Summer solstice today in the Southern Hemisphere..Again, we made a decision about our visas expiring in a month…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 21, 2021 with 0 Comment

Impala with an oxpecker in Kruger National Park.

This morning, when checking the news for any relevant topics to share today, other than the news-hogging Omicron variant, I stumbled across several articles about today being the official start date for summer in South Africa. It was nice to see headlines about something other than Covid-19, which is monopolizing headlines worldwide.

Impalas on the side of the road as we passed.

To stay on top of things, I read several news reports from worldwide sources. I tend to particularly like news from the UK and South Africa, both of which seem to be most relevant to us during our time in this country. The UK media tends to report on activities in South Africa, especially now when many tourists from the UK often visit SA during the holiday season. Of course, travel has been dramatically tempered since the onset of Omicron, which is raging in the UK right now.

Also, at this time, we’re paying particular attention to news directly out of South Africa to see if President Ramphosa will extend visas for foreign nationals, which will directly impact us.

However, at this time, to be safe with our visas expiring in a little over a month, we had decided to use the services of the law firm in Cape Town that we used to obtain a waiver after we were banned from the country for five years when we overstayed by 90 days when I had emergency open-heart surgery.

The law firm did an excellent job for us when we contracted their services in May 2019 while we were in Ireland, and they could handle everything remotely. We feel confident using them again. As a matter of fact, Gerhardt and Rita used this same firm with our recommendation when they applied for their four-year retirement visa while in the US.

We considered applying for the South Africa four-year retirement visa but doing so requires an extended stay in the US which didn’t work for us. Foreign nationals cannot apply for an extended visa while in South Africa. Subsequently, in the past few days, we decided to go ahead and apply for a 90-day extension with the law firm, which will take us to the end of March (and beyond until April 23, if need be).

Why pay for a law firm to assist us? Right now, the immigration department is so backlogged with applications, we will get a faster result if we use a law firm.

Zebras seeking shelter from the sun under a bush,

At this point, we still don’t know if our booked transatlantic cruise to the UK will sail on April 8th. The final payment will be taken from our credit card online at Costco on Christmas Day. We were hoping that Celebrity Cruise Line would do so before the final payment is due if they ended up canceling the cruise.

However, many cruise lines require full payment on the original final payment due date, even if they intend to cancel the cruise in a few months due to the pandemic. This provides them the free use of our money for many months while we end up having to wait for a refund for months after they cancel the cruise. It can take three to four months to get a refund after the cruise is canceled. It’s the nature of the beast.

Based on what’s happening in the UK right now with the Omicron wildfire of cases, we’re expecting the cruise will be canceled. Based on stats from the website Worldometer, yesterday, the UK, with a population of 68,409,000, had 91,743 new cases. For comparison’s sake, the US had 143,530 new cases, also yesterday, with a population of 333,850,090, which continues to have the highest numbers of cases and deaths worldwide.

Yes, I know these numbers can easily be skewed. After all, humans are entering the information. Does a person who goes to the hospital with a fatal heart attack become a Covid statistic when they also happen to have Covid-19 at the time of death? Sure, there’s plenty of this going on, especially when many countries provide hospital remuneration when patients die from the virus.

But, we have nothing else to go on, and perhaps these stats serve as a guide to what’s happening throughout the world. I can only imagine how many cases aren’t reported in most parts of the world. Not everyone who gets Covid019 gets tested or goes to a medical facility for treatment. It’s not foolhardy to speculate that more than half, if not more, of the cases, go unreported.

We live in precarious times. We can’t anticipate what the future holds, even based on daily living. All we can do now is continue to strive toward good health, fulfilling relationships with family and friends, kindness to others and our world, and fiscal responsibility to the best of our ability.

May this holiday season remind us of our blessings and those areas of life for which we can be grateful.

Photo from one year ago today, December 21, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #263. In December 2019, we were preparing to enter the stadium for the Las Vegas Golden Knights game with my son Richard. Thanks, Richard, it was an enjoyable night! Here‘s the post from that night. For more photos, please click here.

Hello, Monday morning…Tom’s birthday week and Christmas…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 20, 2021 with 0 Comment

The elephant on the left is resting his trunk on his tusk.

