HISTORY

      Traveling involves preparation. Whether you're checking the weather so that you know what to pack or you're learning the native language of the country you're traveling to. I do these things, but I think the most important preparation you can do is learn the history of  country your traveling to. Here's what I've assimilated from several articles about Durban, South Africa.
      Durban was "discovered" by Vasco da Gama, a Portuguese explorer, in 1497. He named the bay Natal (the Portuguese word for Christmas) ,because he landed on Christmas Day.
      Very little activity took place in Durban until 1842, when the British Lieutenant F.G. Farewell arrived from the Cape Town colony with a group of men and established a small settlement. Henry Flynn, an explorer, accompanied Farewell and famously befriended Shaka, King of the Zulus, by helping him recover from a battle wound. Shaka gave Flynn a 25 mile piece of the coastline in thanks. In 1835, a city was built and named "Durban" after the Cape Governor Sir Benjamin D' Urban.
      In 1838, the Afrikaans Voortrekers who had traveled eastwards from the Cape established the republic of Natalia, making the town of Pietermaritzburg the capital. The Voortrekers had many conflicts with the Zulus and British settlers before being forced to accept British rule in 1844.
      A sugar cane industry was established in Durban with the British importing thousands of indentured laborers from India to work in the fields. This has today resulted in Durban having a large Indian community.