Mike started assembling the scullery cupboards. He loves working with wood and had some fun putting them together, but it’s hard work, with lots of bending.
He finished the smaller and then started on the big ones.
Everything is bespoke. He has a place for a small stool for standing on so I can reach the top.
The shelves on the right will be spaced to carry a pack of linen for each bed. The shelves on the left will carry cleaning materials.
While Mike made cupboards, I continued on my merry way trying to place teachers. Over 8 hours today and I’m done!
It’s time for me to go for a walk. I walked this morning as well. It was a beautiful start to the day. Days like this remind me of the Vumba for some reason. It was overcast and drizzly and everything smelled fresh and earthy, so I left Mike sleeping and set off. By 6:30am, I was on the cat walk…
I came back via Daisy Lane which is an abundance of colour…
I was home by 7am. Mike was awake and he leapt out of bed and made coffee for lucky me!
It’s been cool the whole day. The guests in the cottage and Seaview Apartment have both left. This leaves the guests in the Little Lookout. One of them is now full term and waiting for the baby. Exciting days ahead!
I’m reading through Jeremiah at the moment. This verse is still to come.
Jeremiah 29:11
“I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
The Wood arrived. Mike spent a lot of time recently designing cupboards for our scullery. Then we can put the linen in there and when we are overseas, it will be easily accessible and manageable. A whole lot of wood got lugged up the stairs by Courage and Brian and is now stored against the walls of the lounge…
There were some pieces Mike wasted no time putting in place. To my surprise the bathroom was one place. I didn’t even know this was coming. A wine rack in the bathroom!
Pigeon holes maybe!
Perfect for towels.
A couple more pieces were slotted into place in the kitchen – spots that have been unfinished for the last 2 years. But the main event will be the cupboards in the scullery. He says it will take him a day or two. It’s like one enormous 3D jigsaw puzzle and was reminiscent of when all the wood arrived for the kitchen when we were building.
This morning I got all excited when I read this online about the pre-embarkation Covid testing…
I was jubilant! But to be sure, I inquired about our exact cruise and came down to earth with a bump.
This made me anxious, but with all the other cruises (and I mean ALL the other cruises) not needing pre-embarkation testing, I think it is a matter of time before it is done away with. Just hoping for a new announcement in the next couple of weeks. I’m sure it will come.
So, a good work day and now I’m going to walk to the end of the street and back. Mike is watching TV.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.
Yep, that’s what I’ll do.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
It finally happened! We locked ourselves out the house. After I worked 9 hours today, we left for a much needed walk. Mike closed the security gate and as he did, I looked down at the keys I had in my hand. “Don’t lock it!” But it was too late. I had the keys for the workshop and they don’t have a security gate key on them. We were locked out. We considered our options and the most likely to succeed was to phone Courage. Fortunately, he was at home in the flat in Fish Hoek. We said we would walk to him, but he said he could cycle to us. We compromised and met him at the beach where keys were exchanged! What if he were still in Masi? That would have been far more inconvenient. Off he goes home again…
We enjoyed the rest of the walk. Flat sea and plenty of junior paddlers enjoying themselves.
So after writing the blog from Johannesburg Airport yesterday afternoon, we had an uneventful flight home. We got in around 7pm and quickly disembarked, paid for parking (R960, which was more than expected) and drove home. We did some shopping on the way. We arrived home on a spectacularly balmy evening with a beautiful red moon.
Today I got a load of washing in before the water got turned off. There was some break in supply on the mountainside and we had no water from about 10:30am until 5pm. Fortunately, we have filled 5l bottles with drinking water and dropped those off at the guest units. We had another booking for the cottage for two nights – tonight and tomorrow. A past guest, Paul, had contacted me on Friday while we were in the Drakensberg and Courage made sure it was ready for Friday and Saturday night. After leaving on Sunday, he messaged today and asked if he could return for tonight and tomorrow. We hadn’t stripped the bed yet and seeing as he was the last to sleep in it, I just remade it, tidied up a bit, put in a clean bin liner, Aunty Ivy’s biscuits and some milk and that was that.
Now time to shower and chill.
