Starting to think packing…Four days and counting…Mishap in Komatipoort!…The water is back on…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 16, 2022 with 0 Comment

Bossy and another mom and three young kudus. Usually, kudus give birth to one calf. But, on occasion, one mom will babysit for another.

The wet laundry sat in the washer overnight when we didn’t have water for almost 24 hours. Finally, this morning, it was back on, and I could shower and tend to the laundry in the washer. I’m rushing a bit this morning since Rita is picking me up in less than an hour to go to Stoep Cafe for our weekly breakfast and girl talk.

I considered canceling today since I have not improved from the antibiotic I’ve been on for three days. But with all of us leaving South Africa this weekend, I wanted to spend this special time with Rita. Perhaps, it’s due to the long time I’ve had this after testing positive for Covid-19 in April.

Plus, I have hardly slept more than four or five hours a night since taking them, a common side effect of my medications. There are enough antibiotics left to get through the next four days. We are flying to Zambia in four days, and I look forward to feeling better by then. It’s frustrating.

We call this wildebeest Torn Ear, unlike a bushbuck with the same name at our old house. Zoom in to see his bad right ear.

Luckily, we still have enough leftovers for tonight, so I won’t need to cook anything for Tom, just something for me. I am happy to have something easy to prepare, like salmon salad and leftover fresh vegetables.

It’s almost 3:00 pm, 1500 hr., and we just returned from Komati after Rita, and I had brunch at Stoep Cafe. We walked out to the loaner car she was driving while their vehicle was being serviced in Malalane, and there was a flat tire on the small car. Immediately, she called Gerhard to help since neither of us was up to changing a tire.

But then, she realized Gerhard was at their bush house with friend Lee without transportation. There was Midas shop which wasn’t far from Stoep Cafe. I told Tom to sit tight until after we figured it out. Gerhard called Midas when they said they’d help in 30 minutes. . In Africa, 30 minutes easily could mean 60 minutes.

Big Daddy with a kudu male in the background who could be his son.

Much to our surprise, the tire guy showed up in about 20 minutes and got to work on the tire. Instead of using the spare tire, the guy was determined to remove the bad tire, take it back to the shop and bring it back repaired and ready to go. Rita and I went back inside Stoep to sit at the table we’d just left.

When the repair took a while, Rita suggested I call Tom on Whatsapp to ask him to come to get me. Tom was more than willing to do anything he could to help. In minutes, he was on the road to Komati. When he arrived, he sat at the table with Rita and me while we all waited for the tire guy to return. We didn’t want Rita to be sitting there by herself.

When the guy returned with the tire, we waited until it was done, and Rita went to the shop to pay the bill. In no time at all, we were back at the house. Rita made it home safely, and all was well.

Lollie was photo bombing a zebra photo, as usual.

Once back at our house, Tom peeled the boiled eggs while I chopped celery and onions for my salmon salad and cut up more vegetables for tonight’s salad. All is prepped for tonight’s dinner.

Zef and Vusi arrived while I was gone, cleaned the house, loaded the soaking wet laundry from the defunct washer, and took it with them. They’d take care of the laundry at Louise’s home until we get a new washer which Louise and Danie are working on now. Knowing them, our laundry will be washed, dried, and returned to us by tomorrow, and a new washer will be in the outdoor laundry area.

If they cannot get a new washing machine before we leave on Saturday for our trip to Zambia and Botswana, Zef and Vusi will do a few more loads for us since we have to go through the closet to choose the items we’re taking with us. Everything, including clean clothes, gets dusty in the bush.

As soon as we arrived at the house, Norman and Nina were waiting for us to return. It’s always such a joy to see the nyalas family, particularly Norman, who makes intense eye contact with me whenever he sees me. I do the same with him.

All we have to do for the rest of the day is reheat Tom’s meat for dinner at 4:55 pm, 1655 hrs. since load shedding starts five minutes later and lasts 2½ hours. There will probably be a lot of load shedding over the next week, so it’s not bad that we are leaving for a week.

That’s it for today, friends! Have a lovely day and evening!

Photo from one year ago today, August 16, 2021:

Lots of mongooses this morning! For more photos, please click here.

Fun evening in the bush with readers/friends….No water today…Photos from last night…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 15, 2022 with 0 Comment

This was our bowl of well-seasoned prawns with a homemade dipping sauce. There’s a little left for me to eat tonight for dinner.

This morning there was water, and I could take a shower. But, after I loaded laundry into the washer, I noticed only a trickle was flowing, certainly not good enough to do a load of laundry. Most likely, we won’t have water until tomorrow since the reservoir and the pipes have to refill. Thank goodness we had water last night for our delightful sundowner party.

We had a great time last night with our guests. It worked out fine for seating. Six of us sat at the table, and Tom Gerhard and Lee sat at the bar. The two areas are close enough that all heard the conversations.

We served the food on the lower section of the bar and on the wood shelves on either side of the outdoor refrigerator. Marylin brought the tasty deviled eggs.

All the food came out well, just as we expected, and serving buffet-style made everything easier. While our guests were here, I spent little time in the kitchen. By the time everyone left at 8:00 pm, 2000 hrs., we were satisfied that we had had a lovely evening.

