Johannesburg...and The End!

The one unknown on our trip was where we were going to stay on our last night in Johannesburg. We had really left this up to chance, and figured we would just get a hotel room somewhere in the city.  Well, when Yvonne heard about this plan (or lack thereof), she would have none of that!  She said that her friend, Wendy Adam, owed her a favor and would be happy to host us. So she promptly got Wendy on the phone and made the arrangements.  This is quite a generous gesture, seeing how there are 6 of us!

I actually knew Wendy back during my time in Welkom while on mission, when she was Wendy Molema. I also met Wendy back in 2011 at Ashley Roberts' (Paul and Yvonne's son) wedding.  Wendy flew out to be with Yvonne and family for the occassion. It was in Welkom where Yvonne met Wendy. Wendy left to serve a mission while I was in Welkom, and I actually got to know her dad, Willem, very well.  Willem was the ward mission leader, and I remember him being a great man, with a great sense of humor.  They had us over for dinner very often - probably most Sundays.  Willem has since passed away, but I was able see Wendy, her husband and kids, and her mom who is living with them.  They have a beautiful home in Ranburg, a suburb of Jo'burg.  On their property they have a guest house that was perfectly suited for us.  Wendy was so great - she left us all kinds of food and treats in the guest house, so we were more than comfortable - it was like a bed and breakfast! That night she fed us an absolutely delicious meal of bobotie. It was great reconnecting with them, and was the ideal finish to the perfect trip!  

The next day we would fly out around 9pm, so we planned to go see the sites in Jo'burg.  I took the kids to my first area, Ridgeway, another suburb of Jo'burg.  We drove around trying to find the flat I lived in - and I think I found it - or at least came very close.  I remember well the amazing view of Jo'burg from my flat there.  We found the chapel there - which strangely didn't seem familiar at all.  But it was fun to drive around, and see the massive hills that I remember so well travelling on my bike.  We also drove through another one of my areas, Florida.  And of course we couldn't leave without visiting the temple grounds.  The Jo'burg temple is beautiful, and it is exactly as I remember it - with a stunning view from the back of the temple grounds.

We were so blessed to have been able to take this once-in-a-lifetime trip. From all the support at home, to all of those we met along the way and during our journey - we can't thank everyone enough.  Our lives have been truly blessed to know so many wonderful people - and in such amazing places!  

Ok, had to take this picture!

This is how I remember the African sky around Jo'burg. Every day I'd see these amazing cloud formations, along with tremendous lightning storms at night over the city.

Jo'burg Temple

The view looking out from the back of the temple is just "magic!"

Fun at the temple!

More fun at the temple!

Even more fun at the temple - temple selfie!

One of the best things in South Africa is seeing the guys riding in the back of the trucks.

Chapel at Ridgeway

Saying goodbye to Wendy and her mom, in front of their home.

In line at the airport, saying one last goodbye to this wonderful country!

Chillin' on the plane ride home!  We each also had our own personal TV!

Party in Margate!

We had many wonderful adventures in Margate.  We stayed at the home of Dave’s former mission companion.  The Oehlerking family - Jean-Pierre, Gina, Cameron, Jared and Liam were the most gracious of hosts.  They have a beautiful home on a farm in Margate, South Africa.  Margate is a small resort town along the Eastern coast of South Africa.  There are so many things to do at the Oehlerking's home - they have dogs, ducks, chickens, birds, horses, and wild monkeys. Gina holds water aerobics in their pool, and Jean-Pierre has his own airplane. We arrived right after the busy holiday season, so we missed the rush and the crowds.  Jean-Pierre and Gina told us all about the local haunts and must-do activities.  Cameron and Jared were in school, so we couldn't spend as much time with them as we wanted. But luckily Jared's schedule was a little more flexible so we were able to hang with him, and he could show us the local scene!

Cameron and Brooke "The Horse Whisperer"

 Jake and Jared quickly became good friends.  Two peas in a pod...they explored the area, played on the beach and just "hung out."

Jean-Pierre planned a special surprise for us one night.  We lit these lanterns in his backyard and let them float high in the sky until they disappeared.  It was a magical evening we will never forget.

