Impala

Our last morning at the game lodge! We woke up early, added the final things to the suitcases and were at breakfast by 7am. It was very sad to say goodbye to the wonderful staff and our ranger, everyone got big hugs from us! I have definitely lost a piece of my heart to the bush and the wild animals, it has been the best holiday we have ever had and I would love to go back again. When I was younger I was not that keen on going on safari, I preferred exploring the culture and foods of different cities, but as I have  got older I appreciate nature so much more - wild animals and wild landscapes are what I love.

 We had a very bumpy 2.5 hour drive over dirt roads to the airport at Hoedspruit, passing through dusty villages along the way. We flew to Johannesburg, it was only a 49 minute flight, then after a wait connected to our flight to Durban, which was another 50 minutes. However the travelling seemed to take all day as we only landed in Durban at 4pm and by the time we got to our hotel in Umhlanga Rocks it was nearly sunset. The Oyster Box hotel where we are staying has been here for decades, I remember coming here with my grandmother when I was a young girl, and I have stayed here many years ago when the boys were tiny. It is situated right on the beach near the famous lighthouse, and there is a wonderful promenade that runs in front of it which is very popular with walkers and joggers.

After checking in we quickly dropped our bags and most of us went for a run along the promenade. I was a bit worried about safety as it was now dark but the promenade was so full of runners and walkers I did not have to worry. In fact despite warning the young adults about the security situation here we have always felt safe and never felt uncomfortable in any situation. If one is sensible, as you have to be in any large city, it is fine. The load shedding (power cuts) happen every day but all large hotels and offices now have generators (so bad for the environment) and many homes have solar panels so in typical SAfrican fashion, the people make a plan when things don't work. The load shedding is preplanned so you know when the power is going off and there is a momentary power cut as the power goes off and the generator kicks in, which is not a problem unless you happen to be on a treadmill as I was when this happened at the game lodge, I nearly fell off at the sudden stop and lost all my stats on the treadmill counter! Such is life in South Africa.

Tonight we are eating supper on the hotel terrace overlooking the crashing waves on the beach. Tomorrow we are going to see my sister and to see my niece's children, the boys and girls are very excited about that!

No time for photos today except for this image of an impala that I took as we were driving out of the game reserve this morning.