The Great Escape

Form the 12^th to the 26^th not a lot happened, ok that not really true quite a bit happened but its going to be to laborious to write it all out so here it is in short (take a deep breath). Paper work for the course I was organising, a lot of paper work; trip to Mooi River, undefeated in card games, dealing with a course of 80 grade 6; taking them wall climbing, abseiling, and all that jazz, Abseiling my self of coffee rock a good 45meter decent with quite a big over hang trying to get down before the big storm clouds hit, taking Huston a barrel of a horse for a long out ride to burn off that holiday weight, discover wattle bending (climbing a tree until it snaps), running a course of 56 grade 7 who where born with cotton wool in there ears and a lot of time spent sleeping in front of the fire, it got cold here temp dropped to around 10 and a big leaving braai for the 4 guys leaving and I baked beer bread. On the 27^th the place suddenly got rather quite but I still had a bit of company so it was time for another outride this time a good 4hour ride up to the saddle. The start of the ride was a bit interesting trying to find a sport to cross the river but after finding a suitable place it was up the hill stopping half way to give that barrel of a hours a chance to catch his breath. Once at the top we gave the horses a chance to stretch there legs cantering across the planes with a stunning view of Giant’s Castle in the distance. The following day I had a visit from the head Lattituded man which was nice  but what wasn’t nice was the fact I was about to be alone in the burg as Siobhan’s parents had come to pick here up but the good news was I managed to persuade them to have a braai. While relaxing enjoying some cooked animal I was offered a life to Durban. Well the choice between a lonely burg and a city was an easy one to make so after hatching a plan and making a few calls I made good my escape. The following day I got to my south African church, ok it was a catholic church but what would you except from a family with an Irish named daughter. Anyway the service wasn’t too painful in fact it was a rather good one and afterwards it was time for brunch. Later in the day we went out to the harbour for diner while watching the boats go in and out. Monday was a beach. Up late then off to the beach were we walked along the golden sand stopping for a session of wave jumping, this time however the waves were not as impressive but still it was good fun. After soaking up the sun we continued our walk and made our way to the Moses Mabhida stadium where we took a ride in the cable car to the very top, not the top as in the roof top but top as in on top of the supporting arch where you could take in quite an impressive view of Durban and the surrounding suburbs. In the evening it was Braai time which you’ve just got to love. The following day unfortunately my great escape had to come to an end and I was taken back to the slammer.

Back In The Office

After our Giants extravagance life back at base felt rather slow, staying in one place all day with just my washing to keep me occupied and then back into that office for the day. Something had to be done, so it was decided to go off to the local pub (40kms away) and take advantage of the beer and burger night for a celebratory evening out. Most enjoyable. Then the following morning I was off hours riding, western style for those of you that were interested. Now I’m not the most experienced horse rider in the world in fact you could say I’m rather in experience so riding horses that are very really ridden wouldn’t be the smartest thing to do. However I did have an expert rider accompanying me but this wonderful rider though not to instruct us on how to ride but rather demonstrate how fast a horse can go when you start in galloping home. Well needles to say this didn’t end too well, from watching the Grand National and so forth on TV I knew the rough position to obtain when a horse is going bloody fast but my friend on the other horse was no so clued up. Oh and the master rider managed to stop the hours end walk it home. So our horse were racing back and I was loving it but my friend however had her bum glued to the seat rains at full length and has leaning back shacking like a possessed woman trying to get it to stop. Well her horse did eventually stop at the fence but by this time she wasn’t on it anymore. The rest of the day was rather mundane I raised the roof… of the crane pen and that was about it the 6^th was no better but on the 7^th I was off to Nsonge to be a gest at a local ceremony and contrary to popular belief they didn’t try and cook me in a bubbling cauldron.  They event seemed to be in aid of someone’s engagement of something like that but it involved quite a bit of dancing. The most popular dance seemed to be one where you would swing your leg into the air, clap underneath it and then in time with the other clapping slam your foot to the ground. Now this was quite an education but the drunk granddad how could only speack IsiZulu how had been task to look after me seemed to think it was a great idea to try and get me involved in a bit of dancing, but as it appeared to only be women and him dancing I though it best to refrain. Later on I was invited to join them for some lunch of; curry and rice followed by jelly and custard and cake, so my kind of meal. After the meal the drinking started and it seemed to me that the locals were determined to try and kill me via the means of alcohol poison offering me whisky, vodka and even Zulu beer but as you can see they failed in there attempts. But they did manage to get me to stay the night at the house insisting it was too dangerous to walk back say if the drunken villages didn’t get me the bush pig would. Well I wasn’t too deterred by this IV slept in much worse places that a bed in a mud hut in my time so all in all it was quite a good nights sleep. Apart from when the chick though I would be funny to strike up conversation at 0450 in the morning, so needless to say I was rather tired for the rest of the day. So it would be sods law that the 8^th was the day all the crane tours arrived, but I didn’t fall asleep which giving them so I think I got away with it. That evening I was supposed to be back in Nsonge but my tiredness was too great and my own bed too comfy. The following day I was supposed to be feeding the cranes and giving tours again but after hearing all sorts of commotion over the radio a car came hurtling towards me and told me to get in. It was my boss and it appeared that one of the students visiting had passed out and was now been rushed off to hospital and it was my job to drive the teacher behind the ambulance and the paramedic, luckily for me the patient had been stabilised so I wasn’t about to get my first speeding ticket and actually it was all rather boring I arrived sat around for a few hours greeted the family when they arrived witness shock trauma as one of the family member though up everywhere after seeing the patient in the neck brace and then drove the teacher back to base. So quite a mundane day, but at least I got out of that office. Nothing else much has happened round hear apart from on the 12^th I was off riding again this time with two experienced riders and the new rider actually taught me how to ride. Woo Hoo, so this time after a much more controlled ride I wasn’t incredibly saw and I could actually walk normally.

