khuluma July 2021 Edition

July-September 2021

e-edition

yours forever - download me please

keep one eye open*

Carvin H Goldstone (and Ewok)

* Seductive sleeps in Sabie, stoked on waves in J-Bay + dreamy designs in the Delta

PARADISE FOUND 104 on Creek resort-style apartments at Steyn City offer everything you desire – and more.

Get your adrenaline pumping on the 50km mountain bike trail or jog on the 45km promenade.

Play a round of golf on our Nicklaus design championship course nestled in our 2000 acres of indigenous parkland. This piece of paradise has 24/7 security to provide peace of mind while you enjoy all the amenities you could ever wish for.

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RESORT STYLE APARTMENTS from R2.9m sTANDS from R3.5M

Welcome to a special, commemorative exhibition This year marks several momentous milestones for the Bag Factory. Not only is the organisation celebrating its 30th anniversary, but it is also proud to be hosting the Cassirer Welz Award 10-year retrospective The Cassirer Welz Award, presented annually in partnership with long-term sponsor Strauss&Co, is celebrating 10 years with a special commemorative retrospective exhibition. Founded in 2011 by the late Nobel Laureate, Nadine Gordimer, as a tribute to her husband Reinhold Cassirer’s love of the arts, the Reinhold Cassirer Award has grown into a prestigious visual art award known for locating and acknowledging excellence in emerging local artists.

PAYING TRIBUTE

After Gordimer’s passing in 2014, Strauss&Co. pledged its continued support to the award. Following the passing of Stephan Welz in 2015, the Reinhold Cassirer Award was renamed the Cassirer Welz Award as a fitting tribute to the two men who contributed so much to the South African art world.

Each year, an emerging South African artist under the age of 35 in the field of drawing or painting, is chosen to spend 10 weeks in residence at the Bag Factory’s studios, culminating in the artist’s first

solo exhibition of new work. Through the exchange of ideas, mentorship and skills development provided during this time, the artist has an opportunity for substantial creative and professional growth.

SHOWCASING THE WORKS OF WINNERS

In this 10-year retrospective exhibition of the Cassirer Welz Award, the Bag Factory showcases early and new work by previous winners Tshepo Masopa (2011), Blessing Ngobeni (2012), Asanda Kupa (2013), Thato Nhlapo (2014), Keneilwe Mokoena (2015), Nompumelelo Ngoma (2016), Richard ‘Specs’ Ndimande (2017), Olivia Botha (2018), Duduzile ‘Dudubloom’ More (2019) and Levy Pooe (2020).

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You can enjoy these artworks in two different ways. They’ve popped up at the new precinct, Oxford Parks in Dunkeld. Make an appointment to visit the gallery and grab a coffee to enjoy while you discover the work of previous winners.

There’s also an exciting online show that can be viewed in full 3D on the Bag Factory’s website www. bagfactoryart.org.za. Watch the artists share how bagging this prestigious award has impacted their work.

You’ll have a front-row seat from the comfort of your home.

Thank you to Strauss&Co. and BASA’s supporting grants programme for making this possible.

VISIT THE EXHIBITION Dates: 24 July to 12 September 2021 Address: Oxford Parks, 199 Oxford Road, Dunkeld, Johannesburg We’re open by appointment only, please email info@bagfactoryart.org.za or call 011 834 9181 to come through Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.

Dis Net Ek / It’s Just Me III Oil on board 20.5 x 17.7 cm

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Safe Rising (1), 2 0 2 1 H a n d m ad e disks with found cardboard and acrylic wool o n c anv as 51 x 51 x 5cm

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1. Goat Head, 2020, Richard ’Specs’ Ndimande 2. Inkululeko ingaphakathi, 2021, Asanda Kupa 3. Dis Net Ek / It’s Just Me lll, Olivia Botha 4. Without Skin We Pink, 2020, Blessing Ngobeni 5. In my mother’s house, 2020, Nompumelelo Ngoma 6. Transit 2016, Tshepo Masopa 7. Joyous rebirth, 2021, Thato Nhlapo 8. Busking In The City III, 2021, Levy Pooe 9. Safe Rising (1), 2021, Duduzile ‘DuduBloom’ More 10. Untitled | 22, 2021, Keneilwe Mokoena

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H A M I LT ON’S PROPERTY

PORTFOLIO

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View from THE TOP

ave you heard of chessboxing? Or zorbing, which involves getting inside a large inflatable transparent orb and then rolling – helplessly – down a hillside? It’s a skill-free activity in which you get tossed around in this big ball until eventually you come to a stop. A South African holds the Guinness-certified record for the longest distance travelled in a single roll – he went 570 metres!

Thing is, as extreme as zorbing can get if you find a steep enough hill, no-one’s yet found a meaningful competitive angle, so while it’s a fun thing to watch your drunk friends do, it’s safe to say it’ll never be classified as a sport.

Extreme ironing, though, now there’s a sport to raise the adrenaline. Don’t underestimate the desired level of danger involved, either. The idea is to take your ironing board to some far-out location where you then proceed to iron your way through your laundry. It’s been done on mountainsides, whilst snowboarding, in canoes, even by skydivers in mid-air.

The Extreme Ironing Bureau’s official definition is that it is a ‘danger sport that combines the thrills of an extreme outdoor activity with the satisfaction of a well-pressed shirt’.

As seriously as it’s taken by thrill-seekers who hate wrinkled clothing, it is – like such outlier sports as bog snorkelling, caber tossing, wife-carrying, cheese rolling and quidditch – unlikely to find its way into the mainstream Olympic schedule anytime soon.

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Neither is Afghanistan’s national sport, for that matter.

Buzkashi (or ‘goat pulling’) is a team sport in which horseback-mounted players drag an animal carcass around and score goals by throwing it through a hoop.

Still, there is hope for outsider sports. This year, karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing are first-time Olympic events; and baseball and softball – previously cut from the Games – are back on the programme.

There’ll also be a few new events within existing sports.

There’ll be three-on-three basketball, and – in keeping with the times – mixed-gender relays in swimming and in some athletics events will also feature.

Yet, while the Tokyo Games will see competitors rising to the challenge in 339 different events across 33 unique sports, none of Japan’s own traditional sporting codes are among them.

So you won’t, for example, be able to try and figure out the rules of bo-taoshi, a crazy, wildly chaotic team sport with 150 players on each side. Nor will you see Japan’s highly ritualised sumo wrestling, which is a shame since few sports these days include the rule that losing your loincloth means instant defeat.

Also, if these ancient Japanese sports are still being overlooked by the Olympic organisers, what chance does a brilliant modern-day hybrid invention like chessboxing stand of ever being inducted into the Games? And what of our very own lintonga, skununu or jukskei?

@kulula

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July 2021

e-edition

yours forever - download me please

Carvin H Goldstone

keep one eye open*

(and Ewok)

All the web addresses you see in this magazine are clickable. Just hover your cursor over the URL and click.

* Seductive sleeps in Sabie, stoked on waves in J-Bay + dreamy designs in the Delta

an vin d

Ca eet r

23

JULY 2021

Ewok

Contents

PUBLISHED BY PICASSO HEADLINE a proud division of Arena Holdings Hill on Empire, 16 Empire Road (cnr Hillside Road), Parktown, Johannesburg 2193 PO Box 12500, Mill Street, Cape Town, 8010

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EDITORIAL Editor Keith Bain Copy Editor Nicci Collier Content Manager Raina Julies – rainaj@picasso.co.za Content Co-ordinator Vanessa Payne

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ART Head of Design Studio Jayne Macé-Ferguson Senior Designer Mfundo Archie Ndzo Junior Designer Bulelwa Sotashe Production Editor Shamiela Brenner Cover Photographer Sven Kristian

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EXPERIENCE 7 THE SOCIAL SPACE

Take care out there.

SALES Project Manager Merryl Klein – merrylk@picasso.co.za, +27 82 895 7260 Sales Consultants Stephen Crawford, Richard White Advertising co-ordinator Johan Labuschagne

11 TOKYO DREAMING

You can’t go to the Games, but

you can taste a bit of Tokyo.

EXPLORE 17 REST ASSURED

Stay awhile in Mpumalanga’s

most enchanted valley.

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25 SAFARI BY DESIGN

Between game drives and mokoro rides,

explore Africa’s finest design collection.

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Kulula.com Chief Executive Officer Comair Ltd Glenn Orsmond Executive Manager Sales and Marketing, kulula.com Brian Kitchin Brand Communictions Manager, kulula.com Luane Lavery

31 BUT, BABY, IT’S COLD OUTSIDE

Chill, they said. Forget about it!

