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Here are some pictures of Gracie's party
The theme was ballet and.....pink.
Gracie assists Finny into his tiara and tutu during the chocolate game
Creating beauteous things. Look how happy Finny is to be there.
Anticipating CAKE
Food is so funny
Make a wish!
All dressed up
Having nails painted as shoes ballet shoes for the ballerina finger puppets they made
Pin the tutu on the ballerina
Presents!
How cute are they? Gracie had so much fun, her clothing turned backwards!
is it wrong that these make me laugh?
Maybe a bit bitterly?
This is a long overdue and very inadequate tribute to a man who made a great difference to the world and to me personally. Gordon B. Hinckley, President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, died on the 27th of January this year.
I loved his dry sense of humor and quick wit. I admired his insatiable thirst for knowledge, he was constantly learning, curious and knew a lot about a lot. At 97 he was sharper and more articulate then I can ever hope to be. I am astounded by his energy and his sense of duty. Knowing how much travel takes out of a person, as well as how much this man traveled leaves me marveling at his stamina and at his unselfishness (as he admitted that he did not particularly enjoy travel). I am inspired by his unfailing optimism, although he was completely cognizant of reality, he was ever positive,cheerful and hopeful. Learning and optimism were two of his recurring themes.
I feel a personal connection to him as I came of age so to speak, in the years of his Presidency. His lovely granddaughter Holly spent a couple of months living with my family in South Africa. She looks so much like him, that when she came to see my mom at my home a few years ago and I walked into the living room not knowing she was there, I literally did a double take, a young, female Pres.Hinckley in my living room! When she spoke of him as "grandpa" I was touched. It was shortly after his wife, Marjorie had passed away and Holly spoke about how hard this was for her grandfather. Although he had a perfect knowledge that he would see her again and be with her forever, that wait, no matter how short was a terribly painful experience for him. Their romance was a beautiful thing.
He frequently rubbed shoulders with Presidents and Kings and celebrities, but remained completely down to earth and humble. He was no respecter of persons and when I would watch him speak, I always felt as though he was speaking directly to me.
President Hinckley was always so very alive, although he had in the last few years begun to joke that he was "still here" at each General Conference, I don't know if any of us quite believed that it would ever be his last. I will feel particularly bereft I think, when he is not there at the next one.
I am participating in this challenge as a tribute to him. A couple of years ago he challenged everyone to read the Book of Mormon before the end of that year. I participated in that challenge as did so many others, and it was a great experience so when I was notified of this one I was excited at the opportunity. Of course, I could have taken on this challenge myself but by doing it in tribute to him, I am reading a little more carefully and appreciating the gift of this book, and the gift of a living Prophet that much more.
Here's a little graph of my progress. I am currently 0 pages behind!! This morning I was like 40 pages behind. As you can it has been a spiritual day and I currently have a big headache.
So now that we have The Trip out of the way, I can catch you up on the last two weeks at home!
Hmm......well....hmmmm....there was stuff I wanted to post every day during the travelogue but of course it has been forgotten and now I got nothing. Nah, I always have something.
Oh! My luggage did eventually find me in its entirety and it was mostly intact! My running shoes did indeed arrive in the first installment (thank everything good), so I was able to go for a run before I descended into a paralyzing depression.
Adding to my good cheer is the fact that I also finally got this after threatening to for the last 4 years:
It works, I feel good. I have similar levels of energy and motivation as I do in the summer which has never been in the case for me in Winter before. I recommend this highly to anyone who believes they may be suffering from SAD
The other recent purchase that is bringing me joy is this
It's hard to say what I love most about this. The fact that I do not have to deal with the revolting mop and bucket, the fact that it is so easy to carry from room to room, the fact that it really works, or the fact that I don't have to use any cleaning products whatsoever yet I know the floor is sterile without leaving a bunch of icky residue on the floors, or the fact that the floor dries almost instantly. I have spent many happy hours minutes using it today and it works wonderfully on my neverending white kitchen floor, hard wood floor and Pergo. (It is safe to use on hardwood). It is also super light. They do not give me a kickback for this promo. I just do it for the greater good as I am a giver.
And have you noticed that when your floors are clean the rest of your house looks so much better? Clean floors are contagious. I wanted to redecorate my bedroom to make it brighter, but I used the money for this instead. That's how much I wanted it. I have coveted it since the fateful night I saw it on an infomercial and now I feel complete.
We had a good weekend. Aaron and I went to a Luau in the freezing gym at churrch on Friday night which against all odds turned out to be good fun. I was not injured as I feared I would be from doing the limbo which was a bonus. On Saturday night my fun friends kidnapped me for a birthday dinner out. It was a surprise, (it really was for a change, Aaron is improving in the guile department), and so much fun. I have good friends. Thanks Julie, Cindi and Amy. It's a shame 2 out of the 3 are planning to ditch me sometime in the not so distant future. My friends have a tendency to move away. I wonder what that's all about...
And The Camera...do not have the faintest idea how to use it yet but here are some shots it has taken over the last couple of weeks...
