South Africa Itinerary2

Day 6 - November 7, 2003 - Friday: Cape Town. Breakfast. Free day at leisure or join our optional Robben Island and Townships tour. The evening will be at leisure. Optional Tour: Townships and Robben Island Tour - $56 Our tour departs at 0900 and endeavours to identify and understand the culture of the New South Africa. We proceed through the historic Malay Quarter discovering the origins of our multi-cultural city and its people. The tragic saga of "Forced Removals" then unfolds as we drive through the remains of the once vibrant District 6 and visit its living museum. Then it’s off to the Townships, visiting examples of "black" and "coloured" townships focusing on development issues of Education, Health Care and Housing. In Langa we visit the Chris Hani Community School as well as the Tsoga Environmental Centre where local community guides take us on a walking tour. We go via Bonteheuwel to Guguletu where we stop off at the Uncedo Pottery Project, and then to the Weltevreden Park Government Housing Development Site. We then return to the city for lunch at the Waterfront before departing at 1400 on the ferry to Robben Island where ex-prisoners become our tour guides and take us on a walking and driving tour of this political prison where Nelson Mandela was jailed for 19 years.

Day 7 - November 8, 2003 - Saturday: Cape Town to Johannesburg. Breakfast and Dinner. This morning, after breakfast, you will be collected at your hotel and transferred to the Cape Town International Airport where you will connect with your flight to Johannesburg. Upon arrival, you will be met and transferred to Misty Hills Country Hotel for one night on a bed & breakfast basis. Misty Hills Country Hotel is situated on the outskirts of Johannesburg and allows for easy access to Lesedi Cultural Village. Misty Hills Country Hotel epitomizes the African experience, with indigenous gardens and conservation orientated landscaping. Ethnic architecture and décor offers both day visitor and hotel guest an opportunity to relive a forgotten age in a range of luxury accommodation, exceptional cuisine at The Carnivore Restaurant and Summerhouse and the ultimate in anti-stress therapies at the Spa in the Country .In the late afternoon, you will then be collected from your hotel and depart for Lesedi Cultural Village. Lesedi is a multi-cultural African village, set amongst the pristine Bushveld and rocky hills less than an hour's drive from the city of Johannesburg. The village consists of a number of different homesteads or traditional villages: the Xhosa, with their beautiful thatched homes and red blankets; the Zulu with their fighting sticks and cozy beehive huts; the Pedi, with their courtyards and rhythmic drums; and the conical straw hats and sturdy mountain ponies of the Basotho. Guests experience a traditional welcome upon arrival, guided cultural walkabout through two of the four homesteads, traditional song and dance and traditional dinner. The evening will be at leisure.

Day 8 - November 9, 2003 - Sunday: Johannesburg to Bongani. Breakfast and Dinner. After breakfast depart Johannesburg and travel by road to Bongani Mountain Lodge. You will be accommodated at Bongani Mountain Lodge for two nights on a Full board basis, inclusive of one game drive per day. Bongani Mountain Lodge is located on the Methethomusha Reserve at the foothills of the Malelane Mountains. The lodge has 20 spacious air-conditioned chalets and 10 suites, each with en suite bathrooms and a private leisure deck with sweeping views of the valley. Twice-daily game drives and bush walks are conducted by skilled rangers and trackers, and guests can look forward to seeing Lion, Rhino, Elephant, Leopard and Buffalo. Bongani is also well known for the authentic preserved Bushman Rock art paintings that have been on the reserve since ancient times. Dinner is served in a traditional outdoor "boma" where guests can enjoy stirring performances by the Gambule Theatre Group who depict the history, aspirations and concerns of the local people who call these mountains home. This is arranged on request. Optional lunch may be enjoyed at the Lodge. In the afternoon join a game drive in 4 x 4 open Land Rovers. Return to the comforts of your lodge for a well-deserved dinner.

Day 9 - November 10, 2003 - Monday: Bongani. Breakfast and Dinner. You are woken at the crack of dawn for your early morning game drive in 4 X 4 open Land Rovers. After stimulating the senses with a hot cup of coffee or tea and nibbling on biscuits board your Land Rover and head into the bushveld. Return to the Lodge where a hearty breakfast awaits you in the main dining room. The rest of the day will be at leisure to laze around the Pool, relax in your room or take a walk around the Resort Optional: Afternoon game drive in open 4 x 4 Land Rovers. Once again dinner is served at the lodge.

Day 10 - November 11, 2003 - Tuesday: Bongani to Pilgrims Rest. Breakfast and Dinner. This morning, after an early breakfast, you will be collected at your hotel and travel approximately three hours by road via the towns of Sabie, Hazyview, White River to the historic town of Pilgrims Rest where you will be accommodated at The Royal Hotel for one night on a dinner, bed & breakfast basis. The Royal Hotel, situated in Pilgrim's Rest, was recently impeccably restored to reflect a true late Victorian style. Composed of 10 authentic buildings dating back to the latter part of the nineteenth century, the hotel now offers 50 charming en suite bedrooms. The informal restaurant offers hearty old-fashioned meals, whilst the bedrooms are furnished with brass beds, antique washstands and Victorian baths. The quaint village of Pilgrim's Rest is only 20 km from the stunning viewpoints of Blyde River Canyon, and a short drive to the Kruger National Park. Enchanting museums, curiosity shops, gold panning, trout fishing, horseback riding, hiking and picnicking are a few of the leisure activities offered. Pilgrim's Rest was declared a goldfield in 1873 soon after the digger, Alex "Wheelbarrow" Patterson, found gold in what was later to become known as 'Pilgrim's Creek', and the town became a cosmopolitan centre of activity in South Africa. By the end of that year, there were about 1600 diggers seeking their fortune. The town was proclaimed a National Monument in 1986, and today it stands as a legacy to these pioneers. You can enjoy an optional lunch here. In the afternoon view a bit of the Panorama Route including highlights such as God's Window and the twisted Bourke's Luck Potholes. Return to Pilgrims Rest for dinner and overnight.

Day 11 - November 12, 2003 - Wednesday: Pilgrims Rest to KMI Airport to Johannesburg Airport to New York JFK Breakfast. A wonderful warm breakfast awaits you. Luggage will be collected prior to check out. You will be transferred by road in your coach to KMIA Airport for your flight to Johannesburg Airport where you will fly home aboard South African Airways' wide-cabin jetliner and arrive home the next day.