WEEK FOUR

WEEK FOUR

DAY 23 - Tuesday - 1.29.13
Up late and on the road to Robertson. A ride thru the township with the characteristic very tall light was enlightening- all homes were brick or block and permanent with asphalt streets, in-house water and toilet, and electric. We then headed south on N1 2 lane thru arid desert hills with outline of mountains thinly exposed in the distance. We turned off on a minor road shortcut to the Robertson area. After going over 2 passes we came to the production farms- pears, peaches and grapes. We stopped to watch the stoop labor and the processing of the orange peaches and at a dry fruit producer and a peach seed oil pressing operation. We then toured the township at Montague where we found permanent structures and intermingled with the children as they got out of school (8:30-1:30).  Up the scenic road we checked into a 4star b&b. The area over the mountains and in the valley was called the Koo... Our car is getting over 30mpg.  No road kill and few wild animals in the fields. The "sleeping policemen" of Mexico are the "humped zebra crossings" here and we were very cautious. Sampie came to visit with us after work and before dinner.   We are at the Ballinderryguesthouse.com.

Our friend who has a project with aids orphan kids and whom we fund, booked us into a very upscale b&b... With a pool outside our door and dinner on the deck. Sampie has converted his lower level b&b to one bedroom apts for visiting medical personnel who practice in the hospital where he is the chief  pharmacist - the pharmacy is the top in the country and he was pharmacist of the year because of an outreach program for medicine he developed. This b&b is a little ritzy for our blood and budget, but we shall take it for two nites. It is owned by a Belgium couple, Luke the manager and his wife, Hilde, is the chef. Our dinner was exquisite.  We learned this is a high season visiting area because of the vineyards. Robertson is in the wine district, but we got here six years ago because it was late afternoon and we needed a place to stay. This led to visits to the township and countryside with Sampie, our co-conspirator, and beginning to fund the extras for the 13 kids who lived with an older lady in a corrugated building the size of our garage. Noticeable in Robertson is the absence of fences and electrical wires surrounding houses.  If there are fences they are see thru and open.

DAY 24 - Wednesday - 1.30.13
Up for a shave, a swim and beautiful breakfast. Sampie picked us up 9:00 for a tour of the area. First to the hospital and pharmacy where he works and to meet coworkers he supervises. Then to the township where Lucy who has had 77 kids over the years now attends to 12-13 kids from2 years to high school who have no or poor parenting. Finally on the wine route thru the "wine estates" and up the valley to McGregor to see the Dutch- German architecture and coffee. On the way we saw a New Holland machine harvesting wine grapes (and olives) and stopped to find out how it worked. They have been mechanically harvesting grapes for 30 years-we never even imagined it.  Along the way we came across box-type turtles in peach orchards, hawks hunting, ostriches in small flocks, sheep, and goats. In McGregor we noticed that several houses are for sale, though the village is small; Sampie says people are enticed here by its appearance, buy a house and live here for a short time and then discover its an isolated/remote town with few/no amenities. The interesting architecture, Cape Dutch, and clean lines with thatched roofs of the houses would be very enticing. We enjoyed coffee at a small shop, talked for a while, discussed the money we gave Sampie for Lucy, then headed back to Robertson to buy FAT bastard wine and a 3 prong to european adaptor. Rested in the heat of the afternoon and dinner at 6:00 in town. We had lengthy discussions about the township changes and the distribution of health care in ZA. The corrugated building was replaced with a small, block, 3 room house rented from the city which includes water, sewer and electric (50 rand/30$/month). They still have two metal shacks to sleep all their kids.  We re-uped support for this project. Sampie retires on June 2013 and will take an ANOVA (US) project working with aids and other chronic problems. Nice dinner on the main drag of Robertson. Goodby Ballinderry.

DAY 25 - Thursday - 1.31.13
Down the Wine Valley into the arid mountains and down the pass to Oudtshoorn (the ostrich Capitol of the world) and the Little Karoo. Carried a Nigerian worker to town. Oudtshoorn is a historically wealthy community of 80k, gaining wealth from ostrich feathers shipped to Europe and America from the late 1800 on for hats, etc. Recent bird flu caused them to not be able to export ostrich meat to Europe and 55K bird were destroyed trying to stop the spread thereof- did not work and now their are only 80 farms left of the previous thousands.  An Ostrich pair will lay an egg every other day and produce 32 eggs over the breeding period-we have two pair at this b&b - Amanda and Derrick's Cul du Sac b&b. Only drove 180 miles today so we got a much deserved nap- we have run continuously since leaving home...now to slow down. Dinner at Brian's Grill. To a craft producing place and Moselbaai ( Mosel Bay) tomorrow.  Driven 4k plus miles so far. We must slow down now that obligation are completed.