The Boy Eating Monster Attacks
Gracie practising for her 7th birthday.
Valentines dinner table.
My squinty boys on Valentine's morning
This boy loves to laugh
Downward sloping eyed boy.
Look Gabe has eyes!
So does Benj!
My sweet girl
I thought it was fitting to go back to Fish Hoek beach for a run with my dad on the last morning in SA. The day was simply perfect. When I run on the treadmill in cold Ohio, I sometimes listen to the Broadway soundtrack to the Lion King and imagine I am running...well, on Fish Hoek beach. As we were running into the sun on the most perfect morning, along the catwalk which goes along side the ocean until it is quiet and deep, and there are no waves and you feel as if you are far out to sea, Circle of Life came on (which is much more African then the Elton John version) and it was just so wonderfully surreal not to have to be imagining it anymore. Alas, I am back to imagining but having had the real idyllic deal, so recently makes it easier. It more then lived up and exceeded my fantasies. Morning mist just burning off..
No pictures of us on the catwalk sadly but mom took these as we ran towards her using our best Chariot's of Fire form.
We spent a good deal of time on my trip trying to teach my dad how to smile properly
By George he got it!!
I'm not quite sure why I am sitting here attempting unsuccessfully to look buff. I think it was to offset the fact that I was about to offset my run and healthy breakfast with chips and ice cream. My mom will kill me for this photo as it is post exercise pre-grooming. However I think she looks lovely and she does not read the blog anyway. For shame! Mostly I am sacrificing vanity for you to admire that spectacular view behind us. The sea is so blue and calm that it looks like a lake. Doesn't that just look like a happy place to live? Did I mention we used to live there???
A last picture of our lovely house. It even has a wine cellar. (Which in Mormon translates to food storage room). Um..mom...dad...tell me again why we moved?
My old Primary school, much the same as I remember it. The slogan cracks me up for some reason.
Then it was off to Green Market Square. Just one of the amazing selection..it will blow your mind. It is probably a really good thing that I had to shop under major time constraints.
We got back home with about 40 minutes before we absolutely HAD to leave for the airport (even with my dad driving). I was not at ALLLL packed and had a ridiculously large amount of stuff including multiple bottles of chutney and cartons of custard,to fit into a ridiculously small couple of suitcases. I informed poor Thalia that I would be inheriting her bag as it was much larger. (By the way Mayzie, your bag has a big hole in it now. I may have thrown it away.) My parents did a magnificent job of packing my stuff. Despite their traveling ways, almost everything arrived unscathed.
Alas I did not get one last shower in the outdoor shower as I had intended, so I left for the airport, unshowered and un-changed. (I had at least showered post run but not post Green Market Sweaty Square). This induced quiet horror in my heart. Which was almost equal to the horror of driving with my dad when you have 30 minutes to get somewhere 50 minutes away. I took these pictures in the car to distract me from when he was overtaking 5 cars on a mountain pass-on a blind corner. He really is a very good driver. Scary, yet competent.
Cape Town airport. This is where I said goodbye to my bags for the next week. My mom laughs that after they were tagged and sent on their way, I told her very philosophically, " well...it will be a miracle if I ever see those again". As nice as it was that the check-in bag tagger man was willing to send them alll the way to Detroit despite my many plane changes, I did not have high hopes of that feat being pulled off by the aviation industry. I'm increasingly unsure that they Aim to Please.
Goodbye Cape Town, goodbye Mom and Dad and Seth and Thalia and Luke.......Bwwwaaaaaaahhhhhhhh. I was just getting into a good sobbing rhythm when it was discovered after I had stripped down for security, that I had no boarding pass and had to go out of security and back to get one. This stopped everyone's wailing and gave us something to focus on. This is the one good thing about the airport chaos, it can serve as a good distraction.
I love how my dad is instructing how to take the picture here.
Goodbye beautiful mountains..don't one of you want to come with me to Ohio? There is plenty of space for you and you would be such a novelty!
My last South African sunset for a while...
Ok so I got to Johannesburg airport where Shona and Marc who were already there, were going to meet me, get my luggage and move to international departures. They encountered some electricity or lack thereof, problems with getting to the airport on time, and since I had bid farewell to my luggage in Cape Town, I decided to make my way to International departures alone. Well it was quite late at night, and Johannesburg is not known for being a safe city so it was with mild alarm that I found myself in a big, outdoor, deserted and dark car park with several bags filled with rocks (really!) and a wall map in hand. Apparently there were some renovations and so it entailed going outside to get to the international area. However, one was supposed to go with the aide of security. Particularly if one is a woman loaded down with valuables at 10pm. I invoked all heretofore earned fitness and much prayer as I sprinted (in flip flops) all the way (I would say it was a good 1/2 kilometer). This resulted in a hole in my toe. When I finally got to the building. I found it huge and eerily deserted. There was also no sign of where one would go. Just elevators and escalators and construction. It was not so much cozy.
