travel on the train on October 19 will be able to buy one-way tickets from Mossel Bay to George in the usual way.

The train's timetable will be published on www.visitmosselbay.co.za as soon as it becomes available.

Photo sourced from: SA Tourism

Jeanette Phillips

TU News : Table Mountain short-listed for top New7Wonders spot

2009-07-23T10:08:00.000+02:00

Hi

neil <info@packagetours.co.za> thought you may be interested in the content below.

message:PLEASE vote for table mountain - its our favorite

Table Mountain short-listed for top New7Wonders spot

TABLE Mountain has been announced as one of the top 28 nominees in the New7Wonders of Nature competition.

It's one of only two African sites - Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania is the other - to have made the list, beating the Atacama Desert in Chile, the Azure Window in Malta and the Rock of Aphrodite in Cyprus.

Other finalists include the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, the Grand Canyon in the USA and the Amazon in South America.

Voting will continue throughout 2010 to 2011 when the Official New 7 Wonders of Nature will be announced.

People who voted in the initial stage must now vote again in the final phase for the top seven sites.

To vote for Table Mountain visit www.new7wonders.com.

Click here for more news :www.tourismupate.co.za

Package Tours South Africa

TU News : MyCiti bus service launch applauded

Outliers - The story of Masibambane High School

Huge Savings with Package Tours!!

TU News : SA awarded 27 Blue Flag beaches

TU News : Taking a stand against poaching? Tell us about it!

2010 - The year it became fashionable to do good

TU News : Winelands go "Google-eyed"

Fifty facts about a remarkable nation

TU News : The end of the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe?

TU News : Table Mountain half price at sunset

What is Lead Sa?

Yes, South Africa can!!

Cape Town does it again!

Let's blow our vuvuzelas for a bright South African future by Boris Johnson, Mayor of LondonTelegraph.co.za published 20 June 2010

Trying to Capture the Flavor of South AfricaNew York Times June 23, 2010, 12:09 am By JIM LUTTRELL

Nice

OPEN LETTER TO OUR FOREIGN MEDIA FRIENDS

TU News : World Cup fun in the winelands

TU News : Winter family fun on Table Mountain

TU News : CTIA launches shuttle bus service

Fw: Landmark Foundation Update

TU News : KZN beaches declared safe

TU News : Branson forces SA-Oz fare dive

TU News : Industry holds out hopes for last-minute WC boom

Fin24.com: Your friend thought you might be interested...

A bit on a lot of Africa

Why Africa?

TU News : Rate squeeze has ripple effect

TU News : Namibian border closed to overland tours

TU News : Competition Commission investigates airline collusion allegations

TU News : Great White shark warning in False Bay

TU News : SA cities make Top 50 for top travel site

TU News : Mozambique declares first marine protected area

TU News : Mountain Zebra National Park upgraded

TU News : 29 Beaches awarded Blue Flag status

TU News : March launch for V Australia

TU News : LAM to introduce Johannesburg/Luanda flights

News from Bulungula

Choo Tjoe

TU News : Table Mountain short-listed for top New7Wonders spot

Let's blow our vuvuzelas for a bright South African future
by Boris Johnson, Mayor of London
Telegraph.co.za published 20 June 2010

Trying to Capture the Flavor of South Africa
New York Times June 23, 2010, 12:09 am By JIM LUTTRELL