Richards Bay, South Africa

New-to-us port #33.

Not that we spent our day in Richards Bay. Rather, once the ship was cleared shortly after 6:00a, we headed off on a day safari to Hluhluwe/Imfolozi (or Umfolozi) Game Reserve.

For the 1¼-hour transfer from the port to the reserve, East Coast Safaris combined our group of 6 with another group of six. We had a 17-seater van that was plenty comfy for the ride. At the park, however, each group had a 10-seater game vehicle to themselves … no one having to sit in the middle is a good thing 😉

Before setting off on our game drive, coffee, tea, muffins and other goodies were available to tide us over until brunch. Then, we got into our vehicle and took off in search of animals. First down a paved road, and then on dirt spurs that took us deeper into the park.

The park, which dates back to 1895 — thus making it the oldest of its kind in Africa — is beautiful. Very green … lots of brush and trees. The terrain was varied … hills and flats. The tall brush made finding and seeing animals a challenge at times. Nonetheless, we did pretty good. No lions, though.

Around 10:30a, we arrived at the picnic area. The tables were set. The food brought out … chicken kabobs, salad, and pasta salad. Beer, wine, and soft drinks were available as well.

After our tummies were sated, we set off to find some more animals as we slowly made our way back to the entrance to the reserve.

With all aboard scheduled for 3:00p, we wanted to be back at the port around 2:00p, so we left the reserve at 12:30p. Good thing we did, as we experienced a bit of a delay en route. We were stopped by the traffic police! While the license for the vehicle was good, the certificate that allows it to carry passengers had lapsed by 10 days. The tour operator called the owner of the vehicle and they got it worked out. Whew!

Upon returning to Insignia we went through the departure immigration formalities. The face-to-face meetings were conducted on the ship and our passports are now with the purser’s office once again for safekeeping.

All in all … a good day safari!Read more