South Africa, Mauritius and Italy.

[turtlemichael]

Day 1 at Kingsmead, Durban started bright and warm. It is a lovely ground and 5 minutes’ walk from the Hilton.

A couple of things to note. First, the crowd. There wasn’t one. Durban is the worst for attendances in all of South Africa and it was the similar two years ago when we saw the English play here. You could be led to believe that Test cricket is in its dying throes outside of England and Australia and in the face of T20. Second, the match started at 10.00am which is very early but not early enough to deal with the poor light at the other end of the day. I’d expect every day to finish early as it is almost black by 5.30pm. It means an early start tomorrow at 9.30am!

As for the cricket it is probably about even after Day 1. It was slowish but quite intriguing. The question will be will the Australians have the patience to bowl as well as Philander with his amazing control and swing and Maharaj who is a fine off-spin bowler. This pitch doesn’t look like one to bounce out the opposition.


The Hilton is right next to the ground.


National Anthems time.


The crowd is at fever pitch as the first ball is bowled.


Some boerewors from the braai for lunch.


The Mexican wave is going to be a challenge today.


Captain Smith, none too pleased, trundles off for 56.


And the clouds roll in at 4.30pm.

 

[craven morehead]

Wow !! I cannot believe a test match could be so poorly attended turtlemichael is the price prohibitive for locals or just a lack of interest in the ultimate form of cricket ? I'll be interested in the crowds at the next few matches.

 

[turtlemichael]

Lack of interest. We are in the best seats in the house at R150. You can get in for R40. Cape Town and Johannesburg will be busier apparently.

 

[turtlemichael]

If you're Australian, Day 2 was one of the great cricket days. The Australians. notably Lyon and Starc, responded to the conditions and delivered. Roll on Day 3!

 

[craven morehead]

Lack of interest. We are in the best seats in the house at R150. You can get in for R40. Cape Town and Johannesburg will be busier apparently.

Wow ! cheap as chips!

 

[craven morehead]

If you're Australian, Day 2 was one of the great cricket days. The Australians. notably Lyon and Starc, responded to the conditions and delivered. Roll on Day 3!

Just saw the highlights on the news !!! Great effort

 

[turtlemichael]

We did a quick trip down the coast this morning to Amanzimtoti. It's a beach community which is not as upmarket as the other beach spot to the north, Umhlanga. It looks a bit as if time passed it by. The weather was also not the best but we did have time to find craven morehead's favourite bar/restaurant! We were too early for the beer special but made do with coffee.

 

[turtlemichael]

Durban is done, the First Test is won, but with some bad grace and it is on to the Midlands about 130km northwest of Durban for three days. It is a beautiful part of the world. It is also so green that it is hard to grasp that Cape Town in a week or so will be like a dustbowl. We are staying near Nottingham Road at a very pleasant, if somewhat olde worlde hotel and spa called Fordoun. It is very reasonably priced too with good food.

 

[turtlemichael]

Today we have a great day touring away from the grime and crowds of Durban. We have been to Fort Nottingham which played an important role in the Zulu wars for the British in the 1870's. Unfortunately it is only open on weekends so we had to just peer over the fence.

The it was on to the museum developed at the spot where Mandala was arrested. It ultimately led to his long imprisonment on Robben Island. The museum is a work in progress and will ultimately be a great tourist destination. The sculpture below is very memorable.

Weather was hot and clear this morning but, as seems to be the pattern at this time of year, now in the late afternoon it looks like we are about to have a hell of a thunderstorm.


Fort Nottingham


Fort Nottingham





The sculpture doesn't look much from the side...


But from the front, very impressive.


Skins for sale, including zebra.


Llamas at the Blueberry café.


South African kitchen garden

 

[cmon0005]

Nice trip report!

Out of interest do you get oneworld benefits on Comair considering it's basically BA(ie status recognition, lounge access.etc)?

 

[froggerADL]

Nice trip report!

Out of interest do you get oneworld benefits on Comair considering it's basically BA(ie status recognition, lounge access.etc)?

Yes, you do.

 

[turtlemichael]

Nice trip report!

Out of interest do you get oneworld benefits on Comair considering it's basically BA(ie status recognition, lounge access.etc)?

What froggerADL said. In my case I got free choice of exit rows (not really a O/W benefit but I guess recognition of my QFF status by BA) and admission to the SLOW lounges which I think are amongst the best domestic product anywhere.

