South Africa News, Travel and fun Blog

“Colonel Sander’s” fried chicken company has come under heavy attack in recent times – from animal rights organizations like PETA for the reported cruelty to the chickens, to health authorities who target the fast food as exceptionally bad for the arteries and heart.

But it seems the Colonel is still smiling – such a big smile it can be seen from space!

In a massive marketing venture, the revamped logo for KFC, featuring a trimmer-looking Colonel Sanders sporting a funky red apron, has been launched in the Nevada desert near top-secret Area 51.

It took over 3 000 hours, from start to finish, for Synergy, an event company hired for the job, to create the 87 500 square foot logo out of  65 000 tiles. These tiles are one-foot square and painted red, white, eggshell, beige and black.

The actual laying-out of these tiles tool six days.

KFC are claiming that this is the first brand logo to be visible from space, but a spate of protest has erupted on the Internet with examples of several other companies having achieved this in the past. Examples sited include Mattel, whose corporate headquarters’ logo has been visible on satellite photos for years.

Although there has been a fair amount of negative response from the general public, KFC should be more than happy about the amount of publicity this venture has sparked.

One wonders if ET will be dropping in for a KFC Streetwise meal anytime soon…

It may be hot in the city, but this summer in Cape Town locals and visitors will be able to cool down without heading for the icy waters off Clifton beach.

The hottest new venue to open at the V&A Waterfront received a warm reception despite the chilly atmosphere – in fact that was the whole point!

Welcome to The Ice Lounge – a first for South Africa, which opened its doors on 1 November to 400 patrons eager to try something different.

The chilled out venue is under the management of Mr. Dave Cussen- himself an ice-sculptor. During the day families enjoy the novel experience while children fly down the slope of a slide carved in the shape of a whale. Other sculptures on view include an intricate image of Nelson Mandela.

Cussen hopes to continue drawing the crowds to make the venture financially worthwhile, as the venue cost a cool R3 million to create. The entire bar as well as the sculptures, walls and even the glasses are all made from ice, which is prevented from melting by the room temperature which is kept at around 6°C.

On arrival patrons are provided with mittens, ponchos and booties to wear over their own clothes – which means you don’t need to dress for winter while making your way through a steaming hot Cape Town to get there!

Expect to pay R50 for daytime entrance, while your R75 evening cover charge includes a cocktail.
With this novel venue, Cape Town maintains its status as South Africa’s most-chilled destination.

Too, too cool!

The idea of partying on the beach is universally appealing, conjuring up images of dancing from sunset to sunrise on golden sands, with bonfires, great music, crashing waves and cocktails in the mix.

From Ibiza to Miami, there are as many types of beach parties as there are party-people looking for a good time. From down and dirty dancing to celebrity-spotting socializing, read on for the 5 best party beaches in the world!

IBIZA, SPAIN

The name Ibiza has been synonymous with the phrase ‘beach party’ ever since the late ‘80’s when the former hangout of hippies and flower-children, metamorphosized into the party capital of the world. Stars, celebs and models all love to get down at the clubs dotted around this picturesque Spanish isle. The Playa d’en Bossa Beach is the longest stretch of beach on the island with its bars and cafés. The far end of the beach (away from Ibiza Town) is calmer, with less people and house music. But for the definitive Ibiza beach party, head to Bora Bora, half way along d’en Bossa beach. Ibiza is also known as a gay-friendly beach party destination.

MYKONOS, GREECE

With its welcoming locals and trendy beach bars oceanside, Mykonos is another great place to party on the sands. Head to Paradise Beach Bar, located right on the beach between the palm trees. Here the partying starts early - from 2 pm – and goes on till sunrise the following day. This breathtakingly beautiful island is another favourite destination of the world’s fashionable party-set, so expect to enjoy celebrity-spotting while you dance the night away. Lots of places of historical and cultural interest, plus great tanning opportunities, mean you’ll never be bored while waiting for the fun to begin.

SOUTH BEACH, MIAMI

Where the beautiful people hang out – South Beach offers all the partying you’ll ever need. Although not strictly speaking ON the beach, the numerous fabulous clubs sprinkled along this expensive coastline are so hot that they bring the beach atmosphere right inside. This is where the posh people party, but the good times only get under way from 11 pm, so strolling along the beach, dining out or having a drink in the earlier part of the evening is recommended to avoid arriving too early. Many top model agencies send scouts to South Beach - you never know who might spot you on one of the awesome dance floors. The beach itself is stunning, with white, baby-powder sands caressed by the Atlantic. Not only can you dine here during the day but when the sun goes down you can have fun at the beds on stilts at Nikki Beach.

BLOOMINGDALE AAN ZEE, HOLLAND

This event-venue opened nearly 7 years ago as a beach party for Amsterdam locals. The club has grown to accommodate 2 400 revelers with both in- and out-of-door areas. The setting is one of the most aesthetic on the Netherlands coast. Bloomingdales is renowned for its all-day Sunday parties held regularly throughout the year. The music tends towards chilled, laid-back tunes, perfect for the beach-setting. Top DJ’s are hosted regularly here.

CAMPS BAY, CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA

The white sands of this beautiful beach are popular throughout summer with both locals and international visitors to the Mother City of Cape Town, South Africa. With bars, cafes and restaurants right along the Camps Bay strip there are always trendy and beautiful people spilling out of these venues on to the beach. While volley ball and tanning are popular by day, sundowners and impromptu beach parties are on from early evening to well past midnight. Enjoy music, fire-jugglers and drumming around the huge bonfires which are lit during the summer holiday season.

So if sun, sand and sea make put you in the mood for some sexy partying – why leave the beach? Head for one of these 5 hot spots and the party need never end!

Webcam Image of Camps Bay

 We all know that malnutrition is a horrifying scourge affecting millions in developing nations. But on the other extreme, largely in the Western world, the issue of weight tips the scales in the other direction.  According to the World Health Organization (WHO), for every four malnourished adults across the globe, five MORE are overweight.

In fact the count of overweight people worldwide has now reached the billion mark – and with more and more children becoming obese each year that number is increasing steadily all the time.

The international standard for determining obesity is the body-mass index (BMI).

This is one’s weight (in kilograms) divided by the square of one’s height (in meters).

Of the billion overweight people, an unhealthy 30% are clinically obese. In the USA 30% of the entire population are obese. African Americans have the lion’s share of this percentage, at 45%. Comparatively in Germany the obesity figure is almost half, at 12%, while the Italians have a modest 8% in the extreme overweight bracket. At either end of the extreme percentages we have China at a low average of 5% while Samoa exceeds a frightening 75%.

These statistics were shared at the recent conference in Boston, Massachusetts, where around 2 000 delegates met for 4 days to discuss the treatment and prevention of obesity. The event was hosted by NAASO – The North American Society for the Study of Obesity.

Although obesity is less severe in Europe than in the States, the numbers are still expanding at a steady pace. For example, in France, with a population of just over 60 million, 5.9 million people are obese today. This is concerning when compared with the figure of 3.6% a decade ago. 

The effects of obesity are far greater than the individual loss of self esteem. The resultant health and economic problems impact heavily on local economies and experts fear that with the problem growing at such an alarming rate it could eventually cripple the worst-hit countries’ economies.

With obesity being recognized as a global epidemic by the WHO, it is sobering to compare the billion overweight of the world’s total 6 billion population, with the 800 million who do not have enough to eat.

Now that’s some food for thought.

Get ready girls…  if you thought the cleavage enhancing Wonderbra was your best friend wait till your man tries on the all-new WONDERJOCK.

Brought to you from the land down under (hee hee) via the company aussieBUM (these Australian marketers know how to come up with a catchy product name) this remarkable range of underwear uses “new wondercup technology” for attention-grabbing results. You are guaranteed to look bigger and feel incredible in these 100% cotton briefs, which come in a variety of sizes and colors.

