Thundery. Well, no actual thunder but I awoke to a deluge of rain. It’s only just 5a and I don’t have to gather for my tour until 7:15a so let’s hope the forecast is correct and this will be over by then.

6:15a and I think we’re stuck. As in ran aground stuck. We were sauntering towards Durban at a very slow pace, apparently timing our arrival to the scheduled 7a, when I noticed we didn’t seem to be moving at all. I waited, and waited, and waited and now at 6:55a both the bow thrusters and engines (they direct the stern) are full throttle churning up the water but….?

Oh, maybe not. Just had a helicopter buzz the boat and drop off a fat man wearing shorts just above my head. I think that was the harbor pilot arriving in style. So we are late, very late. And we have to go through Immigration at the dock. Maybe that’ll give the weather time to improve…

With this delay our meeting time for the tour wasn’t until after 8a, then we had to wait for the ship’s clearance into South Africa. Then we had to wait for our excursion number to be called (I was Group 6). Then we had to wait in a line that would have done Disneyland proud to clear Immigration. I didn’t actually sit on the bus until 10:15a, and we didn’t leave until 10:25a.

Today’s excursion was short, just 3.25 hours and basically included drive-bys of buildings such as City Hall, a 45 min stop at Victoria Market, and a visit to the botanical gardens. The rain returned which made taking photos thru the windows challenging.

The gardens are very green but very few flowers which is surprising as it’s summer now down here. They’ve set up lots of Xmas light displays and food & drink stands which are probably quite festive in the evening.

Stopped at a viewpoint then off to see the big soccer stadium built for the 2010 World Cup. 70,000 rabid fans can fit in it! We had 30 minutes to wander the outside of the building but our guide mentioned one too many times to keep a firm hold on our valuables that half the bus stayed on board. Coincidentally, as we were waiting Sean & Bettina (from the train to Olympia) got a message from Karen & Stan that they were stopped by the police while walking in Durban. The police said they weren’t in a safe neighborhood and drove them back to the pharmacy they were looking for and told them to Uber back!

I’m glad I’ve seen Durban but I’ve no desire to go back. The disparity between black lives and white lives is too great for this Westerner to see. From our discussion at dinner many others felt the same way, but that’s what travel is about, right? Seeing different places and how different people live?

Tomorrow: At Sea