37 J-BAY’S ENDLESS SUMMER

There’s no cancelling these waves.

DISCOVER

47 HOME AND AWAY

Tights to keep you dry, a winter hideaway

at the Waterfront, and a springbok inspired robot built for Mars.

54 A FEW GOOD BOOKS

Hot reads for a cold month.

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Surf’s

e! up, dud

44 TONY TASTES THE BURN

The late, great Anthony Bourdain warms

his taste buds in Mozambique.

management Business Manager Lodewyk van der Walt – lodewykv@picasso.co.za Management Accountant Deidre Musha General Manager, Magazines Jocelyne Bayer

Comair Limited 1 Marignane Drive, Bonaero Park, Kempton Park, 1619 Tel: 011 921 0111 | kulula.com | contact centre: 0861 KULULA (585852) Copyright: No portion of this magazine may be reproduced in any form without written consent of the publisher. The publisher is not responsible for unsolicited material. khuluma is published monthly by Picasso Headline.

The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Picasso Headline, kulula or Arena Holdings. All advertisements/advertorials and promotions have been paid for and therefore do not carry any endorsement by the publisher. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of its contents, neither kulula, nor the publisher can be held responsible for any omissions or errors, or for any misfortune, injury or damages that may arise therefrom. We reserve the right to edit interviews for layout purposes.

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SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE EXPERIENCE

KEEP IT SAFE

THE SOCIAL SPACE

1. Dev’s quest Coming to cinemas on 30 July, The Green Knight is an epic fantasy steeped in legend and legendary characters. Dev Patel plays King Arthur’s reckless nephew, Sir Gawain, on a quest to face off against some scarily oversized green-skinned stranger. His mission is laced with danger, designed to suspend our disbelief as the film whisks us off to a realm where true heroes and mystical creatures really exist.

kulula.com

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EXPERIENCE SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE

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2. Midwinter’s dream There’s a long tradition of Shakespeare being performed in the park. Known for their musicals and summer pantomimes, Kickstart is firing up one of the Bard’s best-loved comedies, A Midsummer Night's Dream for a short run (23 July–1 August) under moonlight at Durban Botanic Gardens. Don't worry, there’ll be electrical lights, too, and if Eskom gives up the ghost the play features enough fairies who’ll cast a romantic glow over proceedings. computicket.com 8

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3. Something fishy It’s perhaps a bit devastating that we would need such a thing, but 1 August is the first-ever Marine Protected Areas Day, when focus will be brought to the 42 MPAs along South Africa’s coastline.

We all know the problems, so here’s a day dedicated to addressing them, and perhaps getting involved in projects and clean-ups and consciousness drives that will help get the sea and the planet back on track. marineprotectedareas.org.za, saambr.org.za

4. Who’s your tutu?

Pictured are Xinyue Zhao and Chongzheng Guan – the duo from the National Ballet of China won double gold at last year’s South African International Ballet Competition. The 8th edition of this major dance competition will be a hybrid event with some dancers taking part onstage at Artscape Opera House in Cape Town and others competing via pre-recorded video submissions. The live competition is happening from 19 to 24 July. computicket.com kulula.com

SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE EXPERIENCE

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Words: Keith Bain, Pictures: A24, National Ballet of China, Steve Benjamin, Claire Gunn, Supplied

5 5. It’s kiff at DIFF From 3 000 submitted films, the Durban International Film Festival (22 July to 1 August) selection panel has curated 120 shorts, documentaries and feature-length films for this year’s programme, themed ‘Framing the Future, Cinema Unleashed’. Pictured is a scene from The Eagle’s Nest, which will open the festival. It’s by Cameroonian-born British filmmaker Olivier Assoua and deals with the issue of immigration out of Africa due to poverty. ccadiff.ukzn.ac.za kulula.com

6. The lounge singers By now, most musicians are familiar with broadcasting from their homes. Multi-instrumentalist folk-rock duo Esté and Lourens Rabé of Bottomless Coffee Band go one step further. For their bespoke concert-and-wine series, they make space for 25 people to watch them perform in their own living room and invite winemakers to introduce their wines. On 9 July, it’s the turn of Muratie – ticket prices include wines, snacks, music and good conversation.

To secure your place, email bcb@bottomlesscoffeeband.com

7 7. Masterchefs Pictured are the masterful Chef’s Warehouse chefs overseeing the two remaining culinary weekends at Tintswalo at Boulders in Simon’s Town. The weekends include two nights’ accommodation, hands-on food demos, a wine-tasting, dinner with paired wines, lunch, breakfast, and a Friday evening sundowner.

Gordon Logan (seated) will share his kitchen know-how on 23 and 24 July, while Braam Beyers will dish out the expertise on 13 and 14 August. Call Jeantelle on 021 201 0025 to enquire. tintswalo.com J U LY - S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1

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small airport, BIG benefits

4 reasons why you should be flying through Lanseria International Airport

ample convenient parking

SLOW XS Lounge Unwind and recharge at the SLOW XS Lounge just before taking to the skies. Enjoy complimentary Wi-Fi, beverages and munchies, reading material plus TV and much more to keep you relaxed and entertained. Visit www.kulula.com for more details.

Ample parking which is easily accessible from the terminals building.

fast check-in

avoid the crowd

The airport’s small and compact size means fewer crowds, making it faster to navigate through the check-in and boarding queues.

Fewer crowds allow you to have a less stressful airport experience while being able to maintain social distancing.

For more information on Lanseria click here.

All strict COVID -19 protocols are observed.

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JAPANEASY EXPERIENCE

Tokyo dreaming Sadly, the Olympics are off the menu for the majority of us, but that needn’t mean missing out on the best Japanese cuisine

Bento what?

Ubiquitous across the Far East, the bento originated in Japan and is basically a meal-for-one, usually either a restaurant take-away or packed at home, typically for the office. Traditionally, it’ll include rice or noodles, a meat dish, plus pickled and cooked vegetables. And, yes, it’s packed in a box which can be a simple disposable container or something quite fancy and elaborately crafted for a lifetime’s use. kulula.com

There can be Obi one Papa San is a legendary figure on Cape Town’s culinary landscape.

Having honed his craft in Tokyo, he’s reigned over a couple of cult-level restaurants in the city and now rules the kitchen at Long Street’s Obi Restaurant alongside fellow chef, Ben Bettendorf. The pair create a rich variety of traditional as well as contemporary and slightly experimental Japanese dishes – imaginative way beyond the usual rainbow rolls. Can’t decide? The Bento Box lunch special (pictured) has a bit of everything – miso soup, prawn California rolls, a salmon rose, nigiri (tuna and salmon), and vegetable tempura with tentsuyu dipping sauce. obirestaurant.co.za J U LY - S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1

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EXPERIENCE JAPANEASY

The folk who Ōku

Cult classics

Kyoto Garden began as an eccentric Tamboerskloof outpost obsessed with creating the sort of studiously authentic Japanese food you couldn’t get at Cape Town’s ubiquitous sushi joints. Even their ice creams (miso- or green tea-flavoured) are in a league of their own.

Plus, they have Japanese craft beers, sakes, shochu, and make true Japanese cocktails. kyotogarden.co.za 12

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Tokyo three ways

You have your pick of menus, moods, decor and level of indulgence at Tjing Tjing, Cape Town’s inner-city Japanese sanctuary. The entrance is on Longmarket Street and each floor differs from the last.

Ground-level Torii is casual and serves lunch and dinner reminiscent of yokocho (street food alleys) – from traditional Japanese breakfast, hirata buns and gyoza, to filling ramen bowls (like the one above). Upstairs, Momiji is more serious, refined, and currently serving a five-course Omakase (chef's choice) menu for R395.

Up some more and there’s an exquisite rooftop bar that feels like pure Tokyo – colourful, futuristic, anime-infused. tjingtjing.co.za kulula.com

Words: Keith Bain, Pictures: Bruce Tuck, Tristan du Plessis, Supplied

Ōku means oak and it’s the name of Franschhoek’s only true East Asian restaurant where you can tuck into tataki (raw or slightly seared meat), chew on kakiage (tempura), and get some yakitori (skewered pork) into your belly. Those are just for starters. You will find bao and fragrant broths, too, and mains include seared tuna (with togarashi, daikon, noodles and mentsuyu), and hunks of Wagyu sirloin for R950 a portion.

