My Hometown. Born and Raised. Walked those roads, rode the trains from the 60s. Swam in the rivers and sea. I have traveled the world but home is where my heart will always be.
I had butterflies in my stomach in anticipation of seeing that main intersection and bridge that I crossed many a times. I also had the privilege of traveling that south coast rail line when I finished matric, to spend my last school holiday at Sea Park. Thanks for the memory boost!
I can only imagine! We felt quite attached to that gorgeous bridge and we had only been there for a few minutes. I bet you have some very special memories of crossing it by rail and by road. I still can't get over how special that train ride must've been. Thank you for coming back with us. 🚙🛤️
Oh wow what a lovely video Curtis. Catching the sunset over sheppies. Love all the green trees and blue sea and sky. Drone footage incredible. Loving these backseat drives on the south coast. Safe travels you two lovelies ❤❤🎉🎉❤❤
Quite a big town and as said the main center for many. Umzimkulu river is really stunning over the water. Port Shepstone station reminds me of Kalk Bay station - all along the sea. Thnaks for the drone footage. You cant see the river and bridge better than that! Natal has a beautiful coast line - I love it. Thnaks Sonja for the passage on the light house - excellent and stunning. I cant wait for the next town we will visit. Seat booked.
That checkerboard lighthouse was quite stunning and it was great to be down by the ocean in the evening light. The bridge and the river looked amazing. I'm glad you enjoyed the drone shots! 🚙😁 I wish it was still possible to take a train ride all along the coast, that must've been one fantastic train ride! Seat booked for the next one, not on the train, but on our backseat.
The blocks at the Umzimkulu mouth you mentioned are actually the remnants of Port Shepstone's functioning harbour that was used in the late 19th century to early 20th century. When the railway tracks to Durban were completed, the harbour became obsolete. The first bridge was built a little further from the shoreline, was a wooden bridge and accommodated both road and rail traffic. I was washed away in a flood in the late 1950's just after the new bridge was completed. And an interesting little snippet: our beautiful lighthouse has a twin sister. She is painted in white and red candy stripes and is situated in Scottburgh.
Thank you for the very interesting info! I had a look at the drone footage again and can now clearly see the almost-straight line of blocks and rocks and things that must've made up the old harbour wall. That is so cool! The old wooden bridge that washed away, must've been a sight to behold too. We visited quite a few more places on our trip and we look forward to sharing those with you too! 🚙😁
traffic is crazy at 5pm as it is the only main Road sort of in and out of Port Shepstone, even worse 7am in the mornings with parents taking the kids to school, good memories, great video
Good thing we weren't there in the morning then, I can only imagine! 🚙😨 And, as in every other place, loadshedding just makes an already-crazy situation even crazier. Thanks for watching!
The bridge was started in 1958 but work was set back by floods in 1959, Originally a rail/road bridge crossed a mile up where the fish and chips restaurant is. That's where the town's power station was. We all got our parcels on that station in the 70's. I remember some very hardworking clerks there. Not the wild coast - the Hibiscus Coast.
Correction about it being the Hibiscus Coast noted, thank you. 👍🏻 Cool info about the bridges, they always fascinate us. The security guard at the station worked very hard on the day of our visit, I wish it were still the clerks instead. Sad to see the station not operational anymore. 🚉😥
I am so glad I am not in that traffic. But well done on making Port Shepstone, a name I recognise from the weather forecast. That is a magnificent bridge, and it would be so fun to race a train across. A pity you were chased out of the station. Mmmm! I can almost smell that sea. The little lighthousette is so cute! Lovely moon! Saying cheese for the camera! The lighthouse and the moon together is very pretty.
All I could think of was driving next to a train on that incredible bridge, that would've for sure been the highlight of our visit to this busy town. The bridge was fantastic in the fading evening light and it, combined with the river, the ocean, the moon and that stunning little lighthouse, made for a really cool experience before we had to move on. 🌊🌕🌁🎑 As for the station, I'm not sure exactly why we weren't allowed to film. 🤷🏻♂️
@@DustBugsTravel Maybe they thought you were communist infiltrators. We had the same thing happen to us in Kroonstad when we explored and took foto's of the station 😂🤗
Communist infiltrators who want to come and check out the defunct rail system in South Africa. It still puzzles me why we weren'tt allowed to film. 🤷🏻♂️
Beatiful Port Shepstone lovely town and it was the wrong time for you to visit the beach with the white water's you won't find fishermen but if the water was in good condition yes you would not have a chance on the pier that pier is a buzz with fishermen
For us, there's never a right or wrong time to visit a place. We get to a place when we get to it and see what we can see and we're totally fine with that. 🚙 It would've been cool to see fishermen on the pier, but the other things we saw at that location totally made up for it. And I almost had the pier all to myself! 😁 Thanks for watching.
