Kalahari review
December 2010
19 December 2010
The night before our ‘big’ holiday.
The year 2010 was rough – we’ve lost quite a few friends and close
family members. Hein started with a new
company, so the stress levels were high.
A rest period was sorely needed.
I packed our 2 black crates – 1 with kitchen stuff and the other
with our clothes. I also packed a green
overnight bag with 3 days’ clothes & toiletries. Our dinner was venison sausage on the coals
with 1 minute mieliepap and tomato relish.
20 December 2010
Hein decided to take Sammy & Minx, our cat-daughters to their
hotel. That gave me the time to shower
and finished all the packing. Hein was
back by 8h30 – said the girls were ok cause he talked to them the whole time
and played ENYA cd to them. LOL. Think he’s just managed to acquire a new job
– cat courier. I’m usually way too
stressed and of course they feel it.
He just had to pack everything in the car and we left on our
holiday! At McDonalds we stopped for a
drive-thru breakfast, but was disappointed.
No black coffee, so we had cappuccinos.
And sausage-and-egg McMuffins – not my favourite, I prefer the
burger. But the cappuccino was nice.
En route to Kuruman, we only stopped to stretch our legs, visit the
toilet and had sandwiches for lunch.
Our destination – Springbokpan Guest Farm, 6 km from Botswana
border. (www.springbokpan.co.za - Frikkie &
Ans du Preez, 072 323 4969 – R420/night/chalet, meals extra
– dinner R110 pp & breakfast R65 pp – a bit expensive.) At Kuruman we phoned the Guest Farm to ask if
they want anything from the shops – but they didn’t answer. Phoned all the numbers I have, got no answer
and started to be a bit worried.
At last I got hold of Ans, the owner’s wife but the signal was
bad. It was 183 km to Springbokpan,
100km gravel road. Halfway there, we realized we should have filled up on fuel.
But we drove on. Just before 5 pm
we arrived at Springbokpan.
Our ‘chalet’ was a converted park home – lovely big bedroom with
double bed, aircon and cupboard. A tiny
kitchenette and a separate toilet with basin.
The base was a brick foundation and the roof thatch. We were the only ones there. The ablution block was 2 full bathrooms for
gents and ladies. Ours had a cute
hippopotamus painted on the door. It was
decorated in orange and I especially loved the shower double curtain – inside
the normal shower curtain, outside orange organza curtain.
After I’ve unpacked the overnight bag and steam ironed our clothes (Verimark
gadget – absolutely amazing), we relaxed in the shade with a cold beer and cold
drink. It was pure relaxation – silence,
with only birds as company.
Just before 7pm we showered and walked to the main building –
restaurant, pub, kitchen, guest rooms and also their home. After another cold drink, we had dinner.
Tortilla wraps with tuna mayo as starter,
lamb chops, chicken drumsticks, green bean stew, sweet potatoes, rice, crispy
potatoes, beetroot & carrot salad as main.
Ice cream with toffee sauce for dessert.
Tummies full, we walked back, brushed our teeth and slept.
21 December 2010
Awoke at 5h35 – although the sun wasn’t up yet, it was bright
outside. While Hein took some photos, I
made coffee. Instant, cause I forgot the
filter coffee. (In 2009 we went to a
bush camp without electricity with Carla & Jan, my youngest sis and her
boyfriend, for 4 days. I searched the
shops for coffee bags with the least chicory in. When I complained about the taste of it,
Carla asked why I didn’t pack my plunger and real filter coffee. I was stumped.) And Carla sms’d me the previous day to ask if
I’ve packed the plunger – but forgot to ask if I had the coffee. LOL.
Under the trees a lovely breeze rustled the trees and birds chased
each other. I decided to only use the
‘cold tap’ in the shower – lukewarm more like it. Breakfast started with muesli and yoghurt,
slap pap (I added fresh tomato & green pepper cubes with grated cheese),
toast, bacon, chicken Viennas, 3 bean salad with crushed pineapple (definitely
something to remember for future salads) and eggs.
Ans had an ice cube maker and delivers ice to 3 shops in Botswana. If there were enough ice, we would drive to
Tsonga in Botswana, 24 km from Springbokpan.
Luckily I’ve packed our passports.
At the chalet, we read and dozed.
A message was sent that we won’t be going to Botswana that day. Tinned kernel
corn and lentils was our lunch. Yum.
When we woke up after our afternoon nap, we discovered 2 tents
pitched close by. The single guy,
Yeandre, traveled with his bike and small tent – from his home in Malmesbury
to Namibia
to wherever his nose leads him. The
other couple from Roodepoort, Nico & Magda, were on their way to Botswana
with a 2x4 bakkie and a small tent.
At 6pm, Ans arrived and we all clambered on the bakkie for a game
drive. The only giraffe was spotted,
lots of different buck and even some small jackals. At the jackals’ hole we stopped to look for
cubs – and Connie, the dog, nearly disappeared in the hole. We had to pull him out by his leg.
