TIA

Thursday 3 February to Friday 4 February


We've been playing the honeymoon card as often as possible and although we didn't get an upgrade on our flight over to Johannesburg they did give us five seats between the two of us for the 14 or so hour journey, which was almost as good (although I've only ever ridden economy so it's probably good I don't know how much better it can get).  I perfected my method of avoiding dry mouth by effectively smothering myself and managed to get a good amount of sleep in (on top of the five hours we had at the hotel earlier), perhaps as a result of the lack of oxygen.

The perfect way to welcome me to SA at Johannesburg Airport.

Arriving at 6am I made a beeline for Vodacom for a sim, Mugg and Bean for a coffee and Woolworths for groceries.. In that order.

Even at the airport Woolworths (in which they sell clothes and appliances too here) the fruit was amazingly cheap - I couldn't help but grab a punnett of raspberries for $2 - but I had to be quite sensible and grab a few supplies for our 22 hour train journey.  The Shosholoza Meyl (a train as difficult to board as it is to spell) didn't leave until midday, so we were very boring and hung out at the hotel for a few hours, shying away from the thought of lugging our heavy packs mindlessly around Johannesburg.

After we got sick of airport sitting we not-so-bravely took a private car over to the Johannesburg train station at Park Street, where the driver made a point of escorting us through the station to the Shosholoza offices and then telling the security guard at the office to look after us and for us to go only where the security guard thought suitable.  This and the fact that we were the only whites in the station freaked Jono out a bit.  Perhaps my midnight session at Nairobi airport 12 months ago with no passport steeled me a bit for this experience.

I had also wanted us to arrive early because I anticipated problems with our train tickets.  I already knew that a fee had been deducted by an SA intermediary bank when I paid for the tickets in Australia.  I had been trying to follow the problem up in the weeks leading up to our trip with no luck and in the end it turned out that the Shosholoza Meyl hadn't booked our tickets for our two person coupe, so I'm glad we arrived early.

After much begging and pleading the tickets were booked despite the R125 shortfall and we were on our way...  So we thought - until the train manager told us that whole train had been booked and there was potentially no room for us.  He took us down to the platform and told us to wait while he sorted things out.  We were waiting with the economy class passengers, who had brought what seemed to be everything they owned with them.  It was an overnight train so people had bags full of duvets with them.

There was a moment where we thought we might be placed down in economy, on wooden seats, amongst the masses for the journey.  I was mentally devising plans on how to befriend our potential travel companions, otherwise it might have been an awkward 22 hours ahead of us.

Then, just as the train pulled up the manager told us that we would have a staff sleeper for the journey, so we effectively got an upgrade from our two person coupe to a four person sleeper and things were looking more and more Darjeeling Limited for us!  I did feel pretty guilty about the space we had in the sleeper compared to the families in economy class though.

We boarded at Johannesburg and hopped off just after Worcester at Huguenot 22 hours later.

White minority on the platform

All aboard the Shosholoza Meyl

Castle beer - R20 for two (or ~AUD3)

I didn't take photos of the first day's travel because the scenery was the same as Australia's.  When we woke up on the Friday morning we were greeted with something more like the 'real Africa'… for me anyway! Mountains and fynbos.

On the journey we went past a sewerage plant.  The smell filled our sleeper cabin and we both turned our noses up.. until we went past the flock of flamingos, who were having a lovely time at the plant.
TIA THIS is Africa.

Sometime in the afternoon the neighbours in the sleeper next to us befriended us.  Two Afrikaners from up north named Allen and Cindy.  This was Cindy's first train ride and first holiday in eight years, she'd never seen the sea or the snow or been to another country, let alone Cape Town where they were headed.  I think we seemed very exotic to her!  Allen had seen a bit, but not much more.  Either way, they were incredibly generous, introducing us to the local drinks - I got hooked on the Savanna ciders, Jono on the beer, shots, scotch and red wine (like a good traveller who is accepting someone else's generous hospitality should).  Some time before the shots, scotch and red one of the staff came around with a menu to take our meal orders.  For R30 each (or AUD4) we were served giant and delicious plates of chicken, gravy and pap.  The next day I ordered curry and pap for lunch and it was just as good.  We've struggled to find such good value for money since.

Bunking down in our sleeping bags it was a surprisingly comfortable ride.  We woke up just before Beaufort West, where the train stopped for half an hour.  There was a kiosk (really just a hole in a wall) on the platform selling loaves of bread, juice and sausage rolls etc and provided a great people watching opportunity as our sleeper faced the kiosk.  A couple of times I saw some guys completely undo their pants and reach right down the inside of their jeans to retrieve their cash.  After the rush, Jono headed out and grabbed some sausage rolls and a bottle of juice.  The sausage rolls were delicious, almost a sweet mince with a flakey pastry.  I think he said they were R3 each or something ridiculous.  I think we understood the juice because it was as sweet and as thick as cordial!

I was a bit nervous about taking a shower, but since I hadn't had one since KL it was definitely time!  I shouldn't have been nervous though, it was a surprisingly awesome experience - showering with the countryside flying by!

Sometime after lunch we hit a tunnel system and when we emerged we were in the mountains and valleys and it was immediately hotter.  Vineyards and orchards started to appear and then our cabin started baking.  We were packed and ready to go, but totally wilted.  Late in the afternoon we arrived at Huguenot and we burst off the train with our gear onto the platform.  Poor Audrey had been waiting for us for about half an hour in the heat!

We were so grateful when she told us there was a pool at her retirement complex!  We could have been at a resort!  The mountains of Stellenbosch in the background and this crystal blue pool welcoming us.  The resort feel didn't last for long though, on such a hot day the pool was a popular place and soon we were joined by three or four residents and immediately the conversation turned surprisingly typically to Andre Rieu!