Thank you for taking us to Port Shepstone, Get nervous once the sun goes down & you're not ,@ your destination, specially ithat heavy traffic but i guess it's just anage thing. Stay safe, can't wait to see where you spent the night. 🥰🚗🚗🚗
We also prefer not driving after dark, but with the sun setting so early and us always being on a tight time schedule, we often have no choice. I'm glad you came to Port Shepstone with us. We'll show you in the next episode where we shacked up for the night. 🚙🏡
Will have to wait for my husband to finish what he's doing before we'll watch Port Shepstone. My cousin lived there many years ago and we visited her once, more than 40 years ago.
No worries, you watch whenever you have time to do so! 🚙😁 Port Shepstone is a busy place, but we managed to find a few interesting spots, which I hope you'll enjoy.
Hi guys what I saw of port shepstone I liked loved the station by the sea the small light house is different with chequered paint always a shame when the old ones are scaped drone footage really nice with the full moon and afri can sunset the little piar was great and I think I agree about the wreckage Shame the traffic was bad not help Ed buy no traffic lights crazy another new place thanks for taking me along cheerio till the next one
What the remaining daylight and the moonlight allowed us to see of Port Shepstone, we also really enjoyed! The lighthouse was fantastic and definitely a highlight for us. I don't think we've ever seen a chequered one before. Thanks for coming along to check out this town with us at a crazy busy time of day! 🚙😁
You seem to have a knack of capturing perfect drone footage and then accompanying it with evocative music. Loved the cars driving in the dusk with the waves breaking on the shore. Spectacular. Would love to live on the south coast but that humidity😮😮😅😅
I don't how you manage to capture the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen lol, you have a really excellent phone. The different colours from orange, purple, blue and pink, and the way it reflects off the water with the beautiful moon at the background. I could marvel at it for hours. You have really good timing and always at a perfect spot. My mom went to Portshepston high school. I've never been there, so it's nice to see the place my mom went to school. Thank you ❤
We're long back home already, this trip was a few weeks ago. 🚙😁 I only edit and upload videos once we're back home. We did visit quite a few more places on our trip and we look forward to sharing those over the next few weeks.
Lived in Port Shepstone (which we called Sheppie) for 6 years from 1970 until 1975). Has changed enormously especially around the Mzimkulu River mouth and (I imagine) in the town itself. So interesting to see it as it now is especially with the drone scenes. Thank you 😊
AFAIK, it was a river port for a while (I knew a guy once who had schemes to redevelop it as a marina, but those obviously never came to fruition). It silted up, so didn't last long. It's a pity the trains have been stopped. It was a great way for kids to get around independently on the South Coast, back in the day. (It was still running to Scottburgh for a while, I think, but suspect that that line has also been decommissioned.) It's quite possible that taxi interests have something to do with the decline of urban rail in the country. I know in Pinetown they built an entire Bus Rapid Transit system - dedicated lanes, fancy stations - and have never used it because the local taxi bosses basically said they would kill anyone who used the thing. So if Pinetown City, with its beautiful industrial areas, ever becomes part of your travels, you'll be able to go and visit 21st Century ruins, there, just like the abandoned swimming pools of the small inland towns. Beautiful stainless steel and glass, architect-designed bus stations. Might make for some interesting visuals.
Yup, we weren't too surprised to see defunct rail stations and trains in KZN, like we've seen everywhere else on our travels. For me, it is a tragedy to see infrastructure that was around many decades ago already and provided an extensive network for freight and passengers, has been neglected to such an extent. 😥🚉🛤️ Interesting info about Pinetown and its bus transit system, I had no idea.
There is a Bus Rapid Transit system in Cape Town that works, I know because I live there. I visited the KZN Scottsbrgh area in July 2023 and was surprised to see that trains that were still in operation in 2020 were now no more. The reason, the main cables have been stolen. Its a disgrace really on the the part of our government to allow gangster taxi owners to do what they are doing. The rest of the world are moving to high speed rail, even many parts of Africa, what are we doing? , most probably going back to the days of the Ox Wagon.