The technology makes clever use of ball / extension support, so no embarrassing padding or rings are used – it’s you, all you, only looking better than ever before…

And the comfort apparently has to be experienced first hand, so to speak…

Boys, perhaps you should buy a few pairs before your girlfriend decides to bulk order them for your Christmas present - you don’t want your mates to see you opening size-enhancing underwear – they may think she’s dropping hints!

Photo by: Joy-Anne

What ‘toys’ are you wishing for under the tree this festive season?

Here’s a round up of great and unusual ideas with something for everyone.

The main contenders – Technical Equipment

Let’s start with the serious stuff. One online shopping site claims that the following, in order, are the top 5 categories of gifts being purchased for the 2006 festive season:

MP3 Players
LCD Television Sets
Digital Cameras
Pre-paid Cell Phones
Laptops

1. If you’re looking for an iPod why not try the Apple iPod Shuffle, with 1GB of integrated memory.

2. The Sony KDL40V2000 HD ready is a popular choice if you’re after an LCD TV. The product features include an integrated digital TV tuner, a high performance LCD panel, WCG-CCFL backlight and Color Filter Side.

3. For a great digital camera choose between the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T10 with integrated memory, Optical zoom: 7.1 Megapixels, and an electronic viewfinder

OR

4. The Nikon D80 boasting similar features but with a sensor resolution of 10.2 Megapixels.

5. Laptops are always popular, with the Apple MacBook Pro finding a huge following of fans who love to sing its praises.

Romantic Ideas (for the woman in your life)

Men are practical creatures who see nothing wrong in receiving something that may seem impersonal, like the latest geeky gadget (more ideas later).

However, most women prefer to be pampered and it’s not too difficult to do if you use your head and plan carefully.

6. Flight tickets to exotic or much-longed-for destinations are a great gift choice, and a romantic gesture that’s bound to be appreciated. However it makes sense to determine whether your chosen country is a place the recipient REALLY wishes to visit, and whether the dates you’ve chosen are suitable.

7. Jewelry makes a fabulous choice. Once again, do your homework to ensure that your hard-earned cash is not wasted on a lover who can’t wear gold due to some allergy (yes, it happens) or whose ears are not pierced, before buying diamond earrings.

8. With sexy underwear the main thing is to get the size right. Ask a mother or sister to make sure. Also, take your partner’s tastes into account. Your ex may have loved lacey red bras while your current lover could find them tacky.

9. A voucher for a day at the Spa is always welcome – especially a treat for moms – those who stay home will appreciate the chance to have a day off from the household, while working moms will enjoy de-stressing and being waited on.

The Kids

Kids are the easiest, from the latest

10. Robo-raptor for boys to whatever

11. Barbie or Bratz doll is newest on the shelf, you can’t go wrong with good quality toys to make their eyes shine on Christmas morning.

Novelty Items

The best ideas are often the funniest, especially if you have lots of friends for whom to shop.

Here are some fabulous novelty gift ideas – all available online.

12. Sudoku Toilet Paper – the numbers game that has taken the world by storm will keep you occupied as long as you need in the little boys’ / girls’ room.

13. The George Bush Countdown Calendar 2007 counts down the months till Bush is out of office. Check the recipient’s political leanings before purchasing what may be offensive to some of your conservative buddies!

For the ‘geek’ in your life check out Think Geek for a whole range of awesome geeky gifts such as a

14. ‘No, I Won’t Fix Your Computer’ T-shirt to

15. Star Wars force FX lightsabers – no geek will be happy without one of these to ward off the dark side!

This list is far from exhaustive. For more ideas go online and find anything from household appliances to sports equipment, home and garden accessories, apparel and footwear, books and DVDs – even cars if your budget stretches that far.

Shopping has never been simpler. Make 2006 the year when you find the ideal gift for everyone on your list, and be sure to tell your friends and family which sites to check out when they’re shopping for you!