Able Seaman Just Nuisance, the only dog ever to be officially enlisted in the Royal Navy. This picture is from the Simon's Town Museum, South Africa.

But which dogs are prohibited in the UAE? Click here to find out!

New FAQs - Traveling To The Middle East For The First Time? 10 Frequently Asked Questions For The Female Traveler.

Click here to read my new Frequently Asked Questions for first time female travelers to the Middle East. 

Spring Cleaning! Made even better as a local business asked for my Middle East & Africa Travel Magazines.

Spring Cleaning 2018! © Flyga Twiga LLC

Happy Seollal - Korean Lunar New Year 2018 - Year of the Dog!

What is charye? 
Seollal, Korean Lunar New Year, often involves the ritual of charye, paying memorial to your ancestors.

How do I wish someone good fortune?
Say, “Saehae bok mani badeuseyo”  새해 복 많이 받으세요 which translates to “Please receive a lot of luck in the New Year!”

Happy Saint Valentine's Day! Hope you Enjoy this Romantic Sunset from beautiful Uganda!

Sunset Uganda © Flyga Twiga LLC

#TravelTuesday What will I eat on Safari? That is one of the questions I am asked a lot on my #SafariAMA

Bush Camps usually have buffets or set menus. And, the costs are included in your Safari Package. In Kenya and Uganda Bush Camps, many times, you will find Indian Food on the Buffets. If you stay at luxury hotels or Glamping Safari Camps, you most likely be served almost any kind of food & drink you want, including exceptional African Wines.

As with any travel, if you have allergies or special dietary needs, you must inform the Safari Service Provider and check to be sure they can meet your needs.

And, in East African cities, such as Kampala and Nairobi, you will find fine dining restaurants. In Kampala, Mythos Greek Taverna & Lounge is one of my absolute favorites. 

And, if you are into “Celebrity Chefs” I can personally recommend Kiran Jethwa's Seven Seafood and Grill in Nairobi, Kenya. Kirwan’s first show on National Geographic People was “Tales from the Bush Larder”. Now he appears in his new show “The Fearless Chef”.

The above picture is our unique lunch in Kibale Forest National Park. Our lunch was served in a Banana Leaf,  and provided the perfect "to go" meal for the Trek. Provided by our host the Uganda Tourism Board, we were treated to a wonderful day of Chimpanzee Trekking. Kibale Forest is such a special place! 

Mweya Safari Lodge Queen Elizabeth National Park Uganda©Flyga Twiga™ LLC

I was invited to join the social media platform AMAfeed & I'm really loving it!

I held my first "event" - an Ask Me Anything about Safaris and Travel to Africa. It is so much fun.

Part of my takeaway from this platform is using search engines to answer questions is great - but you have to know what to search for. AMAfeed, in my experience with my first event, helps direct further research. Especially for Safaris and Travel to Africa, there are rarely "yes" or "no" set answers. Furthermore, how on Earth do you know the links you are following are real or have any expert, honest advice? 

With AMAfeed #SafariAMA it is MY reputation on the line. AMAfeed allows a really good balance of letting me promote my business and work, while offering information people want/need. 

The reason for the picture above? I received a lot of questions about Gorilla Trekking and how close you can get to the Gorillas. This was taken last year Mgahinga Gorilla National Park on my Gorilla Trek. Truly an amazing experience which I am so glad to share with the AMAfeed Community.

Happy Day! Safe Safari!

#TravelTuesday Preparing for Safari? Attending Pyeongchang Winter Olympics? Which Travel Insurance is the best?

Boma, Jonglei State, South Sudan © Flyga Twiga LLC

The kind folks at Reviews.com reached out to me. They have recently completed a review of travel insurance. Click here to read their reviews.

I believe this is a good place to start when trying to determine what travel insurance will meet your needs. Travel insurance comes in different types, for various forms of travel. I always suggest travel insurance, as you will see from my Safari Guide here.

Of course, a disclaimer, I do not receive any compensation from Reviews.com.

Happy Day! Safe Safari!

#TravelTuesday Who are Soohorang & Bandabi? PyeongChang Olympics & Paralympics Mascots

Fans of Olympics history may remember or heard about the 1996 Summer Olympics controversy surrounding the official mascot “Izzy”,  The official mascot was based on an amorphous creature “Whatizit” or “What is it?” and to this day remains the butt of many jokes and a blight on Olympic mascot history.

Thankfully Korea has returned to tradition with the culturally significant white tiger, Soohorang 수호랑 and the Asiatic black bear Bandabi 반다비 for the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics and Paralympics Mascots.

In Korean tradition the white tiger is seen as a benevolent protector against evil. The name Sooharang comes from the Korean word sooho 수호 "protection" & ho-rang-i 호랑이 "tiger”. The protective white tiger will mascot the Olympics.

The Asiatic black bear is often referred to as the “Korean Moon Bear” for the crescent shaped white “moon” shape on its chest. Bandabi’s name comes from  bandal 반달 ”half-moon"  &  bi 비 ”commemoration”. The Korean Moon Bear is particularly appropriate mascot for the Paralympics, symbolic of the perseverance of the Paralympians. 

According to the Korean creation myth, prayers were offered by a tiger and a bear to the Son of the Lord of Heaven, Hwanung, for them to become human. Hwanung agreed, upon the condition that each would receive 20 cloves of garlic and a bundle of mugwort. The tiger and the bear were strictly instructed to only eat this sacred food and remain out of the sunlight for 100 days.

While the tiger became restless and after only 20 days left the cave, the Korean Moon Bear did not give up and was rewarded by becoming a human woman. The Koreans creation mythology is that of a people born from perseverance in the face of extreme hardship. Thus making Bandabi a very appropriate mascot for the PyeongChang Winter Paralympics 2018.

