Category Archives: South Africa

Bafana! Bafana!

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11 June

Unable to find Wifi, face paint, or pick up our World Cup tickets in Hartsbeesport Alex and I quickly decided to change our plans and drive an hour north to Rustenburg.

Our FIFA information stated the Waterfall Mall had a ticket pick up station, so we headed directly there. Wondering through the mall we stopped at several stores including an Adidas to see if they had any Bafana Bafana jackets because Alex is getting nasty stares for wearing his Springbok fleece. No one had anything. The lady at the Adidas store said that they were expecting to get some either Monday or Tuesday, but it all depended on how the team did in the opening match today. It was disappointing to think they didn’t have enough faith in their team or in the spirit of the World Cup to think that even if Bafana Bafana lost people would still want SA apparel.

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The Little Train that CAN: Our First Ride On The Gautrain

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10 June

Much like it takes leaving the United States to remain appreciative of all that we as a nation possess, the same goes for South Africa. Even though it is very possible to live a comfortable first world lifestyle in ZA, there are always those differences stemming from our diverse cultures. Dealing with the target on your back in ZA as a white person, never mind a tourist or an American, is quite different from most other nations. The lack of Internet access, which my iPhone and job at Apple have made such a necessity, plus the craziness on the roads that seems to be ‘proudly South African’ can lead to a dissatisfaction upon arrival. The fact that my first few days in country were troubled with a lost airline bag, and food poisoning, my return to South Africa had been far from pleasant. However, two weeks in Mozambique with the beautiful chaos that is most of the continent brings my appreciation for ZA back to a all new high. 2 weeks of seafood had also been my limit and being able to grab a fast food burger at Steers (a local burger joint) was certainly needed to balance my diet.

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Blondie and The Three Boys

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9 June

Today was long, but wonderful.

We were first to board the bus back to Joburg, so Alex quickly snagged the front seats on the top level so we could appreciate the last views of mozambique and admire the beautiful South African landscape. I was a little hesitant to sit with three sides of glass on either side of me. Ever since our bus accident in SA in 2007, I have been very aware when riding public transportation of how we would survive/get out if we crashed again and front seats/glass did not have a good outcome in my mind. Alex tried to reassure me by pointing out that the front seats have seat belts- it did not help. Continue reading →

How to lose 5 lbs+ in 24 hrs – South African Style

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While reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated, i did get to experience my first ever bout of food poisoning. Elna, the women we were staying with in South Africa, took us out to eat on Wednesday night as a way to help make up for the fact that we were severely screwed over on our taxi fare from the airport to her house. I ended up sampling a very tender piece of meat, that in retrospect was probably not cooked to the way my American stomach was used to or it could simply have been a bad piece. Either way, I slept for much of the next 36 hours with only brief moments of consciousness.

I have only just tonight had my first proper meal in nearly 72 hrs. As many as you know, it can be difficult for me to last just 5 hrs of not snacking on something, and as such in those first 30 hrs I lost over 5 lbs of body weight. Alisa commented that I looked abnormally thin and when i looked at my arms I realized that nearly all of the muscle mass i had put on in the last 5 months had evaporated.

Fortunately I have found my appetite once again and though not back to full strength Mozambique’s seafood should be able to help me regain all that was lost.