(I think if I were to go on a cruise, the Mediterranean would be my first choice! Dang, I bet they’d have great olives in the buffet..  - Shawn)

—

Mediterranean cruises are among the most popular and widely accessible itineraries on the cruise holiday market. Given its location, it’s generally an affordable option and it doesn’t always require flights, which makes many Mediterranean itineraries suitable for non-flyers, or those who want to keep the holiday costs down.

If you’re flexible on your choice of cruise operator and liner, the best way to search for Mediterranean cruises is to use a tour operator. For instance, Thomas Cook – who are perhaps best known for their land-based package holidays – don’t have their own ships, but instead offer a wide range of cruises from all the major cruise operators such as Royal Caribbean International, NCL, P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises and many more.

You can search a huge range of Mediterranean cruises on offer by Thomas Cook here – http://www.thomascook.com/cruise/cruise-destinations/mediterranean/. To give you an idea of the diversity on offer, here’s a selection of Med cruises departing this year:

• In June, an 11-night Med cruise with P&O Cruises departs from Southampton, taking in the Spanish ports of La Coruna and Vigo, the island of Madeira, Gibraltar, and the Portuguese capital of Lisbon.

• Also in June, Royal Caribbean International sets off on an Eastern Mediterranean voyage stopping at Civitavecchia for a day in Rome, Messina in Sicily, Piraeus for Athens, and Ephesus in Turkey. This itinerary lasts for 7 nights and includes air travel.

• In September, there’s a 12-night itinerary with Celebrity Cruises visiting the ports of Civitavecchia, Naples and Venice in Italy, the historic city of Valletta on the island of Malta, and the Greek locations of Piraeus (Athens), Mykonos, Santorini and Rhodes.

Of course if you’re after something a little shorter, there are a range of mini cruises available such as Costa Cruises’ three-night trip from the Italian port of Savona, which travels to Barcelona in Spain and the southern Mediterranean city of Marseille in France.

With so much choice on offer, which Med cruise tickles your fancy?

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Sailing the Med is a post from: Rerunaround

It’s pretty much impossible to go anywhere in Cape Town and not see Table Mountain. So after a couple days in town, this visit to the top felt a bit like quenching a nagging curiosity. I’d been constantly loomed over by the mountain, and was going to finally get a chance to look down for a change.

We chose a hot, sunny day and took the cable car up in the evening. Ideally, with enough time to stroll around a bit, then catch a nice sunset. We’d originally considered hiking up, but by the afternoon we were a couple beers too many, and about ten degrees too hot. Next time though the hiking is going to be the way to go.

The cable car is actually quite a cool little experience itself. I’ve ridden my fair share of funiculars, or whatever you want to call them. However, this one was very neat. The car is round, and the interior rotates as you go. So everyone in the car gets exactly the same amount of view. The added bonus of the rotating is the tourists that refuse to listen to the simple announcement. It’s fun to watch as they desperately cling to the railing and are dragged slowly around against their will.  Either way, it’s a cool design, and a nice ride.

Now on to the obvious part. Being up on Table Mountain is fantastic! I’m not even really sure what I can really say. The view is great, in three directions. There’s also a lot to see up top. We were a bit rushed as we didn’t feel like missing the last cable car down for the night. Otherwise, it would have been a cool area to walk around. Apparently, there are heaps of flower varieties on Table Mountain. Also some interesting, and I assume small, wildlife. These things being even more of a reason to do the hike up next time.

