The guy’s at Harp Motorcycle Tours are a clever bunch, they have cooked up a few great offerings which combine breathe taking views of our country (and its neighbours) with the awesome experience of touring on a bike. Mix that all up with the countless unique experiences you’ll have on their tours and you’ve found a great way to escape and relax.

They have several options to choose from, including the chance to explore South Africa or for the more adventurous you can take on a Swaziland or Mozambique trip, all depending on your available time, thirst for adventure and well… your pocket obviously.

The tours include the fuel you’ll need, accommodation, meals and technical back up (if you need it), so you have no excuse to check out their website and request a quote.

You’ll find loads of information there including stuff about the various destinations, info on their bike fleet and more.

In general the world is pretty screwed up and in our random reality posts we like to show you some shining examples of just how fuc..(urghum) strange a place the world can be, with that being said I think Russia is trying to outshine their Asian cousins China in the crazy race.

In most parts of the world the blow up doll has been seen as nothing more than a sleezy sex toy for men who either have no social skills, lack funds to pay for certain services or have strange attractions to plastic squeeky things, however in Russia these dolls are this and more, namely they are also a means of public transport (yes you did read that right).

Annually hundreds of Russian citizens (523 in 2009 to be exact), young, old, male and female gather in Russia’s third largest city, Novosibirsk, for the Bubble Baba Challenge (Bubble Woman Challenge). Here the willing swimmers take a dive into the cold waters of the Ob River and swim 800 meters with a rubber doll to keep them afloat.

The rules and prizes (for the actual race and for things like the best pet name and best painted um… lady) aren’t really all that clear, but what is clear is that participant and spectators alike have a great time and enjoy large amounts of beer, doesn’t sound all that crazy after all.

I recently went to the Lion and Rhino Park in Krugersdorp as a day visitor; I did a number of activities from the snake display and cheetah run, viewing of the cubs, feeding of the lions, cheetahs and wild dogs.

It was a very disappointing visit as there are not many animals in the park, they seem to have placed large bundles of hay around the park and on the side of the road so that the animals can seen by passersby when they are feeding. But if you drive around the park the chances of you actually seeing another animal are not very high, oh wait I saw some guinea fowl.

As for the feeding of the lions, cheetahs and wild dogs, it was okay but very busy and still nothing amazing. The lions themselve look fat and you can see they are use to the whole routine, just get fed and lay around all day with no exercise. I enjoyed the Cheetah feed a lot more because they seemed to move around a lot, one even took a walk around the enclosure, getting pretty close to the car, maybe I was lucky.

The cheetah run was good, it was tame so once they were done you can touch the cheetah and take a picture, great for tourists to get that close to a “wild animal”. They have a cub section where you can go in to an enclosure with the lion, tiger and a few other baby animals which was also very enjoyable.
I also enjoyed the one section of the 4×4 trail when you are on your way to the 4×4 braai area, that was quite a challenge.

The staff that work with the animals are not exactly friendly but are well informed about what they do.

I did not manage to get to the wonder cave so really can not say much on that.

All pretty much said, I would not go there again and would definitely recommend finding a better wild life park to visit; there are many better wild life parks all over South Africa.

If you get your kicks by running or cycling through mountain bike trails than have I got something for you.

Bicycling and Runner’s World magazine are hosting their Dirt Festival event on the 18th October at Northern Farm in Johannesburg. The event consists of a number of Mountain Bike and Trail Run races with loads going on around the races including refreshments, live DJs and burgers (can you say ’sold’).

They have a few different races available so you don’t have to compete with the pros, unless you want to…

Check out all the details at the bicycling site.

Did I mention that there are burgers available?

Up-Helly-Aa is the largest fire festival in Europe, and is celebrated in Scotland’s Shetland Islands every January. Lerwick is where the fiery festivities take place.

Although Up-Helly-Aa is a relatively modern event, it derives from the traditions and mythology of the early Norse settlers.
It’s not until nightfall that the main celebrations start, but before dawn a 10-foot high, elaborately-decorated proclamation is placed at the Market Cross. The main attraction of this is for the locals, as it’s full of gossip and wicked humour about the year’s happenings in Shetland. At 10am the Guizer Jarl, or chief guizer, and his squad of Vikings drag the galley through the town to the harbor, where it will remain on display for the rest of the day.

By 7pm a thousand Vikings are gathered in their squads, waiting to get their torches lit. At 7.30 a rocket is fired and, as the torches are lit, the procession forms a snaking path of light through the dark streets until it comes to the burning site. The band strikes up and the noisy raucous progress of music and singing takes half an hour to reach the burning field, where they circle the galley in a huge swirling Catherine Wheel of fire.

As the Vikings sing The Galley Song, a bugle sounds and the torches are fired into the galley. As the craft burns the crowds sing The Norseman’s Home. Gradually the crowds disperse to parties which will continue until morning. Most of them are private but for visitors there are a couple of halls where tickets are on sale to the public and they can join in the feasting. During the night the Vikings will visit every hall, refresh themselves with food and drink and perform a sketch. By 8.30am the parties are over, it’s a public holiday and Lerwick becomes a ghost town as everyone sleeps.

How random is some of this, i found this on suite101.com.

If there is something that all Gautengers love is a good old Highveld summer thunderstorm. Where the blue sky fills with balls of cotton wool being hurled together, growing in size and getting more threatening until the tension is released with flashes of lightning and roars of thunder.
If you are a Highvelder, Claim it; if not, indulge them – there is something unique about the smell of air before, and the water evaporating from the tar after a hammering highveld storm.

Something about scents that bring back memories of a place or events, so when you are in the highveld and see a huge storm coming your way, Enjoy it.