Psalm 62:8
Trust in Him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
We woke early. Mike and I set off at 6am for an early morning walk. Very close to the Airbnb we were renting is a big complex known as Cayley’s Resort. It’s at the top of the hill and has a long road going up to it from the Water club at the dam. We walked from our house, up that road to the resort. The gate was open so we walked through it and out the entrance onto another picturesque street. Part of it was paved (thanks to the resort) but as we went further it became more like a jeep track. At the end of it, this was the view one way…
And this was the view looking down the valley…
This is the village we saw from the top of the mountain yesterday. In fact, if we continued along the jeep track we would have arrived at the cow trail (donga) that led down the mountain and we could have walked home that way. Pressed for time, we returned home the way we came, arriving at 7am, just after everyone had got up. We had breakfast, then cleaned up, packed up and by 9am we were driving off saying goodbye to another relaxing weekend in the ‘berg. We got to the airport just after 3pm, quickly got through security and am now sitting at Vida café charging phones and connected to the airport free WIFI.
In less than an hour we’ll board and then set off home. We expect to lug our baggage up our 85 steps at about 8pm.
Mike is busy on his laptop, having downloaded his camera pics and is now scrolling through them. He’s got some amazing memories captured on film.
Time is whizzing by and God willing, a month hence we will be in Varenna, Italy, exploring the cold delights of Lake Como. Cold, I say, because this weekend I learned the temperature range in Varenna at that time of the year is between 2 & 8 degrees! Well, Mike wants to catch the train up the mountains in the hope of seeing snow capped peaks. I am more and more confident his snow-filled desires will be met. I have always found Accuweather to be pretty accurate and even though we are a month away, the projected temperatures for November have been released. We need to dig out our umbrellas! We arrive 8th November, so at least the 9th and 10th will be good. Maybe we can hop on the ferry on the 9th and go up the mountain on the 10th. The rest of the days, we’ll have to mooch around Varenna and surrounding towns between showers. If this proves accurate, we can get back to Milan on the 14th without rain.
Who knows if this will be accurate.
Anyway, I’m going to now see if I can get some work done, so tomorrow I can go back to work on top of things.
Never more true are the words of our verse for the day…
Proverbs 19:21
Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.
So let it be.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
We walked all the way round Bell Park Dam. I think it must be asked by frequent visitors to the area, ‘can you walk around Bell Park Dam?’ The answer is yes, if the dam is low enough. Right now, the dam is super low and draining daily. There was huge damage done by the storms earlier on in the year and in order to repair the spillway, they need to lower the level of the dam so they can get earth moving machinery in to do the repair. Day and night the lower sluice gate drains water from the dam. Apparently it has another 1 meter to go. If the dam is full and the surrounding water flowing strongly, walking all the way round may be challenging – once the spillway is fixed and water flowing over that piece, it will be difficult to cross to the mountain.
With the dam low, Mike and I set off at 6:30am and walked down to the waterpark, up the jeep track and over the mountain following the cow trails.
The cow trails are the definitive paths that zig zag across the mountainside. There are various herds, all with cow minders who have dogs accompanying them.
We moved off the path when we saw them coming. Healthy herd of cattle for sure…a little video for you…heart greeting from the herdsman.
The path disappears into bushes that go way down a gorge. If the cows can do it, so can we.
The undergrowth …
The cows are so big and heavy and there is a herd of them all vying for space so they create various paths which are easily visible.
Coming out the other side and up the hill, the view was spectacular…
You can see how much of the dam has been drained…
This is right at the end of the dam.
We still needed to walk onwards as the descent path was still ahead…
Rounding the bend, we got to a village. I think it is from here that a number of herds are driven.
We spoke to a youngster who told us there was no bridge over the river. We also saw the path they take down the mountain. It was quite treacherous – a massive path worn away by decades of herds making their way down to pasture. Soil erosion causing huge dongas. We had to go slowly.
We had been told there was no bridge over the river, so we wondered how we would cross it. Follow that cow! They showed us the way…
The track didn’t get easier…
But the view was great…
We got to the bottom, down a donga, up the other side, along a path and we were at the easy river crossing…
After the river…an easy walk through a wide open plain…
It soon widens to a jeep track which joins the dirt road. This is looking back, so if you are walking clockwise round the dam, take this road right…
The dirt road makes for easy walking, but I can imagine after a lot of rain it would be quite muddy…
A short distance after the tree, there is a bridge. The main concrete bridge washed away during the floods. It’s been replaced by a wooden pole one…
Immediately after the bridge on the left, there is a narrow path across the field which takes you back to the water’s edge. From there we got a super view of the mountain we had just walked over. Arrows shows the path we came down.
Then it was back along the water edge to the dam wall, up the angled wall on the edge of the spillway onto the mountain again. By then we were tired and hungry. We left at 6:30am and got home at 9am. It was just under 9km. Here’s roughly the route we went – Google maps.
