Background on Durban
Durban is KwaZulu-Natal's largest city and the second largest in the country. The naturally formed harbour is the busiest in South Africa and provides a vital link for trade and industry. The International Airport is only 15kms away from the city centre. Hotels line what's known as the Golden Mile along the beachfront.
The promenade is a colourful hub dotted with women selling traditional handicraft, ricksha drivers, leisurely strollers, joggers, sunbathers and surfers surveying the sea swells. Holiday makers are attracted to the year-round summer sunshine playground which offers an incredible choice of leisure options.
The beaches are protected by shark nets offering secure swimming under the watchful gaze of lifesavers and there are numerous swimming baths and paddling pools on offer for those not wishing to venture into the Indian Ocean. Yachting and windsurfing are some of the popular water sports as is angling. Organised boat and deep-sea fishing trips are also available.
A visit to uShaka Marine World is a must where sharks, turtles, and stingray to name a few, are on display in large tanks and many of the marine life are hand-fed by scuba divers in the tanks at meal times. Daily seal and dolphin shows are held at the dolphinarium. Exciting water rides are also available as well as restaurants located within the complex.
Another popular attraction is the Fitszimons Snake Park, an important snake research centre. It places a strong emphasis on education and daily demonstrations and lecturers are given. Many snake species and a variety of other reptiles are exhibited.
Durban plays an important role in sport in South Africa. Each year the Mr Price Pro competition takes place on the beach where local and international surfers converge to battle the waves. Greyville Race Course is the venue for the annual July Handicap, South Africa's premier horse race. Thousands of runners from all over the country including foreigners take part in the Comrades Marathon, an annual long-distance running event held between Durban and Pietermaritzburg. A canoe race from Pietermaritzburg to Durban known as the "Dusi" is also very popular for paddlers and spectators. The enormous King's Park Stadium, home of the KZN Sharks Rugby Team, is host to many an international rugby match, and the complex includes a soccer stadium currently being rebuilt for the 2010 Soccer World Cup,a cricket ground and an Olympic swimming pool. Regular golf competitions are held at the Durban Country Club and Beachwood courses. The World Surfski Champs were also held in Durban this year.
Restaurants, pubs, action bars and discos abound and there are dozens of shops and shopping centres available for non-stop shopping. The Indian Market is a conglomeration of bazaars and stalls selling everything from curries to Indian saris adding a touch of the exotic. Regular tours in and around Durban introduce visitors to it's cultural diversity.
Information from wheretostay.co.za
History
The Portuguese seafarer Vasco da Gama arrived at the bay of the Durban of today on Christmas Eve in the year 1497, and called it "Terra do Natal", Christmas Country. Because the Portuguese had already established a good port at Maputo, they were not interested in settling in a bay surrounded by mangrove swamps and dense coastal forests. Only sporadically some pirates and ivory or slave dealers laid anchor, and it was much later, in the year 1824, that a proper settlement started, initially named "Port Natal". It was founded by merchants from the Cape Colony under the leadership of Henry Francis Fynn, who had reached a contractual agreement with the mighty Zulu King Shaka authorising them to establish a trading station. In 1835 the town was named Durban after the Cape Governor of the time, Sir Benjamin D'Urban.
In the beginning the settlement developed very slowly. There was no support or protection from the British government. The life in the little harbour town was characterised by uncertainty. Time and again there were assaults and skirmishes by the Zulus, who - obviously - saw Natal as their tribal homeland and only tolerated the white settlers, because the town was of use to them as a trading station.
In 1837 the Voortrekkers arrived in Natal. A delegation lead by Piet Retief negotiated a contract with Zulu King Dingane granting them the land between Durban and the Tugela river to found a Boer Republic in Natal. Then, shortly afterwards, Dingane had the entire delegation killed. After several more bloody assaults and attacks, the Voortrekkers defeated the Zulus in the dramatic Battle of Bloodriver. Subsequently the Afrikaners founded their Republic "Natalia" and laid claim on Durban, which, however, met with strong resistance from the British. They sent troops to Durban, who were defeated in the Battle of Congella in 1842. But in the following year the English secured their dominance in Natal. The Voortrekkers resorted to trekking further north and found a new home in the Orange Free State and the Transvaal. In 1844, Natal - with Durban - was incorporated into the British Cape Colony.
Now Durban was set to become one of the most important seaports of the British Empire. Particularly significant was the boom of the sugarcane industry in Natal towards the end of the 19th century. Durban's seaport became the largest sugar terminal in the world.
Today, more than 4 million people live in the metropolitan area of Durban. The city is - after Johannesburg - the second-largest in South Africa.
Useful Web Sites
Visitors to Durban will find lots of useful information at:
