It's been a while since my last update, I know. I think that's a by-product of having been away for so long; life here has a sense of normalcy attached to it and it often feels that there is not much to update on. I forget or take for granted all of the little changes going on in my life since the big change of leaving home has faded. When I really think about it though, much has changed. So, without any further ado, here's a little update written on a sun drenched balcony in Maputo, Mozambique.
Bruno and I have a cute little apartment that is feeling more like home every day. Not having a lot to do in my first days here, I spent a lot of time rearranging furniture and finding homes for things, which made the place seem a little bit more like "our" place and less like just Bruno's (who has been here since early May). We also bought some beautiful reed furniture by the beach, completing our bedroom, and have embarked on many shopping missions to make it more livable. There are still a few issues with the apartment (a sink outside that doesn't drain properly and, consequently, stinks, and pipes that are leaking behind the walls causing water damage on several walls), but they'll be taken care of soon. We are also thinking about hiring an empregada (maid) or a washing machine. The housework we can manage, but washing all of our clothing by hand is getting to be too much. We are constantly doing laundry, it takes forever, and is very hard on the back. We've really come to appreciate all of the little things that made life so much easier back home - washing machines, blenders, elevators (We live on the 8th floor and the elevator is broken - indefinitely). Life here is certainly very different from what it was in Johannesburg, where I often wouldn't get the chance to do my own laundry or even clean up after myself. Everything has its pay offs, though. I do a lot more housework here, but I can sit on the balcony in my bra as I am doing now. In Johannesburg I had to keep my clothes on because of the gardener. :)
The weather here definitely tops Johannesburg. It is still winter here and I'm outside tanning. Due to Johannesburg's high elevation, the city was very cold when I left. Ironically, many Johannesburgers were worried about how cold I'd be when Adrian and I went to the Drakensberg, but it was warmer up in the mountains than in the city.
Speaking of the roadtrip, I must say it was amazing. Adrian really spoiled me. As he said, he's done enough for the rest of our lives and I can never be mad at him again. Our two days in Johannesburg were quite unadventurous. We mainly ate and drank, but it was great, and relaxing. Also, the cuisine definitely beat Kandahar's (cafeteria style, with a set menu for each day of the week - Ie. Lunch on Mondays would always be chicken strips and fries), and there was no booze to be found there. We also had fun watching Takalani Sesame - Didn't we, Adrian?
Before we left for Durban, we got Claire ready for the trip. As some of you know, our sister Claire was supposed to join us but regretfully backed out for financial reasons. In her honour, we transformed a stuffed Winnie the Pooh doll into Claire E. Poo (complete with earrings) and brought her along. Claire E., you really made the trip more fun. :)
We arrived in Durban mid-day on the Friday (June 8), then went for a walk along the beach and ate at Ocean Basket, where Adrian tasted his first bite of kingklip (South Africa's favourite fish) - a taste he sought to re-experience again throughout the rest of our time in SA. Not having had enough, we had fish and seafood again for dinner but it didn't top Ocean Basket (Just funny because Ocean Basket is a mid-range chain and the restaurant we chose for dinner seemed fancy but wasn't as good).
The next day we started our drive to the Northern Drakensberg. The drive was gorgeous but would have been more beautiful was the sky not full of smoke from the brush fires that were being lit everywhere to reinvigorate the soil. We arrived at our accommodation sooner than expected so we went for a walk and then did some fishing at the trout pond on the property. We didn't catch anything, except for a little shew that was in the boat. I was afraid of it being stepped on while we fished and Adrian didn't like it going to the bathroom in the boat, so we deftly used our oars to toss it onto the land - which was right beside us (we aren't so cruel, though I'm not certain it did not get hurt. I still wonder about that little creature ...). We then drank, ate peanuts (some good, some not so good), and played Monopoly in the warm hotel pub. We had an excellent dinner and drank some good wine, which I brought back to the room, and went to bed at our normal time of about 8:45. Aren't we wild?
The next day we drove to Royal Natal Park and went for a hike, getting some great shots of Claire. Then we drove to Champagne Castle in the central Drakensberg. The hotel (
http://www.champagnecastle.co.za/) was very nice, quite high up, and equipped with a spa, so we decided to spend two nights there. When we got there we vegged, and then had some beers and played darts before dinner. The next day we went on a nice long hike, then returned to the hotel for lunch and afternoon spa treatments. I got a manicure and hot stone massage (incredible) and Adrian had a deep tissue massage. Just before dinner, we replayed the night before through beer and darts and, after dinner, played Scrabble. (Sigh ... I love Scrabble. It had been months!) At dinner, we were asked what the story was with our bear (which we put on the table at every meal), we explained that it was our sister.
