Fantastic night in the bush…A human and animal kind of night…

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Big Daddy was lurking in the bush, staring at the females.

Last evening when friends Alan and Fiona stopped by for sundowners, we all experienced a night we’ll never forget. Not only was the conversation, wine, cocktails, and food freely flowing, but we were all “gifted” with visits by dozens of wildlife. They came, not only before sunset, but once it was dark, when we turned on the garden light, one species graced us with their presence after another.

Many zebra butts were facing us this morning as they clamored over the pellets Tom tossed into the garden.

It was as if we’d arranged this menagerie for our guests, and none of us could take our eyes off the garden. Amid all the enjoyment of seeing so many wild animals, the conversation flowed with ease and good humor. Tom and I joked that the word got out that we currently have five remaining 40 kg, 88 pounds, bags of pellets in a corner in the second bedroom.

It’s not natural for kudus to bend over to eat when they’re used to eating vegetation on trees. But, they do turn for the pellets.

Then, again this morning, even more, came to call, including wildebeests (gnus), zebras, bushbucks, warthogs, kudus, including one Big Daddy (the first we’ve had visit) who’d somehow managed to maneuver his way through the dense bush to make his way to our garden.

As I write this now, the Big Daddy stands tall in his majestic wonder, as shown in today’s photos. To us, no animal living in Marloth Park commands more reverence and respect than these unique massive males. Sadly, on occasion, a foolhardy tourist will not respect their strength and girth and may become injured when getting too close.

One of the two wildebeest hung around with us all evening, well after dark.

Recently, we posted a video we’d seen on Facebook where a man touched the head of a Big Daddy, which resulted in an injury to the man’s face. We were appalled by how idiotic the man was to think he could “pet” the massive animal. We never touch any of the wildlife, nor do we hand-feed any of them.

See the Facebook link here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/377035355798904/permalink/1901623916673366/

The second wildebeest that hung around last night and returned this morning.

A highlight of the evening we all especially savored was when on four occasions, we heard Dezi and Fluffy roaring in Lionspruit. What a fantastic sound! As it turned out, Alan and Fiona stayed until 11:00 pm, 2300 hours, when suddenly we all realized how late it was.

The evening flew by. Shortly after they left and we were situated in bed with our laptops, I got to work to complete the day’s corrections I’d never finished during the day.  It wasn’t until after midnight that I finally gave up and decided to finish the task this morning.

It was almost dark when we took this photo.

Well, this morning with six zebras, four warthogs, two bushbucks, and the returning two wildebeest from last night, it took me a while to finally get to the remaining corrections from yesterday. Now I am caught up and can work on today’s ten posts before the day’s end.

Today will be an easy day. I’ve already done two loads of laundry and prepared a few items for tonight’s dinner, a well-seasoned chicken flattie to be cooked on the braai. Most flatties are already seasoned with some spices we don’t use in our way of eating. Soon, I’ll soak the chicken in purified water in the big metal bowl to remove all those spices off and then re-season it to our liking.

Such a handsome male kudu.

Tomorrow, we’ll make the second flattie implement the same process when we didn’t have room in the small freezer for either flatties. Today is yet another gorgeous day, cool and slightly overcast. We love every moment of this cool weather.

Enjoy today’s photos along with us. Happy day to all.

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

Taking photos through the fence in Marloth Park was tricky, so we got what shots we could.  At times, we were pleasantly surprised at the finished product. For more photos reposted one year ago, please click here.

Busy day with much to do…

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Two heads are better than one when assessing the pellet situation.

It was a good thing it wasn’t hot last night. Sunday night, the power was out for almost 12 hours, and we couldn’t use the air-con in the bedroom. On Saturday, in the middle of the night, I awoke Tom from a deep sleep and asked him why he was clapping. He wasn’t clapping. The air-con was making a clapping sound every 10 to 20 minutes. What was that about? We shut it off, knowing the sound would keep waking us up.

We didn’t want to disturb Louise over the weekend, so we tried it again last night, Monday, to discover the clapping continued. With a cool night, we used the fan instead, and that worked out fine. Today, Louise set up an afternoon appointment with Chris, the air-con guy, to come out this afternoon. It certainly is better to get air-con repairs handled on cool days like today. Next week it will be hot again when it is tough to get an appointment for a repair person to come out.

