South Africa/Lesotho 7/02/17- 14/02/17

This is the plane which is going to get us to Johannesburg
We had to wait over six hours in Paris CDG airport. Wow this has to be one of the most boring aitports we have been in and six hours plus seems like a lifetime. The flight down was good, but the food was terrible.

 25 degrees when we got off the plane and we collected the hired vehicle without problems and we were on our way. The vehicle was new, driven 65 km, so we shouldn't have problems with this. We had rented an SUV, a Hyundau and it is simply a pleasure to drive. Stopped on the way down to Harrismith for a bite to eat and arrived at Lalis Guesthouse at 5pm. Did a bit of shopping locally and decided on an early night. We were tired. After breakfast we headed for the nearest border crossing to Lesotho at Monontas's Pass. There aren't many who use this crossing, but we will drive through the area in Lesotho where Karen used to drive out to the co-op stores, during our time down here. Getting through the two border posts posed no problems, and before we knew it we were in Lesotho.

 
   
We really knew we were in Lesotho, because the road had now become a track and was now very bad. Here we could have used our 4x4. The going got very slow, but the views around us were out of this world. We thought the track would never come to an end. It did after 5 hours driving for just 60kms. Once we hit the tar road we drove up to Oxbow and Moteng Pass. Arrived at Afriski Lodge at 3000 meters above sea level. A bit chilly, only 10 degrees C. Rented a chalet for the night. They had two identical chalets, one with a double bed and two bunk beds and no view from the window and this cost 900 rand. The other with three bunk beds and a fantastic view cost 600. No logic here, but guess which one we took. We saved 300!!! Good food and electric blankets to keep us warm.

Niether of us has shaken off our colds yet, so we had to keep warm. Didn't sleep properly. I think we are missing our 4x4 camper a lot. The Afriski centre is an attempt to get tourists over to Lesotho to do some skiing. It's working, because they are packed during the winter, but are working on an attraction to use the centre during the summer when there is no snow.

 

 
 

The vehicle for the next month

  
     

A good breakfast next day sent us on our way towards Hololo Valley where we worked in 1983. We shouldn't have gone in. The project was long since closed and the whole site was overgrown with trees and bushes. Really depressing to see there was nothing left apart from delapidated buildings. Even the road up to the project wasn't negotiable without a 4x4. Lets move on.

We called into Buthe Buthe, the first town you hit on the way towards Maseru the capital. Did a bit of bargain hunting, didn't find any, so on the road again. We were planning on staying at another of our old projects, which has been transformed into a lodge. Drove a back way from TY via Thaba Bosio - 3 km of it not very good, but the rest fine and some places even tar road.

  

Lesotho as Lesotho is

    
   
Arrived at Khotsong Lodge as Thaba Kupa is known today in heavy rain. Got checked into a rondavel, which years ago was used as dormitary for 8 girls  attending the Agricultural school as students. We talked to Ntate Shabe who worked at the project with us in 1985. Yes he's still here!!! All the rondavels have been turned into accomodation for the lodge. All the old living accomodation has also been given over to accomodation for the lodge. A large outdoor swimming pool is also to be found and for good measure our old accomodation is now a private bar!!

At least all the buildings have been mantained and improved. A shame that the original aim of the project had been lost along the way. We had ordered dinner for 7pm, but when we arrived at the restaurant it was in complete darkness. (take a moment to smile) We turned on the lights and Karen popped her head in the kitchen. They hadn't been told we were coming. He would find the chef and they would go over to the bar to get our drinks. Well we are the only guests. We got our food and drinks.

 

  
11.2. We had a good walk around the old project grounds before leaving. We drove to Mohale Dam, one of the four dams built here to collect water and utilise "hydro electric power". We drove through mountain range after mountain range, with the views constantly on a par with the picture above. Lesotho is beautiful.

Got a room at the Mohale Dam lodge, and after a bit of lunch we drove down to the dam. 900 villagers had to be re housed to accomodate the dam, Yes someone has to pay the price. The weather was warm and sunny, so we stayed there a bit. Manchester United were on the tele when we got back to the lodge. Great, and they won. And it started rain anyway!! The lodge is nicely kept and the lady who runs it says that she is hoping to soon be able to call the lodge, a 4 star hotel.

We talked to three south Africans who were having lunch at the lodge and they told us that the road from Maseru right through to Semonkong and through to Quache's nek was now tar. We didn't think we could drive to Quacha's nek direct from Semonkong, but now you can. This was now our route.