Whatever happens, save room for the Japanese cheesecake. eat-oku.co.za

JAPANEASY EXPERIENCE

Temple of fine dine

On the fifth floor of the Speakers’ Corner building near Parliament, FYN occupies a room so stately it feels like a culinary temple. Fitting then that at the helm are Peter Tempelhoff and Ashley Moss, two great chefs who create visionary multi-course dining experiences.

The full kaiseki menu will demand the entire evening, but there’s a reduced menu if you have a Netflix show to catch before bedtime. fynrestaurant.com

Sensei and sensibility

The newest hang-out for Sandton’s air-kissing crowd, Tang is a seriously swanky Tristan du Plessis-designed restaurant and bar. Done out in a black-and-sepia palette with lots of marble, travertine and granite, its softer accents reside in the buds of lofty cherry blossoms. Named for the dynasty that revelled in satisfying the senses, it’s not exclusively Japanese, but aims to create a contemporary izakaya-style atmosphere by serving a mix of Hong Kong Cantonese cuisine, robatayaki grill-fired cuts, wok-cooked dishes, and loads of sushi. tanghospitality.com

kulula.com

See no evil, taste no evil

What began as a mere ramen outpost, Three Wise Monkeys in Sea Point has expanded its menu to include sushi and bao (silky soft steamed buns), plus a bunch of experiments (yakitori sticky wings; bao dogs; and tuna or salmon sushiritos, which are burritos with sushi inside!).

They can also do taiyaki (fishshaped cakes stuffed with red-bean paste or Nutella) – don’t ask, just try! threewisemonkeys.co.za J U LY - S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1

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your safety is our number 1 priority all you need to know for a safe and comfy travel experience!

Wear your mask covering nose & mouth for the entire duration of your travel journey & sanitise regularly check-in online to limit contact at the airport

kulula travel app helps you stay informed about the status of your flight

arrive early and be at the airport at least 2 hours before your flight’s departure

need special assistance submit a request 48 hours, prior to your departure

drop off your bag at the bag drop counter or head off to the Security gate if you don’t have any bags to check-in

our aircraft are sanitised after each flight and equipped with HEPA filters that recycle the cabin air every 3 minutes to remove germs and viruses

khuluma, your favourite magazine, is now available as a digi-mag and downloadable before your flight

Catering has been temporarily suspended, only water will be served on request.

Please avoid bringing food, drinks and snacks (including chewing gum) to prevent cross contamination.

For more information on Covid-19 click here.

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AFRICA’S WARM HEART EXPLORE

EXPLORE Here. There. Everywhere.

CREATIVE FIRE

Words: Keith Bain, Picture: Supplied

Possibly the most dazzling hearth you’ll ever lay eyes on, this copper ‘lily’ fireplace crafted by Cape Town’s Bronze Age Studio is among the countless original functional artworks, installations and distinctive furniture pieces found inside and out at Xigera Safari Lodge in the Okavango Delta. Fire – for cooking, for warmth, and for staring at while you’re listening to wild tales – is a unifying theme that runs throughout the lodge where creativity has been allowed full expression, executed by some of the top artists, designers and crafters in Africa. Join our design safari on page 25.

Find sanctuary in the Sabie Valley

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Surf’s up in J-Bay

PLUS Winter, come at me! kulula.com

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DISCOVER thE thRIll Of Skyway tRaIlS Skyway Trails offers two fun-packed, exciting outdoor adventures for all – the Aerial Cable Trail and the Tree-Top Challenge.

The Aerial Cable Trail is made up of eight ziplines that take visitors over one of the last remaining natural forested valleys along the Sabie River, adjacent to the Kruger National Park. Each section of the 1.2km trail varies in length from 230m to 70m, with visitors moving from one elevated platform to the next. Kids under 10 are assisted by our guides.

The Tree-Top Challenge is an elevated obstacle course that is suitable for all those who are up for a challenge! Ideal fun for family and group outings, our two courses offer 35 exciting obstacles, including balancing beams, rope bridges, ‘spider webs’ and a 50m zipline.

Skyway Trails is located on the scenic Panorama Route at the popular Perry’s Bridge Lifestyle Centre in Hazyview, Mpumalanga.

For more information: T: 013 737 6747 082 825 0209 E: info@skywaytrails.com W: www.skywaytrails.com

A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT

EXPLORE

SNUGGLE UP IN SABIE

REST ASSURED

1. Fly me to the moon No, we’re not suggesting you fly away to some distant outpost in Timbuktu. Nor is this tuktuk in fact anywhere near the Sahara Desert. The clue is the lush backdrop against which this, the entrance to beautiful Timamoon, is set – it’s right here, in the lush green tropical wonderland that is Mpumalanga’s Sabie River Valley; head beyond the entrance and you’re embraced by dreamy indigenous forest.

kulula.com

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EXPLORE

A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT

Things about Timamoon that’ll make you smile? The name is an homage to Timimoun in the Algerian Sahara where red-mud Sudanese-style buildings inspired Timamoon’s seven individual villas. Each is a unique trove of treasures collected on travels to exotic lands – Zanzibari poster beds, Indian temple windows, Tibetan doorways, and many more artefacts that contribute to Timamoon’s enchantment. In romantic Secret Moon, it’s clay tortoises, antique daybed, wild tigers, a crushed gold velvet couch and Moroccan copper basins, along with private pool, and outdoor bath and shower.

Many Moons, meanwhile, sleeps five in two en-suite bedrooms –

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Set forth

Positioned on the hills above the Sabie River, the valley that Timamoon overlooks is packed with birds and animals. There’s a 7km hiking trail on the property to explore between meals and stints spent staring out from your stoep. It’s also a good time to join a guided Kruger safari – game vehicles are less crowded and prices discounted. Lowveld Extreme Adventures and GZ Adventures are new outfits, both on the road between Sabie and Hazyview, offering activities such as quad biking and river rafting – the latter is a fine way to experience the Sabie with its massive matumi trees, birdlife and the odd croc or hippo.

n this Mentio hen w article r stay at u o y g l bookin n and you’l o o Timam % discount 0 get a 2 ays until r o f st 21 ust 20 5 Aug

plus big lounge with fireplace, rim-flow pool, daybed and ceaseless forest soundtrack. And so it goes…

OMG factors? It’s probably enough simply being here, but there are many extra touches, too. An outdoor cinema, for example, where they’ll lay out a private dinner for you – and by ‘you’ we mean just you. They also put together private picnics on the Sabie’s banks right next to Timamoon’s own little waterfall.

You’ll relish the solitude, the chorusing birdsong, the shush of flowing water, the unsullied air. Everything, really. Even spa treatments in your villa.

How deep are your pockets?

From R5 400 per couple, dinner and breakfast included. timamoonlodge.co.za

kulula.com

Your one stop shop for activities in and around the canYon Blyde dam boat trips • White water rafting and Tubing • Quad bike trails • Kloofing • Microlight flights • Hot Air balloon flights • Game drives • Panorama Tours • Transfers • Skyway trails

For More Information: Telephone: 015 795 5961 / 081 487 2267 Whatsapp: 065 671 9455 Website: www.blydecanyon.co.za

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A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT EXPLORE

2. Designer farm in the very DNA of this lodge comprising just seven chalets, tucked away with either river or forest views, or (for honeymooners) in an even more secluded location. There are log fires and electric blankets, bath tubs big enough for two, and your own plunge pool. Meals can be served to your cushy quarters, enjoyed under the stars, or in the main part of the lodge where there are yet more

Words: Keith Bain, Pictures: Supplied

2. A familiar tune Yes, as in that Cuban song ‘Guantanamera’… Tanamera – gorgeously situated deep in the Lowveld forest overlooking the Sabie River Valley – may well evoke similar feelings of nostalgia and old-school romance. And, to be quite honest, being here, staring out across the valley, a canopy of green unfurling below, makes your soul soar just like the song.

Things you’ll love about Tanamera? Respite, tranquillity, nature all around…

These essential elements for a restorative getaway are

Beyond the valley

From Tanamera, Kruger National Park’s nearest gate, Phabeni, is a halfhour’s drive. You could also head north and explore the Panorama Route. It’s among the finest drives in the country, taking in such naturally scenic spots as Mac Mac Falls, God’s Window, Bourke’s Luck Potholes and the Three Rondavels on a more or less circular loop that will also afford opportunity to survey the Blyde River Canyon from on high. And you can visit the gold-rush town of Pilgrim’s Rest, too.

spots from which to take in the serene views and crisp clean air.

