On Saturday a group of us left the base and travelled at 7:30 (a relative lie in!) to Musina to pick up the week's shopping. We bought the necessities in a Shoprite store, but interestingly most of us also spent some money on junk food and chocolate.
Musina has a mall which is new, much like the one at Polokwane, but outside of this the town is hustling and dusty. Musina is filled with Zimbabweans who travel in across the border for supplies and kitchen appliances such as cookers and fridges from the numerous appliance and furniture stores before heading back home where the shops lie empty. The town is therefore a hive of activity:
With any busy South African town, beggars can be expected. On our way back to the van with the shopping a man insisted on pushing our trolley and helping to load the van. Afterwards he asked for payment by kneeling, holding out his hands and bowing his head. We also saw a blind woman begging with a can which she shook incessantly and sounded like it had a single coin in. From the van we talked about the benefits this woman might receive in the UK. Here, nothing. Giving her money would be likely to increase her chance of being robbed and I decided not to photograph her.
We headed to a nearby Spur steak house(feeling rich and guilty) and watched a rugby match with Manie who is a Bulls fan. After my time with fanatical Stormers fans, it's good to get a new perspective! The steak house seemed incongruous in Musina, and indeed it was patronised by white South Africans and tourists who have the money.
It was another thought-provoking day. We returned to camp for spaghetti. On our way home we stopped at the swimming pool by the park owners house. I sat and dipped my feet, only discovering that I had been sitting on chlorine pellets when I stood up and my shorts had been bleached white!
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