How BIG is the WORLD?

I don't really know, but I'm sure to get a good idea while traveling around this amazing planet. After 13 months on the African Continent in 2011 I'm off to Turkey and beyond for an extended time. Wish me luck!

I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel's sake. The great affair is to move. RL Stevenson

What is this life if, full of care, we have no time to stand and stare? Welsh poet, William Henry Davies

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About Me

Wandering Jo

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BOOKS I'VE READ SO FAR

The Monthly Magazine – December/January, February, March, April, May,

The Chains of Heaven: An Ethiopian Romance – Philip Marsden

The War of the Worlds – H.G. Wells

Jane Eyre (and it made me cry AGAIN) – Charlotte Bronte

The Mysterious Affair at Styles – Agatha Christie

Treasure Island – R.L Stevenson

Around the World in 80 Days – Jules Verne

The Count of Monte Christo – Alexandre Dumas

Mansfield Park – Jane Austen

Gullivers Travels - Jonsathon Swift

A Suitable Husband – Oscar Wilde

A Room with a View – E. M. Forster

The House of Pomegranates – Oscar Wilde

Robinson Crusoe - Daniel Defoe

Northanger Abbey - Jane Austen

THINGS I LIKE/LOVE ABOUT TRAVELLING IN AFRICA

I LOVE the politeness and friendliness of the majority of the people I meet – I get treated like an honoured guest in their country, especially when they are automatically helpful, without my asking.

I like the easiness of transport connections here. Not saying I love the mode of transports, just the availability.

I love fillet de boeuf brochette – when you get a good one, it just melts in your mouth.

I love my mosquito net – it is so reassuring to on the inside and knowing the buggies are all on the outside. It’s just such a hassle get in & out and tucking it in to make sure it really is buggie free.

LOVED the BRADT travel Guide to Ghana – shames Lonely Planet by a mile!

Never thought I’d say it but for travelling I LOVE my Sony Ebook reader. Easy to read, keeps a charge forever and I keep it in a hollowed out book so as not to be conspicuous! AND I get a soft copy of Australia’s The Monthly to read as well. At the moment it’s carrying 235 books, including lots of Lonely Planet guides (Thank you Delmar). AND then there are the dictionaries – Fr-En or En-Fr, Spanish, German and 2 versions of English!

I love my tent, a $20 special from Rays Tent City and it has travelled really well. It’s up in a couple of minutes with enough room for me, a sleeping mat and my pack. It has been wonderful for that sense of private space when roof camping. Alas it didn’t stand up well to a rain storm in Kumasi, Ghana but light showers have been fine. I guess it’s a fair weather tent!

I have loved being able to give Girl Guides here our Year of the Girl Guide $1 coin as a gift. They look terrific presented on the Guides Vic slip (thank you Jane) and the reactions have been numerous and sometimes amusing. One leader asked me if it was chocolate! And I have had to explain a few times that it really IS REAL money and could be used in Australia, along with translating its value in local currency.

There is a peculiar habit that people have when talking and making an exclamation or expressing extreme horror at something – a high pitched ‘squeak´! Very hard to write the sound other than an eek or eah in a very high pitch – very funny to hear it in conversations.

I love the West African traditional dress fabrics for both men and women – the colours are wildly vibrant with blinding geometric patterns, never ending colour matches and always imaginatively courtured by local tailors everywhere. The original dutch wax materials are gorgeous, especially VLISCO & WOODIN. The Vlisco billboard ads are also wonderful with beautiful women parading their fabrics. And the fabrics with religious icons or national anniversary celebrations are very curious. Of course there are fabric rip offs in the markets. The only patterns I haven’t liked are the ones with President’s heads and the giant shrimp pattern!

I

I love my Steripen Journey water purifier; it’s light, portable and very easy to use. I have been using water from taps everywhere and if there are floaties, I strain it through fine cotton and then purify for only 48 secs to clean up 500ml. As I drink at least 1 ½ litres daily – one big bottle or 3 sachets a day – in 3 months that is at least 100 bottles saved from landfill.

ADDENDUM 6 April 2011 Alas it stopped working last week – I put new batteries in but still no go. I’ll have to wait until I get to Lome, Togo cause no such batteries around the countryside here… Until then I’m back to polluting the world with plastic

ADDENDUM 14 April 2011 Got new batteries in Lome, purifier worked for another litre or so and then started playing up again. It is now VERY random in when it works – lately I have more luck using it on 1 litre setting and removing it after the 50 seconds as my bottle only holds 500ml.

