My first trip to the African continent was one of the best and most frustrating trips I’ve ever had. Over the next several posts, I’ll share my adventures and tips and thoughts from my time in South Africa, continent number five and country number 30.
Why South Africa?
I chose the Rainbow Nation for several reasons. Africa has been high on my list for several years. However, sometimes compromising on vacation destinations or airfare led to other amazing trips. This time, I had full control over location and planned far enough in advance that airfare wasn’t going to be a major complication.
Both northern Africa and southern Africa were on my radar. Good flight options could get me from Beijing to either region. But, when I looked closer, the less expensive flights going to the north included time-consuming layovers in places where leaving the airport wasn’t going to be feasible. In the end, this led to purchasing tickets to Johannesburg.
Personal Connections
The Republic of South Africa tempted me further because my great grandfather, Stephen Roy Boswell, served as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in South Africa from 1910-1913. His journal from the last six months of his mission allowed me to plan based on what he saw and experienced 106 years ago. This added an entirely new and deep layer to my travel experience.
I have also been very fortunate to become friends with several South Africans working in Beijing. Their advice and counsel as well as support and hospitality enhanced my experience. We created a WeChat group where I updated them on my travels, asked for their advice and opinions, and shared in the adventures together.
My Trip
During my time in South Africa, I experienced four cities, a cross-country train trip, and a private game reserve. I had time to follow my great grandfather’s footsteps and specifically sought out places and sights he mentioned in his journal. In addition to my normal social media posts while traveling, I also updated extended family with posts pulled from his writings and comparing the places now to what they were back then.
I’ll share these many adventures in individual posts along with a post about safety in South Africa and getting around while there, just in case anyone wants to plan their own South African adventure. I’m already planning my next one and am trying to drag my family along with me.
Until next time, adventure is out there, so go have one!
