My eyes and ears were attracted by the glee two hundred church worshippers clearly experienced on the beach, involved in prayer and baptising ritual.
Adorned in white uniforms, blue and green sashes, people were dunked into the waves, held under for a few seconds and came up gasping and chanting in an unrecognisable African language.
Some women were veiled, in the background, singing and dancing.
Holy staffs with flags dug into the sand around groups of people.
In the middle of the action, yellow and white plastic containers were being topped up with sea water and sand, waiting to be taken home after the baptismal and healing ritual.
I kept my distance, mesmerised by the simpleness of it all. The joy and rapture each person in the group experienced, from young children enjoying the shoreline and the elderly, the ‘ikhehlas‘ and ‘ugogos‘ relishing the purification ritual.



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