Everything/Anything and…Chess…"Despite the documented evidence by chess historian HJR Murray, I've always thought that chess was invented by a goddess"–George Koltanowski: from the foreword to:"Women in chess, players of the Modern Age"
So, this is where David Cameron and his wife were all the time when we were there too! Now we can say: been there! [done it] Yes, Truro is the place where David Cameron’s baby girl was born a few days ago. We visited Truro too, which is a city, but only for a few hours as we visited other surrounding places too. We visited the Cathedral and from the one photo – of course – you can see we visited The Eden Project too, which is near Truro. Before we exited the Tropical Biome, we had a taste of the Baobab tree in the form of the Baobab Smoothie! It was soooo delicious and I can definitely recommend it. Once I’ve sorted the photos [hopefully not too far in the future], I will post some more. For now, I wish I had some more Baobab smoothies!
This image: the cable car…Cape Town…Table Mountain…Lion’s Head…is the head you can see
Images: south-africa-tours-and-travel.com
On this image you can see the beach …near George…Wildernis-area.
On the chess site I was asked by a Capetonian….”What do you miss about South Africa?” and I replied to him this afternoon…EVERYTHING! … enjoy this beautiful nature video about South Africa…fantastic song too..Afrikaans lyrics of the song…maybe I should try and translate this song ……it’s one of those beautiful Afrikaans songs…with a bit of a mix with Zulu/Xhosa…
Halala Afrika
Toe die wêreld hier nog jong was en die horison wyd en oop
Was dit groen hier in die halfrond, suid van die ewenaar
En in die skemer as die son sak en die beeste huis toe loop
Klink die roepstem van die vroue oor die heuwels van die land:
Halala, ewig is ons Afrika.
Tula tula mtanami, tula tula sanaboni, tula tula mtanami,
Ubab uzobuya sihlale naye, ubab uzobuya sihlale sonke, Hmmm-Hmmm
Toe kom die skepe uit die weste, wit seile oor die see
Om te vra vir koos en water en te bly vir so veel meer.
En die land wat een tyd oop was, die land het ons verruil
Vir die ghetto’s van die stede is ons koperdraad gegee.
Halala, ewig is ons Afrika
Halala, sasiphila, kamnandi, halala, mayibuye Afrika
Tula tula mtanami, tula tula sanaboni, tula tula mtanami,
Ubab uzobuya sihlale naye, ubab uzobuya sihlale sonke, Hmmm-Hmmm
Daar was rykdom in die maag van ons moeder Afrika
Diamante en ook steenkool, goud, edel metaal
En die mense word die slawe hier want die mense word betaal
Om te tonnel in die aarde elke greintjie uit te haal
En die groot en oop grasvlaktes span dit toe met doringdraad
En van die olifant tot die gemsbok al die diere moes kom buig
Voor die mag van die grootwildjagter voor die mag van sy groot geweer
Totdat net die stilte oorbly, totdat net die stilte heers.
Halala, ewig is ons Afrika.
Halala, sasiphila, kamnandi, halala, mayibuye Afrika
Sasidjapolutjoloythina
Halala, sasiphila, kamnandi, halala, mayibuye Afrika Source: southafrica.com/forums/language/5041-zulu-translation-request.html
I hope you enjoy this “movie” about South Africa. The images are from the Eastern part of the country… the Mpumalanga province, previously called the Easern Transvaal. It was August…end of winter…and not holiday for South Africans, so we were lucky…. places were not crowded…. You will see mostly images about the third largest/deepest canyon in the world…the Blyde River Canyon. As it was the end of winter, the area wasn’t as green as it used to be during summer! The Grand Canyon is the largest, then the Fish River Canyon in Namibia… This canyon is the greenest canyon in the world. You will also see the potholes at Bourkes Luck. Then, in this canyon, there is a waterfall, called a Tufa waterfall. On one of the images I tell you in short what a tufa waterfall is… where other waterfalls wear away the soil…this kind of waterfall does the opposite! This tufal waterfall is called the “weeping tufa”, as it looks like a face with an eye…and the water flows from the “eye”…A Tufa waterfall is a waterfall where the calcium rich water builds the rock face over which it is flowing as the calcium and mud hardens in beautiful forms, that’s why it’s a “growing” waterfall. This link HERE has got a brilliant picture of the Tufa waterfall – the one you can see in my post too – in this canyon and awesome pictures and many links to places/resorts in that area. Here you can see the “face” of this waterfall…brilliant! The link will open in a new window.
You will see a cave, which can only be seen on the boat trip. You will also see some images from the Sudwala caves. You can put “Swadini” in my search box to find those fantastic links and to see more pictures of that area. I focused on this movie mostly on nature images …do enjoy! On THIS LINKyou can see more pictures and links to sites to book a holiday! and on THIS LINK you can see pictures of Pilgrims Rest area and maps/info if you want to tour that are…really beautiful to visit!
