I'm really struggling to keep up with the blog now. We have only a week left in SA and I feel as if I am on an emotional rollercoaster. Had my leaving do last Tuesday evening with the guys from work. They took me to The Food Room in Wynberg, the brilliant kitchen run by Kate George that I have been to several times for fun and boozy evenings. However I've always missed Kate's Easy Asian nights and Dot knew that, so she had organised a private party just for us. Kate demonstrated the dishes, plied us with wine, let us join in with the cooking and then fed us a delicious meal. Keith made a lovely speech which made me cry. It would have been sensible to go home at that point, but Sue, Keith and I went on to Jake's all the way down at Steenberg for a few more drinks. More tears were shed, and suddenly it was nearly one o clock in the morning. I had a seriously sore head the next day, but it was all worth it for a really lovely send off I shall remember for a long time.
Lottie and Libby have finished school now. Lottie skipped out, very much looking forward to going home. Libby is struggling but being very brave. She spent the last day 'being treated like a princess' at a class party, though she was in tears for most of it. She's really aware that this is goodbye and has been writing a poem to her old classmates. She has a photo of the class by her bed. However she is also looking forward to seeing old friends again and to doing new things in England.
We went to Kirstenbosch on Sunday, probably for the last time, and I really felt that almost physical pain of knowing that we'll be leaving so much that's amazing behind. Of course South Africa has huge problems, and most fundamentally of all it isn't our home, but it also has so much to offer. I'm really glad to be coming home to friends and family, but I'll miss the mountains and the sea and the beauty and the richness and the character and the lifestyle so very much.
We've started packing boxes and cases so the house is strewn with piles of things to take on the plane, give away, ship. The bigger items are being shipped and the packers come in next Wednesday, the day before we leave for Namibia. I'm working right up to the last moment, and will continue to work for AVSA for at least a month or two after returning to England, which I am really pleased about. Still it won't be the same as being with this amazing bunch of people. I've loved being part of the team here, it's been like Added Value was in 1997 when I first joined.
Anyway, enough feeling sorry for myself. It is the right decision to come home and there is much for us all to look forward to. But I have to admit that there's a very definite bit of me that wishes we could stay.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Thursday, June 9, 2011
The Allams come to stay!
Here we are in June already and we are all really busy trying to cram as much into our last weeks as possible. Susie, Steve, Alexander and Anna came to stay for a week and it was so lovely to see them that I wanted to record as much as possible from their stay. Here goes!
Friday 27th May 2011
An absolutely beautiful winter’s day. Warm sunshine, still air, fabulous views of the mountain. We look forward to showing the Allams our adopted city in all its glory.
Early hours of Saturday 28th May
Wake to hear bucketing rain splashing onto the deck outside our bedroom.
Saturday 28th May
Still raining when we wake up. Make a dash to hockey, hoping it will soon brighten up but the rain gets worse, so hockey finishes early and we head off to the airport to meet our visitors who are arriving at 10am on the overnight flight from London.
Back home, we huddle around the fairly feeble gas fire and have a great catch up over lots of coffee. It finally stops raining so we drag the children away from the table tennis and their Ninetendos and walk up to Rhodes Memorial where the sun comes out and we get a good view of the city.
Sunday 29th May
Determined not to let the weather defeat us, we headed off to Cape Point after the breakfast. When I looked back at these photos it looks like we’ve taken a trip to the Arctic! It was certainly chilly and blustery on the walk to the Cape of Good Hope, but perhaps not quite a bad as the photos suggest...
We drove along the coast road, through Kalk Bay and Simon’s Town. Stopped at Boulders Beach to see the penguins first. It’s breeding season, so there were lots of penguins on nests and with fluffy babies.
I was sure we’d see the baboons at some point and there they were right at the entrance to the national park. We stopped to watch them for a few minutes, and then drove the length of the park to our usual car park. Braved the boardwalk all the way to the very tip of the peninsula in a howling gale, and showed the children where Neil and I got engaged. A few minutes of trying to stay on our feet was enough for all of us, and we beat a hasty retreat to the shelter of the restaurant for a warming lunch.
Still time for a brisk walk up the hill to the lighthouse afterwards before we had to leave to make it out of the park before the gates shut.
Back at home, we fed the children their first taste of ostrich, which seemed to go down quite well. Lottie and Libby even overcame their squeamish when they saw their friends tucking in.
Monday 30th May
The weather was absolutely appalling overnight! I had a debrief and a briefing session in Durban today so left the house at 5am – not such a hardship as I’d been awake most of the night. When the wind howls round the house it sounds as if the windows are about to blow in. Plus we’ve got water pouring into the utility room, presumably from a missing tile on the roof.
So the Allams had a very wet day to explore some of what Cape Town has to offer. Unfortunately almost all the main attractions rely on decent weather: Table Mountain, Cape Point, Kirstenbosch, even township tours. However they seemed to have managed well, with a trip to the Waterfront and the Aquarium, plus a drive round the coast as soon as the rain dried up a little.
I didn’t get home until about 9pm – just in time to join in the wine drinking with Neil, Susie and Steve. Neil and I realised that we’ve got more bottles left than we can reasonably drink in the next 6 weeks, so we’re pickling the Allams livers this week too.
Tuesday 31st May
The forecast for the week isn’t brilliant. I feel so bad the Susie and Steve are having such poor weather, as CT just doesn’t look its best when the sun doesn’t shine.
However as today was at least dry, we rang the cable car hotline as soon as we woke up. With limited time available, we felt that the Allams should take the first opportunity to get up the mountain as wind, rain and low cloud all close the cable car down for hours at a time.
I was working, so couldn’t join them, but it sounded as if the whole family really enjoyed their day. Once on top of the mountain, Susie quickly photographed the views through broken cloud before visibility reduced. They walked to Maclear’s Beacon in the mist, but at least they made it up to the top.
Wednesday 1st June
Officially the start of winter. Woke up to quite a bright day. Still cold – I know poor Susie is really feeling it as our house is freezing in the evening and early morning. We have a ritual hot water filling session each evening and Susie is always huddled up next to the fire, but the room is so big that the fire makes little impression. We’ve bought a second fan heater for their bedroom downstairs too, but it’s not very comfortable to come home to a cold house.
Packed Lottie and Elizabeth off to school (poor things have exams this week, otherwise we’d have taken them out for a day), and the rest of us headed off up the N2 to Stellenbosch. We had decided to combine a bit of wine tasting in the winelands with a visit to Spier to see the cheetah outreach programme.