@nelsonchinasamy9857 I agree with you, it is an utter disgrace that the world-class infrastructure that our country possessed, had all but gone to pot. 😥 I was super surprised to read that the trains in Scottburrgh were still running three years ago, I didn't think it was that recent. We live in Strand and have often seen the buses in Cape Town. It's always encouraging to see an actual working public transport system in our own country, I think they are few and far between. 🚌🇿🇦 Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
I hope you went to see the old Banana Express narrow guage railway station when travelling coming from from St Michaels, Oslo Beach into Port Shepstone 😃
Nope, you'll see we arrived in town late afternoon and light was fading fast. We didn't even know about the Banana Express. It sounds super cool and right up our alley though, we'll have to go and check it out on a possible future return visit to the area. 🚂🍌
Unfortunately the Banana Express is one of our icons that died prematurely in the early millenium due to lease complications regarding the railway line. With our high seas in 2007, some bridges were washed away as well. The line is now derelict and will be too expensive to revive. An icon lost.
@@jp1036 Yes I know, last time I was down there was 4years ago and it was soul destroying to see the status of the line 😞 But it always brings back amazing memories of days gone by especially when staying in places like Pennington or Oslo beach etc where the line ran between housing and the beach 🏖 Living In JHB is terrible as the SAR infrastructure is basically completely vandalised. There is only one active platform at what was Park Station.
It seems you can’t photograph trains - the reason being the absolute shame and embarrassment of such a incredible network ruined by incompetence. Just my opinion.
The long building at 230 with the white arches was the Marine Hotel, a great holdiay hotel. In the 90s it was taken over by a branch of the SAPS. Then just after you turned right at about 3 min there was another white building which was also a holiday hotel, the Port Shepstone Hotel. The marble site was miles up the river, the marble was brought down to the mouth by barge where there were coasters (smaller ships) which took the marble to Durban. Port Shepstone used to be a horbour. The mouth silted up and the site was required for the new rail and road bridge. Pity you missed so much. There is a maritime muesem too. The old shared road/rail bridge was almost a mile up the river. The train tracks ran in the middle of the bridge. Trucks/cars etc had to wait when there was a train on it before they could go on and cross. There is so much history. Thanks for a geat video, you guys are amazing.
Thank you for the very interesting info. 🚙👌🏻 We arrived in town late afternoon as you saw and only had an hour of daylight left, so not much we could do about that. 🤷🏻♂️ We're never too fussed about anything we don't get to see, it's just impossible to see everything in the limited time we have available to travel. Appreciate you watching. 😁
Onder het genot van een glas rode wijn uit Zuid-Afrika was het uitstekend genieten van Sonia’s verhaal over de vuurtoren. Zou de Britse Ska muziek uit de jaren 80 ‘afgekeken’ zijn qua kleurstelling van deze vuurtoren? Want die zwart/witte blokken is echt een kenmerk die hoort bij de kleding en schoenen etc als associatie met de ska muziek. En hopelijk heeft de loadshedding geen gevolgen voor het licht van de vuurtoren … want het verkeer in deze stad zonder verkeerslichten is wel een beetje beangstigend. Gelukkig staan er 2 kerken langs de drukke weg als een soort bescherm engelen 😅🕊️. Toch mooi dat er diep in Brits KZN toch een Dutch Reformed Church zich genesteld heeft. Het spoor langs de autobrug maakt me wel wat melancholiek in combinatie met die drone beelden en bijhorend muziek… oh hoe mooi was het ooit, met de goed functionerende treinen en spoorwegen. Wel grappig en ook merkwaardig dat jullie die locomotief niet mochten filmen terwijl die al sinds 2021 stil staat en er heel duidelijk al tijden geen treinen rijden langs die route 🙄🚂. Bij het vallen van de avond gingen jullie vast naar een leuk logeeradres dus ik ben benieuwd naar de volgende episode!