We didn’t leave the food out for long in the warm weather, so we’ll have some good leftovers for tonight’s dinner. It’s great that I don’t have to cook with the water out. It’s a pain when we can’t do dishes when there’s no water, let alone because my first load of laundry is sitting wet in the washer tub with nothing I can do. It never washed, so I can’t put it on the spin cycle. So it goes.

We had plenty of serving space for the various dishes.

We have a bucket of water from the pool in the bathroom so we can flush and a container of bottled water in the kitchen for washing our hands. Tom won’t be able to shower today, but oddly he is never stinky in these circumstances. So no big deal. I can put up with him!

He was such a help last night. While I packed up all the leftovers, he washed all the dishes. When we headed to bed, everything was back in order, except for washing the linen napkins and many dish towels I’d used. Hopefully, by tomorrow morning, I can finish the laundry in time to go to Stoep Cafe with Rita. We won’t be able to return to Stoep Cafe until they return in September.

Forward is Carrie and then Marylin. They all are frequent travelers, and the stories flowed with ease.

Once our friends Jeff and Connie arrive, Rita and I will include Connie to join us for breakfast at Stoep with more “girl talk.” It’s a particular time I always treasure, having left so many of my female friends back in Minnesota almost ten years ago. On October 31st, we will celebrate our tenth anniversary of traveling the world. It’s hard for us to believe we left so long ago. Nor did we ever expect to do this for so long.

It was enjoyable for the 11 of us last night. Louise and Danie stopped by for a drink and stayed about 45 minutes. We were sad to see them go. Our readers/friends remained; Carrie and Jim, who’ve since purchased a gorgeous home in Marloth Park, and Marylin and Gary, who live in Utah but travel a lot. Marylin is from Zimbabwe and knows the bush very well. Rita and Gerhard, whom we met four years ago from them reading our website was here with their friend Lee.

Rita and Jim (Carrie and Jim) sat at the end of the table.

It has been such a joy to share this magical place with others. And we look forward to hosting friends Jeff and Connie in mid-September. We’ve been friends with them for 31 years since we met at a gourmet club dinner party near our home in Minnesota. We took turns hosting gourmet multiple-course dinners at our respective homes. When life’s responsibilities ended with the club, we stayed friends with Jeff and Connie, even seeing them a few times when we returned to the US to visit family.

As for today, without water, it’s a low-key day. I am a little under the weather from the big doses of two antibiotics and look forward to seeing some improvement in the next day or two. So, today is a good day to take it easy and pamper myself, which I seldom do. Later this week, we’ll start packing for our upcoming trip on Saturday.

From left to right, Lee, Gerhard, Gary and Danie.

Have a fantastic Monday!

Photo from one year ago today, August 15, 2021:

Elephants were heading to the river. For more photos, please click here.

Menu for today’s party for readers/friends…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 14, 2022 with 0 Comment

It’s Sunday morning, and I have a good handle on the food for this evening’s sundowner party for 11 guests, including Rita, Gerhard, and Lee, Marilyn and Gary, Carrie and Jim, Louise and Danie, and the two of us. Louise and Danie had committed to another event but will stop by for drinks.

Yesterday, I cleaned and prepared all the vegetables, and this morning I worked on the other items. It will take about 30 more minutes to prep the balance of the food. I’m glad I made an easy menu that wouldn’t require me to be in the kitchen for hours. Today, there are lots of flies now that it’s getting warmer, and I had to work while swatting them away. We can’t spray in the kitchen since all the dishes, pots, and pans are in open, doorless cabinets. TIA,” This is Africa,” as I always say.

It’s a perfect weather day, no breeze, partly cloudy with an expected high of 90F, 32C. By the time everyone arrives, the temperature will drop to a cool and comfortable level. Surprisingly, I am not sweating while busy since the humidity is low at 32%. The 90F is quite tolerable at this level.

As for the menu, I am happy to share it here:

Sliced, Seasoned Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin

Spicy Buttered Prawns with Homemade Horseradish Dipping Sauce

Cheesy Russian Sausages with Homemade Mustard Sauce

Ham and Turkey Cheese Rollups

Baked Brie Cheese Wrapped in Phyllo Dough filled with Apricot Jam

Medley of Fresh Vegetables with Three Dips

Fresh Vegetable Platter with Dipping Sauce

Cheese and Crackers

Potato Chips, Peanuts, and Various Crunchy Snacks

We only need to cook the pork, which is ready to go, and the sausages on the braai, before our guests arrive at 4:00, 1600 hrs. The prawns are cooked, seasoned, and plated in a pretty white serving dish with the dipping sauce, chilling in the outdoor refrigerator.

They often walk along the fence, deciding where to stop to beg for pellets.

Once the food is set up for serving, I will take a photo to share in tomorrow’s post. I am thrilled I planned this easy menu since I still have an awful sinus infection. No improvement yet from the two antibiotics, but it’s only been 24 hours since I started them. I don’t expect to start feeling better for at least three days considering I’ve had this since April when we got Covid-19 Omicron.

I stopped working on this post for a few hours, and now, I am done short of cooking a few items before everyone arrives! Done! Done! The plates and glasses are washed and set up outside for our buffet-style meal. There’s enough food that no one will need to eat dinner when they return to their respective homes at the end of the evening.