I was actually a little sad that both days I spent in Cape Town were so damn idyllic. Blue skies all around. This disappointment was partly due to my dislike of sunburns, but also in part because of the legend of old Captain Van Hunks. Doesn’t that name just inspire in your imagination the visage of a smoldering, ladies man, type of pirate? Anyway, he was a salty old pirate captain who retired in Cape Town. Old Captain Beefcake quite enjoyed hiking up Table Mountain, where he would sit, smoke, and enjoy the view. It’s said that one day he met a stranger up there, brags were exchanged, and they ended up embroiled in a smoking contest. I’m not really certain what kind of contest that is, but a wrestling match or comparison of nicest hair wouldn’t work at all for the legend. The two men smoked so much that huge clouds of smoke gathered about them. Which, they say, is where the unique phenomena of clouds rolling off the top of Table Mountain comes from. It turned out, by the way, that the stranger was the devil himself. So take that and smoke it nephologists.

Here is a small album of our photos from an evening on Table Mountain. Until our next time up the mountain, when we’ll have more interesting hiking photos.

Click the picture to go to the photo album :)

//Shawn

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Table Mountain! Cape Town, South Africa is a post from: Rerunaround

Villiera is a family run winery in the Stellenbosch region of South Africa. We are a pioneering quality wine company committed to preserving the environment.

Their environmental angle was the lure for us. We figured their game reserve would likely be handled well and be friendly toward the animals if they were so environmentally conscientious. It turns out we weren’t far off the mark. Here are my thoughts on our experience, plus a few photos from the game drive.

The Villiera winery itself is quite cool. Big old trees, solar panels, and a very nice tree-shaded tasting patio. Even if you only go for the wine tasting, it’s a lovely spot. The tasting room staff were certainly nice enough, although at times you could tell they handle a high volume of visitors. Their tasting list is extensive, and also has more than a few nice Cap Classique selections.

The game drive rolls out directly from the winery. Which worked out nicely for us in the form of a glass of bubbly while we waited for the drive to start. Bubbles are always good for morale. Promptly on time, the two of us were whisked off in a little shaded game drive truck.

We spent a couple of hours driving around the 220 hectare wildlife sanctuary. We learned quite a few neat details on how the winery operates responsibly alongside their wildlife neighbours. One of my favourite things they do is using ducks to control vineyard insects. They have a posh little pond right beside the vineyard rows. So the ducks enjoy a splash then cruise the fields for troublesome insects. Call it symbiotic or whatever — the ducks look damn happy.

Our guide was quite knowledgeable regarding all the plants and animals in the nature reserve, and we ended up learning some interesting things. The reserve is a bit newly established, but the animals living there appeared to have plenty of variety and room to roam.

An unexpected strong point of the reserve was the variety of birds and waterfowl. There are several watering holes throughout the property, and the region’s birds seem to have quickly spotted a good thing. For birders, this would likely be an extra entertaining drive.

We viewed several different sorts of animals in the reserve, which I’ll let my little photo album show you.

All in all, we had quite a fun afternoon at Villiera . It was pleasing to see that their dedication to nature and the environment was more than just a marketing ploy. And tasting several good wines didn’t hurt at all either.

//Shawn

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Villiera Wine Tasting and Game Drive is a post from: Rerunaround

It was an amazing experience to be standing on the very same rocky promontory I’ve heard about all my life. One can’t make it very far in any history lesson or tale of the high seas without imagining how it must have been to round the Cape. Our world’s history changed forever as Bartolomeu Dias first accidentally sailed around the Cape in 1488.

As I stood at the Cape lighthouse, looking out over the Indian and Atlantic oceans*, it was very easy to imagine why it was originally called the Cape of Storms. We were there on a very serene day, and it still looked daunting for anyone who has to sail nearby.

It’s easily a full day worth of things to do in and around Cape Point. The coastal road leading to the park has Boulders Beach which is an area popular with African Penguins. Plus heaps of great beaches, coastal towns, and vistas which take you all the way back up to Cape Town.

Driving down from Cape Town we passed through several little coastal towns. Many of which still displayed a lot of cool historical architecture. One of those being the naval Simon’s Town, where we stopped to say hello to Just Nuisance. He’s just a statue now, but in the 40′s he was a Great Dane who sort of enlisted himself into the navy. It’s a charming story , so it was nice to give his statue a little pat on the head.

