Travel Summer 2017

Spring 2017

Contents: Travel Industry News SOMALILAND New and Refreshed hotels White Rhino Survival Cruising African Cuisine

page 7 page 46 page 14 page 39 page 70 page 88

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In This Issue… Columns

Travel Resources 60

Guest Article Feature Story Travel Africa 3 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Connec ng the USA to West Africa and Beyond

From the Publisher...

T Earl “Skip” Cooper, II - Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Black Business News Group Sarah Harris - Associate Editor Narishima Osei - Production Manager Sarah Harris - Graphics La Sandra Stratton - Content Administrator Lion Communications - Layout/Typesetting Black Business News Group P.O. Box 43159 Los Angeles, CA USA 90043 1-323-291-7819 info@blackbusinessnews.net www.blackbusinessnews.net View the publication at: https://issuu.com/blackbusinessnews

Featured Destinations...

Republic of Somaliland Republic of Namibia Republic of Angola Republic of Zambia Republic of Scychelles Republic of Mozambique Republic of South Africa United Republic of Tanzania Republic of Kenya Kingdom of Morocco Republic of Zimbabwe Republic of Senegal Republic of Cote d’Ivoire Republic of Madagascar Republic of Cabo (Cape) Verde

ravel banning remains in our sphere of concern as we plan and prepare for recreation tours or business trips around the world.

Actually, there are fewer and fewer reasons for concern or hesitation if Africa is under consideration. The variety of options for recreation travel to Africa are amazing and Earl “Skip” Cooper, II seemingly unending. We do not Publisher/Editor-in-Chief often think of one major travel Black Business News Group consideration when planning our trips - Winter on the African continent.

Right now it is Winter in Southern Africa and the ski resorts are up and running. Visit page 68 for a list of ski resorts. You will find southern Africa resorts but you will also find ski resorts in the Kingdom of Morocco and the Republic of Egypt (a lavish indoor ski resort with tons and tons of snow, train rides, lessons and a special section for children). Namibia may offer the most unique skiing option - sand dune skiing. Cape Town may have an indoor ski resort in development while several of the Morocco sites stress mountain climbing but skiing may be available.

We are highlighting Somaliland on our cover and on pages 46-49 for your consideration. An old/new nation with so much history and culture to share. Try a few recipes (page 88) to kick-start your journey planning.

Its a big continent. Check out the options for fun (and business) from top to bottom.

Thanks for reading our publication and let us know what you think. 

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Travel Industry News Hilton Offers Digital Room Keys Worldwide

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he Hilton Honors app now gives guests the ability to choose their room before arriving at a hotel and enter their room using the Hilton Honors app as a key.

The Hilton Honors app is designed to be guests’ remote control for their stay at Hilton. From their smartphone, guests can check in, select their room and choose when to arrive. Digital Key can also be used to access the fitness center,

Google Home Aids Travel Planning

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lanning your next vacation just got a lot easier if you own a Google Home device. Starting April 13, 2017, you can ask Home to find and track flight prices, hands-free.

If you say “OK Google, how much are flights to Miami” Google will give you a quote for two weeks from now, and then ask you if you have specific dates in mind. After that Google will ask if you want to track price changes for those flights.

Basically all that does is sign you up for the price tracking feature Google introduced last year, sending you an email any time there’s a significant price change (https://thenextweb.com/ google/2016/07/12/ok-google-planmy-vacation/#.tnw_F6flFOfM).

The assistant can answer a few other travel related questions as well, such as currency conversions or whether you need a visa to enter a country.  pool and other hotel areas that traditionally require a key.

“Simplicity and consistency in experience is paramount for us.

Digital Key is just one way we’re delivering that – from Anchorage to Yonkers, you can count on Digital Key supporting your adventure,” said Geraldine Calpin, chief marketing officer at Hilton.

By New Year’s Eve, Hilton will toast to 2,500 hotels live due to advanced deployment technology and lessons learned in countless installations.  http://lodgingmagazine.com/hiltonintroduces-digital-key-at-1000th-hotel/

www.msn.com/en-gb/news/ techandscience/google-home-cannow-help-you-find-the-cheapest-timeto-fly/ar-BBzMZYy

GBTA Convention 2017

G

lobal Business Travel Association (GBTA) (http://convention.gbta.org)

is the world’s premier business travel and meetings organization headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area with operations on six continents. GBTA’s 9,000-plus members manage more than $345 billion of global business 7 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

travel and meetings expenditures annually.

More than 1,000 business travel buyers have registered for GBTA Convention 2017, marking the earliest in the event’s history that this milestone has been reached.

Don’t miss out! July 15-19, 2017 in Boston, MA. Register at http:// convention.gbta.org/Register.  http://africa.unwto.org/news/2016-06-27/ unwto-regional-workshop-africa-keyssuccess-tourism-product-development

New Airline Coming

U

SGlobal Airways, a proposed new U.S.-based international airline, today announced its intention to operate transatlantic passenger flights between Stewart International Airport and selected European countries covered by the US-EU Open Skies Agreement.

“Our new airline is well-advanced in the process of restructuring, reorganizing and refinancing and hopes to receive U.S. government see Travel Industry News on page 8

Travel Industry News from page 7

regulatory approval and certification in the not too distant future in order to serve international routes to and from Stewart that are currently poorly served or underserved,” said Anthony Koulouris, CEO and President, USGlobal Airways.  www.usglobal.com/press-release

New TSA Screening Procedures Coming

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he Transportation Security Administration (TSA) plans to change policy around baggage screening. Specifically?

The new rules would include requiring travelers to remove all food and electronics larger than cell phones from carryon bags and move them into separate security

bins, similar to how laptops are currently screened.

At present, the measures are being tested at ten U.S. airports including Los Angeles International, Boston’s Logan International, and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International, with plans to eventually expand the policy nationwide after screeners have been fully trained. The agency said it had no immediate plans to roll out the new screening procedures at all airports, according to the New York Times. PreCheck passengers will not be affected.

Despite the flood of news surrounding potential policy change, TSA officials say these new screening procedures have been in the works for two years, and are unrelated to the recent electronics ban; rather, they are part of continuously developing counterterrorism and efficiency efforts. Given that passengers are packing their carry-ons to the brim, TSA officials say, it can often take longer to discern what’s a threat— and what’s not. By removing items from bags, the agency says, its screeners can scan items more

quickly and reduce the number of manual bag checks.  www.cntraveler.com/story/new-tsascreening-procedures-may-be-on-theway?mbid=nl_052817_Daily&CNDID=3889065 4&spMailingID=11128854&spUserID=MTQ5NT c0OTAyMDYxS0&spJobID=1162431632&spRe portId=MTE2MjQzMTYzMgS2

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Try STEP

he Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) is a free service to allow U.S. citizens and nationals traveling abroad to enroll their trip with the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

• Receive important information from the Embassy about safety conditions in your destination country, helping you make informed decisions about your travel plans.

• Help the U.S. Embassy contact you in an emergency, whether natural disaster, civil unrest, or family emergency.

• Help family and friends get in touch with you in an emergency  https://step.state.gov

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Monrovia, Liberia www.rljkendejaresort.com First-class amenities catering to international leisure travelers. For the business minded traveler, the RLJ Kendeja Resort & Villas offers full service business amenities along with meeting and function space for business and personal events. Amenities include ocean front beach, pool, spa, dining room, and relaxing bar.

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Why You Should Travel With a Drone

By Sebastian Modak

Some things just look better from above—and that’s where a drone comes in. Photo by

First reason: The photos and videos they take are unreal. Secondly? You could also win prizes by entering SkyPixel’s contest.

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ravel is all about exploring the unknown, expanding the mind, and—let’s be real— bragging rights. As technology

becomes such an integral part of traveling, the ways in which we share our experiences are also becoming more sophisticated.

Enter the drone—once a tool reserved for tech geeks, pro filmmakers, and the military, camera-mounted aerial vehicles are quickly becoming more consumer-friendly, while also packing performance into ever smaller (and more travel-friendly) 12 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

郑戈

packages. Sure, slap an obscure filter onto your iPhone pic of the beach and you’ve got an Instagram-ready beauty shot. But launch an HD camera 100 feet into the air, punch a few commands into your controller, and watch as it makes a slow, perfectly stable arc along the shoreline—picking up the crashing waves and surfers beyond the break. Your travel photography just hit a whole new

skypixel.com)

level.

We’ve made no secret of our love of drones as a travel accessory, but we’re not the only ones who like seeing the world from a whole new perspective. With that in mind, Traveler has signed on as a partner for a new drone video competition, hosted by aerial enthusiasts SkyPixel (www.

and industryleaders DJI (www.dji.com). Until August 2, 2017, you can enter your own drone footage in the contest’s three categories—Nature, City, or Sport—and if the panel of judges picks your submission, you could win a new DJI Inspire 2 Premium Combo, Nikon D750 Body + 2470 mm VR 2.8 Lens, and other equipment to elevate your droning

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even more. If you don’t have that award-worthy footage yet, there’s still time. Pack it up and hit the skies.  www.cntraveler.com/story/ why-you-should-travel-with-adrone?mbid=nl_060917_Daily&C NDID=38890654&spMailingID=11 225875&spUserID=MTQ5NTc0O TAyMDYxS0&spJobID=11808115 96&spReportId=MTE4MDgxMTU 5NgS2

New and Refreshed Hotels in Africa Conde Nast Hot Hotels 2017 http://www.cntraveler.com/galleries/2015-04-20/hot-list-2015-world-s-best-new-hotels/1

www.sofitel.com/gb/hotel8 2 1 6 - s o f i t e l - t a m u d a - b a ybeach-and-spa-/index.shtml

andBeyond Matetsi River Lodge, Zimbabwe

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he Condé Nast magazineeditors vetted hundreds of recently opened hotels and resorts, from West Africa to Miami, and found that what stands out are the properties that combine old-school extravagance and service with... View all 75 of the best new hotels in the world at the address shown below. On this page and the next see an image from the 8 hotels based in Africa - Zimbabwe, Morocco, Seychelles, Tanzania, and South Africa then visit the website of each destination and start planning your next vacation. www.andbeyond.com/matetsi-river-lodge www.banyantree.com/en/em-morocco-tamouda-bay www.asiliaafrica.com/east-africa-safari/tanzania/ngorongoro-conservation/the-highlands http://leeucollection.com/leeu-estates www.l-hotelmarrakech.com www.sofitel.com/gb/hotel-8216-sofitel-tamuda-bay-beach-and-spa-/index.shtml http://www.cntraveler.com/hotels/thanda-island/thanda-island http://www.sixsenses.com/resorts/zilpasyon/destination  www.cntraveler.com/galleries/2015-04-20/hot-list-2015-world-s-best-new-hotels/1 14 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Banyan Tree Tamouda Bay, Fnideq, Morocco

The Highlands, Ngorongoro, Tanzania

Hot Hotels 2017

L’Hôtel Marrakech, Morocco Leeu Estates, Franschhoek, South Africa

Sofitel Tamuda Bay Beach and Spa Hotel, M’diq, Morocco 16 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Thanda island, Tanzania

Six Senses Zil Pasyon, Seychelles

Group Trips Just Got a Lot More Fun with These Apps

By Mark Ellwood

A

spate of startup apps aimed at making group trips less stressful and more seamless has emerged.

We examined the offerings in three key categories to identify the best option in each, as well as some honorable mentions for runners-up.

Here’s Condé Nast Traveler’s pick of group trip apps.

Best for Trip-planning:

TRAVEFY (iOS, Android; free) This app collates flight and hotel info into a single, shareable itinerary; it also bundles online reviews and contact information into that outline. You can share the results with all, or just select members, of the group (handy if everyone’s flights, for example, are from different airports, but you’re all staying at the same hotel).

Solicit input or run suggestions by everyone via the built-in chat feature, or even run a Twitterstyle poll to settle the final decision. Divvying expenses at trip’s end is also included, though unfortunately, there’s a fee for settling the final group expenses via credit card on the app.

Runners-up: Tripit (iOS, Android; free) is

very similar to Travefy, but one caveat: don’t shell out for the premium version as the upgrades offered, like real-time flight alerts, don’t justify the $49 fee.

Combotrip (iOS, Android; free) is more focused on collaborative planning, rather than assigning a group leader. But when it comes to travel planning, remember that democracy can be a time-suck.

Best for Keeping Tally: SPLITTR (iOS only; $1.99) This app has a single mission: simplifying the process of settling the tally, especially when you travel.

It works offline (so no roaming fees) and integrates currency conversion—add expenses as you go, then settle them in dollars, or whatever your home currency might be. Each time you add an

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activity, you can tag whomever in the group participated; at trip’s end, Splittr instantly generates a final bill for each traveler as a pdf via email. It’s a pity, though, that you can’t use the app to pay—you’ll need to use an outside service, like Venmo or Paypal, to actually transfer the money. It’s currently iOS-only but developer Raphael Wichmann assures Condé Nast Traveler an Android version should be released soon.

Runners-up: Splitwise (iOS, Android; free) integrates Venmo directly into the app. Unfortunately, it only processes transactions in whichever currency you’ve set as your default, which is a major downside if you’re traveling abroad.

Best for Keeping in Touch:

PRAVA (iOS, Android; free) This app includes an itinerary manager much like that by Travefy, but Prava has other, more compelling features. It stands out for the ability to not only message within the app but also to share your location when you do, so it’s an ideal tool to make meeting up in an unfamiliar city more seamless.

There’s also a nifty photo-sharing feature that will streamline that end-of-trip rush to make sure everyone has all the best shots.

Runners-up: Friendlynk (iOS only, free) focuses on location tracking, alongside listings of events in any given location—an ideal grouporganizing tool at a sports game or festival, or even in your home city.

Vamoos (iOS, Android; free) is primarily aimed at tour group members—the interactive ticker that counts down to the group meeting time is a thoughtful touch, though. 

www.tablethotels.com Search for Boutique Hotels in Africa and around the world

www.cntraveler.com/story/ best-apps-for-stress-free-grouptravel?mbid=nl_051417_Daily&CNDID=3 8890654&spMailingID=11020496&spUse rID=MTQ5NTc0OTAyMDYxS0&spJobID= 1161206602&spReportId=MTE2MTIwNjY wMgS2

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View all of the Issues of the Black Business News Group at:

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Namibia Teaser

Sossusvlei at Sunset

By Sidra Monreal

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he stark contrast in landscapes and experiences in Namibia (https://en.wikipedia. org/wiki/Namibia) is unequaled. I visited the tallest sanddunes in the world, watched in awe as the Milky Way canvased the sky, drive throughs sweeping canyons, visited charming coastal fishing towns, explored Etosha National Park and saw more wildlife than I could have imagined. Namibia is an adventure traveler’s dream. 

Brand new baby Zebra

http://www.cntraveler.com/gallery/10photos-that-will-make-you-want-tovisit-namibia-now/1 20 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Elephant in Ethosha Park

Namib-Naukluft Park Lesser Flamingo

Namib-Naukluft Park

Cheetah and caracal romp in N/a’aa ku sê Wildlife Sanctuary

Lion at N/a’aa ku sê Wildlife Sanctuary

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he first high-speed trains in Africa are flashing along the Atlantic coast of Morocco.

The French-made double-decker TGVs are being tested ahead of the launch of a flagship new line connecting Tangier with Morocco’s economic capital Casablanca in 2018.

The new trains can reach speeds of 200 miles per hour. They will cut the journey time between the two cities by more than half -- to just over two hours. This is double the speed of South Africa’s Gautrain, launched in 2012, which falls short of the criteria for high-speed rail.

The $2 billion project has been in development for a decade, funded by the governments of Morocco, France, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the UAE. King Mohammed VI and the Moroccan government expect the trains to deliver wealth and prestige for the country. But opponents claim they are an expensive folly.

Speculate to accumulate High-speed trains fit within a wider program of infrastructure spending in Morocco, including the world’s largest solar power plant and several major ports, that is intended to stimulate a sluggish economy.

“The Government is continuing its reforms and major investments to improve the business climate and attract foreign investors,” reported the African Development Bank in its “Economic Outlook 2016” for Morocco.

The Tangiers-Casablanca route is expected to generate a sharp increase in passenger numbers that will boost tourism, support wider economic growth in the cities, and recoup the investment on it.

