"The Friendly City"--Port Elizabeth, South Africa

Tara Goodrum Stowaway Magazine Word Count: 1,547 Feature Article: “The Friendly City”—Port Elizabeth, South Africa I remember vividly the moment I stepped off of the plane onto African soil—the humid warmth was all around me and the air seemed a little hazy. My brother, three sisters, and I stiffly stumbled after our parents. We hadn’t seen our grandparents in over a year and the anticipation of seeing them again after so long was palpable. Additionally, being in such a foreign country made us jittery with excitement.

Getting to Africa was no small feat. The journey had been a long one and we were all exhausted.

We had been traveling for nearly thirty hours: a four hour drive to the nearest airport, a four hour flight and overnight layover in New York City (of course we had to visit Ground Zero and catch a show on Broadway), and an eight hour flight to Madrid and a tour of Spain’s Royal Palace. Nearing the end of our air time, we caught a flight to Johannesburg, South Africa, and tried to get some sleep during the ten hours it afforded us.

The two hours of our final flight into Port Elizabeth seemed like an eternity. I hoped our ten day vacation would be sufficient time to get over the jetlag. Luckily, there was so much to do that we didn’t have a minute to waste thinking about how tired we were.

After lots of hugging, talking, and happy crying, we loaded up the boot with our luggage and were on our way. Everything I had imagined about Africa was about to be changed or confirmed.

The Friendly City Still in the city, we passed skyscrapers, gas stations selling petrol, and gated homes with carefully manicured lawns. I don’t know what I thought I would see, but that wasn’t it. However, it wouldn’t be long until I saw the reality of where we were and got a taste of what I had expected. South

Africa is a country that is rebuilding itself after years of apartheid. Even today, the devastation of extreme segregation is still there, lurking in the corners of many people’s minds.

Just outside the city limits we began driving by miles and miles of townships where the Xhosa people live. Their homes were made from wood, concrete, and corrugated tin. Twenty of them would cram together in a tiny van to get from place to place. The children ran through the dirt chasing a worn-­‐ out soccer ball. As we drove down one dusty street, their curious faces turned to see who we were.

Never had I met such lovely and warm people; people who danced, and touched, and loved, and lived with the ultimate fullness of joy and grief. I was moved beyond words.

Port Elizabeth, often called PE for short, boasts all kinds of people, cultures, and languages (including Afrikaans, Xhosa, and English). It is nicknamed “the friendly city” for its people and “the windy city” for its exposure to the coastal winds. Not only diverse in its population, PE is varied botanically as well. The area conserves five of South Africa’s seven biomes: the thicket, the grassland, Nama-­‐Karoo, Fynbos, and the forest biomes. Consequently, multiple forms of wildlife can be found. But the wildlife is only the beginning of what the friendly city has to offer. There is so much to do, even if you aren’t visiting your grandparents.

Addo Elephant Park One of our first adventures was to the third largest national park in South Africa. Addo Elephant Park was established in 1931 and covers 444,700 acres of land! Originally there were only sixteen elephants living in the area, but now over 550 of them call it home. The hotter the day, the more likely you are to see herds of elephants bathing and playing in the watering holes. We were lucky enough to to see several baby elephants splashing in the water as though they were enjoying a day at the pool. We oohed and aahed at how adorable we thought they were.

The park also has a myriad of other wildlife including the Addo flightless dung beetle, unique to Addo itself. Two loops leave the main road, which begins at the entrance to the park, and tourists can

drive their own cars on whichever road they please. There are strict rules about staying in your vehicle as to avoid any interaction with the wildlife. We only saw elephants and birds, but the park recommends getting there at dawn or dusk to see the black rhinoceroses, lions, and spotted hyenas. http://www.sanparks.org/parks/addo/ Lalibela Safari After our taste of wildlife at Addo, we decided that we couldn’t afford to miss going on a real African safari. We chose Lalibela Game Reserve, not far from PE. The reserve offers visitors the chance to see the Big 5—lion, elephant, rhino, buffalo, and leopard. We were not disappointed. When we first arrived at Lalibela, we were greeted at the entrance by huge ostriches who tried to peck holes through the car windows. I remember thinking they seemed almost frightening—with their long legs and necks, scaly clawed feet, and bulging eyes, something about them seemed prehistoric and I imagined trying to outrun one of them.

Shortly after our arrival, we were taken out on a day safari. The animals are all free to roam where they please. We saw grizzly wildebeest drinking at a pond’s edge, agile impala bounding away through the grass, tiny warthogs running for cover with their tails in the air, and stately giraffes wandering gracefully up a grassy hill. It was like being in a dream; it didn’t seem possible to be seeing all of those majestic creatures in their natural habitats. Just after the sun went down we drove to see the lions. My brother was threatened with being fed to them if he didn’t behave. Nobody thought of doing otherwise with the king of the jungle so close! They lay there in the grass, enjoying the cool of dusk, hardly noticing that we were there.

We drove back to the game lodge and enjoyed a delicious dinner before heading out on a night safari to see the nocturnal animals. Our driver and guide had a filtered light so he could shine it on the animals without startling them. As we paused near a tree that sheltered two hippopotami grazing in the

dark, he told us that they cause more deaths in Africa than the lion or tiger! Going on safari was one of the most exciting parts of our trip. http://www.lalibela.net/ Rugby and Football: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium While in Port Elizabeth, we couldn’t miss out on seeing a rugby match. Naturally we watched the Mighty Elephants, PE’s own team, play in an older stadium. The game was exciting and my very first rugby match. We leaned a new set of vocabulary including scrum, ruck, and maul. In 2010, the Mighty Elephants joined the Super Rugby Franchise and were renamed the Eastern Province Kings. Rugby isn’t the only sport that is well-­‐loved; football (Americans refer to this sport as soccer) is also zealously played and observed.

Five years after my family visited PE, the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium was completed in anticipation of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Before the stadium was built, Port Elizabeth didn’t have a football stadium due to the lack of government funding for football during apartheid. Nicknamed the Sunflower for the petal-­‐like metal pieces that form the roof, the stadium overlooks the nearby North End Lake. Within the stadium there is a public park that is perfect for enjoying picnics. The stadium hosted a total of eight games during the World Cup, including a quarterfinal and the third and fourth place playoff. Now, the Sunflower accommodates both football and rugby games. It is home to the Eastern Province Kings and tickets and season information can be obtained at the stadium’s official website. http://www.nmbstadium.com/ Eastern Cape Coast

One afternoon we drove to the coast to see the ocean. We ran along the water’s edge, feeling

the sand beneath our bare feet. Every once in a while I stopped to let the waves lick my toes. With the blue sky above me and no ships on the horizon, it seemed as though I was standing at the end of the earth. Farther down the beach, huge craggy cliffs jutted out into the water. Suddenly, we saw the silver

glint of dolphins. A pod of them was playfully swimming a little way out to sea. Every so often one would jump out of the waves—a graceful arc, free as the wind—and then slip back beneath the surface. We were enchanted. We didn’t have the time, but several companies offer whale-­‐watching tours and scuba-­‐ diving trips. http://www.raggycharters.co.za/tours.html

With all of the life experiences we were having, our time in South Africa passed so quickly. It

seemed like only a moment had gone by, when suddenly we were packing our things and tearfully heading back to the airport. We had made countless friends and visited so many beautiful places. My heart had been changed forever and I knew that I would always long to return to Port Elizabeth. I think a little piece of me is still in the Friendly City—perhaps I will have to go back for it someday. I can only hope.