Zulu Ways

Today we are in Durban. We took a tour of the city. First we visited a cultural village with artifacts and huts from Zulu history. We were entertained by a number of dancers and singers. They showed a few skits. In one the young women go to fetch water, and the young men “fight” with others to impress the girls. One young man talks with a young woman about his intentions to wed her. She asks how many cows he will give for her. When she hears 11, she confirms her interest. Later they showed a skit of the father talking to the young man about the 11 cows and giving his blessing. Then they showed a skit of the two young people getting married. We then went through some huts to better understand some customs of the Zulus. The women always sat on the left and the men on the right so they could protect

the women and children. If a young boy favored his left hand he would be taught to change. The warriors had to hold their shields with their left hand and spear or other weapon with the right.

The women again had different coverings to wear depending on their status – pre-puberty, after puberty, when circumcised, when engaged, when married. The most interesting thing to me was that the married woman had a marriage hat, which she never took off. It was woven into the hair of the woman, and was never removed. Therefore the married woman had to sleep with her neck on a stand so that the hat did not touch the floor. This custom exists in many different communities. I remember seeing the same thing in Egypt. Zulu men could have as many wives as they wanted. Our speaker said his grandfather had 11 wives, his father had 3 and he had only one. Times are changing.

Later we went to a museum which had the best curator. She danced, sang, strutted, etc. to portray the artifacts and how they were used. The museum had many costumes of different tribes to explain the different customs. Again, the woman's cover or lack thereof, indicated her status. We have been told that the custom of female circumcision is now rare.

We also visited an Indian spice market. Like the markets in many countries, bartering is very common. The spices were enticing. The market had many more things. We arrived just before noon and many shopkeepers closed up to go to the mosque. Many of the people in South Africa are Muslim.

At lunch, we ate with the fishes – literally. They swam past in a huge tank. On the other side of the tank, people were tubing down this channel. I kept waving, but I don't think they could see us. Or they were ignoring me. They could see the fish, indicated by pointing and watching. It was a close encounter. Some of the fish were very close. In South Africa they serve line fish on many menus. The line fish is the catch of the day. We kept watching the tank. We wanted to see which fish disappeared when someone ordered line fish. The restaurant was a previously sunken ship – probably a cargo ship. A delightful place for lunch.

Tomorrow we're on our own. Barb and I are going to take it easy, completing a number of mundane tasks, like laundry. We are going to walk the boardwalk to the little town for breakfast and take advantage of their wi-fi. Barbara always awakes very early, but I'll probably sleep late. A restful day! The boardwalk reminds me of the Marginal Way in Ogunquit.

It follows the ocean and stretches between the ocean and a line of homes and hotels, etc. This is, however, closer to the water, not as high as the Marginal Way. Another way the coast here reminds me of Maine.

Saturday

I was up at 6:00.

There is a little bird here - called the weaver, I think - which makes a nest and then invites a female into the nest. If she likes it, they become a pair. If not, she either boots him out or leaves. I can't remember, but I think she just leaves.

One little bird where we camped must have had terrible trouble finding a mate because there are many nests around our campsites. I don't blame the females since many of these nests fall down to the ground - obviously not safe for a number of kids.

Tomorrow we drive to another national park and a town which has 1/3 of the world's hippos. Excited? Yes!!!!!!

The Vegetarian at a Barbeque

So what do you eat at a barbeque when you're a vegetarian? If you have Wagon Masters like we do, you eat vegetarian hotdogs. One of our group had a birthday and it was decided to celebrate with a great barbeque. The Wagon Masters bought all the stuff, and did all the work. It was great!!! When we had arrived at another ensuite site (forgot again to take a picture) we clamored with some others to do our laundry. The dryer was lousy, and everything came out wet even after two attempts. So we strung clotheslines and hung up everything. The air was nice, but we were hesitant to keep things out on the clothesline since it might rain. It did. It poured!!!!! We realized the next morning we had leaks from some windows. I'm not surprised. Why would they want to fix all the windows. It hardly ever rains in South Africa. So, tonight, our mechanic, So-fi-so, re-sealed lots of windows.