“We aim at six million passengers a year after three years of commercial operation, instead of three million currently,” said Mohamed Rabie Khlie, director

Morocco to get Africa’s First High-speed Train

By Kieron Monks, CNN general of national rail operator ONCF, in a recent interview with Le Monde. “This should enable us to achieve an operating margin that far exceeds that of conventional trains and will justify the development.”

The director general went on to add that growing passenger numbers had caused “saturation of the network,” making the new line a necessity.

He denied that an upgraded service would lead to high costs for passengers.

“We will run trains intended for Moroccans and thus adapted to the purchasing power of Moroccans,” said Khlie. “We do not want a train reserved for high-end customers.”

Risk and reward The new trains carry risks as well as rewards, according to Zouhair Ait Benhamou, an economic analyst at the Financia Business School in France.

“The ONCF business model is based on the French model in which trains are heavily subsidized,” he says. “If the number of passengers does not materialize in two to three years, the government will have to provide subsidies.”

The government will hope to stimulate new economic activity in areas along the route, according to the analyst.

“I suspect there are some places the government wants to develop as new tourist areas,” says Benhamou. “They could also attract an automaker to build a facility. Peugeot is thinking about creating a plant in Kenitra, and if 22 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

the high speed train goes through this city it would create a logistics hub for them.”

The new train line will impress foreign investors but they are likely to remain wary of Morocco, according to Riccardo Fabiani, a senior analyst at the Eurasia Group.

“If you are a businessman deciding to install an operation in Africa and you are torn between Morocco and another country, this kind of modern world-class infrastructure could help tip the balance,” he says.

“But there are other problems with the domestic economy.”

Fabiani cites poor governance a n d corruption as major concerns, as well as “human capital” issues such as a severely under-performing education system. These issues reflect the priorities of a government which is comfortable with uneven development, he believes.

“The current authorities are replicating the colonial model of looking at some areas like Tangier and Casablanca but forgetting the rest of country,” says the

Casablanca

education,” says Omar Balafraj, a leader campaigner and member of parliament for the Federation of the Democratic Left party.

Balafraj tells a joke that he feels captures the folly of the project: “A man meets a homeless man who is almost naked, and asks him what he needs. He answers: ‘only a ring.’”

But despite such reservations, the project is almost certainly too far advanced now to be stopped in its tracks.

The high-speed Tangier to Casablanca service will soon be welcoming its first passengers.  http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/20/ travel/morocco-high-speed-tgvtrains/index.html

Tangiers

analyst. “So there is world class infrastructure in one area and untarred roads in others.”

Not all aboard Such disparities have fueled the “Stop TGV” campaign, a coalition of activists arguing that the investment could be better used for failing public services.

“Morocco is a poor country and the top priority should be 23 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Why Dakar, Senegal Is the Perfect Place to Learn to Surf

by Katherine LaGrave

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urin, Italy-born Marta Imarisio first came to Senegal in 2008 to research the country as a new destination to offer Italian surfing clients.

She had a one-way ticket, seven surfboards, and inspiration from The Endless Summer, a seminal 1966 film from Bruce Brown that follows Mike Hynson and Robert August on a surfing trip around the world.

Dakar, in 1964, was the pair’s first stop.

Yet unlike Hynson, August, Brown, and crew, who departed after catching some swells in 1964, Imarisio has stuck around, and in 2010, opened Malika Surf Camp with her husband Aziz Kane on sandy Yoff Beach, on the outskirts of Dakar. The company offers everything from 5’11 shortboards to 9’ longboards; a ratio of four students to one instructor for adults, two students to one instructor for children; classes in English and French; a partnership with the lifeguard association at Yoff; and a boat ready to drop you on the world-class waves off the famed Ngor Island.

Here, the seas are uncrowded, the water warm, and the breaks on the southern edge of the city known for their challenging curl. Traveler sat down with Imarisio to find out why the country—a direct flight away from the East Coast and the U.K., and one of the safest and most politically stable in the region—continues to be an unsung surfing hotspot.

What makes Dakar a perfect place to surf?

First, its geographic position. As a peninsula, we catch swells from the north and south. There are at least 15 spots within 15 minutes of each other, all for different kinds of surfers—like easy reef or barrel, beach breaks and points. And during the week, there will only be about five people in the water. Locals are friendly, and they are ready to share a wave with you.

How has the surf scene changed in the past 10 years?

More tourists, for sure, and surfers interested, also, in discovering the local way of life. Tourists are conscious of the quality of the waves in Africa, and they want to discover new places, new cultures. Also,

at Yoff Beach. BobbiLeNdiaye

more locals are surfing now, working in different surf schools or surf camps, like Quiksilver or Rip School, and more young locals have access to boards and wetsuits.

Where do you think the surf scene will be in the next 10 years?

The surfing scene will maybe also grow outside the peninsula, as we have a few nice waves on the coast some 60 miles south of Dakar. We go surfing there, but not much is developed, though there is great potential. I also hope more local girls will surf. Right now, Khadjou Samba is the only local woman surfing and working in our surf camp as a surf teacher. She is a concrete example for women who want to build their own life.

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How long does it usually take one of your sutdents to learn to surf?

It depends on the skills and on the confidence in the water, but usually in five days you’ll be able to paddle and stand correctly on the board while riding your wave.

How different is surf etiquette in Senegal?

Good question! Basically it depends on where you are. Secret Spot, for example, is well known because there are no rules. It’s a spot where every wave is a party wave (taken by many surfers at the same time) and where nobody respects any kind of priority rule.

But in other more intense spots like Ngor or Ouakam, priority rule is respected, because if you drop on somebody’s wave, it could be dangerous because of

the rocks. The good thing is that the atmosphere in the water is relaxed, so you can always as a local for a wave, and you can always be ready to give one to a student.

Where else can people rent boards and wetsuits?

They can find boards in Secret Spot for 5,000 CFA ($8) an hour, or at the Quiksilver Shop in Ngor.

Where are the best places to eat and drink after a day of surfing?

Les Almadies, and at Estendera Vivier Beach.  https://thescene.com/watch/cntraveler/the-best-surfspots-in-dakar-senegal?=player_scene_logoon

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Reason to Travel: Cape Epic Mountain Bike Race, South Africa

by Katherine LaGrave

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he 2017 Cape Epic Mountain Bike Race took place near Hermanus, about 140km from Cape Town.

Riders covered a distance of 690km, climbing nearly 15400m in height, over eight days of racing.

The EPIC, in which two riders race as a team, is widely considered the foremost mountain bike stage race in the world. If you want to try your hand (legs and feet) at this level of competition visit the Cape Epic website for registration information: www.cape-epic.com.

Race Within a Race Mokgopo and Sebona win Exxaro Special Jersey Diepsloot MTB Academy riders William Mokgopo and Philimon Sebona crossed the finish line in high spirits yet again, and after an impressive week of riding, claimed the Exxaro Special Jersey and finished the event in 42nd place overall.

They extended their lead almost every day in the chase for the Exxaro Special Jersey, ending with a time gap of +1:42.49,8.

Compared to preceding stages of the Absa Cape Epic, the final day was relatively flat, something that didn’t quite suit the team. But on the Grand Finale they were only racing themselves.

“It was difficult stuff today,” said Mokgopo. “I’m not a flat terrain type of person, I prefer it up and down and that’s the type of rider I am. I just try relax more when it comes to flats and really push it in the undulations. But today we

didn’t need to do any work, we just enjoyed ourselves.”

Of the Absa Cape Epic experience, an overwhelmed Mokgopo said it was an incredible week. “It was a hard week but amazing too. My legs felt like bricks today. It was mind over matter for this last stage. In general, everything is still catching up to me.”

As part of their prize, the pair will get to fly to Belgium and spend eight days at the elite Bakala Academy doing testing and training. They will also get to interact and spend time with the Etixx Quick-Step professional cycling team, which is based in Belgium and uses the academy to improve its performance.

Sebona explained the final stage as a different kind of challenge.

“We left the start and we saw

our team number two coming up close behind us, so we wanted to help them and walk with them to the line. So today’s strategy was to get safely to the finish line with no broken bikes, no skin torn. We wanted to make sure to bring our second team to the line in a very good position.”

Cindy Ross, the general manager for Diepsloot MTB Academy, explaining the team’s success, said there are lessons that everyone can learn. “I think this is a prime

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Sebona and Mokgopo example that you can never underestimate yourself. …Nobody believed in our Academy, but the amazing thing is, these boys did it all on their own - without a coach or many resources.”

She concluded, “The Absa Cape Epic has exceeded our dreams and expectations. Outside of this our riders are great. William is still studying, mentoring the kids at home. Both riders want to start coaching the kids full time at the academy, and William will continue to do so while completing his studies with the prize money won.”

As winners of the Exxaro Special Jersey, Sebona and Mokgopo will enjoy R50,000 from Exxaro (www.exxaro.com) to spend on education or other initiatives designed to improve their personal circumstances.

Exxaro Special Jersey Vision: To introduce the mountainbiking experience to historically

disadvantaged communities and individuals, and ultimately to assist in transforming the sport in South Africa.

Objective: • Increase the number of historically disadvantaged South African riders participating in MTB • Increase the number of historically disadvantaged South African riders participating and finishing in events like the Absa Cape Epic, and thereby establishing them as role models for young kids • Associate Exxaro with empowerment, leadership and support of the transformation of MTB in South Africa • Use sport (MTB) and a healthy lifestyle to improve people’s quality of life • Create change in the lives of communities by providing young people with a healthy alternative - sport vs drug and alcohol

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abuse • Inspire children/young adults to build a positive future for themselves and their families, thereby creating an environment to fulfil their dreams and rebuild communities • Working closely with Exxaro and other academies to provide access to entries and support to complete the Absa Cape Epic Contact Details: For more information on participating in the Absa Cape Epic as a Development team and contending for the Exxaro Special Jersey, please mail: marc@cape-epic.com.  http://www.cape-epic.com/news/993/ https://flipboard.com/@thephotodesk/thephoto-desk-galleries-cpjmjjkiz/cape-epicmountain-bike-race-in-south-africa%3Apictures/a-iCJM1-52Tk6cFevw_ WeHzA%3Aa%3A9418813626dca9dbae%2Fflipboard. com?utm_campaign=photodesk&utm_ medium=photodesk.20170325&utm_ source=email

WORLD HERITAGE SITE

The Stone Circles of Senegambia are found in a zone about 100 km wide and 350 km long to the north of the Gambia River and include 1,053 stone circles with a total 28,931 monoliths. Four representative groups of these circles have been selected for world heritage listing - at two locations in The Gambia (Wassu and Kerbatch), with two in Senegal (Sine Ngayène and Wanar). The four locations encompass 93 stone circles and numerous tumuli and burial mounds. Their age and origins remain a mystery but a limited amount of recent excavation work suggests that they date from between the 3rd century BC and 16th century AD. Thus they pre-date the current inhabitants of the area, the Manding people, who arrived later. http://africanworldheritagesites.org/cultural-places/rock-art-pre-history/stone-circles-of-senegambia.html 30 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

31 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

5 Ways to Keep Your Passport Safe When Traveling

By Katherine LaGrave

LOCK IT UP No matter how nice your hotel may be, it pays to get into the habit of storing your passport in the safe. If there is no safe in your room, ask the front desk if they have a safe in which you can store the document. If all else fails—and you’re staying in an Airbnb, hostel, or something you found on a private accommodations site—secure your bag with a travel lock.

HIDE IT When traveling, keeping your passport concealed is almost a nobrainer, but of course, we don’t just mean just carrying it in your pocket and hoping it stays out of sight. Instead, look for a flat money belt, which can be worn around your waist and neck and concealed under your clothing.

If you’re looking for something a bit more comfortable, try a travel wallet or passport cover. Both conceal your passport (and nationality), while the travel wallet also has room for other valuables, including credit cards and emergency cash. (Note: Avoid carrying your passport and spending money together if you can, as taking out cash will alert potential thieves.)

PROTECT IT

It’s precious cargo, but there are easy ways to avoid losing or damaging your passport. And those pickpockets won’t stand a chance.

W

hat passports lack in size, they more than make up for in stature. With them, we board planes, trains, and ships, and cross borders (mostly) freely—after all, a U.S. passport alone allows visa-free entry to 174 countries. Here’s how to make sure your passport stays protected when you travel.

HAVE TWO (OR THREE, OR FOUR) COPIES Let’s rewind. Before you even head out on your trip, you should make multiple copies of your passport: Copy the page that has your photo and full name on it, and keep these copies in separate places—at the bottom of your bag in different pieces of luggage, or even with different people who may be traveling with you. Leave one copy of your passport at home, with coworkers if on a work trip, and to take extra precautions, leave one with an emergency contact. (In the odd chance that you need to replace your passport, have photos at the ready and bring extras with you, too.)

When most people think of passport safety, they think of safeguarding it from theft. Weather, however, is another consideration: Humidity can harm the pages, so try to keep it as cool as possible, and to prevent water damage, travel with a waterproof cover.

If water damage does occur outside of the U.S., head to the nearest embassy or consulate for a replacement passport—one or two drops of water on a page is fine, but water damage to the book’s cover or the personal information page, including passports with more severe water damage, will have to be replaced (http://traveltips. usatoday.com/passport-water-damage-tips-63886.html).

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS You’ll need your passport to clear airport security and immigration, sure. But in instances internationally where you’re asked to present identification, specifically note whether or not the actual passport is required—in most cases, an international driver’s license or copy of your passport will suffice. This helps protect you against would-be thieves and scammers, too.  http://www.cntraveler.com/stories/2016-06-03/ways-tokeep-your-passport-safe-when-traveling?mbid=nl_033017_ Intel&CNDID=38890654&spMailingID=10723108&spUserI D=MTQ5NTc0OTAyMDYxS0&spJobID=1122409001&spR eportId=MTEyMjQwOTAwMQS2

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Google Maps Offers Reviews of Entire Continents - Including Africa

P

erhaps more than any other innovation-in-yourpocket, Google Maps has changed the way people travel. As long as you’re connected to the Internet (and, with a little forethought, even if you aren’t) you can’t get lost anywhere, and loads of people use the review feature to find bars, restaurants, or shops to explore. But what happens when you zoom out—like waaay out? Well, the feature still works, even on the continental level. That’s right, you can read reviews and submit reviews of your own. And plenty of people have. Add you comments to the 860+ reviews of Africa today.  http://www.cntraveler.com/story/google-mapsreviews-of-entire-continents-are-bizarre-andhilarious?mbid=nl_040917_Daily&CNDID=38890654&spM ailingID=10788148&spUserID=MTQ5NTc0OTAyMDYxS0 &spJobID=1140687583&spReportId=MTE0MDY4NzU4M wS2 33 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Head to Laikipia, Kenya for a HighLuxury Conservation Experiment

By Sophy Roberts An elite group of conservationists has created a safari camp unlike most in Kenya.

W

e are off into the blue as our helicopter catches air and the sound of Garth Brooks fills our Bose headphones.

“One of my Texas playlists,” remarks our sandy-haired pilot, Ben Simpson.

His frontierbreaking helicopter safaris take travelers (among them George W. Bush) from Ethiopia’s Danakil Depression to the forests of eastern Congo. But this time, he’s working closer to home: Laikipia, in Kenya’s central highlands, where Simpson has lived for 18 years.

The dirty skies of Nairobi recede as we fly 45 minutes north from the capital, past the cloud-ringed peak of Mount Kenya to the golden savanna of the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, which contains roughly 12% of all Kenya’s rhinoceros. To Lewa’s northwest lies the Laikipia Plateau—a tapestry of farms, Maasai cattle encampments, and private ranches alongside swaths of land that have been turned over to wildlife conservation. We fly over Simpson’s house, a glass-andstone bungalow set on a rock where 22 elephant broke into his garden the week before, then tip deeper into the plateau’s wilds, spotting a herd of reticulated giraffe—of the estimated 4,700 that remain, around 30% are in Laikipia—and a black rhino, its calf trotting behind.

