Out 'n About

Hello again!  I'm sorry it's been so long since my last post (I know everybody's probably been on tenterhooks, checking the website religiously, right?), but it's definitely due more to a combination of being busy and lazy than a lack of news, that's for sure.  I spent the last 3 weeks in Durban, and had a really good balance of seeing the touristy sights, and spending quality time with family.  Even though every time I visit the land of the Zulu it seems to rain nearly non-stop, I still ended up keeping really busy, now that I think back on it.  Of course, in addition to my ritual grocery shopping, cooking, and TLC-watching, that is.  I've unfortunately discovered the plethora of American shows on the South African DSTV networks, and am disturbingly caught-up on rubbish like what caused the gradual breakup of Kim Kardashian's marriage, and the latest cruise-themed episode of What Not to Wear.  But I partially blame that on living in a household where everyone else is in bed by 8:30 PM.  Anyway, I got a little off-topic there.  I probably shouldn't be broadcasting my trashy TV tastes anyway.  Here's what I've been up to!

1.  Went away for a luxurious girls-only weekend

A few weekends ago, Sally Ann and I went away to Clarens, a small town in the Eastern Free State, for a long weekend.  Which involved gorgeous views, lots of quaint window-shopping, and plenty of coffee and cocktail-drinking.  And a 10K.  Random, right?  There just happened to be a marathon there on the Saturday, by the intimidating name of the "Surrender Hill Marathon", and so I figured, hey, I'm here anyway, I might as well run the 10K.  It actually wasn't too bad, and the views were beautiful, minus the 2K or so we spent running through the local township.  And I have to say I nearly did surrender to the last and most brutal hill, when I passed a restaurant that was practically blasting the aroma of bacon and eggs down the street, but thankfully managed to hold onto the contents of my stomach.  They really should outlaw the cooking of greasy breakfasts alongside race routes, or at least mandate a closed-door policy or something.  But anyway, it was a lovely weekend and so nice to get out of the city for a while!

the view along the drive

Us, on the balcony of our B&B, after the run.  Looking extremely happy...

2.  Went up the Moses Mabhida World Cup soccer stadium to survey the land (and sea).  It really is a pity they rarely use the soccer stadium any more, except for tourists and bungee-jumpers.  

the view from the top

3.  Sewed like a maniac.  I won't bore you with a photo of my amateur sewing, but I probably spent a combined 25 hours in about 3 days glued to my grandma's sewing machine.  I knew my focus stamina that I developed over 4 years of midterms and finals would come in handy sometime!  I even went to my grandma's weekly sewing lesson with her, because I needed advice on how to alter the dress I bought to wear to my cousin's wedding.  The sewing class not only provided me with valuable sewing input, but was also a fascinating experience, thanks to my grandma's sewing buddies.  I didn't even mind listening to Molly Ann spend 10 minutes telling me how I should rather go to medical school, because of the entertainment factor of the rest of her conversations. 

4.  Spent 5 days at Hluhluwe Umfolozi, spotting animals and navigating potholes.  It was just my grandpa and I, but despite only having 2 pairs of eyes in the car we managed to see quite a lot of game during our time there.  

   Mrs. Elephant taking a bath.  She was the only one we saw, which was 

fine with me, since I'm terrified of elephants.  

2 male lions, having a very dignified and stuck-up nap under a tree.  A very lucky sighting!

The funniest thing- 2 teenage giraffes kept trying to knock the other one 

off-balance by shoving each other with their hips.  This must have gone on for 

hours, because when we drove past again a while later, they were still at it.

Other than driving around in the car, I spent my afternoons reading Nelson Mandela's autobiography and doing crossword puzzles, which was good, because I'm sure both activities were FAR better for my brain than watching "I'm Obsessed with my Pet" or something similar on TV.  (Although the pet show was really fascinating, one lady threw 1 of her 11 cats a birthday party with balloons and the cat version of marijuana.)  But I really do recommend "A Long Walk to Freedom" to anybody that hasn't read it, it's very interesting and inspirational.  It must have really made an impression on me because after I finished the book, I had a dream that I was running some weird type of marathon up in the sky with Mandela.  

On two of the evenings, my grandpa and I even had mini braai's, to cook some lamb chops for ourselves, to carry on the family tradition of game reserve braaing.  In my opinion, food always tastes better when you're in the bush.  

And that brings me to Cape Town!  I arrived here on Saturday, as did my Dad.  It's been so nice to see him, but it almost feels surreal because it's like a collision of my two worlds.  Kind of like when you see a coworker at the grocery store, or something like that.  But I think I'll have to write a separate blog about his visit, because I probably already have enough material for at least 2 posts after only 3 days.  When the Lowe brothers are around, there's always pleeenty of material to get inspiration from, let me tell you.

Adios :)