He's kind of a miracle worker. Because of all the rain our next campground is rather muddy and all the sites are full of water. One motor home got stuck in the WET grass. When So-fi-so came he pulled out a fire hose, and he and the Wagon Master pulled the rig back onto the road.

The next day we took off for another national park. These parks are well-managed and beautiful, and clean. We stopped on the way and went to the Basotho Cultural Village.  This complex shows the culture of the native group from the 16^th century to now. It was so easy to see the influence in the architecture of the Dutch and English. As we toured around we were given samples of some of the foods eaten at the time. We were also given a picture into the lives and mores of the people. One of our group was chosen to be chief, and dressed properly. The thing I loved most about his costume was that he wore a pointed hat. This was the decision hat. Then they chose a woman to be his first wife – guess who? Oh yeah, just what I love doing. I didn't get to wear a pointed hat. I guess when the chief was around he made all the decisions. But if something happened to the chief, the first wife ran things until another chief was available. The community chose the chief and the first wife. The first wife chose the second wife. And then the chief chose the third wife. So, you know the third wife was the one he loved. They dressed me up in all these hides, which would have been nice in the winter, but in 100° weather I don't think I would be happy. The clothing also indicated the status of the woman. Once a young woman reached a certain age, she wore a certain piece of clothing; when older, another piece of clothing; when married she added another skin. I didn't get to take the hides with me. But the weather on this trip is not conducive to hides.

The trek this day was a puzzle. One of the roads we expected to travel was ruled impassable, so we were given maps, and were taken through the logbook in a very jagged fashion, i.e. pg 45 then skip to 54, then to 48, etc. Luckily, we ran into another motor home and followed them through the maze. Otherwise, we might still be out there looking for a landmark. Today we traveled pothole trail. I hit one of the big ones – wasn't sure we'd get back on the road, but we did. And the motor home is still being held together. We'll see what the next day brings.

 

More of the Same

Saturday, March 6

This morning we got up early and took one more trip through the game reserve, mainly to see lions, spotted hyenas, leopards, etc. - animals we missed yesterday. We didn't see any of those. Sometimes you do, sometimes you don't. We saw a bat eared fox, but could not get a picture. It was too fast. We saw a number of the animals we had seen before. It's kind of fun to be stalking the animals, instead of having them stock you. 

 Then we drove to the Zebra National Park, got there early, and went for a game drive. They have a route that takes you across some beautiful scenery, and a loop which has the animals. Since it was early afternoon we took the scenic route. Then around 3:00 we went on the game route and identified a number of antelope we had not yet seen, and cape buffalo. We also saw baboons and monkeys. The monkeys here will break the glass of your motor home to get some food. Of course we saw zebra, ostrich, warthogs, etc.

We are living vicariously through others on the tour. One couple saw a lioness under a tree. They noticed the antelope put his head up, smelling the lion. A few zebra also noticed the smell and began twitching. The lioness slowly got up, stretched and then began to stock the animals. The antelope and zebra began running. The lioness came very close to the RV of the couple. Up close and personal!!! Then all the animals disappeared over the hills. Talk about excitement!! Another woman had a picture of a spotted leopard with three cubs. She was sheltered by a bush, but when the ranger saw the picture she knew exactly who the subject was. We quit around 5:00, and went to the pavilion for dinner and a show.

 

The show was very good. A local group sang and danced. Most of the words were in Afrikaans so we couldn't understand them, but a few were in English. There was one drum to keep the beat. Then they took the people in the front (of which I was one) up to join them. Did I feel the rhythm? You bet I did – moving my arms, moving my feet, and singing the words – whatever they meant. We all had a great time. I love the people of South Africa. A few of us have been talking about the Nelson Mandela effect, which I think of as nationalism. Let's make a better South Africa. Let's care for the people, the animals and the country. They have a great national park system. They create a lot of jobs so that people can work to take care of their families.

The next morning we took one more ride through the park on our way out, and saw some wildlife real close. There was one animal we couldn't identify. It was some kind of ...bot or ...beest (an antelopish animal). I thought we should go to the office to show them. It might be a newly discovered species. They could name it the BG bot or BG beest, for Barbara and Gail. That would have meant backtracking, so we gave up the chance to be famous in order to save a couple hours.

