Visiting the Blyde River Canyon (bottom picture) in South Africa’s Mpumalanga (yes, you pronounce the M) province is something like going to the Grand Canyon in the U.S. In fact, the Blyde (pronounced bly-da) is the third largest canyon in the world.

If you’ve never been to the country before, it’s one of those must-do things that is unabashedly touristy, but oh so worth it. Most tour companies operate trips along the Blyde Canyon Panorama Route, which offers a variety of scenic view points, the most famous of which is called God’s Window, and short walk-in trails to observation areas facing natural wonders like the Pinnacle, Three Rondavels, Lisbon and Berlin Falls and Bourke’s Luck Potholes, pictured above. Named after a 19th-century gold prospector who, interestingly enough, didn’t find any gold in the area, the “potholes” are cylindrical rock formations carved out by spinning whirlpools of water over millions of years. The potholes sit at the intersection of two rivers - Blyde and Treur. Many of the potholes are near-perfect circles. I don’t know if the picture does them justice, but these holes are really crazy looking. I don’t think I’ve seen anything like it in the natural world.

A day trip along the Panorama Route will land you in all the above-mentioned spots. The nearby town of Graskop is a typical lunch stop along the way. The South Africans have this obsession that I never quite completely understood with this particular “pancake restaurant” called Harrie’s, which happens to be located in Graskop. The pancakes are, well, like bigger versions of American pancakes, but wrapped up like a crepe with either sweet or savory fillings. It was not what you’d call a light lunch, but then, I found that most South African eating establishments were more than happy to fatten you up. Portions were huge wherever we went - and it takes a lot of food to compete with American restaurant portion sizes.

The area is also quite close to the entrance to South Africa’s famous Kruger National Park, where many go to do game drives. The Panorama Route is a typical day trip that travelers take prior to visiting the park.

For detailed information about the Panorama Route, including addresses and phone numbers, distances between view points and lodging suggestions, Frommer’s Escarpment and Panorama Route Driving Tour is an excellent resource.

You can view more Panorama Route pictures in my personal travel blog under the post Two Days at the Blue Mountain Lodge.

If you visit South Africa, arranging to visit a township outside either Cape Town or Jo’burg is a must in my book. Andile Nzuzo, who runs Inkululeko Tours in Cape Town, took us on what was probably the single most memorable adventure we had in South Africa. As a current resident of Cape Town’s Langa with a penchant for history and an affable way about him, Andile was uniquely equipped to usher us through the sprawling tract of land that counts as the city’s first real, functioning township created after the apartheid government took over and forced blacks out of the city center. There were only three of us on the tour with Andile that day. It was kind of like having a private guide, history professor and neighborhood resident wrapped into one as our leader. As we went from place to place, Andile was joking with us, stopping to chat with other residents, his friends and family in the area and constantly filling us in on the changes in the township under the post-apartheid government. We visited the township’s eco center (recycling plant and gardens for residents), a traditional beer pub called a Shebeen, one of the old hostels that housed workers during apartheid, a new home built with government subsidies, a kindergarten, a traditional healer or witch doctor (they called it that, not me) and a shanty town (one of its homes is pictured above). You can read more about the experience if you want by clicking the above pic.

As you can probably imagine, Andile doesn’t exactly have a web site. If you visit South Africa and want to go on his tour, email Thompson’s South Africa and ask about the Walk to Freedom tour led by Andile.

No zoom on this pic, folks. Proof that the beautiful tend to be quite confident. No Land Rover filled with gawking city folk on a game drive was going to mess up this lovely lady’s morning chill session in the Bushveld. As a five year old leopard in the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve in Limpopo Province, South Africa, she’s pretty used to the trucks that drive through her stomping grounds every morning and evening. In fact, most of the cats in the South African game reserves can’t be much bothered to move when trucks come by. They’re quite unimpressed by humans, actually. Really, for them, it’s all about the antelope. Consequently, it’s quite easy to get close to these animals on game drives. Amazing stuff.

You’ll see more from my adventures in South Africa in the coming days and weeks.

I’m baaaaaack! Did ya miss me? Actually, I’m thinking not. I’ve gotten more emails in the last few weeks from people saying they’ve been enjoying the blog. Funny how that happens when you go on vacation and a fabulous lady like Lisa B. takes over for ya.