He was thinking of putting his head between the railing.

Tom has been an enormous help, cleaning, sweeping, doing dishes, washing all the glasses, and cooking, including an endless array of tasks that made this day so much easier for me. I killed most of the flies in the kitchen with a towel snap. There aren’t any flies on the veranda, but they will arrive once we put out the food. Once everyone serves themselves, I’ll cover the remaining food with kitchen towels.

We’re putting a metal bowl of ice under the prawns to stay cold on this warm day. We’ll watch them and the other meats to ensure they remain iced cold. The sundowner tradition is that all guests bring their beverages in an ice-cold chill box since we won’t have room in the refrigerators for drinks other than the wine and beer in the outdoor refrigerator.

As it turned out, this weekend was another holiday, and the park was packed with holidaymakers. As a result, we’re only seeing a few wildlife visitors today. By tomorrow, they’ll all return and fill our garden with myriad species checking out the pellet situation and responding to our enthusiastic welcoming.

Hopefully, Norman and his family will stop by tonight while everyone is here. He’s already been here a few times today. When they are here, curious tourists driving on our road often stop when they see them, taking photos and enticing them with pellets. It’s not a good idea to feed the animals from a vehicle. It gives them a sense that it’s safe to be around vehicles after so many animals have been killed on the roads. This is a ridiculous practice.

So there it is folks…our busy day. We’re so looking forward to this afternoon when everyone arrives. What a magical thing that three of four couples are here due to them reading our site over the years and coming to Marloth Park for the adventures.

Happy day!

Photo from one year ago today, August 14, 2021:

We spotted this crocodile with its mouth open at Sunset Dam, beyond the Lower Sabie area. Crocs rest with their mouths open to cool off since they don’t sweat. For more photos, please click here.

Long haul Covid-19 symptoms or something else?…Finally, possible relief…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 13, 2022 with 0 Comment

Here’s today’s bill for the doctor’s visit, which includes the cost of four prescriptions. ZAR 460, US $28.47! Can you believe the low cost for all of this?

In April when Tom and I contracted Covid-19 while on a cruise. Symptoms occurred that morning, and right away, we tested? positive. Our regular readers know the rest of the story. Tom got a bad case of pneumonia, and I was left with a headache above my left eye on my forehead with tenderness on both of my cheeks, especially on the right side, where it was assumed I had a tooth abscess.

Now, I believe I don’t have a tooth abscess and will cancel my upcoming appointments with Dr. Singh to have a tooth pulled the day after we return from our upcoming trip, leaving a week from today, ending in a temporary bridge and an implant several months later. I asked Dr. Singh to take an x-ray to confirm I had an abscess, but he didn’t feel it was necessary. The pain in my face on the right side was supposedly an abscess, and on the left, who knows?

This poor warthog has a hole in her side. Amazingly, warthogs have robust immune systems, which should heal without her developing an infection.

Over the past several months since we tested positive for Covid-19 (Omicron) on April 20th, I’ve had a pain in my forehead slightly above my left eyebrow that has persisted for almost four months. Yes, there were days it didn’t hurt as much, and I may have forgotten about it for a few hours. Alas, the following day, I’d awaken, and the headache was back.

The headache wasn’t comparable to a migraine, which I never get, and no amount of Tylenol (Paracetamol) would make it go away. I even tried a combination of Tylenol and Ibuprofen, which didn’t work either. I brushed it off as a long-haul Covid-19 symptom that would eventually disappear.

Here’s a Big Daddy missing a large section of his left horn. He’s well aware of this since we see him tapping his good right horn when warthogs annoy him during pellet feeding.

A few days ago, when I was washing my face, I experienced pain in my left cheek, to the touch. I attributed the pain on my right cheek to the abscess, but now the left cheek, the side on which I’ve had the persistent headache. Last night when I was getting ready to go to Jabula with Rita, Gerhard, and Lee, I noticed I could barely touch either of my cheeks. This concerned me. What was going on?

While dining at Jabula, I wasn’t myself but didn’t say anything. I could feel pain moving up my face to my forehead. Was I having a stroke (which would be an obvious concern for a person with cardiovascular disease). I tried not to panic and didn’t. I stayed calm, and then, like a bolt of lightning, it hit me…I have had a sinus infection since I first got Covid-19 (Omicron) and never had it treated.

Kudu youngsters are resting in the garden.

On our way home, I told Tom my concern; he was his usual supportive self. The clinic in Marloth Park is open on Saturday, and we planned to go there first thing in the morning. I called an appointment and was told we could come in right away. Within minutes of my arrival, the diagnosis was confirmed. I have a raging sinus infection, most likely leftover from when we were sick with Covid-19.

Not only did I get a thorough exam, but a half hour later, I walked out the door with medication in hand; prescriptions for two different antibiotics and an antihistamine. The insides of my ears and nose were inflamed, along with the pain in my head and face. The hefty five-day dose of antibiotics and antihistamine should put me on the right track in the coming week.

Sure, I may have a tooth abscess, but the pain was most likely related to the sinus infection. For now, I will cancel the appointments with Dr. Singh, and when we return from our trip, I will go to the Marloth Park clinic to have an x-ray to see if I have an abscess. If I do, I’ll decide from there what to do. But, I feel I won’t save myself an unnecessary tooth extraction and subsequent temporary bridge and eventual implant, let alone the cost of all that.