For the rest of the day, we chilled and recovered. We did a bit of shopping and now we are ready for the trip home tomorrow. We have had a wonderful time. Tomorrow we get in late, so I think the blog may be short.
1 Corinthians 16:14
Everything should be done in love.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
We began early (7am) by going for a pre-breakfast walk. This time we followed the cow trails down to a tar road.
It also meant crossing a river…
Mike dressed in his running kit. When we got to the road, there was a very long uphill which we walked up before Mike broke into a run. I walked enjoying new scenery…
I tried to take a selfie, but my arm wasn’t long enough to get me in the frame. It is pretty spectacular…
I met up with Mike and we walked home past the ponies. So cute to see the foal.
But the best fun was had this afternoon when David and I went down to the Waterpark to try out the obstacle course. We videoed each other and it was hilarious. I made it round without falling off in the first instance but it took me a very slow, laborious 5 minutes. David was much quicker (under 3 minutes) but wiped out 3 times.
It’s not as easy as it looks. Years ago we used to watch Wipeout with these massive floating obstacle courses and I always wondered to myself how I would do. It is hard. The inflatables move all the time, they are often wet and slippery and it’s just so difficult to keep your balance. And, it’s exhausting! We had a blast and the video footage is priceless! I’d love to try get the video onto my computer but not sure if I will be able to. Here is David jumping off the last obstacle.
We were in hysterics watching the videos afterwards.
Mike made spaghetti bolognaise for dinner and David showed us some of the highlights of his trip through South East Asia. I also got in a video call with Stacey. Altogether it was a great day.
Isaiah 43:11
I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no Saviour.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
We got to walk mostly around the dam, which we discovered is called the Bell Park Dam. On what was a very cool & overcast day, Mike & set off at 7:30am, during loadshedding. We walked across the hillside…
Down the steep embankment to see how to cross the dam wall…
While there were stairs one side of the dam spillway, on the other there was a steep angled wall. Mike went down first…
With us both safely on the other side, we walked a long way round the dam. Rural landscape…
It was so beautiful. Our house from the other side…
We walked on encountering a grey cat who thought it would be fun to follow us…
We came back along a road passing this magnificent Acacia tree..
We wound our way back to the dam wall, crawling up the steep side wall –
…and back over the hillside. Just to give an idea of how far we walked, I’ve pointed to where the acacia tree is from our rental.
It wasn’t quite 7km. It took about an hour and 40 minutes and was 10000 steps before breakfast. When we got in, loadshedding was over. For the rest of the day, we did some serious chilling
And I had an afternoon sleep which was wonderful.
During the afternoon loadshedding, we went for another walk. This time we took a walk in the other direction and went down to the Bell Park Dam water park. We found a whole lot of options for water activities as well as quad biking, paint ball and archery. Today we have been in jerseys. Tomorrow the forecast is 33C! That water park is sounding more and more attractive.
Afternoon walk…the water park is the little blue place on the dam..
We encountered other walkers…
Evening time and dinner is being cooked on the grill.
A bonus photo of Athena. Gerrie took this one. Such a good one.
It’s been such a good rest and we still have two more days. Another thing about today, it’s 9 years since Granny passed away. Thinking of her today.
Colossians 3:15
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
I woke up at a ridiculously early hour – twas around 3am, maybe earlier. By 4am, we were on our way down the stairs and on our way to the airport. We parked in the shaded parking and by 4:50am, we were going through security. After that, Mike got in a very long coffee queue. By the time he returned, boarding was about to commence. The flight was quick. After leaving at about 5:50am, with a tail wind we touched down at just after 7:30am.
Julian and David arrived to pick us up. Great to see my son again!
It was great to see Jess and Gerrie again as well. The have 4 cats, including Athena…
After breakfast, we got on the road. We left about 10am and arrived in Cathkin in the Drakensberg at just after 4pm. It was hot – about 33C. We arrived in time for loadshedding! With my cell phone battery flat and it being boiling, there was only one thing to do – head for the dam! I don’t even know what the dam is called but the water was about 17C. It is down a steep hill with the walk back harder than walking home from Fish Hoek beach! The sun soon began to set. David took this photo…
And I took this one…
It’s now pitch black. The mozzies are biting and the chicken is braaiing.
We will all sleep well tonight!
Psalm 4:8
In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
I got to work work work. Just a quick blog today. I did a couple more loads of laundry and then packed two baskets of linen.
