Kwazulu Natal
Little wonder that the Zulu, or "people of heaven" considered the area a heaven on earth indeed, and were extremely jealous of late comers who sought a share of it. And yet the Zulu people themselves had arrived only in the 16th century. Their ancestors, the Nguni, had been pushing southwards from the Great Lakes region for at least three thousand years.
The dream was of a multi-racial, multi-cultural Choir School to rival the Vienna Boys. Not in the middle of a history-rich, ancient European city. But in the boondocks. In a beautiful, rural, sparsely populated valley in the Drakensberg Mountains of KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. The first and only one of its kind on the continent.
Lower down it feeds the Weenan Canal - built 100 years ago to provide irrigation for the farmlands. While the river rushes and tumbles over rocks, the canal is much less imposing. Only a metre deep and no more than a few metres wide. But it’s 12 kilometres long, traversing rough and hilly terrain. Don’t be too quick to jump in though – its cold, winter-green colour tells you it hasn’t been in liquid form for long.
“Off” means you’ve managed to screw up your courage, closed your eyes, muttered a prayer, and leapt off the first of seven platforms – high up in the trees. Catch your breath, calm your heart rate. You’ve got eight slides, the longest of which is 170 metres long as you whiz and zigzag, down the pristine indigenous Karkloof forest valley.
Take the Drakensberg in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. It’s an ancient place, with ancient resonances. The ancestral home of the Bushman hunter-gatherers. One of those peaceful and harmonious societies that Rousseau et al would have said proved their belief in the divinity of nature and the superiority of natural man.
The Drakensberg is a summer rainfall area, when approximately 80% of the precipitation occurs. The balance falls in winter, often in the form of snow. Snowfalls play a very important function in maintaining flow levels outside of the principle rainy season.
St Lucia is situated in the northern part of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The St Lucia Wetland Park is a candidate for World Heritage Site Status. It is well know for its five ecosystems and a biodiversity not found anywhere else on earth. St Lucia has an Sub-Tropical climate which means about 280 plus sunny days.
Coastal areas enjoy a sub-tropical climate with sunshine year round, although rain storms can occur in summer. The humidity is lower in June and July, making it ideal times to visit. Weather is also warm and sunny for most of the year in the Drakensberg, but in winter night time temperatures can drop below freezing and snowfalls are not uncommon.
Winter heralds the start of the true surf season, with breezy eight-foot swells sweeping in from the Cape coast between May and August. The swells are a bit smaller in the summer months, offering fun surf at the many beach breaks, with most surfers taking advantage of the wind-free mornings before the north-eastern winds pick up.
The British were at the height of their empire-building fervour, the Zulu nation was one of the most powerful in Africa, and the Boers had shaken off the dust of British colonialism, and set off into the interior to take control of their own destiny. If you thought this may sound like a recipe for disaster you’d be right!
Read about hair dye effects.Also read about morning sickness and southern stars