week four - South Africa adventure

Beaverlac!! Wonderful, wondeful place. Upto a bearable temperature. Uncle Tim took the kids swimming and we had a lazy start. breakfast of porridge - which I allowed to burn slightly on the bottom - sorry Tim!
Then onto swimming in pools formed by the river than runs through the mountains we were camping in. Beautiful. Morning did the 'baby - upper pool' and the kids had an absolute whale of a time. There is a little pool formed from turbulence in wilder times that heats the water within it to a higher temperature than the rest of the pool. Tim discovered this and was a hog in heaven! 'Cesca pretty much learnt to swim in the rest of the pool and was so proud of herself being like her cousins Megan and Kate who she adores! John properly and played whole heartedly and the two dads did alot of throwing water around. Nicki, lubica, Margie and I lounged, talked, basked and stayed cool in rotation. Lovely, heavenely infact. Then on to lunch on hot dogs all round. Tim slept as did we all for various lengths of time. Uncle Tim stayed behind with his name sake and the rest of us went for an afternoon swim in the lower pools. As beautiful to behold but able to swim properly. Unfortunately a bit slimey too. Fishes in the pools enchanting! Walked back to find Tims awake. Walked to baby and bigger pool. John & I jumped a 2 metre drop into the main pool - suprisingly scarey but good. Rest in baby pool and again great fun had by all. Then back to a braai dinner made by the excellent Uncle Tim. Fantastic, fantastic. Hunters all round. Feeling wondeful. And unfortunately sleepy. None of us from UK could keep our eyes open beyond 9pm. So bed and a cooler nights sleep.
Sunday: Overcast. Female Wades swam rest of us milled about and started packing. Braai breakfast with lots of emphasis on meat. Wonderful!! Ate loads. Packed up and I had the exhillerating off road trip up the huge hill. Fun! Then follwoing U Tim down and back to cape Town. Rainy. Said our goodbyes to T, M and the little cousins (sad as we were only just getting to know them) Lubica ensconsed once more with her phone and Nicki headed off with the Wades for a party at the park. Sadly her date hadn't got the plans clear and wasn't there, but good time had and excellent music brought back. Lubica in danger for her life after what was a huge rant about how difficult it is to share a room, if people breathe, move or even worse snore a little. huge sense of humour failure, especially with poor Nicki who got to share with her and we all told her tough - LEARN to tolerate it or at least STOP moaning on!!
Monday: cesca ill. Started with vomits at midnight and carried on every half hour untill about 5.30am when it changed to profuse uncontrolled diarrhea. No fun. She & I exhausted! Breakfast made slowly while john & Lubica do a 'quick' shop - a forerunner of things to come. They took flipping ages. They deserved the cold porridge! Lubica stayed with 'Cesca while the rest of us headed to Grans. We watch the holiday video to date which is mostly mundane as the exciting things flit by unrecorded. Cesca now dry and has high fever. So dose her up as appropriate. Lunch nice and slow with Charlotte joining us. Then onto the Western cape ostrich farm and the tour that goes with. Cesca OK to come, medicine is working. Good fun had by all and ostrich products bought. Ostrich Eggnog discovered!! Then home to the hut. Charlotte, Nicki & I swam in the cool of the ending day. Pizza take out good humour and chatting all round, i am cream crackered and retire same time as 'Cesca.
Tuesday: Cape Town to Speir near Stellembosch. U Tim suggested we would like it especially the resturant Moyo that is there. We decided to treeat our selves and book into the hotel for a few nights - less drunk driving and all that! Pricey but WOW worth it!!!!! 4* luxory. We had three rooms for this night while Charlotte with us and two rooms the following (Charlotte back at work). Our rooms were wonderful with complementry wine which was divine! John & I had a room to ourselves which was wonderful. Our complex of maybe 8 rooms had its own court yard and swimming pool!! We discoverd this after a lazy packed lunch, kids playing their hearts out in the play area and Nicki purchasing a diamond ring. We had