Mongol Rally 2013

Dear friends and family

My flatmate, Pieter, came across the ultimate roadtrip/travel adventure in the world. It's an opportunity of a life time and something that I cannot and will not miss :)

In short, you pick a team (team has to fit into a car), you fly to London, buy a car and drive it to Mongolia. It's a massive charity rally and kicks off in London in summer. You have two days to get to Prague, where the check out party is held - this is after all where you leave the western world. And then you drive to Mongolia. You have 3 and a half weeks to complete this mission. It's not a race but an adventure. You have absolutely no support and if something breaks - whether it's a leg or you car - you have to fix it.

Once you get to Mongolia, you donate your car to charity. We are going BIG with this thing and are already on the look out for sponsors. As you can imagine something like this costs a lot of money and also takes a lot of time to arrange. The whole rally will be covered and will hopefully get a lot of exposure on various websites, Twitter and Facebook.

We are all super excited about this and cannot wait to start planning and do all our courses. Just thought I'd let you in on the secret and get you excited as well!

Will keep you posted on updates and where we are with the planning. Check out the website and if you want to get involved with helping us go BIG, let me know :)

Link: Mongol Rally

Love,
Netta

Valora

If you are on the look out for a new and trendy restaurant for the festive season, go check out Valora in Loop Street. They are next to where the old Bang Bang club used to be.

It's definitely a must do in Cape Town and the food is to die for! Let me know when you have been so that we can compare notes.

Check out the link

Also you can read a bit about the restaurant on the below websites

www.eatout.co.za
http://www.tablemagic.co.za

Zanzibar Day 7

At 03h45 my alarm went off. Breakfast arrived at 04h30 and my transfer waiting outside at 04h45. I made it to the airport with one eye open with James helping me to wake up 

When I got to the airport check in desk they told me that my flight to JHB have been cancelled. I felt like throwing up. Not only is it way too early in the morning, it’s also the LAST thing I wanted to hear. They did however book me on the 09h00 fight to JHB (two hours later!)

Long story short, I finally got to Joburg and ran to domestic departures to check in for my flight. When I got there the 'lovely' gentleman behind the counter told me that my flight is full. I started crying and told the idiot that I will never in my life ever fly BA again. I grabbed my ticket and ran away trying to find any other plane to take me home. Offcourse being a Friday afternoon, there is no way you can get a flight from Jhb to CT so I had to swallow my pride and go and stand in the BA que again. Luckilly another counter opened up after what felt like hours. Then the chick said to me: "Mam, just smile!" I nearly ripped her head off.

I was supposed to fly home at 2, I eventually got on a plane at 4, which was delayed. I was screaming and swearing at the BA supervisor at one stage and managed to get a free ticket out of him. :)

It took met 29 hours to get home (it was only supposed to take 5). So stupid that such a cool trip had to end like this. O well I got home safe and got to spend the whole weekend with my family <3

Zanzibar Day 6

The big pack took place before breakfast, such a mission as I have once again manage to accumulate a lot of stuff! This time breakfast wasn’t just a quick croissant, but eggs Benedict. You’d be so proud, I didn’t have proper bacon and eggs on this trip 

We checked out and departed on the Freddy Mercury Tour. This was really disappointing as he is one of my idols and I must be honest by saying I think the zanzibari’s made up this tour. The first stop is a dilapidated building with rubbish all around it and supposedly was the place where Freddy’s parents worshipped. Then they take you to where his mother worked in the court as a cashier. That’s where we stopped the tour  We did however stop where he was born – this is now a shop. We shopped and walked around in Stone Town and then we were off to the airport.

I was sad to leave the sun and awesomeness of Zanzibar. I flew to Dar Es Salaam, which is just an half hour away. In dar es salaam I wrapped my luggage and went to check in. at the check in counter they told me that my flight didn’t exist. WHAT? Flights to Johannesburg were only on Wednesdays, Friday’s and Saturdays. So I text my mom and the office to give me airtime so that I can phone around and sort this out. By that stage I was so gatvol, hot, sweaty and dirty from lugging my luggage around and just wanted to get home. Quite frankly I was near tears and felt hopeless.

