Well, here we are! It is the 1st of January 2022, and we are still in a National State of Disaster due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic. 646 days since it first started on the 26th of March 2020. And there is no indication that the Command Council is considering the possibility of ending it. Personally, I think they are reluctant to relinquish the power…
Be that as it may, life carries on.
Kevin went off to sea again and we went to Silver Creek Gorge to catch up with family and friends after missing out on the new year’s festivities.
Roger’s school friend Noel and his son Finn, both from Canada, came to South Africa for their annual holiday to see their family and friends, and of course to escape the cold. It coincided with our friend Aldo from Botswana also being in Joburg for matters aviation, so they all came over for dinner on the 12th. It was a fun evening with lots of reminiscing and storytelling. You cannot believe how much men can talk!
We left for Marloth Park the next morning. It has now become tradition to be there for my birthday. And as with every other year, my wish was to see my favourite carnivores, Wild Dogs.
Noel and Finn joined us on the 14th. It was refreshing to see how Finn enjoyed everything he saw on our game drive through Marloth Park. The most exciting was a flock of ostriches running down the road towards our car, using their wings as ‘rudders’ to steer past the car and avoid colliding with us. They looked intimidating, yet comical!
Roger and I decided to just take it easy for this trip. We weren’t there for long anyway. Noel and Finn left at 11h00 on the 15th to drive through Kruger en route to visiting another friend so we had the afternoon to ourselves. The weather was pleasant, and the veld was green and beautiful.
We went into Kruger on the 16th and found the stretch of Park on the other side of Crocodile Bridge transformed. I don’t think we’ve ever been to the Park without commenting how desolate that area looked, almost like a war zone. Now it was green, and the numbers of plains animals and birds were jaw dropping.
We had my birthday lunch at The Cattle Baron in Skukuza. And just before the camp there they were, right on cue. Wild Dogs! Right next to the road.
And then it was all over. We had become accustomed to staying at Marloth Park for much longer periods and this visit was just a long weekend.
When we arrived home our Taiwanese neighbour came over and presented us with the most delicious dishes of beef and duck for dinner. What a wonderful gesture, especially after a long and tiring journey.
On the 23rd of January I went for my second hike with my new hiking group. The hike information indicated a moderate rating, but it was far from moderate. It felt so good to be out there and challenging myself once again. As I may have mentioned before, hiking has always been my first love, activity-wise.
Noel organised dinner at Francesco’s, another of their school friends, on the 26th. Francesco is Italian and oh my word, can he cook. And he makes his own wine! It was such a treat. During dinner they promptly arranged for a whole group of old school friends to go to Silver Creek Gorge on Saturday the 29th, the day before Noel and Finn’s flight back to Canada.
Saturday turned out to be drizzly and windy but that did not deter the guys much. We ended up being 10 people for a for a braai and flips in Buzz. It was a fun day. Unfortunately, everyone was so busy chatting, flying, braai’ing and having fun that no-one thought of taking a group photo!
Noel and Finn flew back to Canada the next day. It was good to spend time with them.
