After saying goodbye to literally everyone I know in South Africa (bar maybe two people?), it was too depressing to stay at uni any longer when my housemate (hey Rin) was planning on going off to travel herself for mid sem break. With a week to go before I fly off back to Melbourne, it was time to make use of my last remaining days in South Africa (and the last remaining dollars in my bank account...). So I decided to go to the last few places that I've wanted to see but haven't quite had the chance to see yet, first stop: Durban.
After having many conversations with people who all told me to fly (shout out to Rin and my Dad) ... I decided to take the Intercape bus. It was cheaper than the flight (230rand versus 400rand), the bus station is closer than the airport to uni, the bus station is a lot closer to my accomodation in Durban rather than the airport, I wanted to see the scenery and I feel like buses are better for personal reflection and thinking than planes are ... so I decided to take the bus, which left at 8:30am Monday morning and would arrive in Durban at 4:30pm. Ironically, my Uber into town to get to Johannesburg Park Station cost more than the bus ticket itself.
I was a bit uneasy at Park Station, I had only been there once before with my friends before we did the City Sightseeing Tour, but my Uber driver pointed me in the right direction. A guy put my bag in a trolley and said he would take me to the Intercape terminal for 20rand ... I agreed because it was only $2 and the whole station was just a bit dodgy ... It was literally only one minute later when we reached the spot so I felt a bit cheated, but anyways. My bag got weighed and I checked in, before hopping on the bus. It was 8:15am so when I got on the bus all the window seats were taken, which was why I wanted the bus in the first place. But oh well, I sat next to a random guy, put my headphones, and off we went.
Random sheep at the petrol station??
I was asleep for the first few hours, and I was regretting not just flying ... I would be there by now! But I sat through it, I had my music and I could text my friends so it was okay. We had a brief stop to stretch out legs, and we were soon pulling into Durban. I hadn't been able to appreciate the scenery because of my aisle seat, but it was all very dry looking outside on a decent highway.
Sunset entering Durban...
Curiocity Backpackers
Curiocity backpackers
There was a slight moment where I was a little panicked about my bag not being in the trailer when we got off at Durban, but it was there so I called an Uber to Curiocity Backpackers. Part of the reason why I decided to save money on the bus was because I booked a single room rather than the dorm. The female only dorm was only a bit cheaper than a private room to myself, and the mixed dorm wasn't that appealing so I just opted to treat myself and have a room to myself. It's a boutique hostel so it's really cute. I got to reception, checked in and asked about things to do. I kind of wanted to do a Lesotho tour, but looking at prices for someone doing it alone I decided not too. When I asked the receptionists about what else to do here all she said was "there's not really that much that people really do here...", which I guess sets up my next two days here in Durban.
Super tired and exhausted from waking up early and being on a bus all day, I slept for a good 12 hours, waking up fresh and ready to explore Durban. With no real plan for the day, I headed out with the idea to find the beach and get some food (Indian food! Durban has a really large population of Indians, and Indian food is always the best option for a hungry vegan...).
Died eating this curry ... why didn't they ask me how spicy I wanted it!!!
The sun was out but it was windy, and I was regretting having packed only jeans, this would be such a great time to work on my tan before I go home! My accomodation was only about 500m from the waterfront as it turned out, and I spent an hour or so walking around before settling on a place to eat (a chana masala curry which was way too spicy for me to handle....). It was only 2pm by this point, so I spent the rest of the afternoon walking along the waterfront. I had been a bit concerned about Durban being like Johannesburg, but it felt much safer with a larger police presence. It reminded me a lot of Port Elizabeth, in which I had just spent a day on the beach front their as well. I was bothered a few times by people asking for money (some white guy was asking for 40rand for his daughter and him to get into a homeless shelter ... but I had heard the same story in Cape Town, and I've never heard of a homeless shelter requiring a fee, much less 40rand which seems a bit steep...) and some guy, who looked like a tourist himself, asking me if I wanted to do a bus tour with him, but other than that I never felt particularly scared (except when the minibuses didn't obey the green pedestrian light and would just drive through!!!!).
I'm unsure how I'll spend my second and last day in Durban, but it feels nice to be travelling alone again and to be spending so much time outdoors and walking, of which I haven't done in a while thanks to uni. In a weeks time I'm officially in Melbourne!
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