iWeekend enkulu finally arrived… I say this because it was also my birthday weekend. More than anything I was excited to see what the Royal Polo Day had in store for the second year. We witnessed the first one and as with any first-time event, lots of mistakes were made but we managed to have a good time nonetheless. The big question is, how was the 2022 edition?
The weekend enkulu started on the 30th of September. After my birthday breakfast, I headed to the station happy and ready for the road trip to Rustenburg. The programme was the Gala Dinner on Friday and a live broadcast of the POWER Experience the following day and an after-party afterward.
Thankfully some of our colleagues arrived earlier than us to make sure everything was on point. When we arrived it was 30 degrees Celsius and you couldn’t stand outside with no shade. After we checked in we had 2 hours to freshen up and get ready for the gala dinner. In between chats and music with my best friend, we made it to the gala in time.
The Gala Dinner
The Gala Dinner served as a soft landing for the main event. It brought together various stakeholders of The Royal Polo Day. They had a panel discussion to speak about the polo sport in South Africa and the ways the sport can move forward post the event. It also highlighted the need to offer the sport to underprivileged scholars in the community who were interested in the sport but couldn’t afford it. The outfit? The theme was a black tie, so I wore a black fitted, off-the-shoulder velvet dress with nude heels. The feathers were sewn on the day before by yours truly.
After the panel discussion, there was an opportunity to network with the stakeholders in the room and gather content for the following day. Just before 11 pm, I called it a night. I headed to the room to enjoy the last bit of my birthday with my best friend.
The Royal Polo Day
The day started off with a jog. I brought my sneakers along and spent 30 minutes in the hot Rustenburg sun to kick-start my day. After breakfast, I went to check out the scene and I was blown away by what I saw. The event was a stone’s throw away from the Royal Marang Hotel; the deco, the branding, and the VIP section were beautiful. All of it was lovely to see, definitely an upgrade from the first event. The attention to detail was breathtakingly beautiful.
But, before the festivities, I needed to change into my outfit of the day…
The theme was Vintage: Back to the Future. At first glance I knew I would not wear a ballgown, I still needed to host the POWER Experience. So I went for an all-white outfit, with a twist. I wore floral shorts, a white wide-neck bodysuit, and an off-white blazer with feathers on the hemp with nude heels. I must admit the outfit turned out more beautifully than I expected, and it was fit for the weather (it was around 32 degrees that day). On the morning of the outside broadcast, I grappled with whether or not I should continue to sew on the feathers and I’m so grateful I did. That little detail made a huge difference.
During the OB we interviewed various stakeholders who were part of the Royal Polo Day event including Otis Seflo, the designer who was showcasing his range, and the ambassadors, Loot Love and Anele Zondo. I also got to meet the lovely POWER 98.7 competition winners who walked away with a VIP experience for the weekend. Four hours of the show went by so quickly.
After 6 pm it was time to party…
After the OB they already hosted the Polo as well as the soccer match with the legendary soccer players. I also missed Lloyiso’s performance. But due to perform were Big Zulu, Vusi Nova, and Mafikizolo. In between, there were DJs who played a balance of Hip Hop, House music, and Amapiano.
Vusi Nova’s performance blew me away, the guy can hold a note! And he has stage presence. It was beautiful to see how his first album was loved so much and to my surprise, I still remembered the words to songs like Thandiwe and I’d rather go blind. He also bought on an up-and-coming talent, Kwanda who performed his song Kangaka. That was a lovely treat!
Another surprise was how much I was such a Big Zulu fan that night. My friend Makhotso sent me a video of him looking at me and smiling at me and reaching out his hand to touch mine. I know right… In that video, I also knew so many of his songs. The guy produces good music but it ends there! Ke sharp with Zulu men, but I digress… We had seen him perform at the Magic Music Sessions two months before that, so it was a lovely one to see again. We also saw Mafikizolo at the Magic Music Sessions, it’s no wonder they’ve been around 25 years!
The rest of the night was a paaaaarty! I was with the best company ever, my colleagues that were there were a vibe! I don’t remember a moment where I wasn’t laughing or dancing, it really was a lovely afterparty. And of course, what’s a paaaaarty without the step, I asked one of my colleagues to do as I do and follow along and she did until there was a whole crowd that followed along.
At 1 am I was finished… It seemed like it was the perfect time to leave because when we got to our room the gospel music started playing, that’s always a sign that it’s time to shut down the speakers.
Deja vu happened again because like last year, we woke up with a hangover, and instead of leaving at 11 am as planned, we left at 4 pm. We chilled the whole day nursing our hangovers and reminiscing on the night before. Overall it was a beautiful weekend.
Yes, it was a happy happy happy birthday weekend! Can’t wait for the 3rd Royal Polo Day.
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