Sahle and I drove to Durban last weekend primarily along one straight highway called the N3. It is a little over 5 hours away from Johannesburg and the scenes transform from flat green and brown plains with a tree or two visible every now and then, as well as groups of cattle, sheep and horses grazing to a more lush, forested, and mountainous with lots to look at and admire. There certainly was a lot of cattle and they really seem to do nothing but stand around and eat grass, but oddly enough they are interesting to watch. (I now understand what Alexander McCall Smith was talking about in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency Book Series). We got excited when we saw a group actually running somewhere.
Durban is a coastal city that is very hilly with nice beaches along the Indian Ocean. According to my guidebook Durban is the 3rd largest city in South Africa, of importance as an industrial center and above all as a port. Thanks to its subtropical climate, its long beaches, the warm water of the Indian Ocean and excellent infrastructure it attracts more than 2 million vacationers every year. The population is 800,000 of which more than half are Asians, mostly Indians, and about 200,000 are white. Under the apartheid regime most of the black population was forced to live in the townships surrounding the city.
We stayed at a B&B in a very hilly and lovely neighborhood called Musgrave. Of course you couldn’t really see any of the houses because of all the high walls and security gates, but the top halves of the houses and the trees made the area very nice. ADT Security signs were everywhere, and I concluded that they are probably the ones who are publishing the grim crime statistics. We went jogging on the road and I nearly died from running up all those hills. You can see a long distance from the tops of them, but the real issue is getting to the top.
I had to keep reminding myself that I’m in Africa – cause sometimes it didn’t look or feel like it. There are so many places that remind me of other cities. Sometimes I feel like I’m in California, sometimes Antigua, sometimes New Jersey, and sometimes it feels like Florida or New England. The long-term effects of colonialism and globalization are really amazing. Whether it’s the architecture of a certain building or house, or the design of neighborhood, restaurant or shop or even the way that someone says something – it’s easy to understand that the world is a rather small place after all. But then I would see something like a woman carrying a baby on her back, a bag in each hand and a package on her head all at the same time and then quickly be reminded of where I am.
The first night went to the local restaurant/ night life strip and had Indian food at this place called A Taste of Indian. I had the bunny chow as recommended by a classmate of mine and it was delicious!
Durban is in the province of Kwazulu/Natal that has the highest concentration of Asians but consists of mostly Zulus. The infrastructure in the Zulu villages is particularly poor.
We went to a Zulu village in an area called A Thousand Hills and saw how the Zulu’s lived and learned a bit more about their culture. From what I saw, I really think that there are a thousand hills in ‘A Thousand Hills’ – the view is absolutely “stunning” (people use this word a lot here) and provided a natural backdrop to the village. The huts are built very well, made of wood and straw, in a way that lets smoke out from cooking and everything but keeps rain from coming in. Men are allowed to have more than one wife if they can afford itnand are the protectors and women do all the housework (raise kids, make food, and Zulu beer). We also saw some dancing and presentations by some people who were looking very tired. Their energy levels were pretty sub-optimal, but they got through the routine. I can only imagine how many times they had done the same thing over and over. Afterwards, Sahle even got a marriage proposal from 1 of the guys who offered to pay 11 cows dowery for her. We both decided that they would have to come with at least 12 or 15 cows and maybe pay off her MBA debt before we would even consider it! Turns out that each cow can cost between 5,000 and 8,000 Rands which is approximately $700- $1,100 which is a lot for someone from the village – so I’m sure that it was quite flattering.
After we left the village, we quickly went to a beach called Umhlanga which is in a very expensive part of town and then went to a township called Umlazi to a place where you buy meat from a butcher-like shop and the grill it in the back yourself. And of course, me the vegetarian was the only one eating a seafood plate from a place called Ocean’s Basket while everyone else chowed down on hunks of meat. (but I have to admit that the seafood was very good). That is town-ship living and it was cool. They don’t do that sort of thing in the main cities.
We ended the trip with a quick visit to a big market called Victoria market and the Botanical Gardens.
P.S. Hi everyone – I’m missing you guys! Just wanted to let you know that I’m coming back to the states in a little more than a month on December 9th! : )
