Other earlier photos from travels in South Africa

In order:

School in Midrand, Gauteng (where friend teaches)

Zebra crossing

Elephant

Walking over Bourke's luck Potholes

Hyena

Giraffe

(All animals were seen in the Kruger National Park)

Birthday Adventures in Oudtshoorn

Kids in Africa

Max's Birthday adventures.  Riding an Ostrich and exploring Cango Caves.

Some websites to look at

Willowdale lodge - http://www.willowdalelodge.co.za/

 Information about Kokstad with photos of area  http://www.drakensberg-tourism.com/kokstad.html

The Adventure continues

Since our last entry, we headed off to another camp in the Kruger Park called Berg-en-dal, right near the southern gate of the park.  It is a far more mountainous area but very beautiful and we got to walk right around the perimeter of the camp looking at animals and birds both inside and outside the camp.  We saw a few crocodiles just beyond the fence who were fortunately quite small.  There were also a lot of monkeys and baboons in the camp who were fun to watch, but we were warned not to feed them or go near them as some of them were quite fierce.  There were lots of baby monkeys holding onto their mothers - they hang onto their mother's tummys while the mothers run along.  The mothers are often looking through their youngster's fur to see if their are any ticks or other bugs hiding there and when they find them they eat the bugs!

We saw a lot of great animals in this part of the park including lion, wild dogs, rhino, elephant, giraffe, hippo and lots of impala.  The kids enjoyed swimming in yet another swimming pool at the camp and the grown ups went on a guided night drive with one of the rangers where they saw a leopard, which was very exciting. 

We were sad to leave the park, but on the way out on our last day it was like all the animals were coming to say goodye as we saw a great variety.  The best sighting was of a rhino mother and youngster very close to the car and just behind them one of the largest elephants we have every seen just behind the rhino.  We also saw some giraffe right next to the car and it is only when they are that close that you appreciate how tall they are. 

After leaving the park we got to travel through Swaziland which is a country bordered on 3 sides by South Africa and on one by Mozambique.  It was fun to be able to travel through a whole country in a few hours and get the stamps in our passports to prove it. 

We spent the next two night with friends at a beach side town called Zinkwazi on the Kwazulu Natal north coast and also visited some relatives who lived on a nearby Sugar Cane farm.  The farm was beautiful, overlooking a beautiful river.  They also had a nature reserve on their property, which we explored on their golf cart, which they use for getting around the farm.  Unfortunately the cart stopped working at the furthest point on the drive, so most of us had to walk back to the house. 

From Zinkwazi we went drove to a town called Kokstad, which is slightly inland in the South of Kwazulu Natal.  It is the most beautiful area surrounded by lush green hills and slightly further away, the majestic Drakensberg Mountain Range.  We had fun visiting another relative's Dairy farm with their own trout dam on site and we got to watch the cows being milked and the children all got to have a ride on a very friendly cow called Jug. 

We stayed in great accommodation on another farm called Willowdale Lodge where we were fed scrumptious meals and finished our stay here with sundowners on top of a mountain with our relatives (The Feys - surname just like our daughter's first name). 

Tomorrow we head on to Outdshoorn - the heartland of ostrich farming.  We are hoping we may get to see some ostriches up close there.

Hope all is well with everyone back home - heard there has been a lot of rain - we seem to have brought the rain with us too, as it has rained almost everywhere we have been so far.   

Game parks and more

Since our last update we have started our travels into the wilds of South Africa.  We left Johannesburg and travelled north through some spectacular mountain scenery.  There were lots of market stalls all along the way and we ended up buying some carved animals and a few other handpainted cloths and each of the kids used their pocket money to buy bracelets.  There are so many people selling crafts and one would like to support them all, but it is difficult as you cannot buy from everyone and some of the sellers seem quite desperate.  We ran out of cash quite quickly and just could not buy any more.  We also don't want to bargain too hard as many people depend on the income they make from their street stalls for all their food, clothing and children's education. 