Tom’s birthday couldn’t be at a more inconvenient time. In this life, it’s less of an issue that his birthday is on December 23. We don’t have a lot going on right now. However, in our old lives, it wasn’t easy to figure out how to celebrate his birthday with anyone other than ourselves when everyone was so busy getting ready for Christmas.

Two giant elephants in Kruger National Park.

In the early years, when our adult kids were younger and didn’t have families of their own, they’d join us for his birthday celebration, whether it was out to dinner or a full-blown party. Over the years, as their families grew along with work responsibilities, it wasn’t always possible for them to join us on the day of his birthday, so close to Christmas.

This could be a mom and two calves from different birthing seasons or other scenarios.

Ironically, out of five houses on our peninsula, the men in every other house also had a birthday on December 23, our dear friends and neighbors Doug and Chip, and then, of course, Tom. Doug and Jamie have a large family, so we couldn’t celebrate with him.

A mom and baby were moving along in the bush.

For many years we celebrated with Chip and Sue, who over the years, we’d become very close. Our dear Chip passed away shortly before we left for our travels in 2012, but surely we’ll send Doug a birthday greeting as we’ve done each year since we’ve been gone. There are many great memories of those days.

Elephants don’t hesitate to be close to one another.

In Marloth Park, South Africa, we have celebrated three of Tom’s birthdays in the bush. With most of our friends gone during the hot summer months, it made no sense to plan a get-together to celebrate his 69th birthday. Thus, we made a reservation for Thursday, the 23rd, for the two of us, and we’ll celebrate at the bar at Jabula. There’s no doubt that whoever joins us at the bar will celebrate with us, Dawn, Leon, Lyn, and their new assistant David.

Tom is delighted with this plan, especially when he knows upon our return on Thursday night, his favorite dessert, a homemade German Chocolate Cake, will be waiting for him. I plan to bake it from scratch on Thursday morning. Since he’ll be the only one eating it, it may last him through Christmas, even if he cuts the three-layer cake into six huge portions, which I am sure he’ll do. He may even eat more than one piece per day!

Now will be the first time I have baked this cake for him since we left the US. In most countries, the ingredients weren’t available to make the cake. Oddly, this time, at the Spar Market, I was able to find everything I needed for the recipe.

It may seem weird to be so enthused about a cake. But, after being gone from the US for over nine years, I can surely understand why it’s so appealing to him. Besides, it’s the best birthday gift I can give him since we never have room in our luggage for gifts from each other.

We hope all of you who celebrate Christmas are enjoying activities, socializing, and preparations for the upcoming Christmas and New Year’s week with your friends and loved ones. Although most of our friends and family are far away, we’ve been staying in close touch with everyone via text and WhatsApp. Doing so never makes us feel as if we are too far away.

A baby elephant was sleeping in the grass.

Today is a quiet day. It’s started warming up again, but it’s still not as hot as a few weeks ago. We’re enjoying this cooler period, although it will begin to heat up again in a few days. We’re prepared for whatever may come our way. As long as we have each other and good health, we can handle any inconveniences that come our way.

Enjoy the season!

Photo from one year ago today, December 20, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #272. We were thrilled to be able to watch the nightly Hindu ceremony on the Ganges River in Varanasi, India. Smoke from the fire rituals wafted through the air. For more, please click here.

An outrageously fun night at Jabula…A mind blowing coincidence…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 19, 2021 with 0 Comment

We were at Moholoholo Rehabilitation Center in 2014 and had an opportunity to interact with this cheetah, their mascot. If we had any apprehension, which we didn’t, the fact that he was “purring” welcomed our touch. See this link for the original post, and please read our story below for the significance of posting this photo today.

We arrived at Jabula at 5:00 pm, 1700 hrs, our usual time. We were a little apprehensive about going at all due to the number of holidaymakers in Marloth Park during the holiday season. Under normal circumstances, we wouldn’t have been concerned about crowds. But in light of Covid-19 and the Omicron variant, I thought about it several times during the day. Will it be safe to be inside the bar that can become packed with party-goers during holiday times?

Our usual seats at the bar were taken when we arrived, but during the entire time, three hours, there was never more than 10 or 12 hovering near and around the bar. I sat at the furthest end with no possibility of anyone sitting next to me but Tom. We decided we’d eat at the bar when we ordered our food after a few hours.