How cool that you watch a video from South Africans about South Africa while enjoying a South African wine! 🇿🇦🍷I have no idea why the lighthouse was painted in checkerboard-style, our brief research on the spot didn't contain that info. I thought it may just be for higher visibility, but I'm really not sure. ♟️🎑 Our brief visit to Sheppie, as we understand it's known amongst the locals, was fantastic and we saw so many things we absolutely love in the space of a few hundred metres. We look forward to showing you where we saddled off for the night. 😁🏡
We very often forget to eat during the day while we're on the road and mostly snack on biltong and droëwors. We always share our evening meals though. 😁🍜🍕🥩
On public roads and in public places, I film without permission, unless there are clear and visible indications, which prohibit filming. I request permission to film any interiors, including public buildings and structures. Whenever we see any kind of notice stating "Private Property", etc. we don't film and obviously when we're requested to cease filming, we do so immediately, as can be seen at the station in this video. 📲
Yeah, not much we could've done about the fading light though and it was time to move on and get to our accommodation. We're never too fussed about anything we supposedly 'miss' in a place, we're just too happy to have been there. 🚙😁 I'm not familiar with the name Izotsha, I'll read up on it.
Port Shepsone approximately 60 kms from Scottsbrgh. Not much really. Better places on either side. Shelly Beach, St Michael's on the Sea, Ramsgate, Munster, Port Edward. On the other side Hiberdine, Ifafa Beach, Kelso, Pennington, Rocky Bay, Park Rynie, Scottsbrgh, Umkomaas and Amamzimtoti. My world really. Just missing it from Cape Town.
@nelsonchinasamy9857 We see the beauty in each place we get to and it was no different in Port Shepstone. We're not always looking for better or more beautiful, it's not about that for us. 🚙😁
We travel and make videos only for fun and I'm totally happy with the quality of the footage my everyday cellphone produces. Nothing serious for us and certainly no fancy equipment. 😁📱Thank you for watching!
I was around 5 years old, and my mom, dad brother and sisters cam from the farm to Durban for a holiday, and my dad booked us a train ride from Durban to Port Shepstone - it was called the Banana Express, it was brilliant. When our children were about 7 years old my wife and i took the same train ride and i think a year after that (2007) the Banana Express joined everything else in this Banana Republic we live in today. it is sad how this wonderful country has become a Sh@# hole like the rest of Africa. Thank you both for a brilliant video the sounds are fantastic WOW . - how much of Natal are you doing - i hope you coming to my town.
Those train rides on the Banana Express sound fantastic. I so wish it was still running. 😥🚂🍌 I can only imagine how gorgeous it must be to ride all along the ocean. It is indeed incredibly sad that all the infrastructure now lies all but destroyed and totally defunct. We've been home for a few weeks already and I'm now editing and uploading our videos. We visited quite a few places in KZN on this trip, I'm sure you'll tell me if / when we've been to your town! 🚙😁
My hometown,.
It was great to make a brief stop in your hometown, thank you for watching our video. 🚙😍
Nice
@chrispretorius3158 I love exploring to at my hometown 😊
My Hometown. Born and Raised. Walked those roads, rode the trains from the 60s. Swam in the rivers and sea. I have traveled the world but home is where my heart will always be.
This Is a Dreams 🌈🌈🌈wow greatings from Italy tanks very mutch🙋🙋🙋
Thank you, I'm so glad you enjoyed this stop! 🚙🤩
I had butterflies in my stomach in anticipation of seeing that main intersection and bridge that I crossed many a times. I also had the privilege of traveling that south coast rail line when I finished matric, to spend my last school holiday at Sea Park. Thanks for the memory boost!
I can only imagine! We felt quite attached to that gorgeous bridge and we had only been there for a few minutes. I bet you have some very special memories of crossing it by rail and by road. I still can't get over how special that train ride must've been. Thank you for coming back with us. 🚙🛤️
Oh wow what a lovely video Curtis. Catching the sunset over sheppies. Love all the green trees and blue sea and sky. Drone footage incredible. Loving these backseat drives on the south coast. Safe travels you two lovelies ❤❤🎉🎉❤❤
Well done, Home is where the heart is
Thank you for watching our video of your hometown! 🚙😍
Wow - the east coastal region continues to amaze
Amazing place! Last saw it as a kid. I was quite impressed by the state of the roads; bereft of potholes and neat and clean. Keep it up PS!✌
The roads weren't bad at all, which is always a bonus! 🚙🛣️ Glad we could take you back for a quick visit after so many years!
Quite a big town and as said the main center for many. Umzimkulu river is really stunning over the water. Port
Shepstone station reminds me of Kalk Bay station - all along the sea. Thnaks for the drone footage. You cant
see the river and bridge better than that! Natal has a beautiful coast line - I love it. Thnaks Sonja for the
passage on the light house - excellent and stunning. I cant wait for the next town we will visit. Seat booked.
