DFR Travels: Durban...

Friday, March 10. Docked in Durban. Placid water, blue sky 28 C. Fantastic day.

The first of four South African ports for us. Immigration was slick and fast.

We are off to Zulu country around noon for a four hour tour. An early morning walkabout on deck revealed scores of goods lined up with provisions for the ship. The ship is still suffering from Supply Chain Issues as a result of the Pandemic. Missing container loads of supplies are not uncommon. In Africa we should be ok for fruits and vegetables and the like. A replacement part for the engine room can at least be shipped by air. The ship makes its own bread and cakes, as long as it has flour. There are no really important food stuffs missing except for peanut butter that is a topic of conversation aboard the ship. This morning I spotted some: Australian!

It has been a few years since we were on a cruise ship in South Africa, more years than I subconsciously remember actually. In those intervening years, things have obviously changed. In the coming days we will find out if they have changed for the better, or, deteriorated. Also, Fellette and I, and our son Craig, have seen some pretty raw parts of Africa, in Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and South Africa, years ago, on land tours, not on a ship. I have no idea if things have changed in those countries for the better, or worse.

For people on this cruise, if anybody is seeing Africa for the first time, I think that they may have a different view than we had/have. On ship’s tours, they will get a 'Somewhat Sanitized' view than we had I am sure. As a result, I/we hope to have a mind-shift to the current status of Africa, relative to the current world. I hope my thinking may be out of date.

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Our day with The Zulus…

The morning went well. Face to Face Immigration officials went fast. Our tour was a late start for us: 12:15, it left on time and soon we were in a lovely white air-conditioned full size bus for the one hour Journey to what I call Zulu Land. The guide for the bus tried very hard to explain the basics of traditional and modern Zulu life, his accent was severe and it was difficult to understand. A for Effort though! It used to be that the groom-to-be offered cows in exchange for his chosen bride to be. Things have changed of course but they still have the old traditions in a ceremonious way.

They had a very comprehensive reptile and Crocodile/alligator display and a very large collection of snakes. Some took longer in the snake area than others!

Next was a Traditional Zulu Drum and Dancers presentation. It was fun to see in spite of having seen similar a few times before.

The pilot was taken off the ship by helicopter, as far as we know. Those in charge said it was the safer option and is very often the case here in Durban. Tomorrow we are scheduled to be in East London then, next day, Port Elizabeth. However the Captain has expressed concern about the ability to get into one of those ports due to inclement weather, which one I am not sure. Time will tell, we sail on regarless of what happens!

We got back too late to eat at the dining room so we had room srvice and called it a day.

A Good Day...

These crocs were so still, some people thought that they were fake.

That is Jim giving this 100 year old croc a dental examination!

That is Gail and Fellette eyeing one of the snake cases! Gail dislikes snakes, but not as much as I do obviously!

Isn’t that the most beautiful hillside you have ever seen? This is an upperclass area, likely some of the homes were built before Apartheid was eliminated. The area looks like a bit of jolly old England, with street names that have not been changed since Apartheid ended.

A more friendly looking lizard.

Fellette, Gail and Jim awaiting the Zulu dancers.

A very poor picture of their attire. The women seem to be advancing into modern clothes with sneakers and the like faster than the men. They seem to have discovered brassieres and the habit of ‘covering up’.