DAY 26 - Friday - 2.1.13
We left late to visit a craft center where disadvantaged women made jewelry and clothes from ostrich feathers and egg shells. We contributed to their advantage and then went many miles to a special rural school. On the way we saw hundreds of century plants with spiking stalks which fall and start another plant a few yards away. This school was built by a very successful ZA film producer who settled in the area of DeRust. He endowed the program and transportation for children up to 25 k away. Actually the benefactor replaced a hundred year old school and gave it to the local church which rents the building to the state. The principal eagerly showed us all the facility and the classes. The building is beautiful as well as functional. On the way back we stopped at a farm that had several hundred angora goats, several hundred angora sheep, cattle, 300 ostriches (down from 1k due to the bird flu), alfalfa rotational fields, and crops used to produce vegetable seeds. They used an old fashion full sized thrashing machine to harvest seed. The mistress/$manager of the farm talked with us for an hour. Then we went to a local dam to see a large lake. All along the way we observed the alfalfa fields that Derrick our host sells seed for and advises about. Finally, on the way back to  Oudtshoorn we stopped at an ostrich farm which had over 8000 ostriches in all sizes. The person responsible for them from hatching to feed lot was a women named Rita (who wants to come to America to work). And she took us on a tour of the entire facility... From hatchlings to adolescence to adult feeder taller than we are. Some weeks they hatch out a thousand eggs from the breeding pairs, but we saw about 50 one-day to two- day olds as this was the last batch to hatch for this breeding period. As we entered town we went to a bookstore. Now rest and dinner.  Interestingly, we found two townships of corrugated shacks without water, toilets and electric in-house - the areas look like a lot of townships 6 years ago. One appeared to be quite old and the other was just allowed to develop outside Oudtshoorn with established streets of dirt and plots for homes in an organized pattern. Unfortunately, these housing areas seemed far from the established cities, schools, transportation, and services. The school and local language is Afrikaans.

DAY 27 - Saturday - 2.2.13
Go IU..!  IU (#3) v Michigan (#1)... Need I say more!
To the Indian Ocean. We did some book shopping and atm'd money and then went into the mountains between here and Mosselbaai and the Indian Ocean. Beautiful, austere arid mountains characteristically like the west US. Drove around Mossel Bay and then followed the Indian Ocean east on N2 to George. We saw a large number of storks which migrate to Africa from Europe over the winter. From George we went back into the switchbacks over the passes and into Oudtshoorn for a nap.  As soon as we came down to the Little Karoo irrigation and agriculture covered the landscape. Very hot (close to 90) with a lot of wonderful wind. Preparing for a braai (barbecue with wood and no sauce) by our guesthouse host, Derick.  The Indian Ocean seemed so distant and out of reach for most of our lives, and then it is right there and we are at it. Spent some time during the morning and evening trying to set up Derick's new iPad.  All of the 8 rooms are full with families speaking Afrikaans with English as a second language - I do not remember this from 6 years ago. Really enjoyed the braai and talk tonight with Amanda and Derick... Tough to find such great people to stay with.

DAY 28 - Sunday - 1.3.13
Awake at 4:00 to stream the IU v UM bball game... 81 IU - 73 MU and back to sleep for a while before Marnie walked and I did exercises. On the road 180 miles east and north to Graaff-Reinet where we visited 6 years ago, passing thru the largest mohair production area of the country.  With mountains ever present in the distance, we traversed flat arid lands punctuated with cactus and century plants. We wanted to see what progress has occurred in the city and the townships so we took our own driving tour since our guide did not answer the page. G-R has far less tall cement and electrical fences than other cities and one can see yards and houses from the street like Robertson. The promised high school is finished and predictably it was built on the side of the township away from the city, so no whites will traverse the township to get to school. There is a drastic increase in masonry houses with water, sewage and electric, and a reduction in the corrugated construction. Many streets are improved with asphalt, but trash in the township is ever present. What 6 yrs ago was considered colored has now turned black as far as we can see.  The city looks farm prosperous but the township does not look prosperous. The characteristic tall lights are still present. The soccer field is now grass instead of the dirt last time. Staying at a first class guesthouse with small cool pool. Found good food in the only open restaurant we could find. We transited to a new province - Eastern Cape.

DAY 29 - Monday - 1.4.13
Off to see the elephants in Addo National Park. Morning exercises and a swim to the streaming from Madison WERN late nite classical. Toured the bustling town (compared to yesterday) to say goodby - this is special place since we did so much digging and exploring here six years ago. We asked directions and a man who helped us had city worker clothes on and tribal dust reddish orange paint on his face. We saw another person later who had a different color but the same face painting. Picked up a couple who was returning home to a cheetah breeding area farm with their child. Then went cross country to Addo.. Ended up in a valley green with fruit orchards. We stopped at the Unifrutti packing factory and orchards (an Italian company). We talked with the general and export managers- nice guys. Fruit was not in season but they were exporting watermelon for a customer. They pack and ship 13 varieties of citrus to Europe and the Middle East, but not America because of a disease their fruit carries which would jeopardize US fruit and orchards. The water they irrigate with and which has made this arid desert bloom comes from the Fish-Orange Rivers 500 KM away - first in a 75 Kms underground aqueduct then in two rivers which carry the water to their water canals. Down the road we entered Addo where no rooms were available (now a day trip). Sightings in order of appearance- zebra, jackal resting, yellow mongoose, 7 adult, 1 infant, 1 adolescent alone and 3 adult male elephants at the watering hole, elephant scratching on the concrete sign block, warthog families x4, élan, kudu, hawks, and monkeys playing in the road. We then drove 17 kms on gravel washboard to get to the highway to Grahamstown. We toured Rhodes University (7000 students) by car and got a b&b right across the street from the main gate with dinner across the street....nice day...nice week...
Lots of miles...so far
END OF WEEK FOUR