What’ll you get up to here?

Nothing if you prefer. If you don’t mind extracting yourself from the lodge’s laidback comforts, though, you can head off on long walks to the Sabie River, with rock pools to rest at.

How deep are your pockets?

From R5 200 per couple, breakfast and dinner included. tanamera.co.za kulula.com

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R E D C A R N AT I O N H OT E L S .C O M

Carvin H Goldstone MEET

Be kiff Stay loyal to the end

Picture: Sven Kristian

Howzit, outie! It’s me, Carvin. Durban-born, kiff, eksê!

I’ve had dogs most of my life. Everything from sausage dogs to pit bulls. I like dogs because they’re loyal, which can’t always be said of humans.

With me is Ewok, one of countless pets who’ve at some point been abandoned by people who don’t realise what it takes to care for a dog. Many think they’re accessories or playthings.

Look at what happened when Game of Thrones caused legions of fans to go out and buy huskies because – get this – they wanted to own a ‘dire wolf’.

There was a huge spike in the number of abandoned, homeless huskies.

Last year was a huge year for dog adoption.

Around the world, people prepared for lockdown by taking in rescues and picking up puppies for companionship and cuddles to see them through the isolation.

And while that’s great news in the short-term, things got a little depressing once households began returning to work and school. Suddenly there were animals who had grown accustomed to unbridled love and attention left to fend for themselves, no longer getting the kind of all-day love and attention they’d come to expect.

On behalf of all the voiceless animals like little Ewok here, remember that these loyal companions give so much and demand very little in return. So, if you can’t do right by them, rather leave them be. kulula.com

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DREAMS CAN COME TRUE:

Botswana’s Okavango Delta is one of the world’s greatest wildlife destinations, but there’s usually a hefty premium to pay to experience it. For SADC residents, that’s just changed.

A changing world brings rare opportunities. As part of the drive to restart the travel industry, Botswana’s top safari operators and lodge owners have made the most extraordinary deals available to SADC travellers. Imagine paying just 20 to 25 per cent of the normal price of accommodation in Botswana!

And we are talking about the best safari lodges in the most beautiful areas of the Okavango Delta and Moremi Game Reserve.

and needs, whether you want to mix and match your accommodation or spend all your time at a single lodge.

And, because we are independent, we have access to deals from many different hotel groups and operators, so you have more choice. The entire experience has all the appropriate COVID-protocols in place and more: you can, for example, get a PCR test done at your safari lodge before your return home.

Botswana has truly never been more affordable than now and these deals are valid for all of 2021.

You’ll enjoy daily game drives of course, but this is a highly diverse region of both land and water habitats. The Okavango experience includes motor-boat safaris and mokoro (canoe) adventures with local guides plus fishing and great birding.

Stay in a private concession and you can add guided walks and spot-lit night drives to your activities – watch our See and Taste Botswana video to see more.

Putting it all together is what we do. Safari Online is all about “safari by design”. We’ve travelled extensively through Botswana and will create an itinerary based on your personal interests

Visit www.botswanasafari.co.za for more information or simply Enquire Now and together we’ll create your dream Botswana safari.

Image Credits: Desert & Delta Safaris and Ker & Downey Botswana

TRAVEL NOW FOR AN AFFORDABLE OKAVANGO EXPERIENCE

ART OF ADVENTURE EXPLORE

Safari by design In the Okavango Delta, join a safari for all the senses, including the imagination

kulula.com

Fancy-schmancy.

Just the finest of everything.

Thrones on which to sit, kingly beds in which to laze, and, dotted all across the lodge, endless expressions of mature African design that eschew blandness.

Blandness isn’t what Africa is known for. And blandness doesn’t exist in the vocabulary here at Xigera, a super-fancy eco-lodge in the Okavango Delta. Everything, from architecture to bespoke fabrics, is statement-making.

Like this hand-sculpted terracotta seat called uMbandavu. And, on the table it faces, a metalwork chess set – A Tale for a San Child – celebrating Botswana’s original huntergatherers. As you sit down to play, you might imagine you’ve set down in some otherworldly kingdom. You wouldn’t be too wrong…

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EXPLORE ART OF ADVENTURE

uMbandavu was created by Andile Dyalvane (that’s him, pictured below on the right), widely recognised as one of the world’s finest ceramicists. uMbandavu is one of four seats at Xigera that are similarly linked to Dyalvane’s relationship with his Xhosa heritage, and that connect him, through his artistic practice, with his ancestors.

And throughout the lodge you will find many more throne-like seats that are unlike anything at your local furniture store...

The first is the nest-like structure pictured right, which you’ll spot as you walk across Xigera’s threshold. Designed

by Cape Town’s Porky Hefer (pictured below, left), it’s woven from thick kooboo cane and called Behd (sounds like ‘bird’). It’s inspired by observing weaver bird’s build their nests, then scaled up for humans as a seat of sorts – although you can happily treat it as a bed, a sculpture, a jungle gym – there’s even an entrance from the top.

If you think Behd is fun to romp in, wait until you go full horizontal on one of Hefer’s two reclining loungers near the bar.

The bar itself is a visual representation of the Okavango flood plains. It’s copper countertop was made by Bronze Age, textured to suggest what happens when the earth dries out when the flood recedes; the hand-carved walnut base is

by Meyer Von Wielligh and is a contrasting representation of the Delta’s rippling water during the wet season.

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kulula.com

ART OF ADVENTURE EXPLORE

You have to look up, too. In the library, pictured here, the articulated chandelier is by Joburg based woodworker David Krynauw.

Then, look down. The handwoven karakul wool rug was spun on a loom that had to be built especially for Somerset West weaving operation Coral and Hive; the pattern is inspired by West African Kuba cloth.

Chuma Maweni’s Imbizo Desk is the library’s centrepiece – hand-carved ebonised timber sits on a ceramic base. The geometric candelabras are by Cape Town’s Otto du Plessis, inspired by patterns found in traditional African shields and masks.

Cast your eye deeper into the room, to the mapped representation of the Okavango Delta, rendered in embossed leather by Durbanbased French-born designer Xavier Clarisse. The map covers the brass doors of a handmade cabinet, and if you look into the display nooks on either side of the map you will find many more distinctive objects, like Madoda Fani’s smoke-fired Abantu vessels and bowls by master woodworker Rodney Band.

We could continue exploring for days, taking in endless evidence that African talent and craftmanship stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the best in the world. What is truly remarkable, also, is the manner in which Xigera’s curators have captured the spirit of Africa’s creative imagination. By embracing the finest heartfelt expressions of the continent’s designers, this place celebrates African culture like no other safari lodge on earth. That is its great glory.

kulula.com

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EXPLORE ART OF ADVENTURE

Astonishing suites

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conceals a veritable trove of edible and quaffable treats – espresso maker, full minibar, and glass jars with nibbles and baked goods. All this in addition to such considerations as sensual robes, beautiful textures underfoot (even the shower floor is exquisitely patterned), and a watercolour paint set should the muse take you. You even have a private gazebo in which to laze, doze, read or stare spellbound at the ceaseless animal parade. xigera.com

And the game-viewing?

Everyone knows nature is the ultimate designer. And the Okavango Delta is some of her finest work, a seasonally sodden land before time, teeming with life. Xigera Island is as pristine and primordial as they come.

Animals saunter this way and that, lions around every other corner, leopards waiting behind the next termite mound. Whether you’re being driven, poled in a mokoro or are exploring by boat, you feel the Delta seep under your skin. The animals are everywhere; you’ll see them from your room, during lunch, from the spa and while you’re sunning yourself on the pool deck. And to interpret it all, Xigera has a superlative team of rangers who are not only experts, but thrilled to share their unbridled passion with you.

You will not be unmoved by the way in which such a beautifully curated lodge integrates so magnificently with the mother of all safaris.

kulula.com

Words: Keith Bain, Pictures: Mickey Hoyle, Adel Ferreira, Xigera, Southern Guild

There’s so much to amaze the eye and captivate the imagination at Xigera, and we have not even begun to talk about the architecture, about the fact that the entire lodge sits on a kind of metal superstructure so that it is entirely removable without a trace – no concrete, nothing permanent. That’s just one way in which Xigera prioritises environmental sustainability. Add to that that it is fully solar-powered and that even kitchen scraps are turned into compost for growing veggies and you start to realise just how deeply the entire project has been thought through. Then, there’s the design of the dozen villa-sized suites. Each features a palatial lounge, bed fit for an emperor, dressing room, and an outdoor shower in addition to a gorgeous bathroom.