Soon, we’ll be heading to Komatipoort to grocery shop and stop at the pharmacy for a few items. On our way, we’ll stop at the home of the woman from whom we’re renting the treadmill. The following payment for the upcoming three months is due now. I am so grateful I’ve had the treadmill to keep me in shape during these many lazy days in the bush.

Narrow and The Imposter, resting in the garden.

Late in the afternoon, our friend and local author, Alan, and his girlfriend Fiona come for sundowners. When we return from the market, I’ll get to work to make a few appetizers to serve during their visit. I’ll make enough items, some of which I can eat, and thus, we won’t be making dinner tonight.

Usually, happy hour continues until 8:00 pm, 2000 hours, or later, or when the mosquitoes and other insects are at their worst. It varies every evening, so we’ll play it by ear and wrap up the evening when nature dictates. In any case, we’re sure it will be another lovely evening with friends.

Socializing in Marloth Park has been kept to a minimum with Covid-19. Many are afraid to get together, even in small groups, especially after a few deaths from the dreaded virus here in the park. We only socialize with others whom we know are being careful like us.

Mr. Bushbuck, one of many bushbucks that stop by each day.

Speaking of Covid-19, this morning, after applying for the vaccine four times, Louise finally got the SMS message stating my application was finally accepted. Now, we are waiting for a date and time for both of us. We hope this all works out with the timing before leaving South Africa on June 30th for our visa stamps.

Here again, we’ll play it by ear. Our ultimate hope is that President Cyril Ramaphosa will extend visitor visas for yet another 90 days. That would be wonderful! If not, we’ll make a plan, last minute, to fly out for a few days and then return.

I’ve already started making the appetizers for this evening. Right now, as I prepare this post, we have to leave to bring the money for the treadmill to the owner, and then we’re off to Komatipoort. When we return, I’ll finish this post.

Maturing male kudu, admiring himself in the glass of the bedroom windows.

We stopped at the home of the lovely woman who loaned us the treadmill, and we hit it off so well, we hope to socialize soon. We paid her the ZAR 1800, US $126, for the next 90 days.  It’s been so helpful to me to have this piece of exercise equipment easily at my disposal.

We just returned from Komati after grocery shopping, a visit to the pharmacy and the liquor store. We have everything we’ll need for the next few weeks. Everything has been put away. A few plates of the treats for tonight have been prepped. Soon, we’ll set up the table. The house is clean and tidy after Vusi did another fantastic job this morning.

Now, Frank and The Misses are drinking water from the little container we set down for them with fresh water a few times each day. I’d forgotten to put the container down on the floor when we returned, and he made his funny noise at me to let me know he and The Misses wanted to drink.  The Imposter is here by himself, without his buddy, Narrow. Mom and Babies just left the garden after eating pellets.

These two young kudus were very friendly.

Last night, just before going to sleep, I came out of the bedroom to fill a glass of water for my bedside table. I happened to turn on the outside light to take a peek to see if anyone was there. And there she was, Bossy (kudu) and one of her offspring, a handsome young male. Of course, they were staring at me through the glass door, wondering if pellets were served so late at night.

Sadly, I declined to offer pellets since the alarm had already been set, and I didn’t want them coming around at night in the dark with expectations. I kept an eye out for them, and a short time later, they left. This morning they were back, and we tossed plenty of pellets their way. We often wonder where and when they hunker down at night and how long they sleep.

Most wild animals sleep in short bursts and for very few hours a day, from what we’ve read. It’s ingrained in their DNA to keep out a watchful eye for predators. Here is Marloth Park. Few predators exist for most of the wildlife. But, still, they remain alert and diligent to protect themselves and their young.

At the far end of our garden, Lionspruit begins where lions Dezi and Fluffy live.  There are hundreds of other animals in Lionspruit, many possible meals for these two lions. It’s an entirely different situation in Kruger National Park than here in peaceful and less-threatening Marloth Park.

Have a fantastic day!

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

Hand-feeding Kookaburras in the garden, re-posted one year ago from Australia in 2017. They are carnivores, so I fed them raw, grass-fed ground beef. For more photos, please click here.

Making corrections…Staying on track…Self discipline…

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Frank and The Misses stop by several times a day, making a mess of the seed container. They don’t like sunflower seeds, so they pick through the container to toss them aside.

