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Day 9 and 10 we spent on the move to
Hluhluwe-IMfolozi Park to the southwest. For six hours we drove up and down
small mountain ranges and through hour after hour of tree plantations of pine,
ceder, and eucalyptus trees for as far as the eye can see. We did get one
stretch of what Africa did look like through a plateau of grasses. There are
not many places to stop and so the first place after mid-day we decided to call
it a day. Piet-Reteif is a small town, maybe 10 blocks square, that is the
commercial center for this area. Therefore it has a Woolworths, a Spar, which
is a chain grocery store, and a KFC.
what little savanna we saw
the foggy main street in piet refiet
There are lots of “guest houses”, which are like like B&B’s, and the
main places to stay. We saw no motels or hotels in the town. We were surprised
to find that our first three choices were full. At a third place, Le Beau B&B ,
Michael the owner, secured us a room in Welgekozen Country Lodge. They call it
“out of town”, which means you drive past the town sign and turn in. It is on a
large piece of property with a main building that looks like it was built in the
1800’s but was actually built in 1952. It is owned by Bill and Mary.
They retired from England and moved here because Mary, who is dutch, had grown
up here. Bob later confessed he wished he had chosen the States to retire in
instead.
We went out for our only second meal in a restaurant since we have been
here. It was so great to have a choice other than “chicken or beef”. The Mamma
Mia, owned by Michael from the Le Beau, offered everything from pizza to large
hunks of beef with chips. We both picked pasta and took most of it home. It was
great but large and brought the smell of garlic to everyplace we stayed for the
next 3 days.
room 14 and the trusty corrola
The second day at breakfast Bob introduced us to Catherine Crowley from San
Antonio. She and her family own several eucalyptus plantations that produce oil
for fragrances and medicines. She originally came to South Africa as a human
rights lawyer for 12 years and found the farm and invested in it. Her family is
now sole owner and she travels between Texas and their farm here and the one in
Swaziland. We had a great conversation about the family farm and the
humanitarian things she is doing to help the squatters on her farms.
We went shopping at the Spar as we have a self catering “chalet” in the
park. While Vicki shopped, I went to see if I could get my cellphone sorted
out. I travel with a old blackberry and just buy a
sim-card in the country I visit. It is much cheaper than other options. I
get unlimited data here for thirty days for $6, but not all services are
working. The Vodacom office was run by a very nice Muslim couple. Christianity
is the main religion here, but I think everything from Buddha to Hari Krishna
are here. They, like all Muslims I have met, could not have been nicer. We
just created a new blackberry account in the blackberry and now I am in touch
with the world again. Just not real fast.
Off we go on a three hour drive......
It has turned cold, rainy and foggy. What traffic there is on the roads
are mainly large trucks that are a little challenging to get around in the fog.
After Pongola we turned right on R66 taking the back way to the park. The map
said it would be a paved road and it was for a while. When the pavement ended we
had to stop and have a conference. In the end we decided what the heck, so what
if it is a dirt road and it is raining like crazy and we are not sure where it
comes out, press on. After the first hour or what seemed like an hour, we
stopped for another conference. Now I am looking at hours of driving to retrace
our steps to get to the side of the park where the map says the main entrance
is. What the heck, we came this far press on. Shortly after the stop we came to
a pavement and were exhilarated only to be let down after about two miles when
the pavement ended again. Press on. Soon we came back to pavement sort of. The
sign that said “pot holes” was a understatement. Press on. Slowly but surely
the road quality improved until it began to look like a real road.
.........six hours after we started we pulled into the Hilltop resort at
the park, in blowing, raining sideways, cold weather. It is time for a
drink!
boy i hope this works out
