50 days and counting! Soccer fans everywhere are starting to pant and growl I am sure.

Meanwhile, over here in sunny Cape Town, we are in the midst of 'Overland high season'! Trucks are all over the length and breadth of Africa and judging by the emails coming in from our travellers everyone is having a fantastic time exploring the best Africa has to offer.

That makes for a long list so we thought that we would make life easy for you and narrow it down to just South Africa for this newsletter - check it out - there might just be something there that takes your fancy!

If there is any topic you would like us to focus on why don't you drop us a email at info@overlandingafrica.com and let us know. We can put it in next month!

Meantime - happy trails and chat soon!

South Africa has long been the gem of the South for its many highlights, diverse cultures, majestic landscapes and for its people. Last year I had the opportunity to view South Africa from a tourist point of view and had an amazing time visiting the Garden Route and small towns along Route 62. Also trying loads of adventure activities that are only a stones’ throw from Cape Town.

Since we are not all soccer fans I dare you to try some of these activities as an alternative to screaming fans and traffic jams!

So, after you have done all the must see’s and visited all the sites around the cities, after lazing on beaches and seeing all the animals on day long safari’s in Kruger, you need a jolt of excitement and that we have plenty of. Did you know that 50% of the world’s paragliding records were set in South Africa? Why not set your own record? Or go shark cage diving and feel minute in the presence of this giant predator. I ignored the warnings of not drinking the night before and had a rough time on the boat on the day of the trip! However it is still one of my greatest achievements conquering that fear of those Great Whites! Let’s just say I can only softly hear the theme of Jaws playing in the background....

DID YOU KNOW THAT...? South Africa has loads of national parks and reserves that are the home of some amazing wildlife. The Kruger National Park is definitely at the top of my list. I had the opportunity to visit the park in December last year and it never fails to amaze every time I go there. Kruger provides an ideal habitat for animals such as elephant, giraffe, rhinoceros, monkey, zebra, cheetah, hyena, hippopotamus, gazelle, eland, lion, and African Wild Dog.

Just goes to show that we have so much more than just soccer so come along with the screaming soccer fans - while they are cheering in stadiums you can enjoy the rest of South Africa.