Right, this is my last blog from South Africa! Scary. And I've only got five minutes, because we're at the Mall, and we're leaving at half past, and I need to buy cake ingredients for Charlie. I don't want to come home! Well, I want to see people, and I do miss my boots a lot, but I still don't want to come home! I'd happily stay here another month ( Read more... )

Well, it’s Saturday night, and I’m sitting in bed singing along to lovely lovely Placebo. People (minus Susan and Linn) have just gone out for a few hours for Nadine’s birthday. I got the flowers for her bath, I feel I’ve done my bit for the night. Ooh, kettle’s boiled.

Change your taste in....men...... My knees are unhappy today. Today has been a ( Read more... )

Hello! I’m sitting outside my room (just on the opposite side this time), with a cat and some chocolate Leanne just gave me because she doesn’t like it. The sun’s setting, and a load of honeybees are buzzing in and out of some flowers that look like enormous Morning Glory. I’m wearing my sandals, Harriet’s little blue shorts, and my Ummemo t-shirt ( Read more... )

And it’s the next weekend! I seem to be doing a weekly journal, which definitely isn’t what I was planning. Now I’ve finally sorted out how to get entries online (originally I was told we were going to have internet here, then that we would after a couple of weeks, then that we weren’t going to so I could use the Mall, then that we couldn’t use ( Read more... )

Hello again! It’s a week later, 12.30 on Sunday, and I’m spending the day planning lessons with Karin, splashing about in the pool and generally celebrating Tim’s 19th birthday. We had a big Mexican-style meal last night here, which we made and ate together, then watched A Good Year (I’m so glad I brought dvds...no-one else did, so they’re coming ( Read more... )

Hello again! It’s 8.42 on Sunday, and there’s just enough chill in the air to wear a jumper, but just enough warmth to not bother. I’m sitting outside our room in my very old purple pyjama bottoms and Joe’s t-shirt and thick pink socks. Birds are going crazy all over the place, I can hear at least five different bird calls. Various local dogs ( Read more... )

Oh, bliss. Friday, weekend ahead, sunshine with a slight breeze, bare feet and windchimes. Trees all around me, sound of people playing in the pool. The air is so soft and gentle, I feel like I'm being gently embraced by....the universe? Nature? Africa? Or just Here And Now. This Place. I feel extraordinarily at peace.

I've only just realised the ( Read more... )

Sorry if the spelling in this is terrible (just avoided 'atrocious', not sure why, I do know how to spell it), but I'm in an internet cafe, and therefore typing fast to save monies. What to say? Drove to where we're staying last night. Had a fairly relaxed day today, with a few group sessions, then drove to Nelspruit (sp?) to buy things at the ' ( Read more... )

 Slept for about three hours, waking up occasionally and going back to sleep. Dreamt I was stuck with a group of people who disliked me and kept telling me to do things and wanted me to eat prawns. Most people won't understand that the thing I'm most nervous about re this isn't the flight, or the work, or the culture shock, it's just being trapped ( Read more... )

Definitely don't believe I'm in South Africa. Feel very surreal. It's cold in a fresh-November-morning way, with clear pale blue sky and various palmesque trees and such waving in the breeze. Such a disconcerting combination of the familiar and unfamiliar, with adverts for Coca Cola and KFC, and English everywhere, but different buildings and the ( Read more... )