You won’t see rhino in these concentrations in the Maasai Mara,

says my seatmate, Alice Daunt, a husky-voiced London-based travel agent with an elite client list, referring to southern Kenya’s most iconic game reserve. “What the Mara was to grand tourists 20, 30 years ago, this patch of northern Kenya is to the next generation.”

Our trip will cover not only the great game in the area, but several privately owned lodges, including a new rental, Arijiju House, which Daunt bills as the most beautiful bush home in Africa.

This is my fourth visit to the region, where mingling with its main players—opinionated, hardliving Kenyans, from bush pilots to architects and entrepreneurs— makes you feel you’ve gained entrée to some kind of elite members’ club. Here, I find the frontier romance of Karen Blixen but also the grit that drew me to Africa

in the first place: that seductive feeling of mischief as the campfire embers fade to black. Instead of the sanitized, orchestrated approach of Africa’s many luxury lodges that have co-opted the cues of the old colonial lifestyle, these eclectic homesteaders are pioneering progressive models of conservation and creating safari experiences that overflow with heart. “Savvy conversation, passionate conservation, and a massive capacity for adventure,” Daunt says. “That’s what the scene up here is all about.”

This mix has been attracting major attention. Last April, when the Russian media giant Evgeny Lebedev hosted a summit on elephant protection, attracting global celebrities, philanthropists, and three African presidents, Laikipia was the venue. When

Rutundu, the cabin where Prince William reportedly preposed to Kate Middleton.

Photo by Christopher Churchill 34 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

A rhino at Ol Jogi. Photo by Christopher Churchill

A giraffe at Lewa Wildlife Conservancy.

Photo by Christopher Churchill

P r i n c e W i l l i am chose Tusk Trust as his first conservation ch ar it y, Lewa was the major beneficiary; it is said that here on the flanks of Mount Kenya is where he proposed to Kate, in a log cabin with a simple quiltcovered bed.

For a week, Simpson’s helicopter will be our key to the kingdom. We left Nairobi at breakfast; now we’re at Ol Jogi Wildlife

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Conservancy, settling in for lunch above a salt lick where Grévy’s zebra feed alongside spearhorned oryx. Against a backdrop of acacia trees, the outdoor dining table is decorated with grand bronzes of rhino and elephant. I can’t help but tip over my plate to see what it is (Hermès). When I sip my sauvignon blanc, my arm nearly drops with the weight of the goblet’s solid-pewter stem cast in the shape of a giraffe. Jamie Gaymer, Ol Jogi’s conservation manager, smiles. “Welcome to Ol Jogi,” he says.

In the late 1970s, a trust set up by the Wildenstein family created Ol Jogi Ranch, piecing together 58,000 acres of contiguous land. It was where the late Alec Wildenstein, Sr. (of the French art-dealing and horse-racing dynasty) built his eccentric fiefdom, complete with a swimming pool, tennis court, stables, hammam, and seven cottages. His first wife, Jocelyn, infamous for plastic surgery that made her resemble the big cats she admired, decorated the home. The Wildensteins outfitted the cottage windows with curved glass from France.

There is ebony furniture, custommade Lalique lamps, dark-wood antiques, and a drawing room dominated by raging lions leaping out of 19th-century European paintings. Ol Jogi’s sunken bathtubs and leopard-print carpets are a very long way from my personal taste, but that doesn’t matter. The service is pin sharp without being stuck-up, and everything I touch— silk bed canopies, silver place settings—is of far higher quality than what you’d find in a hotel. But most of all, the landscape thrums, its grandeur opening up when we chopper out from Ol Jogi’s front lawn into the property’s lake-filled hinterland.

In Ol Jogi’s special unit for see page 36

Luxury Conservation from page 35

recovering orphaned animals, we bottle-feed a five-month-old rhino; later, we track elephant and meet with antipoaching rangers. I find myself admiring rather than judging Alec Junior, who, along with his sister, Diane, has managed Ol Jogi

even if Ol Jogi’s material seductions start to make me feel otherwise.

But this tension between risk and beauty goes to the heart of why this terrain resonates so deeply.

In recent months, and especially in the run-up to August’s general election, parts of this region have grown decidedly edgy. There have been land invasions into Laikipia County’s western reaches from

The pool at Arijiju, in the Kenyan highlands.

Photo by Christopher Churchill since their father died in 2008. “It doesn’t matter who my family are; what matters is the conservation legacy,” he says. Instead of smashing the china in shame at his parents’ extravagance, he’s thrown open the doors to renters to help pay for the two million dollars a year the siblings sink into security and protecting the wildlife, including 75 rhino. “The rhino give us a focus,” says Gaymer, who oversees a ranger force of 130, including a 30-man rapid-response unit made up of Kenya National Police Reservists. “That means we have [personnel with] the authority to carry and use automatic weapons.”

Guns and fences. That’s the reality of the conservation game circa 2017; it’s not all romance,

marauding, politically motivated cattle herders from the north, who have overrun private property and even burned down a tourist lodge. Elsewhere, herders have crept over the usual boundaries in desperate need of grass as dryseason conditions put pressure on their livestock. In spite of these threats, though, I can’t separate my deep feeling for this land from my fundamental belief that tourism is an engine for meaningful conservation, that risk is a personal choice. Let havoc prevail, and the elephants will go first.

Mount Kenya’s sharp profile cuts against a clear African sky as I sit on the veranda at Segera Retreat, the 50,000-acre ranch 36 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

that neighbors Ol Jogi. Segera’s German owner, the former CEO of Puma Jochen Zeitz, is in loose pants and a T-shirt; a guitar rests on a nearby table. This is his private home where he spends a third of the year, a modest farmstead hung with original Peter Beard prints.

“The safari model of morning and evening drives—that’s not what it is here,” Zeitz says. “It has to always feel like a home to me and my family.” Zeitz is justifiably concerned about Laikipia’s issues with encroachment from cattle herds and tells me about new grazing models he is hoping to introduce, as well as investments the Zeitz Foundation has made in a Laikipia soccer league and an ethical fashion initiative launched in a nearby village, with Vivienne Westwood’s help (she stayed at Segera a few years back and fell in love with the native beading). “You can’t open a camp in a place like this and not engage with anything or anyone around it,” Zeitz says as I watch zebra from a beaten-up Adirondack chair.

Segera’s relaxed and authentic brand of luxury reveals itself as I settle in for a two-night stay. Sharing Zeitz’s garden are nine thatched guest villas and a pool surrounded by avant-garde sculptures and bougainvillea. The old stables are hung with contemporary African paintings (the much larger Zeitz Collection will soon occupy the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa, opening in Cape Town this September). There are other guests staying here, including Nella Nencini-Hutchings, a California native turned bush pilot and guide, whose company, Tin Trunk Safari, caters to exactly the kind of intimate family groups that Segera suits so well.

“Laikipia has no faceless hotels,” she says as we eat fresh beet soup and organic salads beside the pool.

“It’s private and real, so different

from the Serengeti or the Mara.”

Over drinks by the stables’ open fire, where Scotch is drunk with enthusiasm, I chat with Peterson Kamwathi, an up-and-coming Kenyan painter and beneficiary of Segera’s residency program for African artists. “I am expressing the anatomy of crowds,” he says about his work, “how groups can be more effective than individuals, their agenda more powerful and visible.”

It’s a prescient conversation in view of the tensions that always seem to surface in Kenya around elections and droughts.

It’s when we head east to Lewa Conservancy—technically outside Laikipia County, but still in the shadow of Mount Kenya—that I have some of the most animalpacked safari drives of my life: grazing rhino, lion basking in the sun, cheetah, a nursing herd of elephant. I stay at Kifaru House — one of the best-priced private rentals in Africa—and join sundowners at Lewa House, a lodge run by the extended family of Ian Craig, a Kenyan farmer and one of Africa’s most high-profile conservationists, who put Lewa on the map when he converted 40,000 acres of family land into a protected wildlife area in 1985.

Both are a short ride from the more fashionable Sirikoi Lodge, where in campfire encounters one is quick to pick up on a scene that has echoes of the one I remember fondly at Lamu, off Kenya’s coast, before Somali kidnappers did their best to rip the heart out of the country’s bohemian beach scene in 2011 and 2012. There are pilots popping in on little red planes.

There are two high-profile donors traveling with Will Jones, founder of the conservation organization Wild Philanthropy. There are guests who look as if they’ve bought out the entire collection of haute-hippie label Figue, their bush getups (Penelope Chilvers boots, Carolyn

Roumeguere jewels) more elegant as he takes in the massive African than the zippered Gore-Tex pants sky. It’s not that he’s denigrating the American travelers usually sport Belgian linen and the copper rollthe moment they “go safari.” But top bathtubs. He just understands if I’m looking at Laikipia in terms of its style quotient, then Arijiju House has to be its apex.

I heard about this house from Ben Jackson, the socalled Brunelleschi of the Bush, who also built Simpson’s home and Segera. The low earth-toned building appears to be carved out of a hillside on the 32,000acre Borana C o n s e r v a n c y, next to Lewa. To build this estate, Jackson oversaw 400 people on-site for 21 months, putting into place a grand Lunch at Arjiju, including chili beef, green papaya scheme designed salad, and ginger-steamed bok choy. Photo by by the London Christopher Churchill architecture firm Michaelis Boyd. The result is a the context in which Arijiju has spectacular display of hand-hewn evolved, how in this part of Africa engineering, both serene and it’s the smell of dust, not airlow-key, as if the extreme wealth conditioning, that makes sense of that enabled Arijiju’s creation (a the location. real estate deal that, according to It is a sentiment that Ian Craig Michael Dyer, who runs Borana, defines more starkly when I finally pumps $100,000 back into meet him over dinner at Sirikoi conservation each year) is also at House. The table glows under a peace with the world. The 65-foot chandelier of perforated ostrich infinity pool, where elephant come eggshells. Craig has a rugged to drink, seems to reach out into charm and piercingly intelligent the far distance of the Sieku Valley. eyes, but isn’t prone to frippery. He Every detail—a vaulted arch here, describes Laikipia as a fractured a pegged scarf joint there—has place, suffering from no central been worked by artisans who governance. As a result, he adds, understand the deeper textures of “there are places in Laikipia that Laikipia. aren’t sustainable or safe for “Sometimes I think I’d rather tourists.” And yet, counters Will sleep on the roof,” says Jackson see page 38

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Enasoit

Luxury Conservation from page 37

Jones, who is also at the table, northern Kenya’s conservation success stories outweigh its challenges.

“The new tourist isn’t coming to Africa expecting to see wildlife as a set tableau anymore,” he says. “They want to understand how wildlife can coexist with culture and community.”

Is it this passion for a cause that moves me?

Perhaps. Or maybe it’s just the age-old romance of wild Africa, laced with a bit of that khaki fever Meryl Streep succumbed to as she slipped between the sheets with Robert Redford. There’s a term for it—mal d’Afrique. Up here in the shadow of Mount Kenya, I feel it more strongly than just about anywhere else on the continent.

Travel specialist Alice Daunt and helicopter pilot Ben Simpson at Tropic Air Kenya co-designed my trip.

A similar seven-night expedition, including helicopter transfers to and from Nairobi; nine hours of scenic heli-flying to Mount Kenya, the Matthews Range, and Suguta Valley; quad biking and fly-camping for a night in Sera Conservancy; and a fully inclusive stay at Arijiju costs around $19,500 per person for a family of five. The following lodges and private houses can also be stitched into a bespoke Laikipia itinerary:

Arijiju House You can base yourself here—at Arijiju House—for a week and mix up high-adrenaline helicopter forays with horseback riding and game drives. An excellent choice for someone who can’t stand bugs in the bathroom and is into daily spa treatments.

Rutundu

This is old-school Kenya: Little Enasoit Lodge occupies a bowl of magical land surrounded by the Lolldaiga Hills. The books are sun-bleached and dogeared with love, and the animals congregate around water holes as if they know Enasoit’s owners will keep them safe.

Kifaru House This Lewa-based bush home, called Kifaru House , sleeps up to 12 in six cottages. It’s not the area’s most style-conscious lodge, but the all-Kenyan staff gives it soul. The price—from $5,000 a night—is good value.

Ol Jogi “This place was built for parties,” says Daunt. Ol Jogi Home’s aesthetic is over the top, but you can also be sure that the money is going to serious rhino conservation.

Rutundu The cozy log cabin Rutundu, where Prince William reportedly proposed to Kate Middleton, is 10,000 feet up the slopes of Mount Kenya. Cosmos, the caretaker, and his team are hidden away in the only other cabin nearby to rustle up meals or supplies.

Segera Retreat For a modern aesthetic, Segera Retreat is probably the best bet in Laikipia. The lodge is overseen by a German manager who trained the Kenyan staff; service is among the best I’ve had in Africa. Little-known fact: It’s also home to the yellow biplane Gypsy Moth, from Out of Africa.

Sirikoi House For families, I recommend the three-bedroom Sirikoi House. Be sure to get some air time with Sirikoi’s owner, Willie Roberts— one of Kenya’s great conservation mavericks. His stories reach back to the days when his father guided Prince Philip. S.R. For high-level private guiding expertise in the region, contact Peter Silvester at Royal African Safaris.

Specialist donor trips oriented around conservation investment are run by Will Jones at Wild Philanthropy.  http://www.cntraveler.com/story/headto-laikipia-kenya-for-the-new-frontier-ofluxury-conservation?mbid=nl_040117_ Daily&CNDID=38890654&cntnl=2&sp MailingID=10738119&spUserID=MTQ 5NTc0OTAyMDYxS0&spJobID=11400 58512&spReportId=MTE0MDA1ODUx MgS2

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Kenya’s Last Northern White Rhino Joins Tinder

By Katharine Houreld

environment, which was not conducive to natural instincts, and put them in a semi-wild environment.

There were a couple of matings, but it never resulted in a pregnancy.”

Poachers sell northern white rhinos horns for $50,000 per kilo, making them more valuable than gold or cocaine, and his FILE PHOTO: The last surviving male northern white rhino named ‘Sudan’ grazes at keepers fear that Sudan, the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Laikipia national park, Kenya © REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya/File who at 43 is ancient for Photo a rhino, may die or be killed before they can raise enough money. ike many guys using the Scientists would use Sudan’s “There’s always that fear. He’s Tinder dating app, Sudan sperm to fertilise an egg from old, he might die soon,” said rhino loves the outdoors and travels one of the two last northern white expert Richard Vigne, the CEO of widely. The catch: he’s the world’s rhino females: 17-year-old Satu Ol Pejeta. “As long as the demand last male white northern rhino and or 27-year-old Najin. The embryo for rhino horn in the Far East desperately needs to mate. will be implanted in a surrogate persists, there will always be an “I don’t mean to be too forward, southern white rhino, a far more ever-present threat.” but the fate of my species literally common species.

A swipe right on Sudan’s Tinder depends on me,” reads his profile.

“We tried everything to get profile - available in 190 countries “I perform well under pressure. them to mate naturally,” said and 40 languages - directs users to I like to eat grass and chill in the Elodie Sampere, the marketing the Ol Pejeta donation page: www. mud. No problems. 6 ft tall and manager at Kenya’s Ol Pejeta olpejetaconservancy.org.

5,000 pounds if it matters.” conservancy, where all three Just hours after he went online, Conservationists are hoping white rhinos are accompanied by the number of hits was so high that that Sudan’s Tinder profile will 24-hour armed guards. the Ol Pejeta website crashed.  help them raise enough money for “When he first tried to mount the www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/kenyas$9-million fertility treatment as girl, the rangers guided him ... but last-northern-white-rhino-joins-tinder/arall attempts at getting him to mate it is difficult with a rhino,” she said.

BBAmtUe?ocid=spartanntp naturally have failed.

“We removed them from a zoo

L

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How to Get TSA PreCheck: Everything You Need to Know

By Katherine LaGrave

any of more than 380 enrollment centers across the country. At your in-person appointment, you’ll have to give your fingerprints and undergo a brief background check.

(Appointments usually take around ten minutes.) Applicants will typically receive written notification within two to three weeks after the in-person appointment; however, some individuals are approved mere days after completing the inperson appointment.

How much does it cost?

TSA PreCheck costs $85 for five years, and can be paid via credit card, money order, company check, or certified/cashier’s check.