It’s cute to see how the youngsters hang out together. We see this behavior in most social wildlife, such as kudus, warthogs, and impalas.

I found this interesting article here, from an ear, nose, and throat specialist in Atlanta, Georgia, that reads, in part, as follows:

“Persisting “sinus headache” affecting the frontal and ethmoid sinus areas (regions between the eyes and up onto the forehead) is the most common symptom following bacterial-negative COVID sinusitis. This may also be present with a runny nose, usually on both sides. But oddly, about half of the patients have no runny nose at this point. Some patients (about 10%) will have scalp tenderness, pain, and even sometimes PAINFUL HAIR! Pain at the top of the head is often found with occult sphenoid sinusitis, which can cause a serious infection of the eyes and even meningitis.”

Oh, good grief, this sounds like me! When I had Covid-19 (Omicron), I got what is called Covid-19 eye. I am certainly relieved that we addressed this now instead of waiting another day. I should be feeling much better by the time we leave a week from today.

Three wildebeest stopped by for a visit, including Bad Ear, Crooked Face, and Torn Ear.

As soon as we returned to the house, I started taking the medications and looked forward to relief in about three or four days. This is not prevented from going through with tomorrow afternoon’s sundowner party. For our readers/friends. This morning I started a little prep for tomorrow and will finish everything else. Tom washed all the glasses and serving pieces which got very dusty on the open shelves.

Thanks for “listening” to my woes. But, none of this puts a damper on continuing to enjoy the bush, our animal and human friends. We are very blessed indeed.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, August 13, 2021:

This might be a serrated hinged terrapin, but it was difficult to determine from this photo. For more photos, please click here.

Confusion over our address in Marloth Park…Electrical issues being resolved…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 12, 2022 with 0 Comment

A hornbill was enjoying herself on the birdseed trolley in the garden.

Recently, when Spar Market had some confusion over ordering my new favorite wine, Spiers 5.5% (very low alcohol) Chenin Blanc, I resorted to contacting the winery to ship 24 bottles from their website. The cost of the wine, with free shipping, was only US $108.80, ZAR 1765, which equates to US $4.53, ZAR 73.42 per bottle.

This tasty low alcohol wine is perfect for me since I get the “feeling” of enjoying a glass of wine without the effects; no tipsy feeling and no hangover. Typically I drink only two glasses in the evening. A regular white wine can have an alcohol content of 13.5% to 15%. This Spiers wine at 5.5% is ideal for me. We keep it in the outdoor fridge, where it stays ice cold.

A hornbill was eating seeds off the bushbaby perch.

I placed the online order last Friday, and it was scheduled to arrive at Louise’s office, the Info Centre, on Thursday. But as it turned out, Louise and Danie were out for part of the day, so I asked the winery to have the driver deliver it to our house nearby. For some odd reason, the driver couldn’t find our home and drove around Marloth Park for an hour.

Finally, he reached me by phone, and I suggested he return to the Info Centre, and Tom would meet him there to collect the wine, which worked out in the end. House numbers here are inconsistent and don’t necessarily run in sequential numerical order. A driver unfamiliar with that fact could easily get confused. For this reason, we have everything we order shipped to the Info Centre.

Trail cam photo of Norman, who stopped by early this morning to see if we were outside at 6:28. Not quite yet. But when Tom was on the veranda by 7:00, he was still here.

Yesterday morning when Vusi was cleaning, he replaced the ceiling light in the kitchen. He turned off the power to install the new fixture. When he tried to turn the power back on, it wouldn’t go back. Within a few hours, the electrician was here, looking for a solution. We were without power for about five hours. Tom placed the bowl of ice in the refrigerator, and our food survived. By afternoon, the power was back on.

The electrician is back again today, fine-tuning whatever he’d done to fix the power and working on a few other issues. The washer repairman was here to repair the washer, but it’s still not working right. TIA, This is Africa, and stuff happens. But Louise and Danie stay on top of all this, and we don’t have a complaint in the world. They couldn’t be more conscientious and thoughtful of our needs.

At one point, Noah was close to the camera.

Once the electrician is done, we’ll be off to Komatipoort to do our grocery shopping for the last time before we leave for Zambia and Botswana in eight days. Mainly, we’ll be getting food for Sunday night’s friends/readers sundowner party. Tomorrow, we’ll share the menu in the post.

The animals began to return to the garden after the holiday period ended on Tuesday. Today, we’ve seen kudu, bushbucks, warthogs, wildebeests, nyala family, impalas, hornbills, and more. Last night, the mongoose stopped by at sunset for dinner. We gave them meat scraps, eggs, and paloney, which they devoured in seconds.

We had a lovely dinner of leftovers and hunkered down well after dark to stream a few shows and get outside our heads wrapped up in mindless drivel. We love each aspect of our everyday; breakfast on the veranda with good food and coffee, later working on our post and financial projects, listening to podcasts while we work. At 4:00, we do sundowners, sometimes with my wine and a drink for Tom, and at other times, iced tea in our mugs. Then, we have dinner on the veranda or at the dining room table.

