You can see a gallery of full-size photos on :
Showing posts with label South Africa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label South Africa. Show all posts
Friday, February 20, 2009
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Our 1st border crossing: Ponta do Ouro, into Mozambique
We woke up early: our noisy neighbours were getting ready to go fishing on the Kosi Bay estuary. The day is overcast and a welcome respite after the last few days. At 8am we are ready to head to the border post a few kms away.
At 9am the border is already very busy. Cars are queuing for over a km of road at least. It is Saturday, the first day of the Christmas holidays. Hundreds of South Africans are going to the coast. It looks like the great trek: a migration of fully kitted 4x4 with trailers, tents, boats, jet-skis, quad bikes… In front of us a group of students in a fancy Land Cruiser with a trailer have cracked open the beers. They are not the only ones...
We eventually get to the border (2hrs) and everything goes smoothly. The staff are friendly and helpful and it is well organised. We don’t take photos around the border as it probably isn’t allowed.
Steve gets a 1 month visa for ZAR 17 on his South African passport. Mine (French)costs ZAR 172. It is less than what I was expecting from the information I had gathered from the Embassy. It’s a pleasant surprise. The compulsory car insurance costs ZAR 150, and we don’t have to pay for a temporary import permit for our vehicle thanks to the Carnet de Passage (CDP).
The border post officials didn’t know about the CDP, and it took them quite some time to figure it out with them. but eventually they were very happy that we had such an official document with us. Steve was very patient, and I walked around, observing with amusement the “great summer migration” and looking for a discreet spot without snakes or mines to go to the loo.
We have done about 3,000km since we left Cape Town 2 weeks ago.
Once in Mozambique we have the choice between 3 sandy tracks. They are all 4x4 only. We are told that the one on the left will take us to Maputo. The GPS confirms: keep left all the way to Boane and you will be fine.
At 9am the border is already very busy. Cars are queuing for over a km of road at least. It is Saturday, the first day of the Christmas holidays. Hundreds of South Africans are going to the coast. It looks like the great trek: a migration of fully kitted 4x4 with trailers, tents, boats, jet-skis, quad bikes… In front of us a group of students in a fancy Land Cruiser with a trailer have cracked open the beers. They are not the only ones...
We eventually get to the border (2hrs) and everything goes smoothly. The staff are friendly and helpful and it is well organised. We don’t take photos around the border as it probably isn’t allowed.
Steve gets a 1 month visa for ZAR 17 on his South African passport. Mine (French)costs ZAR 172. It is less than what I was expecting from the information I had gathered from the Embassy. It’s a pleasant surprise. The compulsory car insurance costs ZAR 150, and we don’t have to pay for a temporary import permit for our vehicle thanks to the Carnet de Passage (CDP).
The border post officials didn’t know about the CDP, and it took them quite some time to figure it out with them. but eventually they were very happy that we had such an official document with us. Steve was very patient, and I walked around, observing with amusement the “great summer migration” and looking for a discreet spot without snakes or mines to go to the loo.
We have done about 3,000km since we left Cape Town 2 weeks ago.
Once in Mozambique we have the choice between 3 sandy tracks. They are all 4x4 only. We are told that the one on the left will take us to Maputo. The GPS confirms: keep left all the way to Boane and you will be fine.
Friday, December 12, 2008
From the Transkei to Kwazulu Natal: our last week in South Africa
Our last night in South Africa is at the Kosi Bay rest camp. Once again, and despite the fact that the holiday season has started and we haven’t made any bookings, we have been lucky to find a campsite.
Tomorrow we will cross the nearby border post of Ponta do Ouro into Mozambique. I have just had a hot shower and Steve is preparing a potjie - the last of our farewell party chicken (let’s hope it wont make us sick). We are wearing long pants and long sleeved shirts as we have entered a malaria endemic area.
It is hard to believe that we were in South Africa over the past few days. It has been hot, humid, and overcast. It feels very tropical. We are slowly getting used to being constantly damp.
The roads have been good and very scenic; tarred roads wandering through the Transkei’s green hills, the national road bordered by sugar cane or eucalyptus plantations, or the sandy coastal 4x4 tracks we have been following since Mabibi Beach.
