ITCH IN MY SOUL

If you are wondering, yes I wrote the headline in a manner that makes it pop-up easily on Google searches (hopefully it does!) - and any potential service user does have a good pros-cons review to look at first-hand from a user and not as a company advertisement.

First off, the Drakensberg are some of the most beautiful mountain ranges here in South Africa - highest too apparently, at 3482 meters above sea level. The region itself is picturesque and air pristine, fresh and a photographers' delight! I and my husband decided to try out basic level hiking (happily skipping full-day hikes, which we should have considered really) -hence, took the 2 and 1/2 day'ish mode ( consider 3 days when you get billed by 'Drakensberg Hiker').

So my husband contacted Mr. Ian Shooter, who from the site one gleans is a famous hiker in the ranges. He is busy most of the times on long hikes, ranging from 5-6 days to 12 days or more. So we didn't get to go with him - he did arrange for a guide called 'Caiphus' and 2 porters, and a friend of his who was his business partner as well (as we were told) called 'Swannie'. Caiphus is a local guide associated with the Mnweni Centre (http://www.mnweni.org/) , and Swannie is again a mountain enthusiast who seemed to know the range well ( not as well as Caiphus though). Top guys both of them.. good hiking guides.

OK .. here I will just mention pros and cons of hiking with 'Drakensberg Hiker', a next post maybe on our complete hike. I am a very close observer and this post is a completely personal view, deciphered verrrry minutely...

Pros:

Very sturdy guys them both, i.e. Caiphus and Swannie... They were apparently carrying 40 Kgs. between them. :O I mean, we had 5 Kgs each - me and my husband, and we were panting like dogs! So they help you all right... If you arrange and pay for porters i.e.
Both had keen sense of the climate change up in the mountains, helped us from getting stranded in a snow storm! Their warning before-hand made us scamper down at full speed to escape it. We didn't have enough woolens to keep us from freezing had we been stranded. So good call there.
Driving up to Mnweni Centre - the last 17 kms or so was dirt road ... and generally we've always had rotten luck navigating around the Drakensberg area... So we got quite lost by missing a turn towards the Centre... we called Swannie and he drove all the way out 17 kms to the main road to meet and guide us back safely to the place. So, we were really quite thankful to him!

Cons:

The finance is all hay-wire with Drakensberg Hiker. The cost mentioned to us by Mr. Ian Shooter was a sum total ... when we asked for a break-up of the cost, he didn't want to disclose (cagey information givers are slowly getting added in my 'be suspicious of' list).
When we sent repeated mails for more information (well, just about so many times you can ask without offending a seemingly popular person) - we were told that since we were hiring the tent, back-packs, inflatable air-mattresses, sleeping bags, food for all 3 days (cooked freshly especially for you, they say), hiking permits ( if such a thing is there, coz in the end we never signed anything) and 1 night at the Mnweni Centre - It would all roughly be 500 Rand per person per day. Mr. Shooter also mentioned in his mail that the rentals of course adds some profits for him ( which was Ok for us, I mean, he can add his profits and still give us an exact figure, but...he didn't).... Possibly the international hikers they get as customers' can afford to spend on whatever is asked and not bother ... but if you are the type who like finances to be fair and square- it should bother you!
We were asked to take 2 porters, as people who don't hire end up regretting, we were informed. So we paid extra supposedly for 2 porters and 1 guide, all as recommended by Mr. Ian shooter. Turns out, Swannie is guide and porter (no such information clarified to us, we thought porters and guides are not clubbed together like that). And then Caiphus is just a porter and guide?! Donno really. Cost of one porter was mentioned 220 Rand per day. So 2 porter cost per day is 440 Rand.
So 3 days sum total is 1000 Rand for 2 people per day aye. Hence, 3 days makes it 3000 Rand (which was mentioned as 3400 Rand not 3000 Rand), add 3 days' cost for 2 porters.. i.e. 440*3 = 1320 ... Hence total cost = 3400+1320 = 4720 Rand.
We paid it thinking everything should be good and fine. But I am not sure it was... and here's why... As it turned out.. we didn't climb or use the services of Drakensberg hiker for more than 2 days ( as it snowed in the mountains and we had to return). So basically we over-paid for the 3rd day and porter costs. We are entitled to a refund of atleast 1500 Rand, if not 1800 Rand ( if somebody has more ethical operations perhaps would refund, here sadly that doesn't seem to be the case). We have mailed Mr. Ian Shooter and its been more than 2 week and he has not bothered to respond.
The day we were returning from the mountains, I distinctly asked Swannie that considering we were returning early and need to now stay at the Mnweni centre for a night instead of up in the mountains - 'hopefully we won't be paying for staying at the Centre' ( a charge of 170 Rand per person there per night). Considering obviously we are paid up for a longer trek than what we got - using the tent n all!.... Swannie said "ya of course, you won't need to pay" ... but changed his statement after we reached the Mnweni Centre... Me with my sense of this financial imbalance got quite annoyed and told him so. I couldn't quite avoid smirking as he said "See I don't carry cash and have no money at all"... a little bit more annoyance from us had him pay by credit/debit card... duh!
We were newbies, so we didn't hike as fast as it was necessary to see up the Rockeries pass , or see the Cape Vulture colonies, or reach the summit - all things vividly painted a picture of by experiences hikers and guides... It was sad, that we didn't see any such thing and it annoyingly drizzled and rained throughout this hike up. I donno whether that was something that nagged me all along as we didn't get what we paid for.. everything at a premium , and us ourselves not hiking so fast. Tad bit sad aye!
Also food from Drakensberg Hiker QUITE inadequately comprised of the following - ( we are vegetarians, so automatically under the 'uh-oh' category in most places... )... still....

