5th
March Rapoeli Camp Site. Near Vryburg, Nth West Province.
My
Garmin GPS leaves a blue dotted trail showing the route travelled,
must be in case you have to retrace you steps when off road and some
obstacle confronts you. The map of Pretoria on the GPS is a birds
nest of blue dotted lines. A conglomeration of routes we took going
from one embassy to another, getting documents photocopied,
depositing money in embassy accounts and the likes. At least it is
now all over, our biggest surprise was at the Angolan Embassy where
they not only give us a visa, but a 30 day one at that! We expected a
5 day transit at best as we didn't have a sponsor or even a confirmed
hotel booking. It will make our trip through that country so mush
easier knowing we don't have to go like hell. The Republic of Congo
was a piece of cake after that. Once we picked up that this morning
it was westward bound.
We
covered some 370 kms of mainly uninteresting country with mining a
major enterprise at the beginning, then acres upon acres of
sunflower and maize farms. Maize is the basic ingredient of one of
South Africa's staple foods, pap. It looks a bit like mashed potatoes
but more gluggy. Took a while to get a taste for it last trip but we
now enjoy eating it.
Sad
leaving Len & Ria today, we have had such good times together and
know we may not see each other for a long time if ever, has a
finality to it.
Len
had told us about Rapoeli Camping: a working farm that has an area
for camping. The owners are on holiday but William, their worker,
looked after us before he headed off herding a flock of sheep,
leaving us to babysit the cats and dogs, four of each, that have
attached themselves to us. Maybe it was the rib bone left overs that
did the trick.
Full
moon on a balmy night enveloped in the silence of the African veldt,
something to remember.
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