Durban - It was Samuel Johnson who famously uttered: “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life.” I’ve often thought that could apply just as aptly to Durban, the holiday capital of the country.
It’s not just the sun, the surf or the beach; rain or shine, there’s always something to do in Durban, some new, some just hiding under your nose.
Yes, when it’s overcast or threatening to rain, you can go to one of the biggest shopping malls known to mankind (Gateway, uMhlanga) with its telephone book list of restaurants and cinemas, but then you could be anywhere in the country. What is unique is to learn to Segway and discover your inner child up, down and around Moses Mabhida Stadium.
I had always thought Segways, those strange, space age-looking electric two-wheelers, were for Korean airport officials and tours for geriatric US tourists. I was wrong on both counts.
They’re easy to learn to operate. I was up and about in minutes as was everyone else in the group – and I was by far the most unco-ordinated, ungainly and generally hopeless of the lot. We did the Moses Mabhida tour which, although fascinatingly led by guide Sbo Mkhwanazi, was even more fun simply because of the expanse of broad flat surfaces and slight inclines around the stadium allowing you to unleash your inner-child, as you do figures of eight on your Segway or dodge lamp-poles. You can’t get up to too much mischief, the electronic motors are governed at 20km/h, which you’ll notice as the yoke of the machine presses back in to your stomach and slows down automatically, even when you’re trying your best to build up speed on the downhill.
There are a variety of Segway tour options of different times and distances, with the premium one being a trip all the way down the beachfront to uShaka Marine World at the other end. If you haven’t ever been to uShaka you’re in for a treat.
It’s a huge marine theme park, the fifth biggest aquarium in the world and a boon to kids and the young at heart on a sunny day with huge slides, lazy tubes and even the opportunity to learn to scuba dive, once again though what if it’s raining? If it is, it’s time to go deeper, into Dangerous Creatures; 180 reptiles; 140 of them snakes and the opportunity to get up close and personal with them.
We were particularly lucky to meet one of uShaka’s hidden gems, herpetologist Lesley Labuschagne, who breathed life into a subject many of us wouldn’t even have given a second thought, beyond reaching for a shotgun. Freddy the fearsome iguana in Labuschagne’s arms was the start, paling into insignificance when Labuschagne hefted up Murdock the black-throated monitor. From there it was into the exhibition, past entire colonies of green mambas and other ultra-venomous snakes, cheek by jowl with special effects designed to get the most jaded pulses racing – and induce immediate cardiac arrest in the more middle-aged.
“These animals are all vilified,” Labuschagne told us, draping a snake around Priscilla Malinga’s neck, “but we’re the most dangerous animals here.”
Many of the reptiles are rescues, saved while in transit from Madagascar to unscrupulous pet shop dealers here and overseas. “They’re not as cute as dolphins,” says Labuschagne, “but they’re just as endangered.” Her target market is kids, who can see the beauty in a highly poisonous snake, without their stomachs roiling in terror. “Elvis,” Labuschagne breathes in a rapture, is “the king of all kings”. She’s talking about an Indonesian King Cobra. The star of the show though is Blondie, an albino Burmese python. She’s a 6-year-old 20kg specimen – 74kg lighter than the monster python that isn’t allowed to come out and play for obvious reasons.
Blondie hasn’t eaten for about a week. She gets fed rabbit and big rats every 10 days, so she’s frisky in the gloom of Dangerous Creatures.
The bravehearts who line up one after the other to have her draped around their necks and up and down each arm start signalling with their eyes, the more white you see, the keener they are for Blondie to go back and coil, a la Glenda Kemp, around Labuschagne.
Suddenly, the show’s over, but the aquarium still awaits, this time under the equally engaged tutelage of Matt Needham, whose knowledge is matched only by his passion for the underwater world.
Overhead the sky is grey, it’s cold and getting miserable, but none of us have been aware of the change. We’ve been lost in a world that we didn’t know existed: Durban, the undisputed capital of the country’s holiday kingdom.
l Low-cost airline Mango has just started a daily service to Durban from Lanseria airport.
EYE-CATCHING DESIGN
Built in time for the 2010 Soccer World Cup, the Moses Mabhida Stadium is fast achieving iconic status. This is not just for its location but for its eye-catching design, complete with overhead arch off which daredevils can do a 20m free fall and then swing before being winched back up, but not bungee. Or you can take a cable car to the top for panoramic views of Durban and King’s Park alongside. The stadium holds 60 000 but this can be extended to 80 000. It also boasts a running track under the Astroturf around the pitch, making it a key venue for the upcoming Commonwealth Games.
http://www.segwayglidingtours.com/tour-operations/entry/moses-mabhida-durban
Kevin Ritchie, Saturday Star