And each is a masterpiece of exquisite detailing – one-of-a-kind furnishings, bespoke fabrics and clever essentials have been assembled to enhance your comfort as you take in the immense natural scene that spreads from beyond the entire length of your vast private terrace. A designer-crafted cupboard

Rates from R26182 per person for a fully inclusive seven night safari. All safaris are fly-in, with luxury lodge accommodation.

LET BOTSWANA'S MAGIC HEAL YOUR SOUL

MORE Safaris Luxury Big Five Safaris in the Sabi Sand Reserve, Kruger National Park and the Marakele National Park.

Thabametsi Treehouse, Marataba Luxury Lodges

River Lodge, Lion Sands Game Reserve

Miss Mara Water Safari, Marataba Luxury Lodges

Ivory Lodge, Lion Sands Game Reserve

Tinyeleti Treehouse, Lion Sands Game Reserve

Mountain Lodge, Marataba Luxury Lodges

Get in touch with us (or your preferred travel agent) to find out about our incredible promotions.

MORE Family Concierge | concierge@more.co.za | +27 (0)10 109 4900 | more.co.za

HOT TIMES IN COLD CLIMES EXPLORE

But, baby, it’s cold outside…

Nicci Collier and Keith Bain hunt down a few soul-warming mid-winter spoils

kulula.com

Powder to the people

Touted as South Africa’s Switzerland thanks to occasional dustings of powder, when it snows in and around Ceres half of Cape Town turns up to have a look. ‘Causes absolute chaos,’ says one local of the sudden congestion. The real powder, though, is more likely be found on the surrounding Skurweberg Mountains. At Matroosberg Private Nature Reserve, 35km from town, you can head up Matroosberg Peak, the Western Cape’s second-highest point, accessible via the province’s highest 4x4 trail. The peak gets the first and last snow of the season, sometimes as late as November. Trips to the top to play in the snow aren’t to be taken lightly – along with dizzying views, there are stupendous (and deadly) sheer drops. The SA Ski Club has petrol-powered ski-lifts and a pair of portable lifts to reach the tops of the slopes – snowboarding is also doable.

Back in the town itself, it’s worth tackling the Ceres Zip Line. In winter, as you slide high above the valley, you might just witness a thick white blanket covering the rugged mountains directly in front of you, with full-flowing waterfalls and rivers, too. matroosberg.com

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EXPLORE HOT TIMES IN COLD CLIMES

Have a Highlands fling

Steep in hot-tub heaven

Ever since the clever folks at Kolkol in the Overberg built their wooden mountain cabins and pod-like dwellings installed with their very own wood-fired hot tubs, the concept of offering electricity-free Jacuzzistyle social soaking baths has spread like wild, er, fire. The tubs have popped up everywhere from Bonnievale to Baardskeedersbos.

They’re a huge hit with glampers at various Africamps locations across the country, but one of the most faraway locations is the Karoo’s Mount Camdeboo Private Game Reserve near Graaff-Reinet where they have a few mountain-top Apex Glamping pods.

Guests can opt to stay in the eco-friendly Eagle’s Flight wooden pod, with an outdoor hot tub boasting swoon-worthy views of the Camdeboo, plus fire pit and private boma – and perhaps a lion strolling past your cabin. newmarkhotels.com

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Get stuck or be starstruck

Sutherland – South Africa’s star-gazing capital – delivers an abundance of snow. It’s quite feasible, in fact, for people to get stuck in town for days – in recent years, people have been rescued from dirt roads with a Casspir. According to local experts, the coldest recorded night-time temperature was –16.4°C, while one snowy, windy morning, the chill factor took it to –33°C. Snow has in fact been recorded here in every month of the year and, oddly enough, one

of the heaviest snowfalls occurred on 6 December 1970 producing powder that lay 1m deep in town.

Locals who remember it say that farmers were still pulling live sheep from under the snow 11 days later. Of course, once you’ve dug yourself out of the snow, you can visit SALT (pictured above), where the largest singleoptical telescope in the southern hemisphere is located.

Childhood memories of weekends in Dullstroom in Mpumalanga include board games beside a crackling fire, hearty meals at Dullstroom Inn, pancakes at Harrie’s Pancakes, icy fingers and noses as you raced down a hill on your bicycle while the grown-ups tried fly fishing in misty mountaintop lakes. One of SA’s highest towns, Dullstroom sits 2 100m above sea level, so snow regularly falls in winter, but no matter the weather, you’re in for a treat.

Particularly if bedding down at Walkersons Hotel & Spa, where The Flying Scotsman restaurant tends a roaring log fire and each suite is kitted out with a fireplace and electric blankets. And you can still cast for fish at Millstream Farm (pictured below), which evokes the faraway Scottish Highlands. walkersons.co.za, millstreamfarm.co.za

kulula.com

HOT TIMES IN COLD CLIMES EXPLORE

Snow patrol

If you’re lusting for a ‘real’ winter and have missed out on the wondrous white-out days everywhere else, head to Tiffendell in the Southern Drakensberg.

Between June and August every year, families head to the country’s only ski resort for endless fun on the slopes.

Snowboarding, skiing, tobogganing, après-ski glühwein… they have it all. tiffindell.co.za

Pictures: Leo Moko for Unsplash, Supplied

Warm your soul in the Winelands

In Stellenbosch, Lanzerac is a winter visit geared to banish the cold – whether touring and tasting your way through wine cellars as you learn Pinotage’s history, or feasting at the Taphuis, a cosy English pub-style restaurant with fire blazing. There are fireplaces in the suites, too, plus hot tubs on verandahs and underfloor heating.

Their winter special gets you three nights for the price of two. lanzerac.co.za

kulula.com

Steam clean

Not cheap, but far more affordable than flying to Istanbul, Babylonstoren, near Paarl, offers the passport-free equivalent of Turkey’s ultimate spa-like deepcleanse experience: a full-scale hammam ritual. Difference is, in Istanbul, you’ll likely get a substandard tourist treatment in some overpriced bathhouse.

Here in the Winelands, though, it’s the real deal, a traditional treatment perfected over centuries and guaranteed to restore practically every cell on your body.

When your eyes do adapt to the thick wave of steam in the sıcaklık (‘hot room’), it’s floorto-ceiling marble and curved roof, tiled with tiny turquoise squares.

Your natir gives you soap and a metal bowl with which to perform a preliminary cleanse and rinse before you lie on a marble slab.

Nellie’s (not) just desserts Exfoliating is first. Just when your think your skin is too sensitive for the rough scrubbing, it’s countered with soothing warm water poured in waves, first gently, then vigorously.

Then body butter, massaged into your skin, before a thorough external cleanse. Hair and scalp, too. All the while, buckets of soft water wash over you, sloshing onto the floor, a relaxing mist filling the rain-forest room.

Limbs are stretched, pressed, rinsed; dry skin smoothed and rejuvenated.

The package includes lunch and fresh juice, plus hot tea.

As you soak up the post-treatment bliss, you’ll feel a kind of inner and outer glow like nothing you’ve ever experienced. babylonstoren.com

At weekends, Cape Town’s iconic Mount Nelson has a ‘Winter Warmer’ menu brimming with heartand tummy-warming treats to savour either in the hotel’s lounge, its conservatory, or next to the fire in Planet Bar (pictured above). On the menu are Chef Rudi’s legendary three-cheese fondue, a chicken curry served with samosas, flaky rotis and basmati rice, and beer-cooked Saldanha mussels with hints of spice and spekboom, served with toasted sourdough and shoestring fries. Finish with warm caramelised apple pudding and rumand-raisin ice cream or lemon pudding with lemon curd and ricotta ice cream. There’s also a ‘Cognac and Chocolate’ indulgence on offer, and for most of 2021, South Africans get discounted room rates – R3 100 per couple, including breakfast. To book any of these, call 021 483 1000. belmond.com J U LY - S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1

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Generation of Sourdough

The Supertubes Guest House Collection is located on the world-famous surfing beach of Jeffreys Bay. This collection of guesthouses offers different accommodation options catering to all guests’ needs. The fully equipped self-catering villas are suitable for families and small groups. There are two different categories of guest rooms – classic and luxury. Luxury rooms with stunning sea views are just a stone’s throw away from the beach.

All rooms are well equipped with added extras.

Supertubes Guest House offers a full breakfast in the dining room, adjacent to the garden. Dinner is available on request.