Finally I accosted a woman as she got out of an elevator and asked her where I should go. She looked very sceptical and informed me I must be very lost. She did try to be helpful by pointing vaguely in 3 or 4 general directions. Finally a security guard spotted me as me and my bag of rocks went up the escalator next to the one I had just gone down on, and he and another security guard escorted me to the place where I was to go. I arrived maybe 2 minutes before Shona and Marc did. Shona was horrified by my solo adventure as she and Marc were supposed to have avoided just such a scenario (since they are a lot more familiar with the airport then I.)
It was a good thing she was there though as I was lucky enough to encounter the surliest check in guy with a broken tag machine thing. Eventually he stood up, and just walked off, taking the machine with him but not before he told me that I would probably never see my bags again. Until Shona produced the little papers that made him grudgingly admit, that maybe some day I would. Eventually I was all checked in and ready to go. After an unsuccessful foraging for food and Marc expertly re-packing my rock filled bags, I was off. Note to self-plllllease travel lighter next time. The laptop is just not worth it. I ended up with some awesome shoulders by the time I got home though.
Goodbye Shona and Marc. Bwwwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!!
After I finally finally FINALLY got going. (They had one woman processing 3 international flights at midnight-something about air travel makes one feel like cattle, actually many things do.) I was concerned I would miss my connecting flight but what are you going to do. The flight to Paris was uneventful, except I sat next to a girl from Poland who spent a good portion of the time telling me why she would NEVER fly Air France again. I was rather smug as I'd had a good experience that far and had greatly enjoyed the large wedge of camembert cheese at every meal...little was I to know that I would soon encounter a little man named Anad who would tell me after 6 days of my luggage being missing that he did not care that it was gone and that just because I wanted it back did not mean that I was going to get it back. Now I too encourage you to steer clear of Air France, gentle reader, unless you have no objections to sitting on a runway un-fed for 5 hours and having your seat put back into upright position when you are sleeping so someone can offer you "cafe...with alcohol.." (Polish girls' Air France experience) or people like Anad who actually slammed the phone down on me but not before he screamed at me and refused to spell his name for me. Or Michelle who told me that I could just forget about getting my bag any time soon. (My Air France experience) However should Air France offer me the best deal to SA again, you can be sure that I will be taking it and focusing on the camembert cheese perk.
Once in Paris I ran a few kilometers to my terminal in high heeled pointy boots...Note to self...next time wear running shoes. You think I am kidding about the few kilometers. Again, totally deserted airport and every time I would turn a corner thinking I would finally be at the terminal another acre or so of polished whiteness lay ahead of me, with not a soul in sight. It was like a mirage in the desert. I am thinking there must have been a tram everyone else was taking. I am at this juncture still holding my map and my computer and my bag with the rocks in it. By the time I finally get to the long and winding line to security I am so tired and flustered that I keep losing things that I have just had in my hand. Only I could do something like this. It was sort of out of body. I would be standing holding my passport and suddenly, it's gone..frantic digging in line as everyone else shuffles forward and I will find it nestled between rocks in my bag. Weird. Repeat with Alien card, Boarding Pass..etc. It was most nerve wracking to say the least.
Once on the Paris to Detroit flight I could relax. There was lots of this..
Lovely bright sunlight, no wonder one side of my face is more tanned then the other. Aha!
I spent a good amount of time pondering over whether this was cracked clouds with sky shining through or cracked ice with water shining through. I'm thinking clouds...right? (Don't hate me because I am stupid, Aaron could not figure it out either).
You may have noticed my fascination with clouds. It is just amazing to me at how much they resemble earth formations like mountain ranges, wide snowy fields and huge banks of snow.
The cloud gazing was one of the most amazingly peaceful incredible experiences of my life. It felt surreal(I know I use that word a lot but it is the only accurate one to describe the feeling of floating amidst such a variety of gorgeous clouds with the sun shining on me. Felt very much like I imagine heaven may feel. Or maybe just a beach in heaven because I don't picture myself chilling on a cloud for the rest of eternity, lovely as it was there for a few hours. There were movies to be watched but I mostly watched the clouds, they were just too cool not to.
I am so glad I am no longer afraid of flying. Thank you Nancy. xo
SO when I landed in Detroit (Detroit, doesn't that just sound so unappealing? I am sorry Detroit but we both know it is true), and went through the whole cattle drive of standing in the line to be let into the country by the oh so friendly "Face of America"...not, and milling around the many baggage carousels for a while, I was not too surprised at all to see my name on a little board saying to contact an Air France agent. I was not that surprised with the Air France agent gave me a toothbrush and casually informed me that my luggage was still in Paris and I would see it the next day. Well, no problem, now I can just get to my family sooner. Right? No. Wrong. So very wrong. First! I must file a missing luggage report.
Luckily for me my fortunate counter-person karma was in full force and I encountered a woman who shall we say, found her job to be a challenge. After standing for literally 20 minutes as she pecked at her computer looking perplexed, I ended up telling her that I had small children waiting for me and I had been traveling for 30 hours and eventually coming around the counter to assist her in figuring out how to use said computer. We bonded.
