Swaziland....

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Hello from Swaziland!

The trip here was loooong, but I finally made it on Wednesday night. I first stayed at a hostel called Sondzelas in a game reserve that had been recommended to me, but it was AWFUL (a lot of potential, but the staff were grumpy and it had no atmosphere). After a day myself and a Dutch girl named Saane moved to Swaziland Backpackers, which is nearby and so much better. It's been cloudy here but hot, and the first day we were pretty tired and didn't get up to much. We went for a walk though and saw some wildlife, including a mom and baby warthog which were pretty cute. On the bus drive here we also saw a whole bunch of giraffes, one of which ran across the road---their legs are so long that it looks like they're moving in slow motion but actually go so fast! Quite entertaining, I hope to see more running giraffes soon.

On our one and only evening at Sondzelas we got driven to the Main Lodge, which is about 10 minutes further into the reserve and where all the wealthy Europeans stay. They had traditional Swazi dancing, which was cool, but the whole setup was so touristy that it felt rather processed. At the end I couldn't stop lauging, because they invite tourists up to dance with them, and there were all these older white guys with absolutely NO sense of rhythm doing their best to groove next to the Swazi guys (who are, of course, amazing dancers). It may not have been entirely authentic but entertaining nonetheless!!

Yesterday Saane and I tagged along with a small group from the hostels, including the hostel owner, for a hike in a gorge. It ended up being a long, very bumpy ride in the back of a truck to what seemed like the middle of nowhere. Even though we were way up in the mountains we still saw women walking through the bush with firewood on their heads, and then big groups of schoolchildren walking home from school. We finally stopped, I tried to shift my stomach back to where it belonged, and then we hiked downhill for about 1 km until we reached the coolest lodge I have ever seen. The details of its foundation are a little foggy to me, but apparently the whole project was funded by the EU, yet there are no resources here to manage it so it gets used little, which is such a shame. It's built right into the side of a cliff, around the natural landscape and utilizing little more than rocks, wood, concrete, and rope. It's got all different levels which connect by winding little stone staircases, and most of its rooms radiate from a huge boulder that runs through it's different levels. It's all open to the air, including the dorms, kitchen (it has gas burners and running water), and the 2 bathrooms are perched right on the edge and exposed to the view so you sit on the toilet and look out over the valley! I want to go back just to have a shower with that kind of view! The owner of our hostel wants to take over its management and organize more trips down there, but right now it's basically sitting unused.

After that little trek we drove back into town and ate at a braai (bbq) joint, which was quite the experience. You buy your meat at the butcher, then take it out back where they have a little hut with a huge pot of pap (cornmeal) on the fire and a big braai (fire with a metal grate over it). Shawn, the hostel owner, cooked our meat for us, and then put it on a big platter and we ate it under another area with a bunch of tables. They give you plates, a couple salads, little plastic bags full of pap and chili sauce. Everyone digs into the meat platter (hands only, no cutlery to be found!) and you mop everything up with chunks of pap. I don't think I've ever eaten so much meat in one sitting. For 6 of us, Shawn bought 5 t-bone steaks, 5 pork chops, and a metre and a half of thick sausage, and everyone just shared it all. I was so full I couldn't eat dinner! After lunch we sat around (mainly because we couldn't actually move) and I talked to a local guy who was hanging out before he started his shift as a policeman and was eager to practise his English. It was very enlightening; he told me that the unemployment rate in Swaziland is 69%, and that most people are just barely getting by, if at all. We also talked a lot about the King, who is very popular here. He has 12 wives and over 30 kids!! He and another Swazi woman at our table know all the wives' names, and talk about them like we talk about movie stars. As tough as life is here, they didn't seem to resent the fact that he lives in palaces and gets to travel, which is a completely unattainable dream for most people here.

Last night was pretty quiet, but we talked for a long time to Allan, who is in our dorm at the backpackers. He's a cattle rancher from Australia who just turned 71 and is touring around Africa for the 5th time!! He's one of the most seasoned travellers I have ever met, and Saane and I adore him. The moral of this story is that you're never too old to stay in backpackers!!

Today we have been zipping around on minibuses, the local transportation, which are very crowded but quick and cheap. Again, we get stared at non-stop but everyone waves to us and says hello, even at the grocery store. It's refreshing to be here because there's very little crime and you can trust people to help you out wherever you are. We decided that they rounded up the few grumpy swazis there are and made them work at Sondzelas. Tonight we are going to see an African jazz quartet, which should hopefully be a good party. I'm here til Tuesday, when I'm taking the Baz Bus to Johannesburg, and then leaving on my tour on the 6th. I cannot believe it is already March!! I'm looking forward to getting to London and seeing everyone, but it will also be hard to leave here. What I've seen so far is just the tip of the iceberg, and there's so much more to explore. Anyways, we are off now to make lunch and chat with Allan! Hope everyone is well!!

xoxo love linds

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