Big things come in small packages like the intriguing
kingdom of Swaziland. It offers great and rewarding wildlife watching,
adrenaline-boosting activities such as rafting and mountain-biking, a colourful
culture with celebrations and ceremonies still practised today and beautiful
vast landscapes and stunning mountains. The crossing of the border from
South-Africa into Swaziland alone, is forth the visit.
As we drove from Graskop [city situated northwest from Swaziland] to the border of Swaziland, a five-hour long drive, we began to realize that the passing of the border alone would keep us busy for another two hours. We had to pass three gates before leaving South-African grounds and entering a nobody's land. Before we could enter Swaziland we needed to hand over our passport to the authorities of Swaziland who would examine them in a truck together with 500 other passport which were handed over at the same time. Luckily, we did get hold of our own passports which were provided with a new stamp and we could finally cross the border.
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| Crossing the border to Swaziland |
On our way to Mbabane, Swaziland’s capital and
second-largest city, we saw loads of women and children walking along the side
of the road. Some were wearing colourful garments but the majority of the
people was wearing shabby clothing and worn-down shoes. Most Swazi people live
in traditional homesteads which are small bungalows with a thatched roof. The
traditional Swazi culture still plays an important role in the society of
Swaziland, however the tourist sector has adapted to western society. Due to
the fact that the traditional culture still has a major role in society,
Swaziland still struggles with problems considering poverty. 89% of the
inhabitants of Swaziland live under the poverty line and it is a country
with a developing economy.
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| Traditional homesteads |
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| People walking along the side of the road |
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