First stop Klein Zalze. Lovely warm tasting room, so a nice spot to linger for a while and sip and slurp (Neil!). Then a drive over to the other side of town to Rustenburg, partly because it’s such a beautiful old Cape Dutch farm, and partly because it shares a name with the girls’ school. Anna and Alexander were absolutely fantastic, and waited very patiently while the adults bored on about wine and nonsense. However we decided we’d pushed their patience long enough and headed into Stellenbosch for a late lunch. Unfortunately Neil and I then had to leave to make sure we got back to Cape Town in time to collect our children from school, but the Allams headed down to Spier and saw both the cheetahs and the wild dogs, plus some wilderbeest on the way and even a small flock of flamingos.
Thursday 2nd June
At last, a fine and settled day. Unfortunately I was working again – as time is now so short for me here I’ve got a huge amount to cram into the last few weeks. As I write this I’m trying to quell the mild panic!
So I wasn’t able to join the Allams on their visit to Kirstenbosch, one of my absolute favourite places in CT. I knew Susie would love it as the actual gardens are utterly stunning. But even Steve was impressed. The thing about Kirstenbosch that makes it so special is its scale, its naturally sublime setting under the mountain, and its variety. You don’t have to be interested in plants or gardens to find it breathtaking.
Leaving their car in the care of the car guard in the car park, Susie, Steve and the children walked the contour path all the way from Kirstenbosch to Rhodes Memorial. That’s quite a hike, but it’s a lovely walk over streams and landslips and through eucalyptus forests.
When they got back home, I whizzed Steve back up to Kirstenbosch to collect their car and then the four adults got ready to go out to dinner, leaving the children in the capable hands of our lovely babysitter Kirsten. We had booked a table at Constantia Uitsig (coincidentally, though we didn’t know it at the time, Susie’s parents stayed in the hotel here years ago). It was a clear but cold night so we had a view of the stars before we went in, though as it was dark we missed out on the gorgeous views. Lovely meal as always, then home for a nightcap.
Friday 3rd June
Anna bravely went to school with Libby this morning. Libby had been campaigning for this all week, and as her teacher was cool about it, and Anna was willing, it seemed like a good idea all round. Hardly a taxing day as they apparently watched a movie for half the morning as a reward for their hard work during their tests (!) Not sure what Anna made of the Xhosa lesson though!
Susie, Steve and Alexander popped back into town, and we collected the girls at lunchtime and all met up for a quick bite to eat before Lottie and Libby headed out again to go to a cross country race. This week the venue was over in Noordhoek, so Susie came with me and really enjoyed the climb up and over Ou Kapsweg and down into the valley. This was Lottie’s first race (Libby’s third). It was a scene of happy chaos at the athletics club with hundreds of children milling about waiting for their race. There’s between 50 and 70 children on average per race. Libby did very well and came 9th and Lottie came 18th in her age group – pretty good for the first time.
Neil, Steve and Alexander had the braai going when we got home, so we all tucked into some hearty SA food. As it was ‘gala night’ Susie and I cracked open the fizz and polished off the bottle standing on our deck and watching the sun set behind the mountain.
Saturday 4th June
As the Allams weren’t flying until 6.45pm we decided there was time this morning for one of our favourite walks: Lion’s Head. In two hours or so it’s possible to walk up and down a small mountain, made more exciting by the option of taking the challenging route which involves a bit of ladder climbing and pulling up by chains.
The walk should also offer magnificent views of the CBD, Camps Bay, Green Point, the Twelve Apostles and Table Mountain all the way up. But sadly not today. Much of the way up we were in mist, and once at the summit we were actually above the cloud completely – and only able to see white fluffy stuff below us, not spectacular views. However the children really enjoyed the walk and they all did very well with the rock climbing bit.
And so home for a late lunch and a quick spot of packing before we took the Allams back to the airport after another week that has just flown by.
Typically of course since then we’ve had a beautiful week, with warm almost spring like days and sunny skies. The mountains have still been shrouded in mist as Neil and I found when we had a ‘day off’ on Saturday. After hockey, the girls went to play with a friend in Constantia, so Neil and I popped down to Muizenberg and hiked up to St James’s Peak and the Muizenberg cave before a quick lunch in Kalk Bay. Despite appearing sunny from the beach road, we had soon climbed into cloud. But once we got to Di and Anton’s beautiful house on the Groot Constantia estate we were able to sit chatting and drinking tea in the afternoon sun.
Yesterday I left Cape Town for my last overseas trip – this time to India. My flight wasn’t until the evening so I really wanted some exercise before getting on an overnight flight to Delhi via Dubai. As it was an absolutely perfect morning, we headed up to Silvermine and did the long circuit that takes in Noordhoek Peak. The views are simply breathtaking from up there, and the walk was utterly fantastic.
We’re now talking about returning to England on our walks, and discussing some of the things the girls want to do when they get home. But we’re also enjoying listing all the highlights of our stay out here, and the things we’ll miss most. Lottie and Elizabeth only have two weeks left at school, then a week of tennis and riding camps whilst I finish my project, and then we leave SA for Namibia.
So here I am in Delhi, at the famous Imperial Hotel, steeped in history and Raj-style tradition. I’ve been travelling for 20 hours, so it’s time for a bath and an early night. Hoping to see a lot of the city, even if just from a car taking me to and from meetings.
Night night,
Sarah
Friday 27th May 2011
An absolutely beautiful winter’s day. Warm sunshine, still air, fabulous views of the mountain. We look forward to showing the Allams our adopted city in all its glory.
Early hours of Saturday 28th May
Wake to hear bucketing rain splashing onto the deck outside our bedroom.
Saturday 28th May
Still raining when we wake up. Make a dash to hockey, hoping it will soon brighten up but the rain gets worse, so hockey finishes early and we head off to the airport to meet our visitors who are arriving at 10am on the overnight flight from London.
Back home, we huddle around the fairly feeble gas fire and have a great catch up over lots of coffee. It finally stops raining so we drag the children away from the table tennis and their Ninetendos and walk up to Rhodes Memorial where the sun comes out and we get a good view of the city.
Sunday 29th May
Determined not to let the weather defeat us, we headed off to Cape Point after the breakfast. When I looked back at these photos it looks like we’ve taken a trip to the Arctic! It was certainly chilly and blustery on the walk to the Cape of Good Hope, but perhaps not quite a bad as the photos suggest...
We drove along the coast road, through Kalk Bay and Simon’s Town. Stopped at Boulders Beach to see the penguins first. It’s breeding season, so there were lots of penguins on nests and with fluffy babies.
I was sure we’d see the baboons at some point and there they were right at the entrance to the national park. We stopped to watch them for a few minutes, and then drove the length of the park to our usual car park. Braved the boardwalk all the way to the very tip of the peninsula in a howling gale, and showed the children where Neil and I got engaged. A few minutes of trying to stay on our feet was enough for all of us, and we beat a hasty retreat to the shelter of the restaurant for a warming lunch.
Still time for a brisk walk up the hill to the lighthouse afterwards before we had to leave to make it out of the park before the gates shut.
