Well, I think it’s safe to say that we’re having another “experience”. I guess that’s how Africa is when you visit for the first time. I’m not sure where to start, so I’ll just start at the top.

Durban is the home of South Africa’s largest port, so there was quite a bit of traffic as we approached. Not since we crossed the Panama Canal had we seen so many “super-max” cargo ships loaded to the gills with containers bound for various parts of the world. The way they glided through the oncoming waves, with only the big splashes of water at the bow to show for it, was pretty impressive.

As we approached the harbor, the magnitude of the city quickly became apparent. The beachfront area contains a slew of hotels and looks quite similar to Oceanside Boulevard in Santa Monica where we used to live. Just beyond the beachfront is the downtown area, and many of the colorful art deco-style buildings have a Southern California (or Miami) feel as well. Apparently Durban is the only city in South Africa with this style, as the others have more of a European/colonial or industrial appearance.

Surprised by the urban sprawl

We arrived at Durban Marina just before sunset on Saturday and tied up to the international jetty, which is literally across the street from the downtown area. Some friendly South Africans assisted us with the tie up, but they were the first of many to recommend that we remain in the heavily gated and guarded marina area at night. Even during the day, they suggested that we remove all watches (even my $20 Target watch!) and jewelry and try to “look poor”. They summed it up with the three words made famous by the movie Blood Diamond: “This is Africa”. We took their words quite seriously and made our way to the yacht club for dinner rather than attempting to explore.

Hard to believe that the urban ghetto is just on the other side of these buildings

On Sunday we were getting things in order on the boat when we were visited by Mr. Bob Fraser, a representative of the Point Yacht Club. He invited us up to the bar for a beer and a chat, and it didn’t take too much twisting of our arms for us to follow and agree to sign up for a membership to the club. After a beer, fast-paced conversation, and a closely-matched game of pool, I was very surprised to learn that our companion was 78! He was very knowledgeable about all things political, so there was no shortage of conversation during lunch or the subsequent driving tour of Durban. Having spent several decades as a member of the privileged class, he was by no means an advocate of the apartheid-promoting Afrikaner regime but did not have anything positive to say about the current African government. He confirmed what others had told us about the mass exodus of young whites from South Africa. This is understandable given that the newly passed Black Economic Empowerment legislation requires that businesses work toward becoming 25% owned and 40% staffed by previously disadvantaged racial groups, thus the competition among whites has increased dramatically. He also talked about the high crime rates and cited his personal experience of being mugged, having 3 cars stolen, and having his neighbor survive being burglarized thanks to the fact that he takes sleeping pills and did not wake up! All in all, Bob was a very interesting contact, and he showed us some surprisingly posh areas of Durban that we would not have seen otherwise, all with electric fences, razor wire, and/or security systems. 

Dallas with the former Commodore of the Yacht Club

Monday we ventured out into the city on foot. We walked several blocks over to customs and immigration to clear in, which was a simple, no-hassle affair. We then walked through the center of downtown to do some shopping. We were the only white faces in sight most of the time and later learned that the posh downtown area used to be white-only. Times have certainly changed! Durban is still a very diverse place, though, as it has the largest Indian population outside of India along with lots of immigrants from other African countries. While I didn’t feel unsafe in the city during the daytime, I was definitely on my guard. 

When we returned to the marina, we were greeted by Brian and Monica, South African friends of an American friend who have been following the blog recently and drove down from Johannesburg to meet us! They took us to lunch and were very interested in the boat and our trip and shared interesting stories about their own travels. They took us on a drive through the south part of Durban, Brian’s childhood stomping grounds, and it was fun to watch him reminisce. Of course it wasn’t long before the conversation turned to politics, as you can’t get away from it in a country that is in the middle of a political, economic, and cultural upheaval. Brian and Monica both emigrated from the U.K. as children and have a more liberal perspective than the others we have spoken to. Brian spent some time among the Zulu in the mines as a teen and speaks a bit of their language. Being a very gregarious person, he takes advantage of every opportunity to put it to use! His pleasant interactions with Africans and Indians alike fueled my optimism in slowly improving race relations, and his opinion is that many things have in fact improved since apartheid ended.

View of the massive harbor from the Bluffs

It was a pleasure to spend the day with Brian and Monica, and we look forward to seeing them again. There is a good chance that we will take them up on their offer to join them on their return trip to Johannesburg in a couple of days and head up to the Kruger National Park to see the wildlife that Africa is well known for – lions, elephants, rhinos, etc. – in the wild!

Enjoying an afternoon drink overlooking one of Durban’s beaches

Last night we made some more friends. We were invited to another boat for drinks and met some people involved in the World Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC). The group set sail from St. Lucia in January of this year, and I was surprised to learn that this fleet of boats is rounding the world in 15 months! I thought we were moving fast. Anyway, we befriended a couple about our age that are crewing on a large cat and made some plans to join them for an Indian lunch today at huge Hare Krishna temple in the shape of a lotus flower.

Needless to say, there’s a lot going on here. All of this socializing leaves little time for other things, but Dallas has arranged to have our jib stitched up and to get a quote for new trampolines. We plan to stay in Durban for at least another week before making our way to Capetown via East London, Port Elizabeth, and Krysna.