But, in the interim, we met some fabulous people and caught up with Sindee and Bruce, who have invited us for Christmas dinner at their home. There will only be 11 of us, a manageable number. When dining at a home in the bush, drinks, and meals are often served outdoors. We anticipate this will be the case on Christmas Day.

The conscientious guide ensured our safety. But, we had no fear.

First, we met a lovely group of three, including Gabby, her brother, and sister-in-law. Gabby works for SanParks, the park system in South Africa. We had a fantastic talk about marketing, our website, our mutual love of wildlife, and Marloth Park.

Gabby has been coming here for 30 years and is as excited by wildlife as we are, especially with her job with such easy access to national parks. She has many interesting videos on YouTube. You can see them here at this link. Hopefully, we’ll have an opportunity to talk again in the future. We certainly hit it off!

After a while, the three of them left, and two men moved in and occupied their seats. Rico sat at the bar on Tom’s right, and immediately the two of them started chatting. In no time at all, they were like long-lost friends. That’s the magic of Marloth Park.

Rico is a fun and animated guy. I leaned in to hear the conversation and pick up pieces here and there. At one point, Rico told us that his son works for Moholoholo Rehabilitation Center, which we visited in 2014 when we did the Panorama Route, which is a self-driving tour with many sights to see along the way. We had a wonderful time on the route and stayed overnight at a fabulous resort, making memories we’ll always treasure.

While he and Tom continued talking, I looked up our post on my phone from our time at Moholoholo Rehabilitation Center. After thumbing through a few posts, I stumbled across the above two photos when we had an interaction with the center’s mascot. This rehabilitated cheetah couldn’t return to the wild based on injuries he’d incurred at a young age. He’d never learned to hunt and fend for himself. Instead, he became the center’s mascot.

I leaned forward and showed Rico and Tom the photos from our post from January 19, 2014, almost eight years ago. Rico practically screamed when he exclaimed, “That’s my son in those photos!!!?

Oh, my goodness! We were aghast! What a coincidence that eight years ago, we’d taken photos of the cheetah and Rico’s son. It’s a small world, after all, like the song, here on YouTube. When I opened the song and read the lyrics as listed below, I was reminded of how small the world really is and how grateful we are to have met so many wonderful people along the way:

Lyrics
It’s a world of laughter
A world of tears
It’s a world of hopes
And a world of fears
There’s so much that we share
That it’s time we’re aware
It’s a small world after all
It’s a small world after all
It’s a small world after all
It’s a small world after all
It’s a small, small world
There is just one moon
And one golden sun
And a smile means
Friendship to ev’ryone
Though the mountains divide
And the oceans are wide
It’s a small world after all
It’s a small world after all
It’s a small world after all
It’s a small world after all
It’s a small, small world

Have a fantastic day!

Photo from one year ago today, December 19, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #271. “Puerto Madryn (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈpweɾto ˈmaðɾin]; Welsh: Porth Madryn) is a city in the province of Chubut in Argentina, Patagonia. It is the capital of the Biedma Department and has about 93,995 inhabitants according to the last census in 2010.”We toured the oceanfront village on foot on this date in 2017. For more photos, please click here.

Exciting lion story in Marloth Park and Lionspruit…Exercising caution in many ways…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 18, 2021 with 0 Comment

Marloth Park has a dedicated group of individuals who volunteer their time and efforts to preserve the flora and fauna of the Marloth Park Conservancy. They are known as Honorary Rangers, and over the years, we’ve come to know and admire several of those special people.

Yesterday, on Facebook, a post was uploaded by an Honorary Ranger that we found to be of particular interest. We are sharing that story today but leaving out the names of the rangers for their privacy. Instead, we’ll insert their initials in place of their names.

May be an image of big cat and outdoors — Not our photo. This photo of Fluffy (male) was posted on the Honorary Ranger’s story on Facebook.

It’s important to preface the following story with a description of Lionspruit, a game reserve located within the borders of Marloth Park. From this site, Lionspruit is described as follows on this screenshot. Please zoom in for more detail.

As it turns out, the rear line of our holiday home borders Lionspruit. We can often hear the two lions, Dezi and Fluffy, often roar at night. On occasion, during the day when lions usually sleep, we’ll listen to a roar. It’s music to our ears. Being so close to their habitat has only added to the joy of living in this property during the past 11 months.

Thus, yesterday, when we spotted the following story on Facebook, it was thrilling. Living in close proximity to the animals in our garden, let alone those at a short distance, had been, by far, the most exciting aspect of our world travels over the past nine years.

