Crossing the Border - First Attempt

After a long drive on a surprisingly good road (one map labelled the road as "extreme potholes" - but this was obviously fixed) through some different scenery of the Mozambican mountains (Mount Gorongosa); it was theoretiacally a short drive to the Malawian border from the overnight stop just outside Caia. Take a 60 Km gravel road to Villa Senna, cross the famous 2.7 Km railway bridge across the Zambezi, and then another 60 odd Km to the border. What could possibly go wrong ... after all the locals and the guide books confirmed the route!

Arriving at the bridge, we found that it was closed for repairs - and had been for a while. The engineer suggested we go back to Caia, cross the Zambezi with the ferry, and then drive the longer way round. Not too much of a detour - just anout 100 Km of dirt road after crossing the Zambezi.

Crossing the Zambezi proved to be easy, but long affair. After confirming directions at the petrol station, we arrived at the ferry port to find out that the captains were out to lunch between 12pm and 2pm. The time was 12h10 ...

Queue at the ferry

The ferry crossing itself was interesting - except the driver, everyone else was squeezed in like sardines behind the load of trucks and cars. Once across, we drove through some very interesting scenery to arrive at Chipanga, on the Shire River, just after 6pm. There is apparently a ferry that crosses this stretch of river - but when we asked the locals about the ferry, we were offered a canoe ...




There was a ferry moored on the riverbank - but it seemed that it has not run for a long time. Thus we decided to take the even longer road around to Malawi via the Milange border post, through 200 Km of dirt road. We spent the night camped at the parking lot of an "exclusive" lodge - which charged rip off prices for the use of their parking lot and bathroom.

Inhassorro

After 2 days at a (very hot) beach in Linga Linga, it was decided to make a final stop at Inhassorro before continuing inland. Inhassorro, about 50Km north (as the crow flies) of Vilankulos, is the last regular South African stop in Mozambique - and very well known for fishing trips. So inevitably, we stumbled across a bunch of South African guys on a big fishing trip - they had 2 boats, a trailer full of alcohol and obviously some free time :)

But for me, the really interesting part was the local fishermen. They take a massive net out to sea using boats and then in a large, communal effort bring the net in. It is a long haul, and the going seems very tough; but the joy of catching fish and the impromptu celebration was amazing to watch. It was not a massive catch; but definitely sustainable and definitely will get them money.

Linga Linga?

Lonely Planet describes it as paradise because it is so difficult to get to. When we asked for directions, we were told that the easy road was no longer available - as it was washed away in a flood. The ravages of storms are clearly apparent, when we drove through the alternate route - as can be seen by the bent palm trees.


And the road to Linga Linga was difficult - and tested quite a few functionalities/capabilities of the Land Rover. A long, sandy 4x4 track, and frequent stops to ask "Linga Linga" managed to get us there, but giving real directions is still difficult. Tobias' drivign skills were trully impressive - and I doubt the route would be possible with either amatuers driving or with a non 4x4 off road vehicle.



But it was well worth the pain to get there. It is really paradise; and although there is a barebones backpackers, in the form of a village hut; we decided to just camp for free on the beach (and for most of the time, we had our own private beach).

But the paradise will not last long. I had cell-phone reception, and to add to that, there are already two resorts; with a 5 star hotel in the planning. So it was well worth going while it is still possible.

Praia de Bilene

We started the day quite late - after a flight from Germany, Tobias, Petra and Annette were very tired - so, it was quite understandable. It also took a long time to pack everything up. I am sure it will get faster and easier as we get more practice; but for now it was quite a mission. The relatively early stop last night also alowed us to work out what we were missing; so another round of shopping took place in Nelspruit; before we headed to the border.

The border was a hive of activity, and surprisingly very well organised. Excep for a short traffic jam, it was a quick crossing. We were somewhat scammed by the money changers ... still not sure how they did it; but it was not a lot of money.


Instead of carrying on to Maputo, we took a "short cut" through some back roads. It was quite a beautiful drive - saw a long green snake, which we think was a mamba; a few monkeys and a lot of birds. Driving through small villages (more like settlements than villages) was also interesting.