We left the next morning St. Lucia. Along the way, we stopped at Blythedale beach for lunch and a swim. The waves there were like I had never experienced before. At one point, I got knocked over and flipped upside down, inhaling a bunch of water and losing my sense of which way was up. By the time I got up again, I was hit with another wave. The tide was so strong that I then barely got myself out of the water and had to call Adrian to help me. I retired, defeated, to the beach where I watched Adrian play in the waves.
There's not much to report regarding our first night (or any other, for that matter) in St. Lucia. It was off season in a small touristy town. We bought bathing suits and went out to eat and were the only ones in the restaurant for almost the whole time. On the walk back to our hotel we noticed that the Ocean Basket was much more popular and vowed to go there next time. After our lonely hotel breakfast the next morning, we set out for Cape Vidal to go snorkeling. Unfortunately, the weather was not that great so we prematurely called it quits and headed back to the town. Enroute we were asked to give an older lady a ride, which we did. She seemed to enjoy our "run over the animal dung" game, though we couldn't really communicate otherwise. Once back in the town, we took the opportunity to visit the Ocean Basket and Adrian got some kingklip. Unfortunately, it didn't rival the piece that I was served in Durban. Ever in search of the kingklip ...
The next day we got up early for a safari in Hluhluwe Umfolozi, the oldest reserve in South Africa. Our guide made a lot of cheesy jokes and wouldn't run over dung for us (poor sport), but we had a lot of fun and got some beautiful photos. It was nice having most of the land rover to ourselves, with just the two of us and a young British woman with bad teeth. That night, we went out for fish and then got drenched in torrential downpour on our walk back to the hotel. We had to bake our jeans in the oven so that they would dry by the next day.
The next day we drove from St. Lucia to Nelspruit, where we were to return the rental car and meet Bruno before driving together in his vehicle to Maputo. It was a long, long day on the road, we didn't make great time, and we couldn't find the rental place when we got to Nelspruit. Finally, we figured out where to go. I jumped out of the car and met Bruno at a gas station, and we followed Adrian to the car rental office. And then, during my last hour in South Africa, I had my cell phone stolen. Just as we were about to turn onto the street where the rental office was located, a man came up to my window saying something about our tire "not being okay." Having just been reunited and feeling all lovey dovey, our guards were down and we were not very vigilant. We lowered the window to talk to him and he soon reached in and snatched my cell phone off my lap while his partner in crime tried to open Bruno's door on the other side. I wrestled with him for my phone but he won. I lost my phone and, with it, contact with many people whose numbers I had not recorded elsewhere. He also bruised me quite badly. But, it could have been a lot worse. The cell phone is luckily all I had with me.
After that, I really felt like leaving South Africa. We had a pretty uneventful trip to the border and it didn't take us long to get our visas and get across. Also, being in the evening, the immigration office was much cooler and pleasant than during my other border crossings. In Maputo, we went out for dinner and then pretty much expired. It has been a long day.
The next day, a Saturday, we went for a walk in the city - to the craft market, old fort, and along the water - and then had some drinks at a waterside restaurant. I don't think we did much more that day. We were pretty lame, and also pretty tired. It felt good just to veg.
The next few days we spent at Zongoene (
http://www.zongoene.com/) - a beach a few hours north of Maputo at the mouth of the Limpopo River. We had a two beautiful days there. The only thing I didn't like was getting stung by a jellyfish. Luckily it wasn't that bad.
We drove back to Maputo on the Monday and went out for some piri piri (Mozambican chili) chicken. Clairey, it was too spicy for your tastes. You mainly ate fries.
The next day was Adrian's last full day in Maputo. We went out for lunch with Bruno and enjoyed a long walk around the city. For dinner we went to the fish market. There, you can either buy fish and go home, or take it to one of the many restaurants out back to have it cooked for you. We had a feast of barracuda, calamari, and prawns. The service was not so good (our waiter was dancing half the time), our food was cold, and our rice was burnt, but the beer was very good and we had fun.
The next morning it was time to say goodbye, which was really hard after two full weeks together. I almost cried, but managed to keep it together. Adrian, thank you for an amazing trip. May this be the first of many Walraven sibling trips.
Alright, this has been a very long post. Much longer than anticipated. And, I haven't said much to the last month. I'll send write another installment on the life of Kat very soon (that's a promise).
I've stopped using picassa so much. To see photos from this trip, please visit:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=5317&l=1b959&id=509278114 
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