Marijke's First Impressions

This post is written by Maud's mom Marijke
Yes, here I am, sitting in the office of Maud’s and Bram’s accountant. They are in their nicest clothes to do business, leaving me with the task to write.


What am I going to tell? First impression: arrival on Gaborone airport, the small plane comes down very bumpy, and than you have to walk a long way over the airstrip. Wow it is hot, before you come to the office where an unfriendly lady make you fill forms, in fact not to eager to give you a stamp. Luckily I had a paper with the address and several phone numbers of M&B. That was impressive enough.


Yes and there are M&B with there 20 years old bush car. Going home by the A1! you see cows, donkeys, goats grazing along the highway, and many people trying to sell pumpkins or whatever there is you can sell, just a small table and a sunshield.


Than there is the gate and 5 dogs: BACK BACK and they do it! I am there!!


Yes, there are the impressing stairs, where Bram some days later had an accident, just as happened to Maud earlier. Stupid, his mother in law had warned him. It happened just when the last Dutch friends left after a happy evening with nice food.


My first contact with their friends. That is what made my trip special, getting to know the African life of M&B. The visits to Mochudi: museum and their small restaurant from years ago; the footsteps of Matsieng; the Oodi weavers; dinner and performance at the opera house; and camping in the Rhino park, are of course highlights.


But most happy I am to know there normal life, however Normal??


2 trips to a nursery during my visit is not Bram’s idea of normal life I think, but he was very patient while Maud and I had to inspect all the plants! Thank you Bram!


Thanks to a clouded sky almost everything we bought is planted. I was even allowed to dig holes. (just as difficult as it is in Vierhouten nowadays with all the old wood in the sand).


I also have done some weeding, but it is very hot.


Yes it would be to hot for me to live here, and living in a country where I do not speak the language I wouldn’t like. And furthermore I have this feeling that we turned nature into a zoo (if we do not protect animals in sanctuaries they become extinct). And maybe we do not realise we are living in a zoo too, although we have the opportunity to hop over the world with our planes from one park to the other: Garden of Eden???

Camping @ Rhino’s

A must for every visitor from overseas is to see some African wildlife. Now the easiest way to realize that is to go to the Khama Rhino Sanctuary cause you are sure to see a lot of different animals there, while in the big game reserves you can drive around for days without seeing much. So here’s the traditional ‘crossing the Tropic of Capricorn picture on our way up’-picture again.


The Scottish-Dutch section of our camp supplied lots of toys and great Irish whiskey.


Marijke’s first game drive.


Downing the sun in between game.


And then downing the sun even more while cooking at the campsite.


What's cooking, Mien & Bernard?


Rather toys then dinner!


On our way to see more game. Lucky Calum & me - we were driven around on super-cool-Miena's rooftop, so we were in front of everyone.


And then we got to see an about 2 weeks young baby rhino - great!


Dutchies can't survive without decent stacks of pancakes.


Spreading Dutch culture among the Batswana - guys, have another bacon pc with stroop!

Busy Busy

Early in the morning, ready for a brand-new day.


Bram’s BDay program part 3 or so, sundowners with Miena & Bernard, and Pleun of course.


BBD part 6 or so: a show. 5 actors impersonated the animals of the Makgadigadi pans, like these dancing flamingos.


Gemsbok


Thursday we had dinner with the Bowie-tribe.


Saturday it was pancakes & Dutch home videos for our building crew.


What’s Maud cooking?


Note Jon’s bakabana – it’s very rare to find real bakbananen in Botswana!


Sunday afternoonish lunchish dinnerish event on our stoep.


Rise & Shine!

Showing off

A very important part of the program for Maud’s mom is ‘meet & greet’, cause she wants to check out who we hang out with, and people want to check out the Dutch mom. First & most very important is of course visiting Bram’s Motswana mother, Maud’s mom-in-law, Mme Binkie.


We have to show off some culture also, starting with the museum in Mochudi. The building used to be a school, owned by the Dutch Reformed missionaries.


The museum is a bit run down, but still interesting. And it’s standing on a hill in the middle of the village, so the view from the rocks around it is stunning.


Another cultural tour: the Matsieng footsteps. This is where the first people came on earth; the giant Matsieng and his followers, humans and animals. The came out of the earth when the rocks were still soft. That’s why there is a deep hole that’s always filled with water, and footprints of people and animals around it, where they first set foot on earth. The gods then put images of the moon and the stars into the rocks to mark the occasion (picture).


And another VIP-event: a braai across the road, with great fillet, pap, salads, and one of Maud’s feared disaster-deserts. This leopard and cheetah prefer their meat juicy, raw and bloody, but will make do with something cooked, as long as they can use their snake-knifes to cut it. Zach took care to pick a the sharpest ones for his girlfriend and himself!


March 10, Bram’s BDay – time to have a decent breakfast, with sunny-side-ups for the madala.

Dutch mom in Botswana

Maud’s mom arrived in one piece, with all her luggage. One of the first things to do is of course inspect the premises, guided by the armed security squad.


And then: sundowners!


Taste-testing: Savannah Dry & Castle


Bram’s mom send him a home-baked appeltaart


Sorry Louis, it’s not your BDay


Happy old man!!!


He’ll turn 54 or 55 on March 10...

House Progress

This is a historical blog update: the first ever posted from our village Morwa! There’s internet now at Jeff’s office; a two-minutes walk instead of going to Gaborone to get online. More time to do finishing touches on the house, and to use the new oven to full capacity haha.
From left to right: kitchen, living room, Maud’s office – all almost finished...


The master bedroom – also almost finished...

Lionel

Our most recent family member Lionel, formerly known as Lion, is head over heels in love with Bram. He’s from the same litter as Louis & Lisa, and was living next door. There’s this vicious new dog in de neighbourhood that likes ripping Lionel to pieces. So during his second stay in our Bokito-proof yard to recover, we decided to buy him, cause it’s pretty useless to nurse a dog back to health only to have him shredded again.


Lionel was by far the biggest of the litter, but due to the difference between dog pallets and leftovers he’s half the size of his siblings by now. He compensates by showing tons of courage – except when thunder and lightning is involved. Even a moderate rainstorm forces him in between his brother and (half) sisters, where he can pretend he’s as indifferent to fireworks & thunder music as they are.