We continued into a town where we were looking for an internet place, but everything was closed because it was Sunday. I'm old enough to remember when that was true in Massachusetts. We finally stopped at a Wimpy, which is a fast food kind of place, and met many of our group there – all having lunch and using the wi-fi. We've all become so spoiled having wi-fi right there when we want it. It's difficult searching for it in coffee shops or restaurants where you might get 15 minutes for free. So far, Wimpy's has been the best.

We arrived at our destination, and found a campsite. We're camping at an Ensuite site, which is great. There is a little building with four sites. At each site there is a private bath, washing facility (sink and clothesline) and electric connection. It's so nice. We place our motor home so that the side with the door opens to our suite.

That Sneaky Lioness

We had such an easy day today. We left the gorgeous campground by the sea, and went to another. The sea here is calmer, but is still going to lull me to sleep. On the way we stopped at an internet cafe, and I finally got a blog post sent. We also stopped to see a tree which is over 1000 years old.

Then tonight we all walked down to a restaurant on the shore. It was a great place. This area is known for large surfing tubes. Years ago a couple of guys would go to this woman's kitchen window to see if the surf was up. When the restaurant opened it was called the Kitchen Window. The food was great and the atmosphere was fun.

We took 2 big tables and the noise was resounding. There were stories and pictures of a group of surfers in the 60s and 70s. One sign said, “If you're not barefoot you're overdressed,” and the staff t-shirts said, “Sleep when you're dead.” And that was the attitude in the restaurant. We had fun and had a beautiful walk back to the campground. I keep thinking about coming back here for about 3 months. As I said there are beautiful campgrounds by the sea, but there are also beautiful cottages, and I bet they are very reasonable. Everything here is very reasonable. Tonight my dinner of an entree, a beer, and a shared appetizer was less than $9.00. Of course, by the time I come back, the exchange rate may be 5 rand to the dollar, instead of 10. It's beginning to make sense to me to spend my retirement in whatever country has the best exchange rate.

Thursday

We drove to Addo Elephant Reserve today. In the afternoon we visited Scotia

Safari Reserve. This is a private reserve. We took a guided tour through the park, had dinner, and drove back to our pick-up spot at night with the searchlights on. Thank God there are preserves for all these animals. If not, there wouldn't be any.

In this park they have the predators in a separate part of the reserve. Our guide said that some of these animals were so very expensive, the owner didn't want to find something which cost him millions of rands eaten by a lion. The lions were majestic and beautiful. There was a lioness who was nursing a babe – three months through a 6 month nursing period. She had sauntered over to a corner of the reserve at the fence shared with the Addo Elephant Reserve.

 

 

 

It seems she wanted the big boy lions to know she was still around. There were 2 young, horny lions on the other side of the fences staring at her. Later we saw and heard her mate calling her, telling her to bring the kids. I guess he has 2 lionesses and 3 kids. The two young males at Addo were beautiful with light manes. The male at the private reserve was very majestic and had a dark mane. I guess he let his women show off during the day, but called them back at night. In other words you can tease, but when the dance is over, you're coming home with me.

We saw some giraffes as they were nibbling the trees. They have an interesting gait, moving the two left legs, then the two right legs. They keep bee hives under some of the trees. The sweetest growth is at the top. When the elephants want that growth, they'll knock over the trees to get it. But....after being stung many times they have changed their behavior.

The guide told us a very sad story. All of the reserves have a terrible time with poachers. This reserve had two rhinoceroses. Somehow 1 or more poachers got in. How? No one knows. They shot the animals to tranquilize them, and sawed off the horns of both. Luckily the owner found them quickly and flew them to a vet, who was able to save their lives. But, the female lost her baby. The rhino horn is thought to be an aphrodisiac, and is ground into a powder which earns the poacher a great deal of money. There are so many sad things about this story, but the worst thing is that the power of the horn is a myth. The two rhino will regrow their horns in about 6 years, and will probably have another child, but it was so sad to see them without their horns. The penalty for poaching is life in jail. The poacher committing this crime was never caught.

