Swasiland
Door: Elke
Blijf op de hoogte en volg Elke
02 Mei 2012 | Swaziland, Lobamba
On our way to Swasiland we stopped at a mall in South Africa to buy lunch and have a bathroom break. We were also advised to get some cash here if we needed some for the next two days. We did however not realize that it was pay day in South Africa, which meant that there was literally a line of at least 10 to 20 people in front of each and every bank and ATM. Again, I think it would be more efficient to make sure that you have enough cash to last till Tuesday, so you don’t have to waist Monday in line for the ATM, but that is again my need for efficiency talking. Of course we needed cash, so after finding out what was going on and that the situation was the same for each ATM, Willem and I got in line for the nearest one. When we had moved about half way down the line we noticed some commotion and discovered later that it was because the machine had broken down, so Willem and I got in line for the next one, only to find out when it was our turn that the maximum amount that you could get from the machine was about 150 Euro’s.
We were informed that with some bad luck it could take up to a few hours to cross the border into Swasiland, but we were lucky and could pass without difficulties. At the South African side, we had to hand our passports to a lady that could extend her arm far enough to reach into a bag of potato chips but had difficulties reaching for our passports. After we all had our stamps we got back into the truck, the four people responsible for raising the barrier, raised the barrier after which we could pass and enter the customs office at the Swasiland side. At our lodge in Kruger we already filled out some kind of customs form. Knowing their king, I was expecting that all young women (which would probably not include me) would have to indicate whether they were still virgins or not, but this was not the case. In the customs office we were however being made aware of the dangers of HIV/AIDS and condoms were provided free of charge.
Our lodge in Swasiland did not have any electricity, so when we arrived at dusk the oil lamps were already burning (increasing the temperatures inside the huts considerably). Given the thatched roofs, candles and oil lamps did not seem very wise to me, but they were the only means to get some light. We did have access to warm running water, but I did not experience any of it. Probably my crucial mistake was my environmentally friendly way of taking a shower, saving water by not fully opening the tab. As a result I enjoyed a cold shower by candle light. The lodge was surrounded by different parks that all housed different types of wild life. We could hear the sounds of wildebeests (or at least we think they were wildebeest) very well and in the early morning we also heard the roar of lions. We had however no idea what to make of one of the sounds that we heard after our arrival at the first night, but later we found out that that was the lady shave of one of our neighbors.
The dinner area and bar in the lodge were open and the walls were made of uneven rocks held together by mortar. The low walls surrounding the bar area allowed for an unobstructed view of a small water whole and had the right height to sit on, which we did until somebody passed by with a UV light. I now know that scorpions light up in UV light and was quite shocked by the number of these creatures hiding in those walls. After that we stuck to our chairs.
The following morning we could sleep in, but of course my biorhythm was adjusted to the new life-style, so I think I was up by 7 at the latest. Walking around the lodge we noticed a group of six rhino’s laying right in front of the (rather flimsy) fence in front of the dinner/breakfast area. We could walk up to them till a distance of about 10 meters, with only two rows of barbed wire separating us from the animals. And while we were there some elephants passed by in the background as well. What a great way to start a day!
The rest of the day was dedicated to relaxing. We drove to a country club nearby where we spent most of our day swimming or reading a book while reclining. The pool seemed to attract huge dung beetles as there were quite a number of them floating in the water (either dead or alive). Being visually impaired was a huge disadvantage, as I would only see them when I had gotten quite close to them (although their size was such, that I did not have to swim into them if I paid some attention). Luckily Louis and Thor saved the day, by just picking them up from the pool with their bare hands(!) and throwing them out.
That evening, after another cold shower (the first day we thought that the cold water might have been caused by Willem taking a shower first, so the second day he generously let me go first but again my shower was cold while his was not – that’s when we came with the aforementioned explanation) and dinner, a dance show was performed by the employees of the lodge. I had not been dancing in a while, so I was very much looking forward to it, but the Swasi-way of dancing was a bit different then what I was hoping for. They were hopping and clapping a bit and every once in a while would kick their legs up really high. It was nice to see, but when we were invited to join at the end, I found it that it was a rhythm that I could not really handle and the leg kicking also was not my thing either. So I did not really get dancing out of my system that night.
The second morning in Swasiland we had another game drive. Lions were still on our which list, so we went to the park with the lions. After a while our ranger spotted three females and a male in the tall grass. We drove around to get the best view, but we couldn’t see them very well. When we were about to leave, the male suddenly got up, so we were anxious to see what would happen. Well this is what happened: He got up, climbed on one of the females (after which the other two got up to leave), he did her for about 10 to 15 seconds, got off and laid back down. She rolled over, so I assume it must have been good for her, but quite frankly, I was not impressed. Later I heard, this would go on about every 20 minutes for a couple of days, but still dude… quality over quantity! Later during the coffee break in the game park (yes, it says coffee break in the game park!), I later asked Annie what she thought of it and I discovered that Annie was mainly disappointed by the lack of sound during this whole ordeal.
