“Gauchos, penguins, pampas and desert”27 July 2020 The record of a journey through the rugged and endless wilderness of Chile and Argentina “My adventure starts in Santiago de Chile, after a long 14-hour flight with Iberia from Madrid. A direct flight, short pain. Shortly after noon the last route to Calama in the Atacama Desert…” Read more
Magical Mozambique27 July 2020 Beaches in Mozambique? Yes, they have a coastline, but at African beaches you think of Gambia, Zanzibar, Kenya or seychelles. Or the coasts of Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt of course. Mozambique will have few people in mind. Read more
“Welcome to Mombo…”27 July 2020 Ryan Green (guide and photographer): “Will and Zita Gibson came back to Mombo Island,Botswana, to see for their own eyes if what they’d heard about it is actually true…. Read more
Madagascar, the forgotten continent!27 July 2020 Jozef Verbruggen: ‘Arriving in Tana immediately creeps up on the idea, I want to explore this immense island. I followed the R7 route. For an obvious reason. Madagascar, 590,000 km2 is too immense to visit at once. Some areas have hardly any roads or have very bad roads. The R7 gives a good impression to landscapes/people and animals/birds. It is, as it were, the average dealer of the many regions that one can visit. Above all, make time to leave the R7 and get off the beaten track. Then you will experience an even more authentic Madagascar, where time has stood still.’ Read more
Réunion – Nature Island, diverse in all respects27 July 2020 Grite Daneels: ‘Air Austral and the Tourism board of Réunion planned a study trip to tropical Réunion; or Untamed Travelling if one of the specialists wishes to participate at this destination? Like! And so we left Charles de Gaulle on a direct flight to Ile de la Réunion. This time no stress about the validity date of my passport, the identity card is sufficient! Even though this natural paradise is 9400km away, we remain within the borders of France. In other words; a piece of Europe off the coast of Africa with the French language, the well-known euro and delicious French wines on a tropical island! Upon arrival at roland garros airport near Saint Denis we are embraced by a pleasant 27 degrees. We immediately set course for one of the highlights, the point of view at “Cap Noir” that gives us a glimpse of the inhospitable “Cirque de Mafate“. We have been warned, this is just one of many moments on this island where we will feel nudig next to so much natural beauty! Read more
Chasing Livingstone in Africa27 July 2020 Professor Dr. Jaap Lengkeek: “I’d heard the words “Dr. Livingstone I presume” before. The first time I actually became aware of them took place about 40 years ago. I had bought a sporty khaki jacket, which I wore on occasion with light trousers and my Spanish boots. A vague acquaintance of mine found me with this combination on the street. “Dr. Livingstone, I’m crying” he screamed and erupted into uncontrollable laughter. Something like that’s going to stick.’ Read more
Senegal – on discovery in Africa27 July 2020 At the invitation of Untamed Travelling I made an 8 day tour of Senegal with director Jozef Verbruggen. An adventure to remember! It started in Brussels, from where you fly a scheduled flight to Dakar within 5 hours. The hectic is immediately noticeable, you are in different spheres. Our trip took us past lodges and boutique hotels in Dakar, St Louis, Gorée Island,Kaolack and in the south Toubacouta on the Sine Saloum Delta.Senegal is predominantly French-speaking, French culture, friendly people, pleasanttemperature in December and lots to see.With guide and driver we crossed the country.With the first night at the Rysara hotel we had a nice starting pointfor our visit to Radisson Blu and many other beautiful accommodation locations in andaround the city. Here you enjoy history mixed with present. Travel in luxury without missing the present. Walking through the streets of Dakar and then having lunch at Cafe Roma constantly brings you into different spheres. Read more
Ecuador and the Galapagos27 July 2020 At the invitation of the Ecuadorian Ministry of Tourism I recently travelled to Ecuador, for a tour of this small country on the east coast of South America. I had already been there and again I noticed the enormous variety: from snowy volcanoes to tropical rainforest and from colonial cities to the extraordinary Galapagos Islands. The journey starts in the capital Quito; it exudes the atmosphere of the province, not least by the still large presence of indígenas (Indians) from the highlands coming to the city. No big urban antics, but a beautifully restored colonial centre. Top hotel Casa Gangotena on the Plaza San Francisco is a colonial gem. Read more
Looking for the Picathartes27 July 2020 Our adventure has begun. Once left the capital, civilization seems to stand still. We are embraced by another world. Vehicles are hardly present, beautiful people, goats, sometimes sheep and later pigs running across the road. Past towns with unknown names like Boda, Ngoto, Bimo, Ouodo. Slowly the landscape is changing. The Congo Base is making its entrance, in one go we are in the jungle. Raffia, trees like cathedrals surround us. A first look at the Congo basin waiting for us. Bird life is changing. We see the first “blue swallows” when we cross a river. Read more
Spaceships in the jungle27 July 2020 Last night at Sangha lodge. A night adventure, a walking safari. With our own spotlight into the jungle. It’s haunted. A new challenging world. We don’t feel comfortable in the dark. It seems as if a five-ton trunk animal could storm forward from the bushes at any moment. We highlight the trees, which reach like cathedrals to the clouds and form large shadows. We see Potto, beautiful eyes. Great! Minutes later a ‘palm civet’, an omnivore who hunts everything that moves. Very active over our heads. The next day, get out of bed early. Our ‘boatman’ arrives punctually at 5H30, we leave 2 minutes later for a very adventurous eight hour trip to Ouesso over a beautiful tributary of the Congo Basin. Untethered, an adventure of a lifetime. Read more