We never eat snacks at sundowner time unless we have guests, preferring to be hungry for our delicious dinners. Neither of us snacks during the day, preferring to avoid excess calories we don’t need.

We are taking off for Komatipoort for a quick stop at the pharmacy and then to Spar Market. It’s a perfect weather day at 84F, 29C, with a cooling breeze. Right now, one Big Daddy, bushbuck Gordon Ramsey, three impalas, and Norman are hovering in the dense bush. Lollie has been leaving in the afternoons to take a mud bath nearby. When she arrives here, she’s covered in mud. Photos will follow next time we see her.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, August 12, 2021:

Could this be Mom, Dad, and Baby hippos? For more photos, please click here.

Busy day on the horizon…Rushing this morning…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 11, 2022 with 0 Comment

Kudus don’t typically graze off the ground, although they will eat some grasses. But, pellets are a taste-tempting treat they’ll happily bend down to eat.

Rita will arrive to pick me up in a few minutes, and we’ll head to Stoep Cafe for brunch and girl talk. We enjoy this quiet time together when most often, we’re with the guys, and the conversation takes on an entirely different theme than idle girl chatter. Don’t get me wrong, Rita and I don’t discuss trivialities. We tend to talk about important life issues, dreams, and hope for the future.

I’ve always been blessed with having wonderful close female friends. We’ve been through thick and thin over decades of life challenges and joys. Living in Marloth Park, off and on over the past nine years, I’ve been able to make fantastic relationships that I treasure and, too, will last forever.

Nyala Norman, on the left, Noah in the middle, and Nina on the right, all stopped by for pellets.

On top of that, Tom and I have been fortunate to make many “couple” friendships with the partners of those female friends, providing us with a busy and rewarding social life. Sure, some of those friends aren’t here all the time, and we miss them. But we all stay in close touch until we’re all back together again, whenever possible.

We left many friends in Minnesota, many of whom we’ve also kept in touch with. When we visit the US and time allows, we try to see as many of our old friends as possible. Of course, on this last visit, we had Covid-19 and didn’t see family or friends during the 24 days we spent in Minnesota and Nevada.

Before too long, Noah will separate from his mother and begin to live on his own. He may choose to stay with his dad, Norman, but that’s yet to be seen.

Reviewing our upcoming travels, it looks like we won’t get back to the US until the second half of 2023, which isn’t that far away. Hopefully, this time we’ll be able to see our family members first and then some of our friends.

Nowadays, it’s a rarity for me to be able to sit down over coffee or tea with a friend like Rita and mull over the finite details of our lives. It couldn’t be more enjoyable and meaningful. No doubt, Tom and I talk about everything, including topics one might enjoy with friends. After all, we are the best of friends and companions, and lovers.

Noah’s coat will change in time to be a darker brown, like his dad.

There were times in my old life before I met Tom that were particularly challenging and emotionally impactful. But, since Tom and I have been together, everything changed, and my life took off an entirely different meaning and purpose, filled with love and companionship like none other in my past. I never spent a single day not thinking about how grateful I am for this life with this man.

We often giggle and say such things as, “Hey, Sweetie, look around, can you believe it,” as we point to the bush and our magnificent surroundings. Tom often says, “Who would have thunk it?” We never imagine spending so much time in Africa in our old lives or in any of the fantastic countries we’ve visited along the way.

Norman and I have a special relationship. He likes me to talk to him. (yea, I know this sounds crazy, but how about talking to your dog or cat?). He won’t touch pellets we’ve tossed until I stop talking to him. His ears flip back and forth as he listens to me.

Although we didn’t love every country we visited, we certainly found ourselves in awe of our surroundings, wherever they may have been. When we opened the door of our “riad” in Morocco in 2014, finding ourselves in the world-renowned “souks,” we shook our heads in sheer wonder.

If you have never seen our posts from that period living in the Big Square in Marrakesh, you can check out posts beginning at this link, where we stayed for 2½ months. What an experience! Most often, tourists visit Marrakesh for a week or two, but we had the opportunity to learn a lot about this magical place living there for so long.

He has started sniffing Nina again. Is a new mating on the horizon?

Well, I need to go. Rita will be here in a few minutes. May each of you enjoy close friendships that last a lifetime.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, August 11, 2021:

Although a little blurry, we shot this photo of a dining leopard in Kruger National Park on this date last year. For more photos, please click here.

Thank you for all the kind comments and inquiries!…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 10, 2022 with 0 Comment

This kudu has huge, wide horns. Such a majestic and wonderful animal!

Gosh, we’ve had many comments and inquiries about our non-starchy roasted vegetables, as shown on Monday’s post here. Most of the questions were regarding which vegetables were included and the spices used. Here are the vegetables I used, but you can use any you prefer.

Zucchini
Onions
Mushrooms
Red, green, and red bell peppers
Carrots (a small amount, if low carb)
Eggplant
Garlic

Seasonings

Himalayan coarse salt
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Bottled Cajun spices or any other spicy mix
Fresh ground pepper

I spray the pan with olive oil or coconut oil spray and then place a piece of parchment (baking paper) to cover the bottom of the pan to get the paper to stay in place. Then I lightly spray the vegetables before adding the spices, so they stick nicely. Bake for 90 minutes at 375F, 190C, tossing with a spatula every 30 minutes. These will keep refrigerated for four days. Reheat or eat cold; delicious either way.