Back at home, we fed the children their first taste of ostrich, which seemed to go down quite well. Lottie and Libby even overcame their squeamish when they saw their friends tucking in.
Monday 30th May
The weather was absolutely appalling overnight! I had a debrief and a briefing session in Durban today so left the house at 5am – not such a hardship as I’d been awake most of the night. When the wind howls round the house it sounds as if the windows are about to blow in. Plus we’ve got water pouring into the utility room, presumably from a missing tile on the roof.
So the Allams had a very wet day to explore some of what Cape Town has to offer. Unfortunately almost all the main attractions rely on decent weather: Table Mountain, Cape Point, Kirstenbosch, even township tours. However they seemed to have managed well, with a trip to the Waterfront and the Aquarium, plus a drive round the coast as soon as the rain dried up a little.
I didn’t get home until about 9pm – just in time to join in the wine drinking with Neil, Susie and Steve. Neil and I realised that we’ve got more bottles left than we can reasonably drink in the next 6 weeks, so we’re pickling the Allams livers this week too.
Tuesday 31st May
The forecast for the week isn’t brilliant. I feel so bad the Susie and Steve are having such poor weather, as CT just doesn’t look its best when the sun doesn’t shine.
However as today was at least dry, we rang the cable car hotline as soon as we woke up. With limited time available, we felt that the Allams should take the first opportunity to get up the mountain as wind, rain and low cloud all close the cable car down for hours at a time.
I was working, so couldn’t join them, but it sounded as if the whole family really enjoyed their day. Once on top of the mountain, Susie quickly photographed the views through broken cloud before visibility reduced. They walked to Maclear’s Beacon in the mist, but at least they made it up to the top.
Wednesday 1st June
Officially the start of winter. Woke up to quite a bright day. Still cold – I know poor Susie is really feeling it as our house is freezing in the evening and early morning. We have a ritual hot water filling session each evening and Susie is always huddled up next to the fire, but the room is so big that the fire makes little impression. We’ve bought a second fan heater for their bedroom downstairs too, but it’s not very comfortable to come home to a cold house.
Packed Lottie and Elizabeth off to school (poor things have exams this week, otherwise we’d have taken them out for a day), and the rest of us headed off up the N2 to Stellenbosch. We had decided to combine a bit of wine tasting in the winelands with a visit to Spier to see the cheetah outreach programme.
First stop Klein Zalze. Lovely warm tasting room, so a nice spot to linger for a while and sip and slurp (Neil!). Then a drive over to the other side of town to Rustenburg, partly because it’s such a beautiful old Cape Dutch farm, and partly because it shares a name with the girls’ school. Anna and Alexander were absolutely fantastic, and waited very patiently while the adults bored on about wine and nonsense. However we decided we’d pushed their patience long enough and headed into Stellenbosch for a late lunch. Unfortunately Neil and I then had to leave to make sure we got back to Cape Town in time to collect our children from school, but the Allams headed down to Spier and saw both the cheetahs and the wild dogs, plus some wilderbeest on the way and even a small flock of flamingos.
Thursday 2nd June
At last, a fine and settled day. Unfortunately I was working again – as time is now so short for me here I’ve got a huge amount to cram into the last few weeks. As I write this I’m trying to quell the mild panic!
So I wasn’t able to join the Allams on their visit to Kirstenbosch, one of my absolute favourite places in CT. I knew Susie would love it as the actual gardens are utterly stunning. But even Steve was impressed. The thing about Kirstenbosch that makes it so special is its scale, its naturally sublime setting under the mountain, and its variety. You don’t have to be interested in plants or gardens to find it breathtaking.
Leaving their car in the care of the car guard in the car park, Susie, Steve and the children walked the contour path all the way from Kirstenbosch to Rhodes Memorial. That’s quite a hike, but it’s a lovely walk over streams and landslips and through eucalyptus forests.
When they got back home, I whizzed Steve back up to Kirstenbosch to collect their car and then the four adults got ready to go out to dinner, leaving the children in the capable hands of our lovely babysitter Kirsten. We had booked a table at Constantia Uitsig (coincidentally, though we didn’t know it at the time, Susie’s parents stayed in the hotel here years ago). It was a clear but cold night so we had a view of the stars before we went in, though as it was dark we missed out on the gorgeous views. Lovely meal as always, then home for a nightcap.
Friday 3rd June
Anna bravely went to school with Libby this morning. Libby had been campaigning for this all week, and as her teacher was cool about it, and Anna was willing, it seemed like a good idea all round. Hardly a taxing day as they apparently watched a movie for half the morning as a reward for their hard work during their tests (!) Not sure what Anna made of the Xhosa lesson though!
Susie, Steve and Alexander popped back into town, and we collected the girls at lunchtime and all met up for a quick bite to eat before Lottie and Libby headed out again to go to a cross country race. This week the venue was over in Noordhoek, so Susie came with me and really enjoyed the climb up and over Ou Kapsweg and down into the valley. This was Lottie’s first race (Libby’s third). It was a scene of happy chaos at the athletics club with hundreds of children milling about waiting for their race. There’s between 50 and 70 children on average per race. Libby did very well and came 9th and Lottie came 18th in her age group – pretty good for the first time.
Neil, Steve and Alexander had the braai going when we got home, so we all tucked into some hearty SA food. As it was ‘gala night’ Susie and I cracked open the fizz and polished off the bottle standing on our deck and watching the sun set behind the mountain.
Saturday 4th June
As the Allams weren’t flying until 6.45pm we decided there was time this morning for one of our favourite walks: Lion’s Head. In two hours or so it’s possible to walk up and down a small mountain, made more exciting by the option of taking the challenging route which involves a bit of ladder climbing and pulling up by chains.
The walk should also offer magnificent views of the CBD, Camps Bay, Green Point, the Twelve Apostles and Table Mountain all the way up. But sadly not today. Much of the way up we were in mist, and once at the summit we were actually above the cloud completely – and only able to see white fluffy stuff below us, not spectacular views. However the children really enjoyed the walk and they all did very well with the rock climbing bit.
And so home for a late lunch and a quick spot of packing before we took the Allams back to the airport after another week that has just flown by.
Typically of course since then we’ve had a beautiful week, with warm almost spring like days and sunny skies. The mountains have still been shrouded in mist as Neil and I found when we had a ‘day off’ on Saturday. After hockey, the girls went to play with a friend in Constantia, so Neil and I popped down to Muizenberg and hiked up to St James’s Peak and the Muizenberg cave before a quick lunch in Kalk Bay. Despite appearing sunny from the beach road, we had soon climbed into cloud. But once we got to Di and Anton’s beautiful house on the Groot Constantia estate we were able to sit chatting and drinking tea in the afternoon sun.