Facing Giants

After the fly fishing exstraviganser you would think a rest break was in order. Well you though wrong silly. On the 26^th it was back to the office for a days preparing for the next course of 90! Grade (year) 10!! GIRLS!!! Yer this would be quite a giant to face. So the following day when the course arrived I will admit I was a bit scared but as I got to now the group they weren’t as scary as I though and with one frisking sweet lighting storm in the evening it wasn’t the horrible day I was expecting. The 28^th was a long day, well it was always going to be having too look after 90 girls but it went off with out too many problems and the 29^th was alright except for been put on night duty. No for those of you that don’t know night duty basically means its your job to get everyone in bed and quite and make sure it stays that way, so some joker though it would be great fun to put me and the quietest of interns on together on the last night. Needles to say it was a tricky night but iv managed to perfect my scary side and after sorting a few issues all was quite at around 2300, so not too bad I though. On the 30^th the course left early, like 0700 early so the rest of the day was spent unwinding and buying supplies for our braai. But unlike our usual Braais this time we had some special guest. One was a new intern having a look around to see if they wanted to join up and the other 3 were fellow lattituders. Due to it being the Easter holidays all the teachers had been granted 2weeks off and were now travelling and it just so happened that 3 of them were in my valley; so after a bit of wangling I managed to land them accommodation at the centre and we sat back and relaxed around the Braai until early in the morning discussing our African adventures. But on the 31^st they had places to be so left early in the morning but not to worry as I had a real giant to face. It had been decided that we should walk from Entabeni base camp at around 1800 meters to the top of Giants Castle at around 3350meter and 40ish km away within 4 days. Ah can’t be that hard. Well that’s what we though so to make it harder the first night we navigated in the dark. At 1630 we embarked on our journey, the plan was to walk around 11km to our first camp. But life doesn’t always go to plan. At around 2000 we believe we had found our turn off having successfully navigated the way so far so full of spirit we turned off and after making our river crossing we were sure we had made the right choice. However moment later after doing a few bearings and whipping out the GPS we realised we’d gone a bit wrong so we spent the rest of the hour walking back to our intended target. But once arriving there the situation worsened the plan was to locate the path and walk safely down into the riven, this is when we realised we could find the path in the dark so only 400meter away from our camp for the night we had to abort and go the long way round no facing the 300 drop off the cliff face. This change of plans no meant we had an extra 6km to walk and the annoying part is that 2km were spent getting back onto the path we were originally on before we took our wrong turn. But at around 2300 we found our camp for the night. The following day was a relatively easy walk only 13km to the next camp and along the contour path so as the name suggest not much up and down to do.  So after an easy days walking we arrived at our camp at the leisurely time of 1300. The only point of interest was that our camp was situated a few hundred meters from the giants hut. originally constructed my the SA air force and used by the Mountaineering club it had been handed over to park support in the agreement that they maintained it. However they had not done there job and this once very useful hut was now in a state of disrepair. Due to our early arrival at camp we dined at 1600 and quickly proceeded to go to bed as we had quite a day ahead of us. Up until now the weather had been cloudy and cold (there was snow at the top of giants) but waking up at 0500 the next day there wasn’t a cloud in the sky and so the decision was taken to push for the top.  At around 0800 we made it to the bottom of the pass and this started to get a bit trickier. The route was only 2km up but over those 2km we would ascend 800meters. So at the bottom we emptied our bag of all no essential items hid them under a big rock and embarked on our journey hoping no Besothos (Lesotho dwellers) would find our hidden stash. The walk up was tough to say the least like most mountains the gradient increased nearer the top so the last 500meters was a gruelling climb. And to dampen our spirits the clouds had started to role in, so by the time was had almost reached the saddle we were walking in cloud. But nearing the top we could see blue sky in Lesotho and we managed to summon the energy to complete our clime doing the sector in just over 2hrs. At the top it was like stepping though the wardrobe into Narnia. Lesotho was a beautiful country drenched in sunshine with horses grazing the mountainous slopes, no wonder they call it the kingdom in the sky.  But were went here for that view we were here to cap a mountain so after a quite rest we made the last 4km push to the top climbing a further 300 meters and at around 1200 we made it, we couldn’t see a thing but we didn’t care we’d done what we set off to do. Now we just had to make it down. This is where it got interesting, after stopping to put support on my doggy knees we started our decent. About 300 meters down from the saddle I heard this almighty Bag. My first though was thunder, but before I could think any more I found myself running. Instinctively after hear Matt and James shout run I did so, I remember think ‘this is silly you cant out run lightning’ but just as I had finished that though I heard the unforgettable sound of rocks falling towards me. Just at that moment I found a rock just bigger than me to take refuge behind, and just as the dust from the first splints brushed against my face I ducked into my place of refuge and clung tightly behind that rock. In the same moment the avalanche went rushing down the path I was on only a few seconds ago. Now for avalanche standards it was relatively small but for me and the other guys with me it was more than adequate, with some rocks falling bigger than me it would more than do the job of giving us quite a big fright. But what caused this, well as I hid behind that rock I was expecting gun fire to open up on us and the Besothos to charge us after there avalanche had failed to do the job. But the more logical and realistic explanation is freeze fore. Due to the resent snow fall the water in the rock had frozen and expanded and now it was foreing out there was nothing to hold the rocks together and gravity was taking over. Now its needles to say we made our way down the rest of the path in very good time after our ordeal. Befog we had been sliding down the grass and just generally having a jolly time, now the group vibe was a lot more serious. Once we made it back to our food stash the decision was made to walk the remainder of the journey to our pick up point and end a day early. Sanele who had come the closest too meeting his maker with out a moments of hesitation jumped straight onto the idea of walking all the way back. I too after some though not fancying camping under the killer mountain or on the open platto also agreed and at 1830 we entered Giant’s main camp and headed straight for the bar. In one day we had caped Giants Castle walked 28km ascended 1100m and descended 1600m as well as nearly been crushed by a few rock; so I think most people in our position would have headed for the bar.

