So the plan this morning was to sit a little while in the hot African sun and then take ourselves off for some retail therapy.  Looked out the window and no blue sky just a misty murky morning. So it’s reverse the plan and we’re off to the Gateway Mall this morning.

Described as The Theatre of Shopping it has over 400 shops and they say it is the largest Mall in the Southern Hemisphere.

It was very beautiful but mid morning on a rainy day and it was practically deserted. Apparently up to 2 million people visit every month.  Most of the shops were high end  designer brands – not as useful as Milton Keynes Shopping Centre!

Then the sun came out and just 2 days before we make our way home we did a short 30° sunbathe by the pool. We were disturbed during our efforts to do a crossword by shouts of “look out monkeys’.  Sure enough the Vervet monkeys were crossing the roof and clambering with typical monkey agility up the drainpipes and across the balconies.

You’ll probably recognise Sue’s balcony which this chap was visiting.  The hotel staff came rushing out with water sprays to shoo them away.  Close up they’re really quite big and they’re also not adverse to throwing stuff down off the roof so sunbathing halts for a while! 

Sheila gets very envious of the tropical plants and bright flowers that grow here. She has attempted some at home but our climate just doesn’t suit them so she’ll just have to stay disappointed.

Umhlanga Rocks is trying hard to attract the tourist trade, hence the huge mall, but they are coastal and want those coastal areas to be safe.  Many sharks, Bull, Great White and Tiger come in close so the KwaZulu-Natal Sharks Board have put in place shark nets and drumlines, (baited hooks), to protect swimmers at some designated beaches. The nets are designed to catch and reduce the number of sharks. These nets are inspected daily. There are 37 beaches on this coast line  but sadly these controversial nets also catch and kill dolphins, turtles and rays so the Sharks Board is working towards more eco friendly solutions such as drones.

Suffice to say we haven’t been in the sea!!!

We also said we wouldn’t mention any more animals so how about food? 

Just a 5 minute walk up the road to this restaurant tonight. It’s very safe on Umhlanga streets as there  are security guards patrolling most areas. We walked in and found ourselves in a tiny minority of ladies and certainly the only two sitting unchaperoned- definitely a place to eat for the men.  We’ve talked to several couples who spend December to March here to escape UK weather and when you see how cheap eating out is you can see why. Tonight we had a huge main course each, (ribs and chicken beautifully cooked), a dessert each, a very large glass of wine, gin and tonic and a bottle of water. Total cost £38.  Already thinking about where we’ll go tomorrow.

Not sure we’ll attempt that!!