Fri 12/12 – From Mabibi to Kosi Bay along the coastal 4x4 sandy tracks:
Thur 11/12 – From St Lucia to Mabibi Beach is our first real trip off the main roads. We pass Muzi Pan and its amazingly rich bird life and then onto Lake Sibaya, the largest fresh water lake in Southern Africa. Our camp is in the coastal forest on top of the dunes at Mabibi.
It is a full moon night, the beach is remote. That night we are fortunate to witness a 1,2m long loggerhead turtle lay her hundred eggs.
In the morning Steve does a bit of DIY blacksmithing to fix our tent’s poles. They need to be bent more sharply so the flysheet won’t blow away in the wind.
Wed 10/12 – It was a peaceful drive St Lucia. We arrived at dusk and found the False Bay Caravan Park totally empty, except for a herd of zebra, a warthog and her baby, a lone male nyala and a pelican. It was only when we went to the office to pay the next morning that we discovered that the campsite was actually closed because of a severe draught and insufficient drinking water for campers.
Tues 9 and Wed 10/12 - Kristi, Jason, and baby Hudson welcome us at their home in Durban. We are invited to a fantastic braai at Jason’s parents. Thank you! Congratulations to Jason on his 30th and to Hudson for his first rollover.
Our hopes for a surf in Durban were high… But the ocean was flat…
Never the less, we had a great time visiting the Ushaka Marine World!
Mon 8/12 - “Nature” woke us up at dawn so we could pay him for the campsite. We helped three young boys collect rubbish around the camp. We drop it at Lusikisiki on our way North:
We left Mpande Bay and took the scenic route to Durban, passing by the Transkei’s turquoise round huts on the hills, and through a few small but busy towns with a strong African feel:
On the road to Durban we stop to visit Oribi Gorge:
Tomorrow we will cross the nearby border post of Ponta do Ouro into Mozambique. I have just had a hot shower and Steve is preparing a potjie - the last of our farewell party chicken (let’s hope it wont make us sick). We are wearing long pants and long sleeved shirts as we have entered a malaria endemic area.
It is hard to believe that we were in South Africa over the past few days. It has been hot, humid, and overcast. It feels very tropical. We are slowly getting used to being constantly damp.
The roads have been good and very scenic; tarred roads wandering through the Transkei’s green hills, the national road bordered by sugar cane or eucalyptus plantations, or the sandy coastal 4x4 tracks we have been following since Mabibi Beach.
Fri 12/12 – From Mabibi to Kosi Bay along the coastal 4x4 sandy tracks:
Thur 11/12 – From St Lucia to Mabibi Beach is our first real trip off the main roads. We pass Muzi Pan and its amazingly rich bird life and then onto Lake Sibaya, the largest fresh water lake in Southern Africa. Our camp is in the coastal forest on top of the dunes at Mabibi.
It is a full moon night, the beach is remote. That night we are fortunate to witness a 1,2m long loggerhead turtle lay her hundred eggs.
In the morning Steve does a bit of DIY blacksmithing to fix our tent’s poles. They need to be bent more sharply so the flysheet won’t blow away in the wind.
Wed 10/12 – It was a peaceful drive St Lucia. We arrived at dusk and found the False Bay Caravan Park totally empty, except for a herd of zebra, a warthog and her baby, a lone male nyala and a pelican. It was only when we went to the office to pay the next morning that we discovered that the campsite was actually closed because of a severe draught and insufficient drinking water for campers.
Tues 9 and Wed 10/12 - Kristi, Jason, and baby Hudson welcome us at their home in Durban. We are invited to a fantastic braai at Jason’s parents. Thank you! Congratulations to Jason on his 30th and to Hudson for his first rollover.
Our hopes for a surf in Durban were high… But the ocean was flat…
Never the less, we had a great time visiting the Ushaka Marine World!
