eSwatini

Leaving Johannesburg I headed for eSwatini, formerly Swaziland. After spending the night in a lodge in Ezulwini Valley enjoying the gorgeous mountain views, I headed to Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary. Here I stayed in an old villa converted into a backpackers accommodation where I could watch the zebras wandering past and the wild warthogs that scurried under the fences to feast on the grass every morning. Mlilwane is a former farming and tin mining area that was rehabilitated in the 70's to a sanctuary for zebras, warthogs, wildebeest, various types of bucks and other herd animals, and crocodiles. With the exception of the crocs there are no predators, which means that it is safe to wander around on the many self guided hiking trails. There's something magical about wandering around the open plains with the animals, where they keep a careful eye on you but are otherwise happy to continue grazing and just doing their thing. The one thing that did make me a bit nervous was the huge crocodiles! The first time I saw them I was a fair distance away so felt pretty safe, but the 2nd time the path went right past a huge lake where I saw at least 5 large crocodiles, some which were pretty close. Luckily they seemed about as interested in staying away from me as I was from them!Read more