As we traveled north on the coast of Africa from Capetown, we visited the ports of Pt. Elizabeth and Durban. In Port Elizabeth, I visited the “Townships” as they are referred to however we might recognize them more with the term shantys. It was an unflinching look at the living conditions and present-day lives of Africans who are neither wealthy or privileged. Our guide had grown up in this area and reminded us that these people do not know life any differently and are content with things.
We visited a school, grades K-12 where they face such challenges as poor attendance which they have resolved by offering one meal per day. Since oftentimes the children go without, this is the incentive that has brought them to attend on a regular basis. The government is working very hard to improve the conditions but have a long way to go. The World Cup Football (soccer in our terms) is being held in South Africa in June/July 2010 so much is being done in preparation for that which has provided jobs and incentive for improvements.
In Durban, I went looking for my pet giraffe (statue) which is a common souvenir item to purchase on African trips. I found mine – they say the face(s) have to talk to you. Not sure what they said but I am working on names for them. One man bought an 8 ft tall one!
Weather is constantly getting warmer as we head north towards the equator. We had some island stops at Reunion & Mauritius which are French influenced islands. Mauritius has great local markets with wonderful spices for purchase. It was the home of the now extinct DoDo bird.
Judy Williams who just retired from being a Personal Cruise Consultant with Holland America which is basically the same as my job except it is on land in the Seattle office, is sailing with us this cruise along with her friend Warren. We had dinner in our fine dining restaurant, the Pinnacle Grill and shared lots of work stories!
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