While the government itself offers no discounts or reimbursements for the fees, several credit cards and loyalty programs do: the Citi Prestige Card, Citi/AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard, and Chase Sapphire Reserve, for example. (A more complete list can be found here - www.tsa.gov/ precheck/credit-cards-offer.)

Which airlines participate in TSA PreCheck?

L

ong security lines got you down? Worry not.

Most of us have been there: We get to the airport the requisite two hours early, boarding pass and carry-on bag in hand, only to move at a glacial pace through the general security line. Faced with the prospect of missing our plane (and, admittedly, a pre-flight Auntie Anne’s pretzel), we get frustrated and, sometimes, panicked. Looking to avoid all that? You’re in the right place. Here, everything you need to know about TSA PreCheck (https://universalenroll.dhs.gov).

screening. At present, there are more than four million members enrolled. Nineteen airlines work in cooperation with TSA PreCheck, and the service can be found in more than 180 airports across the U.S. Unlike the regular security line, PreCheck passengers don’t need to remove their shoes, laptops, liquids, belts, and light jackets, which means less time in line—and more in the lounge. Still not convinced? Here’s a fun fact: In November of 2016, 96% of TSA PreCheck passengers waited less than five minutes in a security line.

First things first: What is it?

How do I apply?

TSA PreCheck is a governmentsponsored program that began in October 2011 and grants approved passengers on domestic flights— and some international—expedited

Submit an online application here (https://universalenroll.dhs. gov/workflows?servicecode=11 115V&service=pre-enroll), and then schedule an appointment at

In alphabetical order: Aeromexico, Air Canada, Alaska Airlines, Allegiant Air, American Airlines, Cape Air, Delta Air Lines, Etihad Airways, Frontier Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Lufthansa, OneJet, Seaborne Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Sun Country Airlines, United Airlines, Virgin America, and WestJet all participate in PreCheck, which means they meet the standardized system and checkpoint requirements.

How will I know if I can use a TSA PreCheck lane on my upcoming flight?

Participating airlines print a TSA PreCheck indicator on your boarding pass—such as TSAPRECHK, TSA PRE, or TSA Pre—and bury it in the barcode, too, so that once it’s canned at the

40 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

checkpoint, you can be directed to a PreCheck security lane. Note: Travelers are checked for TSA PreCheck every time they fly, but the PreCheck indicator isn’t limited to participating airports. This means you may still get a boarding pass printed with TSA PreCheck, even if you’re at an airport that isn’t outfitted with a PreCheck lane.

Will I be able to take my family through TSA PreCheck lanes?

Not necessarily. However, family members ages 12 and under traveling with an eligible PreCheckapproved parent or guardian are also able to participate in expedited screening. (The TSA notes that travelers 13 and older who do not have a TSA PreCheck boarding pass must go through standard security lanes, or apply.) There is no age restriction to apply for TSA PreCheck.

What’s the difference between PreCheck and Global Entry?

TSA PreCheck and Clear?

Global Entry costs slightly more ($100 for five years) but is also

more comprehensive a program than PreCheck, reports Laura Dannen Redman. In short, it allows travelers to bypass the lines at customs and immigration by checking in at a kiosk with an entry pin number—your “Trusted (Known) Traveler number”— and a fingerprint scan. It also includes TSA PreCheck eligibility in participating airports. Global Entry is best for travelers who fly internationally more than once or twice a year.

Another airport shortcut, Clear (www.clearme.com/home), lets travelers jump to the head of security lines. As aviation correspondent Barbara Peterson writes, “Clear bypasses another source of aggravation to fliers, the document check—you head to special kiosks to confirm your identity with the tap of a finger or the blink of an eye and jump the security line, but you still have to go through screening. Travelers who also have TSA PreCheck will go to the head of the PreCheck line; those not enrolled in PreCheck go to the front of the normal TSA

screening line.”

How to Get Free Global Entry We’ve all been there: Our international flight lands in the U.S. and we race off the plane, only to come to a full stop at the lengthy lines at immigration and border control. Luckily, there are ways to move through customs quickly. Chief among them is the Global Entry (https://www.cbp. gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/ global-entry) program, which allows

expedited clearance for preapproved, low-risk travelers upon arrival in the U.S. And guess what?

You might be able to get this travel perk for free.

The premise of Global Entry is simple: Travelers who have it present their machine-readable passport or U.S. permanent resident card, place their fingerprints on the scanner for fingerprint verification, and complete a customs declaration.

The kiosk then issues a transaction receipt and directs the user on next steps—usually to baggage claim and the exit. But while getting through Global Entry is typically a breeze, applying for it can be a bit of a hassle.

Some people also balk at the non-refundable application fee of $100 per person. Little do most travelers know, however, that the fee may be waived—or even included— in some of the premium travel rewards credit cards.

Here are some you should have on your radar.

Citi/AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard: If you fly American Airlines often, then this card is worth its $450 annual fee. In addition to reimbursement for Global Entry and TSA PreCheck fees, other noted perks see page 43

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TSAPre from page 41

are Admirals Club membership, two AAdvantage miles for every $1 spent on eligible American

cards—including the Platinum Card from American Express Exclusively for Mercedes-Benz

Airlines purchases, 10,000 AA Elite Qualifying Miles after $40,000 spent in purchases (in a calendar year), and no foreign transaction fees.

The Platinum Card from American Express: This Amex card will reimburse you for the $100 application fee, and you can use this benefit every five years—the length of a Global Entry membership. The card also covers the $85 fee for TSA PreCheck, but since the latter is included in Global Entry, it makes more sense to just bite the bullet and apply for Global Entry. Other perks worth mentioning? Airport lounge access, no-fee foreign transactions, complimentary Boingo Wi-Fi, and $200 annual airline credit; all of which help take the sting out of the annual $450 fee. Other Amex

and the Business Platinum Card from American Express OPEN— also offer a credit for Global Entry.

Citi Prestige: Similar to the Citi/ AAdvantage card, the Prestige includes a $100 fee credit for Global Entry every five years.

There’s also $250 in annual travel credit, select airport lounge access, 3x points on air travel and hotel purchases and 2x points on dining at restaurants and entertainment, and for the golfer—or really, just anyone interested in hitting the links—three free rounds of golf.

The annual fee is also $450.

The Ritz-Carlton Rewards Credit Card: For the hotel fan (so long, Airbnb!), this card from Chase will pull its weight—think $100 hotel credit on paid stays of two nights or longer; three upgrades to the Ritz-Carlton Club Level each

43 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

year; and five points per $1 spent at any participating Ritz-Carlton hotel or worldwide partner hotel.

And while this card doesn’t specifically offer reimbursement for Global Entry, it does give users a $300 annual travel credit, which can be applied toward the $100 application fee.

Suddenly, the card’s $395 annual fee doesn’t seem so bad.

Expedia + Voyager Card from Citi: Similar to the Ritz-Carlton card, this card benefits return purchasers—in this case, those that frequently buy and book through Expedia.

Users get four points for every $1 they spend on eligible Expedia purchases, including flights, hotels, activities, and vacation packages. The card, which has a $95 annual fee, also comes with $100 annual air travel fee credit, which can be used toward checked bags, in-flight entertainment or refreshments, and—you guessed it—for either the Global Entry or the TSA PreCheck application fees.  www.cntraveler.com/story/how-toget-tsa-precheck-everything-youneed-to-know?mbid=nl_032517_ Daily&CNDID=38890654&spMaili ngID=10693624&spUserID=MTQ 5NTc0OTAyMDYxS0&spJobID=11 22017848&spReportId=MTEyMjA xNzg0OAS2 http://www.cntraveler.com/ stories/2016-03-07/how-to-getfree-global-entry

Lake Tanganyika, Tanzania

Great Beaches in Africa

By Condé Nast Editors, Getty Images www.cntraveler.com/gallery/the-best-beaches-in-africa/1

Hippy luxe rules at this Tanzanian freshwater lake. The sand at Tanganyika is utterly pure, and you can kayak or swim, but be advised of the odd croc and hippo. If you’re looking for remote, that’s what you’ll get, whether you’re listening chimpanzees from your safari lodge, or trundling along in a dhow boat for a sunset cruise.

Diani, Kenya Kenya’s Diani Beach, about an hour south of Mombasa, is part resort, part zoo—you’ll probably spot colobus monkeys swinging around, and camels strolling, which you can hire for rides when you’re not bathing in the clear sea, sunning, or perusing crafts from local vendors.

Paternoster, South Africa

An old fishing village 90 miles north of Cape Town, Paternoster is defined by its cottages with white-washed walls and thatched roofs, and these days, several serve as lovely B&Bs.

Santa Maria, Cape Verde Flat, dry and dotted with hotels, cafes and restaurants ranging from low end to the high end, Santa Maria, on Sal Island in Cape Verde, is a windsurfers haven with pool-blue waters.

Grand Bassam, Ivory Coast The original capital of Côte d’Ivoire now it’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Palms line its biscuit-colored shore, and you’ll be hard pressed to beat its Ivorian seafood.

Bazaruto, Mozambique A dune-filled island off the coast of Mozambique, Bazaruto sits within a marine park in the Indian Ocean.

Known for its prime snorkeling, diving, luxury digs like &Beyond Benguerra, Bazaruto also offers easy fly-in access.

45 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Somaliland: a Nation for 5 Days or 50 years

By Ken Jennings

I

f all goes well, the United States will celebrate its 241st birthday this summer—and that’s young by international standards. Plenty of countries on the map have been around for thousands of years. But what about the shortest-lived nations in world history?

The State of Somaliland, in East Africa, is one of the weirdest of the brief candles. It only existed for five days in 1960. Or, depending on whom you ask, it’s still around and functioning pretty well as a nation today.

Britain and Italy take Africa by the Horn.

When the European powers carved up Africa in the nineteenth century, modern-day Somalia was still a patchwork of local sultanates dotting the Horn of Africa. In the 1880s, the British cut deals with the sultans on the Gulf of Aden, while the Italians, comparatively late to colonialism, moved in on the Indian Ocean. But by 1960, the age of empire was pretty clearly over, and both Britain and Italy agreed to grant independence to their Somali territories.

This land is your Somaliland, this land is my Somaliland.

In April 1960, leaders from both Somalilands met in Mogadishu. The British agreed to grant British Somaliland independence on June 26, with the understanding that it would merge with Italy’s Trust Territory of Somaliland when it declared independence five days later. But for five days, the Aden coast was a fully independent nation—the State of Somaliland—with its capital at Hargeisa. Then, five days later, it was absorbed into the new Somali Republic.

The State of Somaliland was no five-day wonder.

In 1991, after a bloody civil war, the former State of Somaliland (www.somaliland.us) declared independence again (May 18th), and it continues as a self-declared republic today, governed from Hargeisa, with its own currency, passports, flag, president, parliament, army, police force, and legal see page 48

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Independence Celebration

Damal Hotel Hargeisa

Independence Statue

Hargeisa, Somaliland

47 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Somaliland system. No nation on earth has yet recognized the breakaway country, but it considers itself to be the legal successor of the short-lived Somali state of June 1960.  www.cntraveler.com/story/somaliland-was-only-a-countryfor-5-days?mbid=nl_041717_Daily&CNDID=38890654&s pMailingID=10838982&spUserID=MTQ5NTc0OTAyMDY xS0&spJobID=1141349225&spReportId=MTE0MTM0OT IyNQS2

Ancient Cave Art in Danger

M

any people have heard how ISIS destroyed dozens of ancient sites and artifacts, and how industrialization has caused the disappearance of ancient landmarks and sites as well.

It is almost impossible to protect all sites, however that doesn’t mean they are not important to archaeologists and the local inhabitants in the area.

One site that is in danger of disappearing is the caves of Laas-Geel in Somaliland. Although it has been centuries since the last piece of art was painted, the artwork is still important enough to try to preserve. The Neolithic artists who once lived in the area painted the cave walls with red and white paint on the steep cliffs of northern Somaliland. Depicted inside the caves are antelope, cattle, giraffes, and hunters carrying bows and arrows.

Today, the paintings in the cave, known as Laas Geel, still shine brightly and brilliantly. The caves show depictions from nearly 5,000 years ago; these paintings allow locals and tourists to view what life was like thousands of years ago.

The site manager from Somaliland’s Ministry of Tourism, Abdisalam Shabelleh, said that the paintings are unique and can’t be found anywhere else in Africa.

One-of-the-alcoves-at-Laas-Geel Source Although some areas in the cave still shine brightly, other parts are slowly chipping and fading away.

Shabelleh said that if nothing is done to protect or preserve the artwork or caves, they could disappear within 20 years or so.

He added that the sites are in dire need of protection.

However, he and the other directors do not have the knowledge to protect them correctly nor do they have the experience or financial resources to take care of

Some of the many paintings inside the Laas Geel caves, near Hargeisa in Somaliland Somalial

them. He said that they need help to protect these caves.

The caves and paintings are about 30 miles from Hargeisa, the capital. They are considered the oldest and best-preserved artwork at the rock sites. Sadly, these caves are only protected by a few guards who make sure visitors do not touch the paintings.

48 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Edna Adan University Hospital

There have been several applications written asking the government for help. However, they have gone unnoticed. Somaliland declared independence from the rest of Somalia when war overthrew President Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991. However, it is still not recognized by the international community.

www.thevintagenews.com/2016/07/21/caves-somalilandlooking-unesco-protection/ www.somalilandpress.com/rocky-future-somalias-ancientcave-art/

(cave art) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laas_Geel#/ media/File:Laas_Geel.jpg

49 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Neil deGrasse Tyson Reveals His Favorite Places on Earth

by Meredith Carey

Neil deGrasse Tyson, filming the final episode in his Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey series.

Getty

The universe-explaining astrophysicist turns his eyes back to travel on Earth.

U

sually, Neil deGrasse Tyson's head is up in the stars. The host of Cosmos and Star Talk and director of the American Museum of Natural History's Hayden Planetarium spends most of his time looking at planets thousands of light years away. But every once in a while, he explores his own. Traveler caught

up with the popular scientist at a National Geographic event to see where he's been here on Earth, and where he wishes he'd been. Unsurprisingly, there's an intergalactic theme to his answers.

What are the top two places everyone should visit in their lifetime?

The meteor crater (outside Flagstaff) Arizona. You can visit the Grand Canyon on that same trip, but the Grand Canyon took millions of years to carve and the meteor crater took seconds. It’s 50 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

a mile across and you can bury a 60-story building in the middle of that crater. It’s a reminder of the awesome power of the universe, and how devastating it has been and may one day be again.

The other place I was enchanted by, and I don’t claim to be the best world traveler ever, and I’ve not been to Antarctica and maybe that would be on my list, but everyone should visit Kruger Park in South Africa with the large game. I shouldn’t call it game because that means you want to shoot it, but everyone should see the large mammals. There are so few large mammals really other than farm animals today. I think we need to be reminded that we share this planet and it’s not just for our own disposal.

Where are you embarrassed you haven't been before?

I haven’t been to the pyramids of Giza. I’ve never been to India.

And I haven’t been to the monuments in South America from the Incas and the Aztecs.

Plus, you’ve got to throw in the Galapagos and Easter Island. I haven’t been to either of those but they’re on my list. OK, so full stop, the most embarrassing is that I haven’t been to the Galapagos.

What's the best family vacation you've taken?

We took a cruise, a Greek cruise in the Mediterranean that ported in Greece and also in Turkey. I hadn’t fully appreciated, being a largely ignorant American, the baggage between Greece and Turkey until we heard the Greek tour guide talk about Turkey from the point of view of Greece and then they left the bus. Then, the Turkish tour guide came on and spoke about Greece. And it was like “Woah, how come I didn’t know this?” That part of the world was just fascinating to see and we had a great time.  www.cntraveler.com/story/neil-degrassetyson-reveals-his-favorite-places-onearth?mbid=nl_042317_Daily&CNDID=388906 54&spMailingID=10874965&spUserID=MTQ5N Tc0OTAyMDYxS0&spJobID=1141789054&spR eportId=MTE0MTc4OTA1NAS2

www.afar.com/saveplango 51 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Madagascar, the fourth largest Island in the world From100newspaper.xyz

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adagascar is an Island country located on the East Coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean. With a total area of 587,713 square kilometers, it is the fourth largest Island in the world. The Madagascar Island was created about 88 million years ago by its separation from the Indian subcontinent. This Island is home to many unique species of plants and animals.