Praia de Bilene, or the Beach of Bilene is not really on the sea. Instead it is an inland lagoon just next to the beach. It is very picturesque, but it still feels a bit fake.

Praia de Bilene was not our intended stop - the original idea was to stop in Zoegoene at the mouth of the Limpopo river; but it was getting late. We are staying the night in Laguna Camp - which is a 7Km dirt track away. While it has great facilities; it is also very expensive so

Day 1: Johannesburg to Waterval-Boven

The intention was to go further, as close as possible to the borderpost. However, we only finalised the car about 1pm, and then some shopping for the "essentials" turned out to be quite long (but comprehensive). So, overall, we only really left Johannesburg about 2:30pm.

Near Delmas on the N12, we realised that we needed to fill up the tank - but there was no garage in sight. The GPS suggested a truck stop, which ended up being a detour through Delmas - which incidentally uncovered quite a few garages.


Tobias on top of the defender (still packed)


My other travel companions, Petra (left) and Annette (right)

The drive towards Nelspruit is stunning, through the hills and lush countryside. We stopped at a campsite (Elangeni Holiday Resort) just after Waterval-Boven, about 50Km West of Nelspruit - idea was to learn what we have in this hired car. The defender is surprisingly more comfortable than I remember, but it is not an easy vehicle to drive. The campsite is empty (only one other camper) - and even though we are next to the river, no mosquitos yet.

Tomorrow will be a long drive - intention is to go as far north in Mozambique (while remaining by the sea). Not sure if I will have Internet access ... even if it is GPRS like this link ...

Travelling Again!

So, I have taken my full complement of leave for the past year of working, and am going travelling again! Will be another interesting trip: overland, by 4x4 through Mozambique, Malawi, Tanzania and the Zambia (final leg will be a flight from Livingstone to Jo'burg). Will also be travelling with some friends (Tobias, those of you that know him) - which is also going to be a new experience :P

Not sure how much blogging will happen during the trip, but expect a lot of backdated posts.

Durban Beachfront at Night

Spent the weekend in Durban, and I have always enjoyed the beachfront at night. The weather wasn't great but the lights against the dark sky and sea was a great sight (although my cellphone did not do great justice).

Movie: Killshot

I bought the ticket completely blind - expecting an action movie. Instead it was a thriller featuring a semi-retired hitman and what is effectively his last job. Long winded, largely boring and highly predictable. Mickey Rourke is an interesting choice as the American Indian hitman; and the scenery set in the winter of North USA/Canada is beautiful - but as a movie it is a waste of time.

Great service

Once in a while, my faith in customer service is restored in large SA businesses. This evening's flight back from Cape Town, the steward (Ronald) was great not only in his attitude and service, but just his general conduct. The flight was generally full of people flying back from a business trip (or onwards to a business trip); and he was really engaging and friendly; even to the point of joking whether we were being served Nando's (chicken) of Cheese Burgers (beef). I just wish other stewards were as good.

Movie: Transporter 3

For some reason, I have enjoyed the Transporter series. Mindless action, with some seriously impressive car stunts - and interestingly enough, tackling some hot topic; human trafficing in the first one, child kidnapping in the second, and now environmental issues.

It is mindless fun, and at that it is quite brilliant. The continuity in cast of the two major characters (Jason Statham as the transporter and François Berléand as the French inspector) clearly help and in fact there is continuity in the plot also.

Taxi Drivers

Taxi drivers are interesting people to talk to - if you can communicate with them that is.

There is the taxi driver in Hamburg, who took me to the local office from a metro station (there was a bus, but the schedule was not very regular). He happened to have worked in Johannesburg CBD with a German logistics company until 2001, and has been to SA on numerous occasions. He was particulary sad about the demise of the Carlton Hotel, which he considered one of the best hotels he has ever stayed in.

The second taxi driver in Hamburg (from the office to the airport) was very scathing about debt, capitalism and the financial crisis. He was not impressed that Hamburg (and other cities in Germany) were in debt, and questioned the value and morality of capitalism. The financial crisis has clearly affected his business - he thinks that he is carrying about 50% less passengers when compared to previous years.