That checkerboard lighthouse was quite stunning and it was great to be down by the ocean in the evening light. The bridge and the river looked amazing. I'm glad you enjoyed the drone shots! 🚙😁 I wish it was still possible to take a train ride all along the coast, that must've been one fantastic train ride! Seat booked for the next one, not on the train, but on our backseat.
Just wondering, is that huge Sugar mill Still in operation there?
@nelsonchinasamy9857 I believe so. We were quite keen to go and check out the Umzimkulu Mill, but arrived in town just too late for that. 🤷🏻♂️
Thanks so much for showcasing Sheppie so beautifully ❤I've lived here for 22 years and never seen such great coverage 😊
We loved Sheppie! 🚙😍 The river mouth, the bridge and the lighthouse blew us away. Thank you so much for watching our video of your hometown!
@@DustBugsTravel we're working very hard to protect the estuary. The uMzimkhulu is the Last Significant Free Flowing river in SA!!!
The blocks at the Umzimkulu mouth you mentioned are actually the remnants of Port Shepstone's functioning harbour that was used in the late 19th century to early 20th century. When the railway tracks to Durban were completed, the harbour became obsolete. The first bridge was built a little further from the shoreline, was a wooden bridge and accommodated both road and rail traffic. I was washed away in a flood in the late 1950's just after the new bridge was completed. And an interesting little snippet: our beautiful lighthouse has a twin sister. She is painted in white and red candy stripes and is situated in Scottburgh.
Thank you for the very interesting info! I had a look at the drone footage again and can now clearly see the almost-straight line of blocks and rocks and things that must've made up the old harbour wall. That is so cool! The old wooden bridge that washed away, must've been a sight to behold too. We visited quite a few more places on our trip and we look forward to sharing those with you too! 🚙😁
traffic is crazy at 5pm as it is the only main Road sort of in and out of Port Shepstone, even worse 7am in the mornings with parents taking the kids to school, good memories, great video
Good thing we weren't there in the morning then, I can only imagine! 🚙😨 And, as in every other place, loadshedding just makes an already-crazy situation even crazier. Thanks for watching!
The bridge was started in 1958 but work was set back by floods in 1959, Originally a rail/road bridge crossed a mile up where the fish and chips restaurant is. That's where the town's power station was. We all got our parcels on that station in the 70's. I remember some very hardworking clerks there. Not the wild coast - the Hibiscus Coast.
Correction about it being the Hibiscus Coast noted, thank you. 👍🏻 Cool info about the bridges, they always fascinate us. The security guard at the station worked very hard on the day of our visit, I wish it were still the clerks instead. Sad to see the station not operational anymore. 🚉😥
I am so glad I am not in that traffic. But well done on making Port Shepstone, a name I recognise from the weather forecast. That is a magnificent bridge, and it would be so fun to race a train across. A pity you were chased out of the station. Mmmm! I can almost smell that sea. The little lighthousette is so cute! Lovely moon! Saying cheese for the camera! The lighthouse and the moon together is very pretty.
All I could think of was driving next to a train on that incredible bridge, that would've for sure been the highlight of our visit to this busy town. The bridge was fantastic in the fading evening light and it, combined with the river, the ocean, the moon and that stunning little lighthouse, made for a really cool experience before we had to move on. 🌊🌕🌁🎑 As for the station, I'm not sure exactly why we weren't allowed to film. 🤷🏻♂️
@@DustBugsTravel Maybe they thought you were communist infiltrators. We had the same thing happen to us in Kroonstad when we explored and took foto's of the station 😂🤗
Haha Anna en dat terwijl Zuid-Afrika nu wel erg close is met de Russen … maar misschien ook niet, wie zal het zeggen 😅😊
Communist infiltrators who want to come and check out the defunct rail system in South Africa. It still puzzles me why we weren'tt allowed to film. 🤷🏻♂️
Beatiful Port Shepstone lovely town and it was the wrong time for you to visit the beach with the white water's you won't find fishermen but if the water was in good condition yes you would not have a chance on the pier that pier is a buzz with fishermen
For us, there's never a right or wrong time to visit a place. We get to a place when we get to it and see what we can see and we're totally fine with that. 🚙 It would've been cool to see fishermen on the pier, but the other things we saw at that location totally made up for it. And I almost had the pier all to myself! 😁 Thanks for watching.
