South Africa 2004 Part 2: Durban

We flew to Durban from Cape Town with Kulula, which took two hours and cost about £35 . There are regular flights to Durban with Kulula and Mango which is a new airline. They are the low cost airlines which fly within South Africa. We had booked into the Holiday Inn North Beach (Now Southern Sun) for four nights. The Hotel is overlooking the gorgeous North Beach, and we were lucky enough to allocated a sea view room.

Durban has one of Africa's best beaches and well known for surfing as it is in the Indian Ocean which has better conditions and is warmer. Durban is also the largest city in KwaZulu Natal. The beach and promenade at Durban known as the Golden Mile has golden sandy beaches, that lovely blue sea (that you don't see in the UK!!) and lots of shops, bars, restaurants and hawkers selling paintings, carved wooden ornaments and beads among other items.

We were advised that we must visit the Victoria Market in the Indian Quarter (or Indian Market as it is known!!!). Durban has the largest population of Indian people outside India. We travelled by taxi to the Market and it certainly was as experience!!!!! As soon as we got out of the taxi, we were pounced on by sellers all trying to get us to look at their stalls. The market has lots of stalls selling mainly herbs and spices as well as fruit, veg and fish. They also sell furniture, brassware, wooden ornaments, and materials. Much of it is too big to take home in your luggage!

As good as it was to see the hustle and bustle of the market, it got a bit on our nerves as you cannot browse the items as you are being pestered all the time. As soon as you hit the market, you smell the exotic aroma of the spices as you wander around. There are a few malls in Durban, but we were told that the Pavilion had the largest range shops and is similar to the Trafford Centre in Manchester. It has shops from designer to High Street Stores and sells everything from clothes and accessories to furniture and African Curios. We travelled about by taxi as the buses are not very reliable. Although one driver went to fill up before he could take us any where and you got the impression that he only put enough fuel in for our journey!

It was my husbands birthday while were in Durban, so we decided to have a day at the races and got a cab to Greyville Race Course. It only cost about £5 to get in and was really quiet. It was a beautiful sunny day and everytime we have been to the horseracing at home it has been cold, windy and raining so this made a refreshing change. The main racing season in Durban is July, which is always busy and is compared to Royal Ascot. They also have the Durban Gold cup which is held in August.

There were quite a few races and obviously not as much prize money as the big races of July and August, but it was good fun. My husband was really surprised at the price of beer which was about R7 (50p) - this compared to the £3 t the Aintree Grand National (see previous post). Soft drinks were also very cheap.

You could also buy snacks and souvenirs. I was quite surprised at how close you could stand to the course and the winners enclosure. It is a lot smaller than Aintree in Liverpool so you can see the stables and get close to the horses and jockeys. We had a few winners and it was a brilliant day out and we are really glad we went although we could not find a cab outside to take us back to the hotel so we risked the walk which was a bit nervy at times!

I am a big fan of Cow Parade and if you have never heard of it the it is basically a Public Art Display on live size painted cows. They are dispayed all over attractions and towns for a period of time and then auctioned off with the money going to Charity. Cow Parade was in Durban when we were there. The cows were scattered all over. They were on the promendade, in the shopping centres, Metro and Botanical Gardens to name a few. We did not get round to see them all, but we got round as many as possible.

There are plenty of things to do and see in Durban as well as soaking up the rays and shopping!!!!. There is the Botanical Gardens, Temples such as the Umgeni Road Hindu Temple and the Shri Mariamman Temple at Mount Edgecombe. There is Fitz Simons Snake Park which is home to 157 different snake species, lizards and crocodiles, Fun World, Sea World (not to be confused with Sea World in Florida), Water World and MiniTown.

As far as eating out goes, there are lots of cafes and restaurants to eat in Durban. The first night we got ready to go out and find a
restaurant at night, the doorman of our hotel asked us where we were going. When we told him, he told us that you should not walk about after dark in Durban as it is not safe. He said that everybody goes to the Suncoast Casino which is like a resort rather than a casino and has over seventeen restaurants inside as well as shops, takeway, casino and cinema. There is also a play area for kids.

Our hotel and most of the hotels along the North Beach run a shuttle bus to and from the Casino which is about 15 minutes away. As we did not want to take any chances, this is what we did. The restaurants include Jaipur Palace, News Cafe, John Dory's Fish and Grill and Spur among others - Spur is everywhere in South Africa! I am sure that people do eat out in restaurants rather than going to the casino, but we like to wander around on foot as I believe this is a better way to get your bearings.

The South Africans love their sport and rugby and cricket are both very popular. Unfortunatley (for my hubby!!! and fortunatley for me!!!!!) there were no games on when we were there or he would have dragged me to a game. We did go past the Absa stadium, and it looked pretty impressive, it is huge and holds 52.000 people. Durban among the other main cities in South Africa are preparing for the World Cup which will be held there in 2010.