A little further down the coastal road towards Cape Point is Boulders Beach. The parks department has built a great little causeway down to the beach which lets you stalk the local African Penguins without disturbing them. They’re just the cutest little pikkewyne! We were there just before lunchtime, so most of the penguins were out in the ocean. However, there were still dozens of them lazing about the beach.

Some more scenic driving later and we were very quickly entering Cape Point. While the obvious attraction of Cape Point is the Cape itself and lighthouse, I was also very taken with the variety of the plant life. In my photos you’ll see a few of my attempts to capture the intricate colours and textures of the Fynbos . Sadly, I’m not enough of a photographer to really convey just how diverse and fascinating it all is.

On the same note of being a poor photographer, I’m not certain how I can begin to explain how awe inspiring it is to stand up on Cape Point and look out over a world worth of oceans. It’s gorgeous, amazing, and sometimes a bit tough to comprehend. I think for this you’ll just have to go there yourself. Perhaps if you’re especially lucky you’ll catch a glimpse of the Flying Dutchman as it yet again makes it’s ghostly voyage around the Cape.

I’ve put up a little album on Facebook with some of my favourite pictures from this day trip. I hope you enjoy them!

//Shawn

* To clarify where exactly the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet, let me paste some facts for you. Thank you, Wikipedia for stating this succinctly.

There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the southernmost point is Cape Agulhas, about 150 kilometres (90 mi) to the east-southeast. The currents of the two oceans meet at the point where the warm-water Agulhas current meets the cold water Benguela current and turns back on itself—a point that fluctuates between Cape Agulhas and Cape Point (about 1.2 kilometres east of the Cape of Good Hope).

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Cape of Good Hope, South Africa is a post from: Rerunaround

Mongena is a very simple drive from the Johannesburg airport. 80-something km in a simple straight shot. In no time at all, we were inside the Dinokeng Game Reserve, and checking in.

On our drive in to the lodge we were already spotting some wildlife. Animals such as warthogs and springbok were plentiful, even alongside the road into the park.

Dinokeng is advertised as a “Big 5″ game park. In that the park has lions, elephants, rhinos, leopard, and cape buffalo. What I was worried about is that they would just have all these animals crammed into a field. I figured if we just went about and ticked all 5 off our list then it’d be apparent that it was rigged and crappy. So I was actually relieved when we didn’t see a few of the big 5.

The Dinokeng Reserve is quite large, and the animals roam freely about. It was quite fun to toodle about the wilderness with a tracker and ranger and see what we could find. Using actual animal tracks to find our photography prey. We spent a few hours out and about and spotted some very cool animals and had an amazing time!

In particular, we saw: blue monkeys, waterbuck, springbok, blue wildebeest, a huge marsh owl, zebras, a hippo, a white rhino, a crocodile, warthogs, and the cutest baby warthogs. Plus quite a variety of birds and waterfowl. I also appreciated that the ranger was very particular about not interfering or startling the animals. We tried our very best to observe without interfering. For awhile we tracked some lions, but never did find them. It was sobering though just to see their huge paw prints from where they’d recently strolled by.

The facilities and food at Mongena were also quite good. Very nice staff, and very comfy rooms. All in all, Mongena was a brilliant time and actually quite a value. Definitely a place I can easily recommend for a weekend visit (check it out here if you’re curious: http://www.mongena.co.za). I put up a little album of 15 photos from Mongena on my Facebook page.

// Shawn

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Mongena Game Lodge, South Africa is a post from: Rerunaround

The answer unfortunately is a bit of both good and bad. There is a decided difference between domestic Delta and trans-continental Delta.