Thank you for taking us to Port Shepstone, Get nervous once the sun goes down & you're not ,@ your destination, specially ithat heavy traffic but i guess it's just anage thing. Stay safe, can't wait to see where you spent the night. 🥰🚗🚗🚗
We also prefer not driving after dark, but with the sun setting so early and us always being on a tight time schedule, we often have no choice. I'm glad you came to Port Shepstone with us. We'll show you in the next episode where we shacked up for the night. 🚙🏡
Will have to wait for my husband to finish what he's doing before we'll watch Port Shepstone. My cousin lived there many years ago and we visited her once, more than 40 years ago.
No worries, you watch whenever you have time to do so! 🚙😁 Port Shepstone is a busy place, but we managed to find a few interesting spots, which I hope you'll enjoy.
Loved this!
Veel nice to see Port Shepstone the place where i was born in 1967.❤❤
Looks so nice there
It was really nice. We were down by the ocean at just the perfect time, it was so beautiful in the fading light. 🚙🌅
@@DustBugsTravel and the sky looked so clear. Love the sea 🌊 💙 love the trips thank you 😊
Hi guys what I saw of port shepstone I liked loved the station by the sea the small light house is different with chequered paint always a shame when the old ones are scaped drone footage really nice with the full moon and afri can sunset the little piar was great and I think I agree about the wreckage
Shame the traffic was bad not help Ed buy no traffic lights crazy another new place thanks for taking me along cheerio till the next one
What the remaining daylight and the moonlight allowed us to see of Port Shepstone, we also really enjoyed! The lighthouse was fantastic and definitely a highlight for us. I don't think we've ever seen a chequered one before. Thanks for coming along to check out this town with us at a crazy busy time of day! 🚙😁
You seem to have a knack of capturing perfect drone footage and then accompanying it with evocative music. Loved the cars driving in the dusk with the waves breaking on the shore. Spectacular. Would love to live on the south coast but that humidity😮😮😅😅
I don't how you manage to capture the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen lol, you have a really excellent phone. The different colours from orange, purple, blue and pink, and the way it reflects off the water with the beautiful moon at the background. I could marvel at it for hours. You have really good timing and always at a perfect spot. My mom went to Portshepston high school. I've never been there, so it's nice to see the place my mom went to school. Thank you ❤
Cant wait for you to visit BALLITO 😁..we welcome you
We're long back home already, this trip was a few weeks ago. 🚙😁 I only edit and upload videos once we're back home. We did visit quite a few more places on our trip and we look forward to sharing those over the next few weeks.
Enjoyed the music at the beginning, real 70's holiday kind of feeling
Thank you, we think our jingle is cool too! 🚙🎶
Lived in Port Shepstone (which we called Sheppie) for 6 years from 1970 until 1975). Has changed enormously especially around the Mzimkulu River mouth and (I imagine) in the town itself. So interesting to see it as it now is especially with the drone scenes. Thank you 😊
You won't miss any thing
No money at South Coast. Pot holes. Water problems. Burst pipes.
AFAIK, it was a river port for a while (I knew a guy once who had schemes to redevelop it as a marina, but those obviously never came to fruition). It silted up, so didn't last long. It's a pity the trains have been stopped. It was a great way for kids to get around independently on the South Coast, back in the day. (It was still running to Scottburgh for a while, I think, but suspect that that line has also been decommissioned.)
It's quite possible that taxi interests have something to do with the decline of urban rail in the country. I know in Pinetown they built an entire Bus Rapid Transit system - dedicated lanes, fancy stations - and have never used it because the local taxi bosses basically said they would kill anyone who used the thing. So if Pinetown City, with its beautiful industrial areas, ever becomes part of your travels, you'll be able to go and visit 21st Century ruins, there, just like the abandoned swimming pools of the small inland towns. Beautiful stainless steel and glass, architect-designed bus stations. Might make for some interesting visuals.
Yup, we weren't too surprised to see defunct rail stations and trains in KZN, like we've seen everywhere else on our travels. For me, it is a tragedy to see infrastructure that was around many decades ago already and provided an extensive network for freight and passengers, has been neglected to such an extent. 😥🚉🛤️ Interesting info about Pinetown and its bus transit system, I had no idea.
