At the moment I am sitting at the dining room table in a self catering accommodation named Monia in a small town named Graskop in what used to be the eastern Transvaal but is now called Mpumalanga. The accommodation is unusual in that it is a three bedroom house that has been converted to take guests but everybody shares the kitchen and dining facilities. Luckily we happen to be the only guests so we managed to avoid having to battle with somebody over who drank who’s coke from the fridge.
Anyway we left home on Wednesday morning at 04h30 and drove here. We arrived at eight in the morning at the Sudwala caves and had to loiter about until nine thirty for them to open. We all enjoyed a casual stroll through the dinosaur park before exploring the caves with a guide. Then we took a scenic drive through the mountain towards Sabie. Unfortunately we didn’t get to see much scenery because the mist was so thick that we just managed to see the road most of the time. After having Wimpy breakfast in Sabie we headed to Graskop and booked into our accommodation. On the way we passed by Mac Mac falls but the mist was still too thick so we didn’t stop to look. Once we had unpacked the car we decided to head of to Burkes luck potholes and the Blyde river canyon. The mist was still too thick to stop at Gods window when we passed but lifted as we went down into the valley and by the time we came past Lisbon falls it was clear so we stopped to look at the falls.
I was surprised to have to pay R10 per person to look at the falls as this used to be free the last time I was here. I suppose this is part of the government’s new job creation plan so we paid. Lisbon falls are quite impressive with the roar of the water rushing over the rocky cliffs and the shear drop into the gorge being about 40 meters down so I didn’t feel too badly ripped of. The next waterfall on the way is Berlin falls also R10 per person. Berlin falls is a single stream of water dropping about 40 meters and wasn’t half as impressive as Lisbon falls so I think the price should be adjusted accordingly. It also started raining so we had to run back to the car and leave just after getting to the falls. Anyway the sign clearly states “no refunds” so we didn’t ask for one and just headed on to the potholes instead.
Bourkes luck potholes were named after a guy that wasn’t very lucky so I suppose the name is ironic. The holes are formed when the two rivers meet and the swirling water causes large round holes to be cut out of the rocks in the cliff. The potholes are in the Blyde river canyon which is the third largest canyon in the world and the views of the canyon are stunning. The two rivers that meet are the Treuer and the Blyde river and history tells us that when the Voortrekkers arrived at the canyon they told the women that the men would have to continue on alone as the journey was too treacherous. If the men didn’t return after some time then the woman would turn around and head back. The woman waited at the one river and when the men failed to return on the discussed date the woman mourned and the river was named Treuer meaning “to cry”. The men however caught up to the woman at the next river and that river was then named Blyde meaning happy.
After the potholes we had booked a ghost tour of the Pilgrims rest graveyard but the tour operator called and told us that it was raining in Pilgrims rest so we postponed the tour till the next night.
In the morning we thought we would be able to go to Gods window but the mist was still too thick so we hung about Graskop town instead and went for pancakes at Harries pancakes before heading off at about lunch time to Pilgrims rest for our booked tours of the town.
The tour was very interesting and informative but the night visit to the graveyard was the most exciting. The tour guide had told us that a ghost of a young man lived in her house some way down the hill from the graveyard. Near the end of the tour some “ghosts” appeared at the top of the cemetery and when we left the gates Kyle spun around and closed the gates. The tour guide then told Kyle that by closing the gates the “ghosts” would stay inside the graveyard and he wouldn’t have to panic when he promptly reminded her that one of them had obviously escaped and lived in her house.
29 Jan. 11
We got back home to the land of the big smoke yesterday. Wow what a trip! Both Lola and I were finished our bodies not used to all the walking and climbing of steps. Before we embarked on the journey back home we decided to try Gods window one more time and even though it was still misted up everywhere we stopped at the pinnacle and the mist lifted just long enough for us to view this tall finger of rock standing in the middle of a deep 60 meter gorge. There had been so much rain that the usual stream that ran through the gorge provided a roaring river with wild rapids flowing past the pinnacle and away into the valley. After the pinnacle we drove through the thick mist on to Gods window. When we stopped the mist was still thick but we proceeded to climb the steps up to the top to the many view points anyway. Lola suffered along having to stop every so often to catch her breath and I decided to go on ahead with the kids to the rain forest at the top hoping to catch a glimpse of the great view.
We reached the top lookout spot but the mist was just not going to give us a chance so we gave up and went back down to find an angry Lola on her way up towards us. After being in trouble for a while because we had left her behind and did not return promptly enough to fetch her, she calmed down and forgave but somehow I felt that I would probably be on rations for a while. The mist had cleared sufficiently by the time we passed MacMac falls so we decided to stop and take a look. Unbeknown to us this also included a hike across some rocky terrain. The view was spectacular and worth the struggle.
The rest of the car journey home wasn’t as pleasant because firstly we took a wrong turn that added some kilometres to the already uncomfortable journey and then we had to take an unpleasant phone call from an irate client. Sadly my aching body caused by a combination of the extremely uncomfortable bed at the place we were staying and all the exercise that I wasn’t used to had made my mood dark and when Lola was trying to collect answers for the client I snapped and started shouting at her as if it was her fault. You know what they say “don’t kill the messenger”. Well lets just say I forgot that saying. I think I must have apologised later because she is still talking to me.
30 Jan. 11
All those of you that know me well can visualise me sitting in the garage on one of the green plastic chairs. The garage has always been my entertainment area of the house and I sometimes wonder why we even built the rest of the house because it only serves as sleeping quarters. When we are awake be it alone or with visitors, we are sitting in the garage on the green plastic garden furniture. Anyway this morning I am up earlier than everyone else in the house and I’m sitting in the garage thinking about leaving on the boat when suddenly the reality of the situation dawns on me and I can feel the emotions well up inside. I don’t know how I am going to say goodbye to my kids Amy and Keagan. Its one thing to say goodbye in the morning when they are off to school and will be home that afternoon. Being divorced from their mother has also allowed me to get used to not seeing them for about a week at a time and this has been okay. But now I have to say goodbye and not be able to see them for an indefinite period. I have joked with them about the situation by saying that I not going to tell them when we leave and just phone from Brazil or send an sms saying “oh by the way we are in Brazil at the moment so I wont be able to pick you up from school this afternoon, hope this message gets to you in time for you to arrange a lift”. Funny ha ha, but I really have no idea what I am going to do. So here I am standing at the forefront of the greatest adventure of my life so far, but feeling like I am treading water at the same time.
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