Jean-Pierre has always loved flying. Lucky for him, Margate has its own small airport about 5 minutes from their home!  He has his own 2-seater airplane, and the first day we arrived, he did a "fly-by" while we were swimming in his backyard pool. One of the mornings he even treated Dave, Ben and Emily to their own private flight along the coast of South Africa!  On the way, we did our own "fly-by" and saw Robynn waving to us in the courtyard of the Oehlerking home. It was a beautiful way to see the landscape.  The ocean, the trees and the hills are just gorgeous. He even let Ben and Emily take the controls for a little while!  He flew us through the clouds, and even down low - about 20 feet off of the shoreline where we could open the side door and have a completely open view of the ocean. This was a true highlight of the trip!  

A bird's eye view of Wild Waves water park from Jean-Pierre's plane!  We spent the day at Wild Waves with Jared, and literally had the park to ourselves, since it was off-season. 

Maverick and Goose!  Luckily Goose didn't die this time! 

African woman carrying her inventory of curios - awesome!

And,,,here are the curious - Robynn doing what she does best...Shopping!

Jake and Jared hamming it up at Mac Banana before getting our savory and sweet "pancakes" - or crepes as we Americans call them.

Three beautiful ladies hanging outside Mac Banana.

Gina and Jean-Pierre treated us one night to authentic "Bunny Chow" - curry served in bread bowls.  This was both legit and Lekker!

Swimming at the Oehlerking pool!

The Oehlerking home is amazing - bedrooms and family rooms surround this central courtyard where we hung our laundry to dry. It was here that Robynn waved to us while we were on our personal flight!

We loved The Waffle House so much that we went there twice!  The hummus waffles for dinner, and the cadbury chocolate waffle with ice cream for pudding.  Yum!

We spent an entire day hanging out at Uvongo Beach, a seaside resort town right near Margate. Funny enough, Paul and Yvonne have a home here - that's how they got to know Jean-Pierre years ago.  Even funnier - Dave got "rescued" here at Uvongo beach by a lifeguard. Ask him about it if you want a good laugh!

Reunited at Last!

FYI...I wrote the following post on the way to Margate and haven't been near WIFI since!  Sorry...we are still alive and are spending our last full day in SA at a Waffle House that has WIFI!!! And the best waffles in the world!!!  I will try to post our last couple of days at the airport tomorrow before we leave...thanks for following:)

We took off to Wartburg in the craziest storm ever!  I wish we could send some of that rain to Cali cuz I’m pretty sure it would have solved the drought!  It was a four hour drive through the country…just b u tiful! Warburg is a small town in the country an hour from Durban.  Paul and Yvonne Roberts (who Dave baptized while on his mission) live in the greenest area, full of farms of all sorts, but mostly lined with rows and rows of sugar cane.  Paul works at a nearby sugar factory that makes the most amazing pancake syrup…they sent us home with a huge bottle (oh yeah)!  They have the most lovely home and yard and we were super comfortable.  Pauls father, who is ninety years old, lives with them.  He is a hoot!  They also have a large bird living with them…he is an African Grey and his name is Charlie.  We all loved Charlie but Charlie did not love us!  He is obsessed with Yvonne…who wouldn’t be!?  Jake can actually say “Charlie bit me” in the cutest accent and it is true!

 Yvonne is an amazing cook…we were treated to the most delicious meals of our journey.  My kids are ruined for life!  They took us to a butterfly house that was really fun.  It was full of not only butterflies, but also had monkeys, birds, fish, turtles and lots of other cool stuff.  Loved it!  Later that day we hiked down to some amazing waterfalls…it was quite an adventure.  The trail was steep, muddy, rocky and slippery from the rain the day before.  It was also crazy gorgeous and jungle-like with vines hanging down and tropical flowers all over the place.  WOW!  We almost died like a thousand times…but we didn’t. The falls and views were totally worth the near death experience!  That night they treated us to a lovely braii (bbq)…the spread was incredible!!! Brooke turned twelve that day...what a birthday treat for her.