Eventually the airline put us up in some kind hotel and I was in the transfer to the hotel stuck in Tanzanian traffic when my manager phoned. She said to turn around and transfer back to the airport and that I was flying to Nairobi instead. The driver couldn’t turn around as he had other passengers so dropped me off on the side of the road and found me a taxi. I made him promise it’s safe and exchanged numbers with everyone just in case. The taxi driver took me back to the airport for 10 000 TSH. It was quite an experience, but I was too tired and gatvol to care. I just wanted to get back to the airport.

I checked in for my flight to Nairobi and waited patiently to depart. The flight was delayed but finally took off and headed to Kenya. We arrive in Kenya at about 22h00 (I think). A driver was waiting at the airport for me to take me to the Serena for a few hours sleep. James was very sweet and told me all about Nairobi . When I got to the hotel I quickly checked emails, took a nice bath and went to sleep.

Zanzibar Day 5

Jozani Forest is about 40 minutes from The Residence and is home to the Red Colobus Monkey that can only be found in Zanzibar. The forest stretched over 5000 hectares and houses various indigenous plants with medicinal features. Our guide kept pointing out cures for hemorrhoids, not sure if this is a big problem on the island.


The monkey’s are very cute, tame and playful. They are known as poison monkey’s on the island as they eat and kill a lot of trees. However the people of Zanzibar are protecting these animals.



Lastly we went to a mangrove swamp where our guide explained that mangrove forests are important to our eco system (I never knew this). Apparently when it’s high tide, the sea water comes through the mangrove forest and sort of cleans the water. I know this is lame, but I cannot remember I this works, just know that I was quite impressed.


The spice tour was next. Again because we were on a site inspection we didn’t have time to do the entire tour. The guide just showed us a clove and cinnamon tree. I would’ve never guessed that this was where cloves and cinnamon comes from. I know very little when it comes to spice and it was quite interesting to see where they come from and hear what there medicinal values are. The guide cut a root from the cinnamon tree and it smelled of vicks. How interesting. You boil the roots and capture the vapor, also if you boil the roots and do something else with it, that’s where the gel comes from. Wish I can go back and do it properly so that I can give you decent feedback :)

We had another fruit tasting after the brief spice tour. This time the new fruit I tasted was the custard apple. Very interesting, slimy weird texture, but absolutely delicious! I never even know this existing. For the first time in my life I also ate fresh grapefruit and actually enjoyed it.

We bought some spices and then went to the nearest coconut tree to watch a local climb all the way to the top. WHAT A JOKE? It was a matter of seconds and the guy was at the top looking down at us singing Jumbo – a famous local song.

At the end of the tour the locals have made all of us bracelets, rings, earrings, crowns and necklaces. It was such a cool experience, one that I will have to complete someday when I’m on holday :)

All the Zanzibari’s are so friendly, it just makes me want to go back for sure… and hopefully soon as well.

Lunch was at Mbweni Ruins. We showed the clients the jetty and the ruins for an offsite dinner for the group. They loved it! It’s truly beautiful, you can’t not love it. Lunch was in a semi-dirty restaurant, definitely not a place you take your clients to. Fail on my behalf. However the food was delicious! I had a chicken curry that was just the right kind of mild and very very good.

That afternoon was once again spent on a dhow on the way to prison island. A prison was built on the island, hence the name, but the prison was never actually used. There is a tortoise sanctuary on the island where they breed them. The oldest tortoise is 182 years old. At the moment they have 70 on the island. I’m not sure what to make of it, cause it’s there for the tourists to look at and feed, but the tortoises never make it off the island. It’s a good thing that they are breeding them, but surely you need to release them back into the wild?!