Giants Castle sumit



800meter desent



HaiBo

Translation – exclamation. Indeed exclamation it has been quite a while since I last go behind the keyboard so we can skip the not so interesting bit and just get down to the fun facts. The 8^th was one of those not so interesting day but on the 9^th after been thoroughly stuff full of food by the cooks I had my debut as Jonny the Wattle crane. For the grade 2 course it was decided someone should dress up in the crane suit and do a bit of pantomime with the kids and well that someone just had to be me. After my career as an actor was over it was back to driving; this time delivering mattresses to the next village, hopefully before the big storm hit. So off I went but TIA and my navigator decided we should stop for a few drink so not been one to say no we did. By the time id managed to get him back in the Bucky (pick-up) the rain was well and truly on its way so driving the 2WD triton up what appeared to be a path, but was insisted to be the road with standard tired on was interesting to say the least, but we survived and the mattresses only got a bit wet so not a bad outcome you could say. The following day I went for another trek up Mt Lebanon but after summiting I soon saw the very big, dark cloud coming my way so it was quickly back down and that was the  end of  that day.  11^th cleaning – boring, moving on. 12^th even worse with exams but the 13^th I was let loose on PNB (Pietermaritzburg) to do the town trip, which basically involved driving round in circles until you found the right shop going in and getting what was on the list. But I had good fun driving around apart from when the back of the Bucky fell open and drop some shopping on the main road, but TIA. In the evening it was time for a birthday Braai but unfortunately this would be the last one for a while as them Braai burn a bit of a whole in the wallet. The 14^th to the 16^th I was kept busy with a course of 74 grade 8 girls so that was interesting. But even more interesting than that was on the evening of the 16^th I was called out to be the emergency pick up driver for a new crane at the sanctuary. But it wasn’t as straight forward as go there picking it up and drive back, oh no. I also had to incorporate drop offs at homes, taxi ranks and a few shops. But eventually we made it to the crane tied its cage down and slowly drover the 2hr drive back along, the motorway, through a few villages, to the petrol station then along the pot whole filled roads that you could loos a truck in then finally back to the centre. Not much happened from the 17-19, I stalked an eland on the 18^th (it got away) and got a bit of a fright when the Koreans turned up at our house. Thinking the bagging on the door was one of my fellow colleges I invited them in but after establishing they where here for the fly fishing I showed them to their dorms and life went on as normal. The 20^th was a day of abseil training, so after learning a few knots in the office it was a hot walk to abseil rock where we put the practise into effect. After quite a bit of fun abseiling we went to our home away from home for the night. A cave. Actually quite a nice sheltered cave with a waterfall in front and a shot walk to the top of Mt Lebanon to watch the sun set. The only problem was the incline of my sleeping spot so I spent most of the night sliding down the hill and not really sleeping at all. The following morning we had organised some “staff training” at giants castle. So after eventually find the car and getting everyone ready off we went to look at the very impressive bushman paintings. The paints mainly painted in the 1800 depict general bushman life and even show the good old colonials shooting people. But there’s also a lot of eland, the San (bushman) liked eland. So after this hard work we went to chill in the river before heading back to camp where for the next few days id be looking after 50odd fishermen. That night I helped out in the kitchen, ran a bar and organised/drove the local taxi service to Nsonger, fitting 16people on one Bucky. The following day I was up at 0600 to help with breakfast, then had planed to do some office work and sleep. But this wasn’t the case. Before I knew it I was been bundled into a car and sent off to marshal the South African Fly Fishing Nationals. I did explain I knew nothing about fishing or any of the rules but they just seemed happy to have enough marshals now. The marshalling business wasn’t too bad, first chap was a nice geezer who should be the ropes and the second one caught a lot of fish so the 3 hours sessions flew by, guess that why they call in fly fishing. In the evening it was back to the same old job, before the same formula on the 23^rd except with a lot less fish caught. And on the 24^th I though it was all over, with one session in the morning then the prize giving in the afternoon. But oh no I had one more 0600 start to give these guys a last breakfast, before the fat lady finally sung.