Domestic Delta flights are a hot nightmare of poor quality and cash grabbing. Employees are unfortunate, service is poor, and the amenities are poor. At the domestic boarding gate the agent consistently provided garbled and incorrect info in her announcements. And when boarding she called for first class, and the first of the three zones, but then neglected to ever make another announcement. So the other two-thirds of the flight had to guess when they could board. When deplaning, the lady in front of me asked the attendant for clarification (because the baggage carousel announcement had been impossible to hear) and was told, “Oh, just follow the signs like everyone else!” Which was true, but still a bit rough. Anyway, there were plenty of gripes to be had with domestic Delta, which don’t all need to be itemized here. It was craptastic. I sure did enjoy the one little pouch of peanuts I received during my 6 hour domestic flight. Yum. Oh, and unlike previous Delta flights, this one actually had a TV screen! But! The shows were not free. I find it insulting to be charged a dollar for some crappy TV show on a flight. All in all, it was a tacky, annoying experience.

Trans-Atlantic Delta did a better job. Nothing amazing, but on par with other USA airlines operating international flights. The movies were complimentary, the staff had their act together, and the plane was fine. It certainly wasn’t up to the standards of the better airlines, but it was plenty good enough.

I’d certainly fly Delta on a Trans-Atlantic flight anytime, if the price was right. They’re good enough. I will however continue to do all I can to avoid domestic USA Delta.

// Shawn

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Delta Airlines: Verdict is a post from: Rerunaround

So come on, Delta, let’s rally the troops and pleasantly surprise a bitter old man who has been forced to fly through the USA. I believe in you! Sort of.

// Shawn

ps: In a month I again have to spend a full 24 hours on Delta, so really there will be two shots at redemption.

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Delta Airlines: Day of Reckoning? is a post from: Rerunaround

I’m over budget for this trip before I even leave. So I’ll be playing my wallet very close to my chest the entire time. Which I don’t think is going to impede my enjoyment one bit. I hope to break from my usual routine though and actually do some posts about my trip. I’m horrible at that.

Ek tel die dae!

// Shawn

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Upcoming Trip: South Africa! is a post from: Rerunaround

Barcelona is not your typical tourist destination. There’s a certain something going on underneath the surface there. Consider it my self appointed community service to give you the heads up. For your own good, of course.

My advice is about your frame of mind. It’s so tragically easy to blow into a metropolitan city like Barcelona, see the sights, take the photos, make some memories, and blow right on out again. And that’s all fine and good. However, you’ll miss the best part of the city if you just visit Barcelona.

In Barcelona, you have the opportunity to be a part of a different way of living. A different way of being. On your first day in the city, please sit and watch. Watch the people (not the tourists). Watch how they walk their dogs, chat over coffee, run errands. How they actually live. With any luck, you’ll notice how it’s different than your hometown. Notice how they seem to live more than people in other cities. When they chat, they live the chat. When they sip coffee on a patio, they’re actually enjoying the moment. When they’re kissing up against a parked scooter, they’re in it to win it. Barcelonians know how to get their moneys worth out of life. Watch them, but don’t get creepy of course. Just be observant. Your mission while in Barcelona is to learn how to live and love like a true Catalan.

For comparison sake, watch some family of tourists as their glossed over cow eyes go from tourist landmark to tourist landmark. Then take a look at two locals going about their day. It won’t take you long before you see what I mean.

Please treat yourself to one of the best cities in the world by experiencing it properly. Live like it’s the act of living that really matters. Get inside the heart and mind of Barcelona, and see how you look.

// Shawn

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Barcelona! is a post from: Rerunaround

Odds are if you’ve spent much time online trying to learn a language you’ve come across Benny’s site (fluentin3months.com). Whether you have or not, you’ll find his Tedx talk cool and inspiring. I predict that 17 minutes from now you’ll be dusting off your dreams of learning a new language! I know he sure got me back on track.

.

// Shawn

Thanks for subscribing to my RSS feed, I appreciate it! Please be sure to stop by the site sometimes and leave a comment so I know you're still alive. I worry about you. Are you eating okay? Ok, see ya! -- Look Who’s Talking… in 10 Languages and Counting! is a post from: Rerunaround