Wedding travel in South Africa and Mauritius. The marvels of Africa

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"Honeymoon in South Africa and Mauritius" by Andrea and Anna Paola
On safari in Africa had always been the quintessential romantic trip in my imagination. Searching among the most famous attractions South Africa was the country that offered the best climate in the month of March. The combination with Mauritius, much publicized, there seemed to be a variant attractive.
To try to avoid the depersonalization of a package tour but also the over-commitment of the fly-&-drive we launched our first trip with private guide. A bit 'for the event we went to a local tour operator (Action Travel), and we found what we needed: an Italian guide with over 20 years of experience of South Africa, flexibility in scheduling the location, quietness and speed the go, and many councils to customize the itinerary and find accommodations and activities more suited to our tastes.
Thus started March 19, 2007 on our trip:
Transfer from Johannesburg directly in the region of Mpumalanga to the heights of the Drakensberg (South veld). Visit to the Blyde River Canyon, the 3 rondavell and Pilgrim Rest. Very interesting historical memories of gold prospectors and the typical pancake.
Then the wonderful descent into Low Veld through Drakensber Escrapment; an exciting dive into the sea and green dish that the eye is lost in the horizon up to Mozambique. This is the Africa we were looking, the savannah, the park Kruger.
We spend a few days Palaborwa, the gateway to the north-central Kruger. The city is quiet and tidy with lots of villas with swimming pool and gardens, shopping center, and American football field. Then someone tells us when a lion managed to get in the supermarket car park to rest an immigrant from Mozambique ... ..
The entrance to the park is a few km and just pass it to begin the long-awaited safari experience in a private car. We are moving on a strip of asphalt through all the rooms of the park: the savannah bush, sandy, wooded, rocky, forest Mopane trees, baobab, muddy fords, rivers, ponds, etc. .. etc. .. and we are never alone.
Anything goes in there: hundreds of antelope, buffalo, zebra, wildebeest, warthogs wander around in the pasture with the watchful eyes of someone who could at any moment to finish in the mouth of a lion or a leopard, a cheetah or a pack of hyenas or jackals . They are all around them maybe just a few meters. Sometimes they show without worrying about the silly metal cans such as ours. The elephants seem attracted, perhaps try to make us roll away in a stroke of her trunk. Giraffes are trying to hide but to them it is not easy. Ostriches, guinea fowl and Francolini peck here and there. Hippos and crocodiles are the masters of the waters of the Limpopo, eagles, hawks jugglers, vultures, hornbills and colorful birds of the sky. The movements of baboons imagine the history of our species. For me, an avid naturalist since birth, a true paradise.
Each animal has its place in this tableau vivant in which life and death chase each other all along. Is not a movie, no joke out there is' seriously. Becomes' one way mixed emotions ranging from respect to fear, a sense of inadequacy. Suddenly we realize the importance of being able to have a safe place to sleep, food, water and so many things that simply were previously granted.
Council will to live his days in the park to 100% advantage of the wonderful facilities provided. There are barbecue facilities, museums, cabins, bungalows or resorts in which to spend magical day in perfect harmony with nature. We appreciated the Kapama resort, located directly on a private reserve bordering the park. Colonial bungalow furnished areas, lake terrace, swimming pool with waterfall, Africa my style reading room, garden terrace, all perfectly set in the environment. The board of Land Rover safaris are a bit 'tiring but what better way to experience the renowned experience of a sunset or sunrise in the bush? Must for a honeymoon.
Advice for other travelers? The SA has much to offer in terms of attractions and accommodations but is rather dangerous than the European average. Never go around at night especially in the more degraded and generally always being on the 'who lives' not only within the park.
As for the malaria vaccine we have not done anything. In two weeks of stay in Kruger at the end of March we will have 4 point mosquito ... In fact it was not worth the trouble.

The second part of the trip was the island of Mauritius. The arrival on the island air is very exciting. After hours of ocean indeed appear Mauritius and Reunion in the ocean just like the classic lonely islands of pirates. Green of tropical forest and volcanic mountains surrounded by clear frothiness typical of the reef, an irresistible attraction. As the plane goes down it turns out that the island is far from uninhabited and, indeed, teeming with colorful and frenetic activity. The hamlets are distributed a bit 'over the island and trafficking of old cars, buses and scooters often clogs several major roads.
But the most remarkable feature of Mauritius is definitely the variety of ethnicities and the unique ability to live together without mixing completely. E 'so that you can run into a neighborhood with lots of colorful Indian Hindu temple or in the red lanterns of Chinatown, or in a small fishing village or a Creole classic nineteenth-century European villa. Not to mention the variety of tourists. The end result is an atmosphere of mixing feature that accompanies nicely tourists at all times. We stayed at Flic en Flac, a little town 'distant from the more traditional tourist destinations such as Great bays, but perhaps this more quiet and natural media. Our tour operator has booked one of the beautiful Resort which occupy the long sandy coastline in front of a beautiful coral reef on: The Sands. We found ourselves very well. The property offers the classic attractions: pool, restaurant, bar, sporting center and wellness center but stands out for environmental care and courtesy of service. Coral beach well shaded by palm trees, the greenery, flowers and colorful birds. A small corner of paradise where we did not miss anything including the 'honeymoon dinner' by candlelight in a gazebo by the sea.
It 'been fun around the island on board a motorcycle even if the car is probably the best way we calculate the frequent shower of rain and a scarcity of gas stations ... from advising the catamaran cruise in search of dolphins and isolated beaches or the incredible colors of the sunset from the beach in Flic en Flac. Ah, once you get used to the placid Mauritian and it is hard to go home ....

It 'was a nice trip, our honeymoon, and we would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who made this possible.