To kickstart a bucket list, begin here…
Somewhere in South America there’s a river that slices through the forest like an aqua scythe. I’ve read that when dark falls – in the forest it’s so dark that you can’t see your hand in front of your face – the stars are reflected in its waters like the sky inverted. In daylight, it’s such an uncanny blue that it bewitches those who see it – and yet not many people know of it. I read about it in a book somewhere, the name of which I’ve forgotten, and have been searching for the source ever since. It’s one of the things I’d like to see before I die.
I think.
I’m sure you’ll agree that peoples’ attitude to a travel wish list varies vastly depending on age. In youth, it’s carefree certainty, fuelled by the belief that you’ll live forever; in middle age, it’s gung-ho precisely because of the dawning realisation that the body is changing, mostly because of its inability to consume tequila like it used to. In older age, it’s like my ancient cat Ozzie at the kitchen table: will I be lucky enough to get that delicious morsel before I keel over in furry rigor mortis? In the race against time we become pragmatic: am I fit enough for a trek into the jungle? Am I beyond toileting in the bush? Will my bladder play along? And can I take the mozzies and bugs? When you’re older you’re also wise enough to know it’s often the small things that make the difference between perceived enjoyment and actual enjoyment.
Which brings me back to the bugs. When I was small a next-door farmer’s wife went to Brazil and came back with amazing holiday pictures and a few itchy bumps under her skin. One evening in the bath she gave them a few exploratory scratches and a couple of worms reared their heads, then wriggled free and went marching along the rim of the bath as if intent on colonizing the beige bathroom they’d emerged into. No amount of magical aqua river will ever make up for the trauma of that for me!
So here’s my tip for creating your own bucket list: the key to it is, know thyself. For me, if that river is in a Brazilian forest somewhere, a dream it shall remain (if I weren’t an environmentalist I might Doom, but I’ve heard that’s more of a religious experience). Then, no matter your age, turn to page 70 this minute and pick 10 of our top South African experiences to have at least once in your lifetime. Aim to do them all in 2017. Why not? As someone in middle age, I know two things for sure: one, SA’s experiences consistently over deliver; and two, when travelling, always take the bathroom stop when it’s offered.
Now, pass that tequila.
5 ways the magazine looks different this issue:
We’ve simplified
You’ll notice less clutter, more white space, simpler fonts and a lot more eye candy. After all, it’s what you come to a travel magazine for – to be inspired by the beautiful pictures.
We’ve beefed up the front section
We want to bring you the best of things to do in that month, not the most. So we’ve grown our front section and curated more.
We bring you practical food
I’ve strained my arm so heavy was one cooler bag packed for
a weekend away. Wouldn’t it be useful to know how best to travel with food? We thought so, so look out for: sandwiches that won’t go soggy, how to keep meals simple on holiday (page 51), the right way to braai, winning potjie recipes and more.
Look out for the star
Every issue holds a wealth of good-value accommodation. These are places you can stay
in for under R500 pp (some for less) AND that we think offer good value (they offer a lot for what you pay). Let’s face it, some places might be reasonable, but aren’t great to hang around in.
We give you an inside peek
A question we get asked a lot is: what’s it like to work at Getaway? We have lots of stories of trips wonderful and gone wonky. Deputy editor Tyson Jopson is an anomaly: he’s German and witty (the Doom joke in my ed’s letter is actually his, but I promise I wrote the rest). So we asked him to tell those stories in a column (page 31). It sometimes doesn’t pay to be funny here.
Read more from this story in the January 2016 issue of Getaway magazine.
Get this issue →
Our January issue features a bucket list of 45 experiences to have at least once in South Africa, a new way to experience the Wild Coast, and a beautiful beach holiday in Sri Lanka.
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