At the pier cranes looked like giant giraffes swaying toward & away from each other 
Three kinds of palms at the Botanic Garden 
Lily pads, Botanic Garden 
Picnic at the Botanic Garden 
Primitive plant–looks like a palm or fern but is neither 
Spoonbills at the Botanic Garden 
Chris through the uShaka Marine World shark 
Leaving Durban Harbor 
Leaving Durban Harbor
Friday was at sea, docking in Durban about 4 pm, with an opportunity to go ashore, which we did not avail ourselves of, so a relaxed day. On the other hand, Durban is the end of segment 4 and beginning of segment 5 so, for some, Friday was spent packing to depart Saturday while the rest of us mourned the departure of some of our friends and prepared ourselves for an onslaught of new guests. Again, almost half the ship turned over.
Saturday morning we had a tour with an excellent guide originally from Germany showing us the city (mostly run-down) and stopping for a leisurely walk in the beautiful botanical gardens. If you can’t read the sign in the photo of the picnic above, it says “Georgia’s Teddy Bear Picnic.”
After lunch we took the shuttle to uShaka Marine World, containing shops, restaurants, aquarium, water park, and access to the beach. We mostly browsed a few shops focusing on a co-operative with 5 shops inside its walls including one with their own handmade clothing, where Chris bought a lovely embroidered pull-over linen shirt.
Palm Sunday was celebrated with a 1 pm service—after many returned from morning tours–against the back drop of a very interesting Maputo church, but without palms. We were told they ordered palms this year and last year, but they arrived so bug-laden they couldn’t be used.
Our mandatory segment safety drill followed. Then a port talk for East London and talks by two of the new lecturers (our entire cast of approximately 6 lecturers turned over in Durban) speaking on early mankind in southern Africa and about the East Cape (where we will be for the next two ports) background of Nelson Mandela. The latter was better than the former.
After three days of beautiful, warm weather, we sailed out in the afternoon. Our next several days are more likely to be in the high 60s than the current high 70s as we head south and round the southern end of Africa. And, we discovered, we’re back on the rolling seas where we need to hold on to our balance (or nearby railings.)
I am feeling sad and a little panicked that our cruise is ‘almost over’ though, in fact, many are boarding for just this segment and so are only beginning and we do have another 4 weeks. Still, compared with the 18 weeks we embarked on, it is ‘almost over.’
C&C travel the seas 