Bookings: 042 293 2957/079 593 0241 Email: bookings@supertubesjbay.co.za More info: www.supertubesguesthouse.co.za Reception: 12 Pepper Street, Jeffreys Bay, 6330

SUPER-STOKED IN THE EASTERN CAPE EXPLORE

J-Bay’s endless summer Jeffrey’s Bay gets under your skin, writes Nicci Collier – and it’s not only for those whose second skin is neoprene

kulula.com

I

n 2015, an unbelievable moment played out on live TV: Australia’s Mick Fanning – at the time, world number two surfer on WSL’s rankings – fought off a great white shark that had bitten through his surfboard leash. Tweets of the J-Bay Open, where the action unfolded, neared 450 per minute. Fortunately, the shark seemed curious not hungry – Fanning punched and swam to safety. He braved the same waters in 2016, riding his

beloved Supertubes all the way to the number one spot on the podium. A year later, he had to be plucked from the waves once more after a threemetre great white was spotted videobombing the line-up.

Fanning’s tale proves how J-Bay gets under your skin. ‘I love the place. Nothing could ever change that,’ he said. ‘That wave is like no other, the people are pure gold and it's maybe my favourite stop on the schedule.’

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EXPLORE SUPER-STOKED IN THE EASTERN CAPE

Making up a section of J-Bay’s famous right-hand point break, ‘Supers’ is rated among the world’s best waves, with 300m of surfing perfection for advanced boardriders.

Then there’s Kitchen Windows, Magnatubes, Boneyards, Tubes, Impossibles, Albatross, Point… and a Blue Flag beach for non-surfers there to sample the warm Indian Ocean too. The best time for surfing J-Bay is during the winter months of May to August when the winds are offshore and swells come through more consistently. Despite Fanning’s experience, sharks are not an everyday occurrence; you’re more likely to encounter a pod of dolphins or, in winter, whales swimming by.

The town’s warm welcome extends beyond the waves as well. In the past decade, the relaxed fishing town and surf mecca has developed into one of the fastest growing urban areas in the country. Along with new residents have come trendy new delis, beer brewers (award-winning Brewhaha does a mean burger too, with epic fries or pap and sous to have with

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your Endless Summer Blond Ale), coffee shops, churches, guesthouses, restaurants and surf outlets. And, less than half an hour out of town, new lodges and eco-estates, where endless tracts of gorgeous green stretch as far as the eye can see.

Of course, there are the old faithfuls too: the famous factory shops of the Surf Village where mega-outlets sell rails and rails of bikinis, boardies, hoodies and everything in between from all the major surf brands, and Andy Thuysman’s InStep – home of the original hug for feet: JBayBoot sheepskin surf boots handmade in Jeffrey’s Bay, plus sheepskin slippers and wildebeest leather vellies. In 1974, Andy started making shoes for the surfers on the beaches of J-Bay, individually tracing the leather to the shape of their feet before cutting and sewing it by hand. Today, customers

J-Bay interrupted The J-Bay Open has been canned due to third wave fears. But for cycling fans, the Trans Baviaans MTB race makes its way to J-Bay in August. Dubbed the ‘toughest single stage race in the world’, the 230km team cycle marathon starts in Willowmore, ending in J-Bay 24 hours later.

transbaviaans.co.za

still say his shoes feel like they were made for them.

And, when you’re done stocking up on clothing, there’s the comforting embrace of lovedby-locals Quitschy’s Pizza, a 100% real-deal Italian restaurant in Ferreira Town. And just nearby, in the Wavecrest Centre, Nina’s Real Food is an institution known for the scrumptiousness of its grub – whether you want something wholesome or sinful, or just want to ogle the surfboards that decorate the slightly bohemian space, you’re in for a treat. Not to mention the chance you’ll be surrounded by surfers waxing lyrical about that humungous wave. Aweh, dude!

kulula.com

Play with us Jeffreys Bay is a world-renowned tourist destination and is especially famous for its beautiful beaches along an approximately 15km coastline.

Huge waves and one of the longest right-hand waves in the world makes it an attractive tourist destination.

Jeffreys Bay caters for everyone’s budget, from backpacking to 5-star establishments. Jeffreys Bay is well known for a family destination, where memories are made generation after generations. The two main hiking trails, Noorsekloof and Kabeljouws Nature Reserves, are ideal for visitors wishing to enjoy a bit of fresh-air-exercising whilst appreciating one of the few areas where renosterveld trees and shrubs are still intact, as well as other indigenous fauna and flora. Safe travels to Jeffreys Bay, and we would like you to share your memories with us!

www.jeffreysbaytourism.org Phone : 042 293 2923 Address : 17 Da Gama Road, Shell Complex, Jeffreys Bay, 6300

EXPERIENCE THE FUN RIDE • • • • • • •

Make a booking today via WhatsApp or www.rikshatours.com

Your journey right from the pick-up point to drop point, we assure you a customer friendly journey with us.

Your journey is expected to be safe and on time.

As we know it, we take care of the qualitative services to our customers.

You journey can be from somewhere to anywhere.

Availability of our services are facilitated thereby.

Your journey needs to be an affordable cost.

We understand the value of money and made it easy to pay.

We do pickups and drops off’s and town tours Tel: 063 491 6157 support@rikshatours.com www.rikshatours.com

SUPER-STOKED FREE STAT IN THE EASTERN CAPE EXPLORE

Catch your breath

Dude, what

to

Pictures: Janilson Furtado, Billy Fletcher and Sincerely Media for Unsplash

First, learn to surf

Whether you’re a total beginner or a bona fide barrel-blaster, the coaches at the Jeffrey’s Bay Surf School will guide you to your perfect ride. Learner lessons are at J-Bay’s Blue Flag Dolphin Beach – where you’re protected from any major currents and won’t get shredded to pieces on a rocky outcrop if you fall – while more advanced surfers will up their game at various breaks according to their level of wave-cruising skills. jbaysurfschool.co.za

Plan to see the sights

Want to visit J-Bay’s Shell Museum? And then head to the Kabeljous Nature Reserve for a hike, followed by fresh, line-caught fish at Kitchen Windows? With Riksha Tours’ Open Cart option you can book a colourful tuk-tuk for a full day of exploring. Or, opt for a town tour of the best spots to surf, eat and visit. rickshatours.com

kulula.com

do?

Where to

Stay in super style

It doesn’t get closer to Supers than at the Supertubes Guesthouse, with digs ranging from comfy en-suite standard rooms to the luxurious Khaya Zinza villa, directly facing J-Bay’s most famous swell a mere 30m away. Keep an eye on the action in the ‘wave-watch’ room, cook freshly caught fish in an open-plan kitchen, or fire up the coals in the indoor braai area, which leads out to a deck and garden.

Moses cooks satisfying breakfasts for guests and there’s even an outdoor hot shower, surfboard racks and a wetsuit dryer.

042 293 2957

go?

Feast like royalty

Jayne Davies cut her culinary teeth learning from the likes of Jamie Oliver and catered for Prince William’s 21st.

There is Infood Society, in the Surf Village, which could be in Bali (palm trees and timber; smoothie bowls; falafel; vegan chocolate cake); Infood Coffee Roastery (beach views; great coffee; a killer savoury waffle with eggs Benedict); The Bakery and Deli (craft gins; fresh produce; baked yums; a new lifestyle section; local tribes hanging out); and J Bay Bru Co., a must-visit bar and restaurant with classic surf feels and great food. infood.co.za

Some 26km from J-Bay, Intle is a romantic nine-room boutique hotel in the bush.

Lavish rooms; views of the Baviaanskloof mountains and Indian Ocean; and enfolded by 800 hectares of hills, valleys and thicket.

As you hike or cycle the reserve’s trails, there’ll be giraffes in the distance, zebras trotting off. Watch the evening’s last golden rays being cast out to sea as animals drink at the waterhole. Plus: bush picnics, gorgeous stargazing, and J-Bay’s twinkling lights visible, too! intle.co.za

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SKIN TIGHT DISCOVER

DISCOVER People. Ideas. Things.

LEAP INTO WINTER

Words: Keith Bain, Picture: supplied

Winter needn’t interrupt your training routine. The last thing you want when you’re training hard and building up a sweat in the middle of winter, though, is feeling your sweat turn cold while it clings to your skin. Take it from this guy, decked out in Under Armour’s new stretch woven shorts and TriBase Reign 3 shoes. Keeping his legs warm and dry?

A pair of Iso-Chill perforated leggings – find out how these super-cool tights operate on page 47.

