SKYVIEW OF AFRICA

OUR AFRICAN EXPIRIENCE

UMOJA is not a play but a musical “history” of black South Africa, strung along a narrative spoken by Nelson Mandela look-alike Penuel Bhekizitha Ndaba, from pre-colonial days through the late-twentieth century apartheid era to the present. The musical numbers are performed by more than thirty colourfully costumed singers and dancers accompanied by powerful indigenous drumming and a five-piece band (guitar, keyboards, saxophone, bass, and drums). Although it sometimes feels a little like African exotica contrived for western theatrical tourists, this gorgeous, high-speed, spectacular showcase of beautiful bodies is ultimately irresistible.

The opening scenes from the tribal village have an anthropological feel. To the incessant beat of huge, amplified tom-toms, the women, who come in all shapes and sizes, sing and sway in a tight line. Their green-gloved left arms, seemingly attached to one another, create an undulating, twenty-foot-long snake. Then the super-cut men come screaming in, performing fabulously athletic Zulu warrior dances, leaping and high-kicking like primitive African karate masters. The sequence ends with the ensemble recreating a sexy mating dance. Most of the rest of the show is set in urban environments or work camps. As the villagers emigrate to the cities and mining towns, costumes and dance styles change accordingly. In one magnificent routine, bare-chested miners perform a remarkable percussive dance, smacking their hands against their gumboots. Another highlight is the emergence of something like South African Bandstand when electric guitars and rock ‘n roll come to the townships.

ZULU DANCE

We make an early start and head inland towards South Africa's famous battlegrounds - more battles were fought in this remote area of KwaZulu-Natal than anywhere else in South Africa. Our expert Battlefield guides will have you hanging on every word as they recount the 1879 battle of Isandlwana, where 24 000 Zulu 'impis' took on the firepower of the British troops, and eliminated almost an entire regiment in less than an hour. Then it's on to Fugitive's Drift, where all those who fled the Isandlwana battlefield that fateful day were killed.

After a traditional South African breakfast we travel to the summit of Spioenkop Mountain. From here your guide will recreate the tragic battle between Boer and British soldiers, which unfolded over nine days in 1900. Incredibly, both Winston Churchill (then a reporter) and Mohandas Gandhi (a stretcher-bearer) witnessed the battle. We then continue a little further to visit the spot of the 'armoured train incident', famous due to the fact that Churchill was among those captured. After lunch, we take our leave of these battlefields chronicles and travel to Durban, arriving in the late afternoon for drop off at your hotel or Durban International airport.