The festive season has come and gone and now it is time to focus on the up-and-coming 2022. We are taking a positive view, as always, at The Luxury Safari Company, and as always again, we are turning any negative into a positive. We thought we would start by tantalising those travelling taste buds. The festive season enlivens the fifth sense, scent – scent brings all the senses together evoking nostalgic memories of time spent together with family and friends. Across all destinations scent plays a huge part of the travelling journey, from the early morning smell of coffee brewing on the log-fire in Zambia, to the smell of rain as it hits the Earth. On Miavana on the island of Madagascar, the fragrances of vanilla, ylang-ylang, and Madagascar jasmine float with the sea breeze.

We have gathered inspiration and positive news from all over Africa, just so we can get people travelling again. It is one of the joys in life that makes one richer in more ways than one (yes, we agree, your bank balance may not be as rich as it was before your trip, but it makes you a richer person through experience and the sights and sounds you see).

News from Sosian Lodge over the Festive period has let us know they have a new guide. Albie Venter. After studying nature conservation in Cape Town, he went on to become a member of the Field Guide Association of South Africa (FGASA) and now holds the highest level of qualification as well as being a Field Guide Assessor/examiner for FGASA and has since been heavily involved in guide development since 2009. Albie started his career in the South African Lowveld adjacent to the Kruger National Park, first as guide and then, together with his wife, managing safari camps in Kenya and South Africa. Guiding, his main passion, has taken him to many Southern and Eastern African countries and regions – from archaeology and bushman rock art in South Africa’s Cederberg region to leading walking safaris in Laikipia.

Another person you need to look out for at Sosian is Malesi. Malesi visited the front of house team at Sosian to grow their skills with his vast knowledge of mixology. Malesi has travelled the world and worked in some of the most famous cocktail bars on the planet. His enthusiasm for what he does is infectious and Sosian can now shake up the perfect Margarita, Whiskey Sour, Mojito, Dawa, Cosmopolitan, Daquri, Old Fashioned, Negroni and the one and only unique ‘Sosian Sunrise’!

Not only has the bar been inspired, but the Kitchen has also sprung to life at Sosian Lodge. Alice Coulsen, from Alice’s Healthy Kitchen based in Nairobi. Focusing on fresh and seasonal ingredients to create light, balanced dishes that are jam packed with flavour. Alice has also helped customise some of their favourite recipes to meet the various dietary requirements that guests often have. The results have apparently been sensational, and the food looks quite good too, finally it brings to light the senses we were talking about at the beginning, inspirational things to tantalise all the senses.