If you have enjoyed this movie…Links will open in a new window. ClickHEREto see another movie about South Africa which I posted a few days ago.
Somewhere my love…by the
Ray Coniff singers.
Somewhere, my love,
There will be songs to sing
Although the snow
Covers the hope of spring.
Somewhere a hill
Blossoms in green and gold
And there are dreams
All that your heart can hold.
Someday we’ll meet again, my love.
Someday whenever the spring breaks through.
You’ll come to me
Out of the long ago,
Warm as the wind,
Soft as the kiss of snow.
Till then, my sweet,
Think of me now and then.
God, speed my love
‘Til you are mine again.
I came across this song about the Hartbeespoortdam on youtube… I don’t know the artist… but it’s a funny song… if you listen to the artist, you will hear a very distinct “accent” which is very typical of some Capetonians… he sings a mix of Afrikaans and English and it’s an accent which you get in Cape Town from the Cape Coloureds ( a mixed race)….. it’s beautiful. The Hartbeespoortdam is near Pretoria and if you travel from Johannesburg…(also Jo’burg/Johies/Jozi)… it’s about 30 min travel… When I was a student, we used to go for a day to this dam to try catch some fish… not that we were lucky though…it was more for the fun of it… Once a friend also scared me with all kinds of tricks in his helicopter! We flew over the dam and he perhaps tried to impress me with all his tricks, but I felt sick most of the time and sat with a paper back on my lap! LOL! There is a little zoo at the dam which you can visit. If you want to do some hang gliding….then this place is just the place to do it, you have to go up the mountain with the cable car! If you watch the video, you will see some great pictures of the tunnel and the road across the dam…. be prepared for weekends…this place is PACKED!! with visitors and travelling through the tunnel can be a nightmare…don’t say I didn’t warn you…there are all kinds of curious shops to visit too….places to have some scones and tea!! Yummy!
Play golf!
Click HEREto book your holiday at Hartbeespoortdam or surrounding areas…The link will open in a new window.
I’ve posted before about before about Pilgrims Rest and don’t want to bore you again with the history of the town. In short – for those “lazy” readers… – oh yes, HERE is a link! – this is a historical town in the Eastern part of the country… Mpumalanga. Mpumalanga means… place where the sun rises..so, it’s the East! Previously, it was called Eastern Transvaal and you were lucky (like me!) if you grew up in this part of the country as it is one of the most beautiful places in the country. This historical town – Pilgrims Rest – was founded during the Gold Rush in South Africa and the town is now a tourist attraction and really a “must go” when you go to South Africa. I’ve got some fantastic pictures that will get posted tomorrow about views of the town and more about museums in the town and from the displays in the musems and also from the Hotel itself. So…keep watching this space!
The Royal Hotel was THE place to be – I guess for those miners after a hard day’s work! If you walk into the Royal Hotel, you can “hear” them talking “gold”! The atmosphere is really a relaxing atmosphere. The main road doesn’t go through the town anymore like before and that makes wondering/lingering through the town quite safe and less stressful!
These two pictures are some old posters and it grabbed my attention immediately!
I got permission from this art shop to take some pics inside and they sell the most wonderful art/pottery! Just have a look at all the designs, rich in colour and rich in Africa! I love these designs!
These menus can’t be ignored! You have to sit down and have something to eat, my favourite of course…scones and jam+cream! and those Koeksisters!! how can you resist it!
On these pics you can see evidence of the mining that was going on. There’s museums in the town that is very informative about the area and the “Gold Rush”.Read HERE MORE about the Gold Rush in Pilgrims Rest.
Click ON THIS LINK to see more beautiful pictures of Pilgrim’s Rest and take a tour through the eastern part of the country!
This is for Meghna…and anyone planning to visit South Africa…DO NOT MISS the Outeniqua Choo Choo!!
Click HERE to read more about the Outeniqua Choo Choo. You can follow the “photo gallery” link to see beautiful photos on that link too.
This waterfall is in the historical town of Shanklin…..beautiful!
King Henry’s Kitchen…a Restaurant on the Island….He is also the King who beheaded 2 of his 6 wives! Read here… about King HenryHe was King Henry VIII…a vicious king I would say! He was the founder of the Church of England……and he wrote “Green Sleeves”!
In primary schools the children learn this rhyme to remember what happened to his wives…”Divorced, beheaded, died
Divorced, beheaded, survived”. In that order, is what happened…!
Houses and a hotel on the Isle…..I particularly liked the house on this picture…it has some style and character…. A tack shop on a farm where you can do horse riding! Everything horsey in here..! I had to take a picture from this book! It is in an art shop…a tiny shop…everything is left there…there is nobody…If you want to buy something, you write your name and the amount you leave in this book!! Ha! They really do trust people on this island!! Amazing!!
Graveyard….and daisies….
This place was really enjoyable….this is called the “Needles”…whoops! Look at THIS SITEand you will see why I say the chair lift is kind of scary!! It was really fun going there…..but be prepared for those chairs…I just closed my eyes and bit on my teeth at one point…!
During our holiday in August – South Africa, we were really lucky to find accommodation at a place next to the Swadini Forever Resort (previously Aventura). I grew up in the Eastern Transvaal -now Mpumalanga, which means:”place of the rising sun.” We drove through Lydenburg, spent time on the farm where I grew up.Krugerspost lies between Lydenburg and Pilgrims Rest, the historical town and from there we then ventured off to the Echo Caves. First we stopped at Ohrigstad to fill-up the car. We first thought to stay at the Echo Caves Motel, but changed our minds and headed for the Blyde River Canyon. We initially thought that we would just pop-in and have a place to stay! But, as we were on holiday and didn’t take any notice of dates and public holiday days in SA, we didn’t know it was a long weekend!Thursday was Women’s day and the Friday was a public holiday! Anyway, we got at Blyde River Forever Resort: “Sorry…we are fully booked!” Well, we didn’t expect to hear that, but then realised why we heard such unexpected words! OK! It was 7pm, not very late you know, but we’ve been on the road for a very long time by then. There were loads of B&B places, which we saw on random roads, not very far off, so, we decided to take the road, looking for some decent B&Bs. Just as we took a turn-off, stopped to look at an entrance of a B&B, Andre stopped next to us. He was our angel! “Hello…are you lost?” he asked very friendly and with him was his partner.”No, but we’re looking for a place to stay”, we replied anxiously. “Come with us! You can stay in Marius’s lodge!” We didn’t wait for a second invitation. Tired of being all day on the road basically from Groblersdal, we followed him, for only just about 80 m! What we got, was a fantastic lodge, place for about 10 people to stay. We could pick and choose where to sleep, like Goldilocks!! haha..I tried different beds…playing Goldilocks…! It was fun…2 bathrooms, showers …huge kitchen…(if you keep coming back to my blog later, you will see all of this) It was fantastic.”Because you don’t have any cleaning services for the weekend, you can pay R30 per person less…,” he continued through all the non-stop talking! I wanted to say: “Shus, you’re talking too much,” because Andre was talking non-stop about all the places we can visit and the more he talked, the more excited he got!! He also told us about – click here: – Moholoholo Animal Rehabilitation Centre, but our time was limited and you have to book to go there. Our boat trip was already booked for the same time we could go to Moholoholo, so sadly, we couldn’t go there, as we were heading for Pilgrims Rest and Sabie the following day…If my memory hasn’t gone lost…”moholoholo” means something like…”falling rock”…or ‘rolling rock.’
Enjoy this movie about the area of the Blyde River, which I put together using some of my pictures, not a great camera, I need to warn you. Our video camera perished a few days ago and we need to wait till we’re back in the UK to try and get it fixed.
This daisy is called a Baberton-daisy…what’s in it?! My favourite colour!! Baberton is a town in the Eastern part of the country…Jock of the Bushveld – country….a legend of a dog…read it!! Search my site for Jock of the Bushveld…it is there…
The GREENEST canyon in the world!!! All other canyons are dry!!! And..this is the THIRD biggest…in the world! The Blyde River Canyon….Grand Canyon is the first…then…in Namibia!! the Fish River Canyon…and then ours…do you know where Namibia is…it borders South Africa…! Windhoek is the capital of Namibia…once called South West Africa and before that…do you know what is was called before THAT!! YES! there is another name….try find out….
This is the Blyde River dam….this is about 1/2 of it on this pic… map….. and here….ladies and gents…can I introduce you to…the very famous POTHOLES!! In the Blyde River!! And…I hoped there was a spider here…can you see one?
In 2004 we visited friends of us in Aber. Aber is short for Aberystwyth. Pieter and Leone came to the UK in 2002 and we met them in Sutton, where we used to live when we came the first time to the UK. Leone is an ex-teacher, retired, but an artist and she is just amazing. Some of her art works are to be seen in Embassies! They are two lovely friends and spent a lot of time showing us around in Aber and nearby places. These pics are from a castle in Aber. Follow the weblink to read more. The dog was funny…we stopped to buy something on the A438 route and he was sitting, very patiently, in the van waiting for his master!
Spoken by great men:"Give me 20 divisions of American soldiers and I will breach Europe. Give me 15 consisting of Englishmen and I will advance to the borders of Berlin. Give me two divisions of those marvellous fighting Boers and I will remove Germany from the face of the earth." - Field Marshal Bernard L. Montgomery, Commander of the Allied Forces during WW2.
"The Americans fight for a free world, the English mostly for honour, glory and medals, the French and Canadians decide too late that they have to participate. The Italians are too scared to fight, the Russians have no choice. The Germans for their Fatherland. The Boers? Those sons of Bitches fight for the hell of it." American General, George 'Guts and Glory' Patton.
Chessalee 