Eventually, after they told the computer to send my luggage to China by way of Russia, they let me go. Had I moved a yard to my right I would have seen my family who had been standing just a few yards away the whole time, getting none too antsy about the 90 minute wait. Po Poppets
What a wonderful sight though!
Sniff...
This one got heavier in my absence.
How sweet is this?
It was soooo nice to give them all a hug again. They were all smiley and some were even a little bit shy. So sweet.
Let's. Get. Out. Of. Here.
My aforementioned car-ride basket. Aaron you know you rock.
Home again, home again...
Gracie, recipient of the only gift I could give (apart from the wall map), having kept it in my hand luggage was very happy. It was so lovely to be with these wonderful people again.
And thus concludes this exhaustive/exhausting report of My Trip To Africa. I hope you enjoyed it, or at least parts of it, but even if you did not, I enjoyed the re-living of it and glad this is all down now for posterity, because let's face it, these photos will never find their way to a scrap book.
We now resume our regular programming.
I don't know about you but I'm ready to get the travelogue over with, so let us press on.
So the next day we went back to Boulders..because..why wouldn't we?
Penguin posse. They remind me of teenagers hanging out at the mall.
These two have just torpedoed through the shallow water where the kids are wading,
jumped out on the other side and waddled behind a rock. I bet they dared each other. It just had that dare devil sort of vibe to it. I have a video of this antic which I will attempt to figure out how to post at a later time.
let's blow this joint..
Earnestly soaking up some last rays.....sniff...
Thalia and I about to be blown away. Spot the penguins
After all the sea air we decided to go for a nice dinner as it was my last night in SA....sniff..
Seth and Luke were at the Waterfront, about 30 minutes away and we decided to join them. As we drove down the mountain which overlooks the Peninsula, somebody turned off the lights. It was really quite incredible. The entire side of the Peninsula that we could see went from light to dark-BAM. While I was there, SA was experiencing a power shortage and so there was a phenomenon called Load shedding, whereupon the power was cut out for a few hours at a time several times a day (it was supposed to be on a schedule but it turned out to be completely random). This was very interesting when you are in the middle of a huge mall and suddenly everything goes dark or when you are behind 5 different security gates and you are trapped for the afternoon. It was not the finest moment for SA's economy. Anyway, everyone assumed that the situation we had at hand as we wended our way down the dark mountain was load shedding. Ironically some major transformer had blown. It was also not Eskom's finest hour.
Driving in SA is an adventure in and of itself. Driving sans traffic lights (or as we call them, robots), is even more exciting. Driving with my dad under these circumstances is an extreme sport. Also, the darkness is not really something the hijackers dread. In fact on one particularly dark road as we drove around seemingly aimlessly, making every illegal U-turn it was possible to make, trying in vain to connect with Seth and Luke who had left the waterfront and were headed to the one restaurant we had seen lit up on the horizon (hooray for generator), anyway so we are driving all haphazardly around, and we see these guys with their hood (or as we call them, bonnet) up. They were frantically flagging us down. We were like, "Umm...seriously? People still actually expect other people to stop for them?!" Which led to a small debate about how sad it was that we could not longer be good samaritans versus how maybe we should just throw caution the the wind and act on faith that we will not get killed by people seemingly in distress. The not-dumb people won out and we kept driving. This was a good thing since as we came around again, we saw the same desperately pleading flagging fellows with their disabled car, however it was parked in a new spot. This seemed just a tad suspect. I still feel a bit sorry to them though..there is always a chance they were legit and had just managed to get the car going for a few blocks, right? On the other hand, there was a gas (or as we call them, petrol,) station a few blocks away and it wasn't exactly a situation of dying from exposure to the elements.
Miraculously, we met up with my brothers and with much credit to my dad, we did not get hi-jacked, did not get into an accident and discovered that the restaurant we had seen, had been seen by everyone else in Cape Town. Also concerning to us was that it appeared to be club, from the age of the people who were milling around the parking lot, which although huge, was absolutely packed with cars. By this time it was about 9:00pm or later and we were rather hungry and so it was with total amazement that we saw this spot open up right in front of our eyes. The car had to go around the block to fit into it so my mother and I found a wonderful opportunity to practise the Warrior Pose as we held the space.
We were happily surprised to find a good restaurant attached to the club where we had a very traditional South African meal and my brothers enjoyed crushing on the waitress, (who although rather ineffective ended up with a large tip) She did take a pretty nice photo though.
We returned home, still in darkness and enjoyed candlelit bedtime preparations. I also got to see one of the most spectacular skies of my life. With no light pollution the sky was just ablaze, the milky way was clear right above us and there were tons of shooting stars. It was a very special way to spend my last night in South Africa.
The chandelier on the patio.
On this day, upon Seth's suggestion, we went to Boulders Beach. It is a quiet, secluded beach with huge boulders (surprise) and an African penguin colony I was not really into the idea because I was thinking pelicans and tanning with a bunch of pelicans didn't seem like such a good time. I am so glad I went with though!
Somebody to love
Seth peering at something. Possibly a swimming penguin?
