Tag: Monkeys

Durban is located on the east coast of Africa, on the Indian Ocean. This is where I was born, went to school, lived happily and contentedly with my mom and dad, brothers, our maid Lizzie, grandparents, dogs and cats, and friends. We lived in a beautiful house in a very hilly and verdant village called Kloof about 25 kms inland from Durban. Durban is located in the province of KwaZulu Natal, where the Zulus, South Africa’s largest tribal nation, are from.

We all left permanently in 1982, when I was fifteen. I have been back twice as an adult, the most recent time in October 2025, to celebrate my thirtieth wedding anniversary. We stayed at Umhlanga Rocks, just north of the city of Durban and fell asleep every night to the sounds of the Indian Ocean pounding the shore. It is the most stunning and beautiful place.

Thanks to my mother, we connected with her cousin Joy, my second cousin, who also grew up in South Africa and her lovely son Myles and daughter in law Ali, whom we met on the day her first baby was due. We had tea and sandwiches together on the veranda of the hotel overlooking the ocean. “What are your plans for your sabbatical?,” asked Joy, curiously.

It’s a question I’ve been asked multiple times over the last half a year, but, apart from very few people, not really answered in any depth, till now. “I’m planning to revisit all of our ports of call from our trip on Scally forty three years ago,” I replied, with my carefully rehearsed answer. “And, write the tale of the journey.”

Dates: I was in Durban in October 2025.