Paul is the bishop of the Pietermaritzberg Ward…the city is about forty minutes away and their ward boundaries are huge!  Quite a sacrifice to do home and visiting teaching, not to mention just traveling to church on Sunday.  They are stellar members with amazing testimonies!  The ward was friendly and we met some really cool peeps.  The members here take a lot of crap from people…they are my heroes!  After church, one of the members named Karel Van Der Westhuizen, invited us to dinner at his B and B.  It was another insane meal!  The South African people know how to cook and entertain!  The missionaries (both from Utah) came as well and we had the best time chatting and eating and listening to beautiful piano playing by our host…unforgettable Sabbath day.

Ahhhhh...it's been a serious party since we arrived in Wartburg.  The Roberts have been feeding and entertaining us like crazy.  They are really the best people on the earth and it is with heavy hearts that we leave them this morning to head to Margate (where Dave's mission companion lives...he's a party animal so we will be busy there too).  I really don't know how much time I'm going to have the rest of the journey so this may be the last post...so we will go out with a bang (WARNING….this post is three pages long…read with caution)!  

I know I am overusing the exclamation point on this post, but this last week has just been the highlight of our time in Africa!  It has been such an education…we have learned so much about the people and culture and have had such an amazing time.  It is the sweetest experience to be reunited with the Roberts…they are the salt of the earth and we love them to pieces.  I am writing this post on our way to Margate with views of the Indian Ocean to my left.  S0 cool!  The air outside is warm and thick…super humid.  We are ready for another adventure with Jean Pierre and Gina Oehlerking and family.  I hope to post once more before our trip is done…thanks for reading and all the fun comments!  We miss you all and look forward to coming home…but not just yetJ  Cheers!  Robynn

Enjoying Malva Pudding with Paul and Yvonne - the best dessert in the whole world!

Our laundry!

The Roberts' back porch. This is where we visited, ate Malva Pudding and had a lekker braai!

Jake and Grandpa Roberts shared a real love of polished rocks.

Paul and Yvonne treated us to a fun visit to the Butterfly museum in Pietermaritzburg.

Ben enjoying some ginger beer!

Ginger Beer - we had to try every variety we could find!

For Brooke's twelfth birthday, Paul and Yvonne took us to a really fun hike near their home. They are surrounded by miles and miles of sugarcane fields, spread over flat lands as well as over hillsides. There are also gorges all around which lead to some pretty spectacular hikes.  This trail got a bit dicey in some areas, but it was worth the effort!  A beautiful waterfall and watery pool in a very secluded spot.  Just another fond memory of our time with Paul and Yvonne!

Dave and Paul preparing for the braai of all braais!

And here it is - the braai of all braais!

The kids digging in!

Our Sunday afternoon with Karl Van der Westhuizen, Paul, Yvonne, and the missionaries.  Lots of music and fun conversation.  Karl is also a painter, and painted those pictures above the fireplace.

Robynn, Yvonne and Charley working their magic in the kitchen!

Safari Part Deux...

Jake and Emily and the giraffe.

We asked this guy if he would take a photo of our family...he gave Dave the camera and got in with us instead.  Cheeky buggar!

White rhino...super duper amazing to see in person.

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Bathing elephant.  No privacy for these animals!

The cheetah...chillaxin under the shade tree.

Two lionesses and their bloody dinner.

Braii (BBQ) with our guide, Stacy.

The Safari at HluHluwe iMflolozi was really out of this world!  Like I said in the last post, we had to leave by five that morning for the hour drive to the park.  We arrived at six and started right away.  It was going to be a scorcher so it was imperative that we see as much as possible before the heat sent the animals fleeing for shelter.  I can't remember what we saw first, but we saw it all and then some!  The giraffes were so cool, just chillin and eating leaves with their big eyes and long lashes.  We got to see a bunch of them throughout the day and they were one of the favorites...we even saw them running from afar which is just the coolest!  The park is known for its large Rhino population (Rhinos are endangered and are still being killed at an alarming rate, even in the parks) so we were able to see many White Rhinos and quite a few up close.  They are super prehistoric and impressive looking.  Jake said they looked like they were wearing armor. We had to be calm and quiet as they moved slowly past our vehicle...but believe me our hearts were racing because you do not want to tick those guys off!  They did not try to tip our car over...just wanted you to come back and read the post:)  