Our last evening was spent at the hotel, exhausted! We had dinner at the Pavillion and enjoyed a real Indian buffet. All the food on the island is fresh and delicious! For dessert I enjoyed a jummy pancake with bar one sauce  The diet starts Monday 

Zanzibar Day 4

The best remedy for not waking up properly in the morning is taking a dip in the pool, especially if you have a beautiful infinity pool right outside your stunning room. It’s just chilling there, waiting for you to use it :)

Our first excursion for the day was Safari Blue. Safari Blue is a full day excursion where you depart the island on a dhow and sail to a sand bank. On the sandbank you have guys waiting for you with snorkeling gear and fresh coconuts. After your snorkel you head off to look for dolphins and then to Kwale Island for a fresh seafood BBQ. Because we were on a site inspection and technically working we didn’t snorkel or look for dolphins, but we did spend a few minutes on the sandbank and had lunch on Kwale Island.

Arriving at the sand bank was like something out of a movie. Completely unspoilt and white white white against the blue-green ocean. The sandbank was occupied with a few colourful shade nets, erected just for low tide. A few brown bodies lazed around drinking from fresh coconuts and going snorkeling. I don’t know how to describe the sandbank – look at the photo’s and judge for yourself. I just know that I was happy and didn’t want to be anywhere else in the world.



Next we went to Kwale Island for lunch. We drank home made juice (I can’t remember what was in it, but it was a very interesting mixture) and then had our lunch of the braai. Each of us were handed two plates, one for rice and sauces and the other for fish (tune and kingfish), crayfish, calamari and chicken. The food was amazing! After lunch we were given a fruit tasting for dessert. DELISCIOUS! We tasted: pineapple (the sweetest in the world), mandarins, jack fruit (this was a first for me – it tasted like a mixture between pineapple and banana and has a very weird texture, but I think it’s safe to say it’s my new favourite), baobab seeds (they cover the seeds in honey and something red so that it looks just like candy, you suck the candy and then spit out the seed, dates and banana’s.




On arrival back at the shore we transferred to Neptune Pwani for a quick site and then it was back to the Residence. Dinner was in the ala carte restaurant – the dining room and a little disappointing. My food wasn’t that bad, just very gourmet and tiny! Dessert was a highlight once again, I had white chocolate soup! I really OD’ed on white chocolate on this trip :)

Zanzibar Day 3

The last morning to myself. It was a semi early one and had only a few minutes for breakfast. I had a quick croissant and headed to reception to check out. Mohammed and Safe was already waiting for me. We transferred to The Residence which took approximately an hour.

When we pulled up to reception at The Residence, it literally took my breath away. It’s the most beautiful entrance I’ve ever saw. It’s a open reception with hardly any walls, overlooking the gardens, a huge infinity pool and the ocean. The breeze lightly swooped through reception, just enough to help you breath in the heat. Zanzibar has amazing weather. It’s never cold :)

I checked into the Residence and was sent to the Dining room for another breakfast as my room wasn’t ready yet. I was eventually taken to my room – a king size bed in a room the size of probably 6 korean flats. When I arrived at the room, my butler was standing outside waiting for me. By this point my luggage was already in the room. My butler took me inside and explained all the features of the very luxurious room. I entered into a living room with leather coaches, a flat screen and a small kitchenette with complimentary tea/coffee and biscuits. Next the butler opened big wooden sliding doors to reveal the bedroom. There was a king size four poster bed covered with tied mosquito nets. Behind the bedroom was the bathroom – a massive bathroom I might add. The bathroom had two separate basins and a deep stand alone bath. There was an inside and outside shower as well as a separate glass toilet cubicle. The entire room was finished off with local wooden cabinets and weaved baskets.



The bedroom and living room opens out onto a wooden deck outside where I found my very own infinity pool. I estimate it was about 6-7 metres long, enough for a good swim in the morning and a lekker cool off.

I was in Heaven.

Another cool feature is that each room has two bicycle’s parked outside. The entire property is so big, that you need an alternative mode of transport. You will die if you have to walk up and down in that heat all the time.

I went up to reception to meet up with Tessa and the clients who finally arrived. They settled in, we had lunch and went on a quick site inspection.

