South Africa : or are we back to Europe??

After leaving Ponta Do Ouro in Mozambique and its sandy roads, we crossed the South African border on foot (without any issue) and we arrived on a “real” road ;-). Our first stop in that new country was Sodwana Bay, a national park well known for its diving sites… but we were not lucky that time… Anyway we kept going our travel and we hitch hiked to Durban (360km further south)… For our first hitch hiking we were very lucky: we first did few kilometres with a tractor (yes, you read it well, a tractor), then 2 cars dropped us at the national road. There we walked 4 kilometres with our bags, we saw a lot of cars passing without stopping, we heard a lot of klaxons and finally a driver took us directly to Durban for the last 320 km!!!

In Durban we had “a shock”; it doesn’t look like Africa but more like Europe : huge skyscrapers, big shopping malls, traffic signs…. Another country!!!
Regarding the temperature we were not lucky… it was very chilly…. But even cold we visited Durban, its beach front and uShaka Marine World, the biggest aquarium in East Africa. In addition of eating next to a shark, of having seen Nemo and Doris,

I could come near (and kiss) a dolphin!!! But let’s say I deserved it because I won the “dancing” contest among the audience.

After, we visited the football stadium built in for the 2010 worldcup but we couldn’t take the sky car because it was too windy… And we also didn’t spend enough time in Durban to taste an Indian curry (Durban is the city in the world which has the biggest Indian community (after India of course ;-)))

But in this modern and developed country it’s a pity (and its shocking) that the gap between whites and blacks is still so huge… Mandela started a great job but there is still a lot to do….

After these few days in town we went to Umkomaas (in Zulu it means “the playing baby whale”). Do you want to know why it is called “baby whale”? Let me tell you the story: The story says that the Zulu King saw a whale and its calf playing in the river mouth of Umkomaas and he was so happy to see it that he called the village “baby whale”… Yes it’s a legend, ie. a story seen by the wisest of a certain time who told the story to the next generations. But to live, a legend needs storytellers. Today I was your storyteller and tomorrow maybe, when you’ll go to South Africa, you’ll be the next storyteller…

We are not descendants from the Zulu king but we also saw whales playing and even dolphins, sharks, turtles… A fabulous diving week in a beautiful dive site (a fossilised sand dune). But when you’re out of the water it’s really cold, so after diving a good meal is necessary ;-)