My Bucketlist: Bring Travel Dreams to Life

We all have bucketlists, places we want to see before we clock out for the last time. Some may involve trekking the beautiful peaks in Patagonian, or cruising the Nile, learning Italian as you travel via train through the scenic coastal towns of Italy, or being in two continents at the same time while meandering on the Bosphorus boat tours with Sofia in in your rear view or maybe even flying over across the other side of the world discovering whats really down under(when you find out let me know!). Whatever those plans are, point is we all have them! Yes, even for those whose travel plans as less of a priority than us wanderlusting addicts. Its also such a shame that most of us wait too long to realise those plans. With this blog I always try and included tips and details of how you can travel without having to sell your organs. You can check out my recent blog post on how to travel for next to nothing, which includes links to sites for the best flight deals as well as tips on saving money when booking hotels and earning points for free travel. 

I have been meaning to publish my bucketlist for sometime and but it changes so much with each and every new exciting destination that I discover. With all the changes that happen to it, I thought I would just go ahead and publish it and leave it as a dynamic list I would add to or remove, or perhaps even do a version 2 of my travel bucketlist. That's if I rinse this one out after wining the lottery and take a year out to travel. Included at links to post covering places I have already ticked off on my bucket list. I guess on of the reasons for the delay is that this blog was really intended to provide meaningful resources for any one wishing for inspiration on destinations that are not only popular but those that you might not have considered  but now that you have seen pictures, you can then add to your bucketlist. As always if a post doesn't provide enough details on costs, accommodation and transportation you are always welcome to email me and I will either update the post with details or just answer your questions via email/facebook/insta twitter...you get the gist!

...So indulge your wanderlust spirit as we go through some of my #bucketlist destinations and let me know below if there are places on my list that you have been to already or places we have in common? I would also love to here places you are still longing with visit but haven't checked off your list. Let me know in the comments below.

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Gecko Ridge | An Oasis In The Heart of The Namibian Desert

Have you ever seen the sun set, and the moon rise? All in one night! Well Namibia gave me that gift last year, at Gecko Ridge. Our own little oasis in the desert. I have always believed that where you stay when you are on a holiday or an extended road trip can make or break a holiday. Staying in the busy, noisy and hectic parts of a city when you travel doesn't do your search for rest and relaxation any justice, nor does staying so far away that it makes exploring difficult. My African vacation last year saw my boyfriend and I explore Zambia, before driving to Botswana for his first African safari vacation, then extending our road trip to Namibia's dessert dunes. This was of course where we were going to be doing the sand boarding in the desert dunes, the thing that bucket lists are made of.  It's been on my bucket list for a long, long time. My brother who now lives in Botswana, joined us for this part of the trip too, which also made things easier as we could take turns to drive the long distances. If you are a lover of road trips I would highly, highly, recommend driving in Namibia! The roads are endless with beautiful backdrops of mountains and desert landscapes. There are many stops for markets, small townships along the way, not to mention the road sides have small tables and seats built for pit stops for a break from driving or just a stop for lunch. It's great to see that the road sides have designated stops, almost as if to encourage resting between long drives.

With a hectic and packed itinerary, I wanted us to have peaceful and comfortable places to stays. Having driven 10 hours from Maun in Botswana, we landed in Windhoek, Namibia late in the night. With a few hours to explore Namibia's capital the following day, we then set off for the Skeleton coast, but based ourselves in Swakopmund. People almost always assume visiting Africa is expensive. Its not! The main expensive thing is the flight but even that these days, if you know where to look you are in for an adventure. You will find most of the hotels typically available in Europe and most come with an even better view of nature than a view of the concrete jungle. Our stop in Windhoek for the night cost well £100. So you will get more for you money too. That's for a small suite, and a double room, all including breakfast for the 3 of us. This was also a last minute booking because we couldn't find the hostels we thought we were going to stay in,  having arrived so late and me getting a little bit on the hungry and cranky side. This was very much last minute of the next available place I could find.

With only a day to explore the capital we set of for Namibia's Skeleton Coast. This is the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean and stretches up towards Angola. The local people refer to it as "The Land God Made In Anger" while the Portuguese sailors apparently refer to it as "The Gates of Hell", because whale and seal bones as well as the many shipwrecks that litter the shore. We based ourselves in Swakopmund. A town that seems as if it had been plucked right and of Germany and dropped in Namibia. Architecture and language spoken is mostly German. As beautiful as the town is with its gorgeous beaches on one side and sand dunes on the other. I wanted a low key and quiet spot. I found Gecko Ridge Guesthouse in Swapomund. The owner an architect who made a deal with the land owner to be paid in land for helping the owner of the land to divide the acres of desert lands he owned. His portion of the land he builds this beautiful guest house which also comes with private chalets on the grounds. For more options on where to stay in Swakopmund, check out this list of hotels and guest houses in Swakopmund.

