A Bush Break 3/3

To round off my Bush Break holiday my family and I were lucky enough (SUPER lucky) to be invited to spend two nights at MalaMala Private Game Reserve! And all I can say is WOW!!! This was pure luxury!

On arrival we were warmly greeted by the staff and met by our very own personal Game Ranger, who looked after us for the duration of our stay. The accommodation is completely luxurious and I just loved all the attention to detail.

At MalaMala you get to go on game drives in open vehicles, with a maximum of 6 guests per vehicle, with your ranger - who will ask you if there's anything specific you would like to see and then do his best to find it for you. MalaMala does not share traversing rights with any of the neighbouring reserves and as a result the human impact is kept to a minimum. This means that guests are able to enjoy the wildlife sightings for longer and get great close up photographs. 

On our afternoon/evening game drive we first came across a herd of elephants with this cute little guy who was so comical and even had a go at mock charging us!

Next we spotted a lone lioness resting on a river bank. She was a way off the road, but what's so fantastic about this kind of game viewing experience is that the rangers can take the vehicles off road  so you are able to get really close.

The lioness was really sleepy and not doing much so our ranger took us to a river pool where he knew there was a little baby hippo. It was a real little cutie... in a strange alien-looking way!

Then one of the other rangers radioed our ranger to say that they had spotted a female leopard nearby to where we had been watching the lioness, so we headed back that way, and what a beauty! She was tucked under some bushes just resting, but after a while got up and started to move.

We followed her as she made her way to a suitable tree where she sat and pondered for a while, until...

she very effortlessly jumped up into the tree! It was amazing to watch how high up she climbed and so quickly! She then assumed the typical 'leopard-in-a-tree' pose with her legs dangling down through the leaves. When we started our trip my brother asked me what animal I would most like to see and I replied that I would really like to see a leopard in a tree...I didn't expect to get to see a leopard climbing into the tree!

The leopard's movements obviously sparked the lionesses interest, as she got up and also started heading our way, glancing up into the tree as she wombled past.

We also saw a few rhinos, which is always special. Incidentally we also saw the carcas of a rhino that had just been poached! We all hear about it in the news, but actually seeing it makes it super real! This is a terrible problem that we're facing and something really needs to be done before it's too late - once they're gone... they're gone... forever! All the rangers and staff of MalaMala and the Sabi Sand Wildtuin were devastated by the loss and were doing everything they could to help catch the poachers.

Seeing a couple of lazy Buffaloes meant that we officially saw the Big 5!

We also saw a pair of Side-Striped Jackals, which was really great!

And what says Africa more than the majestic male lion!

To finish off this very special holiday we were treated with a very special sighting...two Cheetahs!!! These two are brothers and we were very lucky to see them before a pair of hyenas came along and chased them away!

Thank you for following along on our family holiday! Be sure to check back soon for some fun and pretty craft projects!

A Bush Break 2/3

The second stop on our fabulous Bush Break holiday was to spend a week at our Sabi River Sun Resort timeshare. The Sabi River Sun Resort (also know as Sabi River Bungalows) is situated in Hazyview in Mpumalanga and is right next to the Kruger National Park - a mere 15 minute drive to the Phabeni Gate! It is also very close to the little town Graskop, which is the gateway to the Panorama Route. From here you can easily get to the stunning God's Window, Blyde River Canyon with the Three Rondawels look out point and Bourke's Luck Potholes. You can also stop in and view the incredible Lisbon Falls, Berlin Falls and Mac Mac Falls. The cute little goldrush town Pilgrim's Rest is also near by. 

Although all of those sights are definitely worth a visit, you actually don't even need to leave the beautiful tranquil resort. It is such a lovely place to just chill and recharge. There are 104 six-sleeper chalets on the estate built around the 18-hole golf course alongside the Sabie River. You might think that sounds like there would be a lot of people, but never once did we feel over crowded or that there was too much people-noise. 

Perhaps the most interesting thing about the Sabi River Sun Resort is that the Langspruit ("Long Stream") runs through the one side of the estate and a dam has been created. Here you can watch a pod of approximately 30 hippos that have made it their home, as well as a few crocodiles and an abundance of bird life. 

Each day the hippos wallow in the dam or sun bathe on the little sandy island on the one side. And every evening at around 6:30pm they gather at the far end of the dam, where the resort's security guards open a gate for them to "migrate" across part of the golf course and into the Sabie River. The resort's guests can gather on the high pedestrian bridge or on the lawn in front of the chalets to watch these ponderous creatures heave themselves out of the water and move out for the night. 

They return each morning and the gate is once again closed until the evening again.

We were very fortunate to get a chalet that has a view of the little sandy island. So we could watch all the comings and goings of the hippos, crocs and birds without even leaving our patio. If you did want to get closer though, there are numerous well placed benches along the river and dam. There is even a small viewing hide built across the dam so that anyone can get a good view.

One of my favourite things about the Sabi River Sun Resort is the birdlife! There are so many different birds to be spotted without even looking too hard. But if you do take the time to sit quietly on one of the benches you will be able to see some of the smaller birds that are not immediately noticeable.

