1 Year in South Africa

In three days it will be a full year since we arrived in South Africa.  It does not seem so.  We have just had so many adventures and wonderful experiences that the time has gone by so quickly. So, now we will try to catch up on what we have been doing.  One of our students (left) Trever, just got married.  Before the wedding we took photos of him and his fiancee, Londiwe, at the Durban Botanical Gardens.  They used the pictures in announcements and for an electronic invitation.  That was fun for us.

Grandma Gaye with two of her friends from our apartment complex.  They drop by occasionally to visit; or is it maybe the cookies, candy, or some other treat?  Likely both.





At times, we have meetings in Durban for PEF and we couples often get a chance to go have lunch on the beach.  Here we are braving a late fall day in Durban.  As you can, see the weather is hard to take.

I am constantly amazed at the variety of life here.  This spider was in a web across our trail when we were taking a walk.  It is beautiful, but also has huge fangs. I am not sure what would happen if bitten by one of these.

In early May, the BYU Young Ambassadors came to Durban, having been in Johannesburg and Swaziland.  Because we know the Public Affairs couple missionaries, we were able to help a little.  Here they are performing at uShaka Marine World.  They did two nights at the Durban Playhouse and were a real hit.  Tickets were 50 Rand, about $6.50, so many people could afford to attend.

uShaka Marine World main gate.  Shaka was a famous Zulu king who conquered many of the tribes of southern Africa in the 1700s.  Hence, the Zulu shields and spears known as assegais or incwala, the latter a name, when pronounced, the first syllable sounds like the spear going in to an enemy and the last part it being pulled out.

On May 16th,  all the couples in the Durban Mission had a couple's conference at the Drakensburg Sun Hotel.  It was a beautiful setting with spectacular scenery.  This is the area of South Africa that regularly gets snow during the winter.  For us, the weather was wonderful.  It reminded is of October days and nights back home.

The first afternoon of the conference, we got to go to the Drakensburg Boy's Choir.  They performed with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir last year and are very talented.  The first half of their program was pretty much the music one would expect from such a choir.  The second half was a very pleasant surprise in that they did a large number of traditional African tribal songs.  It was a great performance.  Boys there are from all over southern Africa.  Scholarships are available for those that do well in the rigorous auditions but otherwise could not afford to attend the school, which is grades 1-12.

This is out of order and was taken before the couple's conference at a Five-Zone conference.  We were all waiting for President Von Stetten and Elder Evans from the 1st Quorum of Seventy to arrive.  Maybe about 1/3 of the missionaries in the Durban South Africa Mission are in this photo.

A view of the hotel and the grounds after a hike.  Elder and Sister Lombardi are serving in Swaziland and are always happy to have contact with the other couples.






 A close up of a African Sacred Ibis.

During a hike at the couple's conference.  The trail led up a very heavily wooded canyon.  Almost real jungle.  Still waiting to see cobras or mambas or some other dangerous snakes.  So far, lots more chances of seeing a rattlesnake in eastern Oregon than a poisonous snake in South Africa.

Also on the trail.  A very steep drop off into a creek.  I am surprised you-know-who walked along it.

The prize for the hard work of the hike.  The Blue Grotto.  The photo does not do it justice as the light was not good, making the scene hard to photograph.

One has to get up early to catch the sunrise on the Drakensburgs.  It was well worth it as the whole area was bathed in red,early morning sunshine.  It was frosty and quite beautiful.

As I mentioned, it is fall in Africa and here it even looks like it.  In Durban, it does not.  Some of the trees lose their leaves but the grass stays green and plants flower all year long.  It was nice to feel autumn again.

The hostesses at the Drakensburg Sun in their traditional Zulu dresses.  All the bead-work is done by hand.

After we finished at the Drakensburg Sun, about 11 couples went back to Nambiti Wildlife Reserve--where we went one month after we arrived in Africa, to spend a night and go on two game drives.  I have a better camera now and we were lucky to find some accommodating lions.  I call this one Looking Ngonyama in the Eye.  He walked right by our vehicle and was so leery of my camera clicking.  As he passed me,he jumped sideways and hustled away.