And finally, there was the Taxi driver in Frankfurt. With a coffee in one hand, a cell phone in the other - he managed to take us from the hotel to the office through the autobahn in, a somtimes quite terrifying, ride. He was constanly on the phone, seemingly arguing with a number of people, in Hindi - so I did not understand much. But it seems that there are at least some taxi drivers who have universal attributes :)

Movie: Boy A

A child commits or is involved in a serious crime and is sent to jail. After more than 10 years in jail he is released, and he tries to create a new life for himself. But there are those who will not leave him alone - and tainted as the epitome of evil in the newspapers, the resurrection is rather difficult.

Deep down, it asks a simple question - when someone serves their punishment, do they not deserve a chance to live a normal life? After all, is prison not meant to be about rehabiliation?

This is a very powerful movie, but I wonder if any of us would really reconsider rehabilitated prisoners as our friends, colleagues or lovers. And there in lies the problem I suppose.

Choice, not Fate: The Life and Times of Trevor Manuel

Released just months after Mbeki was "recalled", the biography traces the story of Trevor Manuel - possibly South Africa's most admired minister; and certainly one of the most successful ministers.

It is a facinating tale, tracing back his family's roots, the impact of the Group Areas Act (which came trully into force when he was a boy), his political activities before and after the unbanning of the ANC (including his significant influence on the politics of the Western Cape) and his time as the minister of Finance.

And it is the last part, the process of how he came to head up the ANC's economic policies, to becoming the Trade and Industry minister before becoming the Minister of Finance, that is really enlightening.

There is significant discussion on how the ANC came to launch GEAR; and the arguments for and against various economic models. What is also interesting, is how Zimbabwe's economic outlook in 1994 (which the book describes as being very rocky, on the verge of collapse) affected Trevor Manuel, Tito Mboweni and the rest of the policy makers plans and decisions.

I had known about South Africa's debt accumulation - but the book is a facinating insight to how debt really affected South Africa's spending patterns - on why it was difficult to just pour money into building houses or delivering water. So was the discussion on why teachers and other crucial public service workers had to be laid off in the late 1990s - becuase there was trully over capacity on the fundamental infrastructures (there were teachers, but no schools that could use those teachers).

But perhaps, most striking of all was the account of the discussion of possible economic scenarios for South Africa. There were the two extremes - everything collapses and everything flourishes; both unrealistic. But there were the two other paths - the strong growth at first followed by a crash (similar to the Asian economies of the 1990s) or the slow growth at first followed by the strong sustained growth later. The fact that South Africa managed to follow the last path, was a political triumph as much as it was an economic triumph.

If nothing else, this book is a good discussion on the fundamentals of politics and economics. Two things that affect our daily lives. And that alone makes it worthwhile.

Movie: Pride and Glory

A fairly predictable movie about New York cops - the familiar theme of good cops chasing up the bad cops who are doing deals on the side. The only twist in this saga - the good cops, the bad cops (and those in between) are all from the same family. Nothing special really.

... in paradise

As the plane landed in Cape Town on New Year's eve, the captain asked the flight crew to take their seats, and that we would shortly be landing in paradise. Cape Town in December is certainly paradise - I love it. And going there for New Year's eve, although a very short visit, was certainly a great decision.

And even as we flew over the slums - into Cape Town - and again out of Cape Town (although this time, the flight went round Cape Point too) - I certainly agree - Cape Town in summer is paradise.

White Tiger

Winner of the 2008 Man Booker Prize, Aravind Adiga writes a tale about a smart man, Balram Halwai, - who rises from poverty to becoming a multi-millionaire, successfull business man in the New India. And it is the journey that is really the focus of the story - filled with corruption, virtual slavery, family and social presssures and even murder - it is a very stark contrast to the traditional tale of success.

What is really tragic, in many respects, about the story - is that it is in many respects an honest potrayal of the class, social and economic divide of India. The tales of corruption - while maybe exaggarated, are not tales that would not ring true at some point.

And in the end, you realise - that the story could be really set in any other third world country. You will get smart boys forced to work, to pay off some family debt instead of going to school. You will find social pressures dictating what the person can do as their living. And, it will be the very select few, who can trully escape their background and trappings of their birth. In fact, in the times of financial turmoils; this tale probably rings true for everyone in the world ... and in the end, we would all support Balram Halwai's actions ...