The late, great Mr Bourdain kulula.com

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Reads to warm your soul

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43

DISCOVER ANTHONY BOURDAIN’S MOZAMBIQUE

Tony tastes the burn 44

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Just released, World Travel – An Irreverent Guide is Anthony Bourdain’s posthumous catalogue of his travels and global culinary experiences gleaned over years and then lovingly stitched together by co-writer, Laurie Woolever.

This extract distils his take on Mozambique, and why he declared its food Africa’s best kulula.com

ANTHONY BOURDAIN’S MOZAMBIQUE DISCOVER

I

n 1975, the newly independent Mozambique looked forward to a brighter future. But this was not to be. Yet rather than giving up after enduring a 16-year civil war – one of Africa’s most brutal and senseless – the country picked itself up and began the enormous, daunting task of rebuilding, well, everything, from the ground up.

There are very few places left in this world like Mozambique. The climate is nice. The people are really nice and the food is extraordinary.

Yet today, Mozambique is barely a pit stop on the tourist trail. It was with all this in mind that I arrived on my first visit to this East African country of 23 million people.

Mozambique, it should be pointed out, is a darling of the World Bank. It’s seen as an African success story, and the fact is, things are good, very good, here, compared with how things have been in the past. Five hundred years of truly appalling colonialism, 18 years of enthusiastic but inept Communism, and a brutal and

Illustration by Wesley Allsbrook, Extract courtesy of Bloomsbury

People here, after being relentlessly screwed by history, are relentlessly nice. senseless 16-year civil war ending less than 20 years ago left Mozambique with a devastated social fabric, a shattered economy, and only the memory of an infrastructure.

Set out on the turquoise water of the Indian Ocean, [Ilha de Mozambique] was the first European settlement in East Africa. Vasco da Gama landed here in 1498 while sailing the trade winds in search of the spice route to India.

But before him, there’d been Greeks, Persians, Chinese, Arabs, and Indians come down from the gulf or across the Indian Ocean…

Spend enough time on the island, and the rest of Africa can feel like a different continent. It’s a ruin really, a shell of its former glory, a crumbling monument to a colony built on the backs of the occupied and enslaved. Once storybook mansions, promenades, decaying, beautiful, but sad.

kulula.com

* Published by Bloomsbury and out now, Anthony Bourdain and Laurie Woolever’s World Travel – An Irreverent Guide is a food-fuelled journey around the world and into the heart and mind of a legendary raconteur.

Shockingly, people here, and throughout the country, after being relentlessly screwed by history, are just as relentlessly nice.

And the food is the best I’ve had in Africa.

Brazilian spices, Indian curries, the best of Africa and Asia, Arab traders, a dizzying AfroPortuguese, Latin American, pan-Arab, Asian mix.

Along much of the coast of Mozambique, through good times and bad, what they always had was an abundance of incredible seafood.

And, in addition to the abundant use of coconut milk, it’s the beloved local hot pepper, piri-piri, that makes the food uniquely Mozambican.

Piri-piri chicken is arguably the national dish.

You find it all over – restaurants, street corners, beach shacks. Sand, salt air, the sound of waves in the distance, the smells of grilling poultry, and spice of charcoal.

They continuously baste that grilling chicken with the piri-piri. Tangy, slightly tart, elements of citrus – they dole this stuff out like it’s pure cocaine. I mean, there’s never more than a tiny little bit in there.

What is this precious substance? Peanut oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, tomato – but it’s the piri-piri pepper that gives this stuff its trademark burn.

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IDEAS IDEAS GREAT GREAT & & SMALL SMALL

DISCOVER DISCOVER

/ innovate / disrupt / recycle / reimagine

Home + away ideas // ideas for our our for changing changing world world

+

the stuff stuff // the you need need you in your your in life right right life now now

kulula.com kulula.com

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DISCOVER IDEAS GREAT & SMALL

Things will get heated

C

lé Latouf, owner of Cape Town’s YogaLife studio in De Waterkant, has partnered with yoga instructor and Noordhoek resident Bern Le Roux to open the first hot yoga studio in the southern peninsula – at Noordhoek Farm Village. Founded in 2010, YogaLife promotes yoga as not only as an essential practice for health and wellbeing, but also as a means of fostering community and social engagement. YogaLIfe’s instructors believe 48

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that yoga helps unify mind, body and breath in ways that are universally accessible, no matter your body type, flexibility or fitness level. And it’s not just about headstands and pretzel poses, but incorporates meditation and mindfulness, too.

Many YogaLife classes are heated, but there are also unheated Vinyasa sessions, and regular free beginner’s classes, in case you’re wondering how much you need this in your life. yogalife.co.za kulula.com

IDEAS GREAT & SMALL DISCOVER

Home truths With winter and a third wave turning attention homeward, these are a few of the designers whose creations adorn the spaces at Xigera Safari Lodge (from our story on page 25) – and whose world-class creations you can buy for your own home

Tablewise

Y

ou’ll be blessed to have one of these vessels by Imiso’s Andile Dyalvane in your home; he’s recognised among the top ceramicists in the world, known for imbuing representations of traditional ceremonies and ritual in his designs – body scarification, for example, is suggested by cuts, slashes and pinches that capture and convey deep meaning. imisoceramics.co.za

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et the table setting you’ve always coveted with crockery by renowned Cape Town ceramicist Mervyn Gers.

At his studio in Paarden Eiland, this artisanal tableware innovator manufactures his own clay and creates unique glazes. Nothing is mechanised, either, so each item is individually handmade and finished.

They’re hardy too, known for their strength and durability – which is why they work so perfectly in the remote Okavango Delta where replacements are tricky to come by. mervyngers.com kulula.com

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ith only ethically sourced raw materials and only the finest weavers engaged to create inimitable rugs, Coral and Hive in Somerset West is an all-women, craft-forward operation with strong regard for sustainable practice and fostering traditional skills. Their natural collection uses pure, hand-spun karakul wool, cotton and mohair, handwoven on traditional looms to produce soft, sensual, visually beautiful rugs. coralandhive.com

Also at Xigera are 12 bespoke walnut and bronze tables

by Cape Town-based Kenyan-born designer, Stanislaw Trzebinski.

The dining tables stand on stalactite-like spears that are inspired by underwater plants found in the Delta’s water channels. As a sculptor, Trzebinski is inspired by organic forms – coral, fungi, crystals, and other biological growth patterns. The influence comes from intense exposure to the outdoors as a child, including summers spent diving off the coast, exploring mangroves and coral reefs. stanislawtrzebinski.com

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DISCOVER IDEAS GREAT & SMALL

Go Bok!

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iomimicry meets technology to give movement to this next-generation space robot. Designed by a team of Swiss and German scientists, the Robo Bok eschews the limitations of old wheelbased Mars robots. This one imitates a familiar African antelope – our very own pronking, preening, tryscoring springbok.

Eat to heal

A

iming for that naturally healthful glow, the one that comes from within rather than from outside? TV nutritionist Dale Pinnock’s recipe book, The Medicinal Chef: Eat Your Way to Better Health, is built around a knowledge of how certain foods can help restore us to a more pristine state. So this is a recipe book that teaches you the science of nutritional wellbeing, whether you’d like to boost the immune system, address a skin condition or try cure your fatigue – or a hangover!

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Many health-focused recipe books have this all-out denial strategy built in: No this, no that, no flavour, count the calories. You know the drill. Pinnock’s 80 recipes avoid that ‘self-flagellation’ strategy and offer plenty of taste-centric motivators for eating sensibly and getting a diversity of wholesome, nutritionally dense ingredients into your body. And each recipe comes with a quick summary of what ailments it can help counter. Very compelling. kulula.com

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IDEAS GREAT & SMALL DISCOVER

Waterfront winter warmers Pictures: Adel Ferreira/Xigera Safari Lodge/Southern Guild, Supplied

F

ight fatigue and stave off cold-weather inertia at the One&Only in Cape Town this month.

The resort-style hotel is hosting activities to stimulate mind, body, and – why not? – even the soul. The two-week winter programme includes activities for families, couples and children, and range from pizza-making to yoga, and there are even Wimbledon afternoon teas (10 and 11 July) and

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a Christmas in July lunch (18 July).

Plenty to occupy little ones, especially in the One&Only’s KidsOnly clubhouse, where there’ll be themed crafts, activities and traditional games including a Tokyo Games inspired mini indoor Olympics. Junior will be able to set a few PlayStation records and show how it’s done in a specialised rendition of ‘The Floor is Lava’. Plus, what’s cuter than children set free in the kitchen?