Yesterday I left Cape Town for my last overseas trip – this time to India. My flight wasn’t until the evening so I really wanted some exercise before getting on an overnight flight to Delhi via Dubai. As it was an absolutely perfect morning, we headed up to Silvermine and did the long circuit that takes in Noordhoek Peak. The views are simply breathtaking from up there, and the walk was utterly fantastic.
We’re now talking about returning to England on our walks, and discussing some of the things the girls want to do when they get home. But we’re also enjoying listing all the highlights of our stay out here, and the things we’ll miss most. Lottie and Elizabeth only have two weeks left at school, then a week of tennis and riding camps whilst I finish my project, and then we leave SA for Namibia.
So here I am in Delhi, at the famous Imperial Hotel, steeped in history and Raj-style tradition. I’ve been travelling for 20 hours, so it’s time for a bath and an early night. Hoping to see a lot of the city, even if just from a car taking me to and from meetings.
Night night,
Sarah
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Amazing Lesotho and the Drakensburg
I'm on my way to Korea now for a week in Seoul helping to develop strategy for Kimberly Clark. Looking forward to it as I think Seoul will be fascinating, and not somewhere I'm likely to visit any other time. However it's quite a long trip this time, so I'll miss Neil, Lottie and Libby.
It was Rachel's 40th birthday earlier this week and also Scotty's wedding. The girls managed to speak to Rachel, though I didn't. She's doing the MoonWalk in aid of Breast Cancer this weekend - hope that goes really well Rachel!
Liz and Roland have just left us after a week's visit that absolutely flew by. They were lucky with the weather overall and got out and about a lot. As well as a visit to Kirstenbosch and Robben Island, Neil and I took them wine tasting one day when the girls were at school,we all had fish and chips at Kalk Bay on Friday afternoon and we had a day trip to Cape Point at the weekend. As that day co-incided with Mother's Day in SA (May 8th), Liz even got to have a glass of pink fizz with her lunch. I think they had a good week, and we certainly enjoyed having them to stay. As well as getting stuck into hockey practice, Liz was even brave enough to have a swim in the pool - she may well be the last person to use it as autumn has finally arrived. Yesterday on the beach at Noordhoek was like the Northumberland coast - in winter. Three different shades of grey for the sky, sea and sand.
And so to our amazing trip to Lesotho and the Drakensburg a few weeks ago. The girls finished school on 22nd April for an Easter break that was extended to 10 full days holiday thanks to several public holidays (Freedom Day, Family Day and Workers Day – you’ve got to love a country that has more public holidays than there are months in the year. Three more coming up in May and June too).
We flew into Bloemfontein in the Free State on Easter Saturday, and were immediately struck by how much colder and damper it was than Cape Town. We knew we’d meet colder weather on this trip as Lesotho is the most mountainous country on earth, but hadn’t expected it quite so soon! After checking in at the Donald Russell Guest House we went for a walk to see what Bloem has to offer – not a lot as it turns out. We found a shopping centre to buy some supplies for Lesotho and a soggy park with very ancient play equip and a few obligatory street people. Decided to upgrade our experience and took a Nandos take away back to the B&B to eat whilst watching a bit of pre Royal Wedding fluff on SABC3.
On Easter Sunday morning we had a quick DIY breakfast before an Easter egg hunt in the grounds. Piled into our lovely bakkie (pronounced buckie, the universal name for big pick up truck style vehicles here), and hit the road out of South Africa. We reached the border at Maseru Bridge after about two hours, and sailed through the passport formalities. Instantly a ‘real Africa’ feel: seriously un-roadworthy minibuses, beaten up taxis and rusty trucks clogged the roads, hindered on their way by the cattle, goats and oxen that wandered the verges and ambled into the road itself. As it was a Sunday, Maseru the capital of Lesotho and equivalent in size to Newbury, was quiet but the Victoria Hotel was open for lunch. More or less as soon as we ordered, the power went out so lunch was cooked from scratch on a gas flame, meaning a long wait and a very dark trip to the candlelit loos. However the sun was shining and the local beer, Maluti, was cold and refreshing so we chilled and adapted to Africa time Lesotho-style.
After a pretty tasty lunch of fish and chicken we set off for Roma, Lesotho’s seat of learning and the site of the only university. We passed shepherds wearing the traditional Lesotho woollen blankets and tiny children herding sheep and goats. Roma was bathed in afternoon sunshine so we went for a walk around before finding our guest house for the night. I’d been expecting a pretty modest little town, but was still surprised to see just how basic it all was. Apart from the university and the Spazza (general store), there were almost no other brick buildings, just metals shacks, clay-built rondavels and roadside stalls serving as the high street. However the people we met were friendly and although we were obviously the subject of much curiosity we didn’t feel uncomfortable, as can be the case in SA.
Stayed overnight at The Trading Post in a self catering house. Built on a mini hostel basis with 4 large bedrooms, a kitchen and large sitting room, we had it to ourselves as no one else was staying that night. Despite being very faded, with frankly shabby bathrooms, it was clean and comfortable. There’s no TV up here, but there was a DVD player with an extensive library, so Neil and I lit a fire in the large grate and settled down to watch the Steve Biko hagiography ‘Cry Freedom’ when the girls were in bed. Fittingly the action includes an escape from SA into Lesotho.
On Monday morning a lady came in to cook breakfast for the four of us (!), a man wandered in with a large rifle under his arm and another came to clean out the fireplace. A fourth came in, apparently to watch a DVD. We packed up and left for a three hour drive to our next stop over, Malealea Lodge, south east of Maseru. We had very high hopes of Malealea, expecting it to be the highlight of the holiday, and so it proved. The drive included scaling the Gates of Paradise Pass, the first time we could really use the 4x4 capacity of the truck. Right at the top we met three young boys who chatted for a bit about school and their work and extracted a handful of sweets, some apples and 10 Maloti from us ‘for shoes.’ Very polite and grateful, so it was a pleasure to meet them.
At Gate of Paradise Pass
The height of eating out options in Roma: Dolly's Kitchen!
At Malealea, finally.
Malealea Lodge is a Lesotho institution, run by the same (white) family for years. It was originally a trading post in the middle of nowhere, and has evolved into a major (by BaSothan standards), holiday centre and hub of the village. It offers pony trekking, hiking, visits to the local school and into the villager’s homes. There’s a playground, games room, bar and restaurant, though all Libby and Lottie wanted to do was to hang around the ponies. They were made welcome and it really gave me a lump in my throat to watch my pony-mad girls standing silently communing with the patient beasts. We were shown to another huge two bedroom cottage with a big garden and stupendous views. With no mains electricity, the generator only provides enough for 5 hours a day from dusk to around 10pm. Then the bar closes and black night falls. It’s all necessarily basic, but we were given a gas fridge and a gas cooker so could keep up a supply of hot drinks and even fill our hot water bottles each night!
Careful Neil - you haven't got a seat belt, or an off button.....
