Day 372- 373 Swaziland 09/11/2011– 10/11/2011, Mlilwane Wildlife Sanctuary. A game ride, traditional dancing and relaxing in beautiful surroundings

To say it as been hot for the last few days is an understatement. The weather forecast on the news described the conditions as 'extremely uncomfortable' and that is pretty accurate.

Our game ride through the park was very enjoyable but very hot. Which is probably why the hippos are all hiding in the water or shady undergrowth. As it turned out we were probably lucky to see any at all. Hippos aside, we encountered quite a lot of antelope, zebra, warthogs complete with tiny babies, crocodiles and a variety of bird life.

In the end though, it has just been too hot to stay out. Thankfully the cool waters of the pool have been available or we may have wilted entirely.

The lodge has been a great place to just while the hours away. The gardens are lovely with an abundance of bird and wildlife, including a large amount of beautiful Agama lizards.

In fact if it wasn't for the useless staff it would be one of the best places we have stayed. It seems that the common room area belongs to the staff not the guests, as the seats are normally taken up by them sitting around watching soap operas. The renovations team work for half a day and glare at you if you go into the kitchen area and then spend the rest of the day playing pool. The pool although lovely, hasn't been dredged since we have been here so you have to brush aside the debris while swimming. The whole site seems to be suffering from a lack of a manager.

The situation here is by no means unique, It is something that seems to affect every place where there is no management. Black Africans have a very different work ethic and idea of customer service to we have in the west.

Away from the lodge we went to a Sibacha (traditional) dance show at the main site. It was thanks to one of our fellow guests driving us, that we saw the show at all. Having arranged it with the staff, they went home without leaving the keys to the shuttle van and the evening staff member who was here wasn't overly interested in taking us anyway. The show however was very entertaining and well worth going to.

Getting tickets for the concert on Friday night unfortunately didn't happen. We returned to House on Fire on Thursday only to find out that they had sold them all the day before! Sometimes things are just not to be, so we will be leaving Friday morning instead. It would have been nice to go, but there are plenty of other things that we can do as we head south along the coast.

Problems aside it has been a lovely place to spend a few days. We have met some great people, enjoyed the scenery and of course sunk a few beers.

Unless something comes up, we will be heading out of Swaziland within the next few days and back into South Africa. Our internet has not been working here, so it will be good to get the blog up to date again!

Day 371 Swaziland 08/11/2011, Legends Backpackers – Sondzela Backpackers, Mlilwane wildlife sanctuary. 6.4miles/10.38km, 50minutes, Av 7.7mph.

It was very warm this morning. After a leisurely breakfast we packed up our gear and set off on the short ride to Mlilwane wildlife sanctuary. The ride to the main gate took about 30 minutes where we paid our conservation fee and headed to Sondzela backpackers lodge. The sanctuary is a beautiful part of the Ezulwini valley and the short ride to the lodge was very nice, if quite steep and bumpy in places. Along the road we encountered warthogs, impala, wildebeest, a crocodile and a few other types of antelope. There are no big cats in the sanctuary so riding through is quite safe, although it still feels quite strange being so close to the wild animals.

Arriving at the lodge we were shown round and then went to pitch our tent in the very nice camp-site. As is to be expected by now, Nigel was already here. At some point we will arrive at a lodge or hostel and not find him there. Thankfully after we leave here, we are heading south and he is going north.

The camp-site and facilities are very good, or at least they will be when the quite extensive renovations have been completed. Self catering takes a bit more effort than usual as the workmen have currently removed the kitchen. There is a temporary gas cooker, but the whole area is a bit of a mess. Plus considering the very few people who are staying here it would be nice to know why the fridge is full.

Having got settled, we set off on our bikes to the Malandela complex to have a look round the 'House on Fire' music venue. The venue is about 3km from the sanctuary and is well worth a visit. The building walls, artwork and fixtures are very Gaudi-esque. Unfortunately the concert that we were interested in going to is sold out, which is a shame. Hope has come in the shape of an overheard conversation, where the manager said that more tickets are going to be released on Thursday morning. Having heard this, I chatted to the guy on the way out and he confirmed that there would definitely be 150 more tickets available.

Having had a nice lunch at the complex, we headed off to a nearby Shoprite to get some supplies for our stay here. The supermarket was further away than we had been led to believe, but soon we were heading back to the camp. With the day just getting hotter, there was nothing to do but spend some serious time in the pool.

Despite the less than ideal cooking conditions, we made a nice dinner and then settled in for an early night. Tomorrow we will go for a ride around the park and see what animals we can spot.