Thus, Madagascar is also called as ‘eighth continent’ or ‘alternate world’.

• -The Toliara coral reef in the Southwestern Madagascar is the third largest coral system in the world.  http://100newspaper.xyz/top-10-largest-islands-in-theworld/7/

Interesting Facts About The Madagascar Island • Madagascar is home to 250000 species of animals.

70% of them are found nowhere else in the world.

• There are 14000 different species of plants in the Madagascar Island and 90% of them are endemic to the Island.

• The cat-like looking lemurs are only found in the forests of the Madagascar Island.

52 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Travelmate: a Fully Autonomous Suitcase and Robot

By Lilit Marcus

T

ravelmate is the first true robot companion and fully autonomous suitcase. It works seamlessly in crowds and doesn’t require any extra peripherals. Travelmate can move vertically and horizontally when autonomous. You can take it with you when you’re going to the airport, commuting to work or just walking outside. It’ll match your speed accurately and can go as fast as 6.75 mph.

Travelmate integrates with your smartphone to accomplish complex tasks that no other suitcase can do. It can move vertically or horizontally with ease. You can put more items or perhaps another suitcase on top of Travelmate when it is traveling autonomously in horizontal mode. Travelmate navigates large crowds and is able to recognize and avoid objects as needed.

There are currently 3 different suitcase models,

ranging from carry on sized to a large suitcase. Our goal is to make Travelmate practical, innovative and to bring the future to you.

Travelmate isn’t just a normal suitcase -- it’s an autonomous robot companion that follows you wherever you go and makes traveling much easier.

Our suitcase is smart enough to always follow you and avoid any obstacles in its way. Travelmate is perfect for any situation. It can carry your stuff for you when you’re going to work, walking to school or rushing to the airport gate. Smart features like omni wheels and our Follow Me system means that Travelmate is at the cutting edge of AI and autonomous movement technology. The Follow Me system has built in sensors that detect as well as avoid obstacles like people and furniture. It uses the Travelmate application to follow you and to better pinpoint its location at all times.

In addition to fully autonomous horizontal and vertical modes, the Travelmate has a variety of useful features that other suitcases do not have. The battery that powers Travelmate can be easily removed and is charged with wireless technology. The battery can be used to charge almost all electronics through a USB port and a standard electrical outlet. In addition, the Travelmate suitcase features unique omni wheels that allow for unprecedented multi-directional movement. This is crucial for autonomous technology.

Since the suitcase functions as a robot in practice, it uses AI and machine learning to optimize its movements and omni wheels allow for markedly increased stability and range of motion that cannot be achieved otherwise.

For more details and to invest, please visit the Indiegogo site using the address below.  www.indiegogo.com/projects/travelmatea-fully-autonomous-suitcase-and-robottechnology--2#/

53 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Travel Africa Algeria

Where To Go, What To Do

Tamanrasset Camel Trekking Sahara Dune Skiing The Turquoise Coast CAPITAL: Algiers www.algerie-tourisme.dz

Angola

Fort Sao Miguel Slave Depot Calandula Waterfalls

Kindia Cloth Market, Guinea

Okavango Delta Central Kalahari Game Reserve Transfrontier Park (Kgalafadi National Park) CAPITAL: Gaborone www.botswanatourism.co.bw

Burkina Faso

International Arts and Crafts Fair, Oct-Nov Ranch de Nazinga game reserve Mare aux Hippopotames CAPITAL: Ouagadougou www.ontb.bf

Burundi

Chutes de la Kagera Waterfall Lake Tanganyika Craftwares Village at Giheta CAPITAL: Bujumbura Palmeirinhas Beach CAPITAL: Luanda www.angola.org

Benin

Lake Village of Ganvie Nakoue Lagoon Pendjari National Park CAPITAL: Porto-Novo www.benintourisme.com

Botswana

www.burunditourisme.com

Cameroon Mandera Mountains (hiking, climbing) Bouba Ndjidah National Park Festival National des Arts et de la Culture (FENAC) in December

CAPITAL: Yaoundé www.cameroun-infotourisme.com

Cape Verde

Baia das Gatas Festival Scuba Diving and Snorkelling at Boa Vista UNESCO world heritage old fort site at Cidade Velha CAPITAL: Praia Ministry of Tourism, Praia, Santiago: +238 615 697

Central African Republic Boali Waterfalls Manovo-Gounda St Floris National Park Lobaye Region CAPITAL: Bangui ministere_tourisme@yahoo.fr

Chad

Camel racing in the Tibesti Mountains Galawa Beach on Grande Comore Lake Chad CAPITAL: N’Djamena Office du Tourisme, Tel: 01 45 53 36 75

The Comoros

Climb Mount Karthala (active volcano) Nzwani Island Hot Sulphur Springs at Lac Salé CAPITAL: Moroni Comoros National Tourist Board Office, Tel: 269 73 3044

Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

Frère Gillet Botanic Gardens world-famous rare orchids Ruwenzori Range Virunga National Park CAPITAL: Kinshasa Ministère des Affaires Foncières, Environment et Tourisme, Tel: (+243) 8802093.

Côte D Ivoire (Ivory Coast)

The Basilica of Our Lady of Peace, Yamoussoukro Mount Tonkoui (mountain climb) Comoë National Park CAPITAL: Yamoussoukro Bushman Rock Paintings, Lesotho

www.tourisme.gouv.ci

54 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Ranch de Nazinga Game Reserve, Burkina Faso

CAPITAL: Conakry www.ontguinee.com

Guinea-Bissau

Bijagos Archipelago Cantanhez Natural Park Museum of African Artefacts CAPITAL: Bissau www.guineabissautourism.com

Kenya

Mount Kenya National Park Tsavo West National Park Watamu-Malindi Marine Park CAPITAL: Nairobi www.magicalkenya.com

Lesotho Djibouti

Gulf of Tadjoura (snorkling/ diving) Lake Abbé Lake Assal (windsurf on wheels) CAPITAL: Djibouti www.office-tourisme.dj

Egypt (Kemet) Nile River Cruise, Aswan Temple of Ranses II, Abu Simbel Alexandria CAPITAL: Cairo www.tourism.misrnet.gov.eg

Equatorial Guinea Arena Blanca Pico Malabo Volcano (mountain climbing) Cascades of Moca

CAPITAL: Malabo www.embarege-londres.org

Eritrea Dahlak Archipelago Tour of Eritrea (bicycle race) Akordat CAPITAL: Asmara eritreantourism@tse.com.er

Ethiopia

CAPITAL: Addis Ababa

Bushmen Rock Paintings Ski Lesotho Highlands (www. afriski.co.za) Sehlabathebe National Park CAPITAL: Maseru

www.tourismethiopia.org

www.ltdc.org.ls

Gabon

Liberia

Addis Ababa TOTAL Great Ethiopian Race

Cathedral of St Michael in Libreville Lopé-Okanda Reserve National Park (gorilla) M’Bigou (gold mines/crafts)

CAPITAL: Libreville www.legabon.org

The Gambia

Deep Sea Fishing, Atlantic Ocean Exhibition of the slave trade at Albreda and Jufureh Makasutu Culture Forest CAPITAL: Banjul www.visitthegambia.gm

Ghana

Cape Coast Castle Slave Fortress Mount Afadjato and Togbo Falls (Volta Region) Kakum Nature Reserve (treetop walkway and stay in a tree house) CAPITAL: Accra

Rock Hewn Churches of Lalibela

www.touringghana.com

(New Jerusalem) Home of the Queen of Sheba, Axum African Union Headquarters,

Guinea

Kindia (cloth market) Kinkon Falls Îles de Los 55 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Sapo National Park Kendeja National Cultural Center Firestone Rubber Plantation CAPITAL: Monrovia www.micat.gov.lr

Libya

Akakus Mountains (prehistoric rock art) Ubari Lakes (dune surfing) Leptis Magna (tribute to African Roman Emperor Septimus Severus) CAPITAL: Tripoli www.libyan-tourism.org

Madagascar

Fianarantsoa (Capital of Wine) Montagne d’Arbre National Park Queen’s Palace CAPITAL: Antananarivo www.madagascar-tourisme.com

Malawi

Lake Malawi Marine Park Nyika National Park Liwonde National Park CAPITAL: Lilongwe www.malawitourism.com

Travel Africa

Mali

Where To Go, What To Do

Festival in the Desert Timbuctou La Boucle de Baoule National Park CAPITAL: Bamako www.le-mali.com/omatho/index.htm

Mauritania

Parc National du Banc d’Arguin Chinguetti, a holy city of Islam Oualata CAPITAL: Nouakchott

www.visitmorocco.com

Mozambique

Maputo Elephant Park Gorongosa National Park Bazaruto Archipelago CAPITAL: Maputo www.futur.org.mz/index-en.html

Namibia

Mahongo Game Reserve Etosha National Park Skeleton Coast CAPITAL: Windhoek www.namibiatourism.com.na

www.tourisme.mr

Niger

Mauritius

Agadez ‘W’ National Park Igouloulef CAPITAL: Algiers

Black River Gorges National Park Ile aux Aigrettes Nature Reserve Rodrigues Island CAPITAL: Port Louis www.mauritius.net

Morocco

Todra and Dades Gorges Talassemtane National Park Essaouira CAPITAL: Rabat

www.niger-tourisme.com

Nigeria

Cross River National Park Emir’s Palace, Kano Benin City CAPITAL: Lagos www.tourism.gov.ng

Republic of the Congo Loufoulakari Falls

Loango (main embarkation port for slaves) Congo Rapids CAPITAL: Brazzaville Direction Generale du Tourisme et des Loisirs, Tel: 830 953

Reunion

Piton des Neiges Plaine d’Affouches Le Voile de la Mariée (The Bride’s Veil) CAPITAL: Saint-Denis ot.saint-pierre@wanadoo.fr

Rwanda

Cards From Africa, Kigali Parc National des Volcans Gorilla Trek Nyungwe Forest Canopy Walk CAPITAL: Kigali www.rwandatourism.com/

São Tomé & Principe

Bom Bom Island Deep Sea Fishing Humpback Whale Watching Agua Izé Plantation CAPITAL: São Tomé www.saotome.st

Senegal African Renaissance Monument Retba (Pink) Lake Maison des Enclaves (House of Slaves), Goree Island

CAPITAL: Dakar sentouroffice@aol.com

Igouloulef Mountains, Niger

Seychelles

Marlin Fishing in Denis St Anne Marine National Park Aldabra CAPITAL: Victoria www.seychelles.travel

Sierra Leone

Outamba-Kilimi National Park Freetown Peninsula Bunce Island, Slave Trading Station CAPITAL: Freetown www.welcometosierraleone.org

Somalia

Hargeisa National Park Neolithic Paintings Las Geel Indian Ocean Coastal 56 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Travel Africa

Where To Go, What To Do Beaches CAPITAL: Mogadishu www.somali-gov.info/Tourism/index. html

Somaliland

Boma National Park Nimule National Park Nile River CAPITAL: Juba www.goss.org

Hargeisa National Park Neolithic Paintings Las Geel Indian Ocean Coastal Beaches CAPITAL: Hargiesa

Sudan

www.somalilandgov.com (Ministry of Tourism & Culture 252-225-7917)

www.sudan-tourism.gov.sd/english/ index.php

South Africa Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory & Dialogue, Johannesburg Great White Shark Festival, Cape Town/Gansbaai The Elephant Coast, Zulu Kingdom

CAPITAL: Johannesburg www.whitesharkfestival.org www.nelsonmandela.org www.zulu.org.za www.southafrica.net

South Sudan

Port Sudan, The Red Sea Gemmeiza Tourist Village Pyramids of Meroe CAPITAL: Khartoum

Swaziland

Mkhaya Game Reserve Phophomyane Nature Reserve Usutu River (white-water rafting) CAPITAL: Mbabane www.welcometoswaziland.com

Tanzania

Bagamoyo Slave Trail Katavi Plains National Park Ngorongoro Crater

Stone Town, Zanzibar CAPITAL: Dodoma http://tanzaniatouristboard.com/

Togo Koutammakou (World Heritage Site)

Whale Watching, Gulf of Benin Fosse aux Lions (Lions’ Den) National Park CAPITAL: Lomé www.togo-tourisme.com

Tunisia

Desert Trekking from Douz Matmata (Star Wars film site) Sidi Bou Saïd CAPITAL: Tunis www.tourismtunisia.com

Uganda

Mountains of the Moon (Mount Rwenzori National Park) Bwindi National Park (view gorilla) Source of the Nile,Owen Falls Dam, Jinja CAPITAL: Kampala http://visituganda.com/index.php

Western Sahara City of El-Aaiún Dakhla (surfing) CAPITAL: El-Aaiún

dajla47@hotmail.com

Zambia Walking Safari, South Luangwa National Park Musi oa Tunya (Victoria Falls), Livingstone

Zambezi White Water Rafting CAPITAL: Lusaka www.zambiatourism.com

Zimbabwe

Great Zimbabwe Lake Kariba Chizarira National Park CAPITAL: Harare www.zimbabwetourism.co.zw Sources: www.worldtravelguide.net/africa www.internationaltouristboards.com www.worldtourismdirectory.com/directory/africa/index.html

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59 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL |Summer 2017

Africa Travel Resources Google Trips Just Got Even Better

by Brad Rickman

2

016 was a big, bold year for Google in the travel space.

The tech giant released two major new products—Destinations, which helps users decide where to go next; and Travel, a rollup of existing tools like Flights and Maps— as well as understated but powerful updates to its flight deal and hotel search functions. It took Translate offline last May. Then in September, with the launch of Google Trips (https://get.google.com/trips) for Android and iOS, the company dug even deeper into travelers' workflows, bringing semiautomated trip planning to their smartphones.

Now, as proof of the future the company sees in the standalone app, Google Trips is getting some significant updates, with new features like the ability to share travel plans with friends and an easy way to make last-minute changes when said plans go awry.

With three new updates just announced, Google Trips comes even closer to being your on-the-go control center while traveling. To start: You can now forward centralized trip info to anyone—say, a friend or parent picking you up at the airport, or a travel buddy you're meeting halfway through a trip—as an email or in the app, rather than digging through your inbox to find individual reservations. The app will also be

able to recognize if two people are going on the same trip and merge itineraries automatically. Additionally, when a flight is canceled or a reservation changes, Trips users can now edit plans easily by tapping the '+' in the Reservations section and feeding in the new flight number or hotel reservation; everything else will be updated for you. Finally, Trips users can now organize bus and train tickets alongside flight, hotel, car, and restaurant reservations.

“We really want [Google Trips] to be an on-the-go, in-your-pocket travel guide”—something people can use when they’re on a trip, in a foreign city, rather than just when they’re planning, said Jonathan Alferness, Google’s VP of product for travel. That, of course, means it needs to be on travelers’ phones.

Because international travel can also mean expensive, thin, or nonexistent data pipelines, offline support is critical, and really only possible in an app.

So how good is it, really?

Trips is at its most impressive when you've already got a voyage in the works—flights booked, hotel reserved, European train tickets purchased. Open the app and, as long as you're logged into your Google account, your trip will be waiting. Users of Google Now or Inbox have seen precursors of this experience for a while now—instances of Google “reading” your email, extracting key data, and repackaging everything into a clear and colorful display that gets filed

and resurfaced just when you need it. Trips does all that, but then goes beyond it, turning your upcoming journey into a platform. You can use the app to plan around your reservations, whether for basics like restaurants and bars or for city-specific attractions like parks, museums, beaches, and landmarks.

At first glance, the Trips interface is unsurprising: thematic categories like “Things to Do” and “Food & Drink” are populated from Google’s unparalleled database of places in your destination. For each option you get all the useful info that Maps has taught you to expect: descriptions, location info, hours, links to websites, menus, directions, and reviews. Google’s in-house editorial team (“It’s small but growing,” says Alferness) adds context to these collections in the form of brief overviews and categorizations— particularly helpful when it comes to food, where cues can (and should) be taken from the city itself. “Food trucks” and “star chef eateries” make sense in Los Angeles, for instance, but not in Paris or Barcelona. It’s the kind of nuance that lifts Trips out of the realm of pure technology and makes it feel like a true guide—someone who knows the places we travel to, as well as why we go. 

