On the road to Port Elizabeth
Leaving Capetown early on Tues morning, we drove through the city and made our way around the other side of False Bay…so thanks to Leon, we had driven around the entire bay and seen it’s beauty from all sides. We stopped along the way for morning tea and then for lunch, arriving at Ootshorn by dinner time. We had a very spacious B & B to stay in and decided to have a quick nap before tea whilst Leon headed out for a run. At 64, he is still running daily about 15km, does regular marathons, mountain bike rides, fishes and generally makes the rest of us look like slobs !!! He is going in a ride just after we leave called the 21 passes - he showed us part of the bike route as we came through - these are mountain passes on gravel roads that he is going to conquer in this race….I am totally impressed by his fitness.
We went out to a Swiss restaurant for dinner and the boys had Ostrich steaks - not bad flavour and very low in fat. We girls stuck to chicken….we all slept well that night. After a huge brekky, we headed out to see the Kango Grotte(caves) like Jenolan but the chambers were really large. Our African guide even sang and drummed for us in the Music Chamber, playing the drums of a stalagmite…the sound was great. We then went to an ostrich farm and learnt all about these unusual fllightless birds. Sadly for me, I found a dead baby chick in one of the pens and had to get soemone to remove it. It was a really hot day - 40 degrees so perhaps heat was the culprit here. Glenn got to stand on ostrich eggs and sit on a full grown ostrich but was not able to ride it as he was a tad heavy…I wasn’t game enough !!! H & L had seen both places so they found cool spots to read whilst we went through… after this, we grabbed some lunch and headed off again, stopping at Knysna, a seaside spot with some lovely views, saw a family of baboons on the side of the road, complete with baby…bugger it, if my batteries decided to die at that moment !!! I bought an intricate wooden walking stick in Knysna which I am hoping I can get back into Oz…the old guy we bought it from was so funny and kept hugging me and slapping me on the back when he laughed…..
We have found that things are much cheaper here than in Europe and so our $ are going much further. ie Glenn bought some new sandals and they only cost about aud $14. After Chrissie, we will hit the shops and try to get some new clothes, leaving our worn out stuff behind……
We got into PE quite late after all our stops - about 9pm and tucked into some dinner and a few glasses of wine to help us relax. We decided that we would take the next day quietly to rest up a bit. Well, Leon didn’t stop all day !!! doing chores and trying to get the pool working again - it had broken down whilst they were away and was rather green… the rest of us pottered through the day. The house is huge and uniquely has a thatched roof….giving it a cool and spacious feel with the very high vaulted roof line with solid beams - actually the rooms upstairs do not have ceilings !!! We’ve done a bit of Chrissie shopping, reading, sleeping, swimming since we arrived - mostly taking it easy. We hadn’t realised how tired we were after so long travelling and moving beds so frequently..so, it will be nice to chill and have a relaxed type holiday now…
We met up with our other niece Jade after a day or so in PE. She had been down on the farm with her boyfriend Patrick. She was quite upset when we met her as her boyfriends’ father had been attacked on the farm the night before. J & P had been out at at Braii and so were not hurt but the dad had serious cuts on his hands and a stab wound to the back, had been bashed and tied up tightly by the 2 black thieves, who stole his car, computer, dvd etc etc…the car was found the next day in a deep water trench - quite written off and it is still unknown if it got there by accident and if the guys were injured or drowned in the crash. All very shocking stuff for them all. As a result, they are beefing up security at the farm !!
So, tomorrow is Christmas Day - our first in South Africa and the first without any of our kids with us….but we know their love is with us as ours is with them. We hope they all enjoy whatever they will be doing this Chrissie… Kirstin is working both days, Shells and David are having family times with both the Smith and Nichols, Luke & Sara are in Regina with her folks, Jess, Em & Shadreck will be cathing up with S & D….and Buddy and Tipsy will enjoy all the leftovers !!!
Who knows what the next year will bring for all of us ?! Anyway, time for another snooze…our love to each and every one of you… Glenn & Heather xoxo
