South Africa 2016

This is the post that never ends, it goes on and on my friends........

 ..........because, there is so much to say about South Africa, and WAY too many pictures to share.

The last week and half of April, 3 of my sisters and I had the privilege of traveling to South Africa to visit my amazing parents. They have been serving their second mission for the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Their first mission was served in Botswana, which is the country just west of South Africa, and after just 5 short months at home in Santa Clara, UT, they felt the desire to return to Africa to serve another mission. This time their home is in Polokwane, South Africa - but, they were so kind to take us all the way to Botswana for a look-around, so that we could experience border control. It was great.

My sisters and I left husbands and children at home, for ease of travel (not because of the husbands, but the children). One of my sisters has 4x the kids that I do, we think my BIL is still alive.....maybe. It was such a great vacation for us, the girls, though. We all missed our families very much, which is a good thing to go through once in a while. I think we all came to be more appreciative of each other and our marriages. I will have to say, traveling with the sisters was quite lovely, I mean, we are all mature adults, right? Emily was so impressed (the entire time) that someone had to pee and eat the same amount of times as her.

The only killer was the 30 plus hours of traveling, each way. Three flights for Emily and I, Utah girls, three flights for Heidi, all the way from Arizona, only 2 for Hillary from San Fran and a collective 10 hour layover in London. Then, add the driving to and fro to the airports; and the lovely 5 hour ride in the van to our first destination upon landing in South Africa - Madikwe.

These were our happy faces, because it was our first flight. We didn't look THIS good on the way back........

Because you need an airport group-selfie.

First, eat traditional. When in London - what better than fish n chips?

 Our very first, well-deserved look at the ground in over 25 hours. South Africaaaaaaaa!

Once we cleaned up from our flight and said our "Hello's", we were off in a rental van. So, funny story - when we arrived, our mother was "patiently" waiting to greet us, however, our father was occupied by what seemed to be a lost Elder from Polynesia. How does that even happen? When he saw my parents' name tags, he thought they were his mission presidents, ready to pick him up, but when he found out that they were waiting for 4 beautiful girls instead of him, something had to be done. This poor guy! What a miracle, though! I mean, they send you out there with no adequate form of communication. Thank goodness my parents had a cellphone to call the right man from the mission field to come and get this poor Elder. (and, his story has a good ending - on the very last day of our trip, we ran into him at Johannesburg LDS Temple....he was with his group of missionaries, had NEW shoes and was happy as can be!). Small world!

Driving. 

I am no stranger to crazy and downright insane driving speeds and maneuvers. Welcome to Russia. Yep, they do this in South Africa too, except on the "wrong" side of the road, but, nonetheless, I felt right at home. The steering wheel on the opposite side of the car, and one lane made into three - sounds like a thrill. I thoroughly enjoyed my Daddy's driving. Speed limits in South Africa range from about 60km/ph to 120km/ph - in other words, drive however fast you want. You pass everyone on the right, even when there are cars coming at you from the opposite direction. You just shoot the gap, or hope they move over - we did some of both. Slow drivers drive on the left shoulder, pretty much no one believes in seat belts, and 2 year old babies stand alone in the back of the truck, holding onto the window, with the truck traveling 100km/ph. It's all good there!   

We also loved their road signs, most of which didn't actually help. The Garmin was having spasms every now and then, and doing it alone didn't work either, seeing how some places we went to, didn't have signs at all. 

However, I was surprised to see red dirt. What? Yes, red dirt - just like in Utah. Actually, not that I have pictures to prove it, but much of the sides of highways look just like Utah. There's brush, bushes, small trees, hills off in the distance. Here are some photos of what you would see driving around; in our case, we headed west from Jo Burg. 

Since most people don't have the means to own a car, you see a lot of them hitchhiking, or walking down the highways to the next big town. Many cross the highways on foot just by luck because there are no street lights situated next to the villages they live in. Many will sit on the curb next to a highway, some even had blankets and full on picnics on the side of the road. Some, sell strange things at stop lights, like a mostly full bag of apples, which is only strange, because it's been eaten out of. It's a way of life, and I loved seeing that.  

This is a video I made on our 5 hour drive to Madikwe, thankfully, condensed into just a few seconds.  Oh, how we've missed them!

On the road again.

Speaking of eating traditional foods. On the way to Madikwe, where do we stop? Good ole Mcds! Mostly, we were just excited to use the bathroom, and, this one came with toilet paper and locking doors! Man, oh man! Seriously, though - you MUST eat at Mcds in a foreign country, at least once in your life. It just tastes different, and by different, I mean, better. I think it's the beef. I used to looooooooove the smell of Mcds in Russia. When I was a little girl, a trip there was once a year, not once a week like my boys get. And, if you currently hate McDonalds, it's because you haven't tried it in another country. So, do. 

I also learned that in South Africa, only the prestigious places sell Diet Coke, everywhere else, you get Coke Zero, because if you order "Diet Coke" or add the phrase "and water" with your order, they will look at you like you're from another planet; or they might just erase your entire order (this happened to Hillary at KFC, ha ha ha). I am pretty sure, you can just blame it on our American accents, though.

Mosetlha Bush Camp & Eco Lodge, Madikwe Game Reserve, Madikwe, South Africa

As I've mentioned, our next destination was this stunningly beautiful game reserve in Madikwe, where we lodged at an eco bush camp. Little did we know, it would be much more beautiful and serene than we thought. It was THE perfect way to start off South Africa. My parents were so kind to treat us to this experience. It's where I took my first safari and maybe came all but 5 feet away to an elephant and a family of lions with cubs. It's also the place where I learned that you can't leave your can of Diet Coke in front of your mother because she will trade you for her empty one, and that Heidi is deathly afraid of snakes, none of which we saw, by the way.

Bumpity-Bump, we've arrived. 

Upon arriving, we were picked up in our own, private safari jeep, which came with a super cool driver, named Justice. If you can, request him - he is the bomb. If you want to get THE best photos of animals and have breathtaking moments while observing them, request him. He told us that he works 21 days straight, then takes 7 days off - what a schedule that is. However, when you are out on the safari with someone who lives and breathes South Africa and knows his lions by name, you can feel his spirit and the love he has for his world. 

Before I give you a photo tour of the camp, I want to mention the two men running it. I wish I knew their names, but, they were SUCH gentlemen. It was like a movie frame back in time. They stood up straight, greeting us and waving us on, each and every drive we took in and out, they provided everything we could possibly need, they kept up the washrooms, chatted with us at dinner, we even bonded over Trump and Hillary conversations......that's how cool they are! 

There were 6 other inhabitants at the camp, so we got to visit with people from other parts of the world. We met a couple of French ladies, a lady from Germany and a couple from Australia. It was so enriching to learn about people's lives and to share our experiences. 

The women who work at the camp cooked THE most delicious, traditional African dishes. I would slaughter the names of these dishes, so I will describe them, rather. One of my favorites was this pot of browned beef with a lightly cooked egg on top. We also had a corn dish called Pop, topped with African chutney, which is like a jam. My other favorites were the macaroni tuna salad and the pumpkin puree. I learned that "Peri-Peri" (sauce) means, only put in your mouth if you want your tongue severely burned. Thank goodness for non-refrigerated, extra creamy milk.

Everyday, we had meals prepared for us right on schedule, and got to share them on a large 12 person table, made from African wood. On our last night, the staff BBQ'd our parting meal - meat galore cooked on an outside charcoal grill. It was to die for; however, we are not sure if the "local" beef, were the same cows we saw passing by in our van......

Every dark, the men would light these beautiful lanterns and place them on walking paths, around the dinner table and our cabin-tents so we could find out way around the camp. We enjoyed sitting around the fire pit in the evening with cups of hot cocoa and being woken up before 6 am by the chirping of the birds, or the growl of a buffalo (heard ONLY, by Emily). 

What I think we all enjoyed the most, were the showers! Ah, they were so heavenly. It felt nothing short of taking a hot shower in the midst of a jungle with the sounds of all kinds of creatures around you, and the rays of sunshine peeking through the wooden dividers; except South Africa is a desert. However, there was a process to showering, much more complicated than turning the handle on the wall. You first, filled a bucket (or two) with cold water, then carried that over to this stove heated by fire, dumped your cold water in, while the hot water came out the other side, then you'd either carry your full bucket to the shower stalls or else add more cold water to adjust the temperature.  

Next, you carried your bucket into the shower stall, where a contraption hung from a rope. You untied the rope to lower the metal bucket down, poured your hot water in, hoisted the contraption up, then finally, you could turn the lever on and shower. The design of this whole thing was out of this world!

Restrooms in Africa are "toilets", so don't bother being the polite American and using the fancy "restroom" word. I mean, "toilets" I think, are a happy medium between restrooms and pissers, so there you have it. This camp got it right, though. I introduce you to VIP's - ventilated improved pits. That's what they were called, and we thought they were a hoot! They are, just that, improved porta-potties with a porcelain throne and a large pipe on the other side for ventilation. 

Our exhausted selves slept magnificently inside these cabin-tents. Although, I should probably speak for myself, remember Heidi - she's terrified of snakes. I did enjoy sleeping in nature, above ground, with the knowledge that out of 100+ animal species living on the reserve, the elephants could not trample us in the middle of the night due to an electrical wire placed at their height around the camp; but never mind about everything else lurking around in the dark...

 

Safaris.

First night, after we'd settled in and eaten our first African meal, we were ready for our first safari. Our first, my parents 3,456th, probably. However, there was one animal my parents hadn't seen thus far; and guess who'd found it - Justice! (remember, ask for him, he's the best)

There's a first time for everything, even for these two. How breathtaking are these cheetahs? The amazing thing is that this was our first drive out and it's like they'd granted my mother her wish. They were so poised and beautiful, moving like angels through the tall grasses of Africa.

That night we also saw our first lion in the wild. This guy had just dined on a baby zebra (pronounced ZE-bra, not Zee-bra). Heidi and I learned that you should never, under any circumstances, switch seats in the jeep when in front of a lion because it can make them agitated and try to jump inside. We were just trying to get a better picture with one. So, when we came all, but 5 feet close to slightly more active lions the next day, we thought it best to trust Justice on that one. 

We saw many herds of happy ZE-bras. I can't stop calling them that, now. Who knows, maybe they really ARE ZE-bras. Remember the red dirt and hills off in the distance? This zebra was walking through Utah, what did I tell ya? 

We saw rhinos, twice. We learned that there isn't just one type of rhino, but apparently two. There is the white rhino which is mild tempered, and the one you don't want to get close to, the black rhino, identifiable by his darker skin. The photos below are of the white rhinos. Strikingly beautiful and masculine, aren't they?

The feeling of being so close to these beautiful animals is one of stillness and serenity. They knew we were there, but continued to impress us just by doing what they naturally do, grazing. It was like that with all large animals on the reserve, the only sounds we heard was the wind, chirping of the birds and the clicking of our cameras. 

During the two days we spent at the eco camp, we had gone out in the jeep 4 times. Each safari provided us with beautiful views of the game reserve (which was about 600 hectors) and breathtaking closeness to the animals. It was tempting to just get out and pet them, and all together exhilarating to be a part of their space.

We saw many beasts with horns. I don't recall all their names exactly, but the big ones are wildebeests, the little ones with M's on their bums are impalas, which are commonly referred to as "McDonalds of Africa" because they have the m on their bums and are hunted by pretty much everything.... There were also gemsboks, steenboks, spingboks and kudus at this reserve, and many elands on another reserve, near Polokwane that we saw. We looked for a long time for some cape buffalo, which have been out and about many times for my parents, but never found any; although Emily swears she heard one growl outside of our cabin-tent.......

We came across a dung beetle, rolling a giant ball of poop across the road. My boys would have delighted in that, so I took a picture for them. We saw beautiful birds and a giant spider in his web. 

A group of baboons is called a congress. Does anyone else love the humor in that?

During each of the safaris, Justice was kind enough to answer all of our questions about the animals, and also brought treats for us to enjoy during the breaks. We explored some of the bushes and thorns around us as we snacked and chatted some more.

On our second day, we also saw adult lion brothers, chillin in the heat of the African sun. One of the brothers had a broken hip after being injured by another lion, which we saw later. These two posed very well for us.

Early mornings we spotted herds of elephants, moving along with their babies. They stayed off the main roads for the most part, stomping over the bushes in the distance. One morning, we ran into a lone ranger. He had broken his tusks, digging in the dirt, because apparently, elephants also eat soil - who knew. 

And, for your viewing pleasure, I have included another wonder of the world - a picture and a video of an elephant's penis, because we saw one up close. Seriously - there is no words to describe it adequately, but let's just say that we are all, very immature, even my mom, aka Sister Gubler. We all had a good laugh, even Heidi.....

On our way back to the camp, in the darkness of the African night, Justice spotted these baby hyenas and their moms hunting nearby. The little babies (and little-er babies at the petting place) that we saw are actually way cuter in person than in most photos or movies. These little guys were just waiting for their mommies to get back.

Last morning in Madikwe.    

Saved the best for last, we did! Our last safari was to be cut short because we had a long drive ahead of us. We'd been out, driving for a bit and hadn't really seen anything, until....a lioness ran right in front of us. Justice started following her and noticed her making a call. The rest of us, wouldn't have known the difference, but he knew that she was trying to locate her hidden cubs - the same ones my parents saw as newborns last November. Everyone at the camp had been trying to find them, since lions hide their cubs while they hunt and move frequently to avoid being preyed upon. This was our lucky morning, because what we saw next, took our breath away!

It's pretty amazing to find an entire family of lions, and even grandma joined them shortly after. We followed them for about half an hour to a watering hole, where they drank together, until a large elephant showed up. They are truly, so stunning. You can't help but to feel peace and awe, being so close to the king and queen of the jungle, and their "littles".

And here comes the majestic elephant. Bummer, the cubs had to leave with their parents, but fantastic for us to finish the morning by watching an elephant at the watering hole.

We learned something cool about the elephant, which may be common knowledge to some, but new to me. Before the elephant takes his first drink, he washes his trunk out by sucking in the water and then blowing it back out, because no one likes dirt in their drink! One fact that I already knew - elephants don't drink through their trunk, but transfer the water into their mouths. He was the last, beautiful thing we saw at the stunning Madikwe Game Reserve.

 
I think this about does it for all the animals we saw in Madikwe. I wish we would have got some photos of little Pumba's running around (warthogs, Lion King, ya know). Their wagging tails made them my favorite runners. We didn't get pictures because they would run away when they heard the jeep, but it was fun to see them from a distance. 

In this next group of photos, you will see just how much we were having and how much we all love each other, right girls? I couldn't even begin to describe how much this experience changed me. The world is so beautiful. The animals were surreal, but the time we spent as a family (or as many as were there, missing a few) on this stunning reserve was unforgettable; with the African sunrises and sunsets, the sounds of the chirping birds, the elephant footprints, the calls of the lions and the fresh air.

Mall Junkies.

Some of us are not. However, South Africa does have plenty of shopping for those who are. You can, and you will, find everything under the sun.When my father offered to buy ice cream cones, I was totally thrown back to our Arctic Circle middle school days, when Dad would take us out for 25 cent cones. Ah, those were the days! He is the cutest Papa around! 

Border Control.

You can't possibly have more fun than that. And, by "that" I mean this: first, you drive through a toll booth, where you pay a fee (or not, if you have a sticker), nothing surprising there, but then, you pull up to an old, run down, non AC'd building with bars on the windows, park and get out. You get in line, with passport in hand and wait your turn. The workers look you over, stamp your passport and send you on your way. Unless, you are two American missionaries. Then, your day goes like this: you get asked to come behind the glass because they want to know more about the address that you wrote down on your form. After you answer, they still have no idea where that's at, but they request you write down who owns the place, even though, you aren't staying there, just using an LDS church office building for reference (and who cares?), which takes about 20 minutes, plus the time you had to stand in line behind other people; the owner's name is not actually required on the form - they just love to have fun with American people! At the Botswana border control, I also got laughed at because my last name rhymes with "underwear" as told by my sister, Emily; totally not offensive to me, but I'm glad to have made the man's day! He was ballin'. Next, you might have a turn at the bathroom, where the doors probably don't lock and it's a "bring your own TP" policy. After getting all of our passports stamped, we drove to the other side, the Botswana side, where, guess what? You get to do the same thing all over again - just on the other side, different building, same idea. 

Once you are finally back in the car and on your way, you drive up to another gate and the attendant informs you that you should have gotten some little piece of paper back on the other side, because of course - no one could have possibly told you while you got your passport stamped (or in other words, it's not their job to give you a vital piece of paper.....). So, you turn around and go back into the building to get that little piece of paper, so you can get into Botswana.

Once you do that, you still have to get out of Botswana. Later in the day, we got to do this all over again, but this time in a different location along the border; and......guess who didn't give us that piece of paper that we needed to drive through.......again? Border control. I swear, they had fun messing with us! 

Can you tell, we were so excited.....

Botswana Stomping Grounds. 

As I've mentioned above, our parents took us on a day trip to see their old stomping grounds! They had lived in Botswana for a total of about 3 years and wanted to show us around their mission field. Despite border control and the loooooooooooooooong hours in the car, I thought the trip was totally worth it. They were so excited and couldn't stop talking about the area. They knew the area well, and seemed so proud to have lived there. We got to see their old apartment, the streets of Gaborone, dine on KFC (which was a marvelous experience, he he) and see their old mission offices.

The church offices, where Elder Gubler had spent the majority of his time.

Gaborone and its outskirts cover a large area. Driving by, we saw people walking along the highway and around the major streets. There were lots of school children dressed in uniforms and many adults just strolling along. We saw mostly lower income housing and almost every business gated. Although the city didn't seem as prosperous as some others we've seen, there were more than enough cars, businesses, shopping complexes and people to go round. It was a great day.

I absolutely love having their voices on video.

Driving in the dark.

Is one thing you don't do in Botswana, or in South Africa, especially if you're white. It's not like they discriminate when robbing people, but, the crime lords know that most whites are visitors with money, although South Africa does have a larger population of Caucasian residents. In Polokwane, where my parents currently reside, driving around in the dark is safe enough, but not recommended. However, Johannesburg is one place where you don't want to be out past 5 pm, not even in your car.

Another reason being, the highways are often crossed by villagers in the dark. There have been some homeless who've been known to sleep on the roads because the pavement is warm. There are no street lights and no fences to keep the cattle in, which leaves them roaming freely, and the worst part is that you can't see them far enough away to stop. You do the math, car flying at 100 mph and a large black cow crossing the street.....

Authentic Cuisine. 

I'm usually the first to jump at an opportunity to try something authentic, and what better place to do so than South Africa? Mommy cooked up some ostrich steaks, and everyone seemed to like them, besides me. I couldn't do it. I think I was expecting like a top sirloin or something, but just no.... the meat was very tough and the smell..........Oh, well. I am sure, many of you adventurous eaters would have loved them. An ostrich had to die. 

However, we visited a grocery store another day. The entire shopping complex didn't look much different than an American one would, but the stores do sell some pretty authentic treats. Due to high theft rates, most businesses, if not gated, employ a staff of outdoor workers who will watch your car while you shop and even help you back out of your parking stall, for a small tip. I guess, it's a win-win for everyone.

Gaborone to Polokwane.

We did make it home in one piece, though later than we'd hoped. After much needed showers and rest, we got our first look at my parents' humble abode. They live in a super cute little complex of townhouses, with lovely, manicured green spaces. They have a one car garage, 3 bedrooms/2 bathrooms, a nice kitchen, laundry room, a lovely back yard and a cute front patio with a built in grill. Not too shabby, if you ask me. 

Because you need a selfie, at a moment like this.

When at Church.

I wasn't really sure what to expect from the South African branch in Polokwane, but I was excited to find out. I am completely blown away at the sweet spirit of these people. They were beyond welcoming and friendly, and I can truly say, I've never had almost THE entire congregation come up to say hello. It was unreal, and so sweet. I was mostly impressed with the children and the teenagers. I mean, literally, the teenagers came to say hi. Talk about culture shock! 

But, don't worry - our happiness was short lived, because someone (hmm, Dad), volunteered us to bear our testimonies in front of these people. The good thing is that the church is still very new to this area, and many of the leaders are unsure of how to properly run meetings and such (which is my parents' job to teach them), so their meetings are kinda go with the flow, flexible, at the moment.

It was such a sweet and humbling experience, and I hope we all said something that moved them. Later, my mom did follow up with me on that, and it was very good to know that we had. However, I did get to sit in on part of a Relief Society lesson and these women are so brilliant and strong, and I loved being taught by them. 

During Sunday school, my sisters and I had helped the Primary president to work out a few kinks. She wasn't really aware of the fact that the Primary has a manual online, or that she needed to call a few more sisters so that the children could be separated by age groups and taught in individual classes. Mostly, we think, the branch thinks that Sunday school time is just babysitting and the children were allowed to run in and out of the building as many times as they pleased. So, my mom has been in charge of keeping the children corralled since then. 

However, Hillary and I did take a group of girls, ages 5-7, I think, and taught them a lesson, which my mom asked us to prepare ahead of time. Their spirits were so sweet, I just wanted to cry the entire time, but kept smiling with them. They were the most beautiful, smart and very eloquent little girls.

 Precious was the cutest girl, she just asked so kindly to take a photo with us.

The church building isn't like the ones we have in America, although it has a chapel, and comes complete with a separate learning space, aka double-wide. They do have a little kitchen, and a piano for the children. The yard is gated, and is quite beautiful. 

The funniest thing. One of the girls came up to me after the meetings and was like, "I love your hair", and then kept petting my head and stroking it. She then, came back like 5 times to do it over and over - it was so cute! Reminded me of the time when Elder Gubler got his arm hair pet by the kids in Botswana, because they just don't have hair like ours, and we don't have hair cool hair like them, so they were just into it and it was too cute.  

Jimmy. 

Since living in Polokwane, my parents have acquired a friend by the name of Jimmy. I guess, he was kind of passed down to them, or mentioned to them or something, but this kind of a thing is VERY typical of my Dad, and I loved nothing more than to see experience this and to be surrounded by my parents' kindness and example that they've set for us. 

Jimmy is a quadriplegic and has been for over 16 years due to a car accident in which he was not wearing a seat belt. He told us the story of how he got into that accident, among other things. Jimmy does have a family and many friends who love him, but unfortunately, live too far away from the nursing facility to be with him much. He has scrapbooks and albums filled with the people he loves and the many wonderful things he's gotten to do while in a wheelchair. 

We went to visit him that same Sunday afternoon, after church, and it brought back so many good memories of my Dad, when was taking care of his parents and a few ill members, in our home ward in Santa Clara. Jimmy shared his wonderful stories and photos with us, from which we could feel his love for life and his positive attitude. He is also an artist and wrote his own, very authentic, African cook book. Although recently, he is having a hard time getting into his wheelchair and is mostly confined to his bed, he remains one of the strongest and faithful members of the Church. Before we left, we sang "I'm a Child of God" and prayed with him. I will never forget that. 

I know there is a reason that my parents came across this man and us, girls, were fortunate enough to meet him in Africa. The love of our Heavenly Father never stops at just one people, but is very much real all around the Earth. 

This is one of my favorite things about my Dad. This whole kindness, selflessness and generosity thing comes so naturally to him. I swear, he is the best example, anyone could have for a father. He seeks out ways to uplift others and calls it "the right thing", he's always teaching us to do the "right thing". 

I know there have been times when my parents have felt down and frustrated about the work they've been doing, or that it wasn't progressing fast enough, or wasn't what they thought it would be at all. Although, we think they are doing an outstanding job, and are clearly loved by the people they serve, I also think that maybe Jimmy needed them to fly across the world, for him.

Kaross. 

We had set out early one morning for the gorgeously luscious town of Tzaneen. My mom informed us that we would get to stop at this beautiful little factory where the women of Kaross come to make tapestries and things of that sort. She has previously purchased a few herself and the thread work is unlike any you've ever seen, so beautiful and colorful. I didn't think I would be into it though, but after visiting the factory and meeting some of the women, I just had to purchase something beautiful for my home. 

The amazing thing about this little place, other than its beauty, is that it's the place where women from surrounding towns can come to make money for themselves and their families. Many of the women are single mothers, or just struggling, with no other family or spouses to take care of their needs. There is quite a process that happens before the beautiful thread work is finished, and some of the tapestries take around 7 weeks to make. The women get paid when the pieces are finished, and then they are sold in the cute little adjoining shop. 

When we met with some of these ladies, they wanted to show off their work, and were so delighted to have their photos taken with us. It's not everyday that they get to see who actually buys their work, so I am sure this was a big deal to them and they were so proud. When we were done shopping, a couple of the ladies come up and asked where they could find these photos that we took, so I gave them my blog address and also my sister's facebook page. However, we searched and found some of their work on their business facebook page.

You can check it out here:

https://www.facebook.com/Kaross.textiles/?fref=ts

You can also visit this website to read more about it. 

http://www.tzaneeninfo.co.za/site/item.php?id=18

One of the ladies thought my Dad was the most handsome man she'd ever seen, and after the picture was taken, ran away with the biggest smile on her face!

The process: After the fabric is measured, the men free hand the patterns and designs on pieces of fabric. The fabric is then picked up by the women and they are given colorful thread and supplies. All that goes into a plastic bin that is weighed and purchased for a small fee.

 

I believe the needle work is done at home, or else just on their own time outside of the little factory. When the front side is done, the women come back to sow the edges and the labels, to cut excess fabric, to iron and to finish their pieces, after which they get paid. At the little shop, you will see table runners, purses and handbags, large and small pillowcases, place mats, square pieces that you can frame, small coin purses and large tapestries which can also be framed.

This is what Elder Gubler does whenever the girls are shopping (which happens a lot, poor guy).

Kaross is definitely one of a kind. We had an amazing time, and we absolutely love the things we walked away with. These women are so talented.

On the drive to beautiful Tzaneen.

Once we left Kaross, we were headed to our next destination, Noah's Ark. Before writing about that, I wanted to share some photos I took on the drive because the beauty was unbelievable. 

Along the way we saw banana plantations. Apparently, on these palm trees, the bananas grow upwards. Though we didn't stop to purchase any fresh off the tree bananas, the ones we did purchase from the grocery store were delicious and unlike any you'd taste in the American markets.

Once we got close to our stop for the afternoon, we'd met up with my parents' friends, Bro and Sister Hall, who were also serving in South Africa. Together, we were headed to an orphanage, but first, we got a look at downtown Tzaneen (mostly due to the fact that the GPS was having spasms and sent us all around); and then it took about 30 minutes of driving back and forth along a dirt road to find the right turn into Noah's Ark because the sign was so hidden off the road, and we got some strange directions from the locals......

 We admired these little piggies who were driving off to be somebody's dinner. Pork chops, anyone?

Noah's Ark .

As per Heidi's request, we spent an afternoon at an orphanage, called Noah's Ark. Once we arrived, we were greeted by the sweetest woman in the whole world, Sylvie. She and her husband are the owners and the main caregivers at this facility. She gave us a tour and explained some of what was going on with the children. I believe, at the time she had about 35 (?) children total, ranging from 6m. to 18+ yrs, and the orphanage capacity was about 55 children. The reason they have some adults staying as well, is because they have no other family to live with, and have grown up at Noah's Ark - so that's the only family they know. 

You will see from the photos, this place is one of love and beauty. The views that they have are million dollar views, and although not everything is shiny and new on the inside, the older children do have a beautiful back yard and a gorgeous swimming pool to enjoy, while the babies have their own cute house. More importantly, they have people who love them. 

We had asked Sylvie what she wanted help with, and because the older kids were at school, she wanted us to play with the babies and the toddlers. My sisters and I were more than happy to hold those beautiful babies. I am not gonna speak for my sisters, but it was difficult to hold my emotions because their spirits were just so strong, and although we didn't do much for them at the time, I feel that meeting them was one of the best experiences for me.

First, we got a tour of the babies' place, and learned a little bit about their daily routine. When we met the babies, they just stared at us, for the longest time. Most were very blank stares, but they wouldn't take their eyes off of us. One thing we noticed and had talked about, was how the babies don't really show any emotions or make many sounds. The two beautiful ladies who work with the babies assured us, that in fact, the babies do cry, occasionally, and at the same time. 

The babies do share their house with the toddlers, who were away on a walk at the time, but came to meet us as well. I took a photo of this schedule because I was curious as to how they keep up with so many little people. As you will see from the photos, these guys are so well taken care of, despite their trials, and they are very much loved.

At first, we played with the babies around the yard and in their sand box. We got to meet their day caregivers and learn more about what they do. These two ladies are beautiful in every way. I met my little guy, named Camillo (I'm making up the spelling), and held onto him for the majority of the time.

When the toddlers came in the yard, they immediately went to play in the sand box, and eventually warmed up to us being silly. They really loved our cameras and seeing pictures of themselves. One of the little boys in red, belongs to the woman in the pink shirt, whose help was much desired by Sylvie and her husband. After having her baby, she was able to come back to work and bring her son along to play with the other children, what a blessing for him.

We stayed until it was lunch time. It was actually very interesting to see what and how they feed the babies. One of the most impressive things we saw, and commented on, was how the toddlers keep their bibs on and actually eat their food; not to mention the portions! It's very unlike our babies in the states, and it was very cool to see. The babies are fed a vegetable puree, followed by formula. They did this really cute song before eating, some form of a thankful prayer, it was adorable.

We had the most magical time. It seems unreal that people like Sylvie and her husband even exist. They have to be the most generous and loving people to do what they do. We were so blessed to spend time with these beautiful children of God and I know they could use our prayers.

Lunch at Spur.

My parents were beyond excited to take us to this beautiful, glorified Applebees, type of place, called, the Spur Restaurant. It's decorated in a Native American/cowboys theme and serves pretty much everything under the sun. We'd met up with more of my parents' acquaintances and had the most fun lunch! One of the things that's done differently in South Africa, is that you don't really get your own personal refills on drinks, rather, you share one large pitcher of water. In this case, it was a bucket with a cup.

The restaurant was running a special that day, so the 4 of us girls, each ordered a different burger and shared. We got the plain burger, chicken sandwich, pineapple mushroom burger, and grilled banana bacon burger. I think our favorites were the pineapple/cream of mushroom and the grilled banana bacon. We all have high aspirations of cooking these for our families at home.

 Thank You, papa Gubler!

Petting the Kitties. 

Out of all of my grand ideas, this one was probably the most daring and hard to top. I mean, who wouldn't want to play in a cage with 6 hungry lions? By the pictures, you would never know we were mildly terrified of the teenage lions. However, the adult ones seemed very calm and content, like the ones we saw in the wild. Of course, the little kitties were the favorite! They were about 1.5m. old, and although perfectly pet-able, did have very thick and sharp claws, that we managed to escape.

Don't worry, they start you out with Savannah-type cats, the ones you could domesticate, if you're not afraid of loud hisses and screeches in the middle of the night, that is. I guess all the signs do show a missing finger, but they seemed pretty sleepy and mild for us.

While waiting for the lion keeper, we saw other animals and even made friends with a baby monkey. He was the cutest thing ever, and just wanted to hold our fingers. And, did you know that baby hyenas could be so weirdly adorable?

We didn't pet the Bengal tigers, because they would have eaten us, but they were sure fun to watch and listen to.

Cubs are THE cutest things on Earth, I am sure, besides my human babies, of course.... Speaking of which, are we cuddling babies here, or lion cubs, cause it's kinda questionable.....?

After the cubs, the workers at the park thought we were ready for the teenage lions. We got VERY minimal instructions on what to do once in the cage, and it wasn't even from the lion tamer dude......it was from a girl who went in there while they were sleeping. We were like, "ah, did he forget to tell us something?". Well, as you can see - we lived; and HAD SO MUCH FUN!!!!

As we all discovered in real life, you cannot back down to a lion. I think my mom probably had the closest encounter with one. While it was hilarious, she probably didn't think so at the time. You do not get down on their level, you never turn your back to them, and you don't wear loose clothing.... Mostly, they will think you want to play, but their "play" is more like jumping and biting.

This one thought Hillary would be a fun toy.

And, the lion tamer dude kinda forgot to tell us that they were hungry, until we were almost done petting them. Really? And, you put us in the cage with them?

I think Heidi had the most swell time, outside the cage.

One of the lions totally startled my mom! While she was bending down to pet one, another one came up and smelled her face and she didn't see it - so it gave her a pretty good scare, right in the face! But, that's still not the "encounter" mentioned above.....

This is a video, mostly of Hillary getting mauled by a lion, but you can hear my mom in the background yelling, "No!" at a lion. Apparently, it nibbled on her knee because it wanted to play with her skirt; and of course, us, laughing at her. I gotta say, the woman definitely has practice raising children with that forceful "no!". We thought mommy was the greatest!

After the teen lions, it was time for the adults. We weren't really sure what to expect from them, because they were being mysteriously quiet. However, they were definitely the most calm and relaxed. They sure are, pretty kitties.

So what was it like, in the cage with lions? Actually, just amazing. I'll speak for myself, again. I think I was more nervous prior to entering the cages, but once inside, it was pretty magnificent and "in the moment" sort of a feeling, if you know what I mean. I loved it!

I want to tell my parents a huge "thank you" because they truly made one of my dreams come true. I know my mom worked hard to find this place just for me, and although we all had a great time, I want her to know that holding a lion cub and being surrounded by older lions was pure magic, and I am so glad we got to share that together.

When in Polokwane.

On Tuesday, we got to visit the mall in Polokwane and delight our hearts in whatever stuff we wanted to buy. The mall was almost exactly like what you'd see in the states, large stores with food kiosks on the side. While Emily's intentions of getting some game jerky for her husband were pure, she got it taken away at customs because it wasn't sealed/packaged and labeled, so don't do that. But, it's the thought that counts, right? The highlight of the day was when it took us 3 tries to go one floor down and actually get out of the elevator.

Dad making friends with a 92 year old couple, who are just hanging out for the day! We all said "hi" to them, and I thought "what a life!". They were the cutest.

Polokwane Game Reserve.

Just a few minutes outside my parents' home is another wonderful game reserve, which happened to have a lot of wildebeests and impalas. I think, we saw a few of the "bocks" as well, also maybe, an eland, nyalas, and lots of elegant ostriches. Because it's a driving reserve, we kind of had to look through the windows, but it was cool to once again be in the same space with these beasts.

After three days in Polokwane, it was time to make our way down south again, to catch our plane home in a couple days' time. Before heading out, we attempted a family selfie. Cute, no?

On our way down, we drove through a village to see how people lived there, versus in more prosperous areas. These are some photos from Seshahao village.

Pretoria, South Africa.

Mother wanted for us to experience bartering at a market, but instead, it was more of a swarming by a thousand black ravens feeling. If you've been flea market shopping in Mexico, you know what I mean. Now, intensify that by a 100x. I've never felt so wanted, in my entire life. Guess who had more fun, messing with who, though?

Chameleon Village

It felt like we'd spent an eternity at this place. It was pretty fun and colorful, minus the pulling every which way. I did score some nice sandals for my man, although, the prices weren't that great, for it being a flea market. And, this is the one place where they will personally carry a giant wooden hippopotamus out to your car just because you looked at it, and try every which way to sell it to you in the parking lot.

I can't say that I didn't have fun, though. It was a blast and definitely a place to visit at least once in your lifetime!

We did survive the shopping that day, good news! Next, we were headed for Pretoria to have lunch with my parents' mission presidents and another office couple, and to see the Church's office establishment. We stopped at this yummy place called Square Time.

I wanted to try an African appetizer, so I ordered something called Houlimi. Turns out, it's frozen goat milk that's been fried, served with a great chili dipping sauce. I love it when I pick something great off the menu, although, I haven't ever really disappointed myself in that arena.

It was also Hillary's birthday that day! What a cool freaken birthday to have..... in Africa! Happy Birthday, Hill. You are over the hill. ha ha Get it? Well, you got a few years, I guess.

First night in Jo-Burg.

Well, what to say about that? It was definitely an experience! As I've mentioned above, Johannesburg is a city where you do not want to be caught out after dark, especially if you're white. Sorry, white people..... Because of the long drive, we'd arrived in Jo-burg close to dusk, and because we all have to eat a million times a day (ok, just me), had to drive around to find some fast food. Nervously, we came across a KFC, which came standard with bars on all of the windows.

Yet still, our hotel was better! My parents found some reviews on this hotel close to the airport, so they booked couple of rooms for two nights. Us, girls only spent one night before being dropped off at the airport the next day, while my parents stayed another night so that they wouldn't have to make the long drive back to Polokwane in the dark.

Once we were let in the gate, the outside didn't look too bad, it was actually kind of cute.

The inside? Well.....that was something out of a movie. Seriously, the creepiest little place, ever! Everything was barren, white, tiled and empty. Not to mention the darkness and the creepy, teeny-tiny little lights, holes in the bathrooms and creepy little brown windows. It was so quiet, too. We were all, genuinely weirded out, but because I'm a bit of an adventurous traveler, I totally delight in those kinds of things! My sisters say the beds were horrible, but I loved my sleep that night, that's what counts! Of course, I had to take some photos.

And, finally, there were 6! One thing my Dad had been waiting for was finally in the cards. We played six-handed rook, the all time favorite game of this family.

However creepy this hotel was, the staff did cook us a very delicious breakfast consisting of eggs, sausage, drinks and fruit the next morning. I wouldn't mind staying again.....

To start off our last day in South Africa, we visited an excellent souvenir shop called Cambanos. It's a family operated business, located on beautiful grounds and complete with a cute little cafe. Their prices are actually very excellent, and they have so much to choose from. I love the fact that they even took their last animal poster off the wall, just for me. Another thing we really loved is the fact that they give LDS members discounts because they like the goodness that the missionaries bring to this rather (crime ridden) area. While shopping for my family, I overhead Emily talking with one of the workers about our church and he seemed really interested to find out some corrections to his previous thinking about the LDS members. Emily was excellent and it was so sweet to see her bearing her testimony in public.

After shopping, we visited the LDS Temple in Johannesburg. It's really too bad that we didn't get to participate in the ordinances because of the timing, but walking the grounds with my family was amazing.

The temple grounds are so luscious with greenery and the temple was just breathtaking.

After visiting the beautiful Johannesburg Temple, we were on our way to our last South African lunch. (oh, no!) We went to this delicious restaurant called Mike's Kitchen, which was situated on beautiful grounds and served equally amazing food. We had African poppers and spicy duck egg rolls to start with, delicious salads (African produce is soooooo good), our individual meals, and Hillary finally got her birthday dessert, with an African serenade!

I can't believe, we are at the end of this blog, almost. And more so, I can't believe we traveled to this beautiful country. It has something for everyone! I know, I will take my boys back there someday because it was unbelievable, and they would be thrilled to see those majestic animals in their natural habitats.

Thank you to my sissy, Hillary, for inviting us in the first place. I'm mostly grateful to our Heavenly Father for our safety, and the spirit that we felt; and for blessing us with an amazing family, and righteous parents who could give us this beautiful experience. We are all, so excited for Elder and Sister Gubler to return back to the states and spend all their time with us. We can't wait to see Elder Gubler working at Harmons, just down the street from their Santa Clara home. (ba ha ha ha ha ha) That's what we decided for him to do.


Thank you to all of our amazing husbands, who work so hard so that we could have a magical time. Especially, thank you to my husband, because he's my favorite of the bunch. ha ha. Tony, you are absolutely my best friend and my light. I love you to the moon and back, or wherever the galaxy ends.
Not that I had to leave a "honey-do" list for you, but I did, and you did everything on it, and more. You took great care of our boys, and were the cutest Dad on Kohen's school field trip. I know the boys loved having their Dad home and spending "boy" time together. I loved talking to you from across the world, and you really did make me miss you, as you do everyday.


  

Thank you, South Africa for the amazing time, and the hospitality, and to everyone we met. It was love at first sight!