Cape Town has been selected as the Global Earth Hour Capital in recognition of the city’s efforts to address climate change. This title is awarded as part of the global Earth Hour City Challenge (EHCC) which is a joint effort between WWF and ICLEI (Local Governments for Sustainability), and aims to highlight and reward cities […]

There’s a new hit rocking South Africa – Nkandla Style…sung to the tune of “Gangnam Style”. The song is sung as if by South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma, starting with “Since the day I can remember, I always wanted more…I wanted more money, like the Afrikaner Boer.” The lyrics reference the Nkandla Report by the […]

A thief in Paris planned to steal some Paintings from the Louvre. After careful planning, he got past security, stole the paintings, and made it safely to his van… However, he was captured only two rues (roads) away when his van ran out of fuel. When asked how he could mastermind such a crime and then make such an obvious error as to run out of petrol, he replied, ”Monsieur, that is the reason I stole […]

As mentioned in my previous post – 10 Reasons to Visit South Africa (and never leave) – South Africa is one of the top destinations for extreme sports. Below I have collected a list of some activities you can enjoy there. I was lucky enough to try some of them myself: 1. Bungee Jumping from […]

Here’s a very cool view of the Durban Sky Grand Prix last weekend…via a timelapse video. Durban hosted the first ever adrenaline-pumping Sky Grand Prix on the beachfront last Friday and Saturday.  The Land Sea Air Event was a huge success with thousands of Durbanites coming through to experience the  action. This is a quick […]

Cape Town comedy duo Derick Watts & The Sunday Blues have a ‘kiff’ new video called Payday, being billed as “their most ridiculous song yet”….and with lyrics like “when I get my paycheck, it’s like my life’s begun, When you have no paycheck it’s like you’re having no fun” – everyone can relate! Here the guys […]

After undergoing surgery on his left knee late in 2013, three-time MTB downhill world champion Greg Minnaar returns to the UCI World Cup circuit at the Cascades MTB Park in his hom e town of Pietermaritzburg from 11 to 13 April. Minnaar, a legend of downhill racing, will be the star attraction at the season- […]

South Africa’s top women’s wheelchair tennis star, Kgothatso “KG ” Montjane, added another title to her list of achievements when she won the doubles event at the 25th annual Cajun Classic Wheelchair Tennis Tournament in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on the weekend. The ITF Grade 1 event was contested at the Lamar Tennis Centre from 19 […]

If you’re missing Cape Town – here’s another awesome version of Pharrell Williams’ latest hit ‘HAPPY’ from the Mother City…featuring all your favourite scenic spots and happy Capetonians! The “Cape Town (Happy)” video was shot two weeks ago, and uploaded a couple of days ago to YouTube where it has already received over 65,000 views! […]

Much to the surprise of Oscar trial observers, the prosecution called it a day today and court was adjourned until Friday March 28, when the defence will make its case. For us armchair members of the jury, Advocate Gerrie Nel’s case seems incomplete but what we should not forget is cross-examination of witnesses for the defence is […]

It’s not often you can say there’s an elephant in the room…and there really is! In one of the sweetest stories on Facebook today, Thula Thula MD Françoise Malby-Anthony, related how she and her safari lodge staff rescued a baby elephant that wandered away from its herd and into her garden last night. Thula Thula […]

Durban’s beach art has survived last year’s permit system hiccup and is thriving, as evidenced by these fantastic photographs taken during the Durban Sky Grand Prix at the weekend. In May 2013 Durban Metro Police removed several unlicensed beach artists in an effort to control the burgeoning trade of sand sculpting which  can earn its […]

As the prosecution winds down its case, we can expect some bombshell revelations, and today – Monday March 24, 2014 – was just the beginning. Hawks’ cellphone expert Captain Francois Moller read out transcripts of WhatsApp messages between Oscar and Reeva, which have been downloaded from Reeva’s cellphone. Below is a sample. Oscar has denied witness testimony […]

I’m back on the beat of the Oscar trial after time away from the action. Like a voyeur, I’ve been playing catch-up, tracking the replays of the Oscar Pistorius trial on Channel 199 as his uncertain fate nears. I’ve missed writing about Oscar. Like anyone with a habit, I had withdrawal symptoms and couldn’t wean […]

It was an awesome day out in Nelson Mandela Bay in Port Elizabeth yesterday for both the competitors who took part in the City Lodge Hotel Group “3 Beaches Challenge”…and for the dolphins who joined them! Photographer Dirk Erasmus was out in a rubber dingy to capture the day’s activities in this fairly new event […]

“It’s not easy to talk about Madiba,” Ahmed Kathrada said at the third Mandela Colloquium in Johannesburg this week. And then proceeded to spend almost an hour talking about his affectionate memories of Nelson Mandela, mostly in the present tense – perhaps giving a sense how present Mandela still is in his life, even after […]

Durban hosted one of South Africa’s hottest aviation events on Friday and Saturday – the Durban Sky Grand Prix of aerobatics, and as can be seen by the photos, their promise to “take you to the sky and back” was delivered. The Land Sea Air event was held at North Beach and featured a special […]

We-love-Thuli-Madonsela fever is spreading through South Africa. For those who don’t yet know her, Advocate Thulisile Madonsela is the Public Protector (Ombudsman) who recently completed the investigation and report on the over R200-million upgrade to President Jacob Zuma’s residential complex in Nkandla. Facebook fan pages have risen rapidly to support and commend Ms Madonsela for […]

A fabulously evocative and vibrant South African painting sold for over a million pounds in London this week! ‘Zanzibar Woman’ by Irma Stern (1894-1966) was auctioned at the prestigious Bonhams sale of South African art for a total of £1,082,500 (R19,289,760). Irma painted this portrait, an oil on canvas, during her 1939 trip to the […]

The United Nation’s International Day of Happiness has had an extra happy vibe to it this year with Pharrell Williams’ latest hit song “HAPPY” playing all the way from Tokyo to Toronto, Cairo to Cape Town. It seems every country around the world has uploaded their own version – Bosnia, Tunisia, Australia, Madagascar, Japan…in fact […]

Visiting Cape Town was always on my to-do list, however I never thought that the rest of the country would be as interesting as it turned out to be. I briefly visited Johannesburg in 2010, but didn’t enjoy it that much at the time. When I finally managed to land in Cape Town in 2012 […]

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom will be screened at the United Nations in Geneva today, 20 March 2014, ahead of the commemoration of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination tomorrow. The screening of the film, based on the late South African President’s autobiography, will be followed, by a panel discussion during the […]

As the Oscar Pistorius trial continues, with some describing it as oscillating between ‘gore’ and ‘bore’, so too does the trial of South Africa, with Brand SA Manager Simon Barber being the latest to step up and defend the country from being branded a “failed state”. American lawyer and outspoken political commentator, Alan Dershowitz, marched […]

Ever wondered just how many flights take off from Heathrow each day and how frequently; or how many passengers are bustling through that busy airport daily? Well, South African author Robert Wicks has recently put the finishing touches to a book which answers these questions and more; revealing the inner workings of the world’s busiest […]

A South African soldier stationed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has produced a creative and unique comic strip (see below)…about a day in the life of the South African contingent of the MONUSCO Force Intervention Brigade (FIB). The comic strip – which is presented in the form of photos with voice bubbles […]