This is what the sun is supposed to look like. Also the sky. I hope the Ohio sun and sky are taking note.
Seth catching up on some work with his genius alternative to prescription sunglasses. Effective and stylish.
May be Seth and Thalia swimming down there. I can't be sure.
Here I am probably checking out the topless European women and pondering over whether they are real or not.
Just hanging
I love how they walk, they always look so self important.
There will be more even more entertaining penguin pictures after a return visit. That evening we went to Moyo's which I posted about already here. I may or may not have posted these photos.
Cute little duckies that Shona kept well fed. She was distressed by the fact that they were all
"suspiciously small and cute". She was wondering if we were being fed their parents
The entrance to the restaurant houses a store. Some beaded Christmas decorations in the clearance bin.I got the cutest beaded African style Rudolph.
Back to white people enjoying themselves...
So the next day my sister and I being the kugels that we are, flew to Cape Town and left the others to find there way there via un-conditioned car. I took this picture of Table Mountain from the plane. It's the mountain I had on my countdown ticker.
This is the story of South Africa. Nice big houses, plenty of pools..
A moment or two I snapped this shot...
Aaron informs me this is a stripped mine. I just like the countours.
Sweet note awaiting us at the lovely house we stayed in. Why the blur? I don't know.
Gorgeous little pool in the backyard
Very comfy beds. I slept SO well here.
That night Shona and I went out to the V&A Waterfront. These guys were performing. They got the biggest tip of their career and sold a copy of their CD. This is what it is like when you busk anywhere near my sister. We had a lovely seafood dinner together and saw a movie which Shona slept through very peacefully.
The next day..we walked to the beach
As you can tell, it was late when we finally got there. (The car people had only arrived at 5am or so)
Watched this seal body surfing for a while. He was so cute and funny (once more bemoan the bad timing of my new camera, once again comfort myself that I would have smashed it instead of the old one if I'd had it.)
Seth running into the surf. I'm not sure why this picture turned out like a bad black and white photocopy, but I think it's pretty cool.
Thalia, mom and me flaunting our gorgeous pedicures. Today as I wiggled my toes clad in tights I decided there was nothing more tragic then a gorgeous French pedicure in the Ohio winter. Totally wasted.
Me and my little sibs. Thalia, Seth and Luke. Luke returned from his mission for our church to Zimbabwe a couple of days before Shona and I arrived in South Africa.
Seth with the waterfront in the background.
My parents are cute. And don't you think my mom is pretty?
The next day..was started in this trying manner by pool
When everyone was finally ready, we went to Fish Hoek beach. This is the beach which our house overlooked when we lived in Cape Town. Seth and I would come here every day and swim way way wayyy out (aged 3 and 7) and were happily, not eaten by sharks. I used to think my mom was neurotic but now I think not so much. Click here if you want to see Fish Hoek via live-cam. The weather does not look as though it was great today. Which is good because as I type this I watch sub zero winds blowing the snow around in a frenzy.
We watched the fishing boats coming in and out..
Seth and I reliving the glory days. Is there anything more soothing then digging in the sand?
Jellies!
More fish tales...
Whoever is on the beach and inclined to get involved brings in the catch.
Po Fishies. These are yellow tails for obvious reason.
They are strong and feisty :(
The view of our old house from the beach. I think my bedroom was the 3rd window over, except it didn't have balcony then. Even at age 7, I appreciated the view.
Thalia and I went for a walk along the catwalk and stopped at Skellies Pool. Where we struck balletic and yoga poses much to the amusement of the teenage boys passing by.
It was sooooo cold in those pools!
This seemed to invigorate Thalia.
Shona and Marc, blending nicely with the blues.
Dusk
And we had dinner at the cafe at the beach.
Where this photo was taken...
By my sister's best friend and our neighbour when we lived in Fish Hoe), Judy. Shona spotted her on while we were on the catwalk but wasn't 100% sure even after I yelled "Judy" randomly and she looked up and smiled. When we saw her again at the cafe, we knew she was the one! This would not be such a great coincidence if we had not bumped into her on the beach the last time we were all in Fish Hoek, when I was pregnant with Benjamin 10 years ago. So much changes every time I go back home, so this sort of thing makes me happy. I found Fish Hoek in general, remarkably and comfortably unchanged. Just as I remembered and loved it. I would love to live there again.
Tomorrow...Happy Feet!!!
So taking up where I ran out of steam yesterday (courtesy of jetlag, I was able to painstaking download these multiferous photos one by one-I wonder if they will cause servers to crash....)
ANYWAY eventually we were forced to leave the pool of kings/gods/yumminess and made our way back to abode across the Bridge of Time. (which dramatically shakes and steams on the hour-rather Disney)
We were chilling out, admiring the view...
When a tourist informed me that a monkey had my waterbottle.Nooooooo, it was just given to me by my dad that morning and I really liked it. It was much like A Dingo has my baby!
He scampered away (but not too fast-just to show us that he really did not fear us), and retreated to a shady nook where he dispensed with the lid, poured out all the water and commenced to chew..