“There has been lots of excitement about Kruger lions entering Marloth recently, but we in HR are so pleased that our own JG witnessed the most thrilling moment of all. It seems a just reward for her dedication to the wellbeing of our lions. Here is the Facebook story as told by the Honorary Rangers:

FLUFFY RULES HIS DOMAIN!

On December 8th, RD and I were privileged to see Fluffy in attack mode for the first time in all the years that we have monitored the health and activities of our Lionspruit lions.

We were parked on a track next to the fence, quietly waiting, when the drama suddenly unfolded, and we had to hastily put up our windows! A strange lion burst into view, racing straight towards us, with Fluffy and Dezi in hot pursuit.

Fluffy was on the attack against one of the young Kruger males who dared to enter his domain. It was gratifying to see the young male flee, having experienced the wrath of our magnificent lion. Fluffy followed up with some impressive roaring, ensuring the interloper continued to run.

Both lions are in good condition for their ages. Since the incident, they continue to patrol the fences – to make sure those Kruger upstarts do not get ideas about coming back again!

(The somewhat fuzzy photos of Fluffy are proof of the sudden excitement and being taken by R. through the windscreen!).”

When the park is packed with holidaymakers seeking the ultimate excitement and experience in Marloth Park during the busy holiday season, they couldn’t ask for more. With the two prides of lions recently sighted in Marloth Park who have entered via the fence between Marloth Park and Kruger National Park, locals and tourists must exercise extreme caution.

Everyone has been advised not to drive to the areas where the lions have been sighted and avoid making any lion sounds to attract them. Doing so could be life-threatening.

The usual children riding bikes and playing on dirt roads are dangerous and foolhardy during this time. We can only hope that parents will keep their children from being out of the safety of the holiday homes without close adult supervision. With curfews in place before dawn and after dark, we hope everyone will be safe.

Lions roam at night in search of food. Nighttime walks are forbidden and are surely “looking for trouble.” Why anyone would even consider being on foot at night is not only against the rules of the park but is totally careless and also inconsiderate of the lions. If one were to attack a human, it would be euthanized without a doubt. The goal is to get the lions back into Kruger National Park ultimately.

Dezi and Fluffy are busy protecting their habitat, as indicated above in the story, as they constantly peruse the fences/border to ensure no other lions enter their space. We’re listening carefully for the sounds of any of the lions.

Last night we didn’t go to Janula, as mentioned in yesterday’s post. They had a group of 18 coming to the bar at 5:00 om, 1700 hrs, the time we usually arrive. We didn’t want to be exposed to so many people who may be infected with Omicron, which is taking over South Africa as Delta wafts away.

Instead, tonight, we’ll give it a try but will remain mindful of those near us.

Have a safe and healthy holiday weekend.

Photo from one year ago today, December 18, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago today while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #270. This photo is from our post on this date in 2017 while sailing on the Celebrity Infinity along the coast of South America and dining in the fantastic specialty restaurant, Qsine. For more photos, please click here.

Shockingly cool today at 66F, 19C, a welcomed relief…Smart pigs…Wildebeest newborn photos…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 17, 2021 with 0 Comment

Please zoom in to see newborn wildebeests with umbilical cords still hanging, indicating they were born most recently.

What a refreshing break after weeks of sweltering temperatures! Even Frank and The Misses feathers were all fluffed up when they arrived at the screen door, wondering when they’d get some seeds. I jumped up from the sofa in the lounge room and immediately placed the little container filled with seeds onto the veranda floor.

We can’t leave the seeds out since warthogs, bushbucks and kudus will come onto the veranda and wipe out the container. Each day, we bring them indoors when Frank is done, returning them to the usual spot when Frank and The Misses stand at the door, looking inside for us.

Wildebeest is nursing her newborn. Female wildebeests have horns, as do the males.

They are less afraid of me than they are of Tom. When I go out with the seeds, they barely move until I set them down. They step back or even off the veranda when Tom does this until he sets them down. It’s incredible how the wildlife can determine our gender by looking at us. Most animals will stay in place while I offer pellets, while many step back when Tom does so.

The exception to that is the bushbucks. They feel safe around Tom much more than me. This may be because he arises earlier than me and may spend two additional hours each early morning greeting them before I come outdoors. Then, of course, there are the warthogs, and they are more welcoming to me than Tom. Even Little steps back when he sees Tom but not when he sees me.