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Paradise Found | 20 Africa's Best Beaches You Need To Visit

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Africa has become synonymous with safaris nowadays, but there is all so much more to this beautiful continent than just chasing the big five - so much more! Most people the moment they think beach holiday they usually think of escapes to the Caribbean or maybe some other European destination. Oblivious to Africa's thousands of beautiful beaches and landscapes that will satisfy even the most insatiable wanderlust junkies. From landscapes, you can try crazy sports such as sand boarding in the dunes to sitting on the edge of one of the 7 natural wonders like the Victoria falls. Only a few people venture out to these beaches and those very people are usually hush when it comes to revealing the paradise they have found. Maybe so they stay perfect. Well, with this post we are not talking about extreme travel experiences, that's another post.  With this post, I wanted to show you some of Africa's best beaches, so next time you want a relaxing beach escape that does involve fighting for your own little bathing spot, you know exactly where to head to. 

You will find it difficult to come across sand so white, the sea so breathtakingly blue. Think unspoiled white pristine sandy beaches that go on for miles, where you can lounge with a cold drink topping up your tan as the light cool breeze gently soothes you into a dreamy state in paradise. The beauty of it all is that none of it is a dream. These places really do exist, all but a just plane ride away.... Not many people venture to these places meaning that you will not have to share the beach with a soul, other than the person you decide to bring along to share the experience and perhaps the person that bring you drinks of course.

So, why follow the herds when you have options like these below?...

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Sand Boarding and Quad-Biking In Namibia's Desert Dunes

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Finally, I get to share my pictures from the sand boarding and quad-biking in the Namibian coastal dunes.  One of the main reasons for heading to this part of Namibia having visited Windhoek, the capital, was to visit the little German town that is Swapkomund.  In addition to that, I had been dreaming about sand boarding in the dunes for a long time now, so it was my goal to make it happen while visiting an area with the tallest dunes in the world! Well if you are going to do something crazy why not go the whole nine yards, right?

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Namibia Must Sees : Dolphin Spotting on the Shores of Walvis Bay

The morning of our last day in Swakop, Namibia I wanted to explore a bit of Walvis Bay in the last hours we had before embarking on the 5 hours towards Windhoek. We wanted to be closer to the airport for the early flight to Zambia. In my previous post, I mentioned that we had rented a car from Botswana. Thankfully we got my brother to drop us off at the airport in the morning before he set off on the 10-hour drive back to Maun in Botswana. I will be posting more from Botswana soon.

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Namibia | The Blue Hues of Swakopmund Beach

Swakopmund is one of Namibia's largest coastal towns which draws in travellers from all over the world but a shame that not enough people know about this beautiful spot. In my previous post I showed you some of its European-style colonial architecture which takes a lot of influence its German colonisation. In my next post I will be showing you our next stop in the next town of Walvis Bay where we spotted dolpins and flamingos but not before taking to the nearby dunes. The cute town of Swakopmund is sandwiched between the dunes and the beach. So you can go from sand boarding to beach surfing within minutes. The choice of activities for such a small town is unbelievable. I may have to come back from surfing lessons but I while I was there I managed sand boarding which I have been dying to do for too long. Pictures in posts to come.

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Namibia | Why A Trip To Swakopmund On The On The Edge Of The Wild Atlantic Ocean Coast Is A Must

Beginning of the year I promised to show you more of Africa.  I have been part lazy and part busy with work and a house move to actually look at the pictures from my recent travels but better late than never, right?

Usually when I see people post about Africa its a same usual places like South Africa, Egypt and Morocco. I think to myself why are these folks missing out on the countries in the middle or further down the continent. There's another 50 odd countries with stunning scenery, quiet beaches, wild life and yet magazines still show you the same tried and test (about a million times) destinations. And no, you will not catch Ebola! As unfortunate as that horrid disease is, it's only in 6 out of 54 African countries. If you need more convincing then I would strongly recommend posts from fellow bloggers like Dave Cole at CookSipGo, who has been exploring Ethopia, Ivory Coast, Kenya, or going off grid and checking out Kenya's Central Island with Manouk from Bunch of Backpackers. Ever head of Madagascar? Well if you haven't then you might want to swing by The Crowded Planet and see Madagascar through the eyes of Margherita and Nick, whose travels around the country will have you clutching both your pearls AND passports as you race to your nearest travel agents for tickets to this diverse and magical island on the Indian Ocean. Even tiny little landlocked countries like the Kingdom of Swaziland are packed with much to see as shown by Heather Cole at the Conversant Traveller. One other place that is firmed placed close to the top of the list for my upcoming travels is Djibouti. Check out the post by Brock and Tanj's Travelogues of this tiny country on the elbow of Africa. Hopefully these links have not pushed your wanderlust into overdrive or your bank balances into meltdown. Now, recent posts I showed you around Zambia's capital, Lusaka and the Victoria Falls in Livingstone. I certainly hope you enjoyed those because it is now time to head South of the boarder and into Namibia.

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Dream Trip Challenge - Planning A Safari Adventure

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With the summer coming, its that time of year when people plan for the holidays, whether beach holidays, city escapes, adventurous trips and in my case a safari trip. I have been dreaming about this trip for far too long. It's OFFICAL! I am off to Zambia, Nambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana. Although not necessarily that order. I am all booked and ready to roll this September. Like many, booking such a trip you always wonder how you are going to get there once you land, what to expect, and more importantly, where you are going to stay. The fun is all in the planning.

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