Self-discipline is a peculiar thing. It’s described as follows:

“self-dis·ci·pline
/ˈˌself ˈdisiplin/
noun

Today, we signed up for Covid-19 vaccine…South Africa registration found here…

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Narrow and The Imposter lying close together, appearing to be a two-headed warthog, one head at each end.

Appointments for the Covid-19 vaccine may begin booking in South Africa in mid-May. There is an option within the application process to enter a passport number as opposed to a South Africa ID number indicating that foreign nationals over age 60 will qualify for this second rollout after health care workers and emergency services workers have been vaccinated.

If you are currently in South Africa, including foreign nationals over 60 years old, you may register at this link. You will be notified by text message to confirm your registration within 24 hours of applying and then be informed where and when you may go for the vaccine, hopefully sometime next month.

Currently, we have two passports each, one expiring at the end of August and another expiring in 2024. To be safe and to ensure our vaccination certificates have the correct passport numbers we used the numbers of the latter of the two.

Siegfried and Roy drinking from the birdbath.

With a degree of uncertainty of sufficient doses available in South Africa, the uncertainly of the efficacy and various side effects, we hesitated, but for only a moment. If we want to continue traveling the world, we must get the vaccine. Even, if for some reason, we decided to stop traveling, we’d still need the vaccine if we ever wanted to cruise again or feel safe in the USA. The pandemic is not going away anytime soon.

There has been a lot of controversy as to if and when South Africa will have sufficient doses for the vaccine and according to news reports (could be fake news), it’s still up in the air. But, from what we hear, they are almost done with health care workers. There are 50 million people in South Africa.

Some may say that our being vaccinated while in South Africa is taking away an opportunity for South African citizens. But, wherever we’d be in the world, we’d be using up two doses. I suppose wherever one was located at the time of receiving the vaccine could elicit a case for objection by some.

Mongoose hovering by the hose for the pool

That same “hater” we mentioned in yesterday’s post here, berated us at the prospect of us returning to the US to get vaccinated since we’ve been gone so long, saying we aren’t entitled. Every human on the planet is entitled to receive the vaccine not only for their own benefit but hopefully the benefit of loved ones and others, with whom they may be in contact.

If you are in South Africa and choose to register for the vaccine, please keep in mind that it may take some time for the drop-down filters to load. I waited for 10 minutes to be able to select this municipality. I left it sitting while I did a few other tasks and when I returned to my computer the selections were available.

It’s best to plan that it will take about 20 minutes to complete the form for each individual, only due to the slow response time when attempting to enter the simple information into the drop-down menus. It’s one of those scenarios when patience prevails which is often the case when filling out certain online forms.

Mongoose lounging in the garden waiting for egg treats from Tom.

Today is cooler and cloudier than yesterday and a bit breezy. Sitting outdoors on the veranda feels especially comfortable. The visitors are stopping by on a consistent basis, especially large numbers of bushbucks. As it’s turned out, due to lack of recent rain, the vegetation for the wildlife is becoming sparse and they are hungry.

We currently have four 40 kg bags (88 pounds each) of pellets right now and don’t hesitate to offer pellets freely which we’ll happily do during the lean times in the upcoming winter. Before our eyes, the bush is rapidly losing leaves and already we can see well into the bush which was obstructed by lush vegetation only a few short weeks ago.

Mongoose stretching to reach the water in the birdbath. Tom refilled it after this mongoose struggled to reach the water.

We’ll be posting today’s story on Facebook today, especially on Marloth Park pages for those who may not be aware of the availability of registration for the vaccine. There are many residents over 60 residing in Marloth Park.

Have a pleasant day. Be well.

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

The setting sun between the palm trees in Kauai in 2015. For more photos from this post six years ago today, please click here. For the year-ago post, please click here.

Gentle musing on a quiet day…I’m often wrong…

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This wildebeest looked angry and ready to charge. But, generally, they aren’t aggressive to humans who keep their distance.

At times, my thoughts run wild as to the topic we’ll cover in our post on any particular day. Let’s face it, after over 3100 new posts. The subjects may be thin and repetitive. I don’t deny this. How we manage to hold the attention of our worldwide readers often baffles us, a topic Tom and I often discuss based on the sheer wonder of it all.

