Just flew OUT of Durban, which means I was just IN Durban. It advertises itself as The Warmest Place To Be during the World Cup, and they ain't kidding. Where Cape Town is in the low 50's on a good day, and Johannesburg is hovering just above freezing, Durban is a beach town that rarely sees a day under 70, even this winter.
We stayed with a friend-of-a-friend, and once again were blown out of the water by the South African hospitality. Our new best friend, Rico -- yes, his name is Rico -- pretty much scheduled his weekend around us, taking us to the beach, treating us to food, and driving us wherever we wanted to go.
Highlights:
- Going for a swim in the Indian Ocean (water temps were in the 70's)
- Consistently finding ourselves walking around the seedy sections of the city. There are a lot.
- Trying to see the Southern Hemisphere's largest mosque, not being able to find the entrance, and getting picked up by an old Indian lady named Rashida. We were informed we wouldn't be able to see the mosque that moment -- the call to prayer had just gone down, and all the real people were inside. In the meantime, she took us down a dark alley to her house, gave us bananas, introduced us to her sister Amina, and gave us a private tour of the mosque. The only faux pas I made all afternoon long was giving her an appreciative pat on the arm -- "don't touch me. It's OK, you didn't know, but...you mustn't touch me."
- Winning lots of money at Durban's casino! It's the place where all the Indian locals go to blow their earnings, and we showed them how Californians who have spent a lot of time at Indian casinos play blackjack.
That's all for now. Someone's giving me dirty looks as I hog the computer.