I got back Saturday afternoon after 36 straight hours of travel. It took something like six take offs/landings and 30 hours in airplanes to get my bum back from the African bush to San Francisco. Thank god South African Airways is a kick-arse airline. You get something like 12 movies even in coach. Ah, the important things, right?

But the trip went smoothly - no problems at all. Must ‘uv been the good luck I picked up while visiting the traditional healer (a.k.a. witch doctor) in Cape Town’s Langa township. He was quite a character. Obsessed with the lotto. But people were lined up to visit him and partake in his healing remedies.

You’ll be hearing more than you ever wanted to about South Africa in the coming days and weeks, but for now, I’ll leave you with a few nuggets of wisdom about long haul travel:

- Carry your toiletries onto the airplane instead of checking them. Not only will you have easy access to them en route, you won’t risk being without them if your bags get lost, and your personal products won’t be as likely to explode, leak, dribble or otherwise funk up your gear.

- Tylenol PM is glorious. I took two to knock myself out on the plane at the right time. It made it possible for me to sleep about 5 hours at a stretch and didn’t leave me dead drowsy. Also very good to make yourself sleep and get over jetlag upon arrival. And you don’t need to get a prescription like you do with other sleeping aids.

- Avoid airline eggs. They just are not good.

- Pack an extra pair of socks in your carry-on. Cold feet do not a happy passenger make.

- Schedule a pick-up: after a really long flight to a new country, it can be really nice to have pre-arranged transport to your first hotel. D.I.Y. is great afterwards, but having someone get you at baggage claim, ferry your bags into a car and drive you to your hotel is well worth the expense when you’ve been on a plane for 18+ hours and have no idea what is going on. In South Africa, try a company like Thompson’s. They’ll do anything from quickie airport-hotel transfers to complete tour packages.

Do I need to say anything? Very cool should suffice. Even cooler, the shot comes from TravelPoster WhiteAnt’s trip itinerary Southern Africa, April/May 2006. I’m headed to South Africa on May 21, so I was particularly interested in the tidbits of travel advice I could glean from WhiteAnt’s adventures. Among the tips: Book ahead for popular tours like the trips to Robben Island from Cape Town - they sell out days in advance.

I love pictures that look like they could have been taken today, 10 years ago, 100 years ago, 1,000 years ago. I think the word I’m looking for here is timeless? Or something like that. It’s a rarity in today’s world that you’ll get a picture that completely avoids any signs of modern life. Click the pic for more on TravelPoster mpreston6’s adventures in Egypt.

About six weeks before you travel abroad, check the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention web site for information on the routine, recommended and required vaccinations associated with different countries. While vaccinations are only required for parts of sub-Saharan Africa and Saudi Arabia (during the annual Haj pilgrimage), many destinations are safer with a little help from your primary care doc.

CDC Travelers’ Health Vaccinations

Okay, unless you’re going to Hawaii, Marriott’s Stay For Breakfast summer promo isn’t being offered in the U.S., but it is good for Marriott hotels in the UK, Australia, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and Africa. Here’s the deal: Book a two-night stay at a participating Marriott, JW Marriott or Renaissance hotel with your Visa card between May and September, have breakfast at the hotel, and you’ll receive a $100 pounds, Euro, etc., toward a future stay. The deal is also good for Marriott Courtyards, but you’ll only get $50. There are some pesky restrictions, but regular Marriott guests should take note.

Marriott Stay For Breakfast promotion

Everybody’s talking about it, so I guess I might as well mention it, too: Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have taken over the Burning Shore Beach Lodge in Swakopmund, Namibia. If you care, you can read about it in Star magazine. Personally, I’m so over Angelina and Brad. It’s like so ‘05.

Burning Shore Beach Lodge on Namiweb

Not only does the $3,000 Sapphire martini served at Foxwoods Casino’s new Mezz Ultra Lounge include Bombay Sapphire Gin, but it also comes with a custom-designed pair of blue sapphire and diamong earrings displayed on a silver pick (not sure what that’s for).

The Sapphire martini at the Mezz isn’t the first high-finance cocktail to hit the upscale hotel bar world. The Metropole Hotel M Bar in Cape Town offers the Bling Cocktail, which comes with diamond necklace, while New York’s Algonquin Hotel serves a $10,000 diamong martini at its Blue Bar.

Uber Cocktail Gets a $3,000 Makeover