The newborn wastes no time in beginning to suckle.

Undoubtedly, Little’s reaction to Tom may be warranted when he doesn’t talk to them in a high-pitched loving voice as I do. He isn’t a big fan of warthogs when they chase away the various species of antelope when pellets are around. Animals have a keen sense of who likes them and who doesn’t.

Although we have about a dozen helmeted guinea fowl that live in and around our garden, we don’t have any relationship with them. They don’t seem too bright, never make eye contact, and don’t respond to our voices. However, they come out of the bush when they’re nearby when they hear me calling warthogs. They’ve learned that my animated voice means pellets which they swallow whole. I guess a certain degree of intellect is required to make that association.

There were two moms with newborns, both with umbilical cords still attached.

Of course, my love of warthogs is entirely based on their intellect and responsiveness. Considered the fifth most intelligent land animal on the planet, smarter than dogs, it’s no wonder I am frequently talking and interacting with them. They do respond, no less so and perhaps more, than your dog would when you interact with them.

Besides the usual “sit, stay, and heel.” When they came indoors on a rainy, muddy, or snowy day, they even learned to “wipe their feet, get a treat!” It was hard to believe unless you saw them do this and dozens of other behaviors they learned.

For a moment, based on this photo, we wondered if this mom did, in fact, have twins, which is quite unusual for blu wildebeests.

Of course, in today’s world with YouTube and social media, we see videos of dogs performing various actions that leave us in awe with our mouths agape. Is it any wonder that as a dog lover I’d be immensely attracted to pigs (thus, warthogs) while we revel in the joys of bush living?

No, I don’t try to teach warthogs “tricks.” But, I find it easy to impact their behavior simply by tossing pellets and talking to them while looking into their beady little eyes. The connection with them is palpable.

Mom was quite protective of her newborn, preventing us from clear shots. Finally, we hurried off to see what else we could find.

There are thousands of websites that provide detailed information on the intellect of pigs, including warthogs. I won’t bore you with those links. But, perhaps these observations may make it clearer to our readers why I am so attached to the warthogs in Marloth Park.

We’re off to Komatipoort to the Spar Market to grocery shop. Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard is bare, but we won’t be buying much with all of the power outages. As it turns out, we won’t go to Jabula until tomorrow evening. They have a group of 18 who will be hanging around the bar before they’re eventually seated for dinner. Dawn knew we wouldn’t want to be in such proximity to other people, so she let us know. We changed our reservation for Saturday evening.

Have a great day!

Photo from one year ago today, December 17, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #269. Most of the town is centered around seaport enterprises. For more photos, please click here.

Omicron…We can’t ignore what’s happening in South Africa and the world…More Kruger photos…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 16, 2021 with 0 Comment

Open mouth crocodile on the bank of the Sabie River. Crocs don’t have sweat glands. Instead, they open their mouths to cool off.

It would be easy for us to ignore what is happening with Omicron throughout the world and for us here in South Africa. Sure, we could write about “travel” and travel-related topics or continue with the mindless drivel of our day-to-day activities while living in the bush.

But, we can’t possibly ignore what’s going on in South Africa and throughout the world in many countries as Omicron spreads like wildfire, doubling every two days. We have no doubt you’ve seen endless news reports on this topic and most likely would prefer not to read it here.

But, over these past nine years of writing these posts, we always promised to “tell it like it is,” and we have diligently done so since the first post we uploaded in March 2012, only three months short of ten years ago. Please, dear readers, understand that sharing what we know, if doing so saves one life or one serious case of the virus, it will have been worth it. It is from that perspective that we write this today.

No politicization is included or intended here. This is entirely from our perspective, based on the research we’re conducting now and how and when it may impact our lives in the future. After all, in only 113 days, we hope to board a ship from Fort4 Lauderdale, Florida, to sail across the Atlantic Ocean for a two-month stay in and around the UK until the next cruise on June 29, 2022, sailing out of Istanbul.

At this point, Omicron is infecting the world so rapidly that everything could change in the next 30 days. But, in 38 days, we have to figure out what we’ll be doing about extending our visas. Do we dare fly to another country in Africa for a visa stamp and risk becoming infected if President Cyril Pamaphosa doesn’t extend visas for foreign nationals?

