As we entered Richard’s Bay the shore was lined with sandy beaches with trees almost touching the sea. Unlike other recent stops the terrain is rather flat. From here we moved into a circular harbor where cargo boats were docked around the perimeter. Unfortunately we were docked near piles of coal and the air was filled with soot that blackened the tables and chairs.
In the afternoon we went to a Zulu village about 1.5 hours drive from the port. The name of the village is Gooderson DumaZulu. https://www.dumazulu.co.za
This is a demonstration village where 14 Zulu live. Their real village is more remote. They use this village to share information about their culture.
There we:
- Learned how traditional spears and shields are created
- Discovered the meaning and use of Zulu beadwork
- Learned about the Inyanga (traditional healer)
- Witnessed the excitement of a stick-fighting demonstration
- Watched the energy and rhythm of a traditional Zulu dance
It was a bit Disney-like but was still interesting seeing the village and discovering more about the Zulu people.
As we were watching the Zulu the monkeys watched us. They were having great fun scampering across the roofs and through the trees.
The second day in port here we again drove 1.5 hours to St. Lucia. St Lucia is a settlement in Umkhanyakude District Municipality in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. The small town is mainly a hub for the iSimangaliso Wetland Park.
One of the claims to fame of St. Lucia is that the hippos come out of the wetlands at night to search for 40 kilos of grass per animal and their journey often takes them directly through town.
iSimangaliso Wetland Park is situated on the east coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, about 235 km (146 mi) north of Durban by road. It is South Africa's third-largest protected area, spanning 280 km (170 mi) of coastline, from the Mozambican border in the north to Mapelane south of the Lake St. Lucia estuary, and made up of around 3,280 km2 (1,270 sq mi) of natural ecosystems.
In December 1999, the park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site at an unveiling ceremony, where Nelson Mandela was the guest of honour. The park was proclaimed a world heritage site because of the rich biodiversity, unique ecosystems and natural beauty occurring in a relatively small area. The reason for the great diversity in fauna and flora is the great variety of different ecosystems on the park, ranging from coral reefs and sandy beaches to subtropical dune forests, savannas, and wetlands. Animals occurring on the park include elephant, leopard, black and southern white rhino, Cape buffalo, and in the ocean, whales, dolphins, and marine turtles including the leatherback and loggerhead turtles.
The park is also home to 1,200 crocodiles and 800 hippopotami.
That said, our goal was the hippopotami and we were fortunate to find three pods plus a lone hippo (our guide was unsure if he was a male that had been thrown out of a pod, had been hurt, was establishing a new territory or a female about to give birth). Apparently there is only 1 male (excluding infant males) in a pod.
We learned about the reflexive sleep breathing and much more about the hippos. It was great fun to see them in their natural habitat.
We agreed even if we didn’t see anything we would have enjoyed our boat cruise through the wetlands as the breeze was beautiful and we enjoyed watching the reeds swaying in the wind.
It was very relaxing as well as interesting. A fantastic experience.