From Hong Kong to South Africa, Sun City (Crossing South Africa I)
Originally planned to depart for South Africa on July 17, but due to too few people choosing this tour group, the group could not be formed, so I had no choice but to change my itinerary to depart for South Africa on July 27.
As usual, we chose to fly from Hong Kong International Airport. After arriving at Hong Kong Airport, I learned that the time difference between South Africa and China is about six hours behind China. The flight departure time was 11:45 PM Beijing time, and it was scheduled to arrive in Johannesburg at around 7:00 AM South African time the next day, meaning I would experience the longest night.
The flight from Hong Kong to South Africa took about thirteen hours. To be honest, thirteen hours of long-haul flight is really uncomfortable. Fortunately, the in-flight entertainment was quite rich, including games, music, movies, etc. I also prepared a book for when it got boring. The movies on the plane were all recently released, so I chose to watch 'What Women Want' starring Andy Lau and Gong Li, and 'Let the Bullets Fly' directed by Jiang Wen, starring Jiang Wen, Ge You, and Chow Yun-fat. I had actually seen 'Let the Bullets Fly' in a theater before, and because I liked it, I chose to watch it again. Honestly, I didn't quite understand it the first time, but after watching it again on the plane, I basically got it. Compared to the outbound trip, the return flight from South Africa to Hong Kong was the shortest night. On this flight, I still chose to watch movies, and I watched three in a row: 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart', 'Vengeance', and 'Mr. and Mrs. Incredible'.
International flights have high punctuality rates, and the airplane meals were very rich. To make it convenient for passengers, the airline even made a menu. Our flight meals included:
Dinner: Smoked salmon with apple and celery salad, beef with black bean sauce served with white rice, fresh mushrooms, carrots, and stir-fried cabbage, or lemon tomato sauce chicken fillet with coconut, green beans, and carrots, or Italian long pasta with coriander pumpkin and white wine cream sauce, Häagen-Dazs ice cream, tea, and coffee.
Breakfast: Seasonal fresh fruit, fresh fruit yogurt, egg omelet with veal sausage, hash browns, herb tomatoes, and baked beans, or shredded meat chow mein, croissant with jam and butter, tea, and coffee.
Snacks: Cup noodles and various snacks.
On July 28, at around 7:00 AM South African time, the flight landed on time at Johannesburg Airport in South Africa. The sun was just rising, and the weather was very good. Although it was winter in South Africa, perhaps due to low air humidity, we did not feel cold. South Africa has three capitals: the administrative capital Pretoria, the legislative capital Cape Town, and the judicial capital Bloemfontein. There are as many as 11 official languages.
Johannesburg is an important air hub in Africa, and flights to the African continent often transfer through Johannesburg. So our South Africa itinerary started and ended in Johannesburg. We arrived in Johannesburg at 7:00 AM local time, but due to a fellow traveler's lost checked luggage, we were delayed at the airport for over an hour before actually starting the tour. According to the itinerary, we did not stay in Johannesburg that day but went directly from Johannesburg Airport to Pretoria and Sun City.
Pretoria is the administrative capital of South Africa. The South African Presidential Palace is built on a small hill in the city center. The scale and architecture of the Presidential Palace are quite majestic. Visitors can freely play on the lawn in front of the palace, and there are even many vendors setting up stalls selling handicrafts.
After leaving the South African Presidential Palace, we headed straight to Sun City. In fact, Sun City is not a city but a hotel resort. According to the tour guide, Sun City was inspired by Las Vegas and was built by a local chieftain adjacent to South Africa's fourth largest national zoo, invested by the Sun Group. Sun City is actually a cluster of hotels, consisting of several five-star hotels, the most famous of which is the Sun City Crown Hotel, ranked among the top ten in the world.
The Sun City hotel complex is vast, with complete facilities such as an amusement park, golf course, artificial seawater beach, etc. Its biggest advantage is that you can go to the zoo anytime to explore African wildlife, and if you're lucky, you might encounter the Big Five: lion, rhinoceros, buffalo, cheetah, and elephant.
The Sun City golf course is quite large. According to the guide, the World Golf Association holds a golf tournament with a total prize of up to one million US dollars here every year. Although it was still winter in July and August, perhaps due to low humidity, we did not feel cold during our stay in South Africa. To better enjoy the greens, we spent 240 South African rand per person to rent a two-wheeled vehicle (actually a popular balance bike nowadays). This two-wheeled vehicle mainly relies on the rider's body weight to move forward, backward, turn, and stop. It's very fun to ride.
The Sun City Crown Hotel lives up to its reputation as one of the top ten hotels in the world. The hotel's interior design is extremely luxurious. The painted dome inside the hotel's main entrance rivals the Michelangelo ceiling of St. Peter's Basilica. The hotel has hosted the Miss World pageant five consecutive times. Standing on the Crown Tower of the hotel, you can take in the entire lake and mountain scenery of Sun City. In addition, the Sun City hotel also has an artificial wave beach and an earthquake bridge.
The Sun City Crown Hotel offers a wide variety of specialty pastries with excellent taste. Generally, travel agencies arrange for tour members to taste the Crown Hotel's specialty snacks to have the opportunity to closely appreciate the hotel's architectural features.