We also saw a couple hippopotamuses submerged in a watering hole. They had their nose at the water level, just like you see on TV, and then submerged. As we were starting to leave he yawned, showing the pink mouth. Exactly as I wanted. We learned that hippos are very protective and can be very dangerous and very aggressive. They sometimes will enter into a life and death situation with a predator, scaring off the predator and saving the victim.

Friday, the 7^th

Today we self-toured through the elephant reserve in our campers. I didn't set an alarm and slept until the animals had finished their morning rituals. We saw more than a hundred elephants. They were gathering a ways from and at a watering hole. We saw them drinking, giving themselves mud baths, walking in formation through the hills, running down to the waterhole, and encircling the vehicles in their path. We saw some very young babies. They were so little. There was one small elephant following another young elephant - maybe a sibling? He then spotted his mother and began running toward her. Cute as anything!!

In an earlier post I had mentioned the bontebok had been enticed to stay by being fed citrus. Well, I lied. It was the elephants who were fed the citrus. The older ones still remember and will smell the citrus. It would be hard enough to have a bontebok chasing you for your orange, but how about an elephant? The elephants were staying and intermingling, and a genetic problem arose. The females were being born without tusks. The national park then introduced some new lines of elephants, and the problem was remedied. Every once and a while two elephants from the original herd will mate and the female is still born without tusks.

Dias and Barbeque Ostrich

In 1487 Bartholomeu Dias sailed round the southern tip of Africa, landing at what later was Mossel Bay. For many years this place was used to take on fresh water and meat. In 1500 Pedro de Ataide left a letter in a shoe under a large tree. In 1501 the letter was found by Joao da Nova on his way to India. Thus the first post office in South Africa was found. The tree is still there and is now called the post office tree.

We went to the Bartolomeu Dias Museum Complex, and saw the replica of Dias' ship. The replica was built in Portugal and sailed to Souh Africa with a crew of Portuguese and South Africans. When they enlarged the museum they left part of the wall unfinished. After the 3 month sail to South Africa, they partially dismantled the ship, pulled her over greased sleepers and then pulled her inside with an hydraulic system.

Our next stop was the Safari Ostrich Farm. We ate barbequed ostrich for lunch with a secret sauce the owner would not divulge, sweet potatoe soup, rolls, salad, carrot salad, corn poppers and some kind of custard. The Farm is known for its food and makes everything from scratch. I have to admit I wasn't that excited about the ostrich, but the secret sauce was delicious. After a few bites of the meat I once again became a vegetarian. Then we went for a tour. These animals are funny. They want to take everything, including my camera. One took off the tour guide's hat about 6 times until he put it on the ostrich backwards with his beak coming out through the space in the back. We fed them some pellets and they made a mess. I thought maybe they were doing it on purpose so that they could have some pellets lying within reach later.. The staff pick out some ostrich to protect the young. Sometimes they'll have up to 30 babies to watch over. I was curious whether they choose certain birds because they have better parenting skills, but NO. I guess they're all lousy parents, but will protect the babies from marauders. I understand the ostrich kick out their feet and then rake their claws down the opponents' faces, legs, stomach, etc. They are quite violent. The small tykes were so cute running after the adults, like baby geese run after their mother.
 

The next day we went to the Cango Caves. I wasn't excited about the caves, but I'm so glad I saw them. I remember when Penelope and I were working around the country and went to Carlsbad Caverns. I was so impressed, and I don't think I have been as impressed until this cave walk. Our guide even sang a couple songs to us. She accompanied herself with a drum by hitting one of the stalagmites. The different caverns were beautiful. That night we had a dinner on the waterfront, again in a perfect setting. I didn't realize South Africa would be so beautiful. Good people, good food and good fun. This trip is becoming better with every day.

On Tuesday the 4^th we did little more than drive to our next campsite, which is on the ocean. And by ocean I mean the best seaside I have slept beside. The ocean is raging. The smell, sound and view is, once again, tempting me to own a place by the sea. I'm not sure I am going to be able to leave this spot. I'd love to come back here for a month or more. This is a great place to relax, and yet not far from thr game reserves. And we had a troop of dassies diligently gathering food.

