Into Kruger

Wednesday 10th September

Pretoriuskop, Kruger National Park

I was a real shame not to have spent longer in Swaziland - there's something captivating about this place.

After trying to get rid of as much of the local currency (emalangeni, which is tied to the South African rand E1=R1) as possible, we headed north through the capital Mbabane and over the mountains at Pigg's Peak and back into South Africa.

The border crossing at Jeppe's Reef was much less sophisticated than the one we entered - just a man behind a desk in a shed.

We stopped for fuel at Shoemansdal and I ventured into one of the roadside "tuck shops" - a small metal shed selling soft drinks and snacks.  Amusingly, there was a large cash and carry opposite and the shopkeeper was busy dragging goods across the road to sell at a significant mark-up in his store.

So much trade here is done at the roadside, with everything from pineapples to tombstones on display at the kerb in the hope someone will stop to buy.

Elephant, Kruger National Park

Before long, we entered the Kruger Park and headed towards Berg-en-Dal rest camp to have lunch.  En route, and with much surprise given the terrain, we spotted a few elephants.  Then a few more.  And a few more.  Before long, we had seen around 50, seemingly in a herd moving south in search of water.  (All the central rivers have dried out.)  There's a grace to these magnificent creatures which has to be seen to be believed.

Going on towards Pretoriuskop, the rest camp where we'll spend the next two nights, we stumbled across three hyena cubs, their playful, puppy-like appearance disguising the powerful jaws that lay beneath.

Hyena, Kruger National Park

We also sighted nyala, impala, kudu, giraffe, zebra and white rhino.  On arriving at Pretoriuskop, the car was surrounded by a family of dwarf mongoose, who posture themselves something like a meercat.

We thought we were staying in a rondavel, but are actually "mid-terrace" in an elongated rondavel.  Space is extremely limited - just enough to stand up at the side of the bed.  The sobering thought this brings is that small though this is, it is bigger than many of the homes we have passed in townships, which have whole families living in them.

There are hyena prowling the perimeter fence, clearly hoping for a feed.  More proactively, the vervet monkeys are just going into the communal kitchens and helping themselves.

Swaziland

Tuesday 9th September

Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary, Swaziland

It was my turn to do some of the driving today, and having never driven abroad before, I clocked up two countries in one day as we crossed the border into Swaziland.

The border came upon us quicker than expected and was quite an experience in and of itself.  First, "departures" and a four step process to leave South Africa consisting of gate checks, passport control, customs then more gate checks.  Then, onto "arrivals" in Swaziland which was a repeat of the same procedure with the added step of obtaining a temporary import license and road tax for the car.  Presumably we'll have the same in store to re-enter South Africa tomorrow.

The length of time and quantity of paperwork involved really makes you appreciate how easily we move around the effectively borderless European Union.

The offending warthog, Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary

On crossing into Swaziland, there were several noticeable changes, the first being an absence of towns or built up areas.  For the first 100km or so, nothing but straw, and occasionally tin, huts were visible, each with some chickens or goats roaming around outside.

Clearly a comparatively poor area, one of the striking features was seeing many school-aged children running around playing or carrying out chores, in either case not at school.  We passed very few other vehicles in the rural areas, and being something of a novelty, the children all ran alongside the car to wave to us.

Another change is in landscape, having entered a very mountainous region.  The sandy roads of KwaZulu-Natal have been replaced by a dark red dust.

As we approached Manzini, the biggest city in Swaziland but small by international comparison, larger (sometimes very grand) properties started appearing.  Driving in the crowded city streets was interesting, but the old "if you can't beat them join them" attitude soon prevailed and I quickly learnt to drive like a local.

We then passed by one of the Swazi King's royal residences.  There is clearly a great fondness for the King here, who rules as an absolute monarch.  Many buildings display pictures of the King, Queen Mother and Prime Minister, and many people wear clothes or scarves bearing the King's image.  While at first this could appear dictatorial, I get the sense that it comes from a sense of affection and pride rather than duty or compulsion.

Beehive village, Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary

Inside the beehive hut

We're staying at Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary, one of three national parks in Swaziland.  We'll be spending the night in a Swazi "beehive" hut - a dome made out of sticks and straw, similar to the Zulu kraal we visited.  While very basic, and full of all sorts of small creatures, it's an interesting experience, and does come with the modern convenience of a toilet and shower in an adjoining tin hut.

The wildlife around here has become remarkably habituated to human presence, with warthog and nyala so tame we could get within touching distance without them bothering.  (Although, one warthog took a dislike to me and charged at my legs as I casually walked
past.)

After dinner, we followed the sound of a drumbeat and discovered 20 or so people in traditional Swazi dress singing and dancing under some trees.  They gave quite a performance, which had an authenticity to it which was lacking at Dumazulu.

As first impressions go, Swaziland has made a good one and has certainly captured a place in my heart and imagination.

Rhinos, rhythm and the referendum

Giraffe, Hluhluwe-iMfolozi National Park

Monday 8th September

Hluhluwe, KwaZulu-Natal

I awoke at sunrise to find we were surrounded by a herd of nyala, who soon moved on when our water pupm started up.

The reason for the early start was our first proper game drive around Hluhluwe-iMfolozi National Park.  Originally two separate parks (hence the mouthful of a name), this is now a "big 5" location and we were not disappointed.

Within moments of entering the park, after waiting for a family of warthog to cross in front of us, we quickly spotted significant numbers of white rhino, a magnificent creature to see in the wild.

Less than a century ago, there were fewer than 100 white rhino left in the wild, yet they have now been removed from the critically endangered list almost entirely thanks to the conservation team in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi - there are now around 10,000 in this park alone!

Every bit as impressive were the many giraffes, one of which even gave us a real performance, strutting back and forth as if it had been asked to pose for photos.  At one point, he passed within about 6 feet.  Whenever we saw giraffe, zebra were not far behind and before long a sighting of buffalo gave us our second of the big 5.

Heading south into the iMfolozi section of the park, the rivers and waterfalls were dry, and the trees and veld charred from recent fires set by the rangers to encourage new grass growth.  This meant not many animals to see, and certainly dashed any hopes we may have had about glimpsing an elephant.

All-in-all, though, a successful day's game viewing: warthog, giraffe, zebra, white rhino, impala, nyala, kudu, buffalo, blue wildebeest, red duiker, waterbuck, helmeted guinea fowl.

At one rest camp (Centenary Centre), we found a local craft market where I picked up a carved wooden Zulu drum for under R500 (about £30).  I've no idea how to get it home yet, but that's for another day.

As this is our last night here, we dined at Hluhluwe River Lodge.  Kudu steaks were served up and were absolutely delicious (very lean, cooked medium-rare and a richer flavour than beef) although there is something very strange about eating kudu while watching kudu innocently pass by on the plain.

(While here, we were visited by a different, smaller, but equally gallous genet.)

We leave South Africa tomorrow for an overnight sojourn into Swaziland, a small independent nation - three words resonating with any Scot at the moment as referendum day looms.  Part of me regrets not being physically present to cast my vote (we're voting by proxy instead), but another part of me is glad to be out of the heat and bluster of the debate, instead enjoying the slower pace of life dictated by a crossing family of warthog.