Also, a few readers have written that they are not receiving automatic emails again. Please email me if you aren’t receiving the emails; we will report it to our web people again. In the interim, if you do not see a post, check for a new one each day at the same time, and the latest one will appear. Type: www.worldwidewaftage.com in your browser’s address bar. Thank you for being so patient. It’s some fluke the web people can’t figure out but keep trying.

Last night, for the first time in days, we could relax and enjoy our sundowners on the veranda. The issues have bogged us down. We had to resolve and for me to get the taxes ready for the accountant. We must wait for the duplicate tax documents to arrive at our mailing service and forward them overnight to the accountant.

This morning, these two male kudus rested in the garden for a few hours.

The cruise credit has been processed for the next upcoming cruise, our paperwork is in order, and I feel like I can relax for the first time in a while.

In 10 days, we’ll be leaving for our next visa stamp trip, returning to Zambia and Botswana for more safari adventures. We’ll only be gone for a week and plan to post each day as always, providing the WiFi is working OK at the resort and hotel. Hopefully, we’ll have some stunning photos and stories to share.

Today is another perfect weather day, and the wildlife has begun to return since the holiday weekend is over as of last night. The majority of the holidaymakers have left. The roads are quiet once again. Construction sounds waft through the air from time to time since sound travels in the bush, but we aren’t bothered by it.

My tooth to be pulled when we return isn’t hurting right now. The dentist gave me extra antibiotics (which I hate taking) if it flares up while we’re away. If it becomes a problem, I’m bringing along plenty of Tylenol (Paracetamol). I don’t particularly appreciate packing for these short trips and most likely won’t start packing until the day before we leave.

Then again, I wouldn’t say I like packing anytime we leave for anywhere when we aren’t taking everything with us. In those cases, I have to decide what to bring and what to leave behind; when we go for an extended time, taking everything with us is much more straightforward.

Yesterday, I made Tom some “regular” (not low carb) blueberry muffins which he loves. Here’s a photo:

Two dozen blueberry muffins I made for Tom yesterday afternoon. He takes one out of the freezer each day. To have with his coffee.

Instead, I’d make these for him rather than have him eat those awful chemical-laden muffins sold at the Spar Market. He invariably buys the junk at the market if we don’t have homemade muffins or banana bread in the freezer. At least when I make them, I know the ingredients I am using are good quality.

Tom reminded me today that he was getting low on coconut banana bread. When checking his frozen inventory, he only had a few pieces left in the freezer. He takes one piece out of the freezer daily to savor after dinner. A new double batch is in the oven, taking 60 minutes to cook. I put the ingredients together, while he mashes the bananas. When it’s done, we let it cool, cut it into individual portions and place them in a freezer bag.

With him enjoying one of these days, the entire two batches last 24 days. There will be a little left when we return from our trip. But, the day after we return, I have my tooth pulled and may not feel like baking for a few days. I may make these all again next week. Fortunately, Tom has a propensity to enjoy the same thing repeatedly. That’s why he likes me!!!

After the baking, we’ll head to the butcher store here in Marloth Park to purchase some prawns for our sundowner event with readers/friends on Sunday. I’m making a list of starter-type items to serve, all of which will be as filling as a meal but served as appetizers. None of our guests will need to return to their houses to make dinner. Serving this way is easier, leaving me time to spend with our guests.

That’s it for today, folks. Enjoy the day!

Photo from one year ago today, August 10, 2021:

Spikey and his mom came to visit. For more photos, please click here.

Busy Monday morning…Cooking and tax prep day!…Food photos…Exciting news on the horizon…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 8, 2022 with 7 Comments

This morning, I cleaned and cut these vegetables to make spicy roasted veggies for me for the week. Tom won’t try them, but they are delicious, heavily seasoned, and roasted in the oven for 90 minutes, tossing them every 30 minutes. This photo was taken before they were cooked.

I realized it was tax prep day, but I had an urge to cook. All the prep shown in today’s photos was done by 10:00 am, and now I can work on the post. After the post, I’ll work on the tax prep and forward everything to our accountant in Nevada. The vegetables are in the oven now and should be done soon after turning them every 30 minutes during their 90-minute roasting time at 375F, 190C.

The roasted vegetables taste good hot or cold. I may have a cup full during the day and another cup with dinner, heated in the microwave. Often, when I make this much, I freeze half of them to eat the following week. I season them well since I like them spicy, but they can be made mild for those who don’t.

By roasting them now, the oven will be available to cook the two pans of meatloaf. I cook both for ease of use when eating the leftover loaf down the road. We defrost it overnight in the refrigerator and reheat it in the microwave later on both occasions; it’s moist and delicious, like the leftover roasted vegetables.

Scraps for the animals. They love all these vegetable pieces, and they are good for them.

I prefer to cook a lot at once, leaving me free on other days only to make a salad and the rice for Tom. It’s a rarity that we’ll make a meal for only one night, except when we have guests for dinner and never serve leftovers. Even when we have something easy on the braai, we’ll buy at least two nights of meat but only cook one each evening. It seems to make life easier for our lives.

