You remember my story about sis Carla and boyfriend Jan from Perth
visiting in October? And we stayed at
Hengelaarsvriend? (http://www.goingwhere.co.za/hengelaarsvriend) So this story continues …
Check some photos:
Monday 29 October 2018
Carla and Jan slept in Kimberley the Sunday
night … Hein has quite a few meetings this Monday – and we’re to book in at
Hengelaarsvriend around 2pm.
With that in mind, I packed the 1 plastic crate
for the kitchen on Sunday night. At the
Hengelaarsvriend cabins they only have a 2 plate stove and a tin kettle – it
takes FOREVER AND A DAY to boil water!!!
So my 1st item to pack was our electric kettle and 2 thermo
flasks. Early Monday morning we woke,
had coffee and then I quickly packed the other black plastic crate with
clothes, towels and toilet bags. AND
goodness … DID I MANAGE TO PACK ONLY A FEW STUFF!!!! I also decided not to pack any food at
all. Only my delicious homemade chilli
sauce and some spreads … this time around I didn’t even plan all the meals
ahead of time. Except for the potjie
we’re planning to make – but I only needed some spices – the meat will be
bought at the Roodeplaat Spar.
Hein loaded my Terios with the camp table, the
2 plastic crates, the potjie and our 4 camping chairs. I squeezed in the medicine box and some odds
and ends around the crates. Just after
6am Hein left. I checked my packing
list, made sure I had packed most of the stuff and then packed my gym bag. I grabbed the gift bag with Banoo’s candy
poster and with a packed vehicle, drove to the gym for the 7h15 class.
One of our aqua friends, a lovely Indian lady
Banoo, was turning 70 on Wednesday 31 October.
Quite a few ladies contributed money and then I suggested we make Banoo
a ‘candy poster’. My friend Ant actually
showed me 1 and then it just snowballed from there …. Normally a candy poster
is an A1 poster card. You write a
message to the birthday person but instead of some words, you stick a candy …
eg: turning 70 is nothing to snickers about. So you would stick a Snickers bar in that
space and with a black felt pen, scratch out the ‘s’. And: Your
bones will start to crunch (add candy
bar).
You get the drift? But the original candy posters are all made
with overseas candy … yes, you can buy them at the sweet shop next to Milky
Lane in Montecasino, but at R30/candy … bit steep. So I walked around the Pick ‘n Pay and took
note of our local candy bars. Got quite
a few interesting ones, wrote my own story for Banoo around it … but then I
thought … this A1 poster card will be a bit ‘floppy’ and not practical.
A lever arch file popped into my mind. At Heathway Centre, close to Cresta, there’s
this fabulous PNA shop – browsing through their A4 sized lever arch files, I
found this gorgeous Indian décor-inspired file … it had a picture of pink
fabric, white lace, gold gemstones and a tassel. Then I bought plastic A4 sleeves and A4 card
sheets … in gold, purple and pink. Some
‘gemstone’ stickers and ‘lace’ stickers completed my shopping. At home, I spread all the colored A4 card
sheets on the table … placed the candy bars (all 26 of them) sort of in their
places and started to write the message.
With cello tape pieces, I made a loop and stick
it onto the back of a candy bar and then onto the card sheet. (Some of the bigger candy bars needed more
than 1 cello tape loops). I decorated
each page with some of the ‘lace’ and ‘gemstone’ stickers – carefully inserted
each page into a plastic sleeve and voila.
But of course … even with a thick lever arch file, the candy bars made
the pages bulky and the file could barely close.
I then asked the ladies to email me a personal
message for Banoo … I inserted each message with the name in a heart-form and
printed it out. That was also stuck onto
a page. To close the file, I wrapped a
lovely pink-purple silk scarf around it.
With alphabet beads, I made a simple keyring with the letters B A N O
O.
Luckily Hein bought some Pringle shirts and
shoes a while back and I kept the black glossy ‘gift’ bag. Although the name Pringle was on the bag, I
just scratched it out with a black felt pen and stuck pretty pink butterflies,
gemstones and lace stickers all over it.
Soft blue, pink and purple tissue paper completed the whole package.
It was arranged that we meet at 7am at the gym,
so that we can have some snacks and juice before our 7h15 aqua class. We sang to Banoo, gave her the candy poster
file and had a lovely class.
After I’ve showered, I dressed in ¾ jeans,
spaghetti top and a sarong, drove back home – dropped my gym stuff, picked up
our cat girl Sammy and drove to Katmandu hotel. On the way home, I bought some fresh buns at
Summerfields Pick ‘n Pay for Tuesday morning boerie rolls. Back at the house, I finished packing the
toilet bags and then sat and twiddled my thumbs … check in time is only at 2pm
… it was 11 am. Taking a chance, I
phoned Hengelaarsvriend and asked if there’s any chance to book in
earlier. Yes, they replied, the chalets
are ready.
After a quick stop at the Roodeplaat Spar to
buy salads for the evening; and chicken for the potjie on Tuesday, I booked in
at 12 o clock, paid the R1 000 cash for the 2 keys and drove to the
chalets. Now – remember Hein had to load
my car? Which means … I cannot UNLOAD
the car by myself! I grabbed a camp
chair and sat in front of our chalet, in the willow tree’s shade. It was a fantastic day!!!! For about 2 hours
I sat and enjoyed the peace, watched the birds in the water and got drowsy … I
needed coffee … but it’s in a crate …
Luckily my sis Sanet and her son AJ arrived
just after 2pm. Quickly we unloaded the
crates and I promptly made myself some strong black coffee. Aaah, I’m revived!!!! Carla and Jan were still driving back from
Kimberley, so we only expected them after 4pm.
Hein had meetings till 3pm, so after Sanet and AJ left, I quickly
unpacked all the crates. Some of the
towels and kitchen stuff I packed into
Carla and Jan’s cabin. I also bought
some aprons for them (Jan’s birthday was on Saturday 3 November) – both aprons
had bikers on the front, so when you wear it, it looks almost like you’re part
of the apron.
Eventually Carla and Jan arrived. They settled into their cabin and not long
after, Hein arrived. When I asked Carla
and Jan what they wanted to braai Monday night, I suggested steak, but Carla
said steak is too quick … maybe lamb chops.
It was on Hein’s list to buy the meat … he bought a T-bone steak for
himself, lamb chops and chicken drummettes for me. The cold beer was opened … legs stretched out
in front of the wood fire and we listened to Carla and Jan’s road trip to Cape
Town and back. Weather just amazing.
When tummies grumbled (mine was the loudest,
since I didn’t really had any lunch), it was decided to only braai the lamb
chops and chicken drummettes. Carla and
I made a lovely green salad and when checking if the chicken was done, we heard
this ‘oh no’ – 1 little drummette escaped the grid … but was promptly washed
down with beer. Of course there were too
much food … or so we thought … only 2 lamb chops were left – all the chicken
drummettes were eaten (still don’t know who ate the beer-washed drumette) and
with my chilli sauce and fresh salad, the overall word was - bliss.
Tuesday 30 October 2018
A week before planning our potjie with my
parents and sister, it was decided instead of a potjie in the heat of the day,
we will braai boerewors during the morning and potjie late afternoon.
Sanet was supposed to drop AJ at 6h45 that
morning and would arrive at the dam just after 7. Phoning Sanet just before 7h30, she couldn’t
really talk because they overslept. No
problem. We made coffee, Jan & Carla
had tea and we sat outside and watched the birdlife. I bought ‘talkies’ at the Spar (chicken
feet). After steaming the feet with
spices, I marinated it in a sauce and kept it aside.
My parents were coming through, but then
somehow my dad got lost – and Sanet had to drive to find them. In the end, they all pitched up around 10 am
– and the rest of us were starving!!!!
When we looked up, Sanet’s daughter Didi surprised us! She had finished her morning lessons and
joined us. It was time for the chicken
feet – we placed the marinated cooked feet on the braai grid and turned them a
few times. No sorry … I HAD TO TURN THEM! Hein actually had photo’s of me turning the
‘rooster’. Most everyone tried it …
definitely not Hein and Jan. Even a
video was made when Sanet ate hers.
The wood fire has been patiently burning all morning, but then we quickly
braaied the boerewors.
The cabin next to us were empty … so we sat in
the shade of their willow tree. The
boerie rolls were fantastic!!! I bought
Portuguese rolls and Carla made butter-fried onions … heaven in the
mouth!!! And of course with my chilli
sauce … yumyum. Weather was
amazing! Not too hot, not a wind.
My parents were comfortable in camp chairs, so
everyone just chilled – drank juice or coffee, dredged up old childhood stories
and jokes.
Now if you read my 1st review, you
will remember I mentioned this couple in a 2-sleep cabin – they had 4 rods
between them and stayed away the 1st night (11th
October). During the afternoon, while
still chatting and relaxing, I looked over to that very same cabin and saw the
same guy there … but this time with another guy. And a small Pomeranian dog. What was the odds to have the same people in
that same cabin at the same time as our stay …
This little Pomeranian dog was quite cute …
extremely friendly and SO BOUNCY!!!! It
took a liking to the resident dog – a mixture of maybe sausage dog and jack
Russell. We named him ‘SJ’. Anyway, this little Pomeranian chased SJ,
jumped onto his back and they would tumble and roll around.
Around 3pm my niece Didi and Sanet left. My parents and all of us turned our camp
chairs around, faced the dam and we just had this amazing chilled time.
Not wanting to drive in the dark (and get
lost), my parents left around 5pm. Hein
stoked the fire with charcoal and we started to prepare the potjie. It was to be a chicken, chorizo and pork
belly potjie. Hein bought this big piece
of pork belly – it would be steamed with the other ingredients in the pot, then
removed and skin crisped up on the braai.
I couldn’t find chorizo at the Spar, so I just bought smoked Russians.
Hein’s brother Hugo arrived with more charcoal
and ice cream … and not just plain vanilla ice cream – WOOLWORTH’S PEANUT
BUTTER ICE CREAM! Oh my soul, you HAVE
TO TRY IT!!!!
Being lazy, I just soaked corn couscous in herb
boiling water and that was the side dish. Hein removed the ‘almost pulled pork’
belly and heated the skin on the braai.
Around the table we sat, spooned out the potjie mixture and for a while
it was just silent …. The wine-stock-cream sauce was just
amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The pork
was sooo tender, the chicken pieces fell off their bones and the Russians gave
the pot a lovely smoky flavor.
Carla and I quickly washed the dishes, spooned
the leftover potjie in a container, refilled our glasses and with a stoked
fire, we all sat and watched the flames.
Ready for dessert (I just couldn’t resist this
one), we spooned out this peanut butter soft serve ice cream and all was
well. Hugo left, we all went to bed.
Wednesday, 31 October 2018
The weather had turned a bit … it was a bit
overcast but not too chilly. After
muesli and coffee/tea, we chilled outside for a while – once again, watching
the birds and the ‘bouncy’ dog running around.
Hein had a few meetings, so I decided to take Carla and Jan to Rietvlei
Nature Reserve (http://rietvlei-reserve.co.za/) . Not wanting to sit on the highway in peak
traffic, we left just after 9am.
Arriving at the nature reserve, our throats
were parched, so we asked for a map of the reserve … planning to drive straight
to the coffee shop for coffee and maybe a sandwich.
Not even driving half a kilometer, we saw 4
rhino’s walking down a slope. With
binoculars, we checked them out (they’re all without horns) and then drove on
slowly … looking both sides of the road, I spied a buck skeleton, then we saw a
jackal, then we saw lots and lots of different buck. Unfortunately, we had to guess at some … next
time I must bring our ‘buck’ guide.
Eventually we arrived at the coffee shop. Ordering cappu’s and tea, we all ordered
toasted sandwiches. My goodness, these
sandwiches were delicious!!! I had
chicken mayo, Carla had ham, cheese and tomato – Jan had ham & cheese. They all came with yummy chips and the
outside of the sandwiches were crisp and buttery!
The lion tour guide said hello and we chatted
to him … although the lion tour rates seem reasonable, we decided against
it. After a quick stop in the bathrooms,
we drove on. I wanted to show them the
lovely picnic area at the Marais dam.
Driving so slowly, my ‘clutch leg’ got cramps
and at same places, I put my Terios in neutral and we just cruised. Lots of zebras and ostriches and the ‘elande’
are huge animals!!!! Trying our best, we
didn’t see any other rhino’s on our drive.
With the weather turning dark and stormy, we
drove back to the dam. It was nearly 2
pm. At the Spar we stopped, bought some
pies for Carla and Jan (they claim Australia cannot make pie pastry … it’s just
so much better in South Africa – also they never find steak & kidney pies
in Australia), some more beer and drove on.
Although overcast, it was still peaceful
sitting next to the dam. Carla and Jan were
leaving the next day, so we chilled and chatted.
With grumbly tummies and the fire burning
(again), Hein braaied the T-bone steak as a starter. I cut up half of the steak and while the rest
of the chicken potjie was reheating, we ate the juicy steak. The plate with half T-bone steak was placed
on the table and while we stand around the fire, something caught my eye …
another yappy resident dog WAS ACTUALLY ON THE TABLE licking at the steak! My goodness, we were livid!!!!!! I had to throw the steak away.
With bread rolls and the reheated potjie, we
sat at the table and yes – that potjie was just amazing!!!!!! After we had our fill, Carla dipped the
serving spoon in the potjie and drank some of the potjie juice – she said it
was just divine!
This time I’ve packed Scrabble as well as the
playing cards. After a few drinks,
playing Scrabble is just downright funny!
The words we tried to play …. In
the end we pooled all the left-over letters to finish the game. Bedtime.
Thursday 1 November 2018
Carla and Jan had a flight back from OR Tambo
to Perth – but only 9pm. So we decided
to book the cabins for Thursday night, so that at least they can chill at the
cabins. Hein had another meeting and
left after 8am. Carla and Jan drove to
my parents for coffee and cake … and to say goodbye. All alone, I locked the cabin’s door and read
a bit … when my eyes drooped, I slept for probably an hour.
Walking outside to the ablution block, Carla
and Jan arrived back. They kept
themselves busy packing their bags, sorting fridge food and we had lunch when
Hein arrived around lunchtime.
At another Spar, Hein bought a scoop of
prepared macaroni & cheese, as well as a scoop of lasagna and a small
container of carrot salad. All for R50
and it was more than enough (and really yummy) food.
To avoid traffic, we told Carla and Jan to
maybe leave around 3pm for the airport … but just before 2pm the weather turned
wet … quickly we loaded all the cars and then Carla said: we may just as well leave now. GOOD THING THEY DID!!!!
They left, I waited for the cleaners to check
the cabins and braved the highway. Drove
right into and through a big cloudburst!!
Luckily Carla and Jan had arrived at the airport just before the storm
…. Whew, lucky them! It was not pleasant
driving through the storm, but eventually after Midrand it cleared and we
arrived in Randburg just before 4pm.
Carla said she was so nervous with the drive to
the airport, she was actually hungry … so they had a last meal at the airport’s
Spur – T-bone steak, chips and onion rings.
They boarded their plane, we had take-away pizza and relaxed at home.
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