Africa... is actually pretty cold!

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Lion Walk

Hi Everybody!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

God it feels like ages since I've left home and it's only been 3 weeks! So ya, Africa is pretty cold, do you believe it?! I dont know what i was thinking, but obviously South Africa is a coastal country filled with foothills, gassland, and woodland NOT desert and savannah. So, some days are really very cold. Today however, is nice and hot :o) Mostly it's the difference between day and night (Shona has a thermometer and we measured the noon hour temp to be 52 degrees Celsious the other day.... and then 15 degrees at night)

So we're back in PE to use the internet and grab some supplies (ran out of shampoo a couple days ago...) but i've only got about half an hour before this place closes so unfortunately this will be a short entry. Next week i should be able to post more. Oh and in case you didnt notice i added more pictures to the old postings.

Ok, so a brief overview of a LOT of stuff that's happened in the last couple weeks...

- it turns out that the owners of Kwantu are indeed loaded, and actually OWN most of the Eastern Cape province!

- Shona and I are staying in an old farmhouse (huge for just the two of us, really) in a little town enclosed within the reserve. We walked down one night to use the payphone and were told the next day that the animals, INCLUDING THE LEOPARDS that are out in the reserve, are able to roam the village at night!! So, no more night walks :o) The leopards are the only seriously dangerous animal out in the reserves, aside from the snakes.

- speaking of snakes!!! Well. I almost stepped on a Puff Adder. And yes, it was HUGE. And apparently it's deadly! APPARENTLY it can strike you 15 times in ONE SECOND. That was not the kind of thing i needed to hear after almost stepping on it. A very scary experience.... i'm definitely freaked out about snakes now. Shona got a pic of it, i'll have to get it from her. But for the record, it was about as big as a python. NOT COOL!

- the guys we work with are pretty cool... we're still having problems with language though, alot of them dont speak english very well. Not to mention that we're a bit of a spectacle being the only white people AND the only girls on the reserve. But it's cool! They're all being super nice to us.

- I stuck my hand in an elephants mouth! I was feeding it :o) Elephants are so cool....

- the sun rises at 4:30am. No joke! Isn't that strange?? I mean, i understand that i'm in the southern hemisphere (and NO i haven't noticed that the water swirls in the other direction!!) but seriously, it's a little disorienting to wake up to sunlight before 5 in the morning.

- no sign of the hippos or wild elephants out in the reserve! I think they heard we were coming and are hiding out....

- there's a lemon tree in our backyard, and i made lemonade the other day :o)

- saw a Blesbok (antelope) shot, and skinned, and feed to lions the other day! Note that i did not say that we cut it up...... no, we basically backed the truck up into the lion reserve and they pulled it off the bed. Nice, eh? :o)

- saw a Cape Cobra the other day..... i hid behind the truck, Cleytus ("our guy" who we spend most of our day with) threw a rock at it to see if it would rear up! I was pretty grateful that it didnt.

- you know the drink, cream soda? Ya, it's green here. GREEN.

Okay this is about all i have time for right now!

There's a Christmas Beach Party in Capetown for all the volunteers on the weekend of December 14th - cant wait!!!!

Okay, now i'm off to load some of those pics! And possibly a few videos......

Janine

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Photos

Bee Bee
The pet Springbok! He likes to poke us with his horns though... Shona and I both have a lot of bruises on our shins!

Leopard Tortoise
According to Cleytus, if you turn these guys over they release their entire water storage (as a defense strategy) and will dehydrate unless they get to water quickly.

Kwantu Lodge
The view from the 5 star lodge on the reserve

Kwantu Lodge
Inside the lodge

On the Lion Walk!
Shona, petting Simba

Feeding Marula
Marula is my favourite of the tame elephants, she's about 9 years old

Millipede in our bedroom
We see him a lot, i named him Milli Vanilli :oD

Wild Cucumber flower
Craziest flower i've ever seen... Scott, I thought you'd appreciate all those sepals and pestils and whatnot :o)

Comments

[Janis Cumin]

Cold Weather
Hi Jannie, You are right that the weather gets cold in South Africa. When I was there from April to June we had some very cold mornings and nights. One morning in June we had a heavy frost and the temperature was below zero! 15 degrees would seem warm to you if it weren't for the drastic temperature change! Have fun! Be careful not to burn!

[brock & braeden (&janice &dale)]

Hey Janine. Sounds and looks great there! The kids and I are loving reading and seeing all about the reserve!! (it's probably the closest i'll ever get to South Africa) Looking forward to your next update. I think Brock is keeping his entire class updated on your trip as well :) ! Take care.

[Alana]

Lovely flower
Hey Janine! They call it a wild cucumber flower? b/c we call those Passion Flowers. I've been growing two plants (that have never flowered) from seed, for about 10 years. They are such great plants and the fruit is pretty good if you can get it at the right time.