Here...Finally!

Well goodness, I feel as if I left home forever ago! I have decided that it should be illegal to subject people to sit in cramped air plane seats next to grumpy racist women, especially on a 18 hour flight. While I got through the flight business just fine, I did have a run in with an airport 'guide' who helped me check my bags in, and find my gate. He of course wanted a tip, and I obliged, though I got a bit miffed when he tried to get me to give him a 20 dollar bill for 20 R in change (less than 2 dollars). Arriving at Durban, I somehow missed the person who was supposed to pick me up and take me to the hostel. I waited for awhile, trying not to panic. That didn't work so well, seeing as I was in another country, at 11 at night, and had almost no way to contact people. Luckily, I had skype installed on my computer, and was able to arrange things through their phone service, technology saved me once again.
   I ended up staying last night at a nearby hotel. I thought it was just alright, and pretty disappointed that I hadn't made it to the hostel, though that was before I looked out my window and saw the beach across the street. This morning I went for an early beach walk, it was wonderful! Although humid, Durban feels nice and warm, especially compared to the cold Ohio winter. On the beach, I enjoyed the wind as well as the singing of a group of Zulu women. I looked for beach life, but I didn't find much more than various mollusks. On my way back to the hotel, I was approached by two guys who asked if I knew of any nearby places they could get a drink. Besides the fact that it was 6 in the morning, I didn't know anything to help them. Along the way, we eventually found them a bar, and the offered to buy me a drink. I declined, laughed, and continued walking. One of the guys decided that he was going to be stubborn, and walked all the way back to the hotel with me. He was persistent, but not annoyingly so, finally giving up at the door telling the doorman to "take care of this beautiful lady".

(The view from my hotel window)

    I eventually got in contact with my hostel and after some more confusion, Teeze came to pick me up. He is one of the owners and extremely nice, as is the hostel itself. It's located in somewhat of a gated community, and is just beautiful. I also like the fact that it is home to a cat, bird, and two dogs, making it even more so welcoming. Since I got in too late to buy the cell phone and power adapter I had been counting on, I was lucky to find a backpacker nice enough to lend me his power adapter so that I could charge my laptop. I have noticed how friendly everyone is here, people always say hi on the street, and I have talked to several people that seem genuinely interested in my travels and ways to help me.


Becca