 

Cape Town and Beyond

In Cape Town we had some very exciting and interesting tours. The day after we arrived we took a bus and traveled around the Cape of Hope. The whole area is actually the Cape of Hope, but people think of the tip as the actual Cape of Hope. And we went to the southernmost tip of the Cape so we could say we were there.

Later we went to a penguin colony. I made sure I had my binoculars, but didn't need them. The penguins were actually in reach. They had chosen this particular spot to populate, and the colony grew and grew. Of course they were adorable.



Anytime I see these funny little birds in tuxedoes, walking on one foot, then the other, I have to smile We had a good view of some chicks in their gray plumage, particularly one which did not turn or move in any way, while its down was being ruffled by the wind. I got the biggest kick out of one penguin which was standing on the beach while a group of penguins swam in. He stayed there like a Walmart greeter, while they landed and walked past him.

After the penguins we visited a winery. That was a trip to remember. We did not tour the winery. Instead they brought us into a room with four different wines and four different cheeses. The woman showing us the coupling of the wines and cheeses was at her best and very professional. We had degenerated into a group of winos. But, we had fun!!! To show our appreciation, most of us bought a bottle or two. I hope there are more wine tastings ahead.

Then we went to a lighthouse, took the funicular up and walked the last part to fantastic views. Again, what a beautiful coastline, what a beautiful country.

The next day we went to Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned. It was very sobering. The hotel shuttle took us to the waterfront and from there we took the ferry to the island. Our guide was a former prisoner and thus had a unique perspective. For a time they kept lepers on the island. They had separated the men from the women because they were afraid if two lepers joined together they would have leper babies. They still had 43 children from secret unions.

We got up early and went to enjoy the buffet breakfast, which we knew we would miss terribly. Then we took a trip up Table Mountain in Cape Town. When you are a visitor to Cape Town, everyone asks you if you have been to Table Mountain. Frequently, it is so windy they have to close the cable car. To me, from down below, it didn't look like it
 was going to be such great shakes, but, once you are up there, you understand why it has been chosen one of the new Seven Natural Wonders of the World. Beautiful views, beautiful scenery. We saw dassies – look a little like a gopher – all over the place. Their nearest relative is the African elephant. That blows my mind.

We also saw some elans and a smaller antelope – name? For 80 years the cable car has been bringing about 800 people per hour to the top of the mountain, which is a geological wonder. They think the mountain may be older than the Himalayas. It was formed under the sea over 600 million years ago.

Then we went to get our motor homes. What fun!!! Our motor home is equipped with everything we need, although we have bought some things or had them given to us to make the trip more comfortable, such as top sheets. It's not the custom in South Africa. We drove about 30 kilometers the first day. I was the one initiating the MH, although it was the leader of the initiation – turned the tables on me. I stalled a number of times getting to the first campground. I'm going to have to get used to the clutch.

The next day we drove around Gordon's Bay and along the shore. The coast here is magnificent. I never expected South Africa to have this type of shoreline. The surf is strong and high. I looked at it and thought I wish I had a belly board or surf pillow. However, I then looked at the rocks, and thought maybe not. It made me think at times of the Maine Coast and other times of Big Sur. We drove just past our campground to the southern most tip of the African Continent. There was a marker and also a lighthouse there. And of course, a beautiful ocean coast.

We saw many fisherpeople at this campground. It made me think of surf fishing, which they all were. Around the time we were leaving, they were coming back. There were sinks there for them to clean the fish, and HUGE signs to tell them NOT to clean the fish at our sinks where dishes were washed.

The next day we drove through the Bontebok National Park. The bontebok were becoming extinct. The Park was developed around a herd of about 30, fed them citrus to keep them staying in the park. Now there are about 1500 roaming the fields. They warn you to refrain from bringing citrus into the park. Some of the older antelope still have memories of citrus and will chase you down if you are eating an orange. We also saw our first African zebra there. That was very exciting.