I’ve left Courage with instructions. I’ve welcomed the guests into the Seaview Apartment. I’ve now put auto response on my work email, sent the handover notes and logged off.
A quiet evening and an early morning. If all goes to plan, the blog tomorrow will come with photos of a completely different landscape to the regular. Talking of a different landscape, I saw this on Facebook from someone called Baruch Frenkel under Wonder of Nature. It covers the movement of the sun at sunrise during the course of the year.
I’d love to try this – pick a day in the middle of the month and take a photo every month at sunrise. I’d have to be super dedicated for that one day a month to be in the same place.
The end of the day. Better get packing.
Isaiah 55:6
Seek the Lord while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.
And that’s always.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
We went to the beach. The water was calm and clear and the shark net was out because it’s school holidays. I swam for more than 40 minutes, persevering until 2km was done.
At one stage I saw a coke can on the ocean floor so I dived down and got it. Then I swam across to the rocks and tossed it to a passer by who put it in the bin. My watch said the water was 14C but it felt warmer. The hindrance now is not the temperature of the water, but my stamina. I need to get swim-fit again.
We got home by 10am. Guests in the cottage and Seaview apartment had both checked out and Ruth was cleaning. Courage wrote the names on the Seaview apartment board for the guests arriving tomorrow. He’ll be needing to write those names on the boards when we are not here. Once Ruth had cleaned the apartment, I went around it with her to check the finer details and show her what I do.
At lunchtime I went for a facial with Lorraine. As I left, I accidentally picked up Lorraine’s cell phone and put it in my handbag, thinking it was mine. She said, ‘ooh, I think that’s my phone.’ And sure enough it was. She went onto tell me how neurotic she has become about her cell phone because last Saturday hers was stolen. Of course I had to ask how that happened. She said she was at Mambos by Builders and was looking at little containers. She was browsing through the aisles as one does. It’s a huge place with lots to see and you can get carried away looking at all sorts of things. She found what she wanted and leant down to pack them in her basket. Then she went to pay for them. On getting into her car, her watch buzzed and said her phone had been disconnected. That was odd. She reached into her handback and her cell phone was gone. She couldn’t believe it. She thought it must have fallen out of her handbag somewhere so she went back into Mambos and asked. No one had handed it in. The management then looked up on the surveillance camera and what they saw shocked both them and her. While she was walking up and down the aisles, she was being followed by a family of 4. Mom and Dad, a little boy and a baby. They were just following her, waiting for an opportune moment. She didn’t notice them. She felt safe. They were a family. When she knelt down to select some small containers, her handbag was behind her on the floor. The little boy, unzipped it, took out her cell phone and handed it to the parents who put it in the nappy bag. Job done.
The got away with it this side of eternity. She hasn’t pursued the Apple “lost phone” information as it places the phone in Kuilsriver and she’s not about to drive all the way out there. The message I learned – don’t be complacent.
Matthew 6:14
For it you forgive other people when they sin against you, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
I woke up after a really good night’s sleep. Mike ran 12km yesterday so he wasn’t about to go to the beach for a morning run. I started work early and got in about 8 hours.
There was some morning rain, but once that was over, the sun came out and it was partly cloudy.
Courage arrived with a big smile on his face and stories of going to walk at the Clovelly Vlei and taking the children to the beach. He got stuck into the gabion baskets. Progress has been made.
August 26th…
September 16th …
Today…
A lot of hard work, but it’s beginning to take shape.
Apart from the growth of the gabion baskets. The ivy has also grown…August 17th…
3rd October…
It’s soon going to take over the trellis.
So that’s been the day. It’s been a good one. A happy day!
Ephesians 6:18
Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
We finally went whale watching. We’ve been waiting to get the day right since 8th August. Today was it. A splendid late spring day with bright sunshine and not too much wind. The trip was on. I took my sea-sickness pill and off we went.
Leaving from Simon’s Town, we headed towards Sunny Cove as there had been a few sightings there. We saw a Bryde’s whale in the distance but didn’t get a great view of it. We did get some nice views of the Fish Hoek Quarry and our street…
We moved further away to the centre of the bay and saw a sun fish and a couple of hump back whales.
We came back past Miller’s Point where the rocks are a favourite haunt for Cape fur seals.
and then it was back to Simon’s Town, passing the navy…
And into the harbour…
It was very interesting and I learned a bit about spotting whales and the main three types that have been in False Bay – Brydes, Humpbacks and Southern Rights. They are elusive and don’t follow any rules so we were happy to see any at all. The other thing I learned is that we get some amazing sightings from our house and I will now appreciate them all the more! Being out on the sea is an amazing thing. It’s hard to imagine that this is just a drop in the ocean. We are so small. The world is so big. And yet, we are just a tiny little speck.