ADDENDUM 25 April 2011 Got new batteries again and it’s working like a charm – I’m guessing the quality & age of the batteries here may be a problem.

I love the beautiful people here – the men and women are so stunning, their beauty is very unique and I am always admiring it. Muscular men showing off their wonderful physiques and shapely arsed women beautifully coiffed (albeit it’s fake hair from China) wearing huge. Skin shades are so varied along with the unlimited hair styles. What can I say – look and don’t touch? lol

I love the women’s head scarves that they wear on special occasions – they are tied with finesse, just like huge sails – they are a sight to behold akin to something almost structural.

I LOVE GIRL GUIDES IN THE AFRICAN REGION.

Loved Nigeria’s Girl Guide House

Loved Ghana’s Girl Guide Training Centre

I love the women’s head scarves that they wear on special occasions – they are tied with finesse, just like huge sails – they are a sight to behold akin to something almost structural.

I LOVE GIRL GUIDES IN THE AFRICAN REGION.

Loved Nigeria’s Girl Guide House

Loved Ghana’s Girl Guide Training Centre

I LOVE Namibia

Love Chameleon Backpackers in Windhoek, Namibia

I love Mugg & Bean for its free wifi and easy going staff who will let me sit for hours on one cup of tea.

I love Southern African supermarkets – Choppies, Pick and Pay, Shoprite etc. Huge range of goods and even good cooked meals on a plate for your dinner along with a range of take away foods for snacks. One plated meal I ate had two salads, 2 serves of cooked vegies, amp along with beef. mm

I love train travel – Shosholeza Meyl’s overnight from Durban to Johannesburg was a real treat with my own 3 bed coupe. Relaxing and easy to sleep – pity about no heating in the depths of winter and being several hours late but what the heck, I slept well!

THINGS I DON'T LIKE ABOUT AFRICA

Child slavery

Female genital mutilation

Polygamy

Having to ask directions from people who have no idea but direct you anyway e.g. Is it far? No, a short, long way. This may mean it’s right around the corner or several kms away!

Having to ask directions from people who should know but deny having any knowledge – this then leads to having to trudge with a full pack trying to find a hotel following wrong directions!

Public transport that does not treat people with respect

Sandy streets are very hard to walk along – nearly as hard as cobblestones

Fried food, oily food and foods that I can’t identify, like the gizzards I ate thinking it was meat. Actually I ate very little of that brochette cause it seems such rubbishy meat and I took it back to the seller to complain upon where he told me it was gizzard, as he had run out of meat! UUGGHH

Demands or give me; cadeau (gift), money, bic, bonbon etc.

Streets with no names and streets that change names with regimes

Really, really bad artificial hair – like a bad wig plopped on top! Actually that is exactly what it is.

Ignorant Togolese women who are mean to children on the grounds that they are African and this is what they do = what the? In Togo babies up to 2 years of age are bathed twice a day. This includes holding the baby on it back then on its tummy while its’ legs are crossed in such a way to open up their anus while hot water is poured from a height into the anus and urethra – not unlike a enema. I heard one reason for it was to prevent worms, but twice a day? I cannot fathom this practise and neither can any other foreigner and it continues unabated. Along with female genital mutilation and polygamy… hmmm

Ignorent Togolese women who will only laugh when obviously there is a problem. I spend 5K on a meal and ask for leftovers to take away. And then I'm charged 250 francs. I object to the charge and am then looked at with contempt while she continues to chew her gum. And she laughs. Couldn’t give a flying duck about it. I leave the food there because I am so pissed off. Within 5 minutes another woman from the kitchen comes out to me on the road, with the food and 250 franc refund, apologising

Or bitter tomatoes: if you find one of these in your stew, do not mistake it for a green tomato and try to eat it as I did. They are very, very bitter, somewhat akin to finding a clove in your custard – DON’T eat it!

Cashew fruit have a cashew growing from them which you do not eat – but the fruit is hard, acidic and no good which gets sold to eat!

There seems to be some kind of oral fixation in West African countries where little sticks are sold in bundles and you chew on one continually, wearing it down against your teeth, spitting out the slivers and splinters as you go. I think it is used as an alternative to cleaning your teeth, but I can’t be sure yet. Also taking great mouthfuls of water, swishing it about in your mouth then squirting it out with a great force where ever you happen to be! Just like human fountains really! lol

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