Although I don’t spend more than a few minutes each morning contemplating the day’s topic, at times, I’m left staring into space, wondering what’s on the agenda today. But, this dilemma is short-lived. I press my fingers onto the keyboard and let them, as “they” said, “do the talking.”

The wildebeest was curious about us stopping by.

No doubt, the redundancy is glaring at times. Even I recall a topic I may have written about 2000 posts ago. Somehow they are all decorated in my mind, popping into the forefront, the minutes I start to type. Oddly, today’s very topic didn’t precipitate or surface any recall of a former post. But I could be wrong. I’m often wrong.

Being wrong is the “nature of the beast.” It’s impossible to avoid errors, misuse of the English language, for which I often zealously assume I have a reasonable mastery. That may be wrong also.

Oh, my. Certainly, I’m known to use the same adjectives, pronouns, prepositions, and so forth, as described here ad nauseam. It would help if you got sick of me from time to time. Even the few “haters” who read our posts, one of which refers to us as a “train wreck,” continue to read for whatever perverse satisfaction she may glean from coming back over and over again.

A group of wildebeest is called a “confusion.” Go figure.

Tom, a railroad man for 42½ years, knows what a train wreck is, and it is not us. But, perception is everything. I ask the universe if you hate something and have the option to avoid it without consequence, then, by all means, avoid it without effect. Does she think that her hateful dissertations in an email or “comments” are going to change how we do this?

Yesterday, I received a thoughtful message from a reader reminding me that I misuse the word “alas.” She included the definitions from a reliable online dictionary source, and I thoroughly agreed with her. Her message was kind and considerate. I took no offense. As we advance, I will be more mindful of my use of the word “alas,” thanks to her well-written and well-intentioned interjection in a private email.

Wildebeest crossing the road.

Would I continually appreciate comments and observations regarding words I may use incorrectly or in a slang manner? Probably not. After all, this is not an essay contest. This is a log of our daily lives, both perfect and imperfect and mostly somewhere in between. I dare anyone to write daily, over 3000 times, over eight years and not make verbiage, punctuation, and spelling errors.

At one time in my life, I was a perfectionist. I gave that up when we began this journey, knowing full well that being perfect in this year’s long world journey would not serve me well, only resulting in frustration and stress. Now, I wear the same shirt for two days, misspell words in posts and texts, and haphazardly draw on a disappearing eyebrow, a byproduct of old age,

We spotted these giraffes at quite a distance.

Over the years, I’ve learned that no one will say they were glad to be a perfectionist on one’s deathbed. They will espouse love, life, adventures, and contentment, of which we’ll have plenty.

Be happy. Be well. Thanks for being here.

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

Beach view in Kapaa, Kauai six years ago today at this link. For the year-ago post, please click here.

Hit and run…Wildlife killed on the road…Where’s Tiny?…Back to corrections again…

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Benny, Henny, Lenny, and Penny were in the garden. These two males of the foursome decided to snuggle. Too cute.

When we read that seven animals were killed on local paved Olifant Road during the long Easter weekend and we hadn’t seen Tiny in days, I was worried. What if he was one of the victims of hit and ran on the busy long weekend. Over the past several days, we watched for him day and night.

Usually, he’d show up in the garden between 4:00 pm, 1600 hours, and 4:30 pm, 1630 hours, while we were seated at the big table on the veranda. But, he never arrived. Day after day passed, and no Tiny. I’ve become so attached to him and his former daily visits, I’d be lost without him.

Alas, this morning while I was showering and dressing for the day, Tom came in to inform me that Tiny was in the garden, looking for pellets, and perhaps, me? Whew! I couldn’t have been more thrilled to see him, his giant warts, his massive tusks, and his somewhat shy demeanor.

Benny, Henny, Lennie, with Penny in the background.

But, it’s sad to know that seven of the precious animals in Marloth Park are no more. Either they died when hit by careless drivers speeding on the road, or they were injured to a point where the rangers had no choice but to euthanize them. This is sad for all of us in Marloth Park.

We’re not the only people in Marloth Park who build relationships with the wildlife from a safe distance. When we get together, we frequently discuss our favorites using the different names we’ve created for them. It’s funny to think that other residents have different names for the same wildlife we’ve named to our liking and preference.