I forgot to mention the spa – the spa has a total of 6 gorgeous treatment rooms, a fitness centre, a sauna and steam room and a jet pool. All of these are available to all the guests without having to book treatments. Unfortunately I didn’t have time to make it to the spa :(

Late afternoon Mohammed picked us up and took us to Stone Town. On our hour transfer he gave us little snippets of Zanzibari History:

- 93% of the islands inhabitants are Muslims
- Zanzibar and Tanzania is basically one place, but has their own presidents and own flags
- The shortest war in history happened in Zanzibar and only lasted only 38 minutes
- Approximately one million people live in Zanzibar
- The island is famous for slavery ages ago and now more for the spices. Cloves are known as the king spice and cinnamon as the queen spice.
- Vicks comes from the root of a cinnamon tree 

We arrived at Tembo hotel in Stone Town and set off on a Dhow sunset cruise. This time there was an actual sunset to see and we had a musician on board. The sunset was stunning and truly something to remember. The musician not so much :) He was a local violinist and I’m not sure that his violin was actually tuned. Nevertheless it was a cool experience. We had some refreshments and before we knew it we were back at Tembo Hotel.

Dinner was at The Residence at one of the two restaurants. We had dinner at The Pavillion. It was Mediterranean night and the buffet was something you can only dream of. Something of everything was on display.

Once again I found white chocolate mousse for dessert. I went to bed happy :)

Zanzibar Day 2

To start the day looking out over a great pool and beautiful ocean just puts me in a great mood. Before my driver and guide picked me up I went to see two restaurants in Stone Town and attempted a bit of shopping. I wasn’t successful in bargaining so ended up not buying anything.


My driver and guide took me to Mbweni ruins. The ruins are situated in the richest area of the island. A piece of land apparently goes for about $4000. Not that bad if you ask me. I have no idea what happened at the ruins and why it is there (note to self: google!), but it is gorgeous and a great venue for weddings.


The next stop was Hotel Melia in the North East of the island. After about an hours drive we reached it. I was not expecting anything fancy, just to meet with a guy I found online about outdoor catering. What we found was completely different. At the entrance the general manager was waiting for me with a fresh coconut and frozen towel. The coconut was disgusting, but the idea was refreshing and very tropical. I guess I just don’t like fresh coconut juice/milk. The hotel has been open for 15 days and not completely finished althought it’s already fully function. It’s run by a German so you can imagine everything works like a well oiled machine. It’s a massive property that runs over 2.3 km’s down the coast. The beach on this side of the island is 10km’s long so you can imagine how big and beautiful this property is.



The hotel has 110 spacious rooms with all their own balconies, beautiful rooms and massive gorgeous bathrooms equipped with bath, shower and out side shower. They have 4 restaurants, which off only one is not included in your accommodation. They have monthly beach parties with the inhouse DJ and a jetty that goes approximately 250m into the sea. Every evening for sunset they serve tappa’s and drinks there – all on the house, and the jetty stays open till 01h00 in the morning.

After our inspection the general manager took my driver and I for lunch by the pool side. We got ice cold drinks and a club wrap. For the first time in my life I saw a Muslim eating bacon. Off course all of us only realized when he did and he was very disappointed, mad and sad at the same time. He phoned his ‘teacher’ and was informed that it is not a sin if you didn’t know. Phew. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before but Zanzibar is predominantly a Muslim island – 93% of the island to be exact. They ask travelers to cover up when walking around Stone Town and to respect the local community. Also non-muslims are not allowed to enter mosques and they are in general very strict on what you take pictures of. When you want to take pictures of the local people you have to ask first. The reason for this is that they don’t know what you are going to do with the picture. They do not understand the medium of photography, it’s completely strange to them.

I think one of the things that draw me to Zanzibar so much is its raw beauty. It’s raw, it’s poor, it’s rural, it’s primitive. Most local houses do not have electricity and none of the house are painted. Everything as far as you can see is hand made, even the stallations they use to build houses are made from wood and rope. It’s incredible to see the simple life these people lead and it makes you wonder why we always depend so much on technology – these people know nothing of this. Everything on the island happens very slowly – it’s a reall island vibe. You see a lot of men walking around, or more wondering and then resting and wondering again. Sometimes they just nap somewhere under a tree.

