On our final morning in Durban, we got up early to walk on the beach, which was just across the street from our hotel on the other side of some dunes. There were already people out surfing, fishing, walking, and even performing some sort of beach-front ritual. As we walked further south, the beach got more and more crowded and we encountered shops, swimmers, cyclists, a soccer game, and impressive sand sculptures (see photo).
We returned to the hotel in time to enjoy the huge breakfast, just ahead of the throngs of tourists from Lesotho. After checking out, we headed to Moses Mabhida Stadium, constructed for the 2010 soccer World Cup (see photo). We rode the funicular to the Skydeck observation platform 106 meters above the pitch and took in wonderful views of the city, including myriad sports facilities, beautiful hillside homes, the port, our hotel, and of course, the Indian Ocean and coastline (see photo).
After shopping in the visitors center, we got in the car and left Durban for the impetus of our trip: the six-day photo safari at Zulu-Nyala. It was a pleasant (sunny!) drive several hours north to Hluhluwe.
At Zulu-Nyala, we had booked space in the tented safari camp, which on the website features tastefully appointed if somewhat rustic Hemingway tents. I thought this would be a unique adventure. To my surprise, we ended up in the tented area, but in standard-construction, adjoined luxury suites! (See photo.) Not what was expected, but perfectly acceptable! Zebra, impala, and Nyala graze outside our door.
We got settled in just in time for a 4 pm game drive with our appointed guide, Mark. Mark has been doing this type of work for 35 years, but his primary job at the reserve now is oversight of the 11 white rhinos and anti-poaching initiatives. He gave us a basic drive around the reserve, where we saw a duiker, wildebeest, impala, zebra, nyala, buffalo, rhinos, giraffes, vervet monkeys, and a tawny eagle. Mark returned us to our accommodation where we had dinner before retiring to our suites for the evening. It was a beautiful ending to our first week in southern Africa.
The next day started early with a 6:15 game drive. This time we were joined by a truckload of other guests from the States, including New York, Chicago, and Seattle. The weather was perfect. We saw many of the same animals, plus hippos, kudu, crocodiles, a cheetah (see poor quality selfie), and the reserve's three elephants. We stopped for breakfast at Zulu-Nyala's other location, the Game Lodge.
After breakfast we returned to our rooms for showers, much needed naps, and lunch. After lunch we went down the road to a very nice craft market and Zulu culture museum before returning for our evening game drive. Again, the weather was perfect and we saw many of the same animals, minus the elephants and cheetah. There were throngs of impala, including may young ones (see photo). The evening light was perfect, making for some great photos, and it turned into a beautiful sunset. After the drive we had dinner and returned to our fancy suite to enjoy some Amarula while I blogged and Barry researched wineries for us to visit after Christmas.
I'm almost up-to-date with this blog!
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