Welcome Back

After my 10 days away from the burg id forgotten about the ‘joys’ of office work but on the27th I was quickly reminded how mundane it all is and yet again found myself looking out the window longing to get out. Luckily for me today we were off to Nysonger to prepare an ‘educational visit’ for the next school so I was granted my freedom for a few hours. After work it was decided to go for a small jog. However this soon turned into an intense hill training session. Not the chilled jog I was hoping for but still I felt good afterwards. What wasn’t good though was the lack of electricity at the staff house. So our electric cooker was a bit useless. By this time it was around 1900 and my stomach was beyond talking to me; so determined to eat I got a fire going and once there was a few ember ready to use I got my cooking on. It was nothing fancy but at least it was something. The following day the internet had disappeared in the office and so had all the work for us to do so I was rather bored. But never mind somehow I found a way to pass the hours and when evening came it was off on another jog. This time the slow gentle jog I had been after the day before. The 29^th provided a welcomed change of scenery for me, in the morning a couple of keen birders had arrived at the crane centre and after been give the tour ask if they could have a guide to try help them find the cape black cap and some wattle cranes in the wild. Well I told them I wasn’t the best bird spotter but id be more than happy to take them. Apparently not fazed by my complete lack of knowledge we went on the hunt.  After a few hours in the forest our hunt had come up dry but the couple, again not fazed by the lack of birders seemed very grateful for my help (I was very grateful for the chance to get out of that office) and after dropping me off went with high spirits in search of the wattle crane. Skipping the after noon in the evening we went out to hit the ‘town’, ok we actually just went to the nearest pub that was open on a Thursday. But we still got all frocked up and after finding the pub had a good time chilling out and relaxing with a couple of drinks. Thursday was a day spent organising for the course arriving the following day, which I had the joy of been in charge. The following day came but the course didn’t. Well not until 2230, they had had a bit of engine trouble with the bus; it broke down sever times on the way and when faced with a big hill the passengers had to get out and walk, so not the best first days for our new group. After a night in the tent (that’s right the tent; this course had requested that someone slept outside the dorms in a tent, joy of joys.) it was off to pick up the ladies then off to do the activates and to try and lifts the groups spirit. But I couldn’t and still can’t figure this group out, there incredibly well behaved and always do what you ask them, but they seemed to find every activity a laborious task and not fun in anyway. But never mind I enjoyed myself, the Nysonger trip on the 3^rd went well, managed to get rid of the drunks before the kids turned up at the house, and our day up in the mountains was great fun. But ay, courses for 6 days it sure take sit out of you. So once the course had left on the 7^th we made a plane to get some braai meet and to celebrate and unwind in style. But upon returning from the town trip the rain and thunder had arrived. But TIA and nothings going to dampen our spirit, we just simply moved the braai pit underneath the porch and carried on the party late into the night.

