So here we are almost at the end of January and I haven't been keeping my diary up to date at all. I really want to try to remember everything we're doing here and all the highlights, of which there are many. So, scraping the barrel of my memory, here's what's been happening over the last 6 weeks:
We took a picnic to Kirstenbosch for Carols by Candlelight on Sunday 19th December, a wonderful evening watching the sun go down over the mountain,and then lighting little paper lanterns along with thousands of other people whilst singing carols at top volume. South Africa's very casual attitude to health and safety was in evidence again, with people stamping out burning lanterns as they caught fire and landed on picnic blankets and the dry grassy embankment. No disasters though, and we left about 9pm, still singing. Speaking of fires, the newspapers and weather forecasts on the TV are full of warnings about bush fires. A helicopter flew over our house with a huge balloon of water suspended underneath, on its way to tackle one fire on the mountain.Pre Christmas we went to Cape Aghulas, the very southern-most point of Africa. Glad we got down there, and it was lovely to have a couple of days break, but the area itself isn't especially pretty and there really is nothing at the end of the world. The weather wasn't that great either - we left Cape Town basking in beautiful sunshine and 30C, and arrived three hours later to a ferocious wind and much cooler temperatures. Tried to have a picnic on the beach but got sand blasted, so we retreated to our B&B, had a late lunch and then walked the couple of miles to the
very tip of the continent. We came back via the lighthouse, and squeezed our way up and down the very narrow staircase to climb right to the top.
The next day we set off for the little fishing village of Arniston. The original settlement of tiny whitewashed cottages is now a national monument. We wandered around the cottages, most with outside toilets, and then went for lunch and a quick dip in the icy sea. It wasn't very inviting, looking very grey and stormy, but the girls were brave enough to have a go. I chose to watch and look after the bag!
Having stayed a final night, we headed back to Cape Town, delighted to see the sunshine again. Only two days left til Christmas!
In preparation, we went for afternoon tea at the Mount Nelson on the 23rd December, and spent a beautiful afternoon on the terrace drinking gallons of their special blend tea. On Christmas Eve we went to see the Cape Town Ballet perform Cinderella which was magical. And so to Christmas Day. We woke to perfect weather, and decided to have a really indulgent day at home. Neil fired up the braai, the girls dived in the pool to try out their new snorkeling gear, and we opened a couple of bottles of wine we'd been keeping for a special occasion. We spoke to friends and family over Skype, gloating a little about spending our day in the garden. Then the tournaments began - we had bought ourselves a table tennis table for Christmas as we have a large empty space downstairs which is perfect for the purpose. Great fun and some very serious rivalry!
Around 6pm we headed down to Camps Bay, largely so we could say we had been to the beach on Christmas Day. It was a lot windier by the sea than at home where the mountain protects us, so we stayed long enough to climb a few rocks and eat mince pies and then headed back again to relax on our deck in the warm evening air. A very different Christmas to the one we'd have had if we had been in England, but a really lovely day just the same.
Around 6pm we headed down to Camps Bay, largely so we could say we had been to the beach on Christmas Day. It was a lot windier by the sea than at home where the mountain protects us, so we stayed long enough to climb a few rocks and eat mince pies and then headed back again to relax on our deck in the warm evening air. A very different Christmas to the one we'd have had if we had been in England, but a really lovely day just the same.
And then we returned to England for two weeks on the 30th December. Lovely to see all our close family and many friends too. Lottie even went to St Gabriel's for two days, to sit the 11+ entrance exam for Senior School this coming September. She's since been offered a place, and despite absolutely loving life out here, is pretty clear that she misses both St Gabriel's and her old friends a good deal and wants to come back to England once our next 6 months is up. I found it amazing how quickly we slotted back into life at home again, but also how much I missed Cape Town. I will never get tired of looking at the mountain, or of waking up to sunshine streaming through the windows, day after day. It's true what they say - Africa gets into your blood and we'll really miss it when we have to leave.
So, with that in mind, we are determined to live the next 6 months to the full. On our return to CT on 15th January we immediately set about booking out next two trips, one to the Cederburg in March, the next to Kruger and Mpumalanga in early April. Since we got back it's been all go again with the girls returning to school and work ramping up for me. The start of the new academic year here is very busy with Meet the Teacher meetings and extra mural information expos every other day. Between them, Lottie and Elizabeth want to do tennis, horse riding, choir, drama, environmental club, gymnastics and living maths (the last a surprise request by Lottie. Hope her enthusiasm lasts, especially when she realises that it takes place before school at 7am every Friday!)
This Friday was Founders Day at Rustenburg. On Saturday we got up early to take part in the annual 5km fun run. It was yet another perfect day (apologies to anyone reading this in England right now, but the weather really is wonderful), so the run set off early before the day got too hot.
And today we finally made it to Spier, one of the seriously big-business wine farms near Stellenbosch. As well as two restaurants, tasting rooms, a craft fair and a hotel, they have a Cheetah Outreach park on site and we got to stroke one of the adults males. There are fewer than 1000 cheetahs left in SA and the programme aims to help conserve these animals via a really innovative solution. Their fund raising buys Anatolian shepherd dogs for farmers who would otherwise trap and shoot cheetahs. The dogs protect the farm livestock by chasing away the cheetahs without killing or maiming any of them. The result is a more sustainable relationship between cheetah and farmer, and hopefully a growing population long term.
And today we finally made it to Spier, one of the seriously big-business wine farms near Stellenbosch. As well as two restaurants, tasting rooms, a craft fair and a hotel, they have a Cheetah Outreach park on site and we got to stroke one of the adults males. There are fewer than 1000 cheetahs left in SA and the programme aims to help conserve these animals via a really innovative solution. Their fund raising buys Anatolian shepherd dogs for farmers who would otherwise trap and shoot cheetahs. The dogs protect the farm livestock by chasing away the cheetahs without killing or maiming any of them. The result is a more sustainable relationship between cheetah and farmer, and hopefully a growing population long term.
That's all for now. Time to get ready for another busy week. Love to anyone reading this - more soon. Sarah
