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We are now three weeks into our South Africa road adventure, after
saying our goodbyes and leaving Malawi April 15th. It has definitely
been quite the adventure and much fun, and we have already covered
lots of ground- 2,800 km to be exact- thank goodness we decided
against the limited mileage car rental- we would already be way over
the limit! We have seen many beautiful places, met many interesting
people, and of course had some rather funny experiences. Here are some
of the highlights (in chronological order of course 😊:
- Jo-burg- Flew in and had our rental car dropped off at our hotel the
next morning- a spiffy, white, shiny Nissan Tiida, with a huge trunk,
which of course is now covered in dust and mud and filled to the brim,
but it has served us well; our first stop was the mall, to stock up on
groceries and warm clothing because it was FREEZING. In anycase, I
think it was the biggest mall either of us has ever been to, totally
overwhelming. Coming from Malawi and the previous third world
countries, it was culture shock to a T. Welcome to South Africa!
- Sabie- Our first
stop was an area called the Panoramic Route, in the
Mpumalanga Province, which goes around Blyde River Canyon- beautiful,
amazing scenery, and COLD but perfect fall weather. Ross convinced me
to go mountain biking-- quite funny- the first and probably last time
for me!
- Drove through Kruger National Park to Swaziland- and got charged by
elephants! Those mama elephants are vicious! Thank god for the pickup
on the good old Tiida!
- Swaziland- AMAZING, breathtaking scenery, with lush rolling
mountains, perhaps the most beautiful country in all of Africa;
chatting with our hosts, Jesus and Maria, at Southern Cross in
Ezulwini Valley- a former lawyer and IT guy, who dropped everything in
Spain to follow their dreams of opening a backpackers in Africa- in
the dark during the usual Swazi thunderstorm; going crazy at Going
Rural, a great store that employs 700 rural women across Swaziland to
make baskets, placemats and the works; my newfound dream of opening a
vineyard in Swaziland and using the profits to generate
community-based projects (which promptly got shut down by Jesus, due
to the acidic Swazi soil and high export tax)
- St. Lucia Estuary- another must see on the
South Africa route- a
Hilton Head-esque vacation spot, except that it is in the middle of a
wildlife reserve- a.k.a. animals wander the streets- the first night
we spotted hippos in the park in the middle of town, 15 feet away from
houses! Right up the coast was gorgeous Cape Vidal, crashing waves and
huge sand dunes, against a backdrop of a tall pine tree forest.
-Durban- Cricket championship game, with the works- children falling
in dunk tanks, scantily dressed dancers dancing on stage, flying the
umpires in via helicopter! Not the cricket that we had imagined...
-Sani Pass and Lesotho- we stayed at Sani Lodge, set in the southern
Drakensberg Mountains that border Lesotho and did an overnight trip
into Lesotho; driving up the sheer zigzag road on the Sani Pass; SNOW,
the first we have seen all year, in South Africa; spotting the Lesotho
shepherd boys, atop their horses in wrapped in the traditional wool
blankets; playing with Mimi, the adorable 3 year -old granddaughter of
the family we stayed with in Lesotho, who refused to wear pants;
pony-trekking up and down the mountains, renewing my love of horses;
visiting the traditional healer a.k.a. medicine woman,
who predicted
our very rosy future together, and then gave me some traditional ear
drops (made from roots she dug up herself) to improve my hearing 😊 I
don't actually know if the medicine works, because I stopped using it
a few days later, after coming to my senses and realizing it was
probably not the smartest thing to be putting random liquid in my
ears...
- The Wild Coast- This area of South Africa is known as the Wild Coast
because it remains very traditional, and untouched, and therefore
difficult to get to. It's largely Xhosa country, with the traditional
Xhosa florescent-colored rondavels dotting the hills throughout. We
stayed in two areas- Coffee Bay and Bulungula:
-Coffee Bay- arrived here on a Thursday, in the middle of a
thunderstorm, not knowing it was long weekend in SA, and thus ensued a
mad, wet scramble to find a place to stay, eventually securing a place
at a funny, awkward little B&B. The sun and heat (FINALLY) came out
the next day.
- Bulungula- Incredible, a must for anyone travelling in the
area. Getting here was half the fun. Sketchy dirt roads all the way
from Coffee Bay,
then we left the car parked at Bulungula store, and
trekked for another hour with Ross dressed as a pack horse through
some swamps and a river. It was so worth it. For three days, we woke
up to see watch the sunrise, swan, read, laid in the sun, made sand
castles, and hung out by the campfire at night. I can't explain how
beautiful it was- I swear the water even glistened. And even though it
was a lazy, beach-lover's paradise, owned 40% by the Xhosa-community
and on the edge of their village, it was also authentic. Enough said.
- East London, where we are now- We left Bulungula yesterday and
decided to come to East London to regroup and reorganize.
Unfortunately, it seems our trek to Bulungula was not without a cost-
15km outside of East London one of our front tires exploded. We
replaced it with the spare, only to find upon arrival at our hostel, a
front tire had leaked as well. After some madness with the rental car
company and a frantic dash to clean the car, thinking we were going to
have the whole car replaced, the technician arrived with two new
tires.
So far, so good, but our fingers are crossed that the gold old
Tiida will stay with us till the end.
With only three weeks left of our trip, we now making our way to
Capetown. Its so weird to think that we will be home so soon, but we
are certainly looking forward to seeing you all. I hope to write one
more time before the end of the trip. Until then, stay well!
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Alex
non-member comment
Hi
Nys and Ross - these last pics are amazing! you guys have done so much and im so excited to see you soon. stay safe and good luck on the way home. xoxox Alex