That first afternoon we answered the girls’ prayers and took them out on a guided
pony trek to Pitseng Gorge. Neil and I decided to walk alongside and chat to Mafa, our knowledgeable local guide. We just beat the brewing storm home and snuggled up in our cottage to watch as the forked lightning illuminated the hills that surrounded us at every angle. Made a dash through the torrential rain to listen to the local choir and band in the games room. The band were particularly good, having made all their instruments themselves from old oil cans, bits of wood etc. They had guitars, a large drum, even something resembling a violin with just one string made from a piece of nylon that produced a remarkably rhythmical sound. And so home to Neil’s speciality supper – Pasta Surprise – the surprise being that it’s always the same. (Pasta, onions, a red pepper, tin of tomatoes, tin of sweetcorn, tin of tuna). Pretty yummy though for all its familiarity.
Just before bed time we went out to see the African night sky. Zero light pollution, just thousands and thousands and thousands of stars.
On Tuesday morning we were up early to get those ponies saddled up and ready to go. All four of us riding this time, with Mafa taking us to see the San art paintings in a remote cave a few hours ride away. Lottie was on Caramel , Libby on Sliding Door ( the weird result of translation, we assume), I was riding Waterfall and Neil was on the inappropriately named Eagle. Neil was amazing for someone who hasn’t ridden before and I think we both enjoyed it more than we expected. I had assumed the ponies would be quite mule-ish, but actually they are quite fine, pretty, and very sure footed. As we encountered some pretty steep slopes and ‘staircases’ built into the rock Mafa told us just to trust our ponies to pick their own way up and down – good advice!
At a rocky precipice above the caves we met a young local girl who took us the last half mile or so on foot, down into the ravine where the caves are. Where had she come from? Apart from shepherds, we’d seen no one for the last two hours, passed through no villages. Anyway, she spoke poor English but did show us Echo cave (which really worked), and the very faded rock paintings. She navigated the slope rapidly in ill-fitting flip flops, whilst we edged down in stout boots – what a difference.
Once again the weather was on our side. Back at camp we agreed to meet Mafa at 2 o’clock for a final ride, and headed to the communal dining room for a hearty lunch of spaghetti. Suddenly the rain that had been threatening all morning broke and hailstones pounded the tin roofs. Just as we were despairing of getting out again the clouds rolled away and the sun came out. Neil and I decided to quit whilst we were ahead and hike for the afternoon, but the girls were straight back on their ponies. Mafa took us on a tour of the village environs, through areas of common grazing, past the primary and secondary schools which are part funded by links with Irish and English schools, and along the main street past the tin shack hair salon and the booth that acts as the village phone box.
Malealea 'High Street' and a backyard loo belonging to a villager.
It was Rachel's 40th birthday earlier this week and also Scotty's wedding. The girls managed to speak to Rachel, though I didn't. She's doing the MoonWalk in aid of Breast Cancer this weekend - hope that goes really well Rachel!
Liz and Roland have just left us after a week's visit that absolutely flew by. They were lucky with the weather overall and got out and about a lot. As well as a visit to Kirstenbosch and Robben Island, Neil and I took them wine tasting one day when the girls were at school,we all had fish and chips at Kalk Bay on Friday afternoon and we had a day trip to Cape Point at the weekend. As that day co-incided with Mother's Day in SA (May 8th), Liz even got to have a glass of pink fizz with her lunch. I think they had a good week, and we certainly enjoyed having them to stay. As well as getting stuck into hockey practice, Liz was even brave enough to have a swim in the pool - she may well be the last person to use it as autumn has finally arrived. Yesterday on the beach at Noordhoek was like the Northumberland coast - in winter. Three different shades of grey for the sky, sea and sand.
And so to our amazing trip to Lesotho and the Drakensburg a few weeks ago. The girls finished school on 22nd April for an Easter break that was extended to 10 full days holiday thanks to several public holidays (Freedom Day, Family Day and Workers Day – you’ve got to love a country that has more public holidays than there are months in the year. Three more coming up in May and June too).
We flew into Bloemfontein in the Free State on Easter Saturday, and were immediately struck by how much colder and damper it was than Cape Town. We knew we’d meet colder weather on this trip as Lesotho is the most mountainous country on earth, but hadn’t expected it quite so soon! After checking in at the Donald Russell Guest House we went for a walk to see what Bloem has to offer – not a lot as it turns out. We found a shopping centre to buy some supplies for Lesotho and a soggy park with very ancient play equip and a few obligatory street people. Decided to upgrade our experience and took a Nandos take away back to the B&B to eat whilst watching a bit of pre Royal Wedding fluff on SABC3.
On Easter Sunday morning we had a quick DIY breakfast before an Easter egg hunt in the grounds. Piled into our lovely bakkie (pronounced buckie, the universal name for big pick up truck style vehicles here), and hit the road out of South Africa. We reached the border at Maseru Bridge after about two hours, and sailed through the passport formalities. Instantly a ‘real Africa’ feel: seriously un-roadworthy minibuses, beaten up taxis and rusty trucks clogged the roads, hindered on their way by the cattle, goats and oxen that wandered the verges and ambled into the road itself. As it was a Sunday, Maseru the capital of Lesotho and equivalent in size to Newbury, was quiet but the Victoria Hotel was open for lunch. More or less as soon as we ordered, the power went out so lunch was cooked from scratch on a gas flame, meaning a long wait and a very dark trip to the candlelit loos. However the sun was shining and the local beer, Maluti, was cold and refreshing so we chilled and adapted to Africa time Lesotho-style.
After a pretty tasty lunch of fish and chicken we set off for Roma, Lesotho’s seat of learning and the site of the only university. We passed shepherds wearing the traditional Lesotho woollen blankets and tiny children herding sheep and goats. Roma was bathed in afternoon sunshine so we went for a walk around before finding our guest house for the night. I’d been expecting a pretty modest little town, but was still surprised to see just how basic it all was. Apart from the university and the Spazza (general store), there were almost no other brick buildings, just metals shacks, clay-built rondavels and roadside stalls serving as the high street. However the people we met were friendly and although we were obviously the subject of much curiosity we didn’t feel uncomfortable, as can be the case in SA.
Stayed overnight at The Trading Post in a self catering house. Built on a mini hostel basis with 4 large bedrooms, a kitchen and large sitting room, we had it to ourselves as no one else was staying that night. Despite being very faded, with frankly shabby bathrooms, it was clean and comfortable. There’s no TV up here, but there was a DVD player with an extensive library, so Neil and I lit a fire in the large grate and settled down to watch the Steve Biko hagiography ‘Cry Freedom’ when the girls were in bed. Fittingly the action includes an escape from SA into Lesotho.
