While in South Africa, one of our hostels recommend we go and visit one of the nearby traditional villages.  Usually we skip places like this but figured this time we’d give it a try.  The Zulu living there lived in a version of modern squalor but through tourist dollars found a means to keep their traditions alive.  After a rather interesting warrior dance with costumes and drums we were taken to the part of the village they actually lived in where we could meet the medicine woman.

Here in her hut she donned several special anklets made of soda can tops and then proceeded to do some kind of ritualistic dance.  The mix of modern and past is was fascinated me and why I worked so hard to capture the motion of those soda can tops as she danced around the small room.

IF YOU GO: Most Zulu type villages are where the Zulu live.  This one we visited outside of St. Lucia before heading onto Lesotho.  This was a fun place to visit but I still struggle with the question: Was this responsible tourism?

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