Who knows? Tiny may be called “Jumbo” by another long-term visitor or homeowner. What names do others have for warthogs Narrow and The Imposter or their resident francolins instead of our Frank and The Misses? It makes us laugh out loud.

When I accidentally dropped the container of pellets on the veranda floor, it took no time at all for Little to come up to partake.

On another note, a few days ago, I mentioned that I hadn’t done any corrections on past posts since we arrived in Marloth Park three months ago. This stuck in my mind, prompting me to start again but with a less lofty goal of only correcting ten posts a day instead of 20 as I’d done while we were in the hotel room in India for ten months. I had more time during that long haul than I do now.

This morning before starting today’s new post, I managed to complete two of the 10. Every few hours, I’ll do two more until the ten are completed. At this rate, I will be done in about 190 days. That’s a long time from now, but I think I can manage this. If I stick to this routine, I should be done by the end of the year, considering travel days, busy days when we visit Kruger National Park, and days I can’t force myself to do it. We’ll see how it goes.

IB, aka Itchy Butt, returned for another itching session in the cement pond. Unfortunately, the water had evaporated, and he didn’t get the expected result. Poor IB!

Today will be a low-key day, which we thoroughly enjoy when the wildlife comes to call. We just served up some raw scrambled eggs for about 50 mongooses (I’ve recently discovered the plural of mongoose is mongoose) who’d stopped by. We always love seeing them and feeding them when it’s their presence that can keep the snakes at bay.

Now, I’m off to do my HIIT (high-intensity interval training) workout on the treadmill and then head to the kitchen to prep for tonight’s dinner. Life is simple. Life is good. We like it this way.

IB looks worried as he sits there, contemplating his next move.

Have a wonderful day. Stay safe and be well.

Photo from one year ago today, April 14, 2020:

A gorgeous sunset in Kauai, Hawaii, from the veranda of our condo in Princeville. For more photos from that date, six years ago, please click here. For the year-ago post, please click here.

Frustrating road trip…Rental car pickup, not so much to our liking…

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Two oxpeckers on the back of a female kudu are ready to start pecking at her coat for insects or injuries.

It’s a long and trying drive to the Nelspruit/Mpumalanga/Kruger Airport, several kilometers outside the city. There’s considerable traffic on the N4 Highway with frequent stops for road and now, bridge construction. Trucks often line the two-lane highway slowing the flow of traffic.

A fantastic aspect of driving on South Africa’s highways is that drivers, including truck drivers, move to the far left to allow drivers behind them to pass. We’d never seen this intelligent driving behavior anywhere else in the world. Also, fairly often, there are passing lanes marked on the road, adding to traffic flow.

Another kudu with three oxpeckers on her back and neck. They often manage to photobomb our shots. See the warthog checking out the action for the photo.

Tom is a great driver, and although I usually feel at ease as a passenger, this particular highway, amid these benefits, still can be a nail-biter at times. It took no less than 90 minutes each way plus another hour at the airport, returning one car with Budget and collecting another car with Thrifty. That was our big mistake. We shouldn’t have booked with Thrifty had we known what we’d encounter.

Upon arrival at the Thrifty counter, we were informed that we must return the car every 30 days to have it inspected, although our confirmed contract was 79 days. Of course, we didn’t know this when we booked the car. However, with the pricing 33% less than Budget (prices change daily), it was irresistible to use them. Next time, we’ll call and ask about their policy, which we’ve never had to do in the past eight-plus years.

On her neck.

Could Covid-19 have been responsible for them changing their policies? Who knows?  So much has changed regarding travel in the past 14 months since this pandemic nightmare began. It has become necessary to check and recheck all terms and conditions regarding any aspect of the journey.

We plan to research to see if there’s an alternative and if we can cancel that contract without a penalty and return to Budget when they post lower pricing from time to time. We’re both frustrated about having to spend no less than four hours every 30 days to return the car for inspection.

Oxpeckers jump around the animal’s body quickly. They seem to like kudus particularly.

As I was writing this post, I stopped for a few minutes to check with rentalcars.com. No refunds are allowed once the car is picked up. We are stuck with this old car with over 40,000 km, smaller, and more challenging to maneuver on the bumpy roads in Marloth Park and Kruger National Park.  Herein lies the reality, “You get what you pay for,” especially when it comes to car rentals.

