Tanzania approves new highway across Serengeti

by Kraig Becker on

Despite protests from environmental activists and conservationists from around the globe, the Tanzanian government has approved a $480 million project that will include building a highway through the Serengeti that will pass directly through the route of the Great Migration, a natural annual event that sees millions of animals pass between the country’s Serengeti National Park and Kenya’s Maasai Mara Game Reserve.

The new road is expected to be the busiest in northern Tanzania once it is complete, linking up the towns of Arusha and Musoma. The government has repeatedly said that it is necessary to continue the growth of trade in that area, allowing the nation’s economy to expand. Meanwhile, wildlife experts have expressed concerns from the moment the project was announced back in May, fearing the increased traffic will disrupt the largest animal migration on the planet. As a compromise, the plan has been adjusted so that a 50km section which passes through the migration route will now not be paved all, but will instead remain a gravel road.

The Serengeti is Tanzania’s number one tourist attraction, bringing thousands of visitors each year and generating millions of dollars in revenues for the country. Most come to take in the spectacular wildlife, which includes more than 2 million wildebeests who drive the annual migration. They are joined by thousands of zebras, elephants, and giraffes, as well as predators such as hyenas and lions, as they make a seasonal move that coincides with the changing of the wet and dry seasons, and the shift in location of food and water sources.

Having witnessed the migration first hand and explored the Serengeti personally, I can say that this news saddens me quite a bit. It is one of my favorite places on the planet, and the thought of anything negatively impacting the natural environment there is disheartening to say the least. Hopefully the increased traffic will do little to impact the animals, but I can’t help but think that this is yet another example of man encroaching on one of the last great wildernesses on Earth.

Travel writer Q&A: Julia Dimon

by Alex Robertson Textor on

Travel journalist and television host Julia Dimon lives the sort of fast-paced traveling lifestyle that most people, even quite experienced travelers, fantasize about. She’s visited over 80 countries and she’s been featured as a travel expert for countless print, online, radio, and television sources. Dimon’s excitement as a traveler is palpable. I asked her about her background, her move from writing to television, some of her favorite destinations, and her top tips for travelers and prospective travel writers both.

Q: Describe your profession.

A: I’m a travel journalist, host of several travel TV shows and hard core adventuress with a blog called Travel Junkie Julia.

Q: Tell me about your family background as a traveler.

A: My mom is a travel writer. I guess that adventure is in the blood! I had the privilege of traveling with her on assignment when I was growing up. As a family we went to Costa Rica, China, Europe, Cuba. I got the travel bug at a young age.

Q: For years you wrote about travel for the Toronto Star and then for Metro. How did you make your move from writing to television? Do you expect to remain in television or return exclusively to the writing at some point?

A: I started out as a travel writer and columnist, freelancing for many publications. Then, while in Turkey on a round-the-world trip, I met a fellow Canadian travel writer named Robin Esrock, who is now my co-host. Robin thought it would be a cool idea if we had our own TV show. I agreed. He pitched a concept to a production company, who took it to a Canadian-based broadcaster. From there we collaborated and developed a show about the real lives of two young travel writers, under pressure and on deadline. The show is called Word Travels and we’ve shot 40 episodes over three years.

TV, like travel writing, is also in my blood. My Dad is an Emmy-award winning producer, so I suppose it was fitting to blend travel and TV. Getting on a full-time travel show was a combination of luck, timing, my strong reputation as a travel writer and a helluva lot of work. Since filming Word Travels, I have shot a travel series for MSNBC and am hosting a new show with Ethan Zohn (winner of Survivor Africa) for the new adventure network Outside Television. I really enjoy the medium of TV and am moving more into that direction but writing is a part of who I am. I’ve been a writer since I was 12. I wrote movie reviews for a kids page in the Toronto Star for over a decade before moving into the travel section. Writing will always be a part of who I am and what I do.
Q: As travel writers we are often asked about our favorite places. I don’t know about you, but I always find such questions impossible to answer. But I’d like to tweak this question and pose a few variations on the theme: your favorite destinations for beaches, street food, budget travel, splurging, and mass tourism?

A: Beach: Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania, is one of my all time favorite spots. Sugar white beaches, amazing fresh seafood and a fascinating blend of Arabic and African cultures against a very cool capital city.

Street food: Thailand has some of the best street food. Steaming dishes of pad thai, green curry, red curry, chili mango and the occasional deep-fried grasshopper make for an interesting and extremely affordable foodie destination. As for street meat, you can’t beat a Toronto hot dog from a street vendor. Grilled sausage topped with a buffet of condiments, fried onions, pickles and bacon bits. Not good for you, but delicious.

Budget-friendly: Laos is one of the most beautiful and most affordable destinations out there. For those travelers who are concerned about making their money last, I suggest forgetting Europe and considering India, Cambodia, Bolivia or Peru.

Splurgeworthy: Jordan is a fascinating country but it’s not terribly cheap. Between spending a night in the desert at Wadi Rum, snorkeling the Red Sea, seeing the skillfully chiseled pink rock in Petra, floating in the Dead Sea, and soaking up the Roman ruins in Jerash, the country has a lot to offer the adventure traveler. You absolutely can do Jordan on a budget, but with so many five-star hotels and fancy Dead Sea spa treatments, it’s more tempting to splurge.

