wargames and walking: Zulu Tour day 3

On day 2 after Breakfast we went down to the beach and looked at the area of beach were Henry francis Flynn met Shaka zulus army for the first time , with the Indian Ocean breaking on the shore it was great listening to the story told by Ian we also got to watch a large number of dolphins playing just off shore . We left Princess Grant and headed inland to the battlefield of Gingindlovu where Chelmsfords forces met the Zulu army whilst trying to break the siege of Eshowe .The Battlefield today is covered in crops of sugar cane and the cemetery is overgrown .This bloody battle for the British forces is usually forgotten but was a decisive victory for Chelmsfords forces only losing around 11 men and inflicting over 1000 dead upon the Zulu .We moved up to the next battle field of Nyezane where Pearsons column encountered the Zulus in very hilly ground with the naval brigade showing thier worth and turning the zulus . A few monuments overgrown and fenced off are the only things marking this battle . Next we stopped for lunch and a tour of Fort Nongquyi a very beau geste looking affair built to train troops and police who took part in the 1906 Zulu uprising ,it has a nice little museum .After lunch we went to the site of the mission station at Eshowe and visited the Graves of the men who were killed in action and by Disease ,after a tireing day we went on to our home for the next few days Shakaland , originally built for the TV series Shakazulu it is now a cultural centre with around 50 huts converted into hotel rooms the remainder are lived in by locals who take part in dancing , fighting and craft making displays a wonderful experience in beautiful surroundings .