Accommodations in North Dragensberg was more of a resort than a hostel, with a pool, jacuzzi and sauna, encompassed by 3000 hectares of farmland. It is able to host 160 people, not including 400 tents. A few days previous, I met a very tall and well traveled (60 countries!) Swed named Anders and we traveled together for several days, including to North Dragensberg. We also met a sweet French girl named Lara on the backpacker bus, and the three of us became inseparable for the following few days. This included two days trips.
The first was to the nation of Lesotho. Life here reminded me of the villages in Coffee Bay, only much more mountainous and even more remote (e.g., the first cellular tower was erected just a few months ago). The country is completely surrounded by South Africa and is the most elevated country in the world, with the lowest point 1,400 meters above sea level. The day trip was organized by the hostel and we hiked across a village, ate lunch with some children, and visited a natural healer. The healer was actually more practical than anticipated, and she acknowledged she can only help with minor illness using herbs. Patients with anything more severe were directed to the hospital, 3 hours away by foot and is only open 8 hours each day during the week. Villagers had to schedule to be sick, it seems.
The second day trip was to the Amphitheatre, a world heritage site, and was a 6 hour trek along a huge curved mountain that none of us could actually see. A thick fog covered the landscape, and with intermittant rainfall, I had to focus on each footstep. We journeyed to the 2nd tallest waterfall in the world, only to be able to see the first 5 meters of it; my imagination had to fill in the rest and boy was it stunning! 😉
Aside from socializing with other patrons at the hostel, I began practicing my magic card tricks, and hope to have five decently impressive tricks within the next few weeks. It’s exciting to finally learn something new and entertaining.