Based on the fact the borders are still open, in light of the rapid increase of Omicron, we seriously doubt he’ll be extending visas for foreign nationals. He’s getting a lot of pressure about new lockdowns after the already developing country has suffered so much loss over the past two years of the pandemic.

We have some tough decisions ahead of us. Returning now to the US is not on the table when we see the number of cases escalating there daily. This chart from the stats presented on the website, Worldometer, certainly impacts our plans. See the stats on the screenshot I made with yesterday’s numbers:

Please zoom in to see these numbers in detail. I removed some of the columns to fit on the page for this chart.

Some scientists and immunologists are predicting there will be 1,000,000 cases per day in the UK by January. The US will follow shortly behind. And, as far as South Africa is concerned, 35% of all Covid-19 tests are positive for Omicron, and 90% of all cases of Covid-19 are Omicron cases, even in the fully vaccinated. There are claims that contracting Omicron results in a less severe illness with fewer hospitalizations and deaths.

But, uncertainty about that immunity provided by Omicron, when science isn’t definitive, about whether or not the variant is less severe or that those getting it may already have some protection from prior exposure and vaccines.

There are many theories that Omicron could be the end of the pandemic when most of the world’s population becomes infected, which may provide herd immunity? Is this variant the magic bullet that may give the herd immunity, the world so desperately needs to end the pandemic?. Not enough is known at this time to answer all of these questions.

But, as world travelers anxious to get back “out there,” we wait in anticipation of more definitive science and what travel restrictions may impact us.

Rapids on the Sabie River in Kruger National Park.

This has been a tough couple of years for all of us. We are saddened by the loss of life and lingering illness many have experienced. My sister has been suffering from long-haul Covid for the past 16 months, along with one in four patients undergoing the same worldwide. We are saddened by the financial strife experienced by business owners and workers during extensive lockdown and restrictions, including our friends here in South Africa, the US, and the world.

For now, what can we do? Avoid crowds? Wear masks? Maintain social distancing, which is now more confusing than ever, when the fully vaccinated spread Omicron? There’s no easy answer, but we’ve decided to remain vigilant in doing everything possible. But, we have no desire to stay in lockdown, totally isolated from other people.

We have two outdoor parties we’re planning to attend; Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve. Are we prepared to discontinue our Friday night dinners at Jabula? No! It’s always a highlight of our week.

Take care of yourselves the best way you can as we watch how this variant rolls out.

Photo from one year ago today, December 16, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #268. A cave we spotted at Cape Horn on our way to Ushuaia, Argentina. For more photos, please click here.

We’re back!…Power and water restored…Nice day in Kruger National Park…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 15, 2021 with 0 Comment

The electric power has been restored as of yesterday afternoon and the water. This morning I was able to take a shower with water pressure. Also, it’s cooler today, although the dew point is tropical after it rained again during the night. The animal’s feet are covered in mud, and the garden is muddy. But, we don’t mind.

We’re grateful it continues to rain at night to increase the available vegetation for the wildlife. None of our visitors look undernourished after being well-fed over the winter months by enthusiasts like us and can now eat their natural diet of leaves, roots, and grasses.

Wildebeest family resting near what they think is a tree.

We’re keeping a watchful eye for snakes and venomous insects that flourish this year. I may jinx ourselves in saying so, but the mozzies aren’t as awful as they could be. But it’s still early yet. Actual summer doesn’t begin until December 21st. When the weather is tolerable, we remain outdoors and will continue to do so during the summer months.

Yesterday’s trip to Kruger National Park was rewarding, although we didn’t see any cats. We haven’t been lucky with cat sightings in the park during this past year. Although, we still enjoy every animal we see. We don’t spend much time on the dirt roads; instead, spending the majority of our drive on the main paved road.

The first elephant we spotted on our self-drive.

Why don’t we venture out to the more remote dirt roads is a reality we’ve had to accept. We don’t rent expensive four-wheel-drive vehicles based on our extended stays in the country. The prices of rental cars have increased over the years, resulting in our renting smaller, less expensive vehicles. Subsequently, these smaller cars don’t do well on the bumpy roads in Kruger or Marloth Park.