Soohorang & Bandabi are perfect Korean mascots for this year's Winter games!

Today's my 3 Year The Explorers Club Anniversary! #Explore

And, it was a great honor to be part of The New York TImes "Women of the World" !

#TravelTuesday I've lived over 3 Years in South Korea & now only 1 Month to the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics!

Korean Air Morning Calm © Flyga Twiga LLC

Click here the Morning Calm picture above or here to go to the Official PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics Site!

Here's to the Year of the Dog! Seollal - Korean Lunar New Year - will take place February 16, 2018 during the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics!

Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) Working Dog © Flyga Twiga LLC

Looking forward to being back in Simon's Town, SA & seeing Just Nuisance AB again!

"Just Nuisance was the only dog ever to be officially enlisted in the Royal Navy. He was a Great Dane who between 1939 and 1944 served at HMS Afrikander, a Royal Navy shore establishment in Simon's Town, South Africa. He died in 1944 at the age of seven years and was buried with full military honours."

My article for Go Places Digital on the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics 2018 is online & will be in their Holiday Print Edition!

Traditional Guard Gyeongbokgung Palace © Flyga Twiga

Click here to read!

Can't wait to post about our amazing upcoming "Trains, Wine, & Art" Tour of South Africa!

Ostrich Cape of Good Hope SA © Flyga Twiga LLC

Travel Tuesday

Amazing First Class flight to Dubai on Emirates A380! 

Travel Advisory - East Africa Tourist Visa

As Flyga Twiga has been covering, there seems to be quite a bit of change going on within the tourism regulations and procedures in the Republic of Rwanda. Earlier this year, the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) announced the doubling of Gorilla Trekking Permit Fees. This was discussed widely within the East African Tourism Industry (our reporting on this discussion). And, sparked a response from neighboring Uganda, who share the border and the few remaining Mountain Gorillas with Rwanda (Uganda Tourism Board Statement).

Now, Rwanda appears to be reinterpreting the much touted “East Africa Tourist Visa” (EATV).  In a “Travel Tips Press Release” dated 2 August 2017, Coastal Aviation, one of the leading East African Safari Aviation providers, stated:

Visa Issues in Kigali
We have recently had a case where guests arrived in Kigali and were deemed to not have a valid visa. This caused us to be fined $3,000 by the Rwandan authorities. It transpired that the guests had an East African Univisa. They had applied through Uganda for this. The Rwandan authorities deemed this visa to be invalid as the guests should have applied to Rwanda, their first arrival point, rather than Uganda. Please ask you guests to double check this should it apply to them. We will no longer be responsible for any fines, should this recur. On Application for a Visa, the applicant is given a tracking number. It is important that we receive this tracking number, in order to be able to verify the visa, before flight.

This interpretation of the EATV was not a “one off” fluke, or misinterpretation by a rogue Rwanda Customs & Immigration Agent. Julian Edmunds, Managing Director of Coastal Aviation, only two days after the initial Press Release, sent out an email, subject, “Rwanda Visa Issues.” He stated in his 4 August 2017 email:

The Rwandese seem to interpret the multiple entry as that you may cross the borders between Rwanda, Uganda and Kenya...but that as soon as you leave these countries (ie to Tanzania) then the visa is deemed to have expired and a second visa is then required. 

Yesterday we had another such incident. Guests had the East Africa Tourist Visa and used it to enter Kenya. They then left Kenya and then went to Tanzania; we then flew them from Tanzania to Rwanda. The immigration officers in Rwanda would not accept their East African Tourist Visa as they deemed it expired. Luckily the guests were American and therefore eligible to purchase a visa on arrival...had that not been the case, we would have been forced to repatriate them to Tanzania and fined $3000!

Nowhere in the documentation, in English and Korean, does it state that this should be the case. Rather, the document, titled, “Take advantage of the new East African Community Visa” states:

“The holder shall also be allowed to move out of the Republic of Kenya, the Republic of Rwanda, and the Republic of Uganda and return without having to pay for another visa. This will only be applicable for 90 days.”

What all this means for those traveling on the EATV is unclear. Hopefully the respective Tourism and Development Boards will issue clarifications on this matter. When they do, we will immediately provide the information here.

Until then, have a Happy Day! And, a Safe Safari!

#TravelTuesday Flyga Twiga Honored to Partner with Kenya Embassy KITS 2017

OVERVIEW
Title    Korea International Tourism Show 2017
Slogan    Light Up!
Dates and time    August 24th (Thu) 2017 to August 27th (Sun) 2017 10:00AM ~ 6:00PM
Sunday, 10:00AM ~ 5:00PM
Venue    IlsHall 7, Exhibition Center Ⅱ, Ilsan KINTEX
Capacity    11,290㎡ (Approx. 500 booths in total)

Hosted by    Organization committee of Korea International Tourism Show, The Kookje Daily News, KyongbukIlbo, KyeonggiIlbo, JeonnamIlbo, JoongdoIlbo, KangwonDominIlbo, ChungbukIlbo, JeonbukDominIlbo, GyeongnamIlbo, HallaIlbo, The Korea Travel Times

Organized by    Korea International Tourism Show Head Office l Universal Live Co., Ltd.

Sponsored by    Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Korea Railroad Corporation, Korea Tourism Organization, Goyang City, Korean Food Foundation

Composition  
- Opening Ceremony
- Domestic/International Pavilion
- Travel Information Pavilion
- Held together
- Special Hall
Special Event    
- Global International Students Festival
- The World Alcoholic beverages Festival
- Travel talk Show
- Culture trip with tour commentator

See you there! Happy Day! Safe Safari! 

KITS 2016 © Flyga Twiga LLC