Day 1: morning a bowl of bland oats with resins in it... for lunch 2 buns and a slice of tomato each with some salt ...dinner was a small bowl of ready-made pasta that one mixes with water and boils (Swannie did offer more if we wanted, but considering we were disgusted with the measly food, somehow both me and my husband didn't ask for more). We did get huge mugs of milk-powder teas with the meals. Swannie quite proudly proclaimed "I like to treat my customers to chocolates post dinner in the mountains" - we grinned at that... It turned out We offered them chocolates, and they conveniently forgot anything related to 'em much promised novelties from their end!!! haha...
Day 2: Morning again small bowl of oats with resins, lunch apparently was boiled eggs !!!!!! ( I mean, it was difficult to get over it...lol...) We prayed that he wasn't serious about giving us boiled eggs for lunch! But then , we had to turn back and move down the mountain to the Centre coz of the storm and rain... And Swanni spoke long stories of hot lunch and hot tea and hot shower blah blah... and (mind you I have an elephants' memory!! :P .. so I did manage to pull his leg on his chocolate thingie... haha - which by the way he did hand over after returning)... Almost down the mountain and near to the Mnweni Centre ( my husband had somehow pulled his right knee muscle), Swannie volunteered to walk faster and fetch his vehicle and come and assist us on the last stretch... (which was damn neat of him!) but we sit in his vehicle and he goes " as we reach the Centre, I will give you your dinner at 4 pm!!!"... his promise of lunch conveniently forgotten!!!! ... Thankfully we asked for our lunch, and asked for dinner... (which by the way, we had all paid for.. and he was now being very miserly with!).... The porter and guide all free by 2nd day evening, as both Caiphus and Swannie ran away to their cozy homes... ( I cannot put it any other way.. sorry... the finance is ridiculous)!! The dinner was rice and mutton-favoured soya (who leaves mutton flavouring for vegetarian customers?????!!!!)
Day 3: Since we stayed at the Mnweni Centre, Swannie left some cereal for 3rd day morning .. and he showed tea-bags that he apparently put in the plastic in front of my husband (which he took away later) as there was none when we came for it!! ... This behaviour was too weird for me to tone down or to skip mentioning.

I am sure Drakensberg Hiker gets many international tourists and no local repeat customers perhaps, that is why once they are done with what they think is correct.. they do not bother to communicate back.
In an email that we received from Mr. Ian Shooter while booking the trek with Drakensberg Hiker.. he mentioned some essentials "you just need to bring sturdy boots, 3 prs. socks, 2 shirts for walking in and 1 long sleeve for sleeping in, 1 shorts and 1 long pants, rain coat (you never know), head lamp, toilet paper and wash kit, personal meds, wet wipes, book, 2 fleece jackets and I give all my clients a warm hat that I hope you will wear with pride and warmth.".... we got all of them, minus the much anticipated "warm hats" that we were quite willing to wear with warmth and pride... we met Swannie, we mentioned something on the lines to Swannie... and he had never arranged for any such "warm hats" for his customers!!! He had one on though.... :P ...
Discount everything Swannie says by 50%, coz that is what you finally get.

Rating for Drakensberg Hiker on a 10 point scale is a : 3 ( sorry it just cannot be more).

A book gifted by my mum-in-law this. From the cover-page one thinks its some funny or perhaps sarcastic take on some Indian superstitions and our multitude of gods. The small review at the back of the page gives a clearer picture though. Its a very informative, sarcastic as well as witty take on the concept of gods and the weird Indian belief in everything "supernatural".

Ask me, I debate with my folks and have fought on things I have never been able to comprehend. Imaginably I finished the book in 3-4 days flat! It has given me more meat in my never-ending talks and debates with my folks and other elderlies I know (I shall not name 'em)... Hence, I am happier than ever to promote it here.. If you are ever interested in the "ether"ly being ... read this book for your own sake - It is very informative!

The book starts with paradoxes we Indians happily take to... for eg: we break coconuts and do "Gaadi puja" (Vehicle prayer) and spend money on bribing gods into saving our behinds from accidents but refuse to wear seat-belts! Such and many other examples are given (quite true believe me). It also analyzes extensively our collective lack of scientific temper... (again very very true)... mindless unquestioning belief on customs and culture ...without correcting or correlating them with scientific understanding or advancements in the form of proofs and explanations that are readily available nowadays.Any form of challenge posed on our gods is always marked as a mark of disrespect - not only on the gods but the clan, elders and such. ( Hence, I hold a pretty bad name in my clan, mind you.. without any guilt ;) ).

I won't post spoilers on the narration - you have to read it to understand concepts coherently... I also wish (as the book also says) that Indian people develop a healthy questioning Scientific Temper. That would help us deduce logical explanations for things that happen to us; and not just a fatalistic belief on everything beyond our comprehension... it is also about developing the willingness to try and change!