No doubt, my days are hectic. I hardly ever sit and do nothing, even when we’re enjoying the wildlife, for which I jump up every few minutes to feed them pellets or, in today’s case, fresh veggie scraps. Unfortunately, none of the animals like the veggies visited us this morning. The long holiday weekend ends tomorrow, and our furry friends will return to see us.

We’ll keep the veggie scraps in the refrigerator until they return. We can only imagine how refreshing moist, cool veggies taste to them on a warm day. We can easily detect their enthusiasm. This morning, we did see our usual band of about 40 mongooses. Did we have some treats for them!! Last night Tom had the remainder of a small prime rib, and I had the remaining four tiny chops from a rack of lamb. We carefully prepared the leftover meat and bones in bite-sized pieces for them.

Of course, they arrived this morning, and we couldn’t have been more thrilled to share this special treat with them. I know this sounds unbelievable. When we see the mongoose in the garden, we make a clicking sound, and they scramble to get to us. They know this sound from the old house two km from here, and they respond quickly, all the while making their hysterical cackling sound.

These two pans of meatloaf, shown before cooking, will last for many dinners. We top the loaves with butt bacon which is meatier than streaky bacon. We eat one loaf for three nights (we love to do this!) and freeze the rest for busy days with little time to cook.

As for the exciting news on the horizon, our old friends from Minnesota, Connie, and Jeff, with whom we’ve been friends for over 30 years, are coming to Marloth Park and will stay with us in the guest house on the property. Jeff always dreamed of coming to Africa, and now, we’ll have the opportunity to share this special experience with both of them. They will be here in mid-September which isn’t too far away! How fun that will be!

The last time friends came here to stay with us was Lois and Tom, in October 2018, whom we met on a cruise in 2016. We had a fantastic three weeks together and loved sharing the wonders of Marloth Park. When we were in Florida in April this year, we met up with Lois and Tom for lunch. It was such a joy to see them and share the fantastic experiences we had in the past.

We’re excited to build these same memories with Connie and Jeff. Nothing can compare to sharing the adventures in Marloth Park and Kruger National Park with newcomers to Africa.

That’s it for today, folks. As they say, “I have other fish to fry” and must continue with today’s tasks.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, August 8, 2021:

This is one of our favorite bushbucks, Thick Neck, also known as Bad Leg. His leg eventually healed, and we no longer called him Bad Leg, only Thick Neck. For more photos, please click here.

A quiet Sunday in the bush…Exciting upcoming social event…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 7, 2022 with 0 Comment

Norman (nyala dad) beyond the wicker chaise lounges.

Last night we made a rack of lamb for me and a small rib roast for Tom on the braai. We’ll have leftovers for Tom’s easy meal with veggies, salad, and rice. As a result, I won’t spend too much time in the kitchen today on yet another perfect weather day.

We’ve seen a good flow of animals in the garden this morning, including lots of kudus, warthogs, wildebeests, and, much to our delight, five giraffes with photos we’ll share here today. It’s warm, and there’s no breeze but not uncomfortable by any means. I’m trying to do laundry, but there’s trouble with the washer, and I can’t seem to get even one of the two loads to go through a complete cycle. We’ll deal with this tomorrow since we don’t like to bother Louise and Danie on the weekends.

It’s not uncommon for a major kitchen appliance to bite the dust. Load shedding has a significant impact on the performance of electrical appliances. It even has caused problems with my Fitbit, which keeps losing the connection to the WiFi when the power goes on and off. We have power now and don’t expect load shedding today but it can happen at any time with little to no warning.

When I left the laundry room across the driveway, I saw a couple walking on the road. They approached, asking if they could come closer to take photos of all the animals in our garden. They are renting the house next door until Tuesday. We stopped for a delightful 15 minutes chat. People are so friendly in South Africa, not unlike we found it to be in Australia, New Zealand, and Tasmania.

Without any construction (not allowed on Sundays), it is so quiet today; that I can hear the fluttering of birds’ wings as they fly by. Unfortunately, from 42 years on the railroad, Tom has lost about half of his hearing and doesn’t have the advantage of cherishing the myriad sounds of the bush that I find enchanting.

Each time a hornbill eats seeds off the birdfeeder on the trolley above the side garden, I can hear the enthusiastic pecking and pleasing chirping they express while eating…a happy sound. I can listen to the footsteps of a quietly approaching animal, often inspiring me to jump up and see who’s coming. I am never disappointed.

Tom will frequently jump up from his comfy spot on the veranda to toss pellets to whoever has graced us with their presence. It’s such an easy existence, one we never tire of or find boring. There’s never a moment or hour of the day where we feel bored. We’ve even learned to entertain ourselves during the frequent power outages.

It’s always such a joy to see giraffes in the garden.

Tomorrow, I’ve committed myself to get all our tax stuff ready for the accountant in Nevada to do our taxes after filing an extension some months ago. I would have done it sooner, but we were traveling, requiring my undivided attention for several hours. I must admit I have put this off, but now I am putting it in writing to ensure I follow through. It’s not due until October. It’s the one task I procrastinate over, year after year.

But, for the rest of today, I am free to putter around the house, perform little tasks, prepare vegetables for dinner, and try to get the laundry done if the fickle washing machine cooperates.

