sangoma visit (shewula, swaziland)

On the final leg of our holiday road trip, we went up to Swaziland for a few days. Swaziland is one of the two entirely land-locked countries bordering (enclosed by) South Africa; Lesotho is the other. Both are kingdoms with traditional tribal leadership. 

Our first impression was that Swaziland was in pretty good shape! (relative to our expectations anyway - Jennifer has done some volunteering with HIV organizations, and had done lots of reading on how widespread the HIV epidemic is in Swaziland, which led us to expect sub-par government services. Sounds like things have improved since the early 2000s). We drove across the whole country (which isn't exactly saying a lot - it took maybe 4 hours) and saw good roads and some nice towns and productive farms. Sugar cane is a big industry there, and there are a few sugar processing mills that provide some good work. 

We spent a couple of nights near Mbabane, the capital, in a resort-y valley called Ezulwini. There was a shopping mall down the road with all our familiar South African brands (Woolie's, Mugg & Bean!) and some nice walking right outside the door. But we were hankering to see a little more of the country, and after discovering a very local guidebook in an art gallery on our first morning and phoning around to a couple of community-run lodges in rural areas, we decided to head up to Shewula for New Year's Eve. 

We were so glad we did. What a beautiful, peaceful place. Definitely recommend anyone interested in Swaziland take a look!! http://www.shewulacamp.org/thecamp.php. The camp was clean and welcoming and quiet, and we really enjoyed a couple of tours of the area, which is filled with subsistence farms (mostly maize and wheat, plus vegetable gardens). 

On our first afternoon, we had an amazing visit with a sangoma, a traditional healer, and enjoyed asking her questions about her life and work. We had heard that over 80% of South Africans visit with a sangoma at least once per year, so were curious to see what this was all about. This sangoma said she sees around 15 people per day on average, mostly from South Africa and Swaziland. Since she is about a 30 minute drive up a dirt road, after a 1-2 hour drive from the nearest town on the highway, which is another 2-3 hours from the South African border on any side, we thought those were impressive numbers. She sees very few Mozambicans, despite her road being only 10km from the border. We gathered that the sangomas in Mozambique follow a slightly different tradition.

Here was our view of the sangoma and her tools: her bones are on the mat in front of her, which she "throws" to read someone's fortune. The many bottles next to her are full of homemade poultices and tinctures, which she prescribes for various ailments. Calendars are on the wall behind her. 

She is answering our questions, translated by December, who sits to her left. We asked about her outfit, and she said the spirits require her to wear certain things, so everything she wears was specifically requested by a spirit.

road tripping and city living (durban and sodwana bay, kwaZulu-natal)

We had a great time breaking up our time in the wild with a little stopover in Durban on our road trip. Durban has a huge Indian community, so the food is awesome. We had great curries every night and spent afternoons walking the city beaches. 

From Durban we headed north up the coast to Sodwana Bay, a beautiful place a bit south of the border of Mozambique. Jennifer got her scuba certification, and Jim got an advanced open water certification. We only got to dive together a couple of times :) but managed to see some beautiful water life - green turtles, moray eels, giant potato bass (as big as Jennifer!!), and amazing live corals. Aside from vomiting at the end of every dive waiting for the boat to head back to shore (Jennifer gets very seasick!!) it was an amazing week at scuba camp. 

A camera shot back towards the city of Durban.

Beers on a big pier over the Durban Waterfront after a long morning beach walk.

Hanging out on the beach!

Who needs an ocean when there is a gigantic pool that is 2 feet deep?  This was a spectacle to behold!

A Durban beach two days before Christmas.  There are certain sections of the beach for swimming that are about 100 meters wide and tightly policed by lifeguards.  Kids from all around pack into those 100 meters to get their chance at diving and jumping into the waves.

Body surfing!

monks cowl and didima gorge (drakensberg mountains, kwaZulu-natal)

The Drakensberg Mountains are a stunning wilderness that has protected and provided for thousands upon thousands of generations of humans.  They functioned as a boundary for the Basutu people who were defending themselves from an encroaching and militaristic Zulu population and later the encroaching and militaristic Boers, not to mention the English.  Before this recent history they were home to Khoi Khoi or Khoi San people.  The evidence of the Khoi Khoi can be found in really cool rock art--some of which we found and is pictured below.  

Finding hidden caves is probably one of the coolest aspects of the Drakensberg.  They are on maps, but that does not mean you are going to find them.  We hiked far and wide to find two caves and spent the night happily tucked away behind a waterfall for one night.  The cave was so protective and peaceful that we spent about 20 hours hanging out, eating, and sleeping before moving on.  

