Here we are in Durban (nicknamed “Durbs”), the third most populous city in South Africa after Johannesburg and Cape Town. Our Currents newsletter today is titled “Explore Durban” which I find a bit ironic since our cruise director warned us (twice) over the PA system last night about being careful with handbags, phones and money, removing jewelry, staying in groups, being alert to our surroundings, etc while exploring this city! A coastal city with a major port and tourist hub, Durban is known for its high levels of theft, armed robbery and violent crimes against both visitors and locals. Knowing this didn’t really encourage me to want to “explore Durban.”
We arrived late last evening shortly after 5 p.m. No way did we want to venture out after dark, especially after all the warnings about our safety! We considered eating dinner on the back deck but decided it was a bit too chilly with the clothes we were wearing.
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| hmm....maybe not! |
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| looks like everyone else had the same idea |
Durban has a population of 3.9 million people for the greater metropolitan area. It is a highly ethnically diverse city with large Zulu, White and Indian/Asian populations. Its first languages are English (49.8%) and Zulu (33.1%). It has a crime index of 80.4 paired with a safety index of 19.6.
It has a natural harbor which is the busiest port in South Africa. It is known for its “Golden Mile” beach and world renowned Indian-inspired cuisine.
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| Durban - a busy port city |
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| views from our deck |
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| from the deck - not as pretty by day |
I was not happy this morning when Ronnie announced that he was going to run off the ship, but thankfully he had a good run and returned safe and sound. The weather here has been very pleasant today - a nice change from all the heat we’ve had to endure in many of the countries we’ve been in. The further we get from the equator, the more pleasant it is.
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| Golden Mile run opportunity - Point Durban (photo credit: Ronnie) |
Since we were here in 2023, I had planned to stay on the ship knowing that we have excursions planned for the next 2 days. But after lunch we changed our minds and decided to walk to an outdoor shopping area nearby, perhaps a half mile from the ship. By that time, there were lots of people out - both locals and tourists. I did a bit of souvenir shopping and then we were both ready to head back to the ship.
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| Nelson Mandela Cruise Terminal |
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| uShaka Village Walk |
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| Golden Mile beach |
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| hand carved giraffes come in all sizes |
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| tiny beaded animals |
We've enjoyed sitting on our deck this afternoon/evening. There are quite a few what I would call "party boats" that come by. They are full of people, music, noise and a lot of twerking or whatever it's called these days. Many of the women are dressed in colorful long dresses or all white with colorful (artificial) leis around their necks. They basically just ride around the bay, oftentimes coming by the ship to check us out.
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| party boat nearing sunset |
party boat after dark
Update - 5/18/26
We did hear later that one couple from the ship was robbed of their camera, cash, phones when approached and surrounded by a group of locals. This happened in broad daylight. Thankfully they were not injured.
Barbara: I'll be interested to hear about your excursions. People must have really high ceiling houses for those large giraffes! Maybe businesses put them in Atriums. I had to laugh seeing the vehicles in front of McDonalds. Greg and I like to go in McDonalds every country. We started international travel when Shelley was little, and she wanted Happy Meals. So we still go to them, take a selfie with the menu(local) and I order a Happy meal, carefully keeping the toy and the box for her. She has them in many languages. The golden mile looks lovely. I could spend a day there. How do prices on the wood carvings in Africa compare to Asia?
ReplyDeleteI didn't buy any giraffes so I really have no idea, but the workmanship on all of their wood items is very impressive. I love the idea of the McDonalds toy/box as a collection! Those toys are probably very collectible by now. It's funny how McDonald menu items are so different based on what country you're in. I don't think anyone has mocha frappes except the U.S. Ronnie just informed me that I mis-spoke about excursions the next 2 days - we're at sea tomorrow. That's good because we can actually have "church" on Sunday!
ReplyDeleteBarbara, in what city is the busiest McDonalds in the world?
ReplyDeleteBarbara: probably in HongKong...could be in Tokyo or Shanghai, but I'd bet Hong Kong. The McDonalds with the fewest people we ever found was in Jerusalem. It was right on Jaffa Road, across from 2 Very busy bus stops...but it was always nearly empty. They even had hummus and chicken shawarma on the menu....
ReplyDeleteDing ding ding ding!! You are exactly right! A quick google search confirms and goes on to say "This 9,000-square-foot location serves more than 1,000 customers every single hour during peak periods." WOW, that's a lot of happy people!!!
DeletePeople in HongKong eat anything and everything.
ReplyDeleteAgree!
ReplyDelete