We spent the night in the old methodist manse in a little town called Pilgrim's Rest.  It is an old mining town which is completely heritage listed.  The buildings are mostly built from tin and were not originally built to last forever, so the building we stayed in was certainly quaint, but looked as if it had seen better days.  It was perched on a hill above the town and in fact looked like it may be starting to slide down the hill as the floors were probably sloping by 20 degrees.  It was very cheap to stay there and we certainly felt part of history being there.  After the night in Pilgrim's rest we continued on the next day to Burke's Luck Potholes where the water has worn away huge big holes into a rocky gorge.  We also stopped to look at the view from "God's window" which is normally a spectacular viewing spot, but was completely covered by cloud the day we went.  We then entered the park after stopping in the very busy town of Hazyview, where we bought a huge bag of avocados for about $3 and a lovely bag of litchis which are all grown around this area. 

We spent the first two nights in the Kruger National Park at a place called Satara where the children again enjoyed a swim in the pool.  We saw a lot of game on our first day including a huge herd of elephant, buffalo, giraffe, zebra, impala, kudu, waterbuck, wildebeest, rhino.  We have since also seen lion, wild dogs and hyena.  It is a wonderful atmosphere in the game park, where it has been raining today (which is thankfully a bit cooler).  We have also  enjoyed catching up with our friends the Stirzakers, who are living here in the Kruger Park for a few months. 

We should be able to download some photos in few days to show everyone some of the places we have been to. 

Hope those of you who are in Canberra are doing OK .  We believe that you have had a lot of rain there.  At least our garden should be thriving. 

Until next time. 

In Gauteng

We have had a great trip so far.  We spent one night in Perth with Richard's cousins before flying to South Africa on Sunday morning.  The flight on SAA went very well with children entertained all the way by the personal entertainment systems on board.  Everyone was very pleased to see Granny on arrival in Johannesburg airport.  We had a bit of trouble locating the car in the extensive car parking and then got caught in a traffic jam leaving the airport, but soon arrived at owls loft B&B in the Centurion area of Gauteng.  It was a beautiful home with a thatched roof and lovely gardens.  The next couple of days have been spent driving all over the Gauteng area visiting friends and family.  We asked the children what they noticed that was different here compared to Australia and they said - high fences and lots of walls, little houses made of tin and los of traffic (compared to Canberra). 

We visited a school in Midrand where a friend of ours from Australia works and where his children go to school.  Max was so impressed that he asked if we could move to South Africa so that he could attend the school.  They had beautiful sports fields and a new swimming pool compex with lovely white buildings which felt more like a large farmhouse than a school.  The kids had fun playing on the play equipment there too. 

Yesterday we got to visit the centre of the business district of Johannesburg, Sandton to visit a friend who works for a large law firm there.  We were amazed by some of the amazing architecture in the area, with a large new black and white checquered building one of the most impressive we had seen in a while.  We also visited Nelson Mandela square where there was a very large sculpture of Nelson Mandela. 

Sorry to those who have been logging on to see what we have done recently.  We have not had as much opportunity to access the internet as we had originally thought.  The guest house had no connection because all their telephone wires had been stolen because of the copper wire in them and the high price that they can get for this if they sell it.  We will be posting some photos of our recent experiences as soon as we can. 

We are missing all our friends back home, but having a wonderful time. One of the best things for the children has been the fact that every place we have stayed so far has had a swimming pool, so they have been in every day.  Hopefully they will come back to Canberra swimming like fish!

Tomorrow we head off toward the Kruger National Park and will stay tomorrow night at Pilgrim's rest.  Will keep you posted as soon as we can. 

Taking off from Perth

Getting ready to go

The bags are almost packed and the garden is being prepared for summer with crops of potatoes, beans, corn and tomatoes in.  Now we will have to leave these to our trusty neighbours and friends to care for.  Africa awaits.  Only 5 sleeps to go.

We have had the recommended immunisations and have our malaria tablets ready to go (a very expensive exercise).  Max is looking forward to his graduation this week at school and James is looking forward to his last few days of childcare for the year.

We will be getting a flight direct from Canberra to Perth with Qantas (pray the engine stays on) where we will spend one night with Richard's cousins.  They are also from Africa - from Kenya, where Richard was born.  Unfortunately on this trip we are not making it all the way to Kenya but will be spending all our time in South Africa.

The next day we fly from Perth to Johannesburg, South Africa where we will be meeting Jacqui's mum and visiting several friends and relatives.

We will try to keep you posted as often as possible as we as we travel.