12/02 On the road again the next day towards Semonkong. This is like driving in paradise. Takes a long time though, because we have to keep the camera busy. Arrived at Semonkong Lodge after negotiating the tricky road down. Rented a rondavel on the lower slope. The receptionist thought the climb up to the rondavels at the top would be too much of a climb for us!!! We had a walk up later - she was right. If we had stayed there for a few days, we would have taken one at the top though! Chatted to an English couple who had tried to walk up to the waterfall Semonkong is famous for, but had been witness to someone falling and breaking a leg, so they turned back and also helped the stricken tourist with the leg fracture.You have to be properly equipped to walk up to the falls, because it is a tricky. You can drive out, but the vehicle has to be a 4x4. We will have to make sure we have a 4x4 next time round.

 
 

Mohale Dam

  
The next day we left for Quacha's nek and as the guys had told us, the road was perfect. One thing while driving you have to be careful about, is the winding roads and rock falls which can suddenly appear in front of you. Again Lesotho lived up to its name of Kingdom in the Sky, because you feel that you are driving up there. Another great day of driving ended at the New Central Hotel. A hotel built in 2012 and very nice. From our room we can see the mountains, plus the locals on their errands to and fro past the hotel. We sat out on the veranda and felt like a King and Queen. We fancied a gin and tonic, but we hadn't managed to get hold of any tonic water. The hotel doesn't have a bar, but one of the receptionist disappeared and came back with tonic water, ice cubes - and a fridge!!! - that's service for you.    

After a good breakfast we hit the road on our way to Howick in South Africa. Here we will visit friends Des and Helen who we met earlier down here in Afrika. We crossed the border at Quacha's Nek without problems. The raod was rough for half an hour, then we reached the tarmac. The scenery had changed now. Now we had sloping green hills and valleys. The rugged mountains were gone.We followed the R617 more  or less all the way into Howick. It was great to see Des and Helen again and we were made to feel welcome straight away. We had a good chat to catch up on events since we had last seen each other They have a lovely house on an estate that has a fantastic view over the countryside and the town, with a backdrop of mountains.

15/02 South Africa. Next day Des had a golf appointment, so after breakfast Helen, Karen and myself went for a drive to see the area. We went out to see Karkloof Falls just a couple of kms outside the town. It was actually two waterfalls, because we walked up the river and saw falls number two higher up. Lots of water and impressive. Always time for a cup of coffee. We saw another waterfall in the town. This one was 90 meters high.

Nelson Mandella's last arrest took place in Howick by the railway lines, and after his trial he was sent to Robin Island, where internment lasted 27 years, before he was released. They are working on "capture point" in Howick at the sight he was arrested. Some of it is open already, with a lot of unseen pictures of Mandella and his life. We spent a lot of time looking at a statue of the great man, but if you don't stand in the right place, you see nothing, apart from the pieces of metal plate welded to vertical struts. An interesting day.

 

Mandellas sculpture of welded metal

    
 

16/02. We had decided we would all go down to Des and Helen's summer house in Scottburgh on the coast, just south of Durban. It took us just under two hours to get there. We all went for a walk down on the beach (30 degrees C). The waves were pretty robust, so no swimming in the sea. We weren't robbed of the chance of a swim though, because areas had been constructed where the sea water was trapped and you could swim without being battered by the waves. The next day Karen and Des and myself were out playing 18 holes of golf on the local course. We didn't play well. It's actually the first time we have played golf using a golf cart to transport us around. Good as it was really hot.

Karen wasn't feeling too good. We had just finished eating some great fish and chips in the town with Des and Helen. Karen's tooth was giving her problems. It's a long story, with lots of treatment in Denmark during the last few months. Helen said there was a dentist just around the corner and maybe he would look at it. Karen thought it was a good idea, so off they trotted. They had finished eating, but Des and myself weren't finished. Off up to the dentist after finishing our meal, and hey presto, the dentist had pulled out Karen's tooth. Wow, I wasn't expecting that. I think it was for the best.

 
 

Metal strips make up the statue of Mandella - impressive

  
18/02. Karen was feeling a bit better today, so we would leave for Salt Rock further up the coast. Des and Helen have really looked after us - a big thanks to you both. Hopefully we will see them in Denmark one day. We drove along the coast up to Salt Rock, but got a bit lost and ended up going down to a motorway which was gridlocked. There is a lot of road alterations going on with motorway flyovers and everything, so the situation was a bit confusing, and the GPS didn't help at all. We managed to get off the motorwy and got on the right road again. Called in at the camping site wa had stayed on five years ago, and incidently where we met Des and Helen. Had a walk along the beach with a temperature of 31 degrees. Pheeeewwww!    

