"You're a Million Miles Away and I Miss You So Today"

The old adage proclaims that absence makes the heart fonder, and is often irritatingly true. Like many of the millions of South Africans temporarily or permanently living outside the country, I miss home. A lot. Not just Mrs Ball’s Chutney or NikNaks (both of which I can buy for exorbitant prices from a shrivelled ex-Pretorian). Not just the mountain or the sea or the weather or the food. It’s that and other things too. I miss walking along a road and seeing people of all different shapes, sizes and colours. Or hearing different languages and practicing my faltering isiXhosa with ever-patient tutors. I even miss catcalls, shout-outs and rude gestures on the street – being politely first world is just no fun. In short, I long for the gees, and not only that belonging to the World Cup.

South Africa is cheeky, dangerous and hilariously funny, often because if it wasn’t, it would just be so much more sad. It’s a country with raw emotion, burgeoning creativity, a lack of electricity and bandwith and an overflow of bright, brash colour. So whenever I get overly sentimental (now, you say?) and bored with the bland safety and inane comforts of the first world, I play these songs.

1. Jack Parrow – “Cooler as Ekke”

Crazy guy, crazy song. One that only a true South African would understand. Zef rap is astonishingly comforting from outside the border, although I’m sure that once home it might not be my most often played song.

Best Line: “Jy’s die ou met die new, fresh look, Ek’s die ou met die Pep store broek”

2. Freshly Ground – “Chicken for Change”

Who could be sad or stand still while listening to any of this band’s songs? We started shuffling to Doo Be Doo and carried on from there. This is their new politically charged song, which showcases famous characters and is a Zapiro collaboration.

Best Line: It’s not a line at all, it’s Helen Zille’s dance moves. She’s awesome!

3. Karen Zoid – “Aeroplane Jane”

Gorgeous artist and, in my opinion, her bestest song! It’s so beautiful and evocative that you should listen to it instead of read this. I love the funny lyrics paired with the plaintive melody.

Best Line: “And the strange man next to me, don’t say thank you, don’t say please…he just cut my cheese”

4. Mandoza – “Nkalakatha”

I’m bopping in front of my screen right now (sadly in quite a white way). And although I don’t know what it means, I know all the words. The ultimate party song!

Best Line: “Nkalakatha… … Mandoza”

5. Soweto String Quartet – “Millenia”

This band has such a happy sound, and brings back Kirstenbosch picnics (overcrowded blankets, spilt wine, wind and fun)

Best Line: The looks on these guys’ faces says it all! I love their music videos.

6. Seether – “Careless Whisper”

If this choice is cheating because they are now based in the United States, I don’t care. To take a beautiful melody from whiny to rip-your-clothes-off sexy is quite a feat, and one I’m forever thankful they achieved.

Best Line: “There’s no comfort in the truth, pain is all you’ll find”. And his voice. Mmmm

7. Parletones – “Push Me to the Floor”

How do I choose just one song? I never have favourites and they are beyond a doubt my favourite SA band.

Best Line “Don’t stand next to me, I love the smell of ecstasy, it makes me feel inspired”

8. Gang of Instrumentals – “My Number One”

This song is such a fusion of cultures and music styles and just works. Whoops – I’m bopping again. Great South African band, I could dance (or just shuffle) to this anywhere!

Best Line: It’s pretty much “Mother of my baby, you are my number one”. A lot.

And now I’ve had my SA fix and I’m smiling. Have a great weekend everyone!

FIFA World Cup a Bone of Contention for Cubans

Despite not having a qualifying team competing in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Cuba is a soccer-mad nation (or futbol mad, as it translates in Spanish). This has decidedly brought the travel ban placed on all Cuban citizens to a head.

Seemingly adding insult to injury are the African and South African locals that Cubans see cheering from the stands. These are people who they have always been told are poor, and worse off materially than themselves, yet who are able to watch the soccer live, wear official merchandise and cheer for their country.

Many Cuban people met us, as South Africans, with a mixture of excitement and disapproval. After all, what where we doing in Cuba when the World Cup was on? They had a point. Word travelled around the Havanan grapevine that South Africans were in the streets, and people would yell "Sud Africa, Sud Africa, futbol!" as we passed by. Others would emerge from leafy shadows to express (to their great danger) how much they would have loved to travel to the World Cup, and how much the travel ban affected their lives. Everywhere we went we were followed by the constant drone of vuvuzelas blasting though open doorways and out of shady bars.

Fifty two years after the revolution, Cubans are becoming more and more frustrated by the confines of their borders. One can only wonder what levels the discontent might have risen to had the obedient, generous-spirited nation had a team competing for the cup on South African soil.

Slackpacking - the slacker's way out?

Some travelers are in their element when roughing it, and indeed take pride in how rustic their travel conditions are. Whether it’s schlepping sans porter along the trails of Tibet or wearing the same clothes for the duration of a trek to Machu Picchu in the name of traveling light, hardy travellers base the success of their trip (and the inevitable post-holiday braai stories) on how much discomfort they endured. Others however, find it unnecessary to suffer on holiday, and while they enjoy hiking and would like to see the same sights as their smellier counterparts, would prefer to sleep on a mattress at night and eat meals consisting not entirely of bully beef. Herald the birth of slackpacking, a relatively recent trend designed to add comfort to your outdoor experience.