There is a Bus Rapid Transit system in Cape Town that works, I know because I live there. I visited the KZN Scottsbrgh area in July 2023 and was surprised to see that trains that were still in operation in 2020 were now no more. The reason, the main cables have been stolen. Its a disgrace really on the the part of our government to allow gangster taxi owners to do what they are doing. The rest of the world are moving to high speed rail, even many parts of Africa, what are we doing? , most probably going back to the days of the Ox Wagon.
@nelsonchinasamy9857 I agree with you, it is an utter disgrace that the world-class infrastructure that our country possessed, had all but gone to pot. 😥 I was super surprised to read that the trains in Scottburrgh were still running three years ago, I didn't think it was that recent. We live in Strand and have often seen the buses in Cape Town. It's always encouraging to see an actual working public transport system in our own country, I think they are few and far between. 🚌🇿🇦 Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
My hometown ❤❤
You're lucky to live in such a beautiful area! Thank you for watching our video! 🚙🤩
Hope you visited the Norwegian Settlers Church in Izotsha
Nope, there was no time for that. 🤷🏻♂️ We hardly had any daylight time in Port Shepstone and had to move on to get to our overnight destination.
@@DustBugsTravel ok Safe travels 🙏
I hope you went to see the old Banana Express narrow guage railway station when travelling coming from from St Michaels, Oslo Beach into Port Shepstone 😃
Nope, you'll see we arrived in town late afternoon and light was fading fast. We didn't even know about the Banana Express. It sounds super cool and right up our alley though, we'll have to go and check it out on a possible future return visit to the area. 🚂🍌
Unfortunately the Banana Express is one of our icons that died prematurely in the early millenium due to lease complications regarding the railway line. With our high seas in 2007, some bridges were washed away as well. The line is now derelict and will be too expensive to revive. An icon lost.
@@jp1036 Yes I know, last time I was down there was 4years ago and it was soul destroying to see the status of the line 😞 But it always brings back amazing memories of days gone by especially when staying in places like Pennington or Oslo beach etc where the line ran between housing and the beach 🏖 Living In JHB is terrible as the SAR infrastructure is basically completely vandalised. There is only one active platform at what was Park Station.
It seems you can’t photograph trains - the reason being the absolute shame and embarrassment of such a incredible network ruined by incompetence. Just my opinion.
Sonja you read so nicely.
The long building at 230 with the white arches was the Marine Hotel, a great holdiay hotel. In the 90s it was taken over by a branch of the SAPS. Then just after you turned right at about 3 min there was another white building which was also a holiday hotel, the Port Shepstone Hotel. The marble site was miles up the river, the marble was brought down to the mouth by barge where there were coasters (smaller ships) which took the marble to Durban. Port Shepstone used to be a horbour. The mouth silted up and the site was required for the new rail and road bridge. Pity you missed so much. There is a maritime muesem too. The old shared road/rail bridge was almost a mile up the river. The train tracks ran in the middle of the bridge. Trucks/cars etc had to wait when there was a train on it before they could go on and cross. There is so much history. Thanks for a geat video, you guys are amazing.
Thank you for the very interesting info. 🚙👌🏻 We arrived in town late afternoon as you saw and only had an hour of daylight left, so not much we could do about that. 🤷🏻♂️ We're never too fussed about anything we don't get to see, it's just impossible to see everything in the limited time we have available to travel. Appreciate you watching. 😁
My family arrived on the Somtseu in 1883.
Interesting. 🚢 I believe that was also the nickname given by the Zulus to Sir Theophilus Shepstone.
My home wow
Thank you for watching our video! 🚙😍
I still live in Port Shepstone
The sad state of the railway station that was once a jewel on the south coast is shocking to see as most of it has been walked away & pilfered
As a chess coach, it's a nice surprise to see a chess themed lighthouse!
We also loved the checkerboard lighthouse so much! ♟️🎑 It was the perfect time of day to see it blinking as well!