The games will be held in cities including Durban, Cape Town, Johannesburg and Pretoria in June and July 2010. You can combine Durban with a safari as there are games reserves in the Kwazulu Natal area such as Abu Madi Game Ranch Mkuze and Leopard Mountain Game Lodge among others. We really liked Durban, but we did a lot of lazing around (after Cape Town, we wanted a rest!!!!) and did not do all the things that we could have done. If money is no object or you want to book that once in lifetime experience, you should book Rovos Rail which is South Africa's answer to the Orient Express and is pure luxury, the itinerary of which includes in game reserves.

Durban has a subtropical climate, and it can get hot and humid in the summer months which are November to February, but it is still warm even in the winter. The currency is South African Rand and it is cheap in Durban. The people are friendly and all the time we were there, we felt safe although we were advised against walking about at night. I would recommend a stay in Durban as it is cheap and easy to get to.

Grand National 2008

This years Grand National was held on Saturday, 5th April.
The John Smith's Grand National meeting is held every year at Aintree Race Course in Liverpool and is a 3 day event, this year marks the 161st Grand National. The Grand National Race meeting traditionally starts on the Thursday, the Friday is ladies day and then the Actual Grand National race is held on the Saturday.






The Grand National is one of the largest meetings in the National Hunt Racing Calendar alongside the Cheltenham Festival. It is one of the most popular sporting events in the British Sporting Calendar. Millions of pounds are spent every year betting on the Grand National from £1 sweepstakes at work places up and down the country to the serious gamblers placing thousands of pounds. The Grand National is run over a distance of 4 1/2 miles which is 2 circuits of the course, with 30 fences being jumped. I have been to the Grand National a few times with my husband and father-in-law and the weather is always cold, wet and windy. We did not go last year as the weather was so bad the year before... and what a surprise it was a lovely hot sunny day.

It was horrible watching the race on the television last year, so we agreed that we would definitely go this year. We like to book a badge in one of the stands as it is worth it to get your own seat, and more importantly a clean toilet!!!!!. You need to book as soon as the tickets go on sale to get in the stands as they sell out very quickly. We could only get our second choice this year and we booked the day they went on sale which is usually August/September time. This year we booked into the newly built Earl of Sefton Upper Stand which has spectacular views from the panoramic windows.

The only thing that disappointed us was it did not have a closed roof, it was a canvas roof and quite open so it was freezing and only had small heaters (the kind you would find in a bathroom!!!) to heat the whole bar area. If it was a warm day it would have been perfect. As blue as the sky was, it was icy cold and we had rain and snow. On the upside, the toilets were clean, there was also a large bar area, and an outside terrace for watching the actual race.

Because we were quite high up, we could see the whole course, and on the other side we could see the weighing room and Parade ring. This stand is also by the path where the horses and jockeys came from the stables to the course. Two years ago when we came we were in the Princess Royal stand which is near the finishing post. This was better because in between races there was a warm bar area as well as the terrace outside. The roof and Terrace Stand badges cost between £70 and £87 and are definitely worth the money for the facilities. For unreserved seating in the Enclosure it costs between £16 and £35.

There are plenty of catering facilities and bars at Aintree but if you have booked unreserved seating, the toilets tend to be Portacabin's. There are loads of bookmakers and tote betting (obviously!!!!!) and there is the Parade Ring where previous Grand National Winners are paraded before going on show on the course. There is also the Aintree Pavilion which is a new, multi-purpose venue.

We travelled to Aintree by train as the traffic is manic and the parking is not great. You would think that after 161 years that the Rail companies would know how popular the Grand National is, but no they don't and the trains are a nightmare. If you are travelling from the North West, chances are you will have to change at Preston and Ormskirk. The train from Preston is always packed and people were getting more aggressive as more people were pushing and shoving to get on. Unfortunately there is only the train or car to get you to Aintree.

I just feel that the Rail companies could be a bit better organised for 1 day a year by putting on extra trains as they would fill them 10 times over. There are approx 40,000 people attending the Grand National every year. There are lots of big screens in Aintree so wherever you are sitting or standing you can see the race. I am not really a gambler, but it is the one day a year I look forward to going a bit mad and have a good bet.

There are 4 races before the actual Grand National and 2 after, so I like to have a bet on all races. I like to buy my race card and choose my horses carefully...by the names that I fancy!!!! It is such a great feeling sitting there with my betting slip in my hand shouting like a mad woman at my horse and Jockey because of course they can hear me!!!!!!. It is traditional for ladies to wear hats and dress in smart clothes like dresses or trouser suits. This year for me was to heck with tradition and I dressed to be warm in trousers and a big warm coat, and I was still freezing!!!!. There were still hundreds of ladies in little dresses, hats with no coats on and I felt really sorry for them!!!

I will be going to the National next year and hope for warmer weather!!!! Oh, and a better train service!!! Liverpool is the European City of Culture for 2008, so if you are planning on visiting this City then you should check out events and celebrations happening throughout the year. I also think that everybody should go to the Grand National at least once on their lifetime as it is a fantastic day out. For those who think it is cruel, I counted at least 3 horses that carried on racing and jumping even though they had no rider. You can also see the excitement in the former championswhen they are paraded before the racing starts. Some are in their twenties but you can tell they think they're here to race!!

Congratulations to Timmy Murphy and Comply or Die on their win in this years Grand National.