Ballooning in Kenya

 

It had all seemed quite straightforward during the pre-flight briefing with the pilot.  After describing how balloons operate and how the flights are staffed, the pilot had said that the wind conditions appeared favorable, but that if they were too strong in the morning the flights would have to be cancelled.  He reminded everyone to dress warmly, to bring cameras, and just as the meeting was closing, he added, “Don't forget to bring a hat.” For the sun, you presume.

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Odd Japanese snacks

Japan routinely gets labeled weird and quirky. Its image may just be a cartoon cliché based on little, but there's joy in believing that the island nation is drastically different – even odder than England. 

Still, few would argue that Japan serves up some extraordinary dishes that make frog’s legs look tame. Take a look at the menu. Spotlighted dishes range from a poisonous fish to feral ice cream. 

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Top 5 Asian Castles

If someone says the magic word 'castle', what image springs to mind? Perhaps you think of the mystery-soaked monuments that cast their long shadows across medieval Europe. Or perhaps you think of the English king Arthur and the court of Camelot. 

But Europe holds no monopoly on castles. Asia hosts scores. Here are five of Asia’s most striking and strange castles, which transcend bricks-and-mortar, and border on marvellous. Their haunting, massive presence evokes the sound of drums and thunder. 

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Born Free in Kenya: Elsamere

In Kenya, the Rift Valley forms the basis of the country’s major geographical features, the string of lakes that lies like an elongated ribbon to the north-west of Nairobi. 

Lake Baringo, Lake Bogoria, Lake Nakuru, Lake Elementaita, Lake Naivasha and Lake Magadi in the south, have all become important focal points for wildlife, especially birdlife.  

Lake Naivasha was ‘discovered' by a German naturalist called Gustav Fischer in 1883, and its name is thought to derive from a classic case of European mispronunciation. The early visitors asked their Swahili porters what the lake was called and were told 'enaiposha' which means quite simply 'the lake'.  And so, with the pronunciation slightly mangled by the Europeans, Lake Naivasha it became. 

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Spotlight on the French Riviera: Nice

There is something undeniably glamorous about the French Riviera.  Just a mention of the name brings images of sun-kissed beaches, blue skies, sleek yachts and impossibly glamorous people to mind. Much of this hype is undeniably true, but in a town like Nice the gloss and glamour are leavened by a hearty dose of natural, practical Mediterranean life. The harbor may well be filled with beautiful yachts, frequented by beautiful people, but there are also working fishing boats and ferries.  The restaurants may well be three-star Michelin, but the harbor-side cafes, frequented by locals, are every bit as popular and bursting with life. 

It is this mix of image and reality that make Nice such a fascinating microcosm of the French Riviera. When other pretty coastal towns and villages empty at the end of the season as the beautiful people jet off somewhere else, life in Nice continues pretty much as before. The colorful fruit and vegetable market still takes place every week in Cours Salaya, the ferries and fishing boats still leave on the evening tide, and the harbor cafes are as busy and noisy as before. 

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Monaco: All that glitters

On the sun-kissed southern coast of France sits the world’s second smallest country, Monaco. (The Vatican is the smallest, by the way). The Principality of Monaco, to use its official name, covers just 0.76 square miles, but within its small pocket-handkerchief sized boundaries, it has money and glamour and a reputation that totally outstrips its size.

A policy of reclaiming land from the sea means the country is very slowly growing in size, but it still remains the world's smallest French-speaking country. For the record, Monaco is also the world’s most densely populated sovereign country.  It has been ruled by one family, the Grimaldis, since 1297, when, according to legend, François Grimaldi captured the fortress on the strategic Rock on Monaco, dressed as a Franciscan monk.

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Water sports in Mauritius

The only problem with trying to write a 'Top sea and beach things to do in Mauritius' list is that it is simply one set of superlatives after another.

This little island in the Indian Ocean is paradise for everyone who has ever dreamed of a relaxing beach holiday.  Not that you will get much lazing-around-on-the-beach time, if you work your way through this list of how to enjoy every second of those clear, lagoon-protected waters. 

And that is an important point to bear in mind.  The island is protected by an almost totally encircling reef, which means that the waters within it are (largely) calm and peaceful, and of the most iridescent turquoise.

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Guide to game drives in South Africa

Going on a game drive in the South African bush is an unforgettable experience. 

Although most wildlife in South Africa is found within the boundaries of vast National Parks, wildlife reserves and private game farms, that by no way implies they are kept in a glorified zoo.  

Hundreds of kilometers of wilderness, sometimes with drivable roads, but often-times just rough dirt tracks only suitable for 4x4 vehicles, means that most of the time the animals have the upper hand in the viewing stakes.  They live their lives deep in the forest, venturing out of the protective tree cover to go to the water holes, and it is a question of good luck and perseverance that we humans are able to see them at all. 

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Insider guide to Trekking Tibet

“Tashi delek. Tashi delek,” the old lady sang out cheerfully, as she raced past me. Her wrinkled face gave me a happy, toothy grin and then she was gone, heading effortlessly for the 5,630-meter Dolma La, the highest point of our pilgrimage around Mount Kailash. 

If I’d had the energy, I would have had distinctly uncharitable thoughts.  There we were, all togged out in hiking boots, thermal clothing and expensive down anoraks, plodding painfully along, gasping for breath, while yet more smiling Tibetans, most of them elderly, and most of them wearing nothing sturdier than gym shoes and thin jackets, rushed past us in a swirl of smiles, prayer wheels and tashi deleks.  

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Insider guide to Japan's Bullet Train

Anybody wondering exactly how far Japan is ahead of the West should ride the Shinkansen, the bullet train, remembering –soberingly – that it has been in operation for nearly 40 years. 

Everything is, without saying, immaculate; the trains shiny white, silent and polished to a gleam. The ticketing operation is flawless, with not just easy and helpful reserved seating, but with conductors who bow, dressed in creamy beige uniforms with gold trim and matching beige shiny patent-leather shoes – the whole snazzy outfit in male and female versions. They know exactly which seats to approach after people have got on and off at the various stops along the line. No, “Tickets, please,” while lurching blindly from seat to seat as they do in the West. Nothing lurches in Japan, even at 200 miles per hour. 

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