JUST ASK US! ‘You say Elephant Males come into musth when mature and ready to mate, do male Rhino’s do the same?’
Neil responds. Elephant are not territorial and will wonder great distances in search of food, water, and potential mates, shaping the environment as they do. Female elephants ovulate every 4 months and so the chance of a bull elephant in musth coming into contact with a receptive female, fighting off other male suitors also in
Read MoreFor the Love of Nostalgia – The Dessert that’s Delighted for Three Generations
Otto de Jager was left a family legacy in form of a recipe book, handwritten by his mother, for his 30th birthday. It’s a beautiful, leather-bound volume of love… This treasure trove of traditions from an Afrikaans Kitchen showcases decades of a mother’s instinct to nurture and inspire. From the dusty Karoo where his mother
Read MoreYou are my Mate!
February, the month of ‘love’. It inspires us to reaffirm our commitments to those we hold dearest, showering them with gifts and experiences to see us through another 12 months. Love does though, exert the same level of distress on our bodies as deep fear does. Mathematically speaking, we should engage with a dozen partners
Read MoreNever Forget Your Love – Valentine’s Safari Photo Shoots at Makweti Safari Lodge
It gives us tremendous hope at Makweti to have February, the month of love, finally upon us once again. Hope for at least one month where love takes charge over all the chaos, where tenderness and togetherness are treasured during this time of global isolation. At Makweti, we are all true romantics at heart –
Read MoreMAKWETI SPINACH AND FETA QUICHE
As we are now well into a new year, and people all over the world are aspiring to eat healthier food, here at Makweti we continue to experiment with vegetarian dishes that make the mouth water. One such dish is our spinach and feta quiche – offering all the goodness of eggs and spinach and
Read MoreYou taught me almost everything…
But you didn’t teach me how to live without you. A cloud may have a silver lining giving warmth and hope to us, but rarely does that silver lining have its very own silver lining, hidden within is symbolism of a better tomorrow. Saturday, the 4th day of August 2018 It’s 8am and we are
Read MoreMAKWETI’S Festive Gin and Tonic Cheesecake
With the holiday season now in full swing, we are looking for ways to spread festivity in ways that are true to the quintessential South African spirit. The reinvigorating Gin and Tonic has been adopted by South African culture, perfectly paired with our sublime, sunny weather and friendly disposition. At Makweti Safari Lodge, we’ve combined
Read MoreSilver Anniversary
Cast the window wider, sonny, Let me see the veldt, Rolling grandly to the sunset, Where the mountains melt, With the sharp horizon round it, Like a silver belt. 1903, from the poem The Veldt by Percival Gibbon. Silver, a distinguished colour second only to Gold, is associated with elegance, sophistication, and innovation. In nature
Read MoreFor the Love of Wild Places
“Makweti Safari Lodge was inspired by our family’s love of the wild places in Africa. It grew from the excitement of my parents, who journeyed to the Kruger park when it was first opened in 1926. They would travel in a Ford Model T and set up camp in the only facility provided in the
Read MoreBeyond the Ball
Early morning, June 2017. We’ve aroused our guests to prepare for the morning game drive, when from down the valley comes a reverberating rumble. Startling all those lounging on the deck of the Indaba, the roaring sound penetrates the aroma of coffee brewing. We look at each other. Lion! It is the Tembe Male, sprawled
Read MoreROASTED CAULIFLOWER LASAGNE
Meat-Free Monday is a campaign that aims to encourage the world to help slow climate change, reduce the impact on land and vegetation, slow deforestation and save wildlife, by reducing meat consumption. As Sir David Attenborough urges us to consume less meat in his latest Netflix documentary, A Life On Our Planet, our spectacular chefs
Read MoreMeet Josphat on your Makweti Safari Lodge Game Drive
Some of Makweti Safari Lodge’s best guides have been the ones who were born into a life surrounded by nature, often coming from farmlands and small communities. One such guide is our ever-smiling, friendly-faced Josphat Chinyanda – affectionately nicknamed “Bushbaby”. Josphat leads our guests on an adventurous Makweti Safari Lodge Game Drive that they will
Read MoreSafari Game Drive – What We See Depends on What We Look For
Seeing is believing or perhaps seeing is deceiving. The idea that seeing is believing dates to ancient Greece, from where the expression became part of many proverbs in English and other languages. The idea that we need to see something first, before believing it exists, may well be true, but sometimes what we see is
Read MoreBOBOTIE CIGARS
Bobotie’s roots in South Africa date back to the 17th century. Dutch traders set up camp in the area that is now Cape Town, using it as a stopping point on their journeys back and forth to Indonesia. The traders brought spices, cooking techniques, and recipes with them. While the specifics are a bit vague,
Read MoreWorld Girl Child Day – Raising Matriarchs and Queens
Every living organism has the right to a healthy life, safe existence and the opportunity to develop and grow to their full potential. This couldn’t be more true than for those who form the womb of every society. In recognition of International Day of the Girl Child, today – the 11th day of October 2020
Read MoreWorld Habitat Day – Preserving ‘Home’
World Habitat Day – the 5th day of October 2020 – is recognised each year on the first Monday of October. It is designated to reflect on the state of towns and cities and the rights for all to have adequate shelter. Habitat: The space we occupy We often forget that we share our spaces
Read MoreAn African Moon
We have always insisted that our winter night skies in the Waterberg are spectacular. With little cloud to obscure our views of the vibrant Milky Way, little or no moisture or humidity to diminish the faint glow of even the smallest or farthest star from the earth, the night skies are alive. There is so
Read MoreThe Baboon, A Poet And A Naturalist
Change is inevitable. Be it good or bad, it is bound to happen. Most of what changes is not so much about what has changed or is busy changing, but more one’s perception of what is different. Many things change around us without us knowing. Many changes have different impacts or effects on us or
Read MoreA Home That Makes A “Hole” Lot Of Sense
Observation: the active acquisition of information from a primary source using our senses. A critical part of being a guide, or even simply living in a natural environment, is possessing the proverbial ‘power of observation’ – taking time to notice the small things, those things less ordinary. Each time we exit the reserve and travel
Read MoreNature’s Medicine Chest
In October 2018, we were in northern Kruger National Park when I was reminded about the trade in traditional medicinal products in South Africa. We were in the farthest northern part of the Kruger National Park driving along the Levubu River. We passed a common cluster fig or sycamore fig tree with a neat rectangular
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