The grass is stunning--more recently burned sections actually look greener.

There are plentiful streams and waterfalls as it is the rainy season.  Getting caught in one thunderstorm taught us how quickly the waters can rise.  We ended up saving a German couple from possible demise after a particularly powerful thunderstorm brought streams from 5 cm deep, to 1 meter deep in a matter of minutes after pelting us with marble-sized hail.  If you're wondering what the hell we were doing we were too.  That was our last hike up the big mountain.  Until next time!

Disclaimer:  The pictures are not in chronological order--maybe I'll take the time to rearrange them later.

This is one of a few of the Ranger Cabins.  So, don't think they're used very much anymore.  This is called the Ranger Station on the map.  Gives you a good idea of the politics in the region.  If someone builds a public building near you that means you are allowed to harvest anything valuable from that structure...including its roof.

This nearly hidden road through a swamp reminded me of Frodo walking through the swamp of the ancient battlefield where there were dead elves and orcs.  The Drakensberg was also an area that inspired curiosity and imagination in a young JRR Tolkien.

kensoks on a quick trip! (cape town)

We really enjoyed having Tim and Karen visit before the holiday break.  It was great to see them and be able to spend time with family before Jennifer and I set off on another adventure together.  Tim and Karen spent most of their days by the pool with interesting books in hand--the kind of vacation that leaves you well rested and content.  They also took Jennifer and I out to countless lunches and dinners of extremely high quality.  It was fun to taste all of the great food and wine together and share stories from past Christmas and Thanksgiving seasons.  They will attest to the splendor of the Greenspan residence and the luxury that it provides should anyone be tempted to book tickets at the last minute.

Dad on a hike above Hout Bay

Re-visiting a favorite spot from their last visit!

Jennifer worked very hard on my birthday cake.  Thank you Jennifer!!!!

Birthday boy with all his spoils!!

It is the whole crew of birthday gatherers at the table. Starting from left to wrap around the table to the right: Bash, Mia, Me, Patrick, Randy, Erika, Tim, Karen, Gabby, Tom, and Jennifer taking the picture!  We had a blast at dinner and enjoyed goofing around with everyone.

crayfish boil (aka south african rock lobsters)

Thank you to our friend Emile for catching these for us!  What a guy!  I'd like to go along with him sometime, but it is a close-knit family venture so I don't anticipate being asked to go.  They once saw a big great white while diving for these things so there is certainly a sense of adventure when free-diving 30 feet to the bottom to look for your crayfish.  Sounds like a blast to me!

Gabby and Tom look like they're enjoying themselves!  Gabby and Tom, hoping to hear you survived and had fun in Beirut.

Jim is an awesome chef!!

children's home in komga with jon, mike, jim, amy, mark, the volunteers, aunties, uncles, and the kids!

Our last stop in Komga was very important to all of us--we wanted to see all of the good work that Amy and Mark Rolfes were up to at the Children's Home.  We met some great people--five volunteers that had just graduated from Notre Dame, Aunties and Uncles who keep the kids in order, and of course the kids!

We had a fun morning hanging out with the kids who didn't go home during the school holiday that was happening when we were there.  Jon and I were able to secure a piece of metal from one of the tennis court stands that looked in danger of causing multiple wounds this year as kids were pedaling their bikes past it at top speed.  We were bending metal right and left, but eventually prevailed in moving the nuts that hadn't been spun in 20+ years.  Meantime, the kids were drawing pictures of me on the tennis court with rocks.  Each drawing surpassed the one before it until I was a long-haired caricature with huge breasts and a skirt, ha ha!  I was impressed with the playful creativity of the kids, but needless to say Mike was VERY impressed to the point that he had trouble keeping himself from laughing to tears.

Mark and Amy put us up for the night at a local lodge and we had some great Kudu lasagna that reminded me of all the times I ate my Dad's venison tomale pie.

This time in Komga sealed a great trip and ended our great adventure into the Eastern Cape of South Africa.  We then spent a whole day at the pool, playing tennis, and doing nothing at the mansion to make sure the boys were recovered for their long trip home.

Thanks a ton for coming down here Mike and Jon!  It made the whole South African experience more real for Amy & Mark and me & Jennifer--it is a long ways away from the people we care about and it means a lot!

Below is a joke to start the post, "continue the joke"

This is Mike's form of manual zoom--screenshot, zoom, screenshot, zoom, screenshot.  Killer look from the Dossie!