The Getaway

It been quite a while since iv been able to update the old blog, not because iv been extremely busy but rather TIA and internet comes and goes like supplies at the co-op and much like the good old co-op it will be out of stock for various reasons for a ‘good’ amount of time. But anyways what have I been up to. Well I had a day off a miracle I know but the day after the course left I woke up at 10.00 and did nothing. But it couldn’t last and the next day I was back in the office preparing for the next course, for this course outside help had been brought in by the name of Caroline. That evening I had my first proper South African Braai (for those of you speaking queens English that’s a Barbeque). The following day the course arrived but you don’t want to know about that; that it was one of the trickiest courses yet and how they were ridiculously unfit, or even how through a bit of hard work the group actually managed to improve and work as a group. No you want to hear about my 10 days off seeing the sight of South Africa. On the 17^th I said goodbye to the burg and hello Grey town. Like all the other Grey names settlement you could see how it got its name. But with a cricket, football, rugby and hockey pitch along with a swimming pool at my disposal I think I’m gong to get on ok here. The following day it was off to the mall for a propa day out, but like all shopping centres its all very pretty but also very expensive so it was a day of window shopping. However the following day was also spent on the look out but this time for something a bit more interesting at a new pair of jeans. After a leisurely morning I went with matt and the family to Weenan game reserve to try spot me some wildlife. And it appears im a lucky chap as after drive no more the 5km through the park we’d spotted, Hartebeest, Eland, Duiker, Ostrich and quite a few Zebras. At the hid there were a few more Zebras chill-axing in the mud and quite a few terrapins. For the lunch spot I found an appropriate fig tree and proceeded to climb it but I didn’t get the look out point id hoped for so after a quite bit it was back in the car and back on the hunt for some game. We soon came across another heard of Zebras but soon after we spotted our first giraffe and then a few warthogs and the rather cool the rather classy Water Buck. But eventually the fun had to come to an end and it was back to Grey Town for a Braai, oh yer. The next few days were spent chilling at grey town and seeing the limited sight and on the 23^rd taking a strole to the cross, which was meant to give a good view of the town but instead it give a nice view of a few trees. But not wanting to walk all that way for a few trees I climbed to cross and got the view. At the weekend we went to stay in the grand city of Pietermaritzburg relaxing with beer and pizza in front for the super 12 rugby Saturday evening before our big day out. Sunday it was up early and off to the sandy beach of Durban. Upon arriving we set up camp and headed for the water. Unlike most beaches iv visited the waves here were rather large perhaps up to 3 meters high, so to jump them proved to be a mission and for the first 10 mins or so I at the mercy of the wave. But eventually I got the technique sorted and have quite a good time, jumping over, swimming with, floating on and driving through the crashing waves. After the beach it was back to the burg for a braai before getting back to the grind stone. But first the braai, we decided the old plastic chair just didn’t cut the mustard so we lugged a few sofas outside got the fire going and spent the rest of the evening Braaing and chilling round the fire.    

Water (Bear) Buck

Fun And Games

After the stress of the previous course I took a day off to go get loosed in the mountains. Talking to the other guys they had suggested a day trip up MT Lebanon as a nice day trip, only a bit over 2000meters above sea level. So on the morning of the 4^th me and Sanele woke early and embarked on our little stole. Going up wasn’t as bad as expected and at the peak we were treated to a fly by from the cape vultures. It was a rather awesome experience to be sitting about these birds watching the flock of about 30 fly beneath us and begin to circle. We then pushed on to the beacon stopping to fill up on some good old mountain spring water. Once at the beacon the top of the mountain become a bit thin but this allowed for spectacular views of the country side below. On our way back we bumped into a heard of buck and some baboons, before eventually making our way back to base meeting a few more creepy crawlies on the way. The following day was quite the contrast as I was on standby meaning I had to feed the cranes in the morning and sit around waiting for something to happen. But on the 6^th it was business as normal with a course of 96 boys coming. For this course I was assigned a group for the whole time and luckily I had quite a good enthusiastic group. So for the forest exploration we had good fun climbing up the river, followed by a good game of stalk the lantern. After all this I was ready for bed but just as I was about to head off there was this almighty bagging on the roof. Personally I was happy to stay inside and to leave what ever was on the roof to its own business. But the others weren’t so there we were at 2300 running round the house, Sanele in his boxers with a stick, matt with his damaged wrist from an earlier accident and myself armed with the mop looking for whatever made this noise. But as you can tell nothing ate us and whatever it was had gone so it was finally time for bed. A morning of wall climbing followed by some bunda bashing (wild walking) on the way to bushman paintings in the scorching heat, must have been around 35^o, but no one died and the kids seemed to enjoy themselves so it was all good. In the evening it was another night of stalk the lantern.  The following day was rather hectic up early to pick up the ladies before starting on the days activities but these were cut short by the mother of all thunderstorms, which put a stop to all proceedings, then in the evening I had to try and get 96boys into and to shut up before I could go to sleep. But the rat in my room had other plans but not been in the mood for a rat in my room I called matt and Geoff and with stick, spear and bin we managed to chase it away. The following day the course left and down at the office I met a baby crown crane. The crane decided it liked me so for the day I was on crane sitting duty, trying to teach it to forage and that it wasn’t a human, you know the standard. In the evening the daddy of all storms hit making yesterdays seem like a wee breeze.  Me and mat were just chilling outside watching the storm role in when I looked behind me and too my horror saw that it was also approaching from behind and we could see the rain falling ever closer, so we grabbed our chairs and raced for cover and just as we got under the porch the crash of rain on a tin roof arrived. For the next hour or so we watching and listened to the thunder and lighting crash through the valley. In the gap of the storm we went in search of the hit tree but failed to find it but the paths ran like rivers with the fresh rainfall. The following day I was meant to have off but as the only qualified driver left on sight I was called in to be support for the course. The basically met a day of driving. I had to get a bus onto the tar road, me the experienced off roader was supposed to pull the bus out if it got stuck. Luckily the bus didn’t get stuck so it was all good. When I got back I then had to drive the boss and his wife to the tar road to pick up another car. No pressure Jonny. Then in the afternoon I had to drive and drop the calf carcass off at a neighbouring far. It will only be a short drive to the house I though. Wrong it was a proper off-roading session over big rocks and river you know the stuff, to what I though was the drop off sight. However upon returning was told I had put the dead cow in the camp sight. But in the evening we had another bonfire to chill in front of so its all good. The next day I spent cleaning the mud I had plashed all over the off before enjoying my first proper evening off, oh it felt good to put my feet up.

