Uganda is a meeting point of several African biomes with diverse habitats hence the incredible diversity of wildlife including more than 1070 species, which accounts for about 50% of the bird species in Africa. One of the top birdwatching places in Uganda is the biggest park, Murchison Falls National Park which is more popular for big game safari trips to see animals and spectacular Murchison Falls. For the birdwatcher, Murchison Falls National Park offers vast habitats and spaces to explore and tick many birds. This article will guide you on […]

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I have been to Africa a number of times and always gravitate towards the sub-Saharan eastern part of the continent. One of the greatest thrills on the planet is to be on a big game safari in Africa. The wildlife is prolific at times from parts of Kenya down through South Africa but especially in the Serengeti – with herds of wildebeest, plenty of giraffe, elephants and other rarer sightings. But until now, a visit to see gorillas in the wild has eluded me. I am hoping 2020 will be […]

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My trip to Aswan, Egypt to see the ancient Temple of Isis at Philae was a good reminder to always look on the positive side, even when you feel like you are being taken advantage of by locals. The temple itself is magnificent and dramatically situated on an island in the middle of a lake. Because the vast majority of visitors to Aswan go as part of an organized and guided tour, there is scant information available for the independent, go-it-alone traveler. I could only find some outdated discussion forums […]

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My bucket list of countries high on my list to still visit is dwindling in number – this shorlist focuses on either memorable experiences or unique natural outdoor natural attractions. Long on my list has been a visit to parts of eastern Africa to see the gorillas in the wild. My interest was rekindled after talking to a good friend of mine who is on a mission to see every country in the world. He recently returned from parts of eastern Africa where he spoke very highly of his experiences […]

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A visit to Egypt is not complete without visiting the historical city of Luxor and the nearby temples and ruins. This is an overnight sleeper train ride or about a 1 hour flight from Cairo. The history here is mind boggling – choose from two main temples, the one within Luxor and Karnak (right next to the city and is the largest religious building of its kind in the world). In addition the Valley of the Kings is only about 25 minutes away from town and contains hundreds of tombs […]

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This is the season for vacations and probably a goodly number of Dave’s Travel Corner readers will take a cruise. Today’s cruises-unless they are aboard a river raft on the Amazon-offer our grandest dreams of indulgence. These are floating luxury resorts, dedicated to recreation, education, cultural enrichment-and SHOPPING. I’ve chalked up my sixth cruise by now on the world’s seas, rivers, and through locks and fiords. (I’m not counting the forbidden inner tube adventures on irrigation canals when I was young.) In addition to gaining pounds on cruises, I’ve gained […]

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Spent the afternoon swimming and sailing languidly on the Nile River along its western bank just up river from Luxor. Fellucas (wooden boats with one large sail and no boom) dot the shoreline on both sides of the river in Felluca. As a result competition is stiff for tourist dollars and like anything else we’ve tried to buy you can really bargain down the price. We ended up at 30 Egyptian pounds for a several hour sailboat ride after the price started at 130 pounds. Despite the hot temperatures the […]

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Started the day bright and early with a hot air balloon ride above the never ending sands of the Sahara and the bright greeness of the water rich Nile River valley. Temps were already in the upper 20’s at 530am. It was going to be yet another hot day. Arriving to the “balloon field” we spotted about 25 balloons in various stages of setup and groups of people milling about. With 32 people in our basket we were supported by the largest commercial balloon on the planet. We quickly rose […]

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At the moment I’m sitting in sleeper train on our long transiberian journey – not much to do here so we are chugging the vodka. Actually this is the overnighter from Cairo to Luxor. This is doing it in real style – a private suite for 2 people, AC controls per suite and the calming rocking motion that you can only get on a train will quickly put us to sleep – oh and the 32 hours it took to get here from Cali will certainly help. With not much […]

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