Got to our B&B guest house. Unfortunately the room we had booked had been let to other people, but the room we got had a sea view. Spent a bit of time sitting on the veranda reading. It had been blowing all day and it had gained in intensity. We drove down to a pub the B&B recommended, but when we eventually found it, it was empty apart from a couple of drunks. We went to a German restaurant nearby instead.

19/02. Slow start to the day and after breakfast we were on the road to Eshowe. Not a long drive today and it was cloudy and raining with a temperature of only 22 degrees. Checked out Eshowe town before carrying on to Zulufadder where we would stay tonight. Silvia and Nick welcomed us and invited us in for a cuppa. They showed us their latest project a newly built restaurant building complete with an ajoining conference/banqueting hall, settled in its own two acres of beautiful garden and lawns. Very well done, we were very impresed. Their daughter and son in law run it, and are part owners. Perfect for parties and wedding receptions. Great to chat with Silvia and Nick. It's five years since we last saw them.

  

The kids singing for us at Gratton school.

    

20/02. We drove over to Gratton School which Zulu Fadder from Norway are involved. The headmaster spent two hours showing us around, obviously proud of what he was showing us. All the buildings are in a ring, with a full size rugby field in he centre. 307 pupils ranging from 1st g up to10th g. We said hi to all the classes. Some sang for us, others spoke English to show us what they had learnt, and they all stood up when we entered and said good morning. An enjoyable visit to a school going places. Fantastic school with only about 20 students in each class.

Next we drove out to another school Zulu Fadder run, and met Poppy one of the teachers we met last time we were here. She was over the moon about Karen coming again. We spent an hour there and here the kids also gave us a few songs. After this, we collected Manzi who works for Zulu Fadder and went to collect Noshile and her little brother Sphelele. Noshile is a sponsor child of Hanne and Jorgen (Karen's brother). We drove into town and spent an interesting couple of hours buying the two of them some clothes and something for the family, and of course food to take back home to the rest of the family.

It had been raining all day, so walking up the hillside to their house was impossible without getting wet and dirty. Their grandmother looks after the family on her own. All the other adults have died, so what happens when the grandmother is no longer with us, we don't know. They have several houses on their plot, but they all burnt down, The council have built her a hut, but it's full of holes, and only half of the roof is left, so they congregate in the central rondavel that has been repaired. The main house burnt to the ground. They are in a pretty bad way, so the help we came with. only helps a little.

We were tired when we got home. Warmed up some food in the kitchen of Zulu Fadder.

  

A joke is shared inside the one remaining rondavel.

    
21-22/02.

Raining again today. After a good breakfast, we were on the road to Imfolozi where we had reserved a chalet for the night. Actually Nick and Silvia were already down there and they had done it for us. It rained all the way down to the park, and visability was bad all the way. The chalet was good, with a kitchen and a family of warthogs living under our terrace. We went for a drive and we saw giraffe, warthog, zebra, rhino, springbuck. It was still raining and the tracks were bad - oh how I miss having a 4x4 at my disposal. We managed, but the vehicle is operating at the limits of it's capabilities. On our way back to the camp, we were delayed by a herd of elephants which had decided to walk the track, and as there were approximately 50 of them, we just had to wait about 45 minutes until they gave us room to slowly drive past. The last 20 minutes of the drive back to camp was in darkness. Not ideal, but you don't argue with an elephant.

 
 

A road block of elephants

  
   

Drove out into the park early next day, and again it was raining. We saw a rhino, 3 lions, wildebeast, springbuck, zebra, a tortoise, kudu and warthog. Left the park in continuing rain and headed up north. Got as far as Piet Retrief, where we found a chalet at Waterside Lodge and camping. We even ate in a grotto in the evening. It has now rained none stop for three days.

 
23/02.- 26/02

Unfortunately the weather again doesn't look too hopefull, although no rain as yet. Drove to the border and crossed into Swaziland without problems. The roads are generally good in Swaziland and the scenery is breathtaking if you could see it. Yes it had started raining again. We got to Mliwane game park, but found out that the park was more or less closed because of flooding. Only one road could be used. We decided we would go down to the camp in the park, where we could get something to eat, but they insisted on full park entrance fees to drive the three and a half kms to the restaurant, even though the only road that was driveable was to the camp and restaurant. We decided to drive to Pigs Peak where there was a lodge we have stayed at before. Another park, Hlane, was probably also under water after a week of constant rain, so no use trying to go up there.