The Bus Driver, The Sympathiser And The Fat One

There’s always one teacher in every school that a bit of a hypocrite, the one that’s just blames others for all their mistakes, the one that’s so old they’ve forgotten what it’s like to be a kid. Well I was about to meet this one such person who would make the next course the toughest one yet. After my course left we had a days planning before they arrived. This was to be our first educational course and to help matters the teacher coming was meant to be quite the hand full. Well on the course day they arrived (2hrs late) and I met the fat one, at first not appearing to be too bad just a bit snooty, so the first day went off without a hitch. The following day was an early start as I had to drive to the next village to collect the cooks. After breakfast it was off to do an educational hike round the forest and plantation. This was going fine until we arrived at the forest and the fat one insisted that the other group not visit the plantation. So to avoid giving our group an unfair advantage we just took then on an exploration of the forest, climbing up waterfalls and so on, much more fun than any study sheet. After the mornings slight hiccup the rest of the day was plan sailing. Doing GDs and Obstacle course was fine, but this group has to be by far the worst and least organised team. In the evening I was called out on an emergency supply run, fetching medication from one neighbour to give to the other; although it turned out to not really be an emergency at all. However it was a good excuse to go for a drive and practise on dirt road in the poring rain, a lot of counter steering was done. Night duty was painful, the kids were kept up till 2300hrs doing work in silence whiles been pumped full of sweets and hot chocolate, so when the work was done it was no wonder they didn’t want to go to sleep. But after a painful hour of pleading with them to go to sleep I final got them all in bed and could get some sleep myself. The next day I was fetching the ladies again and I learnt along the way that I couldn’t really drive and drink coffee at the same time. After breakfast it was off to do a small environmental trail, but the fat one had other plans insisting on a full ecology talk and then a trip too the bushman paintings. Well there was just not enough time for this and by the time magic waterfall had been added to the wish list we arrived back at camp 2hrs 30mins late with some very hungry kids. Back at camp I was called out on another errand to fetch the missing potji pot before re-joining the group to do a crane tour. The rest of the day went smoothly after this and we made a big fire with flames taller than me to celebrate the last night. Round the fire we made stick bread and the sympathiser reassured us that we had done a good job and reminded us that we only had to spend 4 days with the fat one. The last day, it was nearly all over but there was still time for a few more dramas. Firstly my alarm not going off so I was late picking up the ladies but luckily it was an easy meal to prepare so breakfast wasn’t delayed. Then we were demanded to put on the Entabeni Olympics so we did so before doing the final prizing giving session, but it’s not over till the fat lady sings and she demanded more work be done. So we waited patiently outside with the now nervous bus driver (there was a group at 1300 to pick up and right now it looked like it was going to be a late pick up) who had been good company waiting for them to finally GO!