Getting a little more comfy to chew..(that's him between the elephant's legs)
It was a very SA scenario, since while we were thus distracted by this shock and awe tactic, his friend was sneaking up behind us and attempting to steal our entire bag. When I turned around and caught him in the act, I started shouting at him half heartedly (since he is not that much smaller then me and a lot more strong/long/pointy of tooth) and he started to make threatening lunges towards me (I'm sure he was bored inside though). At this point Marc intervened (they respected Marc of course) and they took off without all our worldly goods. Little schysters.
I have good video of all of this including me panning wildly as I dropped the camera when I was warned that I was surrounded. It includes the baboons folowing us into the casino (despite me confidently saying that they would not, as they "knew their boundaries") and ripping the tablecloth off the convention table. Just to show us who was boss. Sort of like gang graffiti. Also footage of the stupid tourist who kept trying to get the baby baboon to give him "five" until the mommy baboon finally decided to inform him how idiotic he was being. That night we crashed the wedding where Thalia had been maid of honour. (We got a late invite to the reception). Here are Thalia and Luke swing dancing. He is younger by 11 months. I still think of them as "the babies" it is so bizarre and cute to me that they can do things like write...
Day ? The next day: (day of 1000 pictures)
We had brunch here It is under a waterfall. So lovely.
This badorable baby entertained us.
The view from the outside.
After we were sufficiently overfed we travailled across the swinging rope bridge
It's swinginess aided by our menfolk jumping up and down on either side.
Saw some pretty stuff on the way back up to pool of gods/princesses/awesomeness...
Whereupon we situated ourselves and had Marc order us specialized umbrella drinks. Tough times.
After killing an hour happily in this fashion, Shona and I departed to have high tea at the palace:
A welcoming elephant
Ladies who lunch (or tea)
I am fascinated by small beautiful food. Actually I'm fascinated by all miniaturized things, but particularly by artistically rendered food. Do you see the elephant tusks and the bird's face?
After we had stuffed ourselves nigh unto incapacitation, we illicitly explored the palace. While we were staying on the grounds ,we only had a "pass" to have tea in the dining room of the Palace. Think royalty and serfs. We were the serfs. We cleverly dispensed of our little green wrist-bands though (we should be spies, so devious are we). And wandered around, taking copious pictures (which clearly identified us as plebians we were), waiting to be hauled out at any moment.
Part of a ceiling:
Closer up. If you look closely you can see my water bottle.
overlooking the "crystal dining room"
Another bit of ceiling
out on one of the balconies..
A light in the bathroom which pleased Shona very much.
Those flowers smelled divine.
See the "elephant tusks"
The bathroom. One day I may have a formal room half as nice as this bathroom. The towels stacked there were all egyptian cotton. We did not know what to do with them, so we put them in our handbags. KIDDING. There are little hampers....see
Shona doing her Princess Di at the Taj Mahal imprression.
Just one of the little canopies set up for people to randomly rest at
Foot of large bird resting on canopy
little waterfall and garden next to random canopy
Where the legitimate guests have cocktails I guess..
Haha "close up" of water lilies. Oh the things I could have done with my new baby (Nikon D40-it makes these photos look like Monets) Actually, these photos look like impressionistic renditions without being compared to anything. I am deeply ashamed. Not to worry.
Picture taken by us since we could not very well be asking a palace servant.
Waterfalls across from where we are sitting here..
Cool stone buck. Springbok?
Cool fountain
This is where we watched real guests arrive and leave and played "is he her daddy or her sugardaddy/is she is daughter or his trophy wife". It was here where I informed Shona that the only way I would ever marry in the case of Aaron's untimely demise would be if the guy was rich enough to bring me here on a regular basis. To this she kindly informed me that those guys only marry the pretty girls. (But she meant that in the nicest possible way.) And yet I still love her.
The doors (technically closed to us)
Palace starts lighting up at dusk and birds start roosting in trees
Tragically blurry shot of the palm tree as we walked into the sunset.
Away from all the opulence. All those people looked totally miserable anyway....yeah......
So on Friday the 18th of January, I left the family of my birthing and went to see the family of my birth in my homeland. My mother country. The cradle of civilization-AFRICA! Ok,I was trying to be a bit Maya Angelou-esque there but it's not really taking is it. So I went on a little trip to see my parents and sibs in South Africa.
People have expressed interest in what this little foray was like. And who am I not to oblige them.
I have decided that to post all 10,000000000 of my photos and describe the entire trip would be overwhelming for me and probably lose me the 3 readers that I still have. (I have not checked stats lately but what with all the continued whining....) So the current plan is to post a picture or two (or 12) that sort of highlights what I did each day. Yay? No? We'll see how that goes. Please note that most of this first week's photos could have been taken in Ohio so if you are in it for the African thrills, you may be very disappointed to see many photos of very white people doing unspectacular yet pleasant things.
Day 1
There was lots of this
and then after waiting another 12 days for my luggage to emerge from the carousel hole, this:
Awesome! My sister Shona is in there somewhere too, but she is concealed by another of my fans.
