10-day Itinerary (for Option 1)

Days 1-3 in Johannesburg

The journey begins in ‘Jozi’, where we observe, observe, observe:  listening with our minds and hearts wide open; seeing with fresh eyes; and connecting with our hearts.

This leg of the journey includes sites and activities such as:

  • Constitution Hill – home of South Africa’s Constitutional Court and the Old Fort Prison, where political prisoners like Nelson Mandela, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Oliver Tambo and Albertina Sisulu were held
  • The Apartheid Museum – chronicling the rise and fall of Apartheid in South Africa
  • The Cradle of Humankind (including the Sterkfontein Caves) – one of the most important palaeoanthropological sites in the world
  • A day and a night in Soweto – South Africa’s biggest township and the epicentre of South Africa’s struggle for freedom
  • The Hector Pieterson Memorial and Museum – dedicated to preserving the memory of the 1976 Soweto student uprising
  • Vilakazi Street – boasting the homes of two Nobel Peace Prize winners, Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu
  • Regina Mundi Church – a place of shelter for anti-apartheid activists
  • Opportunities to engage with ‘cultural activists’ who are using music, art, poetry and film to honour South Africa’s history and culture, and contribute to healing in our country. This may include live music at the Roving Bantu Kitchen in Brixton, ‘open mic’ poetry  at the Joburg Theatre in Braamfontein, a movie screening at the Bioscope in Maboneng (downtown Johannesburg) or a visit to the Spaza Art Gallery in Troyeville.

We are accompanied at times by young service leaders from local youth development organisations.  This provides a fresh perspective to the experience and an opportunity to showcase and nurture young talent.

The facilitated reflections and activities focus on tuning in and being present to what we are experiencing – seeing, hearing, doing and feeling – during our time in Johannesburg.

80% Andrew Rice - Lion, Madikwe

Days 4-6 in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN)

The journey continues in KwaZulu-Natal, where we retreat and reflect:  allowing the inner knowing to emerge.

Where better to reflect than out in the bush on an African safari?!

From Johannesburg we take a scenic overland trip to a 4-star safari lodge in KwaZulu-Natal (the Leopard Mountain Safari Lodge or equivalent).  From here we visit the Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park – the oldest game park in Africa and the only state-run park under formal conservation in KwaZulu-Natal with the Big 5 (lions, leopards, rhinos, elephants and buffalo).  Due to conservation efforts, the park now has the largest population of white rhino in the world.

At both the lodge and the Hluluwe-Imfolozi Park, activities include game drives, guided walking safaris, scenic hikes and sundowners overlooking the watering holes where animals gather in the evenings.  Other activities may include up-close encounters with elephants and cheetahs, a boat trip on Lake St. Lucia and a visit to the Duma-Zulu Cultural Village.

The facilitated reflections and activities during this time focus on looking inwards and making meaning of what we are experiencing (what is significant about these experiences for each of us and why).

larger Robben Island

Days 7-10 in Cape Town

The journey continues in ‘the Mother City’, where we create, learn, adapt:  integrating the head, heart and hands, and exploring the future by doing.

We fly from KwaZulu-Natal to Cape Town and make our way to the 4-star Chartfield Guesthouse (or equivalent) in Kalk Bay – a bustling seaside and fishing village on the coast of False Bay.  This leg of the journey includes sites and activities such as:

  • Robben Island – the infamous prison where political prisoners were jailed during apartheid, and Nelson Mandela spent 18 of his 27 years in prison
  • Table Mountain – one of the ‘New7Wonders of Nature’
  • District Six and the District Six Museum – a remembrance to the culture and history of the once vibrant community that was forcibly removed by the apartheid regime
  • The Cape Gallery – which ‘seeks to expose art that expresses a love for the African continent and carries our cultural stamp’
  • A production at the Artscape Theatre or Fugard Theatre
  • The African penguin colony at Boulders Beach in Simons Town
  • Whale watching (between June and November only)
  • Opportunities to engage with individuals and local community-based organisations who are promoting wildlife conservation, social entrepreneurship and sustainable community development.

In addition to the professional tour operators who guide us on particular parts of the journey, at times we are joined by hospitality and tourism students from the local False Bay TVET College.  (Again, this provides a different perspective and an opportunity to showcase and nurture young talent.)

Facilitated reflections and activities during this time actively explore the question ‘now what?’ – where to from here with all this emerging wisdom?!

The journey concludes in Cape Town, where travellers catch return flights from the Cape Town International Airport (or stay on to independently explore other parts of South Africa or the region).

Dates and prices for Option 1: Pre-packaged Journeys to Remember