dis BLERRRRIE lekker by die huis....

So I have been home, back in South Africa, for going on my second week now…and man it’s not completely the way I left it…but alas it is after all that element of surprise, risk and the challenge that I relate to South Africa. Even with just 2 weeks, I have already had numerous Braais AND a potjie, I’ve drunk South African champagne and Portuguese wine, eaten Portuguese food and Nandos flame grilled chicken and a half rack of steers flame grilled ribs:D I’ve cooked a bit and baked for fun ;) [Personal South African advertisement joke] and of course OVER INDULGED…in ….salad.

I’ve spent many minutes or hours bonding with the Highways….R21…N12….N1…..my favourite is the N1, can you believe it!!! On top of THAT, loved getting back into my right hand drive, manual, volks-wagen (NOT folks wagon). I’ve raised my voice at at least ONE taxi and laughed at some others, I have picked up on my subtle American accent when I speak my mother tongue. I’ve cracked a sweat in the middle of the day as temperatures reach a WHOPPING 28°C …(American friends 82°F) THIS IS AFRICA!!! Yes contrary to popular belief it is ALSO autumn now….but grass is still green… our trees still have leaves, birds chirping, it’s raining and the world is beautiful shades of green…as opposed to the white from the previous months.

My pet hate(excuse the pun) presently…would have to be the Mosquitoes (not my PET) which I have forgotten about…and they obviously DID miss me too, each one trying to get his/her 10c in before I part from them again…HEAVEN HELP ME…with 2 weeks to go…this might become WAR.

So with my obvious luck I am home in time to celebrate another well-know South-African public holiday, (public holidays are characteristic of SA) - Freedom Day, and we head off to the Kruger National park, to make my SA trip a bit more colourful. We decide to take the journey through the Highlands Meander, over the Long Tom pass [refer to previous blogs (grand canyon) where similar to this situation…it was so misty that the beauty of the pass and the meander was more subdued…due to WEATHER CONDITIONS…] through Dullstroom, where we stopped for a breakfast / brunch…in the rain, the road that runs through the little town is about ONLY restaurants and cafes…but, Question…what do fly-fishermen do in Dullstroom when it is raining….??? They fill up all the coffee shops and restaurants; I have no idea where all these people came from… After trout-inspired meals, sandwiches, and wraps we are back on the road.

The land is beautiful –sugar plantations and banana-tree…fields?? For MILES!!! After shaking rattling…not so much rolling, we arrive at Ngwenya lodge, where, along the Crocodile River. Here a poor fellow south African (GP number plate) had reversed off the road and I think I am correct in saying 2 wheels were touching the ground as the car hung, suspended half off the road and the other two wheels in the air- the owner and creator of the spectacle is hiding while people looking for excitement are joking and taking photos of this silly mans embarrassment.

So on the wild side of things, we had a braai obviously (TWICE!)… and savanna…(obviously…). The next morning, and the morning after we were up at 4...yes friends 4 am… I kid u not…and NO it was not as result of ANY form of Jetlag…we had to be at the game reserve by 5am…it opened at 6…arrived at 5 as car number 23 and within minutes there were 40 more cars behind us…popular place this.


Through rain, mist, cold and cloud cover over the 2 days…we saw…8 lions, MILLIONS of elephants and babies, 8 wild dogs, herd of buffalo, giraffe and their babies, waterbuck, impala….hippos, hyenas, kudu…did I mention as the spotter I was sleeping most of the time and all these animals were well, not throwing themselves at us but were all pretty much in the road… on top of that, just as we thought elephants were boring…the one DID decide to um….run towards us….as my mom all too calmly put the car in reverse, I started sweating and laughing nervously as my dad thought…this would be good footage… as the cars behind us got it all on film!!! Yes friends this is Africa and we live on the edge… :D

3 days later we head home and stop over at Millys trout farm for once again, another trout-inspired dish…pancakes, platters and wraps….home sweet home as the packing commences (ok fine, it hasn’t even started yet :D )

Through all this I must admit…the roads up there in the game reserve….the dirt roads…are in fact better than some of our tarred roads down here… my love-hate relationship with the city begins again, no more a lady of leisure as things pick up speed and days get shorter as time gets less. (who REALLY has time to sit and write a blog…;-)



T (-6 days)…then we put a shrimp on the barby!!!