Tuesday 3 May 2011

Good stuff. And pics.

I do not feel like being back behind this screen, hard at work. The past few days have been such a good break that I don't want them to end.


I survived the farm in Namibia, with all its millions of mosquitoes and its one loo that doesn't work properly. TSC went off hunting and then spent much time cutting up all the meat (three springbok) to make biltong, mince etc, while I ploughed through several library books. I must say, despite the fact that it's really not my cup of tea, the farm was beautifully green. They've had good rains this year, so instead of just bone-dry red dirt, there was lots of grass and many fat dassies, happy sheep, tiny wild flowers and, of course, thousands of bugs. And the weather was great. Sunny and warm during the day and not too cold at night.

TSC enjoyed it. I would've liked to be with my whole family who were in Durban for Easter (especially my borther, whom I haven't seen in the past few weeks), but it was good to see him happy and I'm glad he got to spend quality time with his folks, without a million other people around for a change. Also, there were kittens, so that kept a smile on my face. I managed a few firsts too: first time eating !nabas (Kalahari truffles, which we dug out of the sand) and first time eating melkkos (not a fan. I'm not big on milk, so it was wasted on me. Lumpy milky stuff).


Anyway, here are some pics...





Horses, enjoying the short, sweet, green grass at the dam...







Somewhere, over the rainbow...





Kittens!!!!! *Squee*



We got back last Tuesday. Wednesday, being Freedom Day, was spent at the Rand Show. I haven't been since I was about eight years old and TSC has never been. We had such a good day out, although we spent far too much money (we each came home with a leather jacket).


Pics...




Thursday we both worked. And then, on Friday... SONDELA! I'd been looking forward to our weekend getaway since we booked. And once again, Sondela didn't let us down. I *love* that place (wrote about it last time here). We were only there for two nights, but we enjoyed every minute of it. We played tennis, rode our bikes through the bush spotting game, swam, read, napped, watched the stars from our private outdoor victorian bath, took photos, fed a giraffe at the wildlife centre, enjoyed good food and a private dinner at the poolside with candles and a fire, did a game drive and generally had a ball.


Pics...


Our private lunch table in the garden...




Zebra crossing...



The view looking up from our outdoor bath - a giant Kapok tree...



A Kapok blossom that landed in the empty bath...



All of this wonderfulness. I feel very lucky indeed.

11 comments:

Hayley said...

Oh how I love Namibia, haven't been there for years!
And I have been dying to go to Sondela...looks amazing.

Your pics are stunning!

Damaria Senne said...

Sounds like you had a lovely time, even at the farm. Beautiful pics.

po said...

Fat dassies! Right, definitely have to visit Nam.

All the other stuff you did and saw looked very cool too!

Dbawiw said...

Dude! That photo of the rainbow is one of the most beautiful pics I've ever seen. I would seriously be interested in buying a print of it from you...

Shayne said...

Never been to Namibia - on my list of places to visit!

Stunning pics. How cute are those kittens?

And hats off to you for cutting meat up - i leave that to my husband. SO not my dept!

Sondela looks so divine. I think i may need to plan a trip there. I remember the last time you wrote about it. Stunning.

Helen said...

your pictures are BEAUTIFUL! and now I want a kitten.

I'm so glad you had a good time! And back to work we go (at leat there's another public holiday soon!)

Tamara said...

Hayley: I'd like to see the rest of Namibia - only ever been to the farm, which is in the middle of nowhere. I'd love to see the coast and the dunes.

Damaria: I wouldn't say I enjoyed the farmhouse, but the weather was good and having my camera with me was cool, so it was far better than it could have been.

Po: How did I know you'd remember that bit? ;-)

Tamara said...

Dbawiw: For real? Thanks - what a lovely compliment. You made my day :-)

Shayne: Hehehe... I didn't do the meat cutting up. I said, "You shot it, you prep it." All I did was help pack it into freezer bags once it had been cleaned.

Helen: Why thank you. Makes two of us. I seriously considered bringing one home with me.

dbawiw said...

I totally mean it! I' ve already found a spot for it in my abode. Gimme a price :-)

AngelConradie said...

Namibia sounds fab, and I love the horses and the kittens!

Louisa said...

I can't stand melkkos either - blergh!

Those kitties are so cute.