After this we left Swasiland (again with a smooth border crossing) and went on to Hluhluwe. Since this is clearly a name that nobody can articulate, it is pronounced like sloesloewie (Dutch spelling).
We were informed that with some bad luck it could take up to a few hours to cross the border into Swasiland, but we were lucky and could pass without difficulties. At the South African side, we had to hand our passports to a lady that could extend her arm far enough to reach into a bag of potato chips but had difficulties reaching for our passports. After we all had our stamps we got back into the truck, the four people responsible for raising the barrier, raised the barrier after which we could pass and enter the customs office at the Swasiland side. At our lodge in Kruger we already filled out some kind of customs form. Knowing their king, I was expecting that all young women (which would probably not include me) would have to indicate whether they were still virgins or not, but this was not the case. In the customs office we were however being made aware of the dangers of HIV/AIDS and condoms were provided free of charge.
Our lodge in Swasiland did not have any electricity, so when we arrived at dusk the oil lamps were already burning (increasing the temperatures inside the huts considerably). Given the thatched roofs, candles and oil lamps did not seem very wise to me, but they were the only means to get some light. We did have access to warm running water, but I did not experience any of it. Probably my crucial mistake was my environmentally friendly way of taking a shower, saving water by not fully opening the tab. As a result I enjoyed a cold shower by candle light. The lodge was surrounded by different parks that all housed different types of wild life. We could hear the sounds of wildebeests (or at least we think they were wildebeest) very well and in the early morning we also heard the roar of lions. We had however no idea what to make of one of the sounds that we heard after our arrival at the first night, but later we found out that that was the lady shave of one of our neighbors.
The dinner area and bar in the lodge were open and the walls were made of uneven rocks held together by mortar. The low walls surrounding the bar area allowed for an unobstructed view of a small water whole and had the right height to sit on, which we did until somebody passed by with a UV light. I now know that scorpions light up in UV light and was quite shocked by the number of these creatures hiding in those walls. After that we stuck to our chairs.
The following morning we could sleep in, but of course my biorhythm was adjusted to the new life-style, so I think I was up by 7 at the latest. Walking around the lodge we noticed a group of six rhino’s laying right in front of the (rather flimsy) fence in front of the dinner/breakfast area. We could walk up to them till a distance of about 10 meters, with only two rows of barbed wire separating us from the animals. And while we were there some elephants passed by in the background as well. What a great way to start a day!
The rest of the day was dedicated to relaxing. We drove to a country club nearby where we spent most of our day swimming or reading a book while reclining. The pool seemed to attract huge dung beetles as there were quite a number of them floating in the water (either dead or alive). Being visually impaired was a huge disadvantage, as I would only see them when I had gotten quite close to them (although their size was such, that I did not have to swim into them if I paid some attention). Luckily Louis and Thor saved the day, by just picking them up from the pool with their bare hands(!) and throwing them out.
That evening, after another cold shower (the first day we thought that the cold water might have been caused by Willem taking a shower first, so the second day he generously let me go first but again my shower was cold while his was not – that’s when we came with the aforementioned explanation) and dinner, a dance show was performed by the employees of the lodge. I had not been dancing in a while, so I was very much looking forward to it, but the Swasi-way of dancing was a bit different then what I was hoping for. They were hopping and clapping a bit and every once in a while would kick their legs up really high. It was nice to see, but when we were invited to join at the end, I found it that it was a rhythm that I could not really handle and the leg kicking also was not my thing either. So I did not really get dancing out of my system that night.
The second morning in Swasiland we had another game drive. Lions were still on our which list, so we went to the park with the lions. After a while our ranger spotted three females and a male in the tall grass. We drove around to get the best view, but we couldn’t see them very well. When we were about to leave, the male suddenly got up, so we were anxious to see what would happen. Well this is what happened: He got up, climbed on one of the females (after which the other two got up to leave), he did her for about 10 to 15 seconds, got off and laid back down. She rolled over, so I assume it must have been good for her, but quite frankly, I was not impressed. Later I heard, this would go on about every 20 minutes for a couple of days, but still dude… quality over quantity! Later during the coffee break in the game park (yes, it says coffee break in the game park!), I later asked Annie what she thought of it and I discovered that Annie was mainly disappointed by the lack of sound during this whole ordeal.
After this we left Swasiland (again with a smooth border crossing) and went on to Hluhluwe. Since this is clearly a name that nobody can articulate, it is pronounced like sloesloewie (Dutch spelling).
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