Day 6 (October 8, 2022)   Hlane National Park


Before   

route to Hlane N.P.   
  As we will have spent the night at the Johannesburg airport: OR Tambo, the idea for this day is to pick up the car at the same airport and leave for Swaziland, a small country where we want to visit the Hlane National Park to make sure we see rhinos in the wild.

  It will be more than 5 hours of driving in which we will have to stop to eat and do the procedures to enter the country, whose current official name is the Kingdom of Eswatini. As the Hlane Park closes its doors at 6PM, we will have to leave early to be able to complete the entire journey before that time.

After

  At 8:30AM we are at the breakfast buffet, for which they charge us 175R per person, and at 9AM I go to the Avis office in this same building to pick up the rental car. It is very convenient to have everything at hand without leaving the Johannesburg airport.
Our room at City LodgeView from our room at City Lodge
  I come back for Eva, the baggage and check out in the hotel. Then we go down to the car and leave ready for today's long drive. We have to make a couple of U-turns as corrections to find the correct road among all those  junctions, but once there, it just a matter of time to reach Swatziland border.
OR Tambo Johannesburg's airportPicking up our cat at Avis
  Specifically, 5 and a half hours, with a stop in a town called Carolina where we get petrol, water and food, since we took a couple of pizzas from an offer that left them at around 150R for two medium ones.
Driving to Swaziland
Carolina
Pizza place in Carolina
  As in all border crossings there are two steps: leaving South Africa is very fast, they simply stamp your passport and that's it.
RSA exit at the border to Swaziland
  Entry into Swatziland, however, consists of presenting your passport, covid vaccination certificate and car data to allow you to move on to the next two stages, in which you have to queue: stamping your entry into the country and paying the road tax of 100R.
Entry to Swazilanda at the border
  When we finish, the GPS gives us an estimated time of arrival at the camp in the Hlane National Park of 6:30PM, so we call to inform them that we will probably arrive after 6PM, which is, as far as I know, the time they close the camp. They tell us that there is no problem.
Driving through Swaziland
  We cross Swaziland in less than an hour, without stopping anywhere, and arrive at the Hlane gate at 6:10PM.
Hlane National Park gateEntrance to Ndlovu camp
  I show the Wild card so that they let us pass and reach the Ndlovu camp when is nearly dark, where the reception girl receives us on her way home to give us the key and tell us to go to the restaurant for further indications.
Ndlovu camp restaurant
  They accompany us to our bungalow in complete darkness and explain to us how the oil lanterns work, since there is no electricity in them. Dinner starts at 6:30PM, which is now, and since it is a buffet, they advise us to go early.
Interior of our bungalow at Ndlovu campOne of our oil lanterns at Ndlovu camp
  We have a wonderful dinner in the nice restaurant in front of the small lake where we are constantly being  told that rhinos have been seen there throughout the day, but now it is only a black background.
Water hole at Ndlovu camp
  We are surprised that a group of native dances from Swatziland have come to offer us a show. We enjoy it with the only light of a fire before going to sleep to get up early tomorrow, because we'll met the receptionist at 6AM to check if she can put us on the Rhino tour at 6:30AM.