 

[turtlemichael]

It's the end of our last day in the Midlands. Tomorrow we drive back to Durban and catch the SAA flight to Port Elizabeth. Cricket beckons. Today was definitely a highlight of the trip. We drove 100 kms north to the foothills of the Drakensberg Ranges to go to the weekly concert at the Drakensberg Boys Choir School. We have been twice before and it is amazing. The school was started 50 years ago in the Apartheid era but now it is fully integrated and indeed, as you'd expect, a majority of the boys are black. Their standards are very high and they rate up there with the Vienna Boys Choir.

They perform a concert for the public each Wednesday afternoon in term and today was the day. About 600 people show up each week to hear them. There were a load of Australians. The school is set against the Drakensberg Ranges which are spectacular. On previous trips we have explored more of them and I'd recommend that to anyone who comes to South Africa. Today was a cloudy day but quite clear and we got good views.

The second half is dramatic African music. It takes the breath away. Seeing these boys and hearing their music is very uplifting and gives one hope for the future of this deeply troubled country. This will long live in the memory and the heart and again I'd recommend people coming here investigate a performance.


A Fordoun breakfast to start the day.


Cornfields and the Drakensberg in the distance








The view from the choir school.


Some choir boys posing for a publicity shot at interval.





We obviously came out the wrong door as we got a back view of a post-concert performance outside thetheatre.

 

[turtlemichael]

And on we go to Port Elizabeth for more cricket.

 

[turtlemichael]

Day 1 of Test 2 at the very nice St George's Ground just our of the CBD of Port Elizabeth got off to a great start for the Aussies. Warner batted very well but it all came unstuck when Rabada found his mojo and took five wickets. The Australians are behind the eight ball but it is not over yet. Early wickets on Day 2 will even it up. Otherwise not so bright a picture. It was an intense day of cricket before another small crowd. David Warner was on his best behaviour but, if it is all fair dinkum, Rabada should find himself in hot water over his send off of Smith. Time will tell.



Mutton rootie was better than it sounded. It turned out be curried lamb (definitely younger than mutton) in a roti! I'll have to find out what a dumpie is tomorrow.

 

[turtlemichael]

Second Day at Port Elizabeth started bright and sunny. The Australians fought back but South Africa is still on top. Tomorrow will tell. De Villiers was brilliant.



And the band played on!


Kanga cricket equivalent.

First ball of the day.

 

[turtlemichael]

As the PE Test winds down we head off to Knysna 260 km along the garden Route. Good cricket here, particularly if you are a South African.


Very good to be able to get on to the ground at lunch time - you can't do that in Australia.


Interesting sentiment.


At the front of our PE hotel, the Radisson Blu.


And on we go initially to Knysna.

 

[BAM1748]

Lack of interest. We are in the best seats in the house at R150. You can get in for R40. Cape Town and Johannesburg will be busier apparently.

Don't forget a white family's income is around $45k per year and coloured families are $10k.

While R150 is literally beer money for us the locals will have different priorities.

 

[turtlemichael]

Don't forget a white family's income is around $45k per year and coloured families are $10k.

While R150 is literally beer money for us the locals will have different priorities.

I do appreciate that. This country is on a very long journey. However, the one day match at the same stadium with its 18,000 capacity in February between South Africa and India, at higher admission prices, was a sell out. Because of the country's history India is more attractive than Australia to the locals but, in spite of that, I'd still argue that Test cricket has a bleak future in all but England and Australia. That to me is sad.

It still is good to see the rise of some superb black cricketers, greater numbers of black attendees in the crowds, and the surge in "kanga" cricket which the above photo shows.

 

[turtlemichael]

We are having a break between cricket matches staying in the town of Knysna along the Garden Route. It is the second time we have been here and it is a great opportunity for a catchup with a friend who lives here. We are still 500 kilometres from Cape Town but the countryside has got noticeably drier as we head west. We'll see the full effects of the drought here at the end of the week when we head to Cape Town.

We are in the Conrad Pezula which has to be one of the best Conrads around. I've come down with a heavy cold so we have tended to eat here rather than go out and the restaurant is very good. The hotel is on a golf course overlooking the sea. It has its own beach but currently there is no access to it following the very bad bush fires they had last year. There were about 7 deaths and great property loss in the Knysna area. According to our friend they are not geared up to deal with fires as in Australia.

We were here two years ago and one notable change has been in the treatment of Hilton Golds and Diamonds. There is no Executive Lounge but now they have a happy hour in the main lounge (1700-1900) where Golds and Diamonds are delivered a plate of appetizers and choices of virtually anything from a special bar list. The net effect was far ahead of most lounges I've been in. Pictures are below.

We were upgraded to a one bedroom suite and again it is a great suite bigger than our apartment at home. The stay is on points, 51k per night with the 5th night free, so there is no better value anywhere.