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Published: June 18th 2013
Hello, All,
It has been awhile, but a busy while! I never actually finished our trip, but I have something more recent first.
This past Saturday I went to Rundu by myself! I had called the kombi driver and arranged to be picked up at 6:00 a.m. Had breakfast and a coffee milkshake in my favorite little cafe, bought some flannel pajamas and went to Edumeds (the teacher store), where I found a copy of
Cry, the Beloved Country. No one here seems to know it, and I think they should.
Anyway, our LRC (Learners Representative Council, much like our student council) had been taken to a leadership workshop on Friday and were coming home Saturday. Before they left, I arranged with the driver to catch a ride home with them. In Rundu things close on Saturdays about 1:00 or 2:00 except grocery stores. So I saved my grocery shopping for after 2:00. There I was, rearranging my groceries into my backpack, when who should walk up but a couple of my students--LRCs. So I had no trouble meeting up with them. But the nice part was that as we were driving home, the sun was setting and I was sitting there in the front seat (because I am so elderly) with about 10 students in the back of the van, and I just all of a sudden felt really peaceful and like I just belonged there. It is hard to explain, but for about five minutes this lovely feeling lasted. I have been thinking about it, and I think that what was happening was that for that few minutes, I was entirely in the present. No past, no future, just there. And I am still thinking about it and remembering it. Some of you may have no trouble living in the present, but over the years I have been called (by my dad, the Jungian) introverted intuitive, spacy (spacey?) or a space cadet, and more recently ADD. So it was a really wonderful five minutes which I hope will happen again and more often.
Now, for the rest of our trip. Nicki and I got safely to Etosha before dark, and stayed in a nice hut at the lodge inside the park gates. Dinner was buffet, and wild game meat among other things. I feel like I should try things, so I think I had kudu and oryx. They were delicious. (Apologies to vegetarians!) The next day we set out early across the park eastward to the other gate. We saw tons and tons of animals. I'll try to add more pictures. Sadly, no lions. But wow! So many types of antelope, zillions of giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, elephants, birds, I can't remember what else. We barely made it to the next lodge by dark, when they lock the gates. Another good dinner and hut. The first lodge had a great waterhole where we sat for awhile and saw elephants and giraffes. At the second one, I got a good picture of a mom and baby anteater. From Etosha we just booked it home, and got here a little after dark. No problems, though.
Nicki stayed here for the week, watching lots of West Wing while I was teaching, doing her laundry, and getting up every morning for sunrise. Then that Friday right after school, we left for Katima Mulilo in Caprivi, where we stayed the night, then on to Livingstone (in Zambia) and Victoria Falls. I put up some pictures, but they don't begin to capture it. I can't think of a word to describe them. We stayed in a lovely lodge in Livingstone, with a beautiful garden. We couldn't take our rental car in to Zambia, so we parked it at the cabins in Katima, took a taxi to the border, and another on the other side all the way to Livingstone.
We lucked out, although it didn't seem like it at first. Our taxi driver, a young guy, had a sort of beat up taxi. He kept wanting to go here and there to do things before we got going and one of those was to trade cars with a friend. But once we got going it was fine. He knew where every pothole in the road was, and there were many, many. It was a terrible road, but we flew. When we got to Livingstone, he said he had a relative there and would stay over and take us back again, which turned out to be really nice, because I wasn't quite sure how to find a taxi back.
While at the park we decided to go to this very fancy hotel right on the river. The guard at the park told us they wouldn't let us in if we showed up at the gate, so we should go to this other place called the Parks and get on their shuttle to the other hotel. So we did. At the hotel we went down on the patio right over the river where we could see it go over the falls and all the spray coming up. I believe I had two beers, so we were there for a while. Then we got them to call us a taxi which we took back to our little hotel. I think my camera had died at that point, so I only had my iphone. I have it on hiatus, but the camera still works. As soon as I figure out how to put the pics on my computer, I'll upload some.
Now we are mostly slaving away. So much paperwork, it is nuts. We got, finally, a new head of department (they call it h.o.d.) Happily, she is very nice and I think a good teacher and a reasonable person. I went around to classes with her her first week. Now Lucia and I just have two grade 11s, but 8 classes for each in a week, because three out of five days we have double classes. I think I am ready to retire again for a while. I am loving the travelling, though. I really miss Nicki and adventures every day. I'm going to stop in NYC on the way home and have some adventures there, I hope.
I will stop for now. I want to thank you all for all your comments and messages on the blog. I love getting them.
I made a big pot of altered minestrone soup Sunday which should last me all week. The thing I love most about winter is soup (even if winter is a bit of an exaggeration.) My flannel pjs are making such a difference in my life, it is sort of bizarre. More later.
Love, Wendy
P.S. I forgot, I haven't put any more pictures on my computer yet, so they will come later.
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Nicki
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Happy Birthday, Lucia.
I think Lucia is the teacher with whom you teach 11th? Please give her my best wishes for the coming year. I hope she has a healthy baby, on time.