The lions were incredible!  At one point we came upon a pack of wildebeests who were fleeing from something...that something proved to be a teenage lion and lioness.  They ran across the road in front of us and hid in some bushes.  All the animals in the vicinity were freaking out, making high pitched warning calls to one another.  It was the coolest!  They soon ditched us so our guide, Stacy, took us to a “hide” which is a small building with narrow windows where you can watch the animals at a watering hole but they can’t see you.  There were restrooms nearby, but Stacy was very nervous to let us use them since the lions were still in the area.  It was a stressful toilet experience!  The boys were already down in the hide and by the time we got there we had just missed seeing an elephant bathe and drink in the watering hole!  Bummer!!!  The lions had been there earlier too.  It was a super cool place to see many animals up close, interacting with one another.  A huge pack of zebras and some bucks came in and it was fun to watch them for a bit.

We had a lovely BBQ lunch on a hilltop with our guide and fellow tour mates, Babette and Sebastian.  Naughty monkeys, guinea fowl and warthogs joined us as well.  The day was getting extremely hot at this point and our time was over half way up so we were eager to get back on the road.  We got to see some more Cape Buffalo up close after lunch.  One of them had a little bird living on it (symbiosis) that spent time cleaning out its nostrils and ears of bugs and other parasites.  I wish I had one of those things for my home!  I know Jake could use one right about now!  At one point during the afternoon one of the kids turned to me and said “I would have never learned any of this stuff at school’…yup…made my day!

One of the most memorable sightings happened late in the day when we had stopped next to another couple of jeeps to talk animals.  One of the trucks took off with a bang and spooked a cheetah out from under some nearby bushes!  We did not think we would get to see one since there are very few in the park (it’s been two months since our guide had seen one).  Jake was extra pumped since he is in the process of writing a report on them.  It ran to a nearby tree and sat under the shade while we stared at his awesomeness.  Wow!

We saw lots of babies…rhinos, giraffes, warthogs, zebras, monkeys, to name a few…the kids loved to see them!  Before we left the park we sighted three huge male elephants walking along a nearby ridge and a couple of female lionesses chillin in the shade. One of the lionesses was pregnant and they had recently killed something because there was a bloody carcass right next to them.  We got pretty lucky on our safaris to get to see all that we did.  It was such an awesome experience…just unforgettable!!! (you were right Julie Trammel and Julie Brasher)  I could have enjoyed a couple more days just like it…but my butt was dead after only two (from sitting and going over so many bumpy roads)!  The kids won’t let me live down the fact that I stopped the truck on several occasions thinking that I had spotted an animal, only to have it be a tree stump or small bush…whatever!

On the drive back, the African children were just getting off school so they were yelling greetings to our truck as we passed.  At one point Jake asked “why does everyone know us here?”  Hilarious! The people here are so friendly and fun!  That evening we shared another lovely dinner with our Swiss friends and hotel owner, Laurence.  We were all just fried from the heat and wind so we walk into dinner and sat around a fire pit…we were dying!  He had us wrap dough around a stick and cook it over the coals…it’s called stick bread. When it’s done, you pull it off the stick and throw some butter and honey inside.  Wow!  Dinner was fantastic too!  So much awesomeness for one day!!!

That night the heavens opened and it started to pour.  There’s a cyclone off the coast and we got the tail end of it.  It rained lightly in the morning as we took the last of our adventure tours, a hippo and croc cruise on the waterway in St. Lucia.  We got to see several families of hippos just laying all over each other in the water.  The babies are the cutest and they are protected in the middle of the sleepover by all the moms.  So cute!  No sightings of crocs though…they only come out with the sun.  Oh, and beware of the bubbles that pop up next to the hippos…toxic gas! 

Cape Buffalo with his little bird friend.

Dave and some buck or impala...can't tell which.

Cute homes like this dot the hillsides of SA.