south africa: himeville

My 'taxi' from Maritzburg took a couple hours to get to Underburg. That wasn't nearly as long as I expected it to be, but I was happy about it. The problem was, my next destination wasn't Underburg, it was Himeville.

I got some food at the taxi rank in Underburg, chicken curry and rice. With the normal assorted sides, yay.

Underburg isn't really a town, it's barely a village. It's more like a crossroads for the few people who live in the area. There are public taxis that will take you to other small towns in the area, unfortunately none of them were going to where I wanted to go.
Underburg is close to the edge of Drakensburg National Park, a beautiful park of South Africa. By staying in Himeville I was hoping to do some amazing hiking.

I found the information office in Underburg, and asked how I could get to Himeville. The guy told me there should be private taxis waiting around. Unfortunately, I never did see any of those taxis. Argh. While I was in the office I noticed adverts for a couple hotels in the area, as well as tours of the area offered by different companies.

I ended up walking to Himeville. It was 6 or 7 kilometers down the road. The walk was almost entirely flat, and it was really sunny. With the sun, and carrying my pack, I was sweating by the time I arrived at my accomodation.

I was able to check in straightaway, and my room was absolutely lovely.

One thing I realized almost straightaway was that it was actually cold, or at least colder than I'd been during this entire trip. There was an electric heater in my room, and though I didn't plug it in when I first checked in, I knew I'd need it at night.

After relaxing for a while I went out for a walk. My walk wasn't as long as I wanted, but it was my fault for not getting out faster after checking in. I was outside during sunset, which was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful.

I could see mountains off in the distance. I loved it. I knew I would only be in the area for a couple nights, but also knew I wanted to come back to this area with a whole lot more time to explore and hike. Next time I come back I will have a rental car too, so I can get around to everywhere. There isn't a lot of public transport in this area, argh.

The next morning I got to have another of the hot breakfasts I'd come to love. Fried eggs, tomatoes, bacon, corn flakes, tea, and yogurt. Life is good.

I ended up walking outside just before noon. My first stop was a local museum.

The museum is in what remains of a fortress, and is all about the history of the area. There were displays of items that used to be used in daily life, and descriptions of various important times in the history of the area.

I liked it. My favourite exhibit was that of what the old school room looked like. Maybe it's because I'm a teacher now, but this sort of exhibit fascinates me. Education defines a society.

My next 'sight' was the church in the village. St. Mark's church. It was open, which almost shocked me, as I'd kinda gotten used to everything being closed except for specific times.

St Mark's isn't big, but I was surprised at how big it is. Himeville is tiny, absolutely tiny, so I was surprised at the size of the church.

While I was eating breakfast, the manager told me of a walk I could go on to see more beautiful landscapes. After leaving the church, I headed down the road toward a turnoff I needed. I found the turnoff, and simply followed it for a while.

This road took me through a few beautiful landscapes. I was happy with all that I saw, and wished I had more time. I don't really know how far I went, but it was a good walk. I walked through part of a biosphere reserve, then all the way back to the main road where I'd started the walk.

When I got back to that road, I walked toward Underburg. It made my walking day longer, but I really needed to go to an ATM, and I wanted to refill my snack bag. I ended up back in my room in Himeville a little bit after dark.

The next morning, I was awake early, so I had time to eat breakfast, and get back to the taxi rank in Underburg. Goodbye for now, Himeville.