Africa & India 2006: 4 - Southern Cross Hazyview to Zimbabwe

Tuesday, February 7, 2006

Valiant Marilynn was off at 6 AM this morning on another open vehicle safari, then after returning to the train for a few minutes headed off for an open vehicle night safari. Marilynn was the only one of our group to go with the open vehicle, and said that as it rained a lot so there were less animal sightings than yesterday. Only 3 others from the train were on the tour, making it easy for Marilynn to swing her huge 400 lens around to take photos. The Nelsons and Campbells joined the closed vehicle tour from the train.

While Marilynn was off immortalizing the wildlife of Kruger Park in pixels, I took the 9 AM shuttle to Hazyview to send an email and answer an urgent message from the office. The town of Hazyview sprawls over a large area of dirt streets, and the business centre of town is an ever expanding partly enclosed shopping mall surrounded by local market stands and strip malls - not a place one would go out of the way to see, but most goods and services are available. I finally located a bottle of Bombay Sapphire gin, Marilynn's brand, and a bottle of olives so she will be able to have her favourite martini tonight! I've been looking for it since we arrived in South Africa.

I met up with Simon & Brenda at the mall, so we walked to the local pub - a fairly nondescript place with no one in it. A short distance away was a small restaurant with outdoor tables, so we chose that for a light lunch and a couple of beer. We returned on the 2 PM (last) shuttle to the train where I got a few chores done.

Hazyview Station is not much to see. Located about 13 km from the shopping area, it has a log sorting area and a small sawmill producing wood supports for mine tunnels from eucalyptus trees. Trucks and trains regularly arrive with logs and depart with milled timbers, for which there is currently a huge market. There are a couple of houses, but no services.

Wednesday, February 8, 2006

Today's 8:30 AM departure took us to the Panorama Route along the Eastern Escarpment Mountains. The heavy rain of early morning lightened as we boarded the vehicles. The hilly countryside is beautiful, covered with pine and eucalyptus tree plantations, farms, and steep cliffs. The area is home to velvet monkeys - we saw families of them along the road in a couple of places. BJ was our driver again, and his sharp eyes didn't miss much. The roads throughout the area are in excellent shape, and other drivers are quite courteous, pulling onto the wide shoulder to allow faster vehicles to pass them.

When we started it seemed we would see nothing, as low cloud and fog blanketed the area, but gradually it stopped raining and the clouds lifted enough for views over the green countryside. We walked through the old mining town of Pilgrim's Rest, now declared a National Monument. When gold was discovered here in 1873 the town sprang up to support 1,500 gold diggers. The old miners houses, shops and the hotel have been restored and are all operated as tourist attractions. Prices on almost everything are high.

We stopped in the town of Sabie, which has a population of 15,000, to have lunch, shop and change money at the bank. Most of the people on the train loaded up with corn meal from which the locals make a subsistence kind of porridge, rice, cooking oil and soaps for poor families in Zimbabwe. PJ told us that giving money in Zimbabwe is a waste of time. He says a millionaire could starve to death in some areas, as there is nothing available to buy due to the collapsed economy. Staples such as we are taking will help some people survive. We also bought school supplies for a school the train company has taken under its wing. They bring in food and school supplies in quantity each time they visit.

We visited two spectacular waterfalls. The second, Mac Mac, falls plunges 65 meters into a deep canyon. The Blyde River Canyon, which we followed for a long way, is 25 km long and 800 meters deep. There is a great view of the canyon from lookouts at Three Rondavals, named for the shape of three hilltops across from the lookout. Bourke's Potholes were fascinating. They are huge bowls dug in sandstone at the confluence of two rivers. The Treur River falls over a cliff into a very narrow, deep canyon, causing a cloud of spray to billow upwards.

Our last stop was at God's Window. It is reputed to have amazing views of deep canyons, however it would appear that God closed early today as all we could see was cloud and mist. A prominent sign said "Keep God's Window Clean". I guess that would make the local maintenance people God's Window cleaners! It took about an hour to get back to the train, having covered some 300 km today.

Life aboard the train has now settled into a comfortable routine. The crew on board are very helpful, and our fellow passengers polite and friendly. Most are quite experienced travellers. Breakfast is served from 6:15 AM until 8:30 AM. Lunch is never served on board and is not included in the price. Dinner has two sittings, and guests can choose either on any day - there is no pre-booking required. The first is 6:30 PM until 7:30 PM, the second from 8 PM. We chose the second, as we are then not rushed with conversation and wine. Dress is casual.

The food has been very good. I have heard no complaints about the food from anyone, which is amazing with the number and diversity of the guests. When Marilynn definitely did not want the fish and chips one night, we found that there is flexibility in the menu. She was offered either lamb steak or chicken as a substitute, and the lamb steak was delicious. Dinner is always four courses - salad, appetizer, main meal and desert. Special meals for those with dietary requirements are available. There is a breakfast buffet with two juices, milk, tea or coffee, several cereals, two yoghurts, a selection of fresh fruit (apples, bananas, grapes, plums), bowls of tinned fruit, cold meats, cheese and pastry. Orders are taken by wait staff for eggs as you like them accompanied by sausage, bacon, hash browns, beans, fried tomatoes and so on - the accompaniments vary daily.

The bar opens each day at 5 PM, and has a good selection of beers, wines and liquor. They took Marilynn's bottle of gin and locked it away, pouring for her each time she wanted a drink. Senele, the bartender, is a good-natured fellow who is always anxious to please.

There are no medical personal on board, but some staff are first aid trained and there is a blood test kit for suspected malaria cases. It is very important that malaria be caught and treated early if one is to survive it.

There is a reasonably priced laundry on board, and although train laundry has priority it has usually been one-day service. Sheets are changed every third day and towels every second day. Rooms are cleaned and made up daily. A post box ensures mail will be sent from the next station Sign up sheets advise of optional excursions with the price of each, and a notice board details times of included activities each day, along with which vehicle passengers are assigned to. Other than the French and German vans, which are the same each day, English-speaking guests are rotated between the three remaining guides.

There are three classes of cabin on the train. Ivory class has 8 compartments per car with various configurations. There is a washbasin under the table, but toilets and showers are located at either end of the car. Gold class has a full size bathroom in each of the 5 compartments per carriage, almost as large as the sleeping area. One bed runs along the outside wall below the window, the other is above it and stretches from the corridor wall to the outside wall. The spacious bathroom has toilet, sink and enclosed shower. Ivory and Gold have fans in the room, but as they are fixed pointing straight down they are not very effective.

Ebony class is considerably more expensive, having only 3 compartments per carriage. They have a small sitting room with two chairs and a table, plus a bedroom with two side-by-side single beds. The bathroom is the same as Gold. All rooms have a small safe that is locked by a key. Storage space is tight, but adequate. Seating in Gold or Ivory is on the lower bunk - a tight fit for two people. Our group fill four of the five compartments in a gold class coach built in 1951. As the train is ¾ km long it can be a fair hike to the dining and bar cars from the rear coaches!

The only smoking area on the train is a small lounge. There is a small library on board, although neither Marilynn nor I have found time to do any reading yet! A cellular phone allows the train to be contacted in case of emergency, but there is no public phone or internet facilities. Bar and dining cars are air-conditioned.

Tomorrow we have decided not to take the organized tours, which consisted of a bit of scenery, a youth development centre, a textile factory, a pottery factory and a restaurant for lunch. Instead I'll walk into the town and see if I can find somewhere to get this away. In the afternoon we will travel to Zimbabwe, and it may not be possible to find working internet.