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- Just a half hour’s drive north-east of Pretoria, nudging the Mpumalanga and Limpopo borders, sits a little region known as Dinokeng, or ‘place of rivers.’ It’s packed with historical, natural and cultural heritage, made all the more colourful by off-beat characters and oddities. Take off on the N1 past Pretoria until you reach the Zambezi Drive off ramp. Turn right, and then left onto the R573 – the KwaMhlangu Road. Some travel on gravel roads will be required.
- You’ll pass the picturesque Roodeplaat Dam and Nature Reserve. If it’s the weekend there’s usually quite a buzz, and you may want to peek in and watch canoeists hard at practice, or fishermen at their game. Otherwise, just absorb the peace and see if you can identify any of the avian species in this birders’ heaven.
- Continue on to Zebra Country Lodge, to visit the Ndebele Cultural Village. After you’ve requested, in the customary manner, the ‘chief’s’ permission to enter, you’ll be shown how hut building has progressed through the ages, how traditional family life was structured and duties divided. The symbolism of clothing and use of implements is explained. (Pre-arrangement advised.)
Stay for lunch and perhaps an afternoon game drive to see a variety of antelope on the property, including zebra, of course.
- Back on the R573, turn left on the Boekenhoutskloof road, heading for the Rust de Winter road. You are now in a wildlife area with many game farms. Look for accommodation at the Protea Mongena Game Lodge, Tamboti Bush Lodge, the exclusive Didimala or Mangwa Valley Lodge.
- Up and down the length of the Rust de Winter Road, there are operators of microlight flips, balloon rides, horse riding, quad biking, elephant back rides and more. Your lodge will assist you in making arrangements. But don’t miss the Shebeen and Cultural tour leaving Kwalata Game Lodge in the late afternoon. It takes you into Nelson Mandela Village and Kekana Gardens – you’ll learn to gumboot dance, visit a mkhukhu (tin) house, see a crèche made of old buses and consult a sangoma (diviner). Dinner is served in the Khuwana Tavern, famed for its exotic wall murals.
- Wind your way out of Dinokeng on the morning of day 3 on the N1, making a short detour to visit the Sammy Marks Museum, the Victorian mansion of an Eastern European entrepreneur who made a fortune in mining and agriculture. Nearing Johannesburg, take the N3 and follow the signs for Durban. You’re travelling to the famous Drakensberg Mountain Range about three hours down the road.
- At the town of Bergville, turn towards Cathedral Peak, with its choice of hotels and resorts. Winterton, the next town, is the turnoff to resorts in the Champagne Castle area of the ’Berg.
- The scenery in the Drakensberg (dragons’ mountain) is pure soul balm. Activities include helicopter rides, golf, tennis, bowls, horse riding, hiking and fishing, and game drives in the local Kamberg or Giant’s Castle reserves. Fireplaces and good food warm up your mid-winter sojourn. Spend two days here to do justice to this beautiful area and its many activities.
- From the ’Berg take the N3 onwards to Durban. You’ll need two to three nights in this coastal city to explore the beaches, visit the uShaka Marine World with its sunken restaurants, water-slides and myriad marine creatures, do some shopping in local markets and drive into the hills and valley of the countryside. And, eat a Bunny Chow - it’s a half-loaf of white bread hollowed out and filled with the curry of your choice. Rustic, but unashamedly local.
Not enough sunny days by the sea, yet? Stay a while longer and experience the rest of Durban and the beautiful KwaZulu-Natal coastline.
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