As it turned out, we didn’t return to the house until almost 3:00 pm, 1500 hours, having left the house at 10:30 am. In essence, this process resulted in nearly a full day away from enjoying precious time in the bush. On the return drive, we decided against the planned shopping in Malalane, after all, and headed straight back to Marloth Park. We’d already shopped in Komati on Monday, and we’d be fine until next week when we return.

It was great to see an oxpecker partaking in our birdbath. Tom makes sure it has fresh water each day.

As world travelers who continue to use a wide array of travel services, we learn something new almost every day, even during the pandemic. No doubt, it’s more work now to plan than ever in the past. At this point, we’ll be waiting until the last minute to see what we’ll need to do to get our visas stamped by June 30, 2021.

The world is still in flux and will be so for years to come. Also, right now, we’re relieved we didn’t go to Minneapolis this week as previously planned. We’d be there now during enhanced rioting, carjacking, and shootings. Many members of Tom’s family live near some of the areas included in this challenging time for the city and its people. We pray for the safety of our family members, friends, and residents of the town and suburbs impacted by this strife.

We’ve seen bushbuck, Torn Ear, three days in a row.

Today, sunny and warm, we’ll stay put outdoors on the veranda, cherishing each visitor that stops by. So far, this morning, we’ve had mongoose, kudus, bushbucks, warthogs, and of course, as always, Frank and The Misses. Undoubtedly, more will come by before the day’s end.

Happy day!

Photos from one year ago today, April 13, 2020:

Jackfruit is known for its health benefits.  See this link for nutritional details. This photo was posted at this link on April 13, 2015. For the year-ago post, please click here.

On the road again…

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Female kudu resting in our garden.

Note; Due to the time required to add photos to our post. We’ll be back tomorrow with more.

We’re not “on the move” again, but we are “on the road again” as we make our way to Nelspruit today to return the rental car, pick up another vehicle and do some shopping in the “big” (more significant) city. With Nelspruit’s population of over 110,000, it’s undoubtedly the most large city near us, approximately 75 minutes from Marloth Park.

I still experience a little angst going to Nelspruit since it’s the small town where I had open-heart surgery 26 months ago. Although it is also where the tiny airport is located, we’ve been many times over the past eight years since we began visiting Marloth Park in 2013.

At the moment, as I hurriedly write here (we’re leaving in an hour), Tom is at the car wash at the Marlothi Shopping Center, getting the rental car a thorough cleaning. I am seated at the big table on the veranda with three warthogs in the garden; Fred and Ethel, and surprisingly, Little, not Tiny, who seldom visits with so many other pigs as permanent fixtures here in the garden.

Little never liked the competition of other warthogs around him and can make quite a fuss. On the other hand, Tiny is gentle and relatively tolerant of sharing pellets with the other regulars. We’re often in awe of the unique personality traits and demeanor of the various wildlife that visit us frequently. It’s easy for us to detect who is who when we spend most days observing their behavior.

Not only does each animal have its physical characteristics, but its unique behavior also alerts us to those we see frequently, even when there are ten or more animals in the garden simultaneously. Frank and The Misses, three couples, easily determine which of the trio is eating the seeds. The main Frank is a messy eater, and the seeds fly everywhere when he stops to eat and drink several times a day.

All of the females are shy, and if I stand, they run off for a moment to return once I sit back down. But, the main Frank, who must be the dominant male in this territory of our garden, never moves when I put down the seeds and the little container of water which most of them drink from. Also, he will stand right next to me when the others are shy and prefer to stay back at least a meter from where I’m seated on the veranda.

We thought the Francolins would drink from the birdbath, and yet it has never happened when we’re outdoors. They either drink from the short-sided container I put on the ground with fresh water daily or sip from the outdoor drainage hose from the air conditioner in our bedroom, getting only a few drops a day. The main Frank loves the little cup of water and the other cup of seeds, chirping happily when he drinks and eats.

When the seed or water containers are empty, he makes his loud squawk while standing at the screen door to the veranda to alert us more is needed. This occurs frequently. It’s not unusual for us to see him standing at the screen door when we get up in the morning or at other times when we’re busy indoors.