Powertraveller have expanded their product range in portable power solutions to include their brand new Minigorilla, this new portable charger is not only sleek and very mini indeed but it can also power your notebook for up to six additional hours.

This little gadget has the ability to charge a range of your other portable gadgets from iPhones to Sony Viao notebooks, MP3 players, Handheld Gaming consoles and so on. The Minigorilla also has a 5V USB socket which gives it the capability of charging your smaller devices (like your iPod) on the go, which could be very useful.

Seeing as it can also charge an iPhone five times when it is fully charged, I would consider buying this just to keep my iPod ‘locked n loaded’.

Coming in at a tiny 150mm x 83mm x 14mm weighing only 265g, the Minigorilla is more than just a powerful little battery as it includes various safety features (like voltage limitation, short circuit protection and more) and a multi-voltage function that used via simple one button technology.

So where can you get it in SA, well you can’t really, but thanks to the beauty of Globalisation you can buy one online for £99.95.

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UPDATE – 14 Oct 09

So apparently if you live in South Africa and would like to get your hands on one of these without having to pay in pounds, you can get them at Wintec Solutions or at Power Traveller.

Thanks to Rene for the heads up

If you’re looking for something that will help distress your life, make you feel healthy (or realize how unhealthy you are) and make you appreciate the small things in life enough to make a Buddhist Monk jealous then the Drakensberg Mountains are the answers to your prayers.

All year round the Drakensberg Mountains offer everyone from the seasoned half monkey half man hikers to the average city slicker Joe a variety of hiking trails that will appeal to you in one way or another.

Do some research and prepping before you head off into the wild and not only will you reap the rewards but you’ll have a few great stories to tell and more pictures than any wall could handle. There is plenty accommodation available in the area, from camp sites at the foot of the mountains to 5 star B+Bs. My suggestion is that you find a place that has a hot shower and a cozy spot for you to complain about your ailments comfortably, which suits your pocket.

When you are deciding on one of the 127 million hiking trails (yes, I’m exaggerating but I wasn’t going to count them all) available, remember to challenge yourself. A 30 minute hike just doesn’t cut it in my books, but in the same breathe remember to sign the registry if you plan on disappearing for a few days ‘in the mountains bru’.

I challenged myself to the Tugela Gorge trail and by ‘challenged myself’ I mean I joined my more experienced friends on their hike. This hike, which is a 7km hike that is mean to take approximately 2 hours to do, took us close on 4 hours to complete after loads of stops to appreciate breathe taking views, a few more stops for breath taking and lots of stops to pose for “we’re so cool we hike all day” photos.

The path through the Tugela Gorge sets you on an upward hike through various types of ankle challenging terrains, crossing over the river at a few points and to the rock pools where a lunch break is almost mandatory. When you get to the end of the trail, the view of the Tugela Falls (the world’s second highest water falls with a total drop of 947m) is a reward that gives you the energy to head on back the way you came.

Once you’ve done it you’ll feel like you have accomplished something great, the addiction then kicks in and soon you’ll be begging to go back and tackle that 2 day hike and beyond.

Tips n Info:

Check out the following sites for loads of helpful information on the trails available and much more, however remember that a good place to start is to speak to the trail guides at the Royal Natal National Park about which trails would is best to take when you’re there:
• http://www.drakensberg.org.za/
• http://www.drakensberg-tourism.com/
• http://www.nature-reserve.co.za/royal-natal-national-park.html

For as long as man has existed, so has our natural urge to stand in the face of danger and prove to ourselves, friends, villages and perhaps would be lovers that we are brave. It probably started with hunting dinosaurs with a spear (that’s a guess), but today in these tame times adrenalin junkies look for their thrills by jumping off of things like buildings and bridges…

In South Africa we are proud to have the highest commercially operated bungy in the world, so proving ourselves is ‘easy’ and frighteningly scary!

If you have what it takes, why not try hurling yourself off of the Bloukrans Bridge (which is the highest span arch bridge in the world, that’s two records already) 40km out of Plettenberg Bay along the N2 Highway.

You will find yourself at the top of the arch 216m above the Bloukrans River, in a full body harness being counted down to a death defying leap and the quickest way to make your heart skip a beat or two.

But if just reading this makes you shudder and sweat, go have a look at the Face Adrenalin website for some of the tamer adventures they offer at Bloukrans, either way we’re sure you won’t leave disappointed.

Check out the Face Adrenalin website for other details, prices and bookins.

I don’t know how to start this post, I do know that right now I hate the SABC more than I have ever before. That means that my hatred for this useless entity is bordering on the point where people start planning crazy Slip Knot inspired events and cross over to the dark side. I’ll say hi to Marilyn Manson and Darth Vader for you.

If you are not a non-DSTV mutant like myself, you probably don’t watch Survivor, but for the less fortunate few that haven’t subscribed to the Magic yet we have to live with an array of programmes which would only be outshone at the Stupidity awards by the people who broadcast them.

Hence we watch Survivor (sponsored by Two Oceans Wines) because it is the only programme on SABC that won’t actually decrease your IQ while you watch it and because I have seen enough wrestling on Etv to make me puke.

So when the SABC managed to fuck up even the simplest of tasks last night by broadcasting the reunion show and announcing the winner BEFORE broadcasting the most epic and important part of the series, you know the part where they vote for the winner, it understandably ruined the whole series and all the hours I wasted watching it.

Then, just when I was getting over it, I came across this story on News24 and more particularly the comment from SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago: “Thank you very much to the people watching the SABC. When things go wrong they’re quick to complain, but they don’t congratulate us when things go right.”

When things go right? Fuck off!