We spent a few hours walking around Braamfontein, one of Johannesburg’s most vibrant inner-city neighbourhoods. A lively, student-filled commercial district, it is closely connected with the University of the Witwatersrand and has become an important creative and cultural hub. The area is...
We spent a surprisingly lovely 10 days in Johannesburg, despite the city’s sometimes daunting reputation. South Africa’s largest metropolis grew from a dusty mining camp into a vast economic powerhouse following the discovery of gold in 1886. Today, the wider metropolitan area is home to...
We reached this major land border crossing between Eswatini and South Africa in the afternoon. Despite being quite busy, it was another refreshingly efficient border experience, with friendly officers on both sides who did their best to keep the process moving. There were no unnecessary...
The Ngwenya Mine (🎟️70 SZL) is widely recognised as one of the world’s oldest known mining sites, with evidence of human activity dating back more than 40,000 years. Its extraordinary history spans three distinct eras—from Middle Stone Age pigment extraction, through Iron Age iron...
Ngwenya Glass is Eswatini’s famous eco-friendly glassblowing factory, founded in 1979 as a Swedish aid project. The factory closed in 1985 due to financial difficulties. Still, it was revived just two years later when the Prettejohn family purchased the abandoned site, tracked down former...
Another short visit took us to Mantenga Cultural Village, followed by a short hike to Eswatini’s most famous waterfall. Cascading for roughly 95 metres over massive granite rocks on the Lushushwane River, Mantenga Falls is one of the country’s most impressive natural landmarks and its...
We made a short stop in Lobamba, Eswatini’s traditional, spiritual and legislative capital, beautifully situated in the Ezulwini Valley. It is home to the country’s Parliament and the Queen Mother’s official residence, making Lobamba the nation’s cultural heart...
We spent a day in Eswatini’s oldest protected conservation area, Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary (🎟️ 95 ZAR), which covers roughly 4,560 hectares in the spectacular Ezulwini Valley, or “Valley of Heaven.” The landscape ranges from gentle open plains to rugged, high-altitude terrain in the...
Today we spent a lazy day exploring the Malkerns Valley, a lush and fertile agricultural region known as Eswatini’s cultural and craft heartland. The sweeping lowland landscape is dotted with sugarcane, maize and pineapple farms, while vibrant open workshops and social enterprises...
A quick 30-minute drive from the border brought us to Ndlovu Camp in Hlane National Park, Eswatini’s largest protected area, covering around 30,000 hectares of Lowveld wilderness. Open savannas and ancient hardwood trees, including leadwoods and tambotis, characterise the park. Hlane is...