South Africa for South Africans

Description

In South Africa for South Africans written by Mariëlle Renssen and Hirsh Aronowitz, 23 driving routes of varying distances crisscross the entire country, many of them taking in national or provincial roads. There is plenty to explore across our nine provinces, and the big skies, boundless vistas and hours of sunshine have turned us into an outdoor-focused, activity-loving nation. With each province radically different in terms of biomes, landscape and climate, there is great incentive to slow down your journey and have fun with the family along the way. After all, a long journey is never solely about the destination.

Routes within South Africa for South Africans:
Route 1 – Tzaneen to Kruger
Route 2 – N2 Cape Town to East London
Route 3 – R62: Robertson to Oudtshoorn
Route 4 – Calitzdorp to Beaufort West
Route 5 – Calvinia to Upington
Route 6 – Upington to Thabazimbi
Route 7 – Swellendam to Saldanha Bay
Route 8 – Swellendam to Calvinia
Route 9 – Grahamstown to Uniondale
Route 10 – Aliwal North to Underberg
Route 11 – Bloemfontein to Harrismith
Route 12 – Pietermaritzburg to Harrismith
Route 13 – Durban to East London
Route 14 – Port Elizabeth to George
Route 15 – Swellendam to Gordon’s Bay
Route 16 – Calvinia to Kimberley
Route 17 – Johannesburg to Welkom
Route 18 – Beaufort West to Vryburg
Route 19 – Cape Town to Bloemfontein
Route 20 – Bloemfontein to Musina
Route 21 – Ceres to Clanwilliam
Route 22 – Durban to Mokopane
Route 23 – Harrismith to Kosi Bay

The intention of this book is not to focus only on the major tourist attractions that are so familiar to South Africans, but rather to turn away from heavily trodden visitor paths, delving into lesser known, more unusual activities. From hiking, mountain biking and wildlife and bird watching to birding, fishing and beach-combing, this book has some new surprises. Travellers are also invited to explore beyond the usually uninspiring main road that cuts through the little country towns. From quirky farm stalls, small-town museums, monuments and city walks to battlefields, cultural sites and interesting municipal parks, we’ve got them covered. You might even learn a few things you never knew about your own country …

Ours is a big country – South Africans, therefore, are used to driving vast distances simply to get from A to B. Our aim here, therefore, is to make travelling those distances as interesting as possible.

Bookslive book review (Make travelling long distance as interesting as possible with South Africa for South Africans) – click here

[box]About the Author:

Mariëlle Renssen was born in Zimbabwe to Dutch parents, lost her heart to Cape Town while obtaining her BA degree, lived in New York City twice, and is now settled in Knysna … which firmly puts her in the ranks of roving gypsy. Travel has and always will be in her blood. After having been lured to work in the Big Apple for three years for a teenage magazine, homesickness reined her in and she returned to Cape Town, where she joined what was then Struik New Holland Publishers. She loved it so much she put down roots and stuck around for 12 years.

As an editor and writer for Struik’s international travel division, she visited Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Mauritius, London and Sydney. Because she and husband Hirsh have a lock-up home with no kids, no pets, no Tweetys, they will pack a suitcase in a heartbeat – which they do, regularly. They’ve journeyed from Jordan, Israel, Turkey and Greece all the way to Spain. In America they’ve snow-skied in Vermont, holidayed at Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, seen the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., got frostbite in Chicago and walked San Fran’s Golden Gate Bridge.

Since then Mariëlle has turned to travel writing for MapStudio, for whom she has penned more books than she can count, exploring the length and breadth of Southern Africa in two 4x4s with Hirsh and a travelling friend. Their latest adventure, which took them to south-western USA, was a two-month, 10,000km exploration of the national parks in America’s mountain states. It blew them away. So they wrote an e-book about it. In World Atlas of Food, the intensive research made it Mariëlle’s most challenging project to date, but stimulate the senses it did and her suitcase is already packed for her next trip into the far beyond. [/box]