Sex can wait!

Africa » Swaziland
August 24th 2005

Published: August 28th 2005

"Sex can wait," scream the posters in Mbabane (the capital of the kingdom). "Aids can kill you and your dreams." 40%!o(MISSING)f the adult population in Swaziland is HIV positive. You read that right. It's not a typo. A staggering 40%!o(MISSING)f Swazi adults are HIV positive, the highest rate of infection in the world. It's a pandemic that threatens the country's future. Life expectancy at b... Read Full Entry

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20th October 2005

Darron
non-member comment

Locals in hostels
Stuart, Backpacker hostels try to restrict business to "travellers only" for a fairly good reason. Travellers respect travellers and are accommodating in terms of space, privacy, cleaning up after themselves etc. This is essential in the confined space of a backpackers lodge or dormitory type situation. Experience has taught most hostel owners that locals often require the "cheap bed" for other reasons: a place to sneak a girlfriend when sex can't wait and a place to have a party with friends, when the folks at home don't allow it. There is a clash, so generally the policy is that local can visit provided that they are under the auspices of a formal group, church group, sport group, school group etc. so that there is a recourse to authority when needed. Chrs

20th October 2005

Stuart
Stuart Morgan Hurlbut

Stu's comment on backpackers
I see you're point about why backpackers restrict locals, but I still don't like it! In West Africa there were no "backpackers", so it wasn't a problem. You had no choise, you have to stay in cheap hotels. I don't like the backpackers policy because I don't travel in order to live in a western travellers guetto. I used the backpackers when it was convienient in the Southern African region, but if there was a choise I would often look for a cheap hotel, or bed and breakfast guesthouse as an alternative. Since leaving the orbit of the Southern Africa region, there isn't the same problem with backpackers. The exclusivity of the backpackers , which are just cheap lodges, seems to be a problem that is particularly severe in the Southern African region. I've travelled in many parts of the world - I've never found travellers haunts (cheap lodges) quite so foreign to the culture in which they are inbeded. Stuart

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Sex can wait!

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