Today was mostly a travel day. We did stop at Tsitsikamma National Park. Tsitsikamma is a San word meaning "place of abundant waters." It is part of the Garden Route National Park and extends for 42 miles from Nature's Valley (where we visited yesterday) to Oubosstrand and stretches seaward some three miles. There is a unique underwater trail for licensed snorkelers and scuba divers, which we did not do but we did pay our $30-some entry fee to drive to the end of the road and get out to view the primeval forests, rugged mountain scenery and panoramic views.
We stopped on the advice of Albert, our host at Moon Shine on Whiskey River. He failed to tell us 1) that it cost to go in and how much it cost and 2) the walk to the suspension bridge was a half hour in, half hour out. Well, we didn't have the time to do the walk, as we had to drop our little Ford Fiesta at the airport in Port Elizabeth at 1 p.m. - and it was 10:45 a.m., and we still had at least a two-and-one-half-hour drive.
We stopped, took some photos and hit the road.
I didn't stop to take any photos because we were on a toll road that is like our interstate - no stopping along the highway. Not far from having gotten back on the highway, there was a troop of about 25 baboons (some of them very young) who were cruising the side of the road and crossing it. We saw one jump at a car window as it was passing. Yikes - I guess that's why they tell you to keep your windows up and doors locked. Another good reason not be stopping along the highway and jumping out for photos!
There were some beautiful canyons; very rugged, but they were covered with green shrubs and trees unlike the Western Cape. We emerged from the indigenous forest and the canyons to a more pastoral landscape, and the rugged mountains receded in the mirror to give way to more rolling hills, albeit large hills. It was a farming area with lots of crops. As we got closer to Port Elizabeth, the landscape flattened and there wasn't much to see in terms of what you would expect along the coast.
We're now in the Eastern Cape, and there is grass that covers most of the landscape if there aren't crops, cows or sheep.
We did drive by a rather large and extensive wind farm, which is heartening to know that alternative forms of energy are being implemented. I don't know the politics of wind energy in South Africa, and I know it doesn't do anything to offset the fact that the Trump administration is allowing more methane gas to be released into the air but it's encouraging to think that other countries are, I hope, aware of climate change and are doing what they can to reduce emissions.
We arrived in Port Elizabeth and dropped off our car around 1 p.m., got our boarding passes printed (I checked in online but couldn't print the boarding passes - duh), and then we dutifully waited in the airport for about an hour until we could get on our flight to Durban. The flight was a little bumpy, especially as we began descending into the Durban airport. There were a couple of times that the plane dropped in some turbulence. But we landed safely and picked up our Nissan rental car. Thank goodness, it's a little larger than the Fiesta, and it's much easier for me to get in and out - the better if I have to scramble because baboons are chasing me as I take photos! Ha!
So, the young man at Thrifty Rental looked at my passport and my driver's license, and he continued referring to me as Mr. Killion. Just goes to show ya that people see what they perceive as a man (me) and nothing, short of baring my breasts, I guess, will change that perception. I'll continue enjoying that male privilege thing but in South Africa, it also as a racial dimension to it - which is a little disconcerting.
We drove the toll road to our next place - Chaka's Rock Resort - on the ocean. No problems except we were a little tired and grimy. We ate supper at a local restaurant and inquired about whether we could sit there tomorrow to do email and possibly watch the first game of the WNBA championship series (I know - we haven't had wi-fi!) because the wi-fi here at the resort is down until Friday (the day we leave).
A hot shower felt soooo good, and we're watching rugby as I type.
The change in temperature is pretty encouraging. We don't need our fleece jackets here, and we can wear shorts- all of which is very encouraging as we are going further north in the next few days.
We're in Shaka's Rock, a town on the north coast of KwaZulu-Natal. It's a small residential village 25 miles from Durban. Its name comes from a promontory over which the Zulu chief Shaka is said to have thrown his enemies and to have tested his men by daring them to jump to their deaths. Shaka's Rock is a popular holiday destination, situated between Salt Rock and Ballito on the Dolphin Coast. Its tidal pool, which I think is where we're snorkeling tomorrow, is protected and well known for snorkeling.
Anywho, we've got the snorkeling trip tomorrow morning, then we're going to do laundry and park ourselves at the sports bar to maybe watch some live streaming of the LPGA tournament then the WNBA game, then supper.
Who knows when I'll be able to post again - we're heading to Eshowe on Friday to the George Hotel for a three-day outback tour that will include a Saturday night stay in a Zulu village.
Enjoy the few photos I took in Tsitsikamma National Park.
This is what they call Formosa Peak or Peak Formosa from the deck of our wi-fi palace at Moon Shine. The peak is the highest in the point of the Tsitsikamma Mountains.
This is where the Storm River enters the ocean in the Tsitsikamma National Park.
Some of the rocks and boulders at Storm River.
More rocks.
These rocks were extremely interesting because they looked like they were pushed straight up from the ground.
Some flora to add to the rocks. :)
This is the suspension bridge we never made it out to see. :)
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