60 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

www.cntraveler.com/story/googletrips-is-here-with-your-nextvacation?mbid=nl_042717_Intel&CNDID= 38890654&spMailingID=10903486&spUs erID=MTQ5NTc0OTAyMDYxS0&spJobID =1142166100&spReportId=MTE0MjE2NjE wMAS2

CONSOLIDATED TOURS ORGANIZATION, INC. 61 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Spring 2017 1675 Virginia Avenue, Suite 200 * Atlanta, Georgia 30337-2845 www.ctoinc.com

&Beyond Benguerra Island, Mozambique

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ituated on the second largest island in the sunny Bazaruto Archipelago off the coast of Mozambique, the lodge is set in a protected marine conservation area and offers pristine beaches and unspoiled coral reefs teeming with marine life.

Looking out onto a sandy beach and set on a deep lagoon unaffected by the tides, this exclusive beach getaway is ideal for swimming and snorkelling.

Surrounded by premier diving sites, the lodge is the gateway to an underwater wonderland for divers, with a rich variety of tropical fish species complemented by Africa’s only population of the rare dugong.

The deep Mozambique Channel, which runs alongside the island, is renowned for its game fish and Benguerra Island offers some of the world’s best catch-and-release deep sea fishing and fly fishing opportunities.

While the island is fringed with golden, sandy beaches, its interior is a lush patchwork of forests, wetlands and fresh water lakes. Horse riding trips and island expeditions explore both the coastline and the interior of the island, uncovering traditional culture at the local village and climbing soaring sand dunes.

Why Visit: • Diving and snorkelling some of the most pristine reefs in the world • Thrilling deep sea and fly fishing opportunities • Horse riding on the beach or among the soaring sand suns and freshwater lakes of the interior • Traditional dhow cruises, island expeditions, catamaran cruises and romantic castaway picnics • Africa’s only population of the rare and endangered dugong • Children are welcome

Lodge Amenities

Familia, private pools and lodge pool, Beach Shop, Dive Centre, massage sala.  www.andbeyond.com/benguerra-island

Ten casinhas, two cabanas, three-bedroom Casa de

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63 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

How to Visit Tanzania and Avoid the Crowds

By Adam PopescuJune Step one? Don’t be afraid of the rainy season.

The acacia-filled savannas of Tanzania (www.cntraveler.com/ stories/2016-03-30/how-tanzaniasluxury-lodges-are-reinventing-thesafari-experience) are among the

most biodiverse spots on earth, and you are almost guaranteed to see the Big Five. But you’ll also face skepticism from travel vets, as this classic has become the go-to place for first- and secondtimers to Africa; a trip where a safari all too often amounts to 14 jeeps swarming around a single, sleeping lion.

Relative political stability, Englishspeaking locals, and decades of booming tourism mean that during certain months of the year, parts of Tanzania can be so crowded that it can feel like a far cry from what you’ve seen on Planet Earth (w ww.cn tr av ele r. co m/ st ory/ h owto-visit-the-crazy-places-in-planetearth-2). It’s also easy to forget that

the country is more than just bush and savanna—there’s more than 800 miles of Indian Ocean-facing coastline. Most visit Zanzibar’s white sand beaches, but there are other options if you want a little more privacy and isolation. Here’s how to take a trip to Tanzania, all while avoiding the safari-suit-clad crowds.

Plus, rain isn’t a guarantee, even during these wetter months—not a drop hit during our seven-day trip.

With lodgings eager for off-season bookings, it also means you can get a deal somewhere that usually would be out of your budget.

Serengeti National Park and the Ngorongoro Crater are mustsees, but if you want to get even further afield of the well-trod paths, hit Selous Game Reserve (http:// whc.unesco.org/en/list/199), a littleknown UNESCO site with one of the world’s highest concentrations of megafauna and where, along with the standard jeep safaris, you can also go on expeditions on foot and by boat.

Look for beaches beyond Zanzibar Most make a beeline for the Spice Island when they touch down in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania’s capital—and for good reason.

While Zanzibar’s sapphire waters

are Instagram gold, they’re not the only region in Tanzania offering some of the world’s best beaches. A 20-minute plane ride south is Mafia Island (http:// mafiaisland.com/ en), an overlooked

dot of land filled with white-sand beaches and mangrove forests (and prone to its fair share of mobrelated jokes).

If you would rather stick to the mainland coast, there’s sleepy Pangani, where you can stay at the Mawimbi Villa (http://mawimbivilla.com), a six-room private villa that comes with on-site spa services, a private chef, pool, and all-inclusive meals including

At Pangani, it can feel like you have the entire beach to yourself. Photo

by Gina Bender

Embrace the rainy season Don’t be think the Serengeti is only worth it when the ground is bone-dry and animals congregate around the watering holes. Come in the rainy season, from late March to late May, during the wildebeest migration, and you can still get close to thousands of herbivores and the predators stalking them across the plains.

64 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Ngorongoro Crater is a must-see for any where visitor to Tanzania Photo by Gina Bender maziwe-marine-reserve), you can pass a whole afternoon snorkeling over unspoiled coral reefs. (When we visited, besides us and the captain, nobody was on the island—unthinkable in Zanzibar.)

Go for eco-friendly accommodations Being an “eco-lodge” is more than a label. It’s a commitment to protecting the land, which translates to more exclusive locations and limited capacity— a.k.a. no big crowds. More than a third of Tanzania is protected, which is good news for the giant herds who call its savannas home. But responsible land management actually translates to a better travel experience, too.

Asilia (www.asiliaafrica.com), the country’s largest contributor to carbon offsets (www.cntraveler. com/stories/2015-04-22/how-to-bea n -e co -f r i e n d l y - t r a v e l e r) ,

has implemented a $5 per person, per night charge for sustainability programs, a low-impact approach matched by their locations.

In Namiri Plains (www. asiliaafrica.com/east-africasa f ar i/ ta nzan ia /se re n g et i/ namiri-plains), in a corner of

the Serengeti once used for cheetah research, the eight tented suites are 100% solar powered, and even the wastewater is recycled.

There are no permanent structures and no fences to keep animals out—we saw elephants from our tent and heard roaming lions at night.

A lion shows off some locks in Serengeti Keeping it green in the bush National Park. Photo by Gina Bender doesn’t necessarily mean sacrificing luxury, either: At Namiri Plains, you’ll have three-course dinners—all of which seven beach-facing cottages and the comfort of indoor-outdoor you can have for as low as $350 a relaxed atmosphere perfect for showers, flushable toilets, and a night during the off-season. families. For a truly spectacular even WiFi—plus, no other safari About a mile from Mawimbi is its beach, arrange a trip on a traditional camp for miles, and game drives in sister outpost, the Tides Lodge, dhow to Maziwi Island (www. tanzaniatourism.com/en/destination/ (www.thetideslodge.com) with

see page 66

65 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

The Highlands, just 45 minutes north of Ngorongoro Crater, offers eco-friendly luxury.

Photo by Gina Bender

Visit Tanzania

reports. from page 65

roomy jeeps all to yourself.

The Highlands (www.asiliaafrica. com/east-africa-safari/tanzania/ ngorongoro-conservation/thehighlands), 45 minutes north of Ngorongoro Crater, is a solarpowered archipelago of eight canvas-domed tents, also run

by Asilia. The land is completely unspoiled—besides walkways, no foliage is trimmed and structures use reclaimed indigenous wood.

Marrying luxury and sustainability isn’t just a sales pitch, either— Asilia publishes annual impact

Ask a pro Getting to your final destination here means multiple short connecting flights on small airlines and charter flights, and the booking process can be dizzying.

To avoid the stress, find someone with established contacts and connections to ply for travel advice, and rely heavily on word-of-mouth.

After speaking with several tour operators in the U.S. and U.K., we went with Aardvark Safaris. They catered to our specific desire for a vacation away from the crowds, set us up with a driver and hotel in Dar es Salaam, and coordinated 66 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

in-country flights on Coastal Air, which flies daily to around 30 regional destinations (our sevennight trip cost about $4,000 a person, excluding air). We also used the travel concierge from Chase Sapphire to add another trusted voice and more regional experience. In a pinch and on the fly abroad, credit card travel services are a major—and free— leg-up for everything from logistics to fraud protection.  www.cntraveler.com/story/howto-visit-tanzania-and-avoid-thecrowds?mbid=nl_060517_Daily&CNDID= 38890654&spMailingID=11190791&spUs erID=MTQ5NTc0OTAyMDYxS0&spJobID =1180432774&spReportId=MTE4MDQzM jc3NAS2

67 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Ski Africa Overview: Skiing in Africa

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here are currently 10 indoor and outdoor ski resorts set in the nations of Kingdom of Morocco, Republic of Egypt, Republic of Algeria, Kingdom of Lesotho, Republic of Namibia, and the Republic of South Africa.

There are 4 unconfirmed ski resorts. The following facts provide an overview of the ski regions of Africa: Elevation of the Ski Resorts 70 m - 3268 m Elevation Difference max. 658 m in one ski resort Slopes 21 km (max. 10 km in one ski resort) Ski Lifts 23 (max. 7 in one ski resort) Ski Passes € 14.40 to € 30.74

Oukaimeden

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ oukaimeden The ski resort Oukaïmeden is located in the Marrakesh-TensiftEl Haouz Region (Morocco). For skiing and snowboarding, there are 10 km of slopes available. 7 lifts transport the guests. The winter sports area is situated between the elevations of 2,610 and 3,268 m.

Chréa

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ chrea/ The ski resort Chréa is located in the Province of Blida (Algeria).

For skiing and snowboarding, there are 0.5 km of slopes available. 3

lifts transport the guests. The winter sports area is situated between the elevations of 1,460 and 1,550 m.

Afriski Mountain Resort

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ afriski-mountain-resort The ski resort Afriski Mountain Resort is located in the ButhaButhe District (Lesotho). For skiing and snowboarding, there are 1.8 km of slopes available. 2 lifts transport the guests. The winter sports area is situated between the elevations of 3,030 and 3,222 m.

AfriSki, the only skiing resort in the Kingdom of Lesotho, is located 3222 m above sea-level in the Maluti Mountains. It offers a main Ski slope, a beginners slope and operates during the winter months.

68 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Tiffindell

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ tiffindell The ski resort Tiffindell is located in the Province of Eastern Cape (South Africa). For skiing and snowboarding, there are 2.4 km of slopes available. 5 lifts transport the guests. The winter sports area is situated between the elevations of 2,700 and 2,930 m.

Tiffindell is the highest resort in South Africa. It is nestling snugly on the slope of Ben McDhui (3001m), the highest pass in South Africa and the highest peak in the Cape. Within 15 acres of terrain, there are pistes suitable for all abilities. In an average season, Tiffindell is open for skiing and snowboarding in June, July and August. It has slope-side accommodation available for 150 guests and many more day visitors

michlifen The ski resort Michlifen is located in the Meknès-Tafilalet Region (Morocco). For skiing and snowboarding, there are 1 km of slopes available. 1 lift transports the guests. The winter sports area is situated between the elevations of 1,880 and 2,060 m.

Ski Egypt

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ ski-egypt/

in the surrounding valleys. There is a restaurant, coffee lounge, 2 bars, ski clothing shop and ski school.

Non aspiring skiers join in to enjoy a unique experience, making snowmen, throwing snow balls or tobogganing, making it the perfect family holiday for young and old.

Matroosberg

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ matroosberg/ The ski resort Matroosberg is located in the Province of Western Cape (South Africa). For skiing and snowboarding, there are 2 km of slopes available. 2 lifts transport the guests. The winter sports area is situated between the elevations of 1,794 and 2,132 m.

Michlifen

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/

The indoor ski resort Ski Egypt is located in the Mall of Egypt, 6th October City, Cairo (Egypt). For skiing and snowboarding, there are 0.6 km of slopes available. 1 lift transports the guests. The winter sports area is situated between the elevations of 150 and 180 m.

With over 7,000 tons of snow, Ski Egypt is launching the first ski resort in Africa with the world’s largest indoor snow park, offering everything from skiing, slope snowboarding, sledging and a Polar Express Train to a jolly kids area and a professional Ski School, all in a one stop, breathtaking experience for family and friends.

Jbel Hebri

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ jbel-hebri The ski resort Jbel Hebri is located in the Meknès-Tafilalet Region (Morocco). For skiing and snowboarding, there are 1 km of slopes available. 1 lift transports the guests. The winter sports area is situated between the elevations of 1,950 and 2,090 m.

Azrou

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ azrou The ski resort Azrou is located in the Ifrane Province of the FèsMeknès region (Morocco). For 69 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

skiing and snowboarding, there are 1 km of slopes available. 1 lift transports the guests. The winter sports area is situated between the elevations of 1,800 and 2,000 m.

Ski Namibia

www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ ski-namibia Options for Dune Skiing in the Namib Desert, Namibia (high dunes, breathtaking landscapes, long dune belt) are manifold.

Not only the fast ski runs on the dunes bring the kick, but also the landscape and nature aspect are simply one-of-a-kind amidst the world’s oldest desert. For information and arrangements: www.ski-namibia.com, henrik@ ski-namibia.com, P.O. Box 8140, Swakopmund, Namibia.

Unconfirmed Ski Resorts Cape Town, South Africa (In development, possibly) www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ snowfun-cape-town-planned Kingdom of Morocco (mountain climbing resorts that may include skiing opportunities) www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ djebel-bou-iblane www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ hoher-atlas www.skiresort.info/ski-resort/ rif-gebirge  www.skiresort.info/ski-resorts/ africa

Crystal Cruises to Southern Africa 2017

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hether you’re in search of adventure or relaxation, an African Cruise with Crystal Cruises is the most luxurious way to experience one of the most beautiful places on Earth.

From the tropical nature preserves to the luxurious hotels there is something for everyone to enjoy on a Crystal African Cruise.

Around the Cape of Good Hope Port Louis to Cape Town December 9-22, 2017 Crystal Symphony The luxurious 50,000-ton, 922-guest Crystal Symphony is one of the most spacious cruise ships at sea, joining Crystal Serenity in the top two spots among Condé Nast Traveler’s best ships in the world.

A brand new itinerary spotlights rare wonders of the natural world, from the heavenly waters of Mauritius to lemurs in Madagascar and Big Five safaris in South Africa.

Itinerary includes: Mauritius/Port Louis, Republic of Mauritius, St-Denis, Réunion, France, Taolanaro, Madagascar, Maputo, Mozambique, Richards Bay, South Africa, Durban, South Africa, Port Elizabeth, South Africa, Cape Town, South Africa.

South African Holidays Round-trip Cape Town December 22, 2017-January 7, 2018 Crystal Symphony The luxurious 50,000-ton, 922-guest Crystal Symphony is one of the most spacious cruise ships at sea, joining Crystal Serenity in the top two spots among Condé Nast Traveler’s best ships in the world.

A history-making voyage for Crystal as we embark on our first-ever holiday cruise in Africa.

Itinerary includes: Cape Town, South Africa, Maputo, Mozambique, Richards Bay, South Africa, Durban, South Africa, East London, South Africa, Port Elizabeth, South Africa, Walvis Bay, Namibia, Luderitz,

Namibia, Cape Town, South Africa.

Jewels of the Indian Ocean Cape Town to Mauritius January 7-22, 2018 Crystal Symphony The luxurious 50,000-ton, 922-guest Crystal Symphony is one of the most spacious cruise ships at sea, joining Crystal Serenity in the top two spots among Condé Nast Traveler’s best ships in the world.

70 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

South African Holidays Round-trip Cape Town December 22, 2017-January 7, 2018 Crystal Symphony

From Cape Town’s iconic Table Mountain and Kristenbosch Gardens to Durban’s sparkling “Golden Mile” beaches and Madagascar’s lemurs, unparalleled discovery awaits. Journey inland on a luxury safari to one of Africa’s renowned game reserves.

Itinerary includes: Cape Town, South Africa, Mossel Bay, South Africa, Port Elizabeth, South Africa, Durban, South Africa, Richards Bay, South Africa, Maputo, Mozambique, Taolanaro, Madagascar, Réunion Island/Port Réunion, France, Mauritius/Port Louis, Republic of Mauritius.