These are two-year old brothers lying on a road.  If you have ever seen the thorns on Acacia trees and bushes, you can see why they like to use the roads to travel.

Last year in Nambiti,we saw rhinos, only from afar.  This year, up close and personal!  This is one of six that were very cooperative and liked the attention

A Cape Buffalo or Nyathi in Zulu.  Notice the calf to the left.  This was not a happy momma as evidenced by her head up and tail up.  We were not in a vehicle at this point, but near our boardings.

It had been very foggy on the morning of the 2nd game drive, but as the mist lifted, we were treated to the sight of about five elephants feeding on Acacia trees.  They often either shove the trees over or pull them up with their trunks.

A bull Blue Wildebeest.  Females have a brown patch on their foreheads, just between the horns.  They are very curious looking animals.  The Zulu say that Nkulukulu, or God, made them from left-over parts of all the other animals that He created.  The head of a wart hog, shoulders of a hyena, horns of a buffalo, etc.  Seems possible when you see them:-)

Some of the fog rising and providing for a beautiful false sunrise.

Early morning shot of a giraffe.  Getting a little artsy but I have other amazing photos of giraffe.  They are still always a treat to see with their stately bearing.

A lucky situation where a Black-backed Jackal actually stopped running and stood still for a photo.  These are the ecological equivalent to coyotes.  And, they act like them, usually going 50 mph away from humans.  But also like coyotes, they are a bit curious

After Nambiti on Saturday, we went to Dundee, only about and hour away and did some PEF work--yes we are still on a mission!  After Dundee, on Sunday we went to Newcastle for a PEF loan interview.  In Church, we met this young couple with boy and girl twins and just had to have our picture taken with them.  They were so proud of their children

Sister Gunderson with Nkosingiphile Thobeka Sithole from Newcastle, who is using PEF to become a nurse.  She is very sharp and did her online application by herself--one of the less than 5% who can do it.  Despite what the PEF leaders in Johannesburg and Salt Lake City say, it is not at all easy to do the application.  Added to that,cthe lack of experience and the limited availability of computers, and we face problems.  We always celebrate a student who figures it out.

On Monday we drove to Johannesburg for PEF meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Through the help of our GPS, we navigated the infamous traffic of Johannesburg and found the Area Office and the Johannesburg Temple.  Following the completion of the Durban Temple (site still not selected) Johannesburg will be closed two years for renovation.  It was constructed in 1985.  Beautiful and very nice landscaping.

A rose among all the other flowers at the temple.  It is winter so they were in the process of planting new flowers.  Not the prettiest time of year for the landscaping

The afternoon of the second day of meetings, the PEF couples and staff attended a session at the temple.  To the far left is Elder Soares, a counselor in the Area Presidency and a member of the First Quorum of Seventy.  Next to him is our boss Khumbulani Mdletshe who has responsibility for PEF and Seminary and Institute for all of southeast Africa, as far north as the Congo and Uganda.  It was a wonderful experience.  While waiting for our session, a group came out, all from Zimbabwe.  It was a very touching sight as we know how these people must sacrifice to get to the temple.  They are so sweet and humble and so thankful to be there.

On the way home on Thursday May 24th, we saw these rural women headed home, as it was getting toward evening.  We asked if we could take their picture and one thing is always sure about folks in South Africa, they like to be photographed,  especially if there are treats in the deal.  Here, the women do most of the hard physical labor, including getting firewood.  Probably the only way that they have to heat their rondevals.  Note the "bow-saws" that two ladies have slung over their shoulders.

A fourth lady saw that we were giving the other three treats and came hustling over to have her picture taken.  She was so happy to have made it. The orange on her face is either to protect her from the sun or it is a part of a traditional Zulu ritual.  We have heard both stories.  These women did not speak much English and we speak almost no Zulu, so we still need to get a definitive answer as to its purpose.  We see some that have white paint, as well as the orange. ???

 As the sun set on our 9-day road trip, we felt how blessed and fortunate we are to be here and experiencing so many wonderful things.  With less than 6 months left, we already realize that there is much we will miss.  We also realize that we have to make the most of the time we have left.

Until next posting.  Sala Kahle

Thanks for reading our blog.