NOMADIC EXISTENCE
Urbane Nomads Luxury Travel Mongolia
What: If you want to live the life of a tribal warlord a la Game of Throne’s Khal Drogo.
Stay: Reside in a Mongolian ger (traditional tent) – complete with massage facilities and a marble-clad central bath overlooking the magnificent Mongolian steppes.
Do: Ride alongside legendary Kazakh berkutchis (eagle hunters) for a day in the remote mountainside of Ulgii, Western Mongolia. Partake in the Eagle Festival where you’ll witness a traditional game of buzkashi (a no-rules polo match played with a – get this – goat’s head instead of a ball), and hunter-style courtship ritual, kzykuu, that will make American feminist, Gloria Steinm cringe with its display of machismo. End your journey with a guided visit to Ikh Khoriig, literally translated as The Great Taboo, rumoured to be the burial site of the Great Khan himself.
POLAR EXPRESS
Urbane Nomads Luxury Travel Antartica
What: Like a plot from a Neil Gaiman fantasy, your adventure begins after a five-and-a-hour flight from Cape Town to a mysterious Unknown International Airport (literally, because it can be located anywhere within the Antarctic Circle) that is little more than a cluster of tents near an icy runway.
Stay: A well-heated campsite at the Antarctic Oasis, not far from the coast. Antarctica is open to visitors during the height of summer, from November to February where temperature ranges from a brisk -10 to a balmy -5 degrees Celsius.
Do: Kite-skiing and have a barbecue at the high point of the oasis. Have a philosophical discussion with scientists stationed at the nearby Russian research base and end the day with a sauna at the same facility. If you like braving the territory further, ascend the peak of unexplored mountains with a team of experienced polar explorers.
DREAMING OF AFRICA
Relais & Chateaux Singita Pamushana
www.relaischateaux.com/pamushana
What: The Relais & Chateaux’s Singita Pamushana is for the hopeless romantic nursing fantasies of proposing to your partner amid a rustic African lodge – hello Kate & Wills – you might want to pack your safari gear and head to the Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve in northern Zimbabwe.
Stay: The resort offers an unmatched ringside seat to the spectacle of nature from the comfort of your well-appointed villa.
The full article was featured in the Sept12 issue.
Do: Soak in a heated Jacuzzi overlooking the setting Serengeti sun, spotting the Big Five (buffalo, elephant, leopard, lion and rhino) and over 400 species of birds.