It’s not as if we haven’t experienced countless game drives during our years of world travel. As a result, we’ve accepted the reality that the cars we’ve rented have some limitations. Living life on a perpetual vacation/holiday requires budgetary diligence. We’d rather live in a lovely property, eat great food and be able to dine out as often as we choose than pay two or three times more for a rental car.

We spotted this lone Cape buffalo, close to the Sabie River.

We decided it was essential to go yesterday, knowing we wouldn’t tackle entering the park during the holiday season. During this upcoming period, reservations will be required to enter the park. We have no interest in making a reservation, which would result in many cars on the paved road stacked up when a sighting is found. This doesn’t appeal to us.

After the holiday season ends, well after New Year’s, we will happily return when the numbers of visitors are minimal and no reservations will be necessary.

As for yesterday, we spotted more elephants than we’d seen in a long while resulting in many photos we’ll share over the next few days. For the first time in a while, we spotted a Cape buffalo on the bank of the Sabie River, many wildebeests, including some newborns with their umbilical cords still attached, several zebras, a few crocs, and others as seen in our photos.

Today, we’ll stay put. Everything is prepped for tonight’s dinner; the laundry is washed and hung on the rack. It could be another lazy day when I do not feel motivated to tackle any projects after a poor night’s sleep.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, December 15, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #267. t was only a short walk from our holiday home in Pacific Harbour, Fiji, to the river. For more photos, please click here.

No Post today…Power and water are out…Heading to Kruger for the day…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 14, 2021 with 0 Comment

A frog symphony…Grateful, even with the heat…Mozzie time…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 13, 2021 with 0 Comment

As we are situated on the veranda with me sipping a delicious mug of iced coffee, we’re listening to the symphony from two frogs, one in the rafters of the veranda roof and the other on the edge of the birdbath. They go back and forth with their melodious chirps and then chirp simultaneously from time to time. It’s music to our ears.

Today’s a bit cooler with an expected midday high of only 93F, 34C. What a relief! We can handle that easily, compared to the fierce heat of the past many days, even weeks. Summer won’t officially begin until eight days from today. We’d better brace ourselves.

We are grateful to be here in South Africa rather than any other place in the world, even with the heat, the insects, and mozzies. As much as it’s rained in the past month, we’re surprised the mozzies aren’t any worse than they are. But, it’s early days. They will come.

Barbara and Lori (Shark Tank) frequently stop for a visit.

Three times a day, I reapply Tabard roll-on insect repellent. Without it, I’d be covered in bites. Although this product has DEET, the risks of which I am well aware, it is the only repellent that works for me. Over the years we’ve spent in South Africa, I have tried many “natural” repellents only to discover they don’t work for me. It’s a toss-up…risks of DEET or chances of contracting malaria. I chose to take the risk of DEET.

When applying, I don’t put it all over my body, only on the exposed skin such as my legs and feet when wearing short pants, hands and arms up to my sleeves, and the neck area. I wear closed shoes until bedtime, which prevents getting bit on my feet, after carefully applying the repellant to my ankles, where mozzies particularly love to bite. On a rare occasion, I get a bite under my clothes.

Due to allergies, occasionally, I get red itchy patches on my skin, usually on my arms or legs. Calamine lotion seems to be the only product that helps with that type of itching.

The inconveniences from the awful heat, humidity, insects, and snakes are incidental compared to last Christmas when we were stuck in a hotel room in Mumbai—living in a hotel room for ten months, never knowing when the international airport would open. Each day, we thought, maybe tomorrow? Each day, we were disappointed.

But now, we are content to be here, enjoying our animal and human friends, making great meals, having sundowners on the veranda regardless of the heat, while having little responsibility other than to cook, do dishes, wash laundry, grocery shop, and manage financial matters.

It’s reported on the news today that President Cyril Ramaphosa has Covid-19, most likely the Omicron variant, which is currently raging like a wildfire in all of South Africa. It is also reported that 27% of all Covid-19 tests are positive here. According to some reports, all people in South Africa and many other countries will test positive for Omicron in the next several months.

We are hoping Cyril will extend visas once again, which will prevent us from having to fly anywhere in the next few months. Only time will tell.

Mom, with lovely curved tusks and her three piglets.

After being in South Africa for almost a year (as of January 13th), we realize that our posts are redundant and relatively dull. We apologize for that. Of course, we’d love to have exciting adventures and stories to share each day. But, right now, like most of you, we’re living one day at a time. We are waiting to see when travel makes sense for us and the status of our upcoming booked cruises.

