Deck: Man at work

Although our yard is huge according to Europeans, we don’t have enough shady spots to loiter. This weekend Bashi and Bram realised the deck our landlord Bester envisioned in front of the house.

Deck: Lady at Leisure

If you have it, use it!

Expotition

December 28 early in the morning our New Years Eve expotition starts: we have to reach Maun the last day of 2006 before midnight, because Klaas organizes a ‘we have food & firecrackers, bring your own booze & chair’-Do in his Cuisine Rouge.
First stop: Serowe & Khama Rhino Sanctuary. Soon after Gabs we discover Arab Contractors is still working on the new road to the north; around the tropic of Capricorn the A1 just sucks. After the usual fatcakes at Kate’s Kitchen in Mahalapye we’re strong enough to reach Serowe and drive around the village to see people. Figures: we’ll camp with Hamish, so it starts to rain big time.
A bit later than predicted because of ‘Spoorloos’ we reach the Rhino’s. It looks as lovely as always – and very, very green, due to the good, early rains this year. At the reserved campsite we find two Maboeroe and writing in the sand: ‘Bram site 5’. 5 is as far away as possible from the Maboeroe-herd that overflowed the park, and has a typical Bowie-camp on it. While we set up camp Jeff & Motushi & co arrive, so it’s time for the first game-drive.
After two days of camping, loitering around the fire and game-spotting we move up north via Laru la Tau. Even without the Bowie-crowd it keeps raining, so it’s green, green, green. On our way to Maun we encounter a flock of vultures. Whatever they ate is totally finished except for a pool of blood. Walking around Maud discovers the only leftover: a cow’s tail.
December 31st we do reach Maun – as ever a weird, intriguing border-town close to the Okavango-delta, inhabited by white safari-organizers, crazy pilots and other people living from the many tourists; refugees from neighbouring countries; and some locals. Wherever the tourist-money goes, it’s not to the community; the yards look very poor.
We manage to survive New Years Eve at la Cuisine Rouge, and party on till January 2nd. Than the we put the Dutch guests on a plane into the delta, and have the old Hilux thoroughly serviced in Pietjes garage.
Time to go back home and try to earn some thebe’s. On our way back we camp in Nata Bird Sanctuary. That’s so lovely we just have to spend an extra night. Driving back to Morwa we discover half of Botswana has to get home after the Xmas-break.

Mo(u)rning after

After a hard night we try to ignore the sunset of the first day of 2007. The night-watches are ever so tired after defending the yard against all these people walking and firecrackers flying around. The people have to recuperate because the party goes on.

WWS 11

Where We Sleep 11: Nata Bird Sanctuary Community Project Camping
Maud camped here in ’89, Bram

WWS 10

Where We Sleep 10: Piet’s place near Maun (Okavango Delta)
Piet, who came to Botswana in ’78 in the same plane as Bram, has built a beautiful house near to Maun. As always we can use his guestroom, and when we drift in with two extra Dutchies, he offers Joost & Christina his attic.
As an extra attraction for Maud there’s not only the 3 Mechelse Shepherds, but also a Chiwawa caught in the body of a huge Ridgeback.

WWS 9

Where We Sleep 9: Laru la Tau near Xhumaga
This camping-spot honours its name: in the morning we discovered ditau-footprints all over the camp. We decided to take a walk in de empty riverbed nearby that is the border to a big national park. We saw some kudu, impala and wildebeest the evening before, so we hoped for more. The many zebra-skeletons we encountered showed this riverbed really is a popular lion-snackbar. That cut our hike short.

WWS 8

Where We Sleep 8: Khama Rhino Sanctuary near Serowe
The first thing to do with guests is to camp in KRS, a beautiful little game-park that concentrates on breeding rhino’s. We started with a small group, just us four and Hamish with his boys, but as Botswana soil is fertile parties tent to grow big time. Motushi decided to join with Tender and baby Tom. Yvonne, getting bored with village-life after studying in bubbling Mafeking, joined also. Hearing his daughter would go camping with all this elderly party-animals Jeff felt he had to stop over on his way from Maun to Morwa (because of all this dangerous men or the party?). Poor Jeff didn’t know he would discover ‘stroepwaffels’ and be as much an addict as Hamish.

WSWU 2

Who Slept With Us 2: Christina & Joost arrived from the Netherlands with stroopwafels, muntendrop, koffie & filtersakkies (future guests, remember this shopping list), and other goodies. Of course we had to show them off to the (other) Dutchman from Morwa, Hille, so we walked over to his bar for an afternoon Saint Louis or two.