Yesterday afternoon, while we were in the bedroom for a short rest, my favorite kudu, Bossy, came up to the bedroom window peering inside, wondering why we weren’t outdoors offering pellets. Of course, we jumped up to comply. We laugh so hard over all of these scenarios. Tom says they have us trained. So true.

Well, it’s time for me to wrap this up. We’ll be back tomorrow with more, including details of our little road trip to Nelspruit, and we probably won’t be returning late afternoon, and I am seldom motivated to do a post close to dinner time.

Happy day!

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

This morning, this adorable Easter display was at our regular table at the hotel in Mumbai. A short time later, the restaurant closed. For more photos, please click here.

Finally, I saw it!!!…Last night’s outstanding visitor…

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Handsome male impala.

Sure, I wish I could have taken a photo of last night’s porcupine. Tom was doing the dishes while I was in the bedroom, setting up a show for us to stream when quietly, he opened the bedroom door and signaled to me to follow him. He’d happened to peer out the sliding door with the garden light on to see if any visitors were in the garden in the dark and spotted the porcupine for the fifth time.

Once our night vision trail cam arrives, we will be able to share photos of our visiting porcupine. We wondered why she starts in the same spot each time Tom has seen her, realizing it was next to the edge of the veranda where we often leave seeds for Frank and The Misses.

A medical clinic opened up this month in Marloth Park, ideal for emergency treatments.

When searching online for porcupine sources of food, we discovered the following:

“In the winter, they primarily eat evergreen needles and the inner bark of trees, often feeding heavily on a single tree causing damage or death to the tree. Porcupines shift to eating berries, seeds, grasses, leaves, roots, and stems.”

The seeds we left for Frank at night have attracted her and are the reason she’s returned time and again. Tom has kept a watchful eye out for her since his first of five sightings beginning a few months ago, hoping to be able to show her to me. Last night was indeed a treat for me.

A creek was running through Marloth Park.

I was totally in awe of what my eyes beheld. She had her quills fully extended, and she was much larger than I’d anticipated. She disappeared into the bush in a matter of seconds with no time for me to prepare the camera for a nighttime shot. Thus, we’re excited about the prospect of the trail cam arriving in the next month or two.

As for yesterday, I had the wonderful treat of a long conversation on Facebook Messenger with my dear friend Karen, who’s now moved to her fabulous home in Florida from Minnesota. It was Karen and Rich with whom we stayed when visiting Minnesota in 2019. We rarely stay with anyone while traveling, but it’s been so comfortable staying with them, we didn’t hesitate to do so again.

We’ll visit them in Florida at some point in the future, although they are planning to visit us here in Marloth Park sometime next year when the timing is right when international travel eases a bit. We plan to move into one of Louise’s larger houses for the almost three weeks they intend to be here. (Our current house is too small for four adults).  It’s not worth coming all this way, halfway around the world, for a short stay.

The Marloth Park Water Treatment Plant.

Tomorrow, Tom will take the little rental car to the Marlothi shopping center’s car wash for a thorough cleaning, both inside and out, which car rental companies require in South Africa before returning vehicles, or an additional charge will be imposed.  On Friday, we’ll return the car to the Nelspruit/Mpumalanga/Kruger Airport to collect another car for the next 82 days.

It’s about a 75-minute drive each way. After we collect the car, we plan to stop in Malelane on the return drive to do our grocery shopping at the fantastic Spar Market, which is packed with goodies for our way of eating. It will be a fun outing. Next week after the traffic lessens in Kruger National Park, we’ll head to the park for a much-anticipated self-drive in search of fantastic wildlife and lunch at the popular Mugg & Bean in Lower Sabie. We can hardly wait. The Easter crowds are gradually diminishing with less and less traffic in Marloth Park.

A lovely animal on the side of the road.

Following is a video we found on Facebook with a kudu attacking a man who got too close to the massive mature male. The animals we love so much are wild, and it’s never safe to attempt to touch them or get too close. I hope this video comes up for you. Please see here:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/377035355798904/permalink/1901623916673366/.

Have a fantastic day.

Photo from one year ago today, April 7, 2020:

This is the only health food store, Healthy Hut, within a half-hour drive from our holiday home in Kauai, Hawaii, in 2015. The inventory was ripe with fresh, locally grown organic produce, grass-fed meats, free-range chickens and eggs, and food and health supplies one would find in a much larger location in a big city. Pricey? Yep! For the full story from six years ago today, please click here. For the year-ago post, please click here.