Neptune Pwani was my next stop and my accommodation for that night. It does not have the same feel as Melia, but is still really nice. It has more of a resort feel and is also fully inclusive. On check in you get a welcome drink and a bracelet showing that everything you do is included. I was showed to my beautiful seaside room and enjoyed a free coke on my balcony.


I had an hour to kill before my sight inspection started so got dressed immediately and went to the pool. I dove in head first (it was scorching) and the rest of the time tried to tan. Not sure if I managed too, but got points for trying :)

The site inspection didn’t take long as I’ve already seen the rooms and some of the general area. I was shown the main restaurant, another pool and the spa/wellness area.

Dinner was next to the pool with a life band playing – beautiful but kinda depressing. Having dinner al by yourself in such a beautiful place definitely gets to you. I had a glass of wine and delicious food, o and don’t forget the dessert. Death food cake – a very chocolatie cake thing and white chocolate mouse. I’m not a mousse girl but for that white chocolate mousse, man I could eat tons!

Zanzibar Day 1

Every job has it’s ups and downs, mine happens to have quite a few ups. On the 14th of October I had the opportunity to travel to Zanzibar on a site inspection. Things were arranged in such a way that I fly up two days before my colleague, Tessa, and the clients arrive. Just a bit of time for me to explore Zanzibar and familiarize myself 

The trip started off in a massive rush in the office trying to get the last loose ends tied and a bit of traffic enroute to the airport.

The first flight to Johannesburg was perfectly fine and we even received delicious food. Woolies pesto salad and cottage pie is really not a bad way to start something…anything really.

I had three hours to hang around in Johannesburg and decided to go check out the Bidvest Premiere Lounge to see what they can offer for groups. The lady showing me around was super nice and offered the lounge for me to wait until my flight departs. Free food and drinks – awesome!

The second flight was not so cool. It’s a tiny airplane with lots of people crammed in for four hours. It felt like I was sitting on one of those crammed African busses that you regularly see on tv. The flight was delayed and we only departed 20 past 12 in the middle of the night. The crew onboard did not switch the lights off once and the big dude next to me LOVED his cashews and bubblegum. If there is one thing I cannot take then it’s someone who can’t eat properly. I think that somehow the more I travel the more claustrophobic I get…weird! Anyways so I just listened to my ipod and tried to read my book. In the end I think I got about 40 minutes sleep at most.

So we arrive in Tanzania at 04h20. Wat ‘n belewenis?! WOW! First of all everyone arrives and all you see in the arrivals hall are wooden desks with white and blue papers. Everybody started filling these in, not really knowing which one is the one you’re supposed to fill in. Eventually a security guard showed up, advising everyone that this is where you pay your visa. After a long visa que and passport control and all of that I find my checked in luggage on the floor next to the carousel. In Johannesburg I was told that my luggage would be checked all the way through to Zanzibar… so do I leave it, do I take it? My mom’s airport paranoia kicked in and I picked up the bag and went looking for the check in counters. I found another South African couple also looking for the check in and decided to tag along and follow them  Even at 5 o’ clock in the morning it’s already humid and sticky outside. We found the security check, which was outside and once again waited in line. Another paranoid thought crossed my mind – Is Tanzania a Malaria area? Cause if it is … shit! I know Zanzibar is, and that means that I’ve just embarked on a trip without any malaria tablets. I do have tabard though…

I haven’t seen much of the place as yet and have been too scared to take pictures. Even though all the security guards are really nice and full of jokes, I’ve got a funny feeling that you don’t want to see their bad side. The sun was only coming up as I was waiting to board flight PW450 to Zanzibar. YAY for island life!


