Travel bug bites serial traveller

Published Jun 4, 2012

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Radio DJ Fikile Moeti, better known to her fans as Fix, hosts the Saturday late night radio show programme Fix on 5FM, and is part of the Rob Forbes Show on weekdays. She spent more than a year abroad before she returned to the airwaves here in April.

She studied business entrepreneurship in Chicago and did a few courses at New York University in their summer. She shares some of her travel experience.

How widely have you travelled?

I was pretty lucky as a kid, my folks linked up in England while studying, and naturally they found work after graduating. So there we were, a half Motswana/ half Xhosa family living in North London with an Irish nanny with a mean Irish accent.

A few years later we landed in Botswana with our Irish accents, and by the time I was 13 I had been to Belgium, Norway, Disneyland Paris, the US, Switzerland, Ireland and Zimbabwe. Not bad for a 13 year old, right?

Only problem is that I cannot remember half of these holidays. As the years went on the travelling continued due to school trips, and sports tours – Sydney and Stockholm being the main highlights throughout my high school years.

In 2005 I spent my gap year in England and it’s a year never to forget. I went on an amazing tour that took me across the whole of Europe, Amsterdam, France, Greece, Prague, Germany, Italy, among many others.

This had to be one of the best moments in my life, and a great time to get a tattoo but Amsterdam tattoo parlours are a no go zone!

In 2006 and 2007, I became one of the luckiest girls in Africa when I got an amazing job with MTV Networks Africa. I travelled through Africa – to Nigeria, Angola, Mozambique, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Zanzibar.

In 2008 I had yet another travelling itch. I needed a break from work.

I purchased a new credit card (which is a bad idea by the way), packed my bags and went on a two-week snowboarding trip on the Austrian Alps in a little town called Hopfgarten.

This was my first time on a snowboard and even though I came home battered and bruised, I would do it all over again.

The travel bug hit me again in 2010, and I knew I needed something long term.

It only made sense that finishing up my degree in the land of entertainment would be ideal – so I headed to the US.

Your best experience?

Summer in New York.

Your worst experience on a holiday?

That has to be the day I arrived in Geneva in Switzerland without my bank card.

Silly me, I had left the card with a friend in London on our night out the previous day.

Thank God, I had pre-booked and paid for my accommodation. But with 100 euros to my name, I walked everywhere and lived on French bread and cheese.

Your funniest experience?

Watching a live sex show in the red light district in Amsterdam. Very awkward.

What do you avoid during a holiday?

An impulsive tattoo. My fiancé has one from his travels in Israel and I make fun of it everyday.

Your favourite restaurant and food during your travels?

You can never go wrong with a burger. Otherwise I try to eat the cultural dishes from each country.

Your favourite place for a glass of wine or sundowners on your travels?

Any gorgeous spot with a view in Cape Town is up there.

As a seasoned traveller and flyer can you share some tips?

See what the world has to offer, touch and feel the things you only see on TV, learn and absorb other cultures, it’s a fascinating experience.

A notebook to write in every day; a smartphone with internet; a map and travel guide (you will get lost); a pack of cards for drinking games (always breaks the ice with other travellers); headache tablets; an iPod or iPad (travelling alone has its boring moments); a camera; an open mind with no limitations. - Weekend Argus

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