Almost every day something amazing transpires in the bush…See the latest…”Pig in a Pond”…

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I.B. (Itchy Butt) laying in the wet, muddy cement pond, attempting to ease the itching.

Here’s our new video of “Pig in the Pond”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yw4uSqCK_1o

Just when we think we don’t have enough photos to share here, something unique happens in the bush, and once again, we’re in business, ready to post a new story with accompanying photos. If we wait patiently, it will happen. Late yesterday afternoon was no exception.

OK, I get it. You may be tired of hearing about warthogs and their hysterical antics. But, the reality remains…we see more warthogs at this particular house in the bush than we’d seen in past houses in 2013/2014, 2018/2019. Undoubtedly, we’ve embraced this fact and named most of the pigs, many due to their physical characteristics or peculiar behavior.

The cool water, on a cool day, must have made him feel better.

Today, we introduce you to I.B., short for “Itchy Butt.” We’ve never seen anything like it. Yes, we’ve had a Pig in the Pond in 2018/2019, when Little, whom we seldom see now, since Tiny, has become “King of the Garden” entered the pond, and we wrote a story about him, entitled, “Pig in the Pond, Pig on the Porch, Pig in the Parlor. See that post here.

Little not only entered the pond, but he also came up the seven slippery steps to the veranda (the porch) and entered the living room (thus, the parlor). We continue to laugh over that story even a few years later. And now, this new pig, who arrived late yesterday afternoon with a severe itch, spent considerable time in our cement pond.

He repositioned himself in an attempt to feel better, scratching his hind end on the sand.

During the first few months since we arrived in Marloth Park in 2021, it rained non-stop for days and days, leaving mosquitoes breeding in every pool of water, including cement ponds. The cement pond outside our bedroom window was filled with vegetation, creating an ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes.

Moses, an employee of Louise and Danie, stopped by one day and emptied the pond’s vegetation and water, filling it with sand. Well, it continued to rain and the cement pond filled with water once again. No doubt, more mosquitoes are breeding in the pond, although the small amount of water continues to evaporate during the past dry weeks.

Nothing seemed to help relieve the itching.

Yesterday afternoon, as we lounged on the veranda, watching various animals stop by, including bushbucks, kudus, Frank and The Misses, and of course, numerous warthogs. I’d stepped inside to put away the laundry when I heard Tom yell out to me, “Get the camera! Pig in the pond!”

And there was I.B., rolling around in the mud and remaining water in the cement pond, mainly attempting to scratch his itchy hindquarters. He was on a mission, scratching against the boulders lining the pond, using the sand at the bottom to scratch. During one hour, he entered the pond three times, exhibiting the same behavior on each occasion. Later, when he exited the pond, he practically visited every surface in the garden to help him get a good scratch.

Finally, he climbed out of the cement pond.

Of course, we felt sorry for him. There was nothing we could do to help him. After all, this is nature. When warthogs have medical issues, the rangers don’t attend to them. There are many warthogs in Marloth Park, and their healthy and sturdy constitutions prevent the park from providing medical care for them. They usually recover from most injuries and illnesses on their own. It’s a rare occasion that a carcass of a warthog is discovered in the bush.

He tried scratching on the pebbles and big rocks in the garden.

If they have life-threatening injuries or illnesses, typically, they are found and euthanized and delivered to Lionspruit for Dezi and Fluffy’s next meal. Marloth Park residents are good at informing the rangers when such serious situations occur. But, an itchy butt is not necessarily a life-threatening situation. After we’d taken photos of his bloody behind, it looked so much better when he returned this morning. We were relieved to see the improvement.

After all his efforts for over an hour, his hind end was red and bleeding.

It’s a fantastic experience to watch wildlife all day and evening, learning their behavior, nuances, and special needs. Observing the behavior of wildlife is a rare opportunity and experience. Watching wildlife in zoos doesn’t provide such an opportunity. It’s only a feature of being in the wild among them, watching them and interacting with them, day after day. For this, we are humbled and grateful.

While all of this was happening, another warthog took a nap using a rock as a pillow.

Be well.

Photo from one year ago today, April 6, 2020:

Beautiful orchid we spotted in our travels from this post. For the year-ago post, please click here.