LESOTHO
After a night in Durban I arrived at the Amphitheatre Backpackers in the Drakensberg mountains which although is in South Africa, I will be spending most of my time in Lesotho.
LUMELA! REALEBOHA!
WHERE IS LESOTHO?
THE HOSTEL
First impressions, the hostel was incredible and is best described as a Texan ranch! It had everything from a swimming pool, indoor jacuzzi, an insane amount of space and bar to name but a few.
There wasn’t long to go before it was sunset so I took a walk to the lake and then further on to the viewpoint of the Amphitheatre, where we will be hiking in a few days! This place has certainly set the tone for what I hope will be an interesting few days!
VILLAGE TRIP
Today we are off to visit the Maasai Tribe in Lesotho, a tiny village tribe located near the South African border in the Drakensberg Mountains. The Maasai are a Nilotic ethnic group based in Africa and speak Swahili although you can expect some to speak English.
It was also the place were I would be reunited with my bag which turned out to be someone elses, the chances of seeing mine again were dwindling to say the least!
After going through the most bizarre border I’ve seen (a portacabin) we arrived at the village. We visited various homes, a witch doctor and the local brewery which proved to be very entertaining.
VIEW POINT
Before the brewery we were able to check out the surrounding are with a walk up to the viewpoint. It is just incredible how far from home this palce actually is. Mudhuts as homes, no infrastructure, no electric and nothing but smiles from the locals, we really do live in a bubble at home!
BREWERY
The Brewery was a lot of fun, with the locals giving you no option but to allow them to throw their home brew down your throat. And this was no light Ale but rather incredibly strong and heavy! The jury is out on what else was in it. The size of the jars were incredible and when I noticed the barrel where they were refilling I knew there would be no end.
Fortunately the guide knew we were on a slippery slope and made our apologies so we could get ready to move on.
VALUE
Our last trip was to a school where we learned a little Swahili before having a kick about with the local kids. I can guarantee you this that the kids of Africa have the biggest and warmest smiles you will ever see! It makes you think twice about how lucky we have it and why we are never happy!
FINAL THOUGHTS
As are a lot of my trips to rural areas, this was humbling and brought me back down to earth again. Something I enjoy and at times need.
NEXT UP
The Sunday Times’, Greatest hike on Earth Click to read
SAFE TRAVELS, DS x
119/229
This post is part of the Southern Africa Series, click to explore or for episode 1 click here.