That train is very suspicious and how they stopped recording
Onder het genot van een glas rode wijn uit Zuid-Afrika was het uitstekend genieten van Sonia’s verhaal over de vuurtoren. Zou de Britse Ska muziek uit de jaren 80 ‘afgekeken’ zijn qua kleurstelling van deze vuurtoren? Want die zwart/witte blokken is echt een kenmerk die hoort bij de kleding en schoenen etc als associatie met de ska muziek. En hopelijk heeft de loadshedding geen gevolgen voor het licht van de vuurtoren … want het verkeer in deze stad zonder verkeerslichten is wel een beetje beangstigend. Gelukkig staan er 2 kerken langs de drukke weg als een soort bescherm engelen 😅🕊️. Toch mooi dat er diep in Brits KZN toch een Dutch Reformed Church zich genesteld heeft. Het spoor langs de autobrug maakt me wel wat melancholiek in combinatie met die drone beelden en bijhorend muziek… oh hoe mooi was het ooit, met de goed functionerende treinen en spoorwegen. Wel grappig en ook merkwaardig dat jullie die locomotief niet mochten filmen terwijl die al sinds 2021 stil staat en er heel duidelijk al tijden geen treinen rijden langs die route 🙄🚂. Bij het vallen van de avond gingen jullie vast naar een leuk logeeradres dus ik ben benieuwd naar de volgende episode!
How cool that you watch a video from South Africans about South Africa while enjoying a South African wine! 🇿🇦🍷I have no idea why the lighthouse was painted in checkerboard-style, our brief research on the spot didn't contain that info. I thought it may just be for higher visibility, but I'm really not sure. ♟️🎑 Our brief visit to Sheppie, as we understand it's known amongst the locals, was fantastic and we saw so many things we absolutely love in the space of a few hundred metres. We look forward to showing you where we saddled off for the night. 😁🏡
Share your padkos with us as you travel along 🎉
We very often forget to eat during the day while we're on the road and mostly snack on biltong and droëwors. We always share our evening meals though. 😁🍜🍕🥩
Do you ask permission if you may film or do you just start recording as soon as you enter a premises?
On public roads and in public places, I film without permission, unless there are clear and visible indications, which prohibit filming. I request permission to film any interiors, including public buildings and structures. Whenever we see any kind of notice stating "Private Property", etc. we don't film and obviously when we're requested to cease filming, we do so immediately, as can be seen at the station in this video. 📲
You unfortunately missed a lot of old Port Shepstone. I hope you will Pay Izotsha a visit. Port Shepstone has a lovely museum too
Yeah, not much we could've done about the fading light though and it was time to move on and get to our accommodation. We're never too fussed about anything we supposedly 'miss' in a place, we're just too happy to have been there. 🚙😁 I'm not familiar with the name Izotsha, I'll read up on it.
So sad, this used to be a great place, trains working now it's ghost town, no maintenance
Port Shepsone approximately 60 kms from Scottsbrgh. Not much really. Better places on either side. Shelly Beach, St Michael's on the Sea, Ramsgate, Munster, Port Edward. On the other side Hiberdine, Ifafa Beach, Kelso, Pennington, Rocky Bay, Park Rynie, Scottsbrgh, Umkomaas and Amamzimtoti. My world really. Just missing it from Cape Town.
@nelsonchinasamy9857 We see the beauty in each place we get to and it was no different in Port Shepstone. We're not always looking for better or more beautiful, it's not about that for us. 🚙😁
Fantastic videos, just need better quality video's.
We travel and make videos only for fun and I'm totally happy with the quality of the footage my everyday cellphone produces. Nothing serious for us and certainly no fancy equipment. 😁📱Thank you for watching!
I'm a musician
Unfortunately The Walkway tunnel that leads to the beach is a shelter for vagrants
I am not surprised to hear that. That's what happens at non-operational facilities like stations and such. 🚉🤷🏻♂️
I was around 5 years old, and my mom, dad brother and sisters cam from the farm to Durban for a holiday, and my dad booked us a train ride from Durban to Port Shepstone - it was called the Banana Express, it was brilliant.
When our children were about 7 years old my wife and i took the same train ride and i think a year after that (2007) the Banana Express joined everything else in this Banana Republic we live in today.
it is sad how this wonderful country has become a Sh@# hole like the rest of Africa.
Thank you both for a brilliant video the sounds are fantastic WOW . - how much of Natal are you doing - i hope you coming to my town.
Those train rides on the Banana Express sound fantastic. I so wish it was still running. 😥🚂🍌 I can only imagine how gorgeous it must be to ride all along the ocean. It is indeed incredibly sad that all the infrastructure now lies all but destroyed and totally defunct. We've been home for a few weeks already and I'm now editing and uploading our videos. We visited quite a few places in KZN on this trip, I'm sure you'll tell me if / when we've been to your town! 🚙😁