The Last Weekend

For our last weekend in Swaziland, we decided to do some hiking within the country and additional sight seeing. When we woke up, it was a bit rainy and misty, but we decided to go up to the area anyway because there were some indoor shops/attractions we could check out if the weather didn't clear up. We drove up to a town called Piggs Peak with Sandile and Zakhele to a hiking area called PhoPhonyane Falls. There were several different trails to choose from depending on how long of a hike you wanted to take. We chose the 1 hour path and it was a nice hike with several "viewpoints" to the falls. The first was from a distance, on top of the hill adjacent to it.

Next was at the foot of the falls were you could walk all around the bottom area. The last was from above, but honestly it wasnt as good as the other two.

We were thankful the weather held out for our hike. Once we finished the path, we got in the car and drove to another acclaimed craft market in this area. They had a renowned store called Tintsaba, which was very similar to another shop we went to before that I loved (Gone Rural). They products were similar in idea, but still unique to the company, with several different objects like woven ornaments, flowers and jewelry. I got a couple of the woven flowers and I plan to use them as decoration in some way for our wedding :) Had I not already stocked up on gifts, I probably would have bought more here, even though it was a little more expensive.

We left the shops to head back toward Manzini, planning to stop at Maguga Dam on the way back. It started raining a little bit on the way, but we still decided to stop to get a look at it and to eat at the restaurant overlooking it. We got to the location at about 4:30 pm, and the restaurant was closed for the day (places here have weird hours)! So we snapped a couple pictures that pale in comparison to the falls, then got back on the road to stop for food in the capital city of Mbabane on the way. Once we got into the city (about 5:30), we found alot of those restaurants closed or closing for the night as well. So we finally found a sit down restaurant that was open til late and ate there. The food was fair, but we were so hungry it didn't matter. We were just glad to find an open restaurant!

After we finished our meal, we stepped outside and it felt like we had walked into a cloud. It was unbelievably foggy, more than I've ever experienced in the states. You literally could not see the people, or even lights, on the opposite side of the street. Apparently its a pretty common occurance in Mbabane because of the elevation. We were so thankful Sandile was familiar with the roads. I have no idea how he drove them even with that advantage! And some people were driving extremely recklessly for the conditions, which made us more nervous. But once we decended from the city, we were back in the clear and soon back to Manzini.

Sunday morning we went with our friends in The Luke Commission to the church they regularly attend. It was very much like the services in the US, except in Swazi fashion, about 3 hours long. Harry and Echo helped lead the worship team and it was fun to see a different side of them. The message was very good. I especially liked one sentance the pastor said in his sermon; "The church is a hospital for sinners, not a showcase for saints." Afterward, we went to eat with all of them and spent time getting to know them a little better. I also asked many questions in regard to returning in the future to volunteer at some clinics and brining a medical student/my soon-to-be-husband. I think he would enjoy helping in something like this, and I truely want to come back one day. It may be quite a while before that happens, and he may be done with school by then, but I whole heartedly intend to return.

We had to spend a little more time the past few days working on assignments due by this Friday so we haven't been up to much outside of our shifts. We are all getting very excited to come home. 48 hours from this moment we will be in the air in route to London! Even in my anticipation to arrive back in the states, I'm already starting to think about where my next international destination will be. I've even thought about when I will be able to come back here again and bring friends and family that would like to see Swaziland. I know, I'm getting ahead of myself! haha! But seriously, sometimes I think I missed my calling in life to be a world traveler :)