The luxurious 50,000-ton, 922-guest Crystal Symphony is one of the most spacious cruise ships at sea, joining Crystal Serenity in the top two spots among Condé Nast Traveler’s best ships in the world.

A history-making voyage for Crystal as we embark on our first-ever holiday cruise in Africa.

Itinerary includes: Cape Town, South Africa, Maputo, Mozambique, Richards Bay, South Africa, Durban, South Africa, East London, South Africa, Port Elizabeth, South Africa, Walvis Bay, Namibia, Luderitz, Namibia, Cape Town, South Africa.  http://www.crystalcruises.com/africa-cruises

71 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Welcome to Henderson Travel Service...

“We take you to Africa and the World!”

With nearly six decades of expertise in the travel and tour industry, our experienced professionals are dedicated to creating exciting tours to destinations throughout Africa, the Orient and beyond. We also offer cruises, Caribbean holidays, and meeting planning/events for all types of travelers.

By reducing overhead and seeking the best value in the current travel environment, Henderson Travel Service delivers quality service at competitive prices. Our team fosters a work ethic that caters to families, organizations, groups, couples, and solo travelers who require a diverse spectrum of travel services.  Gaynelle Henderson-Bailey, Ph.D., President & CEO Henderson Travel Service / Henderson Associates 7961 Eastern Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910 TEL: 301-650-5700 E-mail: gaynelle@hend.com

72 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Friends of Festival at Sea Sailing Sep 3, 2018 to Sep 15, 2018 onboard the Regent Seven Seas Explorer

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elcome to our 20th Anniversary sailing of Friends of Festival at

Sea! In 1998 we took our first journey together and we’ve been Friends ever since! In those 20 years, we’ve covered almost every continent on the planet. In 2018, we’ll visit a unique set of cities on our “Wonders of the North” Baltic Sea itinerary that are charming, magical and waiting to be discovered.

Adding to the excitement is that we will be sailing on a brand new ship. The Explorer was officially welcomed to the Regent Seven

Seas Cruises’ fleet on July 13, 2016 and christened by Her Serene Highness Princess Charlene of Monaco. Seven Seas Explorer is spaciously intimate, breathlessly elegant and perfectly staffed to offer Seven Seas Cruises’ special brand of all-inclusive luxury. She brings elegance and glamour to the world’s greatest destinations, offering exquisite dining options that rival those of the finest restaurants. With 375 all-suite balcony cabins, prepare to be dazzled as we are treated to the delights of a truly all-inclusive experience.

The “Wonders of the North” itinerary sails for 12 nights from Copenhagen, Denmark to: • Gdansk, Poland • Klaipeda, Lithuania • Tallinn, Estonia • St. Petersburg, Russia • Helsinki, Finland • Stockholm, Sweden • Amsterdam, The Netherlands • Zeebrugge, Belgium • Southampton, England (with an optional London stopover). 

http://prevuemeetings.com/magazine/ how-to-spot-human-traffickingin-hotels/?utm_source=PrevueExtra&utm_medium=Email&utm_ term=October&utm_ content=Head&utm_ campaign=Prevue-Extra-October-20

Blue World Travel Corporation

351 California Street Suite 950 San Francisco, CA 94104 Telephone: 1-800-466-2719 Facsimile: 1-415-882-9985 E-mail: fas@blueworldtravel.com Website: www.festivalatsea.com

73 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

West Africa Airways Inc. is a low-cost airfare Passenger airline offering air charter airline services along with our Partners in Aviation and the fleet of B767-300 Extended Range aircraft.

The company was formed in 2004 when it reached an agreement with some of the countries in West Africa, to begin flight operations from Thurgood Marshall BaltimoreWashington International Airport, (BWI) USA.Fax: (775) 882-6818 E-mail: info@westafricaairways.com Website: www.westafricaairways.com Destinations: Roberts Field International Airport, Liberia (ROB); Dekar Yoff International Airport, Senegal (DKR); Kotoka International Airport, Ghana (ACC)

www.gov.rw

Black Cultural Travel Made Easy http://soulofamerica.com/international-guides.phtml 74 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Be in touch Be in tune Be independent

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Kuramo Waters, Victoria Island, Lagos | Nigeria Phone: +234 1 277 2700 | Fax: +234 1 270 4071 E-mail: reservation@ekohotels.com | info@ekohotels.com Website: www.ekohotels.com 75 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Fly Brother: Visa-Free Africa

www.flybrother.net/visa-free-africa

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ith welcoming cultures, natural and urban wonders, and innumerable experiences to be had, Africa is an inviting, underrated place to visit. Possessing 54 independent countries, each with a complex political, social, and economic history, most places on the continent—in fairness— require US citizens to obtain a visa in advance of any trip. Still, some countries have extended a visa-free* welcome mat that lets Americans simply book and go with passport in-hand, and maybe a pre-trip vaccination or two (after all, in some places, it’s literally a jungle out there). And they’re all no more than one flight connection away from most major American air hubs. It’s time for Africa.

Botswana A nature-lover’s paradise where the river meets the desert, Botswana hosts some of the planet’s oldest landforms and lifeforms. The largest group of Bushmen—who, incidentally, constitute the world’s oldest human civilization—call the country home, roaming the vast Kalahari Desert into which the ancient Okavango River flows. The fertile soils of the resulting delta sustain one of the world’s largest concentrations of game animals, protected by several natural preserves that can be visited by safari.

Fly to Gaborone (GBE) from the USA via Addis Ababa and Johannesburg.

Central African Republic Located literally at the heart of the continent, the Central African Republic offers visitors a modest, low-rise capital city with bright marketplace and bustling riverfront, safaris with an immense array of wildlife—including elephants and lowland gorillas— and the lovely, 165-foot-high Boali Waterfalls. Be aware, however, that the country has had more than a few security issues over the past couple of years, leading the State Department to issue a travel warning that has been in effect since April 2016.

Fly to Bangui (BGF) from the USA via Casablanca and Paris.

Equatorial Guinea Tiny and tropical, this former Spanish colonial enclave has got oil money to spare and gleaming new high-rises and shopping malls to prove it. The capital city, Malabo, is a mix of colonial and modern architectural styles, reflecting its history as a strategic outpost for during the Triangular Trade; Malabo was also a haven for freed slaves during the 19th century. Outside the city, pristine beaches, jungle treks, and the lush Monte Alen National Park on the mainland pack a big punch within a small area.

Fly to Malabo (SSG) from the USA via Casablanca, Frankfurt, and Madrid.

Lesotho Landlocked and entirely surrounded by the country of 76 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

South Africa, mountainous Lesotho is called the “Kingdom in the Sky” for good reason. Living in one of the few places on the continent with regular snowfall every winter, the citizens of the kingdom wrap themselves in warm blankets and wear a distinctive conical hat, almost like a crown.

Aside from spectacular trekking and horseback riding in dramatic valleys and gorges, Lesotho welcomes visitors with a friendly local culture and a flavor and atmosphere utterly distinct from its more renowned neighbor.

Fly to Maseru (MSU) from the USA via Johannesburg.

Morocco One of Africa’s most easilyaccessible destinations by virtue of its proximity to the air hubs of Europe, Morocco melds the cultures of Africa and Europe in an exotic, dream-like haze. Buzzing markets, striking architecture, and scrumptious food define cities such as Marrakech, Fez, and Casablanca, while the endless coastline and cool Atlas Mountains provide plenty of opportunity for outdoor diversion.

And despite being at one of the world’s oldest crossroads, Moroccans still welcome visitors warmly.

Fly nonstop to Casablanca (CMN) from New York and Washington.

Namibia Sprawling along the remote, sun-drenched southwestern coast of Africa, Namibia’s ancient

landscapes appear more out-ofthis-world than down-to-earth.

Indeed, the Namib Desert is the oldest on the planet and the country’s Bushmen are among the world’s oldest civilizations. Natural and manmade wonders collide on the Skeleton Coast, littered with the remains of innumerable shipwrecks along the beaches, while Etosha National Park shelters plenty of mammals and reptiles, including the endangered black rhino.

Fly to Windhoek (WDH) from the USA via Addis Ababa, Amsterdam, Doha, Frankfurt, and Johannesburg.

Senegal With a capital city that is one of the most exhilarating and underrated in the world, Senegal serves up a hefty side of sophisticated urban culture along with its beaches and national parks. Dakar’s nightlife, markets, and art scenes are legendary, while historical sites like the “Door of No Return” at Gorée Island and the colonial capital of Saint-Louis harken back to Senegal’s importance during the transatlantic slave trade. Not only are the Senegal’s sites sublime, sunsets from along its 330-mile coastline are spectacular.

Fly nonstop to Dakar (DKR) from New York.

fly direct (same-plane w/stop) from Washington.

Swaziland The tiniest country in the Southern Hemisphere and one of the last absolute monarchies in the world, Swaziland packs plenty of experiences within its 6,700 square miles. Traditional Swazi ceremonies and celebrations are held proudly and prominently year-round, culminating in the Umhlanga Festival each August, where young women honor the Queen Mother in full regalia.

Safaris and adventure sports also feature high on the country’s todo list, rendering little Swaziland a memorable place to visit.

Fly to Manzini (SHO) from the USA via Johannesburg.

Tunisia Struggling to recover from two tragic attacks against foreign

tourists in 2015, Tunisia still offers broad beaches, thriving marketplaces, and affordable luxury experiences. Many Europeans still book packages to surf and sun destinations, including Monastir and Nabeul, both built on the ruins of settlements from the Roman Empire. The country’s millenniaold history is showcased at the museums and cultural centers of the capital, Tunis, once known as the ancient city of Carthage.

Tunisia has indeed been around.

Fly to Tunis (TUN) from the USA via Amsterdam, Barcelona, Casablanca, Frankfurt, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Milan, Paris, and Rome.  *Visa requirements are always subject to change. Check the US Department of State website for the most current requirements for US citizens.

South Africa One of the most beautiful countries in the world, South Africa offers up an array of experiences unmatched by any other part of the continent: the urbane pulse of Johannesburg, the natural splendor of Cape Town, the cultural gumbo of Durban, biggame safaris, coastal drives, affordable luxury, and a homegrown house music scene that rivals Baltimore’s and Berlin’s. No wonder one of ZA’s catch phrases is “Better, Together.”

Fly nonstop to Johannesburg (JNB) from Atlanta and New York;

View all of the Issues of the Black Business News Group at:

h ps://issuu.com/blackbusinessnews 77 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

www.starrafricanrum.com product of Madacascar

Made For Walking - CH Zambia Safari Boots The Vintage Shoe Company http://blog.vintageshoecompany.com/index.php/2012/08/cool-hunting-vintage-shoe-company-safari-boot

80 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Welcome to the

Djibouti Palace Kempinski Experience the extraordinary... www.kempinski.com/en/djibouti

81 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Vacations in Africa Take Your Pick!! www.africaguide.com

O

USD $4,545 - 14 Days, Cape Town, Garden Route, Kruger Park

ur travel center has more than 700 different African Holidays and Volunteer / Conservation Projects that you can easily search through to find your perfect holiday.  www.africaguide.com

Escorted Small Group tour from Cape Town, Garden Route, Durban, Zululand, Kruger Park, Panorama Route. Includes: activities, breakfast, dinner, local flights.

USD $2,586 - 11 Days, Tanzania Wildlife Safari & Zanzibar Beach Holiday

USD $1,207 - 12 Days, Nature & Culture Tour of Madagascar Discover the beautiful Island Madagascar with its unique nature and culture - the only place where you can see Lemurs and other unique wildlife.

An unforgettable trip with a competent guide.

USD $2,000 - 7 Days - Circle of Life - Wildlife Safari

Visiting the best of Tanzania’s wildlife parks, ending with beach relaxation in Zanzibar. Private Safari with camping or Lodge option. Perfect for Honeymooners and families.

USD $5,061 - 11 Days, Great Wildebeest Migration Lodge Safari, Tanzania

Safari means ‘journey’ – this journey is your passage into the soul of Africa’s greatest wildlife area. Take advantage of the strong US dollar and pounds sterling rate - the rand is now more than 15 to the US$ and the pound over R21 to the pound!! 17 Rand to the Euro!!

USD $871 - 8 Days, Egypt: Sights of Cairo and 5 Star Nile Cruise Spend 4 days in Cairo, enjoying the historical sights then relax on a Nile Cruise taking in the ancient wonders of Egypt.

You to witness the very best of Tanzania. You will revel in all the wildlife viewing opportunities on the fabled plains of the Serengeti, around Lake Manyara, Tarangire & Ngorongoro

USD $1010 - 7 Days, Kenya Safari Catch the Big 5 Kenya Camping Safari to Masai Mara Game Reserve, Lake Nakuru and Samburu National Parks. Starting/finishing in Nairobi.

Beach holiday extension to Mombasa can be added. Book and get a 10% discount 82 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Golf Africa www.golfworldmap.com/africa/#9.622414142924805,17.05078125,3 Botswana Gaborone Golf Club at the Gaborone Sun Hotel Phakalane Golf Estate Hotel Resort www.phakalane.com

Egypt Alexandria Sporting Club, Alexandria Cascades at Soma Bay Golf and Country Club www.residencedescascades.com

Dreamland Golf & Tennis Resort, Cairo www.dreamlandgolf.com

Golf City, Cairo Katemeya Heights Golf & Tennis Resort, Cairo www.katameyaheights.com

Madinat Makadi Golf Course, Madinat Makadi

Mena House Golf Course

www.madinatmakadigolf.com

Mena House Oberoi Golf Course, Cairo www.oberoihotels.com/oberoi_menahouse/index.asp

Mirage City Golf Club, Cairo www.golf.jwmarriottcairo.com/golf

Steigenberger Al Dau Beach Hotel, Hurghada www.steigenbergeraldaubeach.com

Kenya Karen Country Club, Nairobi Kiambu Golf Club, Kiambu Leisure Lodge Beach & Golf Resort, Mombasa Muthaiga Golf Club, Nairobi Nyali Golf & Country Club, Mombasa www.nyaligolf.co.ke

Railway Golf Club, Nairobi Royal Nairobi Golf Club, Nairobi  e Golf Park at the Jockey Club of Kenya, Nairobi Windsor Golf Hotel & Country Club, Nairobi www.windsorgolfresort.com

Mauritius Ile aux Cherfs, Trou d’Eau Douce Le Paradis Hotel & Golf Club, Le Morne Peninsula www.paradis-hotel.com

Legend Golf Course, Poste de Flacq www.bellemareplagehotel.com

Links Golf Course, Poste de Flacq www.princemaurice.com

One&Only Le Saint Géran Golf Course, Poste de Flacq http://lesaintgeran.oneandonlyresorts. com

Shandrani Golf Club, Blue Bay www.shandrani-hotel.com

Troux aux Biches Golf Club, Troux aux Biches www.trouauxbiches-hotel.com

Morocco Anfa Royal Golf Club, Casablanca Cabo Negro Royal Golf Club, Tetouan Royal Golf of Dar es Salam, Rabat

www.royalgolfdaressalam.com/english/index.cfm

Club Med les Dunes, Agadir El Jadida Royal Golf Club, El Jadida Fes Royal Golf Club, Fes Marrakech Royal Golf Club, Marrakech Meknes Royal Golf Club, Meknes Mohammedia Royal Golf Club, Mohammedia Settat University Royal Golf Club, Settat Tangier Royal Golf Club, Tangier

Nambia Keetmanshoop Golf Course, Keetmanshoop Okahandja Golf Club, Okahandja www.okahandja.net/sport/default.html

Orandjemund Golf Club, Oranjemund Rossmund Golf Course, Swakopmund Tsumeb Golf Club, Tsumeb Walvis Bay Golf Course, Walvis Bay

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Golf Africa www.golfworldmap.com/africa/#9.622414142924805,17.05078125,3 from Golf Africa page 84

Windhoek Country Club Resort, Windhoek www.windhoek.co.za

Nigeria IBB Golf Course, Abuja IITA Golf Club, Ibadan Ikeja Golf Club, Lagos www.ikejagolfclub.org