Ans had arranged for a braai and everyone joined in. Fernando, Ans’s son and his girlfriend Nadia
braaied the meat. Hein especially
enjoyed the company and we had a lovely time. Fish fingers for starters. There
were sheep’s’ ribs, chops, potato salad, green salad, beetroot, pumpkin dish
and water melon as dessert. We were
surprised to find it close to 11pm when we climbed into bed.
22 December 2010
Today we slept late!
6h30. Hein went for a quick
shower while I fixed coffee. Again we
had a lovely breeze outside. Breakfast
was left-over braaivleis, scrambled eggs, bacon, chicken nuggets, toast &
tomato slices. Ans said the ice maker
did its job and we would leave for Botswana around 11. At the chalet we chilled, read a bit and then
I packed my hat, suntan lotion, our passports and cold water for our trip.
Hein was the designated driver with me as front passenger and Ans in
the back. The fridge on the back was
filled with 2,5 kg bags of ice. At the
SA customs, we went through quickly.
However at the Botswana
customs, Ans had to produce forms for ‘importing’ and we were there for a
little while. It was already quite hot
outside, but thankfully the aircon worked perfectly in the office.
At last we were through with documentation – only to have trouble
starting the bakkie. Hein just couldn’t
get it to start – when Ans tried it started immediately. We had a giggle over it.
The trees and shrubs were lovely and green on our way to Tsonga –
lots of goats greeted us along the way.
In Tsonga, we drove to the 1 shop, delivered the ice and again struggled
with the bakkie. Then Hein discovered
the trick with the key and everything was ok.
At the next stop we delivered more ice and then onto Shoppers
(similar to Shoprite Checkers). What a
lovely big supermarket – clean and spacious.
I was feeling a bit peckish, so bought some ‘slap’ (soft deep-fried)
chips and buns to make ‘katkop’ (cat head – don’t know why it’s called that,
but we had it plenty in our student days.)
Ans went to the Pep Stores across from Shoppers and I assembled our
lunch. With vinegar and tomato sauce it
was a lovely treat. Ans had quite a
laugh because she’s never had that before – and not while driving in a bakkie either.
Our drive back was hot, but not unbearably so. A nap was in order in the lovely cold bedroom
and we woke up at 5pm. Hein played us
some lovely music on his new toy, Applemac laptop, and then we showered for
dinner.
Although we were early, Hein played some more music and Frikkie
joined us. Hein played some lovely
Afrikaans music and we reminisced over older days. Dinner was sheep ribs, chicken breasts, crisp
potatoes, pumpkin & sweet potato dish and chocolate tart with custard for
dessert. After we’ve paid our meals, we said goodbye to Ans & Frikkie. We
slept soundly.
At 5am we woke, quickly packed everything, showered and by 5h50 am we were on the road to Kuruman. With only 200 km’s worth of diesel in our tank. Close to Kuruman, we asked Lizzie (our GPS) to indicate the nearest fuel station. She took us on a detour through a neighbourhood and by that time, we were driving 40km/hour – nerves on end, cause the car was driving on diesel fumes …. I had my AA card ready to phone for assistance. We pulled in at the station and filled the car – only to discover we still had 2 litres of diesel left! Phew, that was a close one.
After that adrenaline rush, we desperately needed some coffee and
sustenance. At the Pick ‘n Pay centre Hein
stopped to withdrew money and I spotted a coffee lounge. I ordered 2 Americano’s (explaining first how
to make it) and then Hein had savoury mince on toast with egg and I had a
savoury mince omelette. Funny how
savoury mince can not be savoury at all.
Onwards to Upington. Our idea
was to buy all the groceries in Upington – but our little car was already
packed to the roof, so we only bought the basics for 1 day. Hein went to Trappers Trading for some new
outdoor sandals and I went to Edgars to buy bath sheet towels. Experience has taught us that in chalets
towels are normally only big enough to cover the bum.
From Upington we drove 80 km to our next holiday destination, (20 km
smooth gravel road), Khamkirri Resort (www.khamkirri.co.za
082 821 6649 – R550/night), right on the banks of the Orange
River.
Details on our open-plan chalet were quite sparse on their website,
so I’ve phoned them a few times with questions.
2 Days before we left Johannesburg,
I phoned again and asked if there was a cupboard. Nope.
Off to Outdoor Warehouse to buy a camp cupboard.
At the chalet, I was shocked but not altogether surprised to find
there was no storage whatsoever – not even for groceries. The bathroom has a shower,
toilet and basin and luckily enough shelves for toiletries. In the main area there is a double bed, a
single bed mattress on a concrete base, a small fridge and then a concrete
counter with small oven-cum-stove and kettle.
Cutlery consists of 2 knives, 2 steak knives, 4 forks, 2 dessert spoons,
2 teaspoons, 1 serving spoon, 1 tin opener, braai tongs. 1 Pan, 1 medium pot and 1 braai dish. No aircon, but a air cooler (just like a
fan).
First I packed the few cans I brought from home with plunger and
basic groceries on the concrete bench.
Then I hung our shirts/blouses in the camp wardrobe with a few shelves
for undies. The rest of our clothes went
into one of our black crates on top of the single bed with more heaps of
clothes next to it. As well as our stack
of books. My earrings I hung on the
chicken wire of one window.
The patio is lovely with a bamboo roof, ‘pub’ table and seating,
braai and dishwashing sink. All 6
windows of the chalet are covered in mesh and chicken wire and closed with Velcro
canvas ‘sheets’.
The river is about 5 m from the patio. ‘Wingerdstokkies’ (vine stumps) were bought
at reception, so Hein made a lovely fire and we had chicken pieces and opened a
box of pasta salad.
After our early
dinner, we walked to the bar over a suspension bridge – very slowly – had a
drink, watched the sunset from their patio and walked back.
24 December 2010
At 3 am I awoke – could hear something was in our rubbish bin,
looking for the chicken bones. I only
went back to sleep at 4h30.
At 6 am, we got up, had lovely filter plunger coffee and sat outside
admiring the fresh Kalahari world. With
groceries still on our to-do-list, we showered and headed back to
Upington. After a quick breakfast at a
coffee shop, I tackled the Pick ‘n Pay. Bought
most of the things, except for tinned corn, peas, samp and paper plates. Hein went to CNA to buy my xmas present and
then took over the shopping. I was on my
way to Game for some CD’s for Hein, when my eye caught this Crazy Shop. Inside I went and what did I find –
flycatchers, paper plates, xmas tinsel, xmas crackers, a net food dome,
dishwashing gloves, collapsible storage boxes and some hangers.
At the butcher, we bought a lovely deboned leg of lamb, mince,
sausages, chops and steak. On our way back
to the chalet, we stopped at the little town Kakamas, 22 km from
Khamkirri. The OK looked swamped, but we
persevered. Wow, I found all the stuff I
still needed – tinned corn, peas, 1 min porridge and paper plates.
With a bag of washing, we stopped at the reception to hand it
in. Ida asked if everything was ok and I
mentioned the lack of storage. She
promised to bring us another camp wardrobe.
For lunch Hein braaied some boerewors, heated up buns and I made a
tomato relish on the stove. I spooned the
left-over relish into a Ziploc bag and refrigerate it. For most of the afternoon, we read and relaxed
– with bags of tinned goods waiting to be unpacked. We opened our pressies.
I got a lovely book from Patricia Cornwall and a pocket Italian/English
dictionary. Hmm, guess Italy’s on our
bucket list for next year! Hein got 3
music CD’s. Temperature of about 35 oC.
The camp hanging w ardrobe was delivered.
So I steam ironed our
shirts/blouses and hung them in there. I
used our shelved camp wardrobe as pantry the storage boxes from Crazy
Shop for bread, chips and paper plates.
The 2 black crates then turned into storage for our clothes (yuck, I
HATE living out of a bag/crate). BUT at
least everything had its place – Hein was now very happy, cause I can stop my
moaning (LOL) and I was extremely happy cause the c halet was organized. Even my
bread, buns & tortillas was placed alphabetically … NOT!
By the time I was finished organising everything, I was
knackered. So we only had left-over
chicken from the previous night and sweetcorn. The evenings are too fabulous –
so we sat in the dark just relaxing.
25 December 2010
Xmas day. The neighbours woke
us before 5 with their conversations on cellphone, so we had a lovely cuppa and watched the sunrise. Now have a close look at the patch of grass
on the photo left – later on I’ll show a photo of that very same spot …
Hein lit the fire for breakfast and our other neighbour, Jasper,
came over to say hi. Breakfast was
boerewors with buns and tomato relish. I
did the dishes, we phoned our parents, send sms’s to family & friends and
then we tackled our books. Hein was busy
with Prey, Michael Crichton, and I started with Patricia Cornwall. This dry weather played havoc with our
sinuses.
Lunch was deboned leg of lamb with Portuguese spices on the braai
(with Hein reading his book while watching the lamb), cooked jacked potatoes
with cheese and a ‘salad’ of tinned vegs & mayo.
I decorated the table with an African tablecloth, xmas tinsel, the
crackers and paper serviettes folded into a bishops’ hat. Or close to it, anyway.
It was a lovely meal!!! The
temperature was very high, although still not unbearable. The afternoon was spent mostly reading and
sweating. Around 4h30pm it was still 41
oC!!
Our dessert was a Pick ‘n Pay xmas pudding with box custard. Yum!
When it cooled down a bit, we walked to the pub and met up with our
neighbour Jasper & his wife, Marietjie.
He travels all over with his work and had many stories to tell. When I mentioned paper plates, he nearly fell
off his chair. No, no, he said. I will only eat from ceramic plates – and
only white ones. No other colour or
decorated plate will do, I will rather starve, he said.
Frikkie the barman is a student from Stellenbosch, so we had a
lovely time chatting with him. Hein
ordered more firewood and we walked back.
Later on we went over to Jasper’s chalet and chatted for a while.
I excused myself and made lovely sandwiches from the leftover leg of
lamb and cheese. I tried to read in bed,
but my reading light attracted all the little bugs, so I turned it off and
slept.
26 December 2010
At 1h30am I awoke – and felt the whole building tremble. Hein said I was dreaming.
Before 6 we got up, Hein went to try his fishing luck in the river
while I made coffee. The river has risen considerably, cause the Gariep Dam’s sluices
have been opened. Hein said the river was too fast for fishing.
With a new supply of firewood, Hein lit the fire, I made us some
tomato relish & cheese sandwiches – and we toasted them. Pure heaven!
We have also decided to close all the windows today – maybe it will make
a difference to the sweat-factor.
As we talked about travelling, we decided to take Italian lessons
when we’re back home – and save money for a trip to Tuscany next year. I grabbed one of my books, Tasting Tuscany,
and found a chapter on a seaside Tuscany
town. That’s a sign, I said to
Hein. When I Googled accommodation in
that town, I found a hotel, 50 m from the sea with a room for 85 euro per
day.
Hein suggested I start my holiday review on his laptop, so that’s
what I’ve been doing for the past hour …
For lunch Hein braaied rump steak and boerewors. I made ‘1 min stywe pap’ and mixed it with
last night’s leftover veg and topped it with cubed cheese, it melted and was
lovely. I only had boerewors and pap,
cause I’m not a big steak fan.
Later the afternoon, we went to watch cri cket in the lounge area, but the game was stopped because of bad
light. At the pub we chatted with
Frikkie, the barman, and other people.
I decided we should have tortilla quesadillas for dinner.
Hein lit the fire, I spread tomato paste on a
tortilla, placed cubes of leftover steak on it, sprinkled it with pepper and
cheese and topped with another tortilla.
Hein then bbq’d it in a closed grid for few minutes. It was absolutely smashing and what a great
idea for a quick snack. You can
literally put any filling in.
Tiredness overcame us and we went to bed.
27 December 2010
The alarm went off at 5 am.
We made coffee, had a rusk, showered and drove to Augrabies Falls. Just before 7 we entered the gate. It was spectacular.
A few years ago the falls didn’t have a lot of water – this time it
was a show.
Afterwards we went to the restaurant for breakfast. Although they only had a few waiters, their
menu was good and we had a lovely breakfast with coffee.
On our way back, we stopped at the Desert Raisin stall. I bought some fat raisins and some
interesting snacks, ‘pineapple cores’. They
are dried and sugared pineapple cores.
Absolutely smashing!
Along the way, we also stopped at ‘Die Pienk Padstal’ (The Pink Farm
Stall). As the name suggests, the
décor’s pink. I especially loved the
pink gemstones on the ground and the water feature made with watering cans.
At the camp, we informed reception about some problems at the chalet
and read at the chalet.
After a late morning snooze, it was just too hot to bother with
cooking, so we had Weetbix with milk for lunch.
Dinner was nicely marinated chops, boerewors, Chinese style rice, tinned
corn and tinned peas. It was 40 degrees
at 6h45pm. The river was still
rising.
After a luke-warm shower (not even the cold water is cold), I felt a
bit better. I made the quick 4 minute
Chinese style rice, but it tasted a bit funny so we threw it out. But the tinned corn & peas were
lovely! At 8pm we were in bed, but it
was extremely hot and we battled to sleep. At midnight I woke up, had some cold
water and after 2 we had another earthquake.
This time Hein felt it too.
28 December 2010
At 5 the alarm went off, but we snoozed till 6. Made coffee, showered and dressed and went
for our quad bike game drive. But with
the rising river, they had problems transporting the personnel over the waters,
so were delayed. We went back to the
chalet, made more coffee and I suggested we make cowboy food.
Hein lit the fire, used a pan and fried bully beef, then added baked
beans & tomato relish. On the grid
he toasted bread slices. It was a feast
for kings! We enjoy it with our
favourite ‘salad sauce’, Habanero sauce.
After we read a bit and chilled, we drove to Upington for some
much-needed fresh vegetables. First we
decided on lunch at Le Must – and guess what I had? Baked sheep’s head! My first – and it was an item on my bucket
list for quite a while now. It was
really tasty.
Why did I want to eat it?
I just did – and it really tasted like leg of lamb!
Knowing there’s a Woolworths, we stopped there, but found it didn’t
have food, so we drove to Pick ‘n Pay.
After buying the groceries, Hein bought ice and more water and we drove
back. It was 45 oC.
Read and tried to take a nap at the chalet. I made a green salad for
dinner, but it didn’t cool off during evening, so we just had weetbix for
dinner.
Sleep was difficult in the heat.
29 December 2010
Up at 5am, had coffee and a rusk, showered and dressed for the quad
bike game drive at 7. They gave me the
biggest one cause it was easiest to manoeuvre.
I made a few circles to try it out and then we were off. I managed to keep the petrol button
steady. We saw lots of Springbok as w ell as a baby springbok. Blesbok, small-built elande, zebra and the
trail of a very big iguana. The sun was
up but not hot. At 2 places I had a mild
attack of panic – we didn’t wear helmets and there were loose rocks in the road,
but otherwise I actually quite enjoyed it.
After an hour, we returned to the camp.
After that adrenaline rush, Hein lit the fire and we had yummy
boerewors on Panini rolls. It was quite
cooler today, only 39 oC. Hein started
to read ‘The girl with the dragon tattoo – Stieg Larsson) and was enjoying
it. I started Harlan Coben, ‘Darkest
Fear’.
For lunch we just warmed up the left-over boerewors and had some
leftover tinned corn & peas with it.
Although we don’t really trust the tap water, we have bought a filter
waterbag-thingie and used that for boiled kettle water. For drinking, we buy bottled water. And drank lots of it. I tried to at least have a litre, but
yesterday we had probably 2 litres each.
A nap in the cooler weather.
For dinner, we decided to go to the Khamkirri restaurant. I showered, dressed and we took our books
along. At the outside pub, I ordered an
ice cream wafer and then ate off the wafers.
Then I ordered a tall glass, a shot of ‘ietsie (something), which turned
out to be Tequila and a tin of Strawberry Sparletta. A float with a kick. It was delicious!!!
The menu is very limited for the restaurant so we opted for chicken
schnitzel, chips & salad. The tables
are laid outside on the deck and we had a lovely big Greek salad as
starter. The schnitzel and chips were
enjoyed with a nice monkey gland sauce.
At the chalet, we continued to read in the nice and colder
weather. Hein had trouble sleeping
again, not even Rescue Remedy helped for the hot weather.
30 December 2010
Up just after 5 am and it was amazingly cool outside. Even now, 09h15, it’s only 26 oC. After 2 cups of coffee, Hein said he doesn’t
feel like weetbix for breakfast. (The
neighbours had bacon for breakfast and that made him hungry.) With 4 tortilla wraps left, I spread tomato
relish on them with black pepper and cheese and we grilled them on the
fire. Hein also opened a can of Viennas
(only 10g/100g fat) and we had a feast.
With the canvas-curtains on the windows, it’s actually hotter in the
chalet than outside.
Glimpsing at our car, Hein discovered it had a flat tyre. Oh dear!
I asked him if he can still remember how to change a tyre. He just laughed and said we’ll have to
see.
Lunch for me was tuna with Greek salad. Hein had tinned Viennas later on.
Dinner was made in 5 minutes.
Ainsley Harriot’s couscous, heated-up bully beef and tinned corn &
peas. Another hot night for Hein.
31 December 2010
While Hein was sleeping late, I sat outside when I felt
raindrops. A light rain fell in bursts. Now
remember – this is Kalahari. It’s desert
– it doesn’t rain here. We made coffee, showered and Hein stopped at the
reception to fix the tyre. A nail was
embedded firmly in it. After a while it
was fixed and we went to Vergelegen coffee shop for breakfast. Luckily I remembered from years ago their
portions, so I only ordered a half portion of tramezinni with salami, feta
cheese & avo. Wow, the portion was
huge! Hein had an omelette with bacon,
cheese & peppers.
At Kakamas, we bought some stuff at the OK, thankfully it wasn’t
very busy. At the Deli, a liquor store
that also stocked meat, we bought 2 packets of boerewors. When Hein asked for ice, she replied it was
too hot to make ice. And there’s nowhere
you would find any.
We drove to the other liquor store and found ice. Hahaha.
Hein told me to have a look at the cute coffee shop. I went inside, had a look around, bought the Plum magazine with very nice recipes and 2 Magnum ice
creams. Back to the chalet.
The rain has been falling on and off, but in the afternoon it
started to fall heavy and thunder was heard too. The resort planned to have braais out for
people to use with music, etc.
At 8pm we drove there, but reached a part of the road leading to the
reception area that collapsed.
It was
still raining heavy, so we went back to the chalet, Hein lit the fire and we managed
to braai chops & boerewors on our own.
I wanted to make a nice dessert, something like trifle, but didn’t
have cake. So I improvised with Marie biscuits.
I used a 1 litre lunch box and started with 2 layers of Marie biscuits, then I put a layer of drained
crushed pineapples, some black pitted cherries, some Ideal Milk, custard and
repeated the layers. I could barely
close the lid and thought it was a touch-and-go dessert. After a while in the fridge, I took it out
and wow!! It tasted like a
tiramisu!! What a success.
Hein and I were now both busy with Stieg Larsson’s books, me on the
1st one, Hein on the 2nd.
We read till 22h30.
With the colder weather, we had a lovely night’s rest.
1 January 2011
It’s a new year!!! As usual,
I woke around 5h30. Made coffee and was
‘shocked’ to see the level of the river - below 1st pic was taken on 23 December - the 2nd pic below was 9 days later ... and then
we walked around to check the damage. It
was bad.
There was a Corsa who couldn’t pass the damaged road, although we think
he tried. His bumper was loose.
Hein walked to the bridge again and saw that they were trying to fix
another road to cross over.
We both sat down and read. I
had some Liquorice Allsorts sweets, Hein had beer and I made him a cheese &
cucumber sandwich. (When I started 2
years ago to watch our fat intake, I’ve eliminated butter/margarine from my
sandwiches. But have sometimes continued
to use it on Hein’s.) Sometime during
this holiday, Hein remarked that he thinks he can live without butter/margarine
on sandwiches.
I had some camp trifle and am just so amazed at the outcome of this
simple dessert. Can’t wait to try out
different ‘coffee’ versions of my ‘camp
tiramisu’ at home.
Hein is swiftly reading through his 2nd book, I’m ¾ with
my 1st. It’s a race. It’s lovely and cool.
After 4pm, I showered and we walked to the restaurant. We read our books and had dinner at 7. Spare ribs & salad for me, steak (med
rare), chips & salad for Hein. I
don’t know how they manage to have perfect lettuce every time I’ve had salad so
far … once I’ve opened a bag of lettuce, I cannot seem to preserve it. The spare ribs were great and Hein’s steak
perfect! The food is really good.
We walked back to the chalet before the dark catches us. With all this rain, red ants were
everywhere. They climb on your feet as
you walk and man, can they bite! I did
several jigs in the air and sprinted for a few metres. Ok, I’ve just had my exercise after my
dinner. Hahaha.
By now my 1st book is finished, so I’m waiting anxiously
for Hein to finish the 2nd one.
But when I read something else, the insects were drawn to our little
reading light. No fun at all.
2 January 2011
We slept late. Only woke
after 6. I had a lovely night’s sleep;
Hein said he rolled around a bit. It’s
still lovely and cool outside.
So far, we’ve been on holiday for 2 weeks. And just to show how tired Hein must have
been … every single previous holiday,
after the 3rd day, Hein would start to get antsy and talk about
cutting the holiday short. After 2
weeks, he hasn’t made any such comments.
While we drank coffee outside, I noticed that the river seems to be
lower. Hein has started the 3rd
and final book … woohoo! I quickly did
the dishes outside, made us some more coffee and just sat and thought about the
colour of my new study (we are seriously thinking of buying a slightly bigger
house).
Hein mentioned a lack of breakfast options (meaning bacon,
boerewors, etc), so I suggested we make toasted cheese sandwiches. He immediately lit the fire.
With the last 4 slices of bread I used cherry tomatoes & cheddar
cheese for sandwiches, with a little bit of mayo. Then I also opened a tin of Viennas and we
warmed it on the grill.
I showered and then we both went back to our books. It was still cool, but managed to go up to
35oC.
Lunch was tuna for Hein and rusks and coffee for me. And yogurt as dessert. Hein has taken out the other half of deboned
leg of lamb for dinner. With Provencal
rub, he braaied it on the coals. I
cooked potatoes in their skin, steamed green beans and we enjoyed it with feta
cheese.
The flies are seriously bothering us. Maybe the flies have all hatched with the
funny weather. How can nothing affect
them? Even the hanging fly catchers are
not a match for them. Yuck. When it got dark outside, we sat on the bed
and read.
One more day left, then Kimberley.
Tinned apricots, custard and Ideal Milk
for dessert.
3 January 2011
Our last full day at Khamkirri resort. We’re ready to move on. While having coffee, the flies were already
starting to pester us. Yuck!
Hein has lit the fire – one of his last ones for this Kalahari holiday.
We had a delightful thin boerewors. I made 1 minute stywe pap and
tomato relish. It was absolutely
delicious with slices of cheese.
To hand in our last bundle of washing, we showered, took our books
along and watched cricket. We then
decided to have lunch there – I had again the chicken schnitzel, Hein had a
hamburger & chips.
I’m absolutely CRAVING chicken – chicken schnitzel just doesn’t do
it for me! Hmmm, that lovely crisp
outside from the fire, the juicy thighs and wings …… Kalahari is just meat
world!!
We walked back to the chalet and read our books. I started to pack
most of the stuff and somehow it felt that we’ve got more things than when we
arrived … weird.
When it ‘cooled down’ a bit (35 oC), Hein lit the fire for our last
meal at the chalet. Lamb chops with tinned mixed beans and tinned
peas. I had yogurt for dessert.
Hein really battled to sleep because of the heat. He turned and tossed and at some stage I
mumbled at him for disturbing me. I’ve
set the alarm for 5am, but decided to rather set it for 6. When I asked Hein, he said he got to sleep at
about 12, which meant he got about 5-6 hours’ sleep in.
4 January 2011
With Ricoffy, Cremora & milk I made our final 2 Kalahari-on-the-river
coffees. Outside, we had a last long
look at the river while sipping the coffee.
During our last grocery trip, Hein had bought wild bird seed. All of a sudden he noticed that where he used
to spread the seeds for the birds, grass was sprouting. We giggled – there may be a ‘lawn’ soon.
After we showered, we finally packed up everything and left. Just outside the gate of Khamkirri, we found
the road flooded with water – luckily a lorry passed by and we watched the
water level closely. Then we drove
through slowly.
At Upington, we drove to Bi-Lo Bistro/Coffee shop/Supermarket. A lovely spot – the décor is quirky and
ingenious. In the garden they have a Koi
pond (our spot with a view of the sea) and the cutest umbrellas over the
tables. Look almost like an upside down
farm dam. Old galvanised baths are
mounted against the wall.
I wanted to order something ‘different’, but at the lack of that, I
ordered a pita with bacon, egg, cheese & sauce inside. Yum.
Hein had a SA breakfast. Hein
didn’t pack a jeans, so we decided to slip into Edgars for a pair and also to
buy another overnight bag for our (or I suppose mostly my) stuff. He also bought some casual shoes at Trappers
Trading.
With tummies full, we started our 3rd leg of our holiday
to Kimberley.
From Upington, it’s 375km.
Passed Groblershoop. At
Griquastad we thought we’ll buy a sandwich for lunch, but everything looked
dodgy. The next little town, Campbell,
was an hour’s drive from Kimberley. Every single shop in this tiny town was
closed – siesta maybe?
We arrived in Kimberley
at 14h15. I’ve searched on the GPS and
found they had a McDonalds. With a quick
QP Burger lunch, we repacked our (now 2) overnight bags and drove on to The
Kimberley Club (www.kimberleyclub.co.za
- (0)53 832 4224) where we were booked for 2 nights. It really looked luxurious
on their website. As the GPS took us on
the route, she indicated that there were only 250m left to our destination –
and we were in a ‘dodgy’ part of town.
My heart nearly jumped out my throat.
It just couldn’t be! We were
paying a massive R1550/night (without breakfast) so hell’s bells, it must be
something!
As we turned the corner, things looked a little better. We parked at the 24hr secured parking spot
and found the porter waiting there. (hmm, things are looking better!)
The Kimberley Club was founded in August 1881. Leading men of Kimberley wanted a meeting place along the lines of London clubs where they could enjoy a drink or two, good food and the company of their peers, in comfort, away from the dust and dryness of the diggings. Cecil John Rhodes was the prime mover in the founding of the Club.
Old word charm all the way. Our suite was the Cecil John Rhodes’
suite.
Our room was on the 1st floor with windows overlooking
the courtyard. Splashing out a bit,
meant an executive suite. A big bathroom
with roll-top bath (can’t wait to try it out), big shower, toilet and bathroom
cabinets.
Spacious bedroom with big bed and air conditioner! Yeah!! Cupboards and 2 comfy chairs. The lounge is decorated with 2 armchairs, a
couch, an armoire & chair and another card table and 2 chairs. The TV cabinet hosts a TV with satellite dish
and mini-bar with very reasonable prices.
Hein immediately opened a cold beer.
Although we couldn’t open a door onto a balcony or courtyard, we
were happy. A lovely patio downstairs run the length of the guesthouse.
I unpacked everything and
fussed about having to iron some of it – Hein mentioned we’re only here for 1
full day. Hmmff. I need to have choice. And one never knows what you have to dress
for!
With everything in its place, we dressed comfortably and Hein sat
down on the couch, checked his emails and watched cricket.
After 6, Hein first took a leisurely bath, and then I did. We dressed for dinner and had a drink first
in the bar. It’s really an old
gentleman’s club atmosphere! The barman
guessed a gin & tonic for me and then gave me a double!
Our order for dinner was taken.
When our starters were ready, they called us. I had snails with blue cheese & bacon on
phyllo pastry (quite rich but delightful), Hein had bean soup with rolls. Pork belly roast was Hein’s main choice and
that really was divine! My choice was
lemon & poppy seed-coated Cape
Salmon on potatoes and
peppers. Absolutely lovely. I threw caution to the wind and ordered
lavender crème Bruleé with black coffee.
Yum!