The flight from Dar es Salaam to Zanzibar was over before it even started. It’s a quick hop and then you are on the island. Coming in was the most spectacular sight ever – tropical water and forest as far as the eye can see. On arrival I was transferred to the Serena Inn hotel in Stone Town, just 10 minutes away. At the Serena I was mat by incredibly friendly staff and a delicious Bungo juice welcome drink. Bungo is one of the many fruits that can only be found on the island. I went up to my beautiful prime room on the second floor overlooking the pool and the ocean to freshen up. Once I was human again I took to the streets exploring. The streets of Stone Town aren’t exactly clean, but aren’t super dirty, it’s got a great island vibe to it and has a lot of hidden secrets waiting for you to discover them.




The weird thing I picked up was that there wasn’t a lot of women out in the public, only men wondering around, resting and then wondering a little further. My guide later explained to me that this was because it’s Saturday and that the women preferred staying at home and looking after the children.


I went back to the hotel for a quick site inspection then met up with my guide and driver for the day. Mohammed and Safe took me to see the Mangapwani Beach BBQ site which is the Serena Inn hotel’s private beach area about 45 minutes away. It’s a beautiful setting on a private beach with a restaurant located in the forest. Thereafter we went to Mtoni Ruins and to see the Mtoni Marine restaurant. Finally we made it back to Stone town to view a few restaurants. All the restaurants we viewed were surprisingly clean and the friendliness of the locals really impressed me. Our last restaurant was Mercury Restaurant – named after Freddy Mercury. Freddy Mercury was born in Zanzibar and lived there before he moved to London and became famous. The space where the restaurant now stands is where Freddy normally went for drinks and performed for the locals for fun. I almost got ran over outside the restaurant – you can imagine how excited I was to experience a little bit of the legend’s history! I was standing outside the entrance behind a combi/taxi/mini van thing and was taking a video of the entrance when all of a sudden the car started reversing. I didn’t even realize and heard people call out, but only noticed it was directed at me when the car hit me. It wasn’t sore or anything and because I was so excited I just jumped out the way and continue filming, laughing a little and making some stupid comment about being a tourist (with the camera…)

My first evening on this beautiful island was spent on a Dhow sunset cruise (even though it was so cloudy there wasn’t a sunset) followed by a dinner at the Mtoni Marine Restaurant. It was really special – the dhow cruise was arranged especially for me and my guide – we had drinks and snacks on board and watch a semi sunset and then they drove me straight onto the beach at Mtoni. I was greeted by another South African, Etienne and he took my driver and I to our table. I could really experience how they run the show as there was a wedding – a mix of locals and Italians with a pregnant bride – quite interesting. We had delicious red snapper with veggies in a coconuttie sauce with a special amuse bouche that the chef prepared for us. Dinner was served on the house :) Score!

I Know How You Screamed Last Scary Movie!

We are on KFM!!!

Check out their website:

http://www.kfm.co.za/kcommunity/diary/diary.asp?date=2011/10/30#37739

Ticket Sales are now open at Computicket!

Go and buy your ticket now! We have free popcorn and Lindt for everyone and lots of free goodies to win!!

No Meat Mondays

I'm trying something new - NO MEAT MONDAYS - this leads to a healthier, more environmentally happy lifestyle.. no?

It also forces me to use my millions of recipe books to create something awesome. Last night was my first attempt.

Greek Stuffed Tomatoes and Peppers and Tzatziki.

Ingredients:
- Big ripe tomatoes
- Big ripe peppers (multi coloured if possible)
- Rice
- Mint
- Parsley
- Onion
- Oil
- Salt, Pepper and Sugar

You start by emptying the tomatoes and peppers. Does that make sense? Take the insides out..

Fly the onions, add the rice, herbs and half of the tomato pulp. Simmer for about 10 minutes and stuff the raw tomatoes and peppers. Pop in the oven for approximately 40 minutes and garnish with parsley to serve. Easy and delish!


For Tzatziki you need:
- Greek Style Yoghurt
- Cucumber
- Garlic
- Dill
- Oil
- Vinegar
- Salt and Pepper

Grate and strain the cucumber and add to the yoghurt. Add all other ingredients and mix together well. Lastly add the vinegar and oil - but alternate. Serve with crackers, bread sticks or pita. Also on a meat day - you can serve this with lamb.


Try it and let me know how yours turns out. Watch this space for next Monday :)