2010年6月11日，第十九屆世界杯足球賽決賽周將在南非的九個城市的十座球場舉行。本屆世界杯是首次在非洲舉行的世界杯比賽，共有來自世界各地的32支球隊參加賽事，將進行64場比賽來決出冠軍隊伍。不論你身處何方，也不論你是不是足球迷，這個六月，世界的目光將聚焦南非——一個被譽為“黃金之國”的國度。除了感受世界杯的火熱激情外，我們還可以跟隨本文作者一起開啟一次南非之旅，去領略它的多姿多彩和無窮魅力！
Within minutes of pulling out of 1)Johannesburg airport on to the motorway heading north， I am hit by a sense of freedom as powerful as the warm air flooding through the window. The wide open plains of the 2)Highveld stretch to the horizon， with the occasional tree among the tall， 3)blanched grass. 4)Paul Simon’s Graceland is playing on the stereo， cliché I admit， but every road trip needs a soundtrack， and nothing could fit the mood better.
Our first stop is Cybele Forest Lodge， a5)retreat 6)tucked away on 300 acres of dense forest. It is only a three-hour drive from Johannesburg but the scenery is dramatically different， with deep green woodland and rivers and lakes replacing the arid grasslands. We pull into the drive and park under a large 7)turpentine tree that reaches across the courtyard. Inside， the lodge walls are painted in red； antiques are scattered around the rooms and heavy rugs on the old farmhouse’s stone floor. In the morning， we wake up late and have a lazy breakfast in the shade of the 8)bright purple9)jacaranda tree as butterflies dance around us.
After two nights we reluctantly leave this 10)blissful retreat to head for 11)Kruger National Park. It has the advantage of being home to the Big Five—lion， elephant， leopard， buffalo， and 12)rhino—which not all parks offer and certainly not in such numbers. I’m particularly keen to see leopards and have chosen to stay at Tinga Lodge， which is in an area with the highest recorded density of the predator in Africa. Getting out of the huge， elephant-sized bed for the early morning 13)game drive is not easy. Frankie， our guide， claps his hands together like a football coach， encouraging us with the news that he has a good feeling about this morning. He’s not wrong. We see 14)plodding elephants， giraffes 15)nibbling on trees， a lioness with her 16)cubs tumbling around in the long grass and even wild dogs， which are rarely seen. But Frankie saves the best for last， spotting a leopard up a tree. It takes me a few moments to place it but when I do I find its face， and its eyes， yellow-green and piercing， looking right back at me. After some time， sitting 17)nonchalantly looking back at us， it rises elegantly， pauses， then 18)bounds effortlessly down the trunk before disappearing into the bush.
It’s a surprise to wake up to the sound of rain on our 19)deck， but it clears by the time we set off on our long journey to Cleopatra Mountain Farmhouse in the 20)Drakensberg Mountains. For large 21)stretches of the journey there is very little traffic on the road， which takes us from the north to the heart of South Africa， across countryside that seems to change constantly. It reminds us of the flat 22)landscape of Holland one minute and the rolling hills of 23)Tuscany the next. At last， after 10 hours of driving， we reach the farmhouse. The air is 24)crisp and chilly， but our cottage is25)toasty and there is a bottle of sherry waiting for us. In the morning， I open our door and am hit by the magnificence of the Drakensberg Mountains. Named “mountains of the dragon” by the original settlers， they smoke with clouds that swirl above them. With a six-26)course dinner to come， my wife， Jules， suggests some exercise would not be a bad idea so we decide to climb the mountain. The only problem， which hits me halfway up as I get stuck in the 27)boggy bank of a stream， is that my 28)deck shoes are made for boats rather than mountains. But eventually we reach the summit from where we can see across to other ranges， mighty and awe-inspiring.