Disturbing Event in Durban - November 20

Because of the wind last night, we were late arriving but only by about 15 minutes (not the hour that we were warned it might be).  Once cleared by the authorities, everyone (crew, too) had to get off the ship and have a face-to-face inspection with the immigration officers.  We were told that the HAL ship tours would be the first (Groups A&B) and then those with independent plans (Group C which I was in).  Since there was no telling when that might be, I had lunch at the taco bar.

Around 12:45, we were called.  Although there was a line, I was through it in about 10 minutes and then to the shuttle which was only taking us a couple of blocks to the uShaka Marine World.  My plans were to walk to the center of town to The Workshop, a former railroad workshop that now housed shops.  It sounded good in the write-up.  It was just under a two mile walk.  Luckily, it was a much cooler day than yesterday with highs only in the low 70s.

Only a few blocks from the ship, I found a store with odds and ends for sale and one of them was yarn.  I had to have a look and found some acrylic yarn to make another Linus blanket for $7.35 (125 Rand).  I then continued on, stopping at a gas station convenience center for a Coke Zero on the way.

I finally got to The Workshop and was very disappointed.  I was thinking it would be something like The Watershed in Cape Town but it was a plain old mall with every other shop selling phones, phone plans, or phone equipment.

Leaving the mall, I walked through the park beside it and when I was heading back, the disturbing event occurred - I was robbed.  In all my travels, I have never had anything stolen before.  Four young men came up behind me, one grabbed my arm, and two took my earrings off.  Then they walked away.  Looking back at it, I consider myself very lucky.  First of all, I wasn't hurt - I only have a couple of bruises on my arm (and I bruise easily anyway).  Secondly, they unhooked the earrings rather than ripping them out (which I have heard about).  They are going to be very surprised when they try to do something with the earrings because they were cheap ones from Wal-Mart.  Finally, they made no attempt to take my purse and everything important was in it - a small amount of money, my iPhone, camera, credit card, debit card, driver's license, and passport.

As I walked, I became more paranoid about my cards and passport, so when I came to a spot where nobody could see me, I stuck them under my clothes.  I would have taken a taxi back but I could not find one.  I shied away when anyone was on the same side of the street and walked in the street rather than on the sidewalk part of the way.  I made it back to the ship with no other problems.

Judy and Bob had told me last night that they were not coming to dinner so I knew I was eating in the Lido.  Since I was really tired, I was glad I was eating there. 

There were not many people playing trivia - over 200 left yesterday or today on safari and all aboard was not until 10:30, so some were still out.

I walked one lap around the deck and then called it a night and watched "Rocketman" on the TV. 

7pm trivia - I had 12 out of 19 and the winning team had 16

1.  What toy consists of boric acid and silicone?

2.  In ancient Chinese mythology, what fruit represents longevity and immortality?

3.  Which continent produces the most cocoa?

4.  What is the smallest mammal by weight?

5.  What are the four Cs of diamonds?

1.  Silly Putty

2. peach

3.  Africa

4.  pygmy shrew

5.  color, cut, carat, and clarity

Smooth sailing until next time!

this helicopter hovered over us for a couple of minutes

sail into Durban

new terminal built by MSC

unusual seat configuration on the shuttle

yarn and the store

interesting name

a couple of street scenes

looked good from the outside

not so much inside - they had started decorating for Christmas

I didn't even know they still made Tupperware

AIDS Memorial