Mon 8/12 - “Nature” woke us up at dawn so we could pay him for the campsite. We helped three young boys collect rubbish around the camp. We drop it at Lusikisiki on our way North:
We left Mpande Bay and took the scenic route to Durban, passing by the Transkei’s turquoise round huts on the hills, and through a few small but busy towns with a strong African feel:
On the road to Durban we stop to visit Oribi Gorge:
Sunday, December 07, 2008
Into Africa
Today, we crossed into the Transkei, home to the Xhosa people. To us it feels like another country.
From Chintsa we followed the N2 again up to Umtata (Mthatha), then the R61 (newly resurfaced) towards Port St Johns. The road was very scenic, with villages scattered on green hillsides along the way. We didn’t see much industry. It’s all subsistence farming, with a few crops and cattle. Some of the women wear white clay on their faces (homemade sunscreen?) and we notice a few groups of painted young men wearing blankets. We suppose that they are being initiated and we can see their temporary straw huts on the outskirts of the villages. Sunday must be laundry day as all the fences are covered in colourful pieces of clothes. 
Pat recommended that we visit Mpande, a place he had visited 10 years ago. It wasn’t easy to find. It doesn’t appear on our Michelin map (which covers the whole of Southern and Central Africa). We use our GPS for the first time. It works, and we find Mpande where its always been, a small village and an isolated beach.
It’s beautiful and wild. Three lifeguards all dressed in matching yellow outfits and hats sitting under a tree! We wonder who sponsors or trains them. It seems totally out of character when there is not a single other person on the beach.
Behind the beach there seem to be a few campsites. There are taps (no drinking water), horses grazing, and young boys picking fruits in the trees. The lifeguards tell us that to camp here we must speak to “Nature”. A young girl dressed in pink is sent to the village to fetch him. It turns out that “Nature” is an old man with a knobkierrie (stick with a heavy knob at the hitting end) and is the Nature Conservation Ranger for this stretch of coast. He tells us that we need to get a permit in Umtata (80km back, on dirt road) if we want to camp here. Eventually, he agrees to let us stay for the night on condition that we hire a guard for the night. We arranged for Ronnie to guard our camp for fifty rand that night. 
Two young men from the village come by as we are setting camp for dinner. They speak English with a strong surfer accent (“Hey bru, no ways dude”). They tell us that this camp used to be thriving when it was run by Nature Conservation. Unfortunately, the community got jealous and asked for the land back. Now, nobody seems to be in charge, and “The Kraal” backpackers on the other side of the village gets all the business.
We noticed a few holiday houses overlooking the beach. Tom-tom told us that white people could buy a piece of land here for a crate of beer, a bottle of brandy and 2000 rands. It seems that some of the old campers may have opted for their own house on the hill instead… 
Boy carrying wood at Mpande.
Steve at Chintsa.
Caro at Cape St Francis.
"Petanque" tournament at Rivendale.
From Chintsa we followed the N2 again up to Umtata (Mthatha), then the R61 (newly resurfaced) towards Port St Johns. The road was very scenic, with villages scattered on green hillsides along the way. We didn’t see much industry. It’s all subsistence farming, with a few crops and cattle. Some of the women wear white clay on their faces (homemade sunscreen?) and we notice a few groups of painted young men wearing blankets. We suppose that they are being initiated and we can see their temporary straw huts on the outskirts of the villages. Sunday must be laundry day as all the fences are covered in colourful pieces of clothes.
The scenic R61.
Pat recommended that we visit Mpande, a place he had visited 10 years ago. It wasn’t easy to find. It doesn’t appear on our Michelin map (which covers the whole of Southern and Central Africa). We use our GPS for the first time. It works, and we find Mpande where its always been, a small village and an isolated beach.
It’s beautiful and wild. Three lifeguards all dressed in matching yellow outfits and hats sitting under a tree! We wonder who sponsors or trains them. It seems totally out of character when there is not a single other person on the beach.
Behind the beach there seem to be a few campsites. There are taps (no drinking water), horses grazing, and young boys picking fruits in the trees. The lifeguards tell us that to camp here we must speak to “Nature”. A young girl dressed in pink is sent to the village to fetch him. It turns out that “Nature” is an old man with a knobkierrie (stick with a heavy knob at the hitting end) and is the Nature Conservation Ranger for this stretch of coast. He tells us that we need to get a permit in Umtata (80km back, on dirt road) if we want to camp here. Eventually, he agrees to let us stay for the night on condition that we hire a guard for the night. We arranged for Ronnie to guard our camp for fifty rand that night.
