The Michelangelo Hotel Johannesburg

... at the Apartheid Museum, it was a lot of take in for the 2 hours that we were there and there was a special Nelson Mandela exhibit as well so that was really interesting to walk through. 

After the Apartheid Museum, we headed over to the area where Nelson Mandela lived and actually got to see his house, his ex-wife's house and his friend the Archbishop who ended up getting a Nobel Peace Award for ...

... Eastgate Shopping Centre, ist wie gesagt: gross. So gross, dass es bei seiner Eroeffnung in den Siebzigern das groesste auf der gesamten Suedhalbkugel war. Von innen sieht absolut alles gleich aus wie bei uns daheim auch; sagen wir mal, wie die Arkaden in Berlin. Auffalend war jetzt doch, dass das einkaufende Volk zur mehr als die Haelfte aus Weissen bestand. Zwar ist Suedafrika nun mal ein Land, dessen Bevoelkerung zu 12% aus Weissen besteht, doch das ...

... which is in a nice upscale suburb of Joburg called Sandton.

I went to sleep pretty quickly, considering I still have this nagging cough that only rears its ugly head at night.

My wake up call did not wake me at all but luckily Phillipe was running late and all went well.

So my first day in South Africa consisted off a lovely private tour (again Phillipe).

The first thing I noticed were the people hanging out on the ...

... nas estradas, todos muito pacientes e ate mesmo sorridentes. Tambem vi lugares que nao esperava conhecer. Parte residenciais pobres e sujas que estao muito longe de qualquer cartao postal do Reino Unido. Terrenos cheios de lixo em lugares que mais parecem guetos onde a classe pobre, composta nao somente de pessoas de racas e paises diferentes mas tambem de familias brancas locais. Diferente do que a maioria deve imaginar quando segue a logica "lugares pobres e sujos, logo ...

We said our goodbyes in Dublin airport, headed through departures and straight to the bar to console ourselves. As per usual our flight was delayed, not a problem unless like us you have a connecting flight to catch! Panic set in straight away! We got off our plane at Heathrow and ran from Terminal 1 to Terminal 3 - literally ran, like mad women!! Barged our way through security checks and up to the screen to realise ...

... for a great eve! The Sunday before we left for Australia, Magda and Rex (Ryan's parents) were so friendly to offer house as venue for the family farewell. Thanks to everyone who attended and for all the best wishes and (practical travel) gifts. We really appreciate everything you've done for us and look forward to share our travel experiences with you! We are truly blessed!

... As we rose the views of Cape Town were spectacular, you could see practically the whole city as well as Robben Island. Beautiful! Unfortunately by the time we had got to the top, along with all the Japanese population, it had started to cloud over again! Did manage to get a good view of the Lions head and Signal Hill (other mountains) as well as the dock. At the top it was bloody freezing, hadn't crossed my mind that it may get even colder the higher we ...

... a bathroom and became a meeting place for the prisoners and perhaps the most politically oriented bathroom the world has ever known. The warders would never go in as it was a black toilet and, because of the bucket system, it stank. The pile of stones in the quarry represents men who came back to Robben Island for a reunion of ex-prisoners. Each man placed a stone on the pile. At the prison itself we could leave the bus and walk ...

... full from what I could tell). Once we'd gone back to Andy's and done the bag drop off and freshening up thing, it was off to the local Lion safari park to see what Africa's natural wildlife had to offer. This included Lions, other big cats, and a variety of other game. Having had some lunch along with the first beer of the trip (a particularly pleasant Namibian variety) we commenced the safari drive. Despite pot holes all ...

... we move onto Saudi Arabia for 6 months and then hopefully onto Brisbane, Australia. It is a bit of a detour from our original plans but the end result is till what we had in mind. we are really looking forward to spending time with all our friends and family at home!!