My Kenyan Safari
In October I was lucky enough to visit the amazing African country of Kenya and I left a part of my heart there! The country makes you smile with joy. I am not sure if it is the people, the sights and smells of Africa or the Wildlife. It is an experience not to be missed.
Nairobi is a buzzing capital city and has some fabulous hotels to recharge the batteries before you embark on your safari. The city itself has plenty attractions to keep you busy and introduce you to conservation at its best. We visited the David Sheldrick Elephant sanctuary which is an extra special, heartwarming centre for rehabilitation of rescued Elephants and their ultimate journey back into the wild.
We also visited the Giraffe Centre which is both informative and a fun thing to do, a place where you can get up close and personal with these beautiful creatures.
We visited hotels and restaurants that were outstanding and I would highly recommend a night or two here pre or post to appreciate all Nairobi has to offer.
From Nairobi we drove about 4 hours to our first safari lodge Tambarare in Ol Pajeta Conservancy, A stunning tented camp, with extremely attentive staff, beautiful surroundings and a very personal experience. This camp is high end rustic with the bar and dining area overlooking a watering hole where the animals wandered oblivious to the humans nearby. Attention to detail in the lodges is paramount from your own butler, heated blankets and morning coffee being delivered to your veranda.
Game drives were planned around the client, early mornings, evenings, gin and tonics out on the plains watching the sun go down surrounded by Zebras. A little piece of paradise.
Our second lodge Olonana was reached by a short flight where we were collected from a makeshift runway in a small aircraft which was a love/hate trip for some. I think it is an absolute must so you can see Africa from the air.
This lodge was the ultimate in luxury. Amazing rooms with views over the river from your balcony, free standing bath and a full fridge of wine. The game drives were in the Masai Mara filled with animals and even a trip to a nearby Masai village was factored into the itinerary.
We found the guides interesting, knowledgeable, patient and really good fun. The staff in both places were attentive and the food was amazing, as was the wine!
I could carry on with the love and appreciation of this trip for days but why not call in and let me inspire you to visit Kenya.
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In the Easter holidays my husband and I jetted off to explore Brazil with my 2 teenager children, what an amazing country it is, we loved every minute. Our adventure started in Rio de Janeiro, taking in the sights of Christ de Redeemer, watched sunset up Sugar Loaf mountain, Fifa- street favella tour, Maracana stadium and enjoyed relaxing on Copacabana beach. The next stop was the amazing Iguazu Falls, with over 270 falls, spreading over the border of Brazil and Argentina - it was incredible. We explore both the Argentina and Brazil side and got soaked on the boat trip into the falls ! We stayed in Foz De Iguazu for 3 nights, the boys enjoyed a round of golf and the girls enjoyed relaxing by the pool. We headed over the border into Paraguay for a quick shopping trip before continuing our journey to Santos ( Sao Paulo beach resort ). The home of Pele, my football crazy family headed to Santos stadium and Pele museum before exploring the old town on a vintage tram. From here we boarded our cruise ship for a 7 night sailing along the coast of Brazil, we headed 1000 miles north, visiting the picturesque resort of Buzios - with its cobbled streets, turquoise water and lovely beaches. Salvador was the next stop, home to where it all began in Brazil, circa 1500's the first part of Brazil that was discovered by the Portuguese. This colourful town has a huge Afro-Brazil vibe and it is vibrant, full of energy and packed with history. Our cruise then sailed to the North Beaches of Brazil where we enjoyed a day on a paradise beach just north of Maceio before heading back to Santos with a couple of sea days for us to relax and enjoy the ship. On disembarking the cruise we had a full day before our late evening flight home so we took a private tour of Sao Paulo's city, taking in Bat Man alley - with it's colourful street art, visited the Monumento as Bandeiras, Ibirapurea Park and views of the city from the Museum of Art roof top. Travelling to Brazil from Manchester the flights operate via Lisbon with Tap air it is 3 hours to Lisbon then 10 hours from there. Brazil is the only Portuguese speaking country in South America and English is not widely spoken ( google translate became our best friend ). The country is so diverse, the people extremely happy, friendly and always dancing !! We loved every minute of this trip and it was a great way to celebrate my son's 18th Birthday. One for the memory bank !
Cindy and Julie recently travelled to Budapest for a cruise conference and enjoyed a 2 night stay on board Ama waterways river cruise boat AmaMora. This beautiful luxury river boat has 70 cabins, it is decorated throughout in lovely pastel pink colours. On the first evening they were invited to the fine dining restaurant at the back of the ship called Chef's table, this was a 7 course meal paired with a wine for each course, it was an incredible experience, it is included free of charge for each guest on board at least once per their cruise. They enjoyed a walking tour through Budapest's Jewish quarter in the afternoon and in the evening the boat sailed down the Danube past the stunning Parliament building. Day 2 - cruise conference day, they joined our cruise partners for a full day of product knowledge and networking. They had presentations from Virgin Voyages, Ambassador Cruises, Princess Cruises, Riviera Travel, Scenic / Emerald Cruises, Explora Journeys, Oceania Cruises, Azamara, NCL, Star Clippers, Cunard and Royal Caribbean Cruises. When you stay on board a river boat they are able to dock in the city centre. It is a great way to experience may different cities and stunning landscape in one holiday. Ideal for those wanting to see lot's of different places while only unpacking once. A river cruise holiday can be as relaxing or as busy as you choose. Cindy had never been on a river boat before and absolutely loved it.