Our camp at Mpande.
Two young men from the village come by as we are setting camp for dinner. They speak English with a strong surfer accent (“Hey bru, no ways dude”). They tell us that this camp used to be thriving when it was run by Nature Conservation. Unfortunately, the community got jealous and asked for the land back. Now, nobody seems to be in charge, and “The Kraal” backpackers on the other side of the village gets all the business.
We noticed a few holiday houses overlooking the beach. Tom-tom told us that white people could buy a piece of land here for a crate of beer, a bottle of brandy and 2000 rands. It seems that some of the old campers may have opted for their own house on the hill instead…
Boy carrying wood at Mpande.Steve at Chintsa.Sat (6/12) - We are thinking of Melissa and Tiaan who are getting married today.
Chintsa is slightly north of East London. It is almost the Transkei, although we haven’t passed the Kei River yet. Since we passed Grahamstown and crossed the Fish Fiver, which used to be the old frontier between white and black South Africa, it has started to feel very much like rural Africa. Nabome and cabbage trees cover the hills around us. The first round huts have appeared under the big blue sky. Women sell pineapples on the side of the road. Tonight we use mosquito lotion for the first time, even though there is no risk of malaria yet. We are still eating quiche and soup leftovers from the farewell party a week ago.
Chintsa is slightly north of East London. It is almost the Transkei, although we haven’t passed the Kei River yet. Since we passed Grahamstown and crossed the Fish Fiver, which used to be the old frontier between white and black South Africa, it has started to feel very much like rural Africa. Nabome and cabbage trees cover the hills around us. The first round huts have appeared under the big blue sky. Women sell pineapples on the side of the road. Tonight we use mosquito lotion for the first time, even though there is no risk of malaria yet. We are still eating quiche and soup leftovers from the farewell party a week ago.
Caro at Cape St Francis.Fri (5/12) - After an easy trip along the N2 we turned at the lively town of Humansdorp and arrived in Cape St Francis to check out the surf, where we had enjoyed it so much the last time we were there. There were no waves, but we had a great time walking along the beach to the light house, and swimming in an almost warm ocean. Our campsite was just behind this lovely beach, amongst white walled thatched-roof houses. The caravaners started to arrive en masse the following morning, the start of Christmas holidays…
Pat and B at Rivendale.
"Petanque" tournament at Rivendale.Thur (4/12) - We staged a successful “petanque” tournament at Rivendale, and managed to get in a surf at Vic Bay before it was time to head north into Africa.
Thursday, December 04, 2008
We are on the road!
We left Cape Town at 4pm on Saturday (29/11) in a light drizzle. Packing took us a little bit longer than expected, but so far we haven’t found that we forgot anything.Four hours and 450km later we are at Rivendale, Pat and B’s farm just outside George. It was an easy drive on the good South African national roads. This was just as well as we were quite tired after a week of hard work and late nights.
We have been here for 5 days. Farm life has slowed our progress down to an average of 50km and four coffees per day. We have been making final preparations in between helping out around the farm and relaxing with Pat and B.
We decided to install another leaf spring to the rear of the car which is sagging a bit under the load.
Friday should see us heading for Cape St Francis. We will then slowly make our way up the coast, with the idea of reaching Mozambique and Maputo around December 12.
Steve enjoying farm life.
Cloudy skies over the farmlands around George. In the background, the Outeniqua Mountains.
On Tuesday (02/12) we took a drive to Victoria Bay (no surfing, unfortunately) and had tea in Wilderness with Helen and Hugo. Ten years ago they welcomed Caro in their home for her first Christmas in South Africa and we have remained friends. Helen grew up in Uganda and Kenya, and we will be sending her smiles from there. 
On Monday (01/12) the sky cleared and we were fortunate enough to witness Jupiter and Venus aligned with the moon for a few hours. We agreed that in ancient times this would have been seen as a special omen. The next day we saw this article in the local paper.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
.JPG)
