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After a few days of R&R in Durbs it was time to get back on the road, this time heading north through zululand along what's known as the elephant coast. The country side is lush and much greener than that of the Transkei to the south. As the name would suggest, the area is the traditional home of the Zulu people and there is quite a noticable difference in the the feel and look of the place and it's culture. The homes in the more rural spots, which predominate, still consist of classical round huts which a thatched roofs set in a traditional pattern on the sides of gentle hills and surrounded by cattle and livestock.
The highway was full of the usual suspects...most of the farm and half the village...but the road itself was in good knick and the driving was relatively straight and easy.
Our first stop was St Lucia, a small little town at the southern end of the "Greater St Lucia Wetland Park" one of South Africa's nine world heritage sites. It's a pretty ecletic little spot and one of the few to places you can see a hippo walking down main street on the way back
Local Flora
one of the local trees covered with bright orange flowers. when they're all open it looks like the tree is on fire. from happy hour (a non alcohol induced one anyways).
We decided to hit the beach, which I'll remember for it's sheer size and it's local population of hippo's and croc's... as if the sharks were'nt enough to worry about, and then had a pretty mellow night watching the stars and listening to nature, which pretty much passes for surround sound in these parts.
The next stop up the coast was Sodwana bay, rated by most as a top five dive spot in the world. Lee was eager to put her skills to the test and I was eager to get those "%#&*(*)*(^#@$#%$" snorkel and fins we've been lugging around out of the backpack for a few days. We stayed at a place called Coral Divers, which was basically a little commune for dive enthusiasts who come explore the local reefs and spend a few days viewing the magnificence of what lies beneath the waves. The place is spot on! If the thought of relaxing in the sun, surrounded by nature in between some of the best dives anywhere appeals to you, Sodwana should be on your radar.
Our dive was amazing despite the absence of anything "big." Poeple had been
Ummmm...
Don't see these on most beaches seeing whale sharks, manta rays, dolphin, and turtles all week and we were hoping to luck into something similar, but alas, it was not to be. We did spot two enormous Moray eels swimming up the reef which we were told was lucky, a small spotted eagle ray, and an absolutely unbelievable variety of fish and coral. The density of life, the abundance of color and shape and the sheer traquility of it all will stay with me for a long awhile. It truly is another world down there and I can't wait to do it again!
After 2 great days at Sodwana we continued northwards to Kosi Bay, the last stop on the coast nestled up against the Mozambican border. We found a little place that redefines rustic and basically had the run of the place as there were no other guests. Kosi bay itself is a series of 4 lakes that connect with the Indian ocean and is known for it's remote beaches and the unique fish traps used by the local Tsonga people. the place was awesome and we literally found ourselves immeresed in the local culture; there really was no alternative.
We were fortunate to
have the oppurtunity to take a walk around the local community with a guy who works as a guide and lives in a small house adjacent to where we where staying, it was fasinating. Since being in South Africa we have pretty much covered the entire length of the Indian ocean coast, from the very tip of the Cape down south, to the Mozambique border up north. In doing so, the road (it really is one road) has taken us through and passed countless little villages and rural communities, but until now there was no real dimension too it. What happens beyond what you can see from the highway? To be honest, the world we encountered was as foreign to me as the world beneath the waves at Sodwana. Many of the people literally live off the land, most quite comfortably. Bengwani, the guy we were walking with showed us what we could eat, what you could use as medicine, how you could makes bricks to build a house, which plants could be used to brew alcohol (quite a few actually). According to him, he only has to go to the grocery store every few months and even then it's
bad pic of big crocs
if you look really closely and squint you'll see some out of focus crocs catching some rays in the bay not really neccesary. The ingenuity that people use to get by is remarkable, but so is their vulnerability to factors beyond their control to things like drought or disease. All in all it was very interesting experience.
The next day was spent at the beach and snorkelling in the lagoon. The guy whose place we were staying at had to drive us there in his 4x4 as the roads where nowhere near navigable by a regular car. It was your standard beach...vast, empty and beautiful. The waves were big and for most of the afternoon we were entertained by a pod of dolphin who quite enjoyed riding them. We were very close to Mozambique and we had to cut our walk short since we were told that if we accidentaly walked to Mozambique, we could be arrested. oh well, next time...
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