Have a pleasant week as we roll into the holiday season.

Photo from one year ago today, December 13, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while in lockdown in a hotel in Mumbai, India, on day #265. The locals performed their Bollywood routine on Saturday nights in Fiji in 2015. For more photos, please click here.

Hot! Hot! Hot!…Omicron on the rise in South Africa, and worldwide…

Posted by worldwide-admin on December 12, 2021 with 0 Comment

A dung beetle and his mate atop the ball of dung while he pushes with his back legs to move the ball along. What a fantastic sighting!

I am in the bedroom at almost noon with the air con and the fan on, trying to cool down. I spent over an hour in the kitchen preparing tonight’s dinner while it was 97F, 36C with outrageous high humidity. It will top 100F, 38C, or more on a bright sunny day in an hour or so.

With no air-con anywhere in the house except for the two bedrooms, it is the only place to hide away to cool off. I’d never tackle such a cooking challenge in this heat without air-con in my old life. It would have warranted a dinner out, for sure. But, in Marloth Park, many of the restaurants don’t have suitable cooling with doors always wide open, so there’s little relief to be found there.

Mongoose hanging around the edge of the veranda..

The dinner I’m preparing today requires a trip to the little local market to purchase mushrooms, lettuce, and tomatoes. We’ll have a low-carb dish called Low Carb Mushroom Burger Scramble, a favorite, although it presents as one-pan winter comfort food. But, this morning, I made two pans, one for each of us, enough to last for three dinners.

Thus, regardless of continuing heat, I won’t have to cook for the next few days, only making a salad and rice for Tom. That’s a good plan, especially since we’d like to go to Kruger in the next few days, once the temperature drops, which is expected by Tuesday or Wednesday before all the holidaymakers arrive for the Christmas holiday when Kruger will be packed.

We drove past a few giraffes while out exploring.

It is hard to spot much wildlife during ultra-hot days. Even our usual wildlife visitors to our garden are sparse on the hot days. This morning, several bushbucks, two sets of Mom and Piglets, and Broken Horn stopped by. But now, as the day wears on and the temperature rises, the only visitor we’re seeing is Frank and The Misses, who stop by once every three or four hours. They, like us, tend to stay undercover when it’s so hot.

After returning from the little market, they stood at the screen door to the veranda, looking inside the house, wondering where we’d gone. We always laugh when we see them there, walking back and forth impatiently from time to time. We love those birds! Who would think we’d adore these chicken-like creatures as much as we do?

Broken Horn is always welcomed in our garden.

A few minutes ago, Tom called out to me. The mongooses were here! Lately, they have been stopping by each day. We had bones left from Tom’s ribs from last night’s dinner at Jabula, which they always love and also paloney. Tom cut up the paloney into bite-sized pieces and tossed them into the garden, far enough apart to prevent them from fighting over the food.

Based on numerous reliable sources online, the variant Omicron is rising in South Africa, doubling every 2½ days. This is also occurring in many other parts of the world. It’s possible that soon, all cases of Covid-19 in South Africa will be Omicron. If that is factual, with lesser illness from this variant, this could be a good sign. We are hopeful but remain diligent in our efforts to stay healthy.

Giraffe’s legs and hooves are fascinating.

Today will be a quiet day for us. Most likely, we’ll spend the next few hours cooling off in the bedroom. By 4:00 pm, 1600 hrs, when the temperature begins to drop, we’ll head outdoors and enjoy a few hours on the veranda, although according to the weather report, it won’t get below 90F, 32C, until after 7:00 pm, 1900 hrs.

Tonight, we’ll hunker down in the cool of the bedroom, streaming a few shows such as Dexter, New Blood, and Yellowstone. We hope you have a pleasant Sunday during the holiday season and always.

Photo from one year ago today, December 12, 2020:

This photo was posted one year ago while we were in lockdown in Mumbai, India, on day #264. Just like that, the zebra was on the veranda at the Orange house in 2018. For more photos, please click here.

Year: 2021

FLUFFY RULES HIS DOMAIN!

On December 8th, RD and I were privileged to see Fluffy in attack mode for the first time in all the years that we have monitored the health and activities of our Lionspruit lions.

(The somewhat fuzzy photos of Fluffy are proof of the sudden excitement and being taken by R. through the windscreen!).”