We got a luxury tent to stay in overlooking the river in the gorge. It was still raining, but at this stage you have to try to ignore it. Phophonhane Lodge is fantastic, built high up in a rain forest area. We enjoyed our stay here and would have stayed for two days, but with the continual rain, we have decided to drive to Olga at Mfubu lodge in Limpopo province. Did some shopping in Nelspruit, where we bought a new garden parasol for Olga at a gigantic store called Mackro. I ended up buying sandals, runners and a new phone. My old phone is giving trouble again, and my sandals are falling apart.

Arrived at Olga's place and we were at home. WE stayed in one of the tents on the side of Olifants river. Great to see Olga again and we had a lot of catching up to do over dinner. Coleen, a girl from the USA was also staying there. She is looking for a property to buy or rent. She paints pictures, and her special at the moment is vultures!

Next day, the weather was on its best behavour with temperatures climbing to 33 degrees, Tried to fix a special coffee machine Olga has, but without luck. Great to be here in the heart of the bush where her lodge is situated, just waiting for the elephants and lions to walk by. During the evening while we were dining up on Olga's terrace, a 1.5 foot Python imerged on the sofa , just adjacent to where we were sitting. We got a bit of a shock that it had got so close without us seeing it. Even later when we went in for coffee, it was outside the front door and later the back door. It eventually went away. Today Sunday, the weather was again a bit wet during the afternoon, but still 25 degrees. We moved down to the Stone Cottage and will probably stay there for the rest of our stay - however long it is???

MFUBU Lodge

Python having a snooze??  or wants dinner?

 

  
 

 

  

27/02-28/02

Olga always has a morning walk at about 7 am, and Karen tags along when she passes us, but today there was no Olga or Robin. Karen had a walk up to find out where she had got lost. No problems, and Karen came back with tomatoes and bacon, so John conjured up a bit of English breakfast. Enock came and told us that lions had walked past during the evening, or night. He could show us the tracks just below our house along the river. The lions however, don't drink from the river, because of the risk of being grabbed by a crok, but obviously like walking along the banks.

Our hired car is quite dirty, so we have and agreement with Enock that he will wash it when he gets a chance, so Karen was busy emptying the vehicle so he could do it. I was looking at a bridge on the road you use to drive into the lodge on, because it is collapsing. The pipe underneath which directs rainwater under the track has sunken quite a bit, so it easily gets blocked. It needs repairing - so what's the solution? Olga's question to me. The deluge of rainwater that the pipe has to handle, in spite of it being 60cm in diameter, is emense, and as an added problem the water brings earth and all sort of debris along for the ride. This means that the pipe soon gets blocked and you get the road flooding. We would solve the problem with a real African bridge. The water will be allowed to flow over the road in a gulley that a vehicle can easily drive through, even when water is flowing across the road. Any debris is easily cleared and no pipes get blocked. The whole thing will be concrete. I will be their advisor throughout the project, even though I am in Denmark. No problem at all with moderrn communication technology.

We spent a bit of time at the pool, before going up to eat and grill at Olga's place. We should have had a braai here at he stone cottage, but it was a bit blowy.

  

A bridge in need of repair

    
 

Today Karen and Olga  will be going to get some documents that Olga needs to stay in South Africa and they will do some shopping. They will be away all day. Together with Michael and Enock I repaired the frame covering the water tank, and Enock and me did some repairs in Olga's kitchen. Hot today with a temperature of 30 degrees. The vehicle was given a much needed wash and vacuum by Enock - now it's new again. We eat up at Olga's house when there are no guests, because it's not worth opening the lodge for us two. We went home early and sat on our own riverside terrace. We always have the door to the cottage closed, so the warm African air doesn't warm the interior of the cottage up. Somehow we managed to lock ourselves out, so I grabbed a torch and walked up to Olga's house to borrow a spare key, avoiding any lions and elephants on the way.

  
 

A velvet monkey checking on what we are doing

  
01/03-04/03    
Enock started our day by telling us that the Baboons had beed shitting and playing on the vehicle. I had to was it all over again. Rest of the day we relaxed and kept an eye open for wildlife.

A day in Palaborwa is always on the agenda while we are here. Karen and me were booked in for a massage, Olga was going to the dentist and we would shop and dine some where. No dinner tonight after lunch in town. One of the highlights of being in Africa is that we have a G&T every evening. Not taking any chances with malarie!!!