On Monday morning a lady came in to cook breakfast for the four of us (!), a man wandered in with a large rifle under his arm and another came to clean out the fireplace. A fourth came in, apparently to watch a DVD. We packed up and left for a three hour drive to our next stop over, Malealea Lodge, south east of Maseru. We had very high hopes of Malealea, expecting it to be the highlight of the holiday, and so it proved. The drive included scaling the Gates of Paradise Pass, the first time we could really use the 4x4 capacity of the truck. Right at the top we met three young boys who chatted for a bit about school and their work and extracted a handful of sweets, some apples and 10 Maloti from us ‘for shoes.’ Very polite and grateful, so it was a pleasure to meet them.
At Gate of Paradise Pass
The height of eating out options in Roma: Dolly's Kitchen!
At Malealea, finally.
Malealea Lodge is a Lesotho institution, run by the same (white) family for years. It was originally a trading post in the middle of nowhere, and has evolved into a major (by BaSothan standards), holiday centre and hub of the village. It offers pony trekking, hiking, visits to the local school and into the villager’s homes. There’s a playground, games room, bar and restaurant, though all Libby and Lottie wanted to do was to hang around the ponies. They were made welcome and it really gave me a lump in my throat to watch my pony-mad girls standing silently communing with the patient beasts. We were shown to another huge two bedroom cottage with a big garden and stupendous views. With no mains electricity, the generator only provides enough for 5 hours a day from dusk to around 10pm. Then the bar closes and black night falls. It’s all necessarily basic, but we were given a gas fridge and a gas cooker so could keep up a supply of hot drinks and even fill our hot water bottles each night!
Careful Neil - you haven't got a seat belt, or an off button.....
That first afternoon we answered the girls’ prayers and took them out on a guided
pony trek to Pitseng Gorge. Neil and I decided to walk alongside and chat to Mafa, our knowledgeable local guide. We just beat the brewing storm home and snuggled up in our cottage to watch as the forked lightning illuminated the hills that surrounded us at every angle. Made a dash through the torrential rain to listen to the local choir and band in the games room. The band were particularly good, having made all their instruments themselves from old oil cans, bits of wood etc. They had guitars, a large drum, even something resembling a violin with just one string made from a piece of nylon that produced a remarkably rhythmical sound. And so home to Neil’s speciality supper – Pasta Surprise – the surprise being that it’s always the same. (Pasta, onions, a red pepper, tin of tomatoes, tin of sweetcorn, tin of tuna). Pretty yummy though for all its familiarity.
Just before bed time we went out to see the African night sky. Zero light pollution, just thousands and thousands and thousands of stars.
On Tuesday morning we were up early to get those ponies saddled up and ready to go. All four of us riding this time, with Mafa taking us to see the San art paintings in a remote cave a few hours ride away. Lottie was on Caramel , Libby on Sliding Door ( the weird result of translation, we assume), I was riding Waterfall and Neil was on the inappropriately named Eagle. Neil was amazing for someone who hasn’t ridden before and I think we both enjoyed it more than we expected. I had assumed the ponies would be quite mule-ish, but actually they are quite fine, pretty, and very sure footed. As we encountered some pretty steep slopes and ‘staircases’ built into the rock Mafa told us just to trust our ponies to pick their own way up and down – good advice!
At a rocky precipice above the caves we met a young local girl who took us the last half mile or so on foot, down into the ravine where the caves are. Where had she come from? Apart from shepherds, we’d seen no one for the last two hours, passed through no villages. Anyway, she spoke poor English but did show us Echo cave (which really worked), and the very faded rock paintings. She navigated the slope rapidly in ill-fitting flip flops, whilst we edged down in stout boots – what a difference.
Once again the weather was on our side. Back at camp we agreed to meet Mafa at 2 o’clock for a final ride, and headed to the communal dining room for a hearty lunch of spaghetti. Suddenly the rain that had been threatening all morning broke and hailstones pounded the tin roofs. Just as we were despairing of getting out again the clouds rolled away and the sun came out. Neil and I decided to quit whilst we were ahead and hike for the afternoon, but the girls were straight back on their ponies. Mafa took us on a tour of the village environs, through areas of common grazing, past the primary and secondary schools which are part funded by links with Irish and English schools, and along the main street past the tin shack hair salon and the booth that acts as the village phone box.
Malealea 'High Street' and a backyard loo belonging to a villager.
Our cottage at Malealea, and those amazing views.
Fording rivers in our trusty bakkie
On Wednesday morning we left Malealea reluctantly, knowing we had a full day’s travelling ahead before we would reach our next stop, Katse, the location of an astonishing engineering project that has dammed a river in the Maluti mountains and now supplies much needed water to SA and hydroelectricity (and investment) to parts of Lesotho. We drove through the mountains, over three spectacular mountain passes, including the fear-invoking ‘God Help Me’ pass. Thanks to the Highlands Water project, the last twenty years has seen a huge improvement to the road system in the remote interior of Lesotho, and much of the way was tarred. However from Thaba-Tseka it becomes a rutted dirt track, devoid of signs, and as we had by now lost the light, we were a quiet, fingers-crossed carload that finally staggered into Katse about 8pm.
On Thursday morning we were therefore surprised to see the village in the daylight – a complete anomaly of hundreds of suburban-style neat brick houses with little front yards, obviously built for the foreign dam construction workers. Once again, our self catering accommodation at the Katse Lodge was spacious, comfortable and above all cheap – we didn’t pay more than about £70 / night for the four of us anywhere in Lesotho. Checked out early and joined the 9am tour of the dam, including a visit inside and on top of the reservoir wall. To date only Phase 1 of a potential 5 phase project has been complete with the hope being that SA and Lesotho will sign the contract to begin Phase 2 this winter.
From Katse we set off on another long drive for our last stop in Lesotho, Mokhotlong, a little town that Lonely Planet describes as having a ‘wild west frontier town feel’ in the south east of the country. This time we had two options, the ‘safe’ but lengthy road through Leribe and Buthe-Butha or the cross country route that would slash the miles but was an unknown quantity. Neil was keen to put his 4WD car (and skills) to the test, so guess what – we (he) chose the latter option. With a very vague map, no signs and no towns en route we knew it would be an adventure. And what a drive it was! From Lejone we took a track that snaked up and over mountains, through rivers, along narrow ledges where the road had been damaged by frost and rain, and up impossible looking slopes to the diamond mine at Kao. Thanks to the helpful security guards at the mine we found the right road again (but sadly no diamonds) and made it to Mokhotlong in half the time the standard route would have taken. We regularly ran into small flocks of sheep and goats, cattle and donkeys, and enjoyed spectacular scenery and cloudless skies. It was extremely cold though, with small waterfalls of ice decorating the roadside at every turn. One of the interesting things about the trip was observing the commitment to education of the Lesotho government. Very regularly we passed battered little buildings with a sign proudly announcing this or that primary school, even when there didn’t appear to be a community living anywhere nearby. We passed hordes of children returning from school, walking miles along the roadside. Lottie and Libby were appalled at the age of some of the younger children walking home alone. ‘Where are their mums? Why doesn’t someone collect them?’