Day 2
I may have mentioned how Christmas Eve is huge in my family. So we had a re-creation for those of us who missed the real one:
This was wonderful of course, in every way and just as I remembered.
Day 3:
We went shopping. When Thalia and I got bored of waiting for Shona to try on clothing, we decided that she would be the Mommy and I would be the baby. Cos maybe we have issues. I was going to sit on the little seat in the front but we decided that my knees would probably get stuck and being cut out of a shopping cart (or trolley) as we say, may have ended up being a tad awkward. Here I am being the wistful baby who wants the pink thing even though mommy said not to touch the pink thing.
Day 4:
We went to see my extended family. We call them the Mini-Randalls for obvious reasons. This was surrreal as the girls sitting to my right were babysat by me when I was a little girl). I remember the brunette (Talissa) crying ceaselessly one day and me calling my friend Viki who asked her mom for advice for me and her mom suggested putting just a bit of whiskey in her bottle. Worked like a charm.
Day 5:
Girls day. We went for pedi's and a lovely lunch, but were saddened that we only noticed this ice cream display when we were too stuffed to do anything about it:
Day 6:
Went to get hair cut and coloured with Thalia. As you can tell, it made a HUGE impact.
Then went to visit my best friend Viki (aforementioned) who I have known since I was 10. She moved back to SA from England 2 days before I arrived so I got to meet her little ones for the first time. So exciting.
Aren't they adorable?
She has a Gracie too. She let me cuddle her which they tell me is unheard of. I fell in love.
Stin and Vix. Ah the times we have had.
We dropped in on my aunt and uncle. My mother's brother Uncle Spiro married my father's sister Aunty Elsa. They have been amazingly good to our family. They plied me with food and showed off their muscles.
Then my mom and I went to my favourite childhood restaurant for dinner. It was just as wonderful as I remember. And how often does that happen with your favourite childhood restaurant?
Here's one of the myriad of photos we tried to take of ourselves, most ended up blurry from the laughing or showing the spinach/sesame seeds in our teeth.
Day 7
Went to the temple in the morning. And then off to Sun City. Where we engaged in the very serious business of a) attempting to get the high score on the hungry hippo machine for the day b)outdoing the high score of the boys
The guy in the middle is Sean, Thalia's boyfriend. He is a good guy.
There were injuries.
Then we forced to the bathroom attendant to take our sexy, sexy photo in front of the Hollywood mirror. By this point it was about 2am. Nobody can say we don't know how to party.
This is what the bathroom attendant thought of our sexiness.
Day 8: We waited for a bus with the baboons. Isn't that a beautiful shade of blue?
The others had a wedding to go to so Shona and I hit the waves
Anxiously surveying the wild surf and the tides...
This is where we are forced to take this delightful self portrait while Marc gets us drinks. It was a very stressful day.
We are somewhere in the whiteness there, there were several attempts at body surfing. Some slightly more successful then others.
And for a change of pace we went to the pool of the kings or the gods or something. It's incredible. An infinity pool which is very very peaceful and an amazing view while you float the day away.
Shona and Marc enacting a swimming with the dolphins scenario
Marc posing very naturally. He took the same super natural pose of me but I will spare you.
Isn't the scenery incredible?
Ok I am done for the day. If you made it this far, brave soldier, know that you will be rewarded. Sometime later I will show you The Attack of The Baboons. There were casualties. It's exciting stuff.
I hate my birthday. It is a cursed day. This is why I am called Kirst-y Cursed-ty. It all falls into place now.
Anyway Feb 6, I wish it did not exist but it does, thanks to those who wished me though, that was sweet.
My birthday included talking a woman at the airport into sending me my one found bag even though she assured me that she would lose her job over this. (My luggage took an extended vacation after my return on Sunday. I can't blame it for this, if I were in it's stage of life I would have done the same.
It has been spotted in Paris, Amsterdam and Johannesburg-over and over again..then one bag miraculously supposedly found its way to Detroit, BUT! I was not allowed to have it because they can't split up the luggage. That would be Very Bad. Bear in mind that they had told me that the other piece was lost completely but still...can't give you the bag we do have because that is strictly against policy and a very Bad Thing) It makes perfect sense really. However, I know how to get a chick all feeling empowered and in a frenzy of competence when I have to. I am a doula after all. It took some doing but I did eventually got her feeling crazy and daring enough to do this unprecedented thing for me. That of allowing me to have my luggage. I think I may have changed her life. Watershed moment. Next thing she will be running for President.
After this public service. I sat in bed feeling very very sorry for myself because a)I have not seen sunshine since I ran on the beach on Saturday b) I hate my birthday c) I have been unable to go running as my running shoes have been AWOL with the luggage d) I wish I lived in South Africa and not here. It is really MOST unfortunate that we live here. All this equals the perfect storm of Depression. This is typical of February.
As fun as that wallowing was, I was forced to take my kids to school and then returned home to my one bag which had arrived! With a big hole in the side of it. I spent a happy hour taking stock of what I believed had fallen out of the hole and what I hoped was in the other lost bag (which I cling to faith will one day be found and released to my custody).
