It is usually good to be home but this was very strange; we felt like we were camping out in our own home. There was nothing in the kitchen cupboards so we had to plan each day’s meals and then go shopping. Fortunately the Rosebank mall is half a block away. And of course, we really did not want to be back in the city! But it is always good to visit favourite restaurants and spend time with friends.
On Friday 29th I was admitted to Rosebank Hospital for my foot operation while Roger went to Pretoria to finalise the handover of the house in Irene to its new owners, which was the main reason for our return. On Saturday he had to go back again and spent the day sorting things out. Sunday we had family over and for once I could sit with a clear conscience and be served, I was an invalid after all…
Roger was checking the weather forecast daily in order to find a time to go to Silver Creek Estate near Mooinooi where Buzz is hangered. Buzz needed an oil change and to be brought to Tedderfield, which is closer to our home and therefore more convenient. Thanks to Kevin’s friend Gavin for taking Roger there because I cannot yet drive. Thanks also to Nelis for once again allowing Buzz to park in his hanger. The forecasts were consistently unfavourable but showed a small window of opportunity for Wednesday the 4th. He swears by this Norwegian site, www.yr.no (thanks Rob) and I must admit it is mostly very accurate. And so it was, for that day only, the afternoon was beautiful and Buzz could be brought closer.
In the meantime I had to get back to the doctor’s rooms for a dressing change on Thursday and then Liz and John came over for a cup of tea. I think now is a good time to say thank you to all our friends and family for their support, visits, calls, etc. after my op. You have no idea how much that means to me! But most of all thanks to my nearest and dearest for being chief cook and bottle washer over the past 10 days and for a while to come still.
Then of course it was Friday the 6th and nobody needs reminding of the sad news that day brought! But life goes on and we had to start planning to get back to Mbombela (Nelspruit). Again the weather forecast was checked perpetually, showing a possible opportunity for Sunday morning.
It rained during the night (Saturday) so were opened the curtains with great trepidation this morning (Sunday) to check the weather. The alarm went off at 04h30 and Roger’s mom was fetching us at 06h30 to take us to the airport. Mmm, hard to tell, maybe the cloud will burn off? We go anyway and start getting things ready for departure. Then we have to wait for clearance because there is a film crew busy with a photo shoot and no-one is allowed to use the runway until 08h00. A big thank you to Mom for playing taxi to and from Tedderfield!
We are eventually airborne at 08h10. The flight worked out well. There was a tail wind for most of the way and besides the cold wind there was thankfully no rain or storms.
Looking at the open cast coal mines from the air is really depressing but once we passed over the mining areas the scenery changed and became really beautiful. Everything is fresh and green and there is a lot of water around, in pans, marshes, dams and simply puddles that could not drain away into the saturated earth.
Before long (after 3 hours!) Nelspruit is in sight and we heave a sigh of relief that the weather held out. But first we have to check if Ufudu and Suzi were still OK after 2 weeks on their own in the caravan park.
We landed at 11h15 and were kindly collected by Karel, an employee at the Lakeview Lodge caravan park.
And it felt really good to be ‘home’ again!! The batteries were fully charged by the solar panel, the fridge was still running and all was well. We had no sooner settled in than it started to rain and it is still raining with some thunder around as well. Thanks again to a very reliable yr.no.
Danie kindly gave us space in his hanger but sadly Buzz was almost drowned before he could be put to bed. Hopefully he will be dry in the morning…