Amabutho (Zulu regiments) march as Zulu maidens gather to prepare themselves in Nongoma, on September 17, 2022 ahead of the traditional Zulu reed dance. - Every September, tens of thousands of women, known locally as maidens, descend on the royal palace in the southeast KwaZulu-Natal province, to present a tall reed to the new king Misuzulu, as a traditional rite of womanhood. (Photo by MARCO LONGARI / AFP)