Movie: Religilous

Comedian Bill Maher, presents a rebuttal to religion - esp. the Abrahamic religions. Personally, I feel that the God Delusion, did a much better job. Maher does raise valid points - but his presentation, and atagonism towards some of his interview subjects are not going to help spread his message.

Cradle of Humankind

There was only one tourist attraction I knew of in Gauteng - the Cradle of Humankind. And it has taken me almost a year to actually get round to going there. The Cradle of Humankind is in itself a bit of a distracting idea as a tourist site - because the area covers a very large area, which includes towns, farms and game reserves. At its core, there are two major "attractions": Maropeng Visitor Centre and The Sterkfontein Caves. Both can be easily visted in half a day, and thus a combined ticket of R130 for adults is quite affordable.



The Maropeng Visitor Centre is an incredible showcase about evolution of man - and a very interesting exploration of the homo sapien species. It is incredibly hands on, and the information is very interesting and very accessible. More than a musuem, it is also somewhat of an experience - from the idea of exploring the various facets of the evolution of earth itself to the various aspects of biological evolution.



The Cradle is off course famous for the various fossils discovered of our earliest ancestors, and Maropeng has a fairly sizable collection of original fossils and casts.



The Sterkfontein caves is off course what made this area famous; and with the improvements in facilities it is certainly a lot more accessible (although there are areas where one needs to crawl through). The caves themselves are not that impressive in themselves, but it is still a very interesting experience.



Over all, the recent focus on improving the facilities have meant that these are really accessible to visitors. They are both facinating places to visit; and I am glad I finally went.

Wonder Cave

Wonder Cave, also in the Cradle of Humankind is inside the private Rhino and Lion game reserve. An abandoned mine, the cave is a massive cavern with some spectacular stalactites and stalagmites. It is a steep climb down stairs, followed by a small mining lift - but it definitely worth the effort and the R50 entry fee. It is a small detour onthe R512 from Johannesburg, and definitey worth a stop over.

PCFormat's DRM Article

I am not a regular buyer of PCFormat - but when I saw the DRM article advertised on the cover, I could not resist. Since I do consider myself somewhat of an expert on DRM, I was interested to see what the magazine had to say. And in most respects, it was very much what I thought it would be; although a lot less hysterical and to be fair, a lot more balanced. However, there are a number of points I would like to raise - so here it goes.

Firstly - what is DRM? Strictly speaking - DRM is about the control of usage and access to electronic data. It is not about copy control. In fact, every DRM system that has tried to enforce copy control has been a failure - and are usually led the bad rap - such as Sony-BMG's rootkit. It is physically impossible to restrict copying - computers work by copying data all the time. The way copying is controlled is through restricting the use of electronic data - but not physically restricting copying. It is an important distinction.

Secondly, DRM is not strictly about copyright enforcement - it is about license enforcement. This is the reason that music DRM has failed, and probably will never succeed. Music has never been sold as being licensed to the buyer - instead the buyer has always "bought" an instance of a musical performance. To apply DRM directly to this model was stupid, and has consequently failed.

Software is different - it has always been distributed and used as being licensed. You do not own a game. You own a license to play the game. You do not own a copy of Windows XP. You own a license to use Windows XP. Consequently, DRM fits in a lot better to the model for Software Protection - it is a natural extension to what has always been practiced, but never really been enforced.

But does this mean that the economic and usability models being applied to current software is correct? No. Previously, I could get a license to play a game on unlimited number of machines for R400. Now, I get a license restricted to play on 3 machines for R400. That is not economically justifiable. Likewise, usability of phoning a number, hanging on for 20 minutes while reciting 20 letter numbers is not user-friendly.

In my opinion, DRM was rushed to the market - mainly because the old business models in the music industry could not cope with the new economy. There is a lot of research that needs to be done - a lot of it is being done. There is a lot of use for DRM, and the power it can hand to the user could be immense. If done properly, the user could be in a position to determine, how, who, why, when and where another entity could use their personal data - that is powerful. However, competing DRM standards (there are at least three organisations in the standardisation game: OMA, MPEG and W3C), competing interests and a general fuck up due to the immature introduction of the technology has meant that real progress has been really slow.