Mass tourism: Does Chernobyl count? Kidding… I was there last summer and I’m still waiting to glow radioactive. I’m a big NYC fan. After all the traveling I’ve done, I think New York is the most vibrant, dynamic city in the world. It’s my Number One city, closely followed by Paris. Number Three is still up for grabs…

Q: Top tips you’d offer to someone wanting to work as a travel writer?

A: I have written some tips for people wanting to break into the travel writing business.

Q: Top tips for regular travelers?

A: Go with the flow. Not everything is going to go according to plan so be flexible and take things as they come. Often the best travel experiences arise from the unexpected. Connect with local people and never turn down an invitation, within reason of course. Safety is obviously your number one priority. The people who know the country will be better than any guidebook and can give you insight into the local culture. Go local – where do local people eat, shop, play? Arm yourself with knowledge, be social and ask everyone you meet for recommendations on cool things to do. Learn some basic local language, try everything once, and always carry toilet paper.

Q: What are your essential carry-on items?

A: Laptop, iPod, all chargers, camera, a bunch of magazines to catch up on world events, an empty water bottle, snacks (almonds, dried fruit), sometimes a blanket.

Q: Where is your next trip?

A: I just got back from a palm tree-piña-colada filled weekend at the Gansevoort Turks and Caicos. Next I’m going on an Antarctic expedition, an 11-day voyage on a luxury vessel from Patagonia to the Antarctic Peninsula. Fjords, icebergs, glaciers and tons of cool wildlife are in my future. After this trip, I will have visited all seven continents. Whoo hoo!

U.K. man becomes oldest to climb Kilimanjaro

by Kraig Becker on

On July 14th, 82-year old British climber George Solt reached the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro, the tallest mountain in Africa, and in doing so he hiked himself into the record books as well. By successfully completing the climb, Solt became the oldest person to reach the “Roof of Africa”, something that he hopes will eventually be officially recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records.

Climbing with five members of his family, Solt and his team went up the mountain along the Machame Route, one of the more popular paths to the summit, and one that is widely regarded as the most scenic on Kilimanjaro. Unlike the more popular, and crowded, Marangu Route, which has primitive huts along the way, climbers on the Machame Route stay in tents all the way to the 19,340 foot summit.

Before attempting the Kili climb, Solt prepared by embarking on a rigorous workout program designed by his doctors. The program obviously payed off, as evidenced by the successful climb, which was was also made through the support of Action Challenge, a group that helps organize adventurous activities around the globe, many of which are aimed at raising funds for a variety of charities.

Joining Solt on his climb were his son and daughter-in-law, as well as his three grand kids, the youngest of which was just 12-years old. Having three generations on one adventurous journey surely made this a family trip that they’ll all remember for the rest of their lives.

[Photo credit: Muhammad Mahdi Karim via WikiMedia Commons]

Wildebeest migration one of the natural wonders of the world

by Sean McLachlan on

Every year during this season, millions of wildebeest migrate northwards from Serengeti in Tanzania to the Maasai Mara Game Reserve in Kenya. It’s part of their annual cycle of looking for green pastures and plentiful waters. Zebras, antelopes, and other animals come along too, with predators like lions and cheetahs hanging on the edges of the herds hoping to catch the slow or the weak.

The Maasai Mara Game Reserve and Serengeti National Park are the two most popular places to see the migration, and the Kenyan newspaper Daily Nation reports hotels are already full, with even the Kenyan tourism minister saying he couldn’t find a room.

The annual migration is like a dream safari intensified, with the plains blackened by the herds. This National Geographic video shows just how big this mass movement of animals is. So if you want to see what ABC News has dubbed one of the new wonders of the world, you better book early for next year so you don’t get caught out. Sadly, there’s another reason to act soon. Observer Science Editor Robin McKie includes the migration in his list of ten natural wonders we can no longer take for granted due to global warming. McKie points out that if current trends continue, the plains will dry up and there won’t be enough pasture for the herds.


Image courtesy user Haplochromis via Wikimedia Commons.

Save the Serengeti from a new highway

by Kraig Becker on

One of the world’s greatest natural wonders, the Serengeti is under threat from a new source after the Tanzanian government approved construction of a highway that would pass through the iconic African plains. The new highway would be built directly through the Serengeti National Park, and could have devastating consequences to the delicate ecosystem there, but fortunately there is already a movement afoot to try to save the Serengeti before it is too late.

The Serengeti was named a World Heritage Site back in 1981 thanks to the amazingly diverse wildlife that exists there, not to mention the annual migration of millions of zebras, wildebeests, and other wild animals, across hundreds of miles of open plains. That migration is one of the most spectacular sights in all of nature, and visitors come from the world over to witness the event. The construction of this new highway could potentially disrupt the migration and alter the ecosystem of the Serengeti forever.

In response to this threat, a coalition of organizations with a shared concern over the future of the African plains has created the Save the Serengeti initiative. The website allows other organizations to join the fight against the new highway, and gives individuals the chance to sign the petition as well, letting Tanzanian officials know about our concern for the health of the natural environment there.

I visited the Serengeti a few years back, and found it to be a magical place. Watching the wildlife in the their natural habitat, was simply enthralling, and it remains one of the most beautiful and memorable places I have ever visited. The thought of a highway running through that pristine wilderness is something I can’t even imagine, and I hope that there is some way that they can find an alternative route. Needless to say, I already signed the petition, and urge you to do the same.