Contemplating the drive down from the highest pub in Africa
Mokhotlong was everything it promised to be, bustling and chaotic, but especially basic. We managed to find a cold and drab dining room still serving and ate a late lunch / early of supper of packet soup and grey looking burgers. As our hotel room was also drab and cold we wrapped everyone up in our newly acquired blankets and had an early night.
Opening the door the next morning was like being on a skiing holiday – brilliant blue sky, bitter cold, thick frost. We ‘enjoyed’ the hotel breakfast of powdered orange juice, powdered egg and powdered instant coffee, redeemed by slabs of thick sweet doughy home made bread. Headed off to the border back into SA at Sani Top, a bumpy journey on a poor road but easy-peasy in the truck we’d all fallen in love with. We arrived at the Sani Top Chalet, reputedly the highest pub in Africa, in time for morning coffee and got chatting to the landlord who was listening to the Royal Wedding commentary on a battered transistor, this being another electricity-free zone. We took our coffee and hot chocolate outside on the balcony and looked at the Sani Pass snaking down the mountain before us for more than 8kms – the only way back into SA from here. This is a route only passable by 4x4 high clearance vehicles and it looked absolutely terrifying with hairpin bends and ridiculous cambers. I retreated inside in time to hear Kate Middleton say ‘I do’ and by this time we decided we might as well stay at the pub for lunch – anything to delay the journey down. Definitely a good decision, as we enjoyed the best meal of the holiday, sharing steaming plates of hot smoked local trout and chicken curry, mopped up with a loaf of home made bread from the tiny kitchen. Finally we had to leave, but first the border formalities. Neil had to wake the snoozing customs official to get our passports stamped and then we inched slowly down the mountain, occasionally feeling the wheels slipping beneath us on the loose stones and grit. It took almost 45 minutes to descend and I felt enormous relief as we reached the bottom and crossed back into the relative civilisation of SA (good roads for a start) and a 10 degree climb in temperatures.
The beautiful Drakensberg
Luxurious Fairways
An easy 90 minutes later and we arrived at Fairways, our luxury lodge in the southern Drakensberg. It was wonderful to have three nights of really super accommodation with every mod con to end the holiday. And so we spent our last two full days making the most of the beautiful autumn weather by hiking in the stunning Drakensberg, swimming in freezing river pools, playing mini golf, and undoing all our good work by eating the world’s biggest pizzas at the on-site restaurant. Although it’s very unlike the typical Africa we see on TV, Neil and I agreed that the Drakensberg is probably our favourite place in SA. It’s an overwhelming feast for the eyes, with the most wonderful scenery. Think the English Lake District on steroids – taller mountains, brighter green grass, clearer mountain pools, blue, blue sky and hot sunshine even in autumn. It was a treat for us to see the trees changing colour as Cape Town is full of palms and pine so there’s little seasonal change.
Come on Neil - it's only -10 or so in here!
Restoring lost calories with the biggest pizza ever!
And so back to Cape Town from Durban, having had a holiday and a set of experiences that will remain with us for a very long time. Lesotho is one of the poorest countries on earth with almost no development outside of Maseru. It’s not a relaxing holiday destination (we had the Drakensberg for that), with basic facilities on offer. But the people are friendly, the skies clear, the mountains spectacular and the family memories we generated are priceless.
Fording rivers in our trusty bakkie
On Wednesday morning we left Malealea reluctantly, knowing we had a full day’s travelling ahead before we would reach our next stop, Katse, the location of an astonishing engineering project that has dammed a river in the Maluti mountains and now supplies much needed water to SA and hydroelectricity (and investment) to parts of Lesotho. We drove through the mountains, over three spectacular mountain passes, including the fear-invoking ‘God Help Me’ pass. Thanks to the Highlands Water project, the last twenty years has seen a huge improvement to the road system in the remote interior of Lesotho, and much of the way was tarred. However from Thaba-Tseka it becomes a rutted dirt track, devoid of signs, and as we had by now lost the light, we were a quiet, fingers-crossed carload that finally staggered into Katse about 8pm.
On Thursday morning we were therefore surprised to see the village in the daylight – a complete anomaly of hundreds of suburban-style neat brick houses with little front yards, obviously built for the foreign dam construction workers. Once again, our self catering accommodation at the Katse Lodge was spacious, comfortable and above all cheap – we didn’t pay more than about £70 / night for the four of us anywhere in Lesotho. Checked out early and joined the 9am tour of the dam, including a visit inside and on top of the reservoir wall. To date only Phase 1 of a potential 5 phase project has been complete with the hope being that SA and Lesotho will sign the contract to begin Phase 2 this winter.
From Katse we set off on another long drive for our last stop in Lesotho, Mokhotlong, a little town that Lonely Planet describes as having a ‘wild west frontier town feel’ in the south east of the country. This time we had two options, the ‘safe’ but lengthy road through Leribe and Buthe-Butha or the cross country route that would slash the miles but was an unknown quantity. Neil was keen to put his 4WD car (and skills) to the test, so guess what – we (he) chose the latter option. With a very vague map, no signs and no towns en route we knew it would be an adventure. And what a drive it was! From Lejone we took a track that snaked up and over mountains, through rivers, along narrow ledges where the road had been damaged by frost and rain, and up impossible looking slopes to the diamond mine at Kao. Thanks to the helpful security guards at the mine we found the right road again (but sadly no diamonds) and made it to Mokhotlong in half the time the standard route would have taken. We regularly ran into small flocks of sheep and goats, cattle and donkeys, and enjoyed spectacular scenery and cloudless skies. It was extremely cold though, with small waterfalls of ice decorating the roadside at every turn. One of the interesting things about the trip was observing the commitment to education of the Lesotho government. Very regularly we passed battered little buildings with a sign proudly announcing this or that primary school, even when there didn’t appear to be a community living anywhere nearby. We passed hordes of children returning from school, walking miles along the roadside. Lottie and Libby were appalled at the age of some of the younger children walking home alone. ‘Where are their mums? Why doesn’t someone collect them?’
Contemplating the drive down from the highest pub in Africa
Mokhotlong was everything it promised to be, bustling and chaotic, but especially basic. We managed to find a cold and drab dining room still serving and ate a late lunch / early of supper of packet soup and grey looking burgers. As our hotel room was also drab and cold we wrapped everyone up in our newly acquired blankets and had an early night.