With the aircon in the room, we thought we’ll have a lovely night’s
rest, but unfortunately it blew right on the bed and was unpleasant. Without the aircon, and for some reason we
didn’t open the windows, it was stifling in the room. Hein went to watch TV in the lounge. After midnight, I woke up and it was so hot
in the room. We opened the windows and
slept on.
5 January 2011
After 5 am we woke, made some coffee and relaxed. Just before 7, we showered and went down for
breakfast. At R75/person it’s a bit overprized
– cereals, yoghurts, stewed fruit, pastries, jams, cheeses and fruit. Then you can choose some hot breakfast. I just had toast, cheeses, stewed fruit &
yoghurt. Hein had the healthy breakfast,
poached haddock with eggs & mushrooms.
Years ago we were going to see the Big Hole, but when they told us
R50/person, we thought it too much and turned around. It was now the time to go see it. After a roundabout drive with our GPS, who
could only say left left left, we finally found the way.
The
Big Hole - 150 years ago, the site of
the Big Hole was a featureless, flat-topped hill. When word spread that
diamonds had been discovered, thousands of prospectors, armed with nothing
more than more than picks, shovels and hope, descended on Kimberley and created the largest hand-dug
excavation in the world.
|
Digging
commenced at the
Digging commended at the Kimberley mine site in 1871. By the time
mining ended on 14 August 1914, the
mine had yielded 2722 kilograms of diamonds, extracted from 22,5 million tons
of excavated earth. Today what remains is a massive crater 214 meters deep with
a surface area of 17 hectares and a
perimeter of 1,6 km.
Somehow they have very poor parking directions – the one moment you
see a sign for the Big Hole’s parking, the next you have
nothing. We drove around for a bit,
found it and parked.
It’s quite cute – they’ve preserved the initial ‘town’ and
it’s really quaint.
For R65/person we bought
a package deal – (look at the Big Hole, watched a 20 min movie and went down
the mine.) We had a look at the Big Hole
from a lookout point.
With no pillars beneath it, the platform swayed as people walked on
it. After a very creatively-made 20 min
film about the origin of Kimberley,
we went down an elevator down in the mine. It was a modern elevator, but creaked soo much
and it felt like we were going down metres and metres. Walking through a tunnel, there
were whistles and banging and the lights dimmed for a while.
Very effective. After a while, we exited the tunnel and were
back at the ticket desk. So we’ve only
been down 1 floor!
A few shops were around – coffee shop, a few diamond shops and a
gift shop. I looked around but nothing
caught my fancy, so I didn’t buy anything.
At the Australian Arms Pub Hein had a cold beer, while I had water. Looking at their menu, I nearly fainted when
I saw one item: baby chicken stuffed
with bacon & pine nuts. I didn’t order it, but I’m so going to try that at
home: I’ll make a stuffing of bread
crumbs, bacon, celery & pine nuts.
At Clicks we bought a Glomail ‘gadget’ for cracked heels – Hein’s heels
were a bit rough after walking in sandals for 2 weeks. It looks like a grater.
At the hotel, we read for a bit, then Hein went to buy us some KFC. A twister (so-so) for me and a Zinger burger
for him. He said it had quite a
zing. Then he used the ‘gadget’ on his
heels – wow, for R100 it really worked!!!
After a while, most of the cracks disappeared completely. With some cream, his heels were in top shape
again.
Into the last quarter of my 3rd book of Stieg Larsson, I
was flying through it. Hein had a nap,
watched cricket and started to plan for 2011’s business. Finally I closed the book – wow, rarely do
you have 3 books with so much action and suspense in it! Absolutely worth it, can’t wait to see the
movies now.
Hein soaked in the bath with music on his computer. Our last night of the holiday.
This time for dinner, Hein ordered the snails for starter and pork
stroganoff on fettuccini for main. My
choice was a butternut & lentil Bobotie and dessert – a meringue nest,
filled with Amarula-flavoured white chocolate mousse, topped with chocolate
sauce, a cherry and some grenadella sauce.
Double yum!!!!
Just after we went to bed, I heard all these ‘pops’ outside in the
streets. Although it didn’t have an echo
(which meant bullets) and I didn’t hear police sirens, I was still a bit
worried. Suppose it was just a very big
party.
6 January 2011
At 6am we woke up, packed and checked out of the hotel. We arrived back home at 12. As soon as we unpacked everything from the
car, I drove straight to Woolworths, bought some cooked drumstick-and-thigh
portions and a salad. I ripped into that
chicken like you won’t believe!
Hein went to fetch our cat-girls while I unpacked everything. It felt good to be back home again. The cats inspected the house for a few hours,
then we all settled down.
It truly was one of the most relaxing and enjoyable holidays ever.
0000000
Note: When we left Khamkirri Resort on the 4th
January, the water level of the river went down. Sadly after that, the whole
Upington-Kakamas-Keimoes area has been declared a disaster area. Below are photos of the Augrabies Falls
as well as the Khamkirri Resort.
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