        

  

Jon preparing some extra food to bring to the Komga Children's Home.  If only we hadn't decided it was best to consolidate the fries into one of the trays, the salad into another, and the pies into another.  We could have just left them all in their trays!  Mike and I enjoyed watching Jon try to close these trays--the task was meant for more nimble fingers.

Jon and Amy under the Acacia Tree.

Mike using the universal tourist symbol.

Curious gazes from Jon, Amy, and Mike.

This is the ravine next to the lodge where we stayed in Komga. 

Looking out away from the ravine.

Must be a typical scene at the Children's Home.

addo elephant park with mike, jon, and jim

Rule number one on game drives:  don't get out of the vehicle.  Most tempting rule to break when one needs to find something in the back of the car:  Rule number one.  We had a good time breaking this rule when I was looking for the talisman Mike brought along to give us good luck.  We were having a relatively crappy game drive (nothing but zebras, kudus, and warthogs) up until this point and really wanted to see some lions--so the effort was to recover our lucky talisman, then we would begin seeing big game.  After a fruitless search I climbed back in the car and began driving around the bend...about 200 meters until we saw a pride of lions relaxing next to the road.  Yikes!  That is why you don't get out of the car, ha ha.

We had a blast seeing the animals, cruising around the park, and saving two German fraulines from a gigantic spider.  Good thing our ladies have us disciplined--we recovered the spider and left immediately to recline to a chapter from World War Z--the zombie epic that we were reading to each other in the car.

One of Mike's best sitings was a hare, sitting next to the road just behind a hill so that oncoming traffic could not see us.  We had time to pause for a picture, then get out of the way!

Other fantastic sitings included rhinos, elephants, leopard tortoises, kudus, and of course--the lions.

This makes me wan to eat a salad.

Or be a tortoise

Not a dung beetle though.

Imagine the scene in Money Python... "Run away!  Run away! Clip clop, clip clop, clip clop" 

shark diving and the tsitsikamma national park with jon, mike, and jim (jennifer was with the sharks too!)

These pictures of sharks top the charts on excitement during our vacation.  All  four of us--Jon, Mike, Jennifer, and Jim had a blast in the shark tank.  At one time Jennifer pinned herself against the back of the cage as a big great white shark came within 6 inches of the front of the cage--moving straight towards us!  Jon and Mike were allowed to go back in the cage for a second dive, but said most of the excitement was when we were all in the cage together.  There is one picture in particular, of a sham about to attack the bait from straight below that stuns me every time I look at it. These creatures were amazing to watch and we were so thankful to have a bit of good steel between us and them!

The second set of pictures covers our hike along the coastline in the Tsitsikamma National Park.  We hiked over many boulder fields, through dens jungle with vines all around, and past huge caves that once housed some of the first homo sapiens over 70,000 years ago.  We ended the hike at a 150 foot cascading waterfall that dumped it's brown, tannin-stained water into the ocean.  The mist, jumping schools of dolphins, rock pools to swim in, and the inescapable feeling of being a pirate about to bury treasure made the hike a great adventure.  

The next step of the journey took us to the mighty South African bush that is conserved as Addo Elephant National Park.

This was one of the smaller sharks if you can imagine that. 

That white belly gives them their name--the Great White Shark! 

This was not one of the smaller ones...

You an see that the wood is scarred from battle--there were a few sharks that dragged this fake seal under.  The bait guy would have to let the shark take the line until they realized they were eating wood.  I wanted to check the wood for teeth, but apparently they don't get stuck too often.

This is the picture that I couldn't believe.  The shark is perfectly positioned to attack from below.

cape town with jon, mike, jennifer, and jim

These pictures show the house and a grand adventure of a hike up Table Mountain.  We had a blast on the hike and continuously referred to Jon's shorter legs--encouraging him to push it hard.  Around 1 pm we prevailed and reached the summit--a long hike from Constantia Nek.  Jon agreed that Mike's background of being dragged out on 12 mile hikes for every one of his birthdays growing up may have had an impact on his enjoyment level of the hike.  Alas, we all had a grand time exploring and seeing the views.  Sorry this has taken me so long to post!

More posts coming soon about exploration outside of Cape Town!

This is the humble abode in which we stayed in for 3 of the 8 nights.

The view of Table Mountain from Jon's window.

Beginning the hike up Table Mountain--we made it all the way from Constantia Nek to MacLear's Beacon to the Cable Car, then down the Cable car to the city side.  Quite a hike!

Jon realizing for the first time that we're making him hike a huge mountain.  The strong goat legs weren't quite the ideal tool for following a Crowley up the incline.

We made it up to a steep cliff and covered about 1/2 of our elevation or so :)

Beautiful False  Bay.