Courage sent photos of his new home. I was so thrilled to see the flat looking so good and furnished so nicely. We’ll see him tomorrow & find out how his first weekend went.
Proverbs 29:25
Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.
Safe for all eternity.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
I had quite a laid back Saturday. The day dawned with still seas and, because it’s the weekend, the shark net went out. Mike and I went to the beach. Mike ran. I swam. We got home around 10ish, had a late breakfast and then Mike went off to Makro, while I took the neighbour round the cottage. They are moving in for 2 weeks at the end of this month.
On my return, I had a chat with Elsie and Stacey which is always entertaining. Elsie loves singing. She’s delightful singing Away in a Manger at the top of her lungs (in Afrikaans). Clearly, at her pre-school, they are practicing for Christmas.
Then I cleaned the house.
Mike arrived home and for dinner ordered pizza. After dinner, we watched Pastor Tienie on Netflix.
It’s in Afrikaans with English subtitles which is helpful. The acting is excellent and it deals with real issues. Really worth the watch.
Now for the first time today, I’ve turned on my computer.
Tomorrow, we hope to go whale watching. It’s booked and confirmed…unless they cancel. It’s a little windy right now but wind should drop overnight.
1st October: Happy birthday Pastor John!
James 5:16
The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
We went to the beach. It was a perfect, still day with the promise of sunshine. On such a day I need to wear my turquoise hat. This hat Mike bought from a cheap Chinese store about a year ago. The plan was to wear it on our balcony when the morning sun was a bit too bright. The other windless day I wore it to the beach and did the same today. Only today, I had people wave and greet and it really grabbed the attention of the regular ladies at the beach, “Helga, we love your hat!” “Where did you get that hat?” “That’s a lovely hat!”
The hat is actually made of paper!
The hat on my head!
And so the hat is such a hit that maybe I should be taking it on holiday when we go overseas. We’ll see.
The sea water is certainly warming up. It must have been about 16C today. I swam 2km with quite a lot more confidence. Last night I ready this story 🙁See here). Part of it said this:
White sharks have disappeared from Cape Town and Gansbaai.
That is quite a definitive statement. I took it to heart, shook off my caution and swam with confidence to the barrel and back. I swam most of the way to the lighthouse before hearing a bit of a commotion. On stopping, I saw the trek fishermen running with their boat towards the cat walk side of the beach. When they saw me, they stopped and launched their boat into the sea before me, so I wouldn’t encounter their net on my swim back to the restaurant side. It was fun to watch them rowing like crazy to the place the spotter had said there were fish. It was actually quite close to the barrel. They didn’t stay long. Perhaps the fish had dispersed. It was much later on in the morning that I saw them dragging their nets onto the beach. Perhaps they had got a catch after all.
Time is certainly flying by. Today was a good day. I only did two hours of work. The last day of the month – while last month I clocked 200 hours, this month I’ve only logged 140, but it has still been a good one – maybe better than last as it was less stressful.
And now it’s weekend.
Philippians 2:14
Do everything without complaining or arguing.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
I woke quite late – around 7am. Last night we watched a YouTube video on what was described as Terminal Insomnia! It sounds dreadful and I don’t know how I stumbled upon it, but being a bit of an insomniac myself, it was worth the 12 minutes of watching.
As a result, I decided to try no screen time after 10pm or before 5am. And that worked. I slept a lot better and will try the same thing each night.
Today Julian was commenting on how much better the cottage roof looks since it was cleaned. I didn’t post any photos of the process because we wanted to surprise Julian, so today I can put those on my blog. It was quite a task and took 3 full days at least.
Quite a precarious process…
Working from the other side…
And the final bit…
Roof finished…
The patched spots are from 2020. There was a massive storm while we were building and the scaffolding planks flew off and hit the roof in those few places. Roof is looking much better and it’s cooler in the loft by 3-4 degrees, which was our goal.
The other thing that happened today was this…I went into Flight Radar to see David’s progress just in time to see his plane touch down in Johannesburg.
Yayy! All is well. It’s been quite a trip.
I worked 7 hours. I also walked to Fish Hoek and picked up my modified sandals that now have little inserts in. My toes can now see the light!
A good day.
Isaiah 59:1
Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor His ear too dull to hear.
The best is yet to come – we are only passing through.
