Namibia sometimes scares me.
This southern African country is a desolate beauty of stark desert, glittering sand dunes, intriguing canyons and sheer escarpments. It’s absolutely stunning – yet utterly indifferent to the fate of travellers who come to admire it.
If your journeys are as much a part of the adventure as the destination, dramatic, mind-boggling Namibia is a must. There’s something about its dusty, deserted and utterly straight roads disappearing into the horizon to …
Author: Lesley Stones
It’s Saturday night in Montreal, and I’m determined not to slink back home until at least 10pm; I don’t want my two young Airbnb hosts to think I’m such a social failure I can’t find anything to do in Canada’s self-proclaimed party city.
Montreal prides itself on being the fun and festive heart of Canada, a country that’s generally seen as rather dull. This city-on-an-island is having none of that, and celebrates about 110 festivals …
On most tiny tropical islands the activities for the day are pleasingly predictable: snorkeling, diving, a spot of swimming and cocktails served in coconut shells.
If that’s all you require, the non-stop action at Club Med Kani in the Maldives can feel rather disconcerting.
I was dubious about the enforced jollity of zumba classes, aqua-aerobics, sunset yoga, cookery lessons, a stage show every evening, and even a disco until the early morning hours. But on …
It’s about 2am when I scare myself by remembering that hippos are the most dangerous animals in Africa.
I’ve been taking photos all day of at least 30 hippos in the river right in front of my lodge, especially when they lumbered their enormous frames out of the water and onto an island in the middle. They’re huge, solid things with massive mouths and a lot of attitude. Now these nocturnal feeders are hungry for …
I seem to have lost Hong Kong.
It was there a moment ago, with 1,295 steel and glass skyscrapers glinting in a stunning display of wealth and style.
Now the spectacular skyline has disappeared inside moody storm clouds, with just a few neon lights flickering through the gloom like displaced lighthouses.
Hong Kong has more skyscrapers, billionaires and Rolls Royces than any other city. It’s an addictive, crowded scuffle of sights and sounds with lots …
Quebec is one of the safest cities on the world, especially for women, my new friend tells me.
That’s lucky, I think, because I’ve just jumped into his car and we’re driving up into deserted forests. If I disappear, nobody will ever know why.
All such thoughts vanish as my impromptu tour guide Philippe Guerriere starts telling me about the battles that raged in Quebec between French and English soldiers, leaving a stunning legacy of …
It seems unlikely that anything could be thrilling enough to waylay me when I’m walking to Victoria Falls, already armed with a rain coat and a silly grin.
But when the hotel gardener I’m breezing past says: “Hello, do you want to see the giraffes?” it stops me in my tracks.
I’ve never had an offer like that before, so I instantly say yes and follow him into the scrubby bushes.
I’d already seen zebra …
After visiting Canada’s party city of Montreal and its astonishingly beautiful neighbor, old Quebec, I was expecting to find Ottawa a little dull.
I imagined the capital city to be dour and intellectual – a place with museums on every corner where you nod wisely at the artworks and debate politics over lunch.
It has museums and politicians aplenty, but I liked it immensely the instant I stepped off the bus in the city center. …
For years the little island of Sri Lanka has been a place that lots of people wanted to visit but very few actually did.
A devastating civil war was followed by the brutal 2004 tsunami. Now the country is rising above its past to become a holiday hotspot, with its exotic beauty, fabulous food and its intriguing yet traumatic history. Sri Lanka is like India for sissies, with spectacular scenery, great activities and friendly people, …
If you ever think about how politics influences your travel, it’s probably because you want to avoid war or terrorism. I never imagined politicians could affect travel by making a currency so weak that you should jump on a plane and go immediately, because a country has become so cheap to visit.
Well – say hello to South Africa! Come and experience amazing safaris, be awed by Table Mountain, pay homage to Nelson Mandela and …
Gnarled chunks of solid silver mounted in a picture frame are the only evidence that an elegant hotel near Cape Town isn’t the same building it used to be. The silver was once an ornate chair, destroyed along with 70% of the hotel when fires ravaged the Cape peninsular in South Africa in March. The main lodge and several bedrooms of the Tintswalo Atlantic Hotel were reduced to nothing but a yard high pile of …
Skimming over the Indian Ocean towards the gorgeous islands of Mozambique is like entering a kid’s over-imaginative coloring book.
Water in a dozen shades of blue washes over the crisp white sand backed by vivid green palm trees. Your camera works overtime to capture some of the world’s most stunning islands owned by one of the world’s poorest countries.
Mozambique on the east coast of Africa has numerous islands, with the most tourist-friendly being the …
If you’re a solo traveller, you’ll have noticed how the world tends to revolve around couples.
You’ll probably be hit by single room supplements unless you’re happy to stay in a hostel dormitory, and may feel rather lonely having dinner for one in restaurants full of happy friends and lovers.
And then when you see a brilliant sight, there’s no one to share it with except distant acquaintances on social media.
That’s why I haven’t …
This one looks delicious, I thought as I swirled the wine around in my glass and took an indelicately large slurp.
“Ah yes, a definite aroma of diesel and a lingering taste of salami. Is that normal for a Malbec?” I wondered as I eyed its odd neon hues.
“No,” my partner said, “but the sommelier did advise us not to try wine tasting on the pavement.”
We couldn’t resist, though. The tables outside …