Reunion Golf du Bassin Blue, St Gilles les Hauts Golf Club de Bourbon, Etang

MD_1821_DAKAR_OVERVIEW

www.champagnesportsresort.com

Sierra Leone

Clovelly Country Club, Cape Town

Freetown Golf Club, Freetown

South Africa Akasia Golf Clue, Pretoria www.akasiacountryclub.co.za

Atlantic Beach Golf Club, Cape Town www.atlanticbeachgolfclub.co.za/ capetown/index.asp

Bellville Golf Club, Cape Town www.bellvillegolf.co.za

Benoni Country Club,

www.clovelly.za.net

Crown Mines Golf Club, Johannesburg www.g-i.co.za/clubs/?c=274

Darling Golf Club, Darling www.darlingtourism.co.za/sportdetail. htm#golfclub

De Zalze Winelands Golf Estate, Stellenbosch www.golfdezalze.com

Devonvale Golf & Wine Estate, Stellenbosch www.devonvale.co.za

Durban Country Club, Durban

Lost Palace Golf Course South Africa

www.dcclub.co.za

Durbanville Golf Club, Durbanville www.durbanvillegolfclub.co.za

East London Golf Course, East London www.elgc.co.za

Emfuleni Golf Estate, Vanderbijlpark www.emfulenigolfestate.com

Fancourt Hotel & Country Club Estate, George www.fancourt.co.za

Gary Player Country Club Golf Course, Sun City www.suninternational.com/Destinations/Resorts/Golf/Pages/Golf.aspx

Sale les Bains www.golf-bourbon.com/spip/spip. php?lang=en

Club du Colorado, La Montagne

Senegal Golf de Saly, Mbour www.golfsaly.com/intro/presentation_fr.htm

Golf International du Technopôle, Dakar Le Méridien President Resort & Golf Club, Dakar www.starwoodhotels.com/ lemeridien/property/overview/index. html?propertyID=1821&EM=VTY_

Johannesburg

George Golf Club, George

www.benonicountryclub.co.za/pro/ Default.aspx

www.georgegolfclub.co.za

Germiston Golf Club, Germiston

Blair Atholl, Fourways

www.germistongolf.com

www.blairatholl.co.za

Glendower Golf Course, Johannesburg

Blue Valley Golf & Country Estate, Olifantsfontein

www.glendower.co.za

www.bluevalley.co.za

Hermanus Golf Club, Hermanus

Bryanston Country Club, Bryanston

www.hgc.co.za

www.bryanstoncc.co.za

www.houghton.co.za

Centurion Country Club, Centurion

Humewood Golf Club, Port Elizabeth

www.centurioncountryclub.co.za

www.humewoodgolf.co.za

Champagne Sports Resort, Winterton 85 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Houghton Golf Club, Houghton

see Golf Africa on page 86

from Golf Africa page 85

 e Country Club Johannesburg, Rivonia www.ccj.co.za

Killarney Country Club, Johannesburg www.killarneycountryclub.co.za

Kingswood Golf Estate, George www.kingswood.co.za

Kleinmond Golf Club, Kleinmond www.kleinmondgolfclub.co.za

Kloof Country Club, Kloof www.kloofcountryclub.co.za

Knysna Golf Club, Knysna www.knysnagolfclub.com

Koro Creek Bushveld Golf Estate, Nylstroom www.korocreek.com

Langebaan County Estate Golf & Leisure, Langebaan www.langebaanestate.co.za

Leopard Creek Country Club, Malelane www.leopardcreek.co.za

Lost City, Sun City www.suninternational.com/ Destinations/Resorts/Golf/Pages/Golf.

aspx

Plettenberg Bay

Malmesbury Golf Club, Malmesbury

www.plettgolf.co.za

www.malmesburygolfclub.co.za

www.ptacc.co.za

Metropolitan Golf Course, Cape Town

Randpark Golf Club, Randburg

www.metropolitangolfclub.co.za

Reading Country Club, Alberton

Milnerton Golf Club, Cape Town

www.readingcc.co.za

www.milnertongolfclub.co.za

River Club Golf & Conference Center, Cape Town

Modderfontein Golf Club, Modderfontein www.mgclub.co.za

Monks Cowl Coutry Club & Lodge, Winterton www.monkscowl.co.za

Mossel Bay Golf Club, Mossel Bay

Pretoria Country Club, Pretoria

www.randpark.co.za

http://riverclub.co.za

Riviera on Vaal Country Club, Vereenigning www.rovcountryclub.co.za

Royal Cape Golf Club, Cape Town www.royalcapegolf.co.za

www.mosselbaygolfclub.co.za

Royal Durban Golf Club, Durban

Mowbray Golf Club, Cape Town

www.royaldurban.co.za

www.mowbraygolfclub.co.za

Paarl Golf Course, Paarl

San Lameer Country Club, Margate

www.paarlgolfclub.co.za

www.sanlameer.co.za

Pearl Valley Signature Golf Estate and Spa, Cape Winelands

Scottburgh Golf Club, Scottburgh

www.pearlvalley.co.za

www.scottburghgolf.co.za

Pecanwood Golf & Country Club, Hartbeesportt

Selbourne Golf Estate, Pennington

www.pecanwoodgolf.co.za

www.selborne.com

Plettenberg Bay Country Club,

Silver Lakes Golf & Country

86 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Golf Africa www.golfworldmap.com/africa/#9.622414142924805,17.05078125,3 Stellenbosch www.steenberggolfclub.co.za/ Framework/index.asp

Umdoni Golf Course, Pennington www.umdonipark.com

Umhlali Country Club, Umhlali www.umhlalicountryclub.co.za

Westlake Golf Club, Cape Town www.westlakegolfclub.co.za

Wingate Park Country Club, Pretoria www.wingateparkcountryclub. co.za

Swaziland Royal Swazi Spa Country Club www.suninternational.com/ Destinations/Resorts/RoyalSwaziSpaValley/FacilitiesActivities/Pages/Golf.aspx

The Gambia Fajara Club, Fajara www.smiles.gm/fajara.htm

Tunisia Djerba Golf Club, Midoun www.djerbagolf.com

El Kantaoui Golf

Course, Port El Kantaoui www.portelkantaoui.com.tn/ golf

Flamingo Golf Course, Monastir www.golfflamingo.com/english/flamingo.htm

Golf Citrus, Hammamet from Golf Africa page 86

Club, Pretoria www.silverlakes.co.za

Somerset West Golf Club, Somerset West www.somersetwestgolfclub.co.za

St Francis Bay Golf Club, St

Francis Bay www.stfrancisgolf.co.za

St Francis Links, St Francis Bay www.stfrancislinks.com

Steenberg Golf Club, Cape Town www.steenberggolfclub.co.za/Framework/index.asp

Stellenbosch Golf Club, 87 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

www.golfcitrus.com

Palm Links Golf Course, Monastir www.golf-palmlinks.com/english/ presentation.htm

Tabarka Golf Course, Tabarka www.tabarkagolf.com/en/index.htm

Yasmine Golf Course, Mannamet www.golfyasmine.com/en/index.php 

African Cuisine!

Foods of Somaliland Somali Peanut Soup

S

omaliland borders Somalia on the north. Somali cuisine reflects the people’s clever use of scarce resources. People usually begin the day with a flat bread called canjero or laxoo, liver, and either cereal or porridge made of millet or cornmeal. The midday meal is the largest and consists of rice or noodles (pasta became very popular under Italian rule) with sauce and perhaps meat.

The evening meal is very light and might include beans, muffo (patties made of Oats or corn) or a salad with more canjero. Somalis adore spiced tea, but sheep, goat and camel’s milk are also popular.

The recipies shown here (and more) may be found at http://recipe s.wikia.co m/wiki/ Somali_Cuisine. Also create your Somaliland menu by researching “Somali Cuisine,” www.amazon. com/Somali-Cuisine-Barlin-Ali/ dp/1425977065.

Ingredients: 2 to 3 cups of chicken stock or broth 1 small onion (minced) 1 small green bell pepper (minced) 1 clove of garlic (crushed - optional) 1 hot chili pepper (minced - optional) 1 carrot (chopped fine) 1 sweet potato or yam (boiled, mashed - optional) 1 or 2 tomatoes (chopped) Salt, black pepper, cayenne or red pepper to taste 1 cup natural unsweetened peanut butter Directions: Homemade Peanut Paste: Simmer peanut butter in broth for 15 minutes.

Add all other ingredients and simmer over low heat until every thing is thoroughly cooked. Stir often.

Soup should be thick and smooth.

Commercial Peanut Butter: Simmer all ingredients except peanut butter over medium heat until every thing is is tender. Reduce heat, add peanut butter and cook for a few more minutes. Stir often. Soup should be thick and smooth. http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/ Somali_Peanut_Soup

908 g crab meat or other seafood such as Scallops optional: empty scallop shells for serving Directions: In a saucepan, wash and rinse the rice.

Add the water, cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the oil or butter in a deep, heavy saucepan. Add the onions, curry, ginger, salt and red pepper flakes, and sauté until the onions are lightly browned. Add the tomatoes and simmer until soft.

Add the crabmeat or other seafood and sauté for 10 minutes.

Serve over the rice in scooped-out scallop shells or alone. *Cook’s Notes: Conversion Chart link here

Mandazi (like doughnuts) Ingredients: 2 cups warm water 2 teaspoons baking powder or 1 teaspoon dry yeast 4 cups all-purpose flour ½ cup Sugar ¼ teaspoon spice (cardamom) 2 tablespoons butter, margarine, or vegetable oil

Somali Crabmeat Stew

Ingredients*: 480 ml white rice 960 ml water 60 ml peanut oil or butter 240 ml onions, finely chopped 1 tsp curry power 1 tsp powdered ginger 1 tsp salt 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes 1 tomato, cut in small wedges

88 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Mandazi

¼ cup warm milk (optional) 1 egg, lightly beaten (optional) pinch of salt oil for deep frying Directions: All pastry ingredients should be allowed to come to room temperature if they have been in the refrigerator. If using yeast: mix the yeast with a few spoonfuls of the warm water.

In a mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder, Sugar, and spice (cardamom is most common in Eastern Africa). Add the yeast. Mix the water, butter, milk, and egg together.

Gradually add this mixture to the flour while kneading into dough. Knead until a smooth and elastic dough is formed—15 to 20 minutes. If using yeast: Place dough in a clean bowl, cover with a cloth, and allow to rise in a warm place for an hour or more.

If using baking powder, let dough rest for several minutes.

Divide the dough into several handsized pieces. Roll or press the pieces into circles about 1/2 inch thick. Cut circles into halves or quarters (or whatever you like). Some cooks place the doughs on a cookie sheet and let them rise a second time.

Heat a few cups of vegetable oil to 300 degrees Farenheit in a skillet or deep pot. Fry the doughs in the hot oil, turning a few times, until they are golden brown all over. Fry only as many together as can float in the oil

without touching one another. Place on paper towels to drain. Serve warm. http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/ Mandazi

Curried Corn

Ingredients: 1 tablespoon butter 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped 1 garlic clove, minced ½ teaspoon curry powder (hot type) 5 cups corn (cut off the cob or frozen) ½ teaspoon cornstarch 1 cup coconut milk 2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped Salt to taste Black pepper, freshly ground Directions: 1. Heat butter in a saucepan over medium heat unitl foaming.

Add onion and garlic to butter.

Saute until lightly browned. Stir occasionaly.

2. Add curry powder, stiring to coat the onions well. Add corn. Stir.

And continue to cook.

3. In a small bowl, add the coconut milk slowly to the cornstarch, stirring to preven lumps. Add this mixture to the corn mixture, stirring well.

4. Add remaining ingredients.

Lower heat, and cook for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionaly. The coconut milk should be mostly absorbed.

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5. Serve warm. http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/ Curried_Corn

Kashata na Nazi

Ingredients: 2 cups raw sugar 2 cups coconut cream 1 teaspoon cinnamon ½ teaspoon salt Directions: 1. In a medium-sized heavy iron skillet, melt the sugar, stirring constantly.

2. Before the sugar starts to caramelize, add the coconut cream, cinnamon and salt.

3. Beat for about 30 seconds.

4. Pour into a 12 x 9-inch pan, which has been lined with waxed paper.

5. Cut into 1½-inch squares or diamonds while still hot.

6. Cool until the kashatas are set. http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/ Kashata_na_Nazi 

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Pan-African CHILDREN’S FUND

people-to-people, church-to-church initiative to contribute to a better future for the children of Africa Please send your contribution to:

Pan-African Children’s Fund P.O. Box 8386 Los Angeles, CA 90008

323-733-1048 pacf@westa.org

www.facebook.com/BaBaBlanket 90 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

ENJOY!!

The many beers, wines and liquors of Africa.

On the continent and in the U.S.A. 91 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Aviation Maintenance Technician International Students Welcome

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ASSIST THE PEOPLE OF SOUTH SUDAN Sudan Sunrise

S

Help Build Schools in the South Sundan www.sudansunrise.org

outh Sudan is the most underdeveloped region of the world today. 85% of the population in South Sudan is illiterate. Only about 7% of teachers in the south have any professional training, and it is not uncommon to visit a school where the teachers themselves have not been educated beyond fourth grade. Some 1.5 million children who should be in school are not, due to lack of schools. The majority of schools that do exist consist of a chalkboard under a tree. Read about the camapign and contribute to the program to build over 41 schools at www.sudansunrise.org.

Southern Sudan Literacy Project (SSLP)

T

Build a Primary School • www.thehopealliance.org/?q=node/77

he Southern Sudan Literacy Project (SSLP) is designed to build a Primary school in Dongchak Payam, Duk County, Southern Sudan. Solomon Awan, who was one of the “Lost Boys from Sudan,” now lives in Salt Lake City, Utah.

He desires to help the village he is from, Duk Padiet. Villagers are just now returning after so many years of war and genocide. During the Spring of 2008, Solomon traveled back to his home village where he was reunited with his mother and sister. He met with the village community and agreed that the education of their children is the most critical need. We hope to finish building the school before the 2011 rainy season. To further this goal, SSLP has partnered with Hope Alliance, allowing our donors the benefit of a tax deduction. Please help SSLP accomplish this worthwhile project: send donations to The Hope Alliance (www.thehopealliance.org) For further information please contact: solomonawan@ yahoo.com.  93 | blackbusinessnews/TRAVEL | Summer 2017

Sailing July 22 - 29, 2017 from Miami onboard the Carnival Glory.

We begin our 26th sailing of Festival at Sea with a beach day at Half Moon Cay. This private island has some of the best sand and surf in the Bahamas. Choose from a number of different water sports and activities or just enjoy the beach and BBQ … either way it’s a great way to start your cruise! Next up is the port of Charlotte Amalie in St. Thomas … the undisputed capitol of duty free shopping in the Caribbean. St. Thomas is also home to Coral World Ocean Park where you can experience the thrill of exploring the ocean like a diver including hands-on interactions with sharks, turtles and sea lions without the need for specialized training.

Old San Juan … our favorite “city” in the Caribbean is our third stop. We port a few short blocks from the center of this lively and historic hub of Puerto Rico where you can soak in the beautiful views, architecture, art, music, dance and the popular artisan craft market … a great place to pick up souvenirs. Next we’re off to the Turks and Caicos islands where the 14 acre Grand Turk Cruise Center offers a beachfront, cabanas, swimming pools and the world’s largest Margaritaville … a tropical spot for food and adult beverages.

In between ports however, is when Festival at Sea really comes to life! Top name entertainers grace the showroom stage. Our own DJ’s bring the party to a variety of clubs and decks onboard. Activities such as Speed Dating, Renewal of Vows and our Bid Whist Tournament of Champions are just waiting for you to sign up. We have dance classes galore plus performances by our very own passengers in our AfricanAmerican Idol Show. Theme nights such as our African Attire evening and costume deck party keep the camaraderie flowing throughout the week.

Come join us for our renown brand of “Cruising with an African-American Twist”.

Festival at Sea. Once you go ... then you know.

Blue World Travel Corporation 351 California Street, Suite 950, San Francisco, CA 94104 Telephone: 1-800-466-2719 Facsimile: 1-415-882-9985 E-mail: fas@blueworldtravel.com Website: www.festivalatsea.com