to be feeling a bit moany after spending 1000 quid on an unenjoyable holiday and catching the sniffles?

[likethemoon]

Just returned from South Africa, meant to be a birthday treat.
Immigration were very rude on entry. We were expecting warmish weather as it's the start of their summer, but it rained constantly. Almost every attempt at conversation was met with some reference to colour or race, understandable given the history but still rather offputting. One of our friends got mugged (to be fair he did do something risky, i.e. go out late at night and come back from the minibus taxi terminus downtown) and we got fleeced by all the meter taxis. The connecting flight was delayed so we almost missed the returning one to the UK. Now I'm feeling like I'm coming down with a cold (air conditioning on the plane, probably) and have masses of housework to catch up on! I know we're lucky to have been able to travel at all etc but surely IANBU to feel this was a colossal waste of time - just want somewhere to vent!!

I agree, Mollie - I didn't explain the full story about having been before, mainly because the whole story would have gone on for a very long time. I should have done in order to put it into perspective.

I was particularly surprised about the immigration in Cape Town, especially as the immigration in OR Tambo were really friendly and welcoming. I even keep in touch with a woman who works there, as well as a number of other people in Joburg, so I didn't mean to put down SA and it's people as a whole. And to be honest I had a few minorly disappointing experiences the first time, when I was there for over two weeks (such as giving a little girl I was particularly close to our brand new camera and then the mother selling it to go to the casino - and I was not upset because of the camera itself, but because the little girl was crying that her mother had pawned it). But all in all the experience was positive, unlike this last time.

As for the race issue, I think anyone who knows SA reasonably well will concede that this problem still persists. I am mixed-race myself and people from all backgrounds in SA are, as a whole, not used to that concept. Therefore it arouses curiosity, particularly among the older generations, which can be tiresome. However I accepted a few comments about that the previous time, and have tried to be understanding about it. But it does get irksome after a while.

I'm pleased you had a great time and hope you do again. I don't want to put people off SA completely and didn't want to sound overly whiny or negative, so apologies if people have misconstrued that. I think the mugging was the straw that broke the camel's back, although as I said in the OP, that could have happened anywhere, to be fair.

Well, it was unusually cold for Durban, and locals were commenting along the same lines. I'm aware rain is rain and there's nothing that can be done about it, but it's still not pleasant. Tourists often do get fleeced, but to have it recur repeatedly is not very nice. I agree the mugging incident was pretty inevitable and am not surprised at all. I am not an alarmist person and have taken those minibus taxis on both short and cross border journeys, but bus ranks are generally not the safest of places. Still, it was a shame to see him all shaken up like that.

I think, on the whole, holidays to places like that are always a bit stressful.

You have to be mentally prepared to accept being ripped off a few times, and also be very aware of dangerous situations (ie do your homework). With beggar children in very poor countries I learned to give them a snack or something they could eat straightaway, as any money or valuable things would not end up with them anyway...

Still sucks though.

Yep, I agree 100% Chandon. This time I stuck to chocolate bars and cool drinks, because I hate not to give the little ones anything but the big stuff doesn't end up with them anyway. It's a difficult one because I don't like to seem mean and I don't like the idea of them going without (always imagine them as if they were my kids). I have a whole load of stories along these lines, but it's all a bit complex to explain here really.

I've not been to Durban but I know people (SAfricans) who were born and work there. They've said it has really deteriorated over the last few years and not a place to visit. Sad that you had to deal with the race stuff because of your own heritage but unfortunately understandable whilst there is still so much trouble there.

I don't think SA is a place to go where you can completely relax and I did have to do things I wouldn't normally do (eg not driving at night) but my experiences both times were hugely positive.