The term slackpacking originally referred to the hikers of the Appalachian Trail who attempted to complete the whole 3 440 kilometres as slowly and easily as possible. A 1994 issue of “Appalachian Trailway News” described slackpacking as an “attempt to backpack in a manner that is never trying, difficult, or tense, but in a slowly free-flowing way that drifts with whatever currents of interest, attraction, or stimulation are blowing at that moment” and that it also meant escaping from “our culture’s slavish devotion to efficiency” and banishing “the gnawing rat of goal-orientation” by relearning how to play.

Today however, it has loosely come to mean hiking without a large pack, and often with some level of comfort or luxury. As well as taking care of your luggage, many companies now offer top-class cuisine and luxurious accommodation after your day of walking, carrying only your camera, some water and perhaps a gourmet snack.

The pioneering slackpackers of the Appalachian Trail have apparently caused quite some consternation in the world of walking, with questions on various internet sites posing puzzlers such as “Is slackpacking morally wrong?” There are valid arguments on both sides of the question, with some people insisting that external support for walkers leads to ecologically damaging infrastructure to be established in remote areas. True hikers also believe that the more you carry and the more distant from ‘civilization’ you become, the closer to nature and more in tune with the wilderness you will be. Others believe that hikes should not be rushed or uncomfortable: part of the slackpacker philosophy is that hikers should wander where their curiosity takes them, not necessarily towards a single destination.

On the other side of the slackpacking coin and — and developed in its defense — is fastpacking (also called powerhiking). both fairly self-explanatory. These disciplines merge into trail running so that fastpackers (which so sounds like a dirty word) run along their trails as much as possible, taking as few breaks as are absolutely necessary.

Most people, even hardcore hikers, would admit that there is nothing wrong with eco-friendly, responsible slackpacking, and it can even impact the area around the trail beneficially by creating jobs, heightening awareness of a region and opening up areas of beauty to people who might not have been able to experience it. Companies such as Slackpacker SA help local businesses by utilizing regional hospitality. Especially in South Africa, a developing country which places much emphasis on tourism and community development, the trend is having a positive impact and going from strength to strength as it caters for both international tourists and South African holidaymakers excited to see more of their own country.

Visit the following sites for more information on slackpacking: www.slackpacker.com and www.slackpackersa.co.za.

Olympians Fly the Flag High - While SA Sleeps

I watched the 2010 Olympic Winter Games Opening Ceremony with butterflies in my tummy, my foot tapping nervously and only one ear on the conversation I was having at the time. The ceremony took place while I was attending a “Purse Party”, which pretty much came to a standstill as I jumped up, clapping and cheering for my team. “Canadian?” You ask. Not on your life. After the long wait through Romania, Russia, Serbia and Slovakia, out marched an admittedly small but valiant team dressed in green and gold and carrying a multi-coloured flag: the South Africans. Pardon me for being unreasonably (some would say insanely) proud of a team from a developing country – my country – that does not have the climate to practice Winter Olympic events!

In the words of Corné and Twakkie, “Deed you kneooow”… that there were South Africans competing in the Vancouver Winter Olympics of 2010? Not many South Africans did. And it’s really not our fault – the media were tchoep stil about it; even a comprehensive internet search does not yield very much. As well as athletes from South Africa, teams from Ghana, Morocco, Kenya, Ethiopia, Senegal and Algeria also competed. These African Olympians were not medal hopefuls, many of them were self-funded and very few received the recognition or praise they deserved, although the other athletes from Africa were lauded far more in their own countries than our homeboys. Although the South African athletes are in part supported by Snowsports South Africa, the official body representing, well, all snow sports, nobody really knew about them.

The most experienced South African athlete at these Olympics was Oliver Kraas, who competed in a ski event (the Men’s Individual Sprint Classical). Kraas is a thirty-four year old from Germiston who placed 61st out of 62 in his event and carried the South African flag through the arena during the opening ceremony.

Peter Scott, who took part in the Giant Slalom skiing event, is only nineteen years old and trains with teammate Bruce Warner in Europe. They are coached by South Africa’s most successful skier to date, Alexander Heath. Scott did not complete his event in the 2010 Olympics (neither did some of the favorites, namely Bode Miller from the U.S.A.)

Representing South Africa in the Paralympics later this month will be Bruce Warner. He will be competing during the course of the games which run from March 12 – 21st. This Bloem local now trains in Switzerland and will compete in no less than five skiing events: Slalom, Giant Slalom, Super Combined, Super G and Downhill. Wow – Good Luck Bruce!

The South African media’s taciturnity about our Winter Olympic team has astounded me. Yes, we have more athletes competing in more events in the Summer Olympics. But haven’t our Winter Olympic team overcome as many obstacles, if not more, than our supported, sponsored Summer Olympic teams? In the build up to the Vancouver 2010 Paralympics, let’s be aware that we have a South African competitor and support his efforts to reach the podium.