Next Sunday, we’ll be busy preparing for our sundowner gathering of friends we made that came to Marloth Park due to reading our website over the years. There will be nine of us, maybe 11, and without a doubt, it will be an enjoyable day. We are looking forward to this special event.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, August 7, 2021: t

Thick Neck/Bad Leg in the garden with Broken Horn and a warthog. For more photos, please click here.

Part 2….Two new exciting bookings…Update on the ailing little bushbuck…

Posted by worldwide-admin on August 6, 2022 with 0 Comment

This weekend is Women’s Day in South Africa, which is actually on Tuesday, August 9. For information on the holiday, please click here for last year’s post where we described details regarding this holiday.

Busy morning with ten zebras stopping by for drinks from the pool and pellets.

As for our injured/sick little bushbuck baby that we discovered in the garden yesterday, we received an audio message on WhatsApp regarding her condition. I tried to move the audio to today’s post so you could hear it, but it wasn’t possible to do with my version of WordPress.

As a result, the audio message explained that the issue with the young bushbuck was a hydration issue, resulting in her inability to get up. With the bush sparse in vegetation and the mother unable to eat sufficiently to produce milk, the baby was near starvation. They are bottle feeding her at Dr. Piet’s office, and it’s “touch and go” for now.

If she makes it through the next few days, they will move her to the boma, where she will be nursed to health by Deidre at Wild and Free Rehabilitation Centre until the little one can return to the wild in Marloth Park. Will she find her mother at that point? Maybe, maybe not. It’s hard to say. But, by the time she’s released, she’ll be old enough to eat on her own.

“Why not eat some pellets and get off my feet?”

As for our next booking, we booked another cruise on the Celebrity Summit, which will sail one day after our Azamara cruise from Scotland to Amsterdam ends, which sails on Norway’s north and west coasts. The itinerary for the new cruise is as follows:

Friday, August 18	Reykjavik, Iceland		4:00pm
Saturday, August 19	Isafjordur, Iceland	8:00am	5:00pm
Sunday, August 20	Akureyri, Iceland	7:00am	4:00pm
Monday, August 21	At Sea
Tuesday, August 22	Prince Christian Sound, Greenland (Cruising)
Wednesday, August 23	Qaqortoq, Greenland	7:00am	5:00pm
Thursday, August 24	At Sea
Friday, August 25	At Sea
Saturday, August 26	St. John’s, NL, Canada	7:00am	6:00pm
Sunday, August 27	At Sea
Monday, August 28	Halifax, NS, Canada	7:00am	6:00pm
Tuesday, August 29	At Sea
Wednesday, August 30	Boston, MA	7:00am

The cost for this cruise is US $7280, ZAR 122162, for a two-person balcony cabin, including taxes, port fees, gratuities, drink packages, and WiFi for two. To receive these perks, we had to pay the additional US $1200, ZAR 20135, but overall we saved money doing it this way. We could use only a part of a credit we received from Celebrity when we contracted Covid-19 on the last two days of the most recent cruise from Florida to England.

The reason why we could use only half of the credits we received is due to the fact the credits would expire before the upcoming Celebrity cruise mentioned today. However, they had made a typo on my certificate and listed the expiration date as 2024. But Tom’s certificate stated it expired in 2023 before the sail date. There was nothing we could do. We were grateful we got half due to their typo, but we had to make a fuss about it.

When the cruise ends in Boston, we’ll visit my cousin Phyllis for a few days and then head to Minnesota and Nevada to see more family over a month. During that time, we’ll renew our driver’s licenses in Nevada, our state of residency. Sometime between now and then, we have to renew our passports. It may be required for us to travel to Cape Town or Johannesburg to visit the US Consulate to do so.

One thing at a time: we have plenty to figure out right now regarding getting new 90-day visa stamps to continue using South Africa as a base for this next year when we leave for other adventures.

There’s always so much for us to figure out. I looked at Tom and said, “Do you want to stop traveling?” Immediately, he answered an emphatic “no,” asking me how I felt. I don’t want to stop either. So the challenges of figuring out our travels continue.

Even when the others began to wander away, a few remained at rest.

When we had canceled the three back-to-back cruises due to our inability and unwillingness to mail our passports to a visa service or consulate and be without a key in a foreign country (very risky), to obtain a visa for various countries along the way, we had already paid in full for the first of the three cruises.

Last night, after a fantastic dinner and evening at Jabula with Rita, Gerhard and Lee, we received an email from Azamara. They will NOT give us a refund for the canceled cruise. Instead, they are giving us a future cruise credit that expires in June 2023.

We won’t be able to apply it for the cruise we have booked with Azamara for next August to Norway. We will lose almost US $5000, ZAR 83896, unless we book another cruise on Azamara by June 30, 2023. This infuriated us! We can’t call until Monday evening since their offices are closed over the weekend. We’re trying to figure out what we’ll do. Once we know, we’ll report it here.

We’ve decided not to make ourselves crazy worrying about this until Monday. We’ll still enjoy the blissful weather and visitors who may stop by on this busy holiday weekend. We are grateful we are safe, healthy, and doing well.

Enjoy our photos from the past few days, and have a lovely weekend as well.

Photo from one year ago today, August 6, 2021:

Tag: Africa