Today I was thinking about how much I loved Africa. Of all the places I have been no where else in the world touches my heart the way Africa does. One place in particular that I loved was Coffee Bay, South Africa. I stayed at The Coffee Shack and had the time of my life. I wish that on normal days when I wake up I could feel that same feeling I had when I was there. I would say the feeling was a “joy for life!”

While I think it is going to be a while before I can go back again, I was thinking I would like to give back to the community even when I am not there. I think it would be cool to set up a donation drive to send funds back to Coffee Bay maybe to help some of the school programs there. I am not really sure. I know The Coffee Shack has some programs set up. Does anyone out there know of some programs there that need funding? I want to set up a donation campaign here on my blog. Any ideas out there?

While in South Africa, just about every backpacker that I met along the way was traveling by Baz Bus. All you need is a one way ticket to some specific destination (say you’re going from Cape Town to Johannesburg). With that ticket you can take the bus and hope on and off wherever you want along that route. I haven’t found any other form of transportation anywhere as perfect for backpackers and independent travelers like Baz Bus. You’ll meet plenty of friends along the way and have the trip of a lifetime.

As I was backpacking across South Africa about a year and a half ago my friend Martin and I made a detour into Swaziland. While there we went on a tour in the country side by Quad Bike. I was just thinking today about the guy that started the company, Rich, who took us on the tour and was wondering if his venture was still going strong in Swaziland. I looked the company up online and was surprised to find them. Looks like they are doing great! Rich was very excited about the future of tourism in Swaziland and passionate about showing travelers the harsh realities of a country affected so strongly by AIDS. Check out his site and especially his pics! It’s gorgeous there!