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Travel/Overseas destinations
- Thread starter Liverpool
- Start date
struggletown3121 said:Tigers of Old said:Fortunate enough to be off to South Africa for a week in late January. Can't wait as I've never been to that continent and am hoping to check out a safari park which is something I've always wanted to do.
Likely to stay in Johannesberg & Capetown.
Anyone been there recently and have any advice on must sees or travel tips? Cheers.
Howdy TOotsie, my advice is to keep your stay in Joburg to a bare minimum and spend the bulk of the time you have in Capetown.
Joburg is the very worst city ive ever been too.
Violent and almost anarchy with Police almost helpless against the tidal wave of crime....day or night!
We had an armoured vehicle show us around the town which says it all really.
The rich white people live in suburbs that are heavily guarded and just about everyone packs (guns) when outside.
Apart from that there's smile all there to see and do anyhow.
If your driving, take the garden route to Capetown, a longer trip but awesome scenery and very enjoyable.
Capetown is a far far safer and picturesque place than Joburg, and the backdrop of table mountain is fabulous.
I look forward to your report of how cold the sea water is though!!
You'll know once your in there!
I did't visit any game parks in Sth Africa, but went to many in Tanzania (Serengetti-AWESOME) Zambia, Zimbabwe(Hwangi)
and Botswana(Ocevengo Delta-sp?) and although its tiring and very primitive conditions wise, you'll be rewarded with priceless memories that you won't see either here or in Asia.
Obviously Kreuger NP is the most prominent and largest in S.A and will be easy to arrange an overland through it.
Have a blast old son! :fing32
Thanks alot for the tips Struggles & Craig.
Have to spend two days in Joberg but it doesn't sound like much of a place at all.
I'll be sure to keep my wits about me but I think we'll spend most of the time in the hotel by the sounds of it.
Not sure where the location of where we are staying is yet but I'm sure we won't be put in harms way. :nailbiting
I really want to go and see a gamepark(Kruger) so we'll probably stay an extra day or so.
It's very convenient that it's only a few hours drive from Joberg. Might be an early start though as I believe most of the wildlife action happens at sparrowfart.
As I said a Safari's been on my life time 'to do' list so I'm really excited by the prospect and am lucky the opportunity to go has come up. I'll be sure to do a report for those remotely interested. 8)
Capetown looks and sounds fantastic so I'll be sure to spend as much time as possible there.
It'll be summer obviously, so hopefully the water won't be tooo cold.
I'll have to save the Serengetti for next time I'm afraid.
Just for you Red.Redford said:
I'm sure you'll find a place to put one.
Tigers of Old said:Just for you Red.Redford said:
I'm sure you'll find a place to put one.
Good work Tooheys. I'll crush 'em and mix it up with my Bengal Tiger balls mixture. Should put Viagra to shame I would have thought.....
London: not bad. I like the history, the pubs etc. If you lived out in the 'burbs it would be very depressing. Like a lot of big cities livability and enjoyment quite often depends on how much money you've got.
Bangkok: you've gotta be kidding don't you Tooheys ? You must have a good oxygen mask and copius state of the art vaccinations pumped into you to be enjoying it over there. How much water are you boiling, or do you just buy tankfulls of Evian ? :rofl
Tigers of Old said:
Oh yeah?.....You'll see
You'll think you're 5 years old again when that water grips you.
I'll have to save the Serengetti for next time I'm afraid.
Magnificent experience, I couldn't recommend it any higher.
We went down to the Ngoro Ngoro crater where the millions of animals migrate for the wet season and saw 4 of the big 5 (didn't see a cheetah) but did see Lions,Rhinos,Elephants,Leopards,Jackals,Buffalo,Wilderbeest,Giraffes ect.
We weren't there in migration season unfortunately, but still managed to view nearly all its inhabitants.
Actually Red I'm serious when I say the air's not as bad as you'd think and it's not all that dirty here. At least in the main city areas it isn't.Redford said:
It's not as clean as Aussie capital cities but it's no where near as bad as my preconceptions were or some other Asian cities.
As for the water? They say it's OK to drink but I sure don't risk it.
We get three 'cooler' bottles delivered each week.
I always find it a bit weird going back to Oz and being able to drink water straight from the tap now. It's the little things like that, people take for granted back home but it's what you really appreciate when you don't have readily available drinking water. 8)
Just from my observations, the best things about Bangkok are:
- It's cheap as chips: Cost of living about a third of back home.
Things that are made here(plenty is) are dirt cheap to buy and imported stuff slightly more expensive. Everything imported is usually copied here anyway and then resold. It's the piracy capital of the world.
- Amazing restaurants: Just an incredible variety from off the street to the best eateries in town.
- Great nightlife: Some great clubs and bars.
- Great shopping: It's a national sport here and you excercise in the malls.
- Thai women: Very easy on the eye.
- Local beer. Not bad and cheap.
You can get anything you want here if you know where to go.
Everything is on a much larger scale than it is back home
The drawbacks
- Weather: It's damn hot all year except November & December.
- Traffic: Always busy, everywhere, all the time and it's quite chaotic at times. Driving here is not for the faint hearted.
Thank goodness fo the Skytrain which runs over the city.
- Environment: Few parks and ovals.
Broken footpaths and general lack of emphasis on safety conditions make it hazardous to spend long periods outside. This is very much an indoor town.
It's a fascinating place though and I would recommend it to anyone for a stopover or a holiday.
