The Maloti-Drakensberg Park is a combination of two other parks that create a mesmerizing place that is considered to be one of the most serene ones in Africa, it is located in the eastern part of the Kingdom of Lesotho and the eastern part of the Republic of South Africa.

Established as a park on 11 June 2001 when the Sehlabathebe National Park in Lesotho was linked with the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park in the Province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa.

The Maloti-Drakensberg is part of the major mountain ranges of southern Africa with dramatic scenery, high levels of biological endemism, and a concentration of rock art spanning 4,000 years, where the highest reaches of its escarpment feature sheer basalt cliffs, with ramparts of golden sandstone rising above high rolling grasslands, rocky gorges, and pristine steep-sided valleys.

The park supports a variety of wildlife that thrives in the unique montane and sub-alpine ecosystems, among which endangered species such as the Cape vulture and the bearded vulture can be found. Being one of Africa’s prime ecotourist destinations, Maloti-Drakensberg Park was inscribed in 2000 on the UNESCO World Heritage List, which made it even more popular than it was before.

The total area of 249,313 hectares (616,066 acres) is something that should be explored bit by bit because in recent years many tourists have been visiting this enormous park to do some interesting hiking, which would allow them to see the true wildside of the southern part of the African continent.

The highest point of the park standing at 3,482 m (11,424 ft) is Thabana Ntlenyana in Lesotho, which too is the highest point of the small kingdom, and means “Beautiful little mountain” in the Sesotho language.

The most common hiking route is the Grand Traverse of the Drakensberg which usually begins at Sentinel Car Park and finishes at the Bushman’s Neck Border Post, although the route between these points is not predefined and everyone can make their awesome hike.

Being a true wilderness experience, there are no official marked trails, facilities, or shops, and due to the long distance that needs to be covered, of at least 200 km (124 mi) in total, some people underestimate it and don’t complete their planned hiking activities.

All in all, a true African experience from Lesotho and South Africa, that should never be missed by hiking enthusiasts who would like to witness the different side of Africa, which is completely surprising for everyone who had set their minds that African landscapes look almost the same.

Thousands of people were evacuated from their homes and vehicles were swept away in floods as storms from now weakened Typhoon Haikui made landfall in China’s southeastern Fujian province early on Tuesday after battering Taiwan for the past two days.

About 114,400 people were moved from risky areas as the typhoon rolled in with a maximum wind speed of 20 metres (66 feet) per second.

Several areas in Fujian recorded more than 300 mm (1 foot) of rainfall in just over 24 hours. In Fuzhou city, two firefighters were missing after a fire truck carrying nine rescue workers was swept away by floodwaters during a mission, state media reported.

Furniture were seen bobbing up and down in the floodwaters. Vehicles were swept away in the currents and some cars stranded in waterlogged areas were completely submerged, social media posts showed. Schools in Fuzhou city as well as in Xiamen, Quanzhou and Putian were also shut.

Many flights were cancelled at two airports in Fuzhou and Quanzhou, tourist spots and parks were shut, and ports, coastal and river transportation was suspended, state media reported.

The typhoon lost strength and became a tropical storm after its landfall around 5 a.m. (2100 GMT Monday), the national forecaster reported. It was last reported to be moving over southern Guangdong province, and forecasters expect it to continue to weaken.

Haikui slammed into the province just after Typhoon Saola barrelled into southern Guangdong province over the weekend, killing at least one person and leaving a trail of destruction and flooding in many areas of nearby Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Macau. read more

Last month, northern and northeasten China saw heavy flooding caused by Typhoons Doksuri and Khanun which brought the capital Beijing its heaviest recorded rainfall in 140 years.

On Tuesday, the state broadcaster said the government would allocate 200 million yuan ($27.43 million) in disaster relief funds to support provinces hit by typhoons and floods.

Over the weekend, the finance ministry said it had earmarked 1 billion yuan as disaster relief funds for floods, droughts or crop pests, state media Xinhua said.

Police and rescue services searched on Tuesday for three people missing after devastating floods hit central Spain as trains to the south resumed after thousands of passengers were left stranded.

The torrential downpour that swept over large swathes of Spain on Sunday and Monday, caused by a so-called cut-off low phenomenon, left three people dead and wreaked havoc on transport infrastructure, shutting roads, subway lines and high-speed train connections. The heaviest damage was in the provinces of Toledo and Madrid in the country’s centre.

Local authorities, the army’s emergency response corps, firefighters and law enforcement officers were working to “guarantee the stability of a key pipeline in the system supplying water to more than 270,000 people in the south of Madrid and Toledo”, Environment Minister Teresa Ribera told reporters.

Ribera was speaking from the town of Aldea del Fresno, southwest of Madrid, which was devastated by the flooding of the Alberche River.

A middle-aged man went missing there with his son when their car was dragged into the overflowing river on Sunday night after an avalanche caused by a sudden rush. The minor was found alive after spending the night clinging to a tree he had climbed, but rescuers were still searching for his father, emergency services said.

The other two missing people, in Toledo province, were a 54-year-old woman whose vehicle was swept away while driving along a flooded road and an 83-year-old man who was dragged into the strong currents near his home, police said.

Railway infrastructure manager Adif said high-speed rail traffic between Madrid and the southern region of Andalusia had resumed on Monday morning after overnight repairs to damage caused by the storm.

The train connection between Madrid and Toledo, 70 kilometres (45 miles) south, remained closed.

Rail operator Renfe said that 50,000 passengers had changed their train tickets free of charge since Sunday morning.

FCT minister, Nyesom Wike, on Monday ordered the demolition of illegal structures at Kabusa junction in the Dutse district of Abuja.

Hours after Wike gave the order, the development control unit of the FCT Administration moved to flatten the area.

Mukhtar Galadima, director, department of development control, who led the operation, told journalists that the removal of the illegal structures was to sanitise the area.

Galadima explained that the poorly constructed structures have taken over the entire roundabout, negatively affecting the serene environment around the junction.

He added that the demolition was in line with directives from Wike that illegal structures, particularly shanties, should not be allowed in the city.

He also said that the areas taken over by the illegal structures were meant for an overhead bridge which would soon be constructed.

“The removal of the shanties is in continuation of our commitment to sanitize the city and make the environment healthy,” Galadima said.

“Kabusa is constituting an eye sore for people coming into the city because of the shanties that occupied most parts of the junction.

“The area is reserved for an inter-change and with time, there will be an overhead bridge that will connect ring road two and the outer southern expressway.

“We are starting from this point to Galadima roundabout. When we chase away illegal occupants in the area, we will come up with a plan that will accommodate all the traders in an organised manner,” he said.

Galadima insisted that illegal structures in the area must go down for genuine infrastructural development.