Left - Goliath Heron, Right top - Pied Kingfisher, Right bottom - Green Heron.

Juvenile Purple Heron.

Left top - African Jacana, Right top - Malachite Kingfisher, Left bottom - Squacco Heron (don't you just love that name...Squacco!), Right bottom - Black Crake.

And one of my favourite little birds - the Blue Waxbill.

As mentioned in the beginning of this post, there are numerous nearby sights to go and see. On one of the clear days during our week-long holiday we went and saw some of them. We unfortunately couldn't fit them all in as there are quite a few and the weather was rainy on some of the days, which means that there is only a view of...well...the clouds!

Our first stop was God's Window, so named because of the breathtaking view through the indigenous forest covered ravine to the lowveld some 900m down.

If you have the energy and continue up the path past the main view point you are taken through a lovely cool rain forest and are rewarded with even more panoramic views from right at the top of the hill.

Next we stopped at the spectacular Berlin Falls.

And finally we went to the Three Rondawels lookout point! No guide book or photo can convey the magnitude of this incredible view!

It's one of those places you need to actually experience in real life! It's been on my list of places I would like to see for ages and it was really awesome to get to be able to tick it off.

I will chat about the third and final stage of our bush break holiday in the next post and you won't believe where I got to go!!!

A Bush Break 1/3

If you've been wondering why it's been so quiet around here it's because I've just spent a fabulous two weeks on holiday in the bush! There really is nothing quite like the African bush. The warm dry air, the breath-taking landscapes, the wonder of happening upon an animal in their natural habitat and the sunsets...oh the sunsets!!!

There's too much to fit into just one blog post, so I thought I would spread it over three - one for each of the places we stayed. Our holiday kicked off with four nights in the Kruger National Park. For those of you who don't know, the Kruger National Park is one of the largest game reserves in Africa. Here you will be able to see the Big 5 (Elephant, Rhino, Lion, Leopard and Buffalo) and many, many other animals - not to mention the abundant birdlife! On our trip this time we were lucky enough to see four of the Big 5 - we just didn't see any lions!

There are 12 main rest camps in the park, with huts and bungalows as well as camping facilities. The camps are self-catering, but almost all now have really great restaurants too.

My family has always enjoyed holidays in the Kruger Park, staying in one of the rest camps. In fact we've stayed in almost all 12 of the them! This time we spent each night in a different camp - Berg-en-Dal, Orpen, Olifants and Letaba - driving between them, all the while looking for game.

Here are a few of the creatures we found on our travels:

Four of The Big 5

Elephant - The gentle giant.

We 'spotted' this majestic leopard whilst out for a drive just before sunset!

A White Rhino - we were lucky enough to see 10 different Rhino's on this trip!

The Buffalo - the rather stinky and muddy member of the Big 5 family!

All things wild and beautiful

A Waterbuck and Giraffe.

Beautiful stripy Zebras.

The 'bokkies' - Left: a male Kudu. Right top: a Steenbok and Right Bottom: a young male Nyala.

A Blue Wildebeest (or Gnu).

Sometimes the little creatures are interesting too

Left: A group of Dwarf Mongoose. Right top: a Water Monitor (or Leguaan) and Right bottom: a Tree Squirrel.

Feathered finds

My absolute favourite - the Southern Ground Hornbill.

Left: Red-crested Korhaan, Right top: Natal Spurfowl and Right Bottom: Crested Francolin.

Helmeted Guineafowl.

And just because it's pretty...

The lovely little Impala Lily.

Be sure to catch my next post to see where we went next...

The Amazing Ammazulu African Palace

Yesterday was a public holiday here in South Africa and I spent the morning at the incredible Ammazulu African Palace, a five star boutique hotel located in Kloof, Durban. And all I can say is... WOW!!! The entire building is a magical artwork celebrating the cultural heritage of KwaZulu-Natal.

The palace is the vision of Durban artist Peter Amm and it took almost 50 years to complete, starting when he was just 13 years old when his father gave him some money to purchase a small piece of land in Kloof. He grew indigenous plants and trees on the land and nurtured his dream of one day building his own house. 

The actual building of the palace began in 1998 and wherever possible recycled material was used - the carved doors at the entrance to the palace are from the Colonial Mutual's old art deco building in West Street, Durban. The decorated pillars inside (done by artist Jane du Rand) echo the two enormous orange pillars that flank the front entrance and include old electric transformers, upside down teacups and sieves in their designs. The giant steel guinea fowl outside has a head made up of a metal shopping trolley and two traffic lights. 

The inside of the palace is truly magical and is a visual feast!

Visiting the Ammazulu African Palace is by appointment only. We did the tour which was really great and gave us all the interesting information about the palace and it's artefacts. The cost is R75 and includes tea/coffee and a yummy snack (you must have a minimum of 10 people per booking).

Visit their website for more info www.ammazulupalace.com

Below are some more photos of this incredible place.