Who’s in the garden this morning?
- 2 warthogs – inc Little, Tiny, Lonely Girl, One Wart, Narrow
- 4 bushbucks – inc. Thick Neck, Chewy, Bad Leg,
- 4 kudus – Bossy, Notches, Mom, and Baby
- 1 wildebeest – inc. Broken Horn
- 4 Frank and The Misses
- 1 impala
It’s windy today. Many animals will hunker down on windy days, either fearful of the wind or anticipating further inclement weather. Does a sunny day like today reassure them that a rainstorm is not necessarily following the winds? Who’s to say how wildlife can determine upcoming temperature when we humans are not good at predicting coming storms with finite accuracy?
The high today will be in the range of 60F, 15.6C, not considered cold in many parts of the world, but for us, after years of hot climates, it feels cold us. It’s still reasonably cool, but we remain outdoors on the veranda. Tonight, we’ll be dining at Jabula Lodge and Restaurant with Rita and Gerhard, most likely on the veranda, and will need to dress warmly. I suppose I’ll wear one of my two jackets and most likely, Tom will do the same.
I’m not totally over the recent sickness, still coughing and congested. Fortunately, I don’t feel too bad and don’t hesitate to go out tonight. We hadn’t been to Jabula in two weeks, while I was too ill to go out. So it will be good to get out at long last.
This morning, we called Thrifty Car Rental in Nelspruit to ask if we could keep the rental car until June 30th when we either have to leave the country for our visa stamps or rent another vehicle for 90 days, if President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa provides an additional 90-day visa extension for foreign nationals.
The condition under which we can avoid returning the car on June 11th for an inspection, one of Thrifty’s goofy rules, is to take photos and videos of the interior, the odometer, and the car’s exterior, date stamped and sent them to the manager in Nelspruit. If the manager approves the photos on that date, Tom won’t return the car until June 30th. That will save him half a day in both driving and time at the facility at the airport. Then, a week from today, we’ll take the photos and forward them to the manager. Hopefully, he’ll approve.
As our regular readers are aware, one of two scenarios has to transpire in 26 days. When Cyril extended visas last time, allowing us to stay until June 30th, the announcement wasn’t made until two days before our visa expiration date. If this happens again, we will be thrilled not to have to leave.
In any case, we will have to be prepared to leave South Africa on June 30th if the new extension is not issued and we have to high-tail out of here, fully packed. So we have made a decision, after weeks of contemplation and conversations, that if the visa extension is not issued, we will use our still-in-place flight to the US on June 30th.
We’ll stay for a total of approximately three weeks, including family visits in Minnesota, Wisconsin (Tom’s sister), and Nevada (son Richard). In the process, if we haven’t yet been vaccinated in South Africa, we will be immunized in Minnesota since two weeks must pass after vaccination to be allowed to visit Tom’s sister in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She is currently in a nursing facility.
Regardless of this, we will have to completely pack up this house and move out on June 30th, allowing Louise to rent it to others while we’re gone. It makes no sense for us to pay for this house and hotels, meals, and car rentals in the US, which are expensive.
No doubt, it’s frustrating to have to entirely pack up this house toward the end of the month when we aren’t sure yet that we’ll be leaving until the visa announcement is made, if it is, at all. We are so organized and settled in here, I’m dreading the packing, but in reality, I could accomplish this in one day if I had to.
Days before the “big” packing, we’ll both pack bags with items we’ll need in the US. Then the filling of the balance will begin, including all our food, food supplies, toiletries, clothing, etc. Louise and Danie will store everything for us while we’re gone. We don’t see any other way to do this.
Last time, the visa extension occurred before we began packing, and then, when the visa extension announcement was made, we decided to stay. This time, we’ll be a little more proactive and get as much done ahead of time as possible. Of course, it will be easier for us to get the vaccine in the US, with many walk-in locations now available, even without an appointment.
No, I don’t like not knowing. I am a planner. But, in this case, this time, we may not have many options. We’d considered visiting other countries, but, bottom line…we need to get a vaccine. If we can get it here before June 30th, everything may change. But, it’s in our hands, hearts, and minds to decide what ultimately will be the best for us. We can decide, last minute, if we so choose.
Be well.
Photo from one year ago today, June 4, 2020:
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| This is the first such storm to hit Mumbai in over 100 years. Dark clouds hang over the city ahead of cyclone Nisarga making landfall in Mumbai. For more photos, please click here. |