Today is Friday and we are going to try and repair a leaking toilet at the "Gingerbread" house. This is the name of one of the houses Olga rents out. No job is straight forward here. All the pipes to and from the cystern are buried in a wall, which we couldn't damage too much. After a lot of careful removal of cement and stone we uncovered the guilty party. The pipe from the cystern down to the toilet was leaking. After we had repaired it we had to build up the wall again. The temperature had now risen to 35 degrees and the going was hard,because the cement was hardening too quickly in the heat. It looked good when we had finished and Karen had collected some small stones to put into the cement, to give it a finishing touch.

During the afternoon we got a text from Olga from the house that she had no water. Another litttle job, witth the culprit the main supply pump to house. We got it going again - problem solved. Olga came down to the Stone Cottage where we grilled some lamb chops and enjoyed ourselves out on the terrace. A warm day today. 35 degrees.

Olga's television had konked out, and I tried to give it the kiss of life, but no response.A couple of guests today for lunch and the pool.

Saturday

Warm again today and a good reason to be lazy. Karen and myself did a short game drive during the late afternoon. Didn't see much. Our usual G&T rounded the day and we ate our evening meal up at Olga's place. Robin, Olga's Red Setter is ill and Olga is a bit worried about him. He is old, so I hope he doesn't suffer too much. The place won't be the same without him.

 
The cistern was eventually uncovered		  
     
     
Now it's Sunday and we are on our way to Kruger, so it's goodbye for now. We camped at Satara in Kruger and saw quite a few animals on the way in. We rented a cabin with a kitchen so we make our own food. After a rest we decided to do a game drive.
We saw quite a lot, especially elephants. Wildebeast, zebra, hippo, impala and ostrich were nearly breathing down our necks. On our way home. the track was blocked by a huge heard of elephants.		  
     
     
     
  This fellow with his mates was in no mood to let us pass. 
We had to wait for more or less 45 minutes before we could get by. This meant that we had to drive pretty fast to get back to the camp before
6.0 pm. We just made it - phew!!! Met a couple of Germans in the pool while we were taking a dip.
We had a stormy night with constant thunder and lightning and lots of rain. This meant that we would be restricted as to where in the park we drive today. Lots of areas were completly flooded, and with the vehicle we have we cannot risk bad roads.

Monday 6/3

We did a five hour drive though and saw lots. Hippos put on a show for us out in the river, a herd of buffalos crossed the track and you give them the room they want! We could see two lions further away in the bush and a couple of frisky male elephants probably trying to find a couple of females. One of them didn't care much for sightseers, so we backed away until he was pleased. It was raining again now, so we have to be careful driving on the tracks which can get very slippy. We stopped at a picnic area in the park, and here a guide told us to stay on the tar roads. The dirt roads were too dangerous and could be flooded, with the real risk of gettiong stuck. We haven't been too lucky driving in game parks recently. Everything is so dependent on the weather!

  

We decided we would get out of the park as there wasn't much chance of seeing anything, and with a real chance of getting stuck, it was a the right decision. We decided we would find dry place and relax a bit, so we drove to Timbavti. We ended up not staying here because they told us that there would be a long demonstration procession the next day. This could hold us up a lot, and as we are nearing the end of our trip, we didn't want to risk not being able to get through. We carried on an extra 100 kms to Grasskop, where we stayed at the Mogodi Lodge. It was cold now and it started to rain again. Borrowed an electric fire from reception because the huge flat we had rented was without heating. No problem, they had a a stove we coiuld light, and firewood - yipee. Went down to the restaurant to eat. Good food in an empty restaurant. We were tired and now we could light the stove an relax. Couldn't light the stove though, because the wood was to wet. so went early to bed.

On the way to Mac Falls the next day. We have seen it a few times, but still a fantastic sight! Met Desmond at restaurant in Sabie. Left Sabie after a couple of hours with Desmond, great to see him again. On our way to Alkmaar Farm, an adrress we got from friends back home. The road in was water logged after all the rain, and our vehicle, though not a 4x4, had a good free height, so I thought we could do it. All of a sudden there was a grinding noise from under the vehicle. I could see that the shroud under the engine was hanging down and was bent back under the vehicle. I couldn't do anything, because I didn't have any tools with me, so we drove on to the farm. Here I borrowed some and removed it. It was more or less made of cardboard and just soaked up water!!!

A nice place to spend our last night. Big lounge with two double beds and a kitchen so we could cook a bit. Sat out late, because it was a nice warm evening. The trip to the airport went with out problems. When I told the car hire firm about the problems with vehicle, they didn't seem too concerned. I had removed the damaged shroud - so that was okay!

Home to a wintery Denmark

Alkmaar Farm