If you know where to go or what to do here, then it's a lot of fun.
When we moved over, I didn't like it that much at first but I'll now miss it when we leave...
Sounds great Struggler. :thumbsupstruggletown3121 said:
I love Thailand too.
Its so cosmipolitan and different to home, but as you say ToOts, can be enjoyed without breaking the bank.
The Bangkok and even Phuket nightlife is awesome, so absolutely vibrant and alive, far far more so that the daylight hours.
The granduer of the temples among the poverty of the stalls in the markets is a stark contrast though.
I actually enjoy its heat and especially the warm nights, im in the minority who sleeps better the hotter it is.
I always buy big there,so take an almost empty pack to accomodate the spree.
Not real keen on the beer, but where there's a will..............
As for the Thai girls, Ive looked(plenty) but not touched on my 4 visits to the shores.
Luckily the Nordic backpacker lasses were there to get me through the trips without worring about it too much ;D
Its so cosmipolitan and different to home, but as you say ToOts, can be enjoyed without breaking the bank.
The Bangkok and even Phuket nightlife is awesome, so absolutely vibrant and alive, far far more so that the daylight hours.
The granduer of the temples among the poverty of the stalls in the markets is a stark contrast though.
I actually enjoy its heat and especially the warm nights, im in the minority who sleeps better the hotter it is.
I always buy big there,so take an almost empty pack to accomodate the spree.
Not real keen on the beer, but where there's a will..............
As for the Thai girls, Ive looked(plenty) but not touched on my 4 visits to the shores.
Luckily the Nordic backpacker lasses were there to get me through the trips without worring about it too much ;D
Tigers of Old said:Fortunate enough to be off to South Africa for a week in late January. Can't wait as I've never been to that continent and am hoping to check out a safari park which is something I've always wanted to do.
Likely to stay in Johannesberg & Capetown.
Anyone been there recently and have any advice on must sees or travel tips? Cheers.
You must be off soon ToO, have a great trip
Would love to go one day especially to do a safari and from pictures at the cricket Capetown looks very pretty.
mk33 said:Tigers of Old said:Fortunate enough to be off to South Africa for a week in late January. Can't wait as I've never been to that continent and am hoping to check out a safari park which is something I've always wanted to do.
Likely to stay in Johannesberg & Capetown.
Anyone been there recently and have any advice on must sees or travel tips? Cheers.
You must be off soon ToO, have a great trip
Would love to go one day especially to do a safari and from pictures at the cricket Capetown looks very pretty.
My trip got cancelled. :yellowno :frustration
Tigers of Old said:mk33 said:Tigers of Old said:Fortunate enough to be off to South Africa for a week in late January. Can't wait as I've never been to that continent and am hoping to check out a safari park which is something I've always wanted to do.
Likely to stay in Johannesberg & Capetown.
Anyone been there recently and have any advice on must sees or travel tips? Cheers.
You must be off soon ToO, have a great trip
Would love to go one day especially to do a safari and from pictures at the cricket Capetown looks very pretty.
My trip got cancelled. :yellowno :frustration
Bugger
Good to see this thread getting another run near the top of the list.
Was up at Buller for the long weekend and opening of the ski-season.....only a little bit of snow yesterday morning, but they have a good base for the rest of the winter season now with what had fallen earlier in the week, and with the temps staying rather cool, and of course the snow-making machines (first in the world to use recycled water for snow).
Still need another natural deluge of snow now...that would be good.
Unbelievable how close the fires came to the village.....and ironic, that snow at Christmas (middle of summer!) saved the day.
Also unbelievable, is how nature can regenerate itself so quickly, with the majority of trees burnt already with branches and green leaves.
Hopefully, a good winter ahead (and the snow will help the water situation at the end of the ski season as well!)
Was up at Buller for the long weekend and opening of the ski-season.....only a little bit of snow yesterday morning, but they have a good base for the rest of the winter season now with what had fallen earlier in the week, and with the temps staying rather cool, and of course the snow-making machines (first in the world to use recycled water for snow).
Still need another natural deluge of snow now...that would be good.
Unbelievable how close the fires came to the village.....and ironic, that snow at Christmas (middle of summer!) saved the day.
Also unbelievable, is how nature can regenerate itself so quickly, with the majority of trees burnt already with branches and green leaves.
Hopefully, a good winter ahead (and the snow will help the water situation at the end of the ski season as well!)
Missing33 said:
Same thing happened at our first game Pissing on a Tree.
Got stuffed by the Pirates,but we were hooked and had become Cubs fans the minute we waked in,which is no mean feat as I am a bit of a stadium 'trainspotter' and like a sado used to visit most of the cities I visited stadiums even when there wasn't a game on.
I am an absolute tragic for the Cubbies since that day and have spent $1000s on Jerseys,Memrobillia,Caps,Beanies,Tickets ypu name it.
I drove 5 hours from my old home in Daytona to Miami and lived in my Car for the 3 days when we played the Marlins
I'm going over next year for hopefully 7-10 days as well, can't wait.
Wrigley was a sporting religious experience for me, I was converted and fell in love and have never looked back.Awesome stadium with awesome fans following a crap team....sound familiar?
MK<mk33 said:
Had a quick scan, most still holds true of NYC... I don't go out as much anymore 5 month old baby,
Bubbles talks about his religious experience at Wrigley - mine was at Fenway..
If you need advice on NYC let me know...,