Calm And The Storme

After all the existent of the first few weeks I needed a break or at the least a couple of chilled days. Luckily for me that’s exactly what was in line for me, boring days in the office. After being here a bit less than 2 week I had been deemed capable of running a course so on the23rd I started the 8-5shifts, (sorry dolly we start at 8 not 9). The first day wasn’t too bad I had a few things to plan, such as what on earth I was going to do with 28kids for 2 days and what they were going to eat. But after at most the first 2 hours had gone by this was pretty much sorted. So for the rest of the day I spoke to the cranes. Oh yer, the sight has a crane sanctuary on, of which the have the grey crowned crane, the wattle cane and the blue crane, all 3 of SA cranes. The following day the office life was getting to me but luckily in a strange twist of fate having no food turned out to be a good thing. It meant I had to go into the not so beating heart of Mooi River for a few supplies. As you can probably guess from the pervious sentence this was uneventful, buying rice was the highlight of the trp. On the 25th it was the same old torture so after ‘work’, I went for a run. My first proper run in far too long but it felt good to stretch my legs. What wasn’t so good was the lack of water in the shower. But TIA, so we went in trough the bathroom window of the neighbour empty teacher’s cottage and after waiting for the boil to heat up had a warmish shower. A day of absolute boredom follow then on the 27th my predicament was lifted as I had work to do, preparing all the last minute details for the courses arrival. Finally I had something to do on Saturday the course arrived and in the morning I had roads to check, keys to drop off, people to pick up at the office then a second trip to pick up what we’d forgotten. Id started early but after all these check it was 10 and they were due to arrive any minute. Upon arrival it became evident that these weren’t 8th graders as id been expecting but a mix from 7th to 12th, but never mind the show must go on. The course got off to a good start and apart from a quick jog and drive to pick up some keys which had gone walk about the day went smoothly and after a marvellous game of stalk the lantern and a campfire I went to bed a satisfied chap. But there’s no time for rest round hear as I was up at 0530 to pick up the laddies (our cooks) from the nearest settlement. After this early start I took my fist trip up to abseil rock where I was at a bit of a loose end not know what to do, but I enjoyed the view and got to see some baboons from a far. After a morning of abseiling I was down for lunch a quick crane tour then goodbye to my first group which had a fascination with my “adorable English accent”. As there were still plenty of daylight hours left we requested permission to drive to the nearest township to get some essential supplies (beer). But after hours of waiting were heard nothing so I went to drop off the car. It was then that I bumped into the boss who was looking for me thinking id driven off. Thanks to the marvellous of modern technology I had been given permission hours ago but the text never reached me. Once that predicament had been sorted I hit the road with the crew and went for a drive to one of South Africa’s finest establishments. NOT. Townships aren’t really the place to be at the best of times, so a Sunday at dusk wouldn’t be advised. Well at least not by any tour book, but me, it was fine, just don’t be a dick and you won’t get in the…trouble. So Sunday evening was spent relaxing and celebrating a successful course.

MEDIC!!!

It seems you don’t need something until you have it. For example before mobile phones we were fine but now we all need then or a new smoothie machine you never needed on but now you’ve got it everyday your having smoothies for breakfast, or a lv 2 first aid certificate. After the course had left my wish for sleep was not granted instead I had 2 and a half days of intense first aid training lined up. On the 16^th pretty much straight after the course leaving we also left for town, stopping to fix the car with a shoe lace and dropping some rubbish of fat the dump. As none of the staff had a current first aid certificate we had been rushed onto a weekend course which appear to be at a wine hose, no complaints there. But sadly we didn’t have a chance to taste. However in the evening after the ½ day of first aid and to celebrate and relax from the first 2 successful camps all the staff went out for a wee snifter at a couple of pubs having a lot of banter along the way. The following two days however were much more serious with a lot of learning, on the 18^th we completed our training sitting both a practical and theory test before been taken on a tour of the local paramedic/ any other problem you may have service to meet the guys and know how it all works, just incase. The following day they returned and it was back into the swing of 630. As the school bus drew into camp there was this strange feeling that something was going to go wrong, but all the 12^th graders got off and nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary and they all behaved rather well so that feeling subsided. However when the groups got back from the orienteering exersize one young landy wanted ice for her ankle. Not a problem just a swollen ankle sure we can sort that, and I did. However when I returned with the ice there was another who appeared to be in a bit more pain, so I did as id been taught and with no reason to suspect a break applied ice then bandaged for support. Done, no more problems from this lot then. Wrong the following morning the foot and swelled massively and the pain increased so absolutely baffled we passed the problem onto someone more qualified and got on with the day. I was leading a group out on summit with Sanele but less than 1km in one member had to pull out with fatigue, but after that it was plain sailing all the way to the summit. To my displeasure it was reviled to me that one of the groups was suffering severally with shin splints and after less than 100 meters down couldn’t walk on her own. So we radio in just to update camp on our situation but thanks to doggy radios couldn’t get camp so had settle for second best, but this would be fine. However some members of the group disagreed so went running off for help. This wasn’t too helpful as it left me with a group in disarray spread out all over the mountain. But not much I could do about that, so I carried on with what I had, putting a support bandage on the leg and help the patient down the hill. Half way down the hill we reached another group waiting for me where I discovered we had a badly sprained ankle, so now I was half way down a mountain with 2 people unable/struggling to walk, hear I decided to radio in for a vehicle pick up for the wounded which as a group we would help them get to. An that exactly what we did slowly but surly working our way down the mountain carrying the guys in places to make it to the pick up, simple really. That enough first aid for one day surly. Well it wasn’t and don’t call me Sheryl. Back at base someone though they would faint on us, well there was already enough staff there so I was keen to stay out of this one. But it seems someone had other plans and soon I found myself at the center of the situation in charge once again. But like all the other incidents of the day it was nothing too serious and the patient eventually stabilized and my work was done. The following day was rather straight forward, summit cut shot by a thunderstorm and the same fate for rock climbing. So I just had night duty making sure they all went to bed and stayed there. The following day due to the rain we transported the kid in the back of a truck to there coach and waved goodbye with a sigh of relief.  

