The other day, I landed in the private airstrip of the Tsuwalu Game Reserve, which is the finest safari lodge in the Northern Cape.

It’s contemporary and minimalist, and very comfortable.


Service is sleek and friendly, and there is utter privacy.

Best of all, it’s got some great game viewing, although it’s not the place to go if it’s your first safari and you’re intent on seeing the Big Five.

This is more of a safari place for those who have already been on several safaris. And it’s perfect for relaxation.

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Tsuwalu Game Reserve is quite an exclusive place, as the barrier to entry is literally quite high — making it nice for those who want to get away from it all.

There are no commercial flights or chartered safari flights to the Tsuwalu Game Reserve, which is a Relais & Chateaux property by the way.

So you either must land on their private airstrip in your own plane (which is what I did, as I had use of a wonderful Pilatus C12 for a week), or you must get Tsuwalu to arrange a private flight for you.

In my case, I landed just after lunch and my pilot Francois parked the plane to one corner.

Then I jumped out and headed for the hangar while my bags were being unloaded.

Now I think the Pilatus C12 is the coolest small plane in the world. If someone wants to know what I really want for Christmas, this is it.

But while I was sitting in the hangar, getting a cold sparkling drink, another private plane landed and totally eclipsed my Pilatus.

It was colorful and fun, and it caught everyone’s attention.

Out of it popped out a very cool and casually dressed European couple, although I never saw them again, as I was billeted in the villa of the owners, and they were staying in the main lodge, and the two twains never meet.

Tsuwalu Game Reserve, by the way, is the private estate of the Oppenheimer family of De Beers Diamonds fame.

In fact, the Oppenheimers just left on the day I arrived.

And from the hangar, it was a one-hour drive through some of the most scenic desert possible, with the mountains on one side, and desert plains on the other.

We saw some lions along the way, along with a host of other beautiful wildlife.

I stayed in the private villa, which is where the Oppenheimers stay when they come over, and this villa has its own private chef and staff.

As soon as I got in, I ordered a massage and a facial in my room.

And then the private chef allowed me into the kitchen to get a refresher course on how to make a great malva pudding.

In the evening, the general manager came over and personally took me out on a night game drive, before we sat down to a feast — literally, a feast — under the stars on a beautiful but windy night.

Not a bad way to end another wonderful day in my never-ending, and never-endingly eventful Travelife. 

The post All about a great malva pudding and my last few sunsets in Northern Cape, South Africa’s Tsuwalu Game Reserve appeared first on TRAVELIFE Magazine.

The other day, I visited the Kalahari Mall to buy some cooking things to bring back home.

I want to learn how to make a proper South African bobotie and a Malva pudding while I am here — and then to cook these for friends when they come over for dinner back home.

I also went around the shopping mall to see what kind of products I could buy that were special to either Northern Cape or to South Africa.

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Of course, at the top of my shopping list is organic loose leaf rooibos tea.

I’m a great fan of rooibos tea, having first discovered it at a trade fair in Colombo, Sri Lanka (of all places) many years ago.

An exhibitor gave me a cup and I really liked it.

Then, exactly one year ago, I went to South Africa and had tons of rooibos tea. It was our beverage of choice every day at breakfast.

So of course I tried to have rooibos tea at every opportunity.

It’s really hard to get good quality rooibos tea outside of South Africa, and especially the loose leaf kind, which has the most anti-oxidants.

Yes, rooibos tea is supposed to be great for anti-aging and helping to lower cholesterol.

I also got some skin care products made with rooibos tea. Rooibos is supposed to be very good for the skin, when applied topically.

I also stocked up on spices and condiments that are unusual and hard to get in our part of the world. South Africans are big on roasting and stews so they have great spices for these.

So I got enough to make the African peri-peri chicken, bobotie and Malva pudding.

Finally, I got products that are South African-made but not exported overseas.

I found a really good port wine here in Northern Cape today at a garage winery, for instance, so I bought a bottle of this even if I know I actually can’t spare the kilos.

I’m bringing so much stuff home, you see.

I also bought the ingredients for dukkah, which is an Egyptian mix that’s great to serve with good olive oil and freshly baked bread or sprinkled over salads.

I found some dukkah which is locally made, so I bought a bottle too.

Finally, I bought some unusual biltong.

Biltong is the favorite snack of South Africans, and it’s really meat jerky.

I found biltong made out of bacon, which was marinated in Malay spices.

So one of these days, I’m going to host a dinner at home, and my guests are going to feel like they’ve just been to South Africa for the evening, on a never-ending, and never-endingly eventful Travelife.

The post Things to buy in Northern Cape, South Africa, including rooibos tea appeared first on TRAVELIFE Magazine.