We celebrated Christmas with a conventional turkey meal and Australian wine. The Tuzi Gazi marina/waterfront complex is a centre of activity during the holiday period. New Years eve promises no sleep on Petite Ourse tonight according to the local boaters.
We have visited two nearby game reserves - Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve and iSimangaliso Wetland Park. At the game reserve we saw giraffe, water buffalo, zebra, kudu, antelope, black rhino and white rhino. In the wetland park, the major attraction was hippos, crocodiles and birds.
We had the opportunity to go out with one of the harbour tugboats to escort and berth a cargo ship in the port at dusk. These tugs have immense 5000 hp dual diesel engines and finger-tip steering. It took about 2 hours to escort and then berth the cargo ship.
We are hoping to visit Kruger park early in the New Year and hopefully see some lions and elephants. Then we will start passaging to Cape Town in coastal weather window stages.