T.I.A

This Is Africa and you know its not too bad. Well apart from having to wait 3hours at the airport to be picked up but this was just a taste of things to come and something I would get used to. On the 9^th I eventually made it to Entabeni my home for the next 6 months where I met my co-workers for the next 6 months. Luckily there an alright bunch, Matt a local lad who seems to know every farmer in S.A, Senela he likes his book maybe a bit too much but for his own good but if you prefer reading to sleeping that’s fine by me and final S’mangele or sma the only woman in the house. The following day I was thrown in at the deep as a course of 112, 8^th grade (our year 7 I think)  boys were arriving. So I was quickly briefed on the basic, built 2 volleyball nets and then in was to work for the next howevermany days. The introduction was very formal the boys were to call us sir or madam and take caps off when been spoken too; I think it was a bit of a posh school. But the formalities were cut short but the African rain and we had to rush to get 112 boys into the correct dorms. This didn’t happen, instead we had about 30boys crammed into one room soaked through and slowly creating a sauna. Eventually the rain stopped and we got back to the activities nothing too flash just basic icebreakers to settle the kids in. On the 11^th it was up a 630 (this was to become the norm) to get breakfast ready before I accompanied Matt on a trek to the summit. Its not the most straight forward walk scrambling through the forest and up rather steep hills but it is rather good fun, but unfortunately we didn’t get the chance to summit. Obstacle course in the afternoon was the first group I took on my own but all went well with no broken legs and everyone behaving so that was jolly good fun as well. In the evening I was introduce to stalk the lantern, one of the best outdoor games IV played. As instructors we confiscated the kids torches, ran ahead and planted a lantern high up a hill a lay in wait for the kids to try and reach the lantern. But if they made a noise and only if, we could then shine our torch on them and they would be out, closest to the lantern wins. The following morning was rather plane sailing but in the afternoon I was asked to lead a group to the summit not think anything of it I accepted. But I son realized I was the only staff member going and I had 2 prefects for support to get 24 kids up a mountain and down. Well I didn’t kill any of them so that’s a positive. No there were a few hiccup such as not finding the entrance to the forest but I successfully made it to the summit and down again so really it was a very successful trip. The following day was a bit of a stressful one with some basic things not been done and much lateness and disorganization but in the evening I built a missive fire, shouting go big or go home, as I battled to get a tree truck close to my size onto the fire much to the amusement of my colleges. But they must have though it was a good idea and soon followed suit. So by the end of the days all my troubles had been forgotten and I slept like a baby. Somebody though it would be funny to get the kids up at 6 for an early departure but this meant I had to be up at 530, not cool and as per usual something wen wrong so they left late anyway, TIA. There’s no rest for the wicked, as almost as soon as the first group had left the second arrived and the fun continued. A smaller group of 12^th graders. The 15^th was a day full of actives, belaying for rock climbing in the morning and running the group dynamics (GDs) in the afternoon with another bonfire in the evening and for me bed, but the unlucky chaps on night duty had a night of mischievous kids. The following day we said as-ta-la-vista to the group and all of a sunned I had completed my first to camps just like that and I felt rather good. Id been thrown in at the deep end but id managed to swim and now I felt rather confident in myself and was ready for the next group, although a chance to sleep would be appreciated.

Welcome To Africa

Here we are again another 3 am start to drive down to the airport, this is my final escapades across the colonies (for now anyway) and Im' ending big with six months volunteering in South Africa. Upon arriving at the airport i met my fellow travelers at Neros and we departed for the adventure. It felt wired to be the oldest and most experienced traveler in the group, thinking back it made such a change to the first time i left home for a foreign land. The flight as per usual was uneventful. Etihad was a disappointment no hot towel, only one meal and fat annoying families who just wont shut up about wanting to get off the plane, if you wont to get off so badly love ill be more than happy to assist you in your wish. Eventually we arrived in South Africa. Getting off the plane i was not hit my a wave of heat or a hectic airport in fact it was quite tame, we found our driver with no hitches and made it too the hostel with not so much as a pop shot fired. Maybe the subdued nature of the city had something to do with it been 5.30 in the morning. Eventually we began our arrival briefing getting the usual quick history of the country and essential information before a shopping break and lunch before back to the hard graft of learning a country culture in an afternoon. No problem. The 8^th was a more interesting day with a trip to Soweto, the Birth place of modern South Africa, quite literally. Soweto is was the home town for both nelson Mandela and bishop Desmond tutu, as well as the sight of a high school protest gone wrong which kick started the revolution. After such an intense day I found a bar in which to experience some of the countries finest beverages and spend my last night with the Lattitude folks before starting my placement. But the bar wasn’t another for these guys who proceeded to through me a party back at the door. Good job the place was empty as this went on for a while.  After the previous night a 6am start wasn’t too appreciated but it had to be done take catch my plane in time. However for one the plane ride was quite enjoyable, catching a tinny plane from Jo’burg (a Jetstream if you must know) I had about an hrs flight looking out of the window before landing at Pietermaritzburg airport, basically one hanger with a friendly chap to greet you off the plane and make sure you don’t walk into any propellers.