June 21 Day 12
Wisely, for once, I decided not to charge around South Africa in my automobile. I flew yet another time on 1 Time from JNB to Durban. The distance is about 400 miles. I booked on line the night before, and I spent about $250. The fare could have been cheaper with less attractive hours.
1 Time performed still another time and I made it to Durban Airport around 2:30pm. 1 Time is so spartan that one pays for water. Yet, they are very efficient.
The Durban terminal is modern but much smaller than we would find in a comparable American city. The airport is in rolling green countryside, not far from the ocean. When I walked out of the terminal door, I had a sensation, like “What I am doing out here alone. I must be a bit daft to do this just for a soccer game.” I laughed to myself. I am.
I headed for the next local find, First Car Rental. They have worked very well for me so far. I did not even have a reservation. I arranged the same car I had in Joburg, Chevrolet Aveo. There is always a careful check-over process with a rental car agent, which takes time. Street crime in South Africa is clearly worse than in the USA, but not that much so. Fraud, on the other hand, is exponentially more rampant. Thus, for example, the agent verifies the spare tire’s presence and its make.
The process is much longer than in the USA. Finally, I got into the driver’s seat. I noticed something odd. There was an extra pedal. I had forgotten to specify automatic. No way I would try to drive a stick shift left-handed while driving on the left. Left-side driving is not so bad, once one gets used to the experience. The problem is that it is not natural and every move is the reverse of right-hand driving. The most difficult aspect, for some reason, is judging clearance room on the vehicle’s left side. That judgment is ingrained for right-side driving.
Another challenge, especially in the dark, is gauging a wide street's width when turning right. If the way is really wide, one can be lured into the incorrect belief that he has successfully found the far left lanes. I did make that error a few times, but survived.
Many Americans probably do not realize that stick shift is the world’s preference. It is cheaper to buy; cheaper to run.
I returned to the rental office. There was one automatic, but it had just been returned, so I had to wait 30 minutes. No problem. I had not had lunch, as usual. Also, by then it was 4:00pm, time for the that day’s game. All restaurants with TV’s were deemed eligible for my patronage.
By the time I entered the airport exit highway, the winter darkness was setting in. Fortunately, my hotel was only about 20 minutes away, in a nice seaside northern suburb. The problem was I only had general directions for a nearby hospital as a landmark.
I exited the expressway at the correct place, but soon lost the hospital trail. Darkness had fallen. I was in a foreign country, a strange car, a new city and driving on the left. I meandered on to another highway. At least I had the ocean as a landmark. The parking gods told me to exit the first possible chance. I did so, and found myself driving up a long, winding road with construction. At the top, I looked to the right. In the distance, I saw a green and white sign high on a building reading, “Holiday Inn Express.” I cheered out loud. I thought, “Thank you, parking gods, yet again!”
This hotel is new and has an ocean view, though the water is about a half-mile away. However, I was so exhausted I could not explore anything or even watch that night’s game. I collapsed on the bed. Durban could wait for the next day.
Wisely, for once, I decided not to charge around South Africa in my automobile. I flew yet another time on 1 Time from JNB to Durban. The distance is about 400 miles. I booked on line the night before, and I spent about $250. The fare could have been cheaper with less attractive hours.
1 Time performed still another time and I made it to Durban Airport around 2:30pm. 1 Time is so spartan that one pays for water. Yet, they are very efficient.
The Durban terminal is modern but much smaller than we would find in a comparable American city. The airport is in rolling green countryside, not far from the ocean. When I walked out of the terminal door, I had a sensation, like “What I am doing out here alone. I must be a bit daft to do this just for a soccer game.” I laughed to myself. I am.
I headed for the next local find, First Car Rental. They have worked very well for me so far. I did not even have a reservation. I arranged the same car I had in Joburg, Chevrolet Aveo. There is always a careful check-over process with a rental car agent, which takes time. Street crime in South Africa is clearly worse than in the USA, but not that much so. Fraud, on the other hand, is exponentially more rampant. Thus, for example, the agent verifies the spare tire’s presence and its make.
The process is much longer than in the USA. Finally, I got into the driver’s seat. I noticed something odd. There was an extra pedal. I had forgotten to specify automatic. No way I would try to drive a stick shift left-handed while driving on the left. Left-side driving is not so bad, once one gets used to the experience. The problem is that it is not natural and every move is the reverse of right-hand driving. The most difficult aspect, for some reason, is judging clearance room on the vehicle’s left side. That judgment is ingrained for right-side driving.
Another challenge, especially in the dark, is gauging a wide street's width when turning right. If the way is really wide, one can be lured into the incorrect belief that he has successfully found the far left lanes. I did make that error a few times, but survived.
Many Americans probably do not realize that stick shift is the world’s preference. It is cheaper to buy; cheaper to run.
I returned to the rental office. There was one automatic, but it had just been returned, so I had to wait 30 minutes. No problem. I had not had lunch, as usual. Also, by then it was 4:00pm, time for the that day’s game. All restaurants with TV’s were deemed eligible for my patronage.
By the time I entered the airport exit highway, the winter darkness was setting in. Fortunately, my hotel was only about 20 minutes away, in a nice seaside northern suburb. The problem was I only had general directions for a nearby hospital as a landmark.
I exited the expressway at the correct place, but soon lost the hospital trail. Darkness had fallen. I was in a foreign country, a strange car, a new city and driving on the left. I meandered on to another highway. At least I had the ocean as a landmark. The parking gods told me to exit the first possible chance. I did so, and found myself driving up a long, winding road with construction. At the top, I looked to the right. In the distance, I saw a green and white sign high on a building reading, “Holiday Inn Express.” I cheered out loud. I thought, “Thank you, parking gods, yet again!”
This hotel is new and has an ocean view, though the water is about a half-mile away. However, I was so exhausted I could not explore anything or even watch that night’s game. I collapsed on the bed. Durban could wait for the next day.
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