After that good time I went for my weekly dental visit, because I love the dentist. You know I do. I think the dentist thinks I have dental Munchausens or a big crush on him. Whilst in SA, something started growing out the side of my gum. It looked like a tooth but surely not? Dentist confirmed that it was a piece of the root of my baby tooth that never came out (because it has no big tooth above it).
We had until now been optimistic that my baby tooth would hang in there for the rest of my life but since the root has now shattered with bits of it growing out the side of my gum, that is not looking to be the case. So he gave me a few shots and pulled the root splinter out with a nifty pair of pliers. Then we had a chat about how that tooth would need to be pulled and replaced with an implant. As exciting as that is to me, as a dental Munchausens person, I bet it will be pretty expensive. But you know, It's always good fun at the dentist so good thing I went on my birthday. While I was checking out, the receptionist was talking on the phone to her hysterical daughter who had just had a car accident on the terrible roads (because Feb 6 demands shockingly bad weather every year), it's her birthday today too. Which proves that Feb 6 is cursed. Have I mentioned my birthday really really is not a good day?
After having several near accidents on the ridiculous roads home I returned to a freezing house, blue children, a grim looking husband crashing around in the basement. In time a grim looking repairman came and my husband spoke to him in hushed tones, probably about just giving him the deed to our home in order to get it fixed. I managed to get Gracie to tell me that Aaron had bought me a really great camera for my birthday. I have been begging for this camera for years actually and since I fell and broke my existing camera in SA, I kind of need it. However, in my grim state of mind I instructed Aaron to return it in order to pay for furnace and dental surgery.
Alas I am weak. They talked me into opening it and I could not resist it's paparazzi like speed and it's stunning clarity. Unfortunately we will have to give up Jonathan to pay for the fake tooth and our heat.
We decided to have a re-do for my birthday as I ended up eating rice cakes for dinner and it was not exactly a hugely celebratory day. However, before I left SA my family took me out for a pre-birthday dinner here and that was rather magical. Here are some photos of my non-cursed birthday dinner:
Face painting
I found some bouganvillea on our way to the restaurant. Ever since I can remember, the birthday person has worn bouganvillea in their hair on their birthday. What I am drinking is red Grapetiser. It is a sparkling grape juice that I mainline from the time I get onto a plane that carries it. Why they do not sell it here eludes me.
My mom arranged for these guys to sing happy birthday to me. I think it was in Zulu and it was the coolest happy birthday serenade ever.
Dancing (but mostly helplessly laughing) with my sisters
First things first. While I was gone, on January 22nd my beautiful only daughter Caroline Grace aka Gracie turned 6! She is such an angel and I love her so much. I often marvel at her capability, maturity and huge heart. She is artistic and free spirited yet practical and responsible. She is kind and she has integrity. I have observed unnoticed many times as she declined to join in a group or with a friend who may be tormenting or gossiping about another. I know that she will never be one of the "mean girls" even if it means she is ostracized or lonely at times. She knows who she is and is quietly self assured. As I have mentioned before she could probably take over running our household at a moment's notice, and do a better job then I.
It warms me so much when she tells me several times a day that she loves me so much that she "does not even know what to do!". She often accompanies these declarations with what I have dubbed the "lip clamp". It is a facial expression that my sister and I have made since we were children when the extent of our love or affection for something made us want to squeeze it unsuitably hard. (Think Lennie from Of Mice and Men) We fold in our lips and squeeze them together until we can get a grip on ourselves. She does this when she tells me about her love for me, and I can't think what I have done to deserve it but it touches me deeply. I can't wait to see her do the lip clamp over my grandchildren one day. Of course, I will be doing it alongside of her.
At this time in her life, Gracie spends most of her time creating works of art as gifts for her family. She makes amazing things every day out of old shoeboxes, pieces of paper, cereal boxes and the like. She has made a soccer field for Benjamin, a car complete with steering wheel and seats for Aaron and many little boxes, purses, hearts and portraits for me. One of her other favourite things to do is to surprise her brothers or us by cleaning up our rooms and decorating them with artwork.
She is beautiful and feminine and she loves being a girl but she is not vain or wimpy. She will get down and dirty, play her heart out on the soccer field and dance very daintily at ballet. She is the most tender little mommy to all her babies and when you go into her bedroom you will find that each one has been taken care of, swaddled in a blanket and placed in its spot for a nap. Sometimes her bedroom will look like a hospital nursery with them all wrapped up in rows.
She weeps when her brothers get into trouble and begs for them to be let off from whatever consequence has been meted out. She panics if they are straggling behind when we are out, and is always first to let us know when they are not with us. She is the best sister a brother could ever have, the best daughter a parent could have and I feel so blessed to know that I have a built in best friend for life. I love you Princess! Have a wonderful year being 6!
Growing up Gracie:
1-22-02
1-22-03
1-22-04
1-22-05
1-22-06
1-22-07
1-22-08
(Sadly not the best photo as mommy and her camera were in SA but I will post a better one when she has her birthday party.)
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