Swaziland really doesn't need a Formula 1 Grand Prix. Just take a Kombi minbus along the main road to Mbabane and be part of the high speed action yourself. Luckily, the roads are in very good repair and quite wide. Catch the right Kombi and not only do you get a swift ride to destination, but also a blast of African pop music, with the volume and bass cranked right up. Fares start at about 40c, enough to ride at least 10Km.
With a 70s themed party to attend that evening, I had to use the service in order to do a little shopping at the local mall. Very swish, featuring many of the South African chainstore big players, like Clicks, a kind of funky Superdrug, Pick and Pay, something akin to Tesco and of course, good old Woolworths. There is also a four screen cinema, some pubs and restaurants. Not a bad haul for what is in effect, a wide place in the road. Sadly, I couldn't find any 70s clothing, although the suits on offer in Woolworths window came close.
The party was held at Sundowners, a backpacker lodge near the village of Malkerns. Having by now had a little experience of these facilities, I expected standards to be high. For example, there are powerful showers, super clean bathrooms, well equipped communal kitchens, often a pool and of course a bar. Sundowners has all the above and more. It is more akin to being a guest in someone's home.
I had agreed to be DJ for the party. Why do people immediately associate me with the 70s? People from all around the area and of all races turned up in their costumes. Much is made of the decade which fashion forgot, but I was able to do a 2 hour set, using only music from that era. Thanks to Chic et al.
What impressed me the most was the easy and comfortable way in which guests of all hues mixed. Granted, many of the younger ones had been at school together, but there is a level of tolerance and acceptance in Swaziland that I have never seen anywhere else.
I can't remember the 70s having been so much fun, but on the downside, I am about to set off on a 15Km hike in order not to let the calories I engulfed become a permanent fixture.
What impressed me the most was the easy and comfortable way in which guests of all hues mixed. Granted, many of the younger ones had been at school together, but there is a level of tolerance and acceptance in Swaziland that I have never seen anywhere else.
I can't remember the 70s having been so much fun, but on the downside, I am about to set off on a 15Km hike in order not to let the calories I engulfed become a permanent fixture.
