A Lovely Place

It's always lovely being out in the bush and we were excited to arrive at the game reserve were we were going to stay at for the weekend. It's a really lovely place but there has been no rain in the area for months and unfortunately the Spring rains are late so everything is still very dry and the trees are only starting to put out new leaves. You can actually "feel" how nature is waiting for the first rains. The bush looks so dead and dry now but you won't believe how it can turn 'green' overnight after it rains!



I volunteered to open and close the gate :P

Our little hide-away in the bush.

The rondawel where Rachel and I slept, it also has an open-plan dining room and a small, fully equipped kitchen. Very nice! :)

Dad & Mom's bedroom in the other rondawel - the two rondawels were connected with a short passage.

It was a terribly hot day and we really appreciated the pool! Rachel was in first, as usual, and then I joined her a bit later.

Mom took this picture just as I was about to splash the water. : P 

We had "spectators" - a small troop of Vervet Monkeys - they are quite 'tame' and VERY naughty as we will tell in another post!!

There is a small boma at the back of the rondawel. There is no electricity - the lights and geyser, etc runs on solar power - you can see one of the solar panels above the boma.

The boma

That night we had a braai outside in the boma. There were a lot of scurryings of wild creatures going around outside it. At one stage Rachel and I had to go back to the kitchen to get some water and we saw a pair of bright shining eyes in the torch beam in the bush just behind the pool, but we couldn't see what animal it was. Rachel wanted to go plunging into the bush after it but I wouldn't let her - was afraid it might be a leopard or something!

S.A.'s 'national' meal - Braaivleis. We had a great time sitting around the fire, chatting together, listening to the night sounds and star-gazing. Besides our fire and a gas-lamp there was no other light - it's total darkness out there and you can just marvel at all the stars in the sky!

After a wonderful, wonderful day it was so good to have a shower - we only used the cold water as it was luke-warm anyway - and then it was off to bed. It was terribly hot though - I got up a few times to splash cold water on my face - (not that it helped) - and then I had to reapply the mosquito repellent. :P
But all that didn't matter, it was just great to be out there! :)