plans to set off on a wine route but looking at our to die for surroundings and OUR OWN pool that changed and we had a wonderful time lounging around chatting, swimming and chatting. Changed for dinner for what was the most fantastic nights food, surroundings and entertainment! Moyo can not be recommended high enough. We had a tree balcony had superb wine ate as much as we coyuld from the extensive african buffet and we were entertained - so kids enthralled. We had our faces painted one and all, were sang to twice by different groups, and had a guy entertain us by getting us to join in. A puzzle was a prize for anyone who figued it out and John did. Tim loved it!! Absolutely wonderful, probably only beaten by our Wedding for shear excellence.
Wednesday:Bath as a family to start the day. Gourged ourselves on the breakfast - wondeful! Wine route day. Head to Van Ryn first makers of Brandy and as it turns out the best in the world as judged by experts in these things. We were greeted with a cocktail (brandy based of course) and then 3 to taste. Soon feeling a little smished, but more knowledgeable about brandy. 3 km up the road and we book dinner and wine taste. Wine OK but not good enough to buy. Now can not be bothered with the grand plan of doing mountain passes and instead go around the Stellenbosch mountain only. More wine tasting ad cheese and deli platters for lunch. Delicious. Head back and John , Lubica and Kids stay and swim. The three of us head to Stellenbosch town the mission - earrings. Sadly not to be. Back and dinner. Good food, but incomparable to the night befor. Goodbye to Charlotte
Thursday: Huge breakfast and slow sart as is to be expected. Bought Nicki some earrings! One last Hunters at Moyo before we go and we all enjoy being painted again. Then back to Cape Town. John fluffs the roads he now knows quite well and we see that the Cable car is working. So off we go. Beautiful views and the rotating car a thrill. Lunch (late) at the top. Slow Lubica souvenir shoppping 'it no my fault'. Tuna and pasta for dinner with left over deli products from the day befor. Charlotte comes home from work and it is home made Angels Share dompedros and London game for all of us and my cousin Peter. Nice to meet him properly. He invites us to lunch next day were he works.
Friday:Last day so a day to fill in odds and ends. I need to see Gran again and the ladies want a few items only found at the water front. So same arrangement as previous. Kids & I at Grans and the rest to town. Unfortuately that word 'quick' ment the same to John & Lubica as it had on Monday. They were 3 hours!!! Poor Gran had children climbing into ever nook and cranny and me in my premenstrual state trying to control them. I imagine her memories of my visit will be 'hi gran, stop that 'Cesca and out of there Tim'. Very cross at the three of them leaving me like this when the arrangement had been clearly a quick shop. Let rip with both barrels at the three of them at Peter work. Lubica said not her fault - a blatent lie , Jophn did his 'I;m sorry routine' (the one he does when he is not and he feels I am wining) and poor Nicki took it to heart and was crushed. I pretty much ruined things with this. Poor Nicki - realising she's too sensitive, too good a friend and I was at least to her unreasonable I appologised. I think we made up properly but time will tell. I love you Nicki! Don't let me being a cow put you off. Please.
kids played at the lunch and we payed. Back at the hut swam - cold pool!! Nicki coaching Lubica and 'Cesca in the art of trampolining. 'Cesca the quicker learner. Nicki impressing Lubica (a first for everything) with her simple ability to out trampoline Lubica any time of the day.
Ate at Spurs which was packed. Good atmosphere.
Then packing and off to the airport for the long jurney home. Charlotte very kindly met us at the airport for a fairwell. Love you Charlotte.

left Charlotte flew to Amsterdam. I was ill with nausea and fever. Said goodbye to Nicki in Amsterdam and managed to upset Lubica (tough titties). Aberdeen said goodbye to Lubica who is going by boat. Home. Mail opening and bed. Paracetamol and ibuprofen are Godsends and at last the global body pain and nausea abate enough for sleep.


What a holiday! Work on Monday (tomorrow as I write).