Well, when you don't have to clean up after them, that’s what.

While one-on-one yoga sessions are available, One&Only of course offers some of the

city’s best mind, body and soul rejuvenation packages at its pampering spa. A limited Winter Wellness offer is also available – guests can create their own package of treatments, which includes access to the ‘thermal suites’.

With the first-ever Marine Protected Areas Day coming up on 1 August, One&Only

has partnered with its neighbour, the Two Oceans Aquarium, to launch a turtle conservation experience.

And on 15 July, The Amazing Coelacanth author, Professor Mike Bruton, will talk as part of the hotel’s Speaker Series – it includes a delicious four-course dinner at Ochre. oneandonlyresorts.com

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Diet of stories

Admit it, sometimes reading’s great pleasure is getting the opportunity to escape into the imagination of weirdly wise, wonderfully eccentric and highly unlikely characters. Zimbabwean Robert Muponde’s The Scandalous Times of a Book Louse (Penguin Random House) is a novel affording just such a diversion. It’s a comingof-age tale highlighting a boy’s love of stories – sometimes they feed the soul, other times they’re there to fill the long gaps between actual meals.

While tethered to physical reality, they’re nonetheless charged with mystical events and mythical creatures – mermaids, bizarre shamans and men who turn into hippos.

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a few good books

DISCOVER WARMING READS

Ubuntu girl

How did she go from being an impoverished, malnourished girl on death’s doorstep to leadership roles at the World Bank, World Health Organization and the UN, where she was a senior advisor on women’s issues?

I Am a Girl From Africa (Jonathan Ball Publishers) is the astonishing memoir of Zimbabwe-born Elizabeth Nyamayaro, whose grounding in the concept of ubuntu motivates her life of ceaselessly working for the betterment of others.

Elizabeth’s pursuit of her ambition to help others takes her from her small rural village to Harare, London, New York and beyond. Eventually she launched one of the world’s largest gender equality solidarity movements.

Having witnessed insurmountable poverty and famine and widespread death first-hand, hers is an inspiring tale born out of a deep insight into what it means to live and grow up poor in Africa.

Stolen words

Pip Williams’s The Dictionary of Lost Words (Penguin Random House) is a work of fiction poking into a forgotten corner of niche history. It’s the late-1800s and a team of Oxford lexicographers are working in a garden shed (aka the ‘Scriptorium’) to compile a long-awaited first edition of a new dictionary.

When the card on which the word ‘bondmaid’ appears falls under the table, the daughter of one of the book’s compilers pockets it and eventually compiles her own dictionary which includes a few exquisite four-letter swears and archaic terms like ‘dollymop’. A ‘bondmaid,’ we discover, described a maid bound by contract to work her entire life, so ultimately this is a story about how words can configure our relationship with the world and with one another. And there’s a serious feminist spin, of course. kulula.com

DA M O N GALGUT

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Mood swingers There’s a book for every frame of mind

White lies

If you wanted to be flippant, you might label it Four Weddings and a Funeral-ish, except, this is four funerals, and author Damon Galgut has a far darker lens, with zero hope of anything resembling a happy ending. In The Promise, a vow has been made to a dying wife. Her husband will hand over ownership of a cottage on his farm to Salome who works in his home and has helped raise his children. But once his wife is buried, there’s no-one to see that he keeps his promise.

No-one aside from their daughter, Amor, who is at the time too young to be taken seriously. Through a series of funerals (her father’s, her selfabsorbed brother’s, and her self-pitying sister’s) we witness white South Africans looking the other way, absorbed in their own sense of entitlement, their own petty grievances, while Amor pushes to see that her family’s promise is finally honoured...

WARMING READS DISCOVER

Hedonistic?

The Promise Cape Town-based Damon Galgut has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize twice (for The Good Doctor, in 2003, and In a Strange Room, in 2010). Incredibly, he wrote his first novel when he was 17 – not something he likes to discuss almost 40 years later, but that first novel, A Sinless Season (1984), was about three juvenile delinquents sent to a reformatory where the illusion of civilisation begins to erode when one of the boys is found dead under suspicious circumstances.

Diagnosed with cancer when he was six, Galgut was for a long time bed-bound – he says being read to by relatives during that time played a significant role in his development as a writer. Don’t be surprised if The Promise earns him another Booker nod. And perhaps a win.

In Vincent Pienaar’s Limerence (Penguin Random House), Scout is an eccentric, enigmatic, Panama hat-wearing Joburg womaniser who has sweet-talked his way through life. When five women are simultaneously summoned to his lawyer’s offices – presumably for the reading of his will – his relationship with each becomes a thread in his eye-raising life story.

Fiery?

Booze, music, love affairs, public airing of secrets and, finally, a spark and a flame. Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Malibu Rising (Penguin Random House) is about the build-up and crescendo of Nina Riva’s annual end-of-summer party, a social calendar ‘event’ that gets everyone into a tizzy. Of course, the wayward party builds to fever pitch and ultimately someone’s gonna burn the house down, baby!

Flighty?

Maggie Shipstead’s Great Circle (Penguin Random House) is the story of Marian Graves whose lust for adventure sees her embarking – in 1950 – on a solo flight around the globe, from pole to pole. A crash landing in Antarctica quells her mission. Fifty years later, when an actress prepares to play her in a movie, the vanished pilot’s biggest mysteries come to light.

Unravelling?

Joanne Fedler’s Unbecoming (Peguin Random House) is as funny as it is heartbreaking. A literal journey into the heart and soul of a midlife crisis as a woman in her 50s joins a group of other women on a silent walk into the Australian bush. Apart from wondering where she’s going to pee, she’s not sure she has anything in common with the others, but then a stranger shows up…

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DISCOVER WARMING READS

Bitter sweet tales

Warning: Your food bites back

T

he thing about SJ Naudé’s writing is that it burrows under your skin, carves a pathway into your guts, and yet you struggle to figure out precisely what on earth he’s done to achieve this unsettling sensation that overtakes you as you make your way through each of his carefully crafted, beautifully rendered tales. His is clearly a new kind of voice, one that somehow works like an X-ray of human consciousness and examines the foibles of human experience while taking us into strangely surreal, oddly uncomfortable places.

Mad Honey is his second collection of short stories, and while each is set in a recognisable world, the ordinary characters that inhabit this world seem to somehow make contact with some indefinable, ethereal something.

In the first story, a gay middle-class couple seem intent on inventing an excuse to dismiss their domestic worker, a woman whose son was once like their own. But, somehow, some strange emotional distance has set in, and it’s in this gap that an eerie disquiet forms. By the end of the story, you’re

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shocked and feel wounded, and yet nothing very terrible has happened at all. Or has it?

In the book’s titular story, a husband and wife whose relationship is hard to define go to Iceland on holiday and end up having a series of bizarre moments, heightened by a dose of hallucinogenic honey they decide to take. Their night is bizarre and beautiful, and also tainted by violence, and it all somehow leaves you with a sense of hope and redemption.

All in all, they are stories that will keep coming back to you, urging you to dip deeper into your own consciousness. Which can have surprising consequences.

Words: Keith Bain, Pictures: Nigel Maister, Joanne Olivier, Supplied

A book of short stories that stay with you

You are what you eat, so maybe you should be worried. If the title of Joy Manning’s book sounds ambivalent maybe it’s because you don’t know about rhetorical questions.

Is Our Food Killing Us? A Primer for the 21st Century is packed with scary facts, most of which revolve around the manner in which large-scale mass food production – aka ‘factory farming’ – has by-andlarge replaced small-scale agriculture. While this applies mostly to the developed world, the implications are that the components of the storebought goods we consume and the quality of the socalled nutrition we’re getting have been fundamentally jeopardised. Wide-scale obesity is rife and foods are packed with additives and harmful chemicals. And, if the pesticides, fertilisers, and virulent monoculture practices of industrial farming don’t kill us from the inside, then the impact on the environment will surely finish us off in other ways. This illustrated, easily digestible book from Thames & Hudson will change the way you think about everything you eat, drink and snack on.

SJ Naudé is a lawyer who practiced in New York and London before returning to South Africa to complete a master’s degree in creative writing. Published by Penguin Random House, Mad Honey (from the original Afrikaans, Dol Heuning) is his second book of short stories; his first, The Alphabet of Birds, garnered several major awards for its Afrikaans edition.

He has also written an excellent novel, The Third Reel. kulula.com

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