I’ve got to say, I don’t think I would find it at ALL difficult to settle into the 5 star lifestyle…

We stayed at the One&Only in Cape Town last week (the night before my birthday – best night-before-birthday EVER!) and it was extraordinary. Lavish, luxurious, amazingly comfortable, discreet, beautiful, I would run out of adjectives before I ran out of enthusiasm for it.

Mark and I haven’t really stayed at many 5 star hotels. Our travelling style up till now has been more self-catering cottages than really fancy hotels, but I can tell you right now that I am more than ready for the switch! Of course, we won’t be in fancy hotels the whole time we’re travelling, but if luck is on our side we’ll have a night or two at somewhere incredible in each country. We’ll be reviewing the hotels for Just the Planet – the luxury travel magazine for independent travellers (check them out at www.justtheplanet.com).

For now, we’re just learning the ropes of how best to review hotels, and getting a feel for what is expected at a 5 star place. The review of the One&Only will be up soon – I’ll keep you posted… It was such a treat, really, to be in a place that was entirely focused on comfort, and beauty. The bed was so soft and comfortable, the bath was huge and heavenly, the room looked out over Table Mountain. It honestly felt like a different world.

And yes, it’s a bit of a strange balance to strike – travelling for a cause, to spread the word about diabetes and show that just because you’re diabetic doesn’t mean you can’t follow your dreams – while at the same time staying in these beautiful places and writing reviews of them. But it’s a balance that I think we can strike. Because the whole purpose of this trip is to share the experience of it – and that experience will be wonderful and challenging, luxurious and difficult.

Life as a diabetic is never a smooth ride. You have great days, and awful days, you feel fantastic, and then you feel unwell. Life as a person is like that too, I suppose! And that’s what this trip will be – an illustration of life at its best and worst.
I like that.
I hope you’ll join us on the journey…