Happy Holidays

Good day people

How is everybody doing?

Firstly, congratulations to Zozibini Tunzi for being crowned Miss Universe 2019 and to our Women Ice Hockey team for being crowned World Champions. Good luck to our new Protea cricket coach Mark Boucher.

I’m so happy for all the rain we received across the country. I’m sorry for all the people who went down to the coast this past week and the closest they came to the beach was when they ate their supper at Ocean Basket, because they couldn’t braai!

It was an awesome week for me. Last Sunday I went to the Royal National Park in the Northern Drakensberg. With my wheelchair I explored a hiking trail called the Cascades Boardwalk. The whole trail was made from concrete.

I drove over bridges and water streams, through forests and past cliffs that still have San drawings on.  I saw some interesting plants and trees. I heard a rumor that there are leopards in the vicinity and I prayed I wouldn’t meet one face to face.

The Berg was really beautiful. In my opinion, the Drakensberg has more beauty and character than the Alps or the Rocky Mountains. At the end of the trail was a big water pool to swim in.

If you told me year ago I would be there, I would have said Eskom has a bigger chance of implementing Stage 6 loadshedding!

Afterwards I went to have lunch at Tower of Pizza. It’s perfect for a Boxing Day lunching destination.

The next day I went to the Kruger National Park. It has been raining there a lot. I thought it would go on for forty days and forty nights, but luckily it stopped on the third day. Thank goodness I stayed in a bungalow and didn’t camp otherwise I would’ve been flushed away like an itsy-bitsy spider.

The veld was green from all the good rain. It was difficult to spot the animals but I did all right. Yours truly spotted more than 30 lions in four days. I saw a lot of things I wouldn’t see when I visit the park in the winter for example, the grey tree frog lays its eggs in a whitish clump of foam they call a ‘nest’ that hangs in a tree.

I explored a few rest camps and picnic sites with my new wheels. Something I have never been able to do. Life is good!

Christmas is near so if you are in the Durban area check out the Shongweni Christmas Market. Stall owners have some unique products on offer. Look online for the dates. I was there last year. I had a blast.

Thank you for reading my last column of 2019! It has been great writing to you. I can’t wait for next year and all it may bring. I want to wish everyone a merry Christmas and a happy new year.  Jabulela Ukhisimusi. Geseёnde Kersfees. Feliz Navidad.