MZANZI TRAVEL - ISSUE 3

Heritage & Travel
At Phoenix, on the original 100 acre site, one finds a
reconstructed replica of Gandhi’s corrugated iron house
named Sarvodaya. The original was destroyed during the
anti-apartheid Inanda riots in 1985. But it in the quiet of
the morning, the house still has a distinct “Gandhi feel”
about it. Close your eyes and you can imagine him sitting
dressed in a loin cloth on a straw mat, meditating.
Still standing beside the house is the original building
that housed Gandhi’s printing press where he printed and
published his newspaper, Indian Opinion. The newspaper
lasted from 1904 until 1961. The property now also houses
a community clinic and the Phoenix Interpretation Centre,
together forming the Phoenix Settlement. There are many
photographs, documents and panels on display that tell
the fascinating story of this period and the man.
From Phoenix the road takes us up the hill to Ohlange
where John Dube acquired a piece of land and built a
school for his community not far from where he was born
on the Inanda Mission Station in 1871. The school, the Zulu
Christian Industrial School, later known as the Ohlange
Institute, was the first black African-owned and run
educational institution in South Africa. Dube’s first house
also still stands here, while the graves of Dube, his wife
and a number of his children are here too…now a national
monument.
Having studied in the USA, Dube went on to become an
essayist, philosopher, educator, politician, publisher,
editor, novelist and poet, as well as the first president
of the ANC which today governs South Africa. In 1903 he
established the Ilanga Lase Natali newspaper, which is still
being published to this day. Dube and Gandhi were friends,
sharing a common philosophy.
IN 1994, in South Africa’s first democratic elections Nelson
Mandela chose the Dr JL Dube Interpretation Centre housed
on the school premises as the place where he cast his vote
for the first time in a fully free, democratic South Africa. It
is said that on that day he went to Dube’s grave close to the
house and, facing his tombstone, said: “Mister President, I
can report to you that today we are finally free.”
established by American missionaries Daniel and Lucey
Lindley in the mid-1800s where many well-known people
were schooled; the house of Bertha Mkhize, teacher,
trade unionist, ANC Women’s League president and a 1956
treason trialist; and the birthplace of Isaiah Shembe’s
religious community which sees itself as a nation chosen,
like the Israelites, by God and today has a huge following.
Travelling through the area one sees almost everywhere
the white stones on open pieces of land where Shembe’s
followers worship.
Travelling further from the city, you can visit the Luthuli
Museum, which includes the original 1927 home of Chief
Albert Luthuli in Groutville, KwaDukuza. Chief Luthuli was a
former ANC president who in 1961 became the first African
to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his non-violent stance
in the fight for liberation.
There are also many scenic attractions along the Inanda
Heritage Route, such as the Inanda Dam or the beautiful
Mzinyathi Falls. Close to the falls we encounter a group
of young village boys out hunting with their pack of dogs.
On the way back to Durban we stop at the popular Sbu’s
Lounge, something of a mix between a local shebeen,
butcher, upmarket pool bar, braai facility and tourist
attraction. We select some fine meat cuts which are
braaied for us and brought to our table, along with some
welcome beers. A street busker looking every bit the
Broadway tap-dancer enters and entertains us with his
walking stick, two-tone shoes and smart dance moves.
The next day we head inland towards the famed and
beautiful Valley of a Thousand Hills, where we take in a
spell of traditional Zulu dancing. Then we head north to
the King Shaka Heritage Route. It provides a fascinating
window on this most famous Zulu monarch and military
genius and his people. There are many other Zulu heritage
The Inanda Heritage Route also offers insights into the
lives and work of many other historical figures. One can
visit the ancestral homestead of Pixley ka Isaka Seme, the
principal founder of the ANC and its first treasurer general.
Then there is the home of Rev Posselt Gumede, a pastor,
intellectual, translator of hymns, political activist and
founder member of the Natal Native Congress.
Also on the route is the home and grave of AWG Champion,
an early trade unionist and ANC leader; the Inanda
Congregational Church and the Inanda Seminary both
42 |ISSUE 3|www.mzanzitravel.co.za | MZANZI TRAVEL