SA Road Tripping: Durban and Ballito

Part of my mental sanity plan is taking a monthly excursion.  For May, I joined another volunteer for an 11 day, 3,000+ km road trip across South Africa.  We rented a car and drove (it felt so good to be a real person and driving again) from Jo'burg, to Balito (30 mins from Durban) to Durban (Durbs as it is affectionally called), to Nelspruit, to Hoedspruit and Kruger National Park, and back to Jo'burg and Rustenburg.

The drive was absolutely breathtaking--beaches, rivers, mountains, and an occasional monkey!!!!! I have a whole new appreciation for SA now.

As you can see from the map it also allowed me to see some other provinces in South Africa.  I live in the Northwest and we went thru Gauteng, Free State, Kwazulu Natal (KZN pronounced K Zed N), Mpumalaga, and Limpopo.  We also encountered different ethnic or tribal groups in each province, which gave me a greater understanding of SA.  For instance, Durban interestingly enough has the largest concentration of Indians outside of India and the KZN is the home to Zululand thus it is predominately Zulu.

Closer look at KZN 

Figured I would share photos from my road trip over my next couple of posts. Will start at the beginning with the Ballito, Durban leg of our trip.  We headed to Ballito to meet up with the KZN PCVs for a conference.  We enjoyed ourselves in Ballito and Durban so much that we actually stayed two days longer than we originally planned.

Cheers!
--Mei

We had to drive on the other side (the left side) of the road.  

The Road Less Traveled

A Roadside View

Local Durban Cuisine, Bunny Chow (Curried Meat and Vegetables in Hollowed Out Bread)

Ballito

Ballito

Backpackers (hostile) in Ballito where we stayed for ~$12 a night

Bathroom at the Backpackers with an "African" shower

Before the sneak up wave: Peace and Tranquility

After the sneak up wave: My rescued Ipod, Kindle, and Backpack (where my cell phone and camera were) 

Zulus dancing at a Zulu cultural village

Posing with other Peace Corps Volunteers and the Zulu dancers at the Zulu cultural village

Spice Vendor Stand at the Indian Market, Durban

The Power of Durban Curry.  Bathroom Sign at House of Curries, a Durban Restaurant.

Took the opportunity to get a massage and pedicure

My massage came with free cocktails!!!  Who said Peace Corps Volunteers had to rough it!!!

Appreciating Sand Sculptures in Durban

The Big Five

LOL

Bathroom Sign at the Backpackers in Durban

Bathroom Sign at the Backpackers in Durban

Graffiti at the Rooftop Bar at the Backpackers in Durban (btw I got a single room here for ~$30 a night)

Graffiti at the Rooftop Bar at the Backpackers in Durban

Durban

Durban Rickshaw Driver

Local Durban Road 

Warf and the Durban Skyline