Today we’re staying in Africa and heading due-south to a place I’ve wanted to visit for a very long time: South Africa.

Given there’s so much to say about South Africa, we’re going to keep this post nutrient-dense and kick things off with some facts before veering off into holiday plans. This is another one of those posts that will act more as a to-do list for when I eventually get to visit South Africa.

Let’s start off with our daily dose of facts. South Africa is the largest country in Southern Africa. Talking of largest, South Africa hosts the largest cycle race in the world, the Cape Town cycle tour. The tour involves put to 35,000 across a 109 km route. If they’re lucky they’ll see some penguins on their journey, even if it seems a little ridiculous to find Penguins in a country as warm as South Africa. South Africa is the only country in the entire African continent where same-sex marriage is legal. It’s also home to many pairs of gay penguins.

South Africa believes in distribution when it comes to spreading out seats of power with its three capital cities, Pretoria, Cape Town and Bloemfontein. However this doesn’t apply to income equality as South Africa has the world's highest level of income inequality, according to the World Bank.

That’s enough education for one day. On to the holiday planning. Here is a rough list of things I’d like to do in South Africa:

Visit Cape Town and hopefully stay in The Silo. I’d also want to take in the sights including the V&A Waterfront, Boulders Beach Bo-Kaap and tour Chapman’s Peak
Climb Table Mountain and take in the views
Visit the Robben Island Museum, the island prison where Nelson Mandela was held captive off the coast of Cape Town
Visit the Cape of Good Hope
Go on a vineyard tour, perhaps in the Stellenbosch and Franschoek region
Visit the Big Hole diamond mine
Go hiking in the Drakensberg Mountains
Go on safari and take in South Africa’s incredible wildlife - there are so many amazing places to do this - perhaps I’d start with the Pilanesberg Game Reserve or maybe the iconic sights of the Kruger National Park
Visit the Mandela House and Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg