Nelson Mandela - Another Giant has Fallen

This morning as our ship was approaching Naples, Italy, we heard the sad news: Nelson Mandela has died. We have lost a giant. Since we are seven (7) hours ahead of U.S. central time, most Americans won’t get the news until the morning of December 6. Or...it happened as I slept: time zones are funny things.

I had the privilege of visiting South Africa a couple years after Mandela became South Africa’s first black President – after decades of a horrible apartheid system that treated blacks as second class citizens, and worse. I wrote about it in my book “Better Times Ahead April Fool” www.BetterTimesAheadAprilFool.com  

 Beautiful Cape Town, South Africa

 Michael Fjetland in front of famous "Blue Train" that runs from Cape Town to Johannesburg, S.A.

                                                       Nelson Mandela 

I found it to be a fascinating country of contrasts.

We will be out all day today and will write more about this remarkable man tonight after we return. From here its back to Rome, then coming back to the USA via Amsterdam on Monday…