Opening the door the next morning was like being on a skiing holiday – brilliant blue sky, bitter cold, thick frost. We ‘enjoyed’ the hotel breakfast of powdered orange juice, powdered egg and powdered instant coffee, redeemed by slabs of thick sweet doughy home made bread. Headed off to the border back into SA at Sani Top, a bumpy journey on a poor road but easy-peasy in the truck we’d all fallen in love with. We arrived at the Sani Top Chalet, reputedly the highest pub in Africa, in time for morning coffee and got chatting to the landlord who was listening to the Royal Wedding commentary on a battered transistor, this being another electricity-free zone. We took our coffee and hot chocolate outside on the balcony and looked at the Sani Pass snaking down the mountain before us for more than 8kms – the only way back into SA from here. This is a route only passable by 4x4 high clearance vehicles and it looked absolutely terrifying with hairpin bends and ridiculous cambers. I retreated inside in time to hear Kate Middleton say ‘I do’ and by this time we decided we might as well stay at the pub for lunch – anything to delay the journey down. Definitely a good decision, as we enjoyed the best meal of the holiday, sharing steaming plates of hot smoked local trout and chicken curry, mopped up with a loaf of home made bread from the tiny kitchen. Finally we had to leave, but first the border formalities. Neil had to wake the snoozing customs official to get our passports stamped and then we inched slowly down the mountain, occasionally feeling the wheels slipping beneath us on the loose stones and grit. It took almost 45 minutes to descend and I felt enormous relief as we reached the bottom and crossed back into the relative civilisation of SA (good roads for a start) and a 10 degree climb in temperatures.
The beautiful Drakensberg
Luxurious Fairways
An easy 90 minutes later and we arrived at Fairways, our luxury lodge in the southern Drakensberg. It was wonderful to have three nights of really super accommodation with every mod con to end the holiday. And so we spent our last two full days making the most of the beautiful autumn weather by hiking in the stunning Drakensberg, swimming in freezing river pools, playing mini golf, and undoing all our good work by eating the world’s biggest pizzas at the on-site restaurant. Although it’s very unlike the typical Africa we see on TV, Neil and I agreed that the Drakensberg is probably our favourite place in SA. It’s an overwhelming feast for the eyes, with the most wonderful scenery. Think the English Lake District on steroids – taller mountains, brighter green grass, clearer mountain pools, blue, blue sky and hot sunshine even in autumn. It was a treat for us to see the trees changing colour as Cape Town is full of palms and pine so there’s little seasonal change.
Come on Neil - it's only -10 or so in here!
Restoring lost calories with the biggest pizza ever!And so back to Cape Town from Durban, having had a holiday and a set of experiences that will remain with us for a very long time. Lesotho is one of the poorest countries on earth with almost no development outside of Maseru. It’s not a relaxing holiday destination (we had the Drakensberg for that), with basic facilities on offer. But the people are friendly, the skies clear, the mountains spectacular and the family memories we generated are priceless.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
A week in Kruger National Park and Mpumalanga
We're back from an amazing 10 days in and around Kruger National Park. The holiday was slightly marred by the fact that we've all been struck down by a vicious lurgy, however we still managed to see and experience such a lot. Got back to Cape Town on Monday evening and returned the girls to school for precisely eight days before they break up for another week and a half to cover the combined Easter and Freedom Day holidays.
The highlights of the holiday included:
Crystal Springs Nature Reserve, Pilgrim's Rest, Mpumalanga.
We stayed on this reserve for three days at the end of the holiday. The accomodation was fabulous, and the surroundings even more so. On Sunday we walked the Kudu Trail, a 6 km rough walk through the reserve where giraffe roam free. We had great sightings of wildebeest, which made a loud snorting noise as they ran away from us, kudu and other antelope. If you're very lucky you can even spot leopard on this walk, but sadly that wasn't to be for us. Watching the sun go down from our balcony, with a wandering warthog below us, was very special, even if we were toasting the sunset with hot flu remedies instead of cocktails.
Blyde River Canyon, God's Window and Pilgrim's Rest
The Blyde River Canyon is the third largest in the world. (Must find out what the second largest is...) The scenery is spectacular, and from viewpoints like God's Window you get a real sense of the absolute enormity of this country. The vista stretches for ever. We enjoyed good weather and as a result the heat haze slightly obscured the far distance, but apparently on a clear day you can see from God's Window right over Kruger, across Mozambique beyond to the Indian Ocean. That must be well over 200 miles. We drove along the rim of the canyon stopping frequently to take short walks to waterfalls, viewpoints and the river where we paddled and splashed.
Lottie did some bargain hunting at a local market, buying little stone carved animals for friends.
Pilgrim's Rest itself is an old gold mining town that grew rapidly during a 19th century gold rush and was just as quickly abandoned when richer deposits were discovered elsewhere. It's now very sleepy, though also a bit touristy twee. Not that many visitors make it up here with almost all the tourism in SA focusing on Cape Town, Durban and Kruger. The cow that we encountered wandering down the middle of the road certainly wasn't concerned by too much traffic and the BP garage we filled up at is definitely a relic of the distant past.
Kruger!
Pretoria and Johannesburg
Before we arrived in Kruger we spent two days in Joburg and Pretoria, revisiting Neil's old haunts. We stayed in Melville in Joburg, now a thriving arty suburb near the centre of the city, but a distinct 'no go' area when Neil was here 15 years ago. Our only day of rain - and what a storm we had with hailstones the size of golf balls. The main photo is of the Vortrekkers monument in Pretoria, commemorating the Afrikanner push into the centre of South Africa in the mid 19th century. Inconceivably vast, it is almost Soviet in its starkness.
What to say about Kruger? It was incredible. Although we were lucky enough to observe a lioness for five minutes or so patiently staking out a small group of impala, several rhino, a leopard in the dusk, elephant and buffalo making the official 'Big 5' the absolute highlight for me were the impala, as in the middle photo below. They are extremely plentiful in Kruger, so we had ample opportunity to watch them at really close quarters. So dainty and graceful, so beautifully marked and so athletic, I would have stopped the car every time we saw a group together, but with 130,000 impala or so in an area the size of Wales, we'd never have got beyond the first few miles.
The girls were wowed by the whole thing, even with two 4,30am starts to go on sunrise game drives.
Pretoria and Johannesburg
Before we arrived in Kruger we spent two days in Joburg and Pretoria, revisiting Neil's old haunts. We stayed in Melville in Joburg, now a thriving arty suburb near the centre of the city, but a distinct 'no go' area when Neil was here 15 years ago. Our only day of rain - and what a storm we had with hailstones the size of golf balls. The main photo is of the Vortrekkers monument in Pretoria, commemorating the Afrikanner push into the centre of South Africa in the mid 19th century. Inconceivably vast, it is almost Soviet in its starkness.The overnight train from Cape Town to Johannesburg
We decided to see a bit of the interior of the country on the way and to go by train instead of flying. It took 26 hours, versus 2 to fly but was a very comfortable, fun and interesting way to travel.
Now we just need to quickly unpack, wash clothes and repack for our holiday that starts on 23rd April to Lesotho and the Drakensburg. What an astonishing year this will have been by the time it's over.
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