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We left Cape Town the next morning and made our way into the heart of the Cape Winelands.  The Cape Winelands is the largest wine producing region in South Africa and is divided into six main wine regions, each offering its own wine route.  One of the more popular regions is Franschhoek.

As I wrote in an earlier blog post it was my intention to write about my trip to Namibia and South Africa within two weeks of my return.  I got the Namibia posts done within a week and my goal was to get the South Africa posts uploaded the following week.  However as often happens, I got bogged down in my daily routine and it has taken me a lot longer to write about the South Africa portion of my trip.

The day after our bike ride to Cape Cross we flew to the sand dunes of Sossusvlei in the Namib Desert, considered to be one of the most spectacular sights in Namibia.  This area is characterized by high sand dunes of vivid pink-to-orange color, a consequence of a high percentage of iron in the sand and consequent oxidation processes.  The dunes in this area are among the highest in the world.

After one night in Windhoek we were off to Swakopmund, distance between the two cities 163 miles.  As we were trying to see as much of Namibia as possible in a limited amount of time we were going to fly.  When we arrived at the airport I saw the plane we were going to be using for the first time.  I had been told it would be small, but I really did not realize how small the plane was going to be until I saw it.  I have to say I was nervous during the first take off, but got use to the take offs and landings very quickly.  By the end of the trip, the worst part of f

After spending the night in Johannesburg, South Africa we flew to Windhoek, the capital and the largest city of Namibia.  It is located in a basin between the Khomas Highland, the Auas and Eros Mountains.  Whether due to pure luck or a brilliant stroke of Germanic planning, the city is situated in almost the country's epicenter.

The city centre is characterized by a proliferation of German style buildings, a lasting reminder of Namibia's early colonial history.  On our quick tour of the city I saw:

As many of you know I just returned from my trip to Namibia and South Africa.  It was my intention to blog during the trip, but for a number of reasons it just did not happen.  So over the next two weeks I will be posting here about the trip.

The first country I visited was Namibia and as I mentioned in the blog post before I left, the only thing I knew about this country is one of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's children was born there.  It turns out, as our Guide informed us, that that is what most people know about Namibia.

Today I am running around trying to finish the items on my "To Do" list, including this blog post, because in a couple of hours I will be leaving for the airport to catch my flight to South Africa.  For the next two and half weeks I will be traveling in Namibia and South Africa, both for business and vacation.  Our guides have already scouted out a couple of artisan cooperatives for me to visit.

Originally part of the Jordanian heritage, ceramic art was slowing dying out.  One of the reasons why this traditional craftsmanship was starting to be lost was the forcing of the roadside potters off the roads by the government because of the pollution created by the use of kilns.  Also contributing to this loss  was that children of the potters were not being encouraged to take up pottery.

Earlier this year when I started talking to people about VirtuArte I was told "Oh, you have to go to the Santa Fe International Folk Art Market (the Market). You will be able to see products from many different countries in one location. Participating artists are principally from the developing world." It definitely sounded like something I should attend, so I went last month.