Downtime

In Mthatha, Downtime is a regular occurrence - no power and no water.  We even have a 5000 litre JoJo tank in our garden, as do the schools and  many residents. 

But sometimes Downtime is a good thing.  Especially when it means Down at the Beach.

A few weeks ago, Bob was called to meetings in Port Elizabeth and East London.  He suggested that instead of staying at guest houses by himself, we (dogs included) should join him and make the trek to the seaside for a looong weekend.  Excellent idea!

So off I go to stock up on essentials. As I leave the bottle store, the chap helping me take my purchases to the car asks me if I own a B&B.  I tell him no, I don't.  "Does ma'am own a restaurant then?" 

Then I realise why he's asking.  The trolley he's pushing for me contains 1 case Hansa, 1 case Savanna, 1 box red wine, and 4 bottles Old Brown Sherry (just in case we needed to ward off a cold front).  To me, this is a perfectly reasonable amount of refreshment for a four-day weekend for two, with a bit left over in case of visitors.  Apparently this is not the case in Mthatha.

As the weekdays away were business for Bob, he was allowed to use company transport.  As I clambered aboard, my olfactory nerves were assaulted to the extent that my nose hairs were singed.  We had to endure five hours of Stale while we drove.  Stale cigarette smoke. Stale sweat. Stale junk food. Stale farts.

And it didn't end there.  On arrival at the shack, we discovered that a bushbuck ram had died in our back garden a few weeks before. The neighbours had wondered for several days about the dreadful smell, and eventually discovered the carcass in our garden. The degree of putrefaction was such that the date and cause of death could not be determined, but the length of the horns indicated that the buck was about 8 years old.

When we thanked them for removing the remains, they said there was no need - they removed it purely because they couldn't live with the smell themselves.

The spot where the bushbuck ram was found. 

 Fortunately that was the end of the bad smells, and the Downtime continued as it should - lots of reading, eating, sleeping, walking on the beach, laughing, playing games and chatting to neighbours, friends and family.

(In case you were wondering, the four bottles of OBs returned to Mthatha intact.  Unfortunately the same cannot be said about the rest of the provisions.)

Hello Grahamstown!

This time last month, I had just returned from a magical week at the National Arts Festival.  I filled my fill of whatever needed filling - 30 shows in 6 days.  (Seeing as there is no cinema in Mthatha, let alone a theatre, I had to overdose on all things theatrical*).

I had the pleasure of staying with family:

On arriving 'home' after my first day of theatre (seven shows)  I was met with this on my bed:  fresh towels, flowers from the garden, a Festival Programme, and best of all - the electric blanket had been switched on - essential in Grahamstown.  How precious!

Some of you know that I am a War Horse groupie, and would give my left hoof to meet Joey in person. He visited us on the Drostdy Lawns and kids were given a chance to 'feed' Joey.  A few lucky ones even managed to hitch a ride.

Joey spent about half an hour on the Drostdy Lawns, to the delight of children and adults alike.

I spent quite a bit of time (and money) at the Village Green Market (The Hare Krishna chickpea fudge is to die for, doll).  I enjoyed the variety and quirkiness of the stalls, but was very aware of the claim that the Village Green is 'The Rich Man's Market'.  There was very little evidence of local traders.  I had to trek to the other end of town so see their wares, and was disappointed by the mass-produced, cheap imports that were on sale, much like many other markets around the country.

If you wished, you could hitch a ride to your next venue on a donkey cart, in style

It was awesome seeing friends from all over the country in Grahamstown - on stage, in the audience or over a rushed cup of coffee.  It was especially special reuniting with Robert, whom I haven't seen for a decade or two. It was also wonderful to meet his gorgeous daughter, who has a passion for all things theatrical, but is leaning towards the film industry. 

Who, you may ask, is Robert...?

...well, this is a pic of Robert (on my right) and me as part of the cast of The Fantasticks - the 1982 HHH production.  Robert and I played the leads (Yes, people paid to hear me sing).  Those of us in the show who are still in touch, have very happy memories of the show.  (I think I had a bit of a crush on the teacher, but can't really remember now.)

No trip to Festival is complete without a visit to the Monument.  While I was there, there was a performance in the arena, and the sound of traditional music resounded throughout the building.

Also at the Monument was an exhibition of some of Handspring Puppet Company's work.  The versatility, imagination and talent was mind-boggling.

Topthorn dominates the entrance to the Handspring Puppet Company exhibition.  Look here for some fabulous pics from the production.  Go and see it if you can, the tickets are well worth the price.  Take tissues.

There are several of these mime artists outside the Monument.  If you put a coin in the box, he will dance for you for a few seconds, much like a wind-up doll.  There are a couple of kids in Mthatha who do this sort of performance art at robots.  Unfortunately, word has it that they use the proceeds to feed their Tik habits.

What a perfect way to end a week of theatre - sitting on the floor in a school hall surrounded by kids laughing at The Wacky Wizard.  And I even know how he did some of the tricks!

So, until next year, back into the theatrical cotton wool I go...

*Performances and talks I attended:

Another Day

Are You Kidding?

Bench

Big Boys II

Big Girls

Burning The Floor

Dirty Words

Going Gooding

HeLa

Hovering

I Came, I Taught, I Left

Illusive

Lake

Memory

More Oom Schalk Stories

Real Meal Revolution – Book Launch

Salt

Same Time Next Year

The Belgian

The Epicene Butcher

The God Complex

The Snow Goose

The Things You Left Behind

The Three Little Pigs

Undone

Undermined

WhatWhat

White Guilt

You Bet Your Life

Wacky Wizard Comedy Magic Show

Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside..

One of the deciding factors in migrating to Mthatha was the proximity to our holiday shack in Kasouga.  Instead of the usual 12-hour pilgrimage, we would now be able to take a 'quick' 5-hour drive to the coast - making a weekend away possible.  We tested out this theory last weekend.  

We had been warned not to drive at night, but Bob had meetings at work, so we only managed to leave at 4pm.  We thought we'd be extra careful and look out for the Stray Animals that the signs warned us about.  We crossed the Great Kei without incident and relaxed a bit. Bad idea. A very, very large brown pig, (the size of a bear, Bob swears) decided that crossing the road at night would be a good idea.  Thank heavens for ABS.  Seriously.

The next morning, we were joined by family members we only see once a year, which is really not often enough.  First job was to take the dogs for a walk to the beach...

...which included throwing sticks for Jasper.

Even though the wind was quite strong, it was pleasant enough to explore.

Back at the shack, we caught the resident rodent on the hop and quite indignant at having been disturbed six months earlier than usual

As the wind picked up and it became too unpleasant to be outside, we were reminded that a cupboard full of pots is much more fun than sitting in front of television.

Fighting off the cold front with a bottle of OBs is also much more fun than television, especially if a chili has been marinating in the bottle for two days.  And while we're trying new things, let's see what a custard apple tastes like.

We decide to do a Before and After with the chili sherry.  Here are the verdicts:

Before:
W - Yum
S - I don't need to taste, I know what it tastes like
B - Why do we have to do this?
G - Lekker
D - (6 3/4) - *splutter* Yuk
C - (10 3/4) - Tastes like medicine.

As you can see, I had a willing, knowledgeable, co-operative panel.  Not.

After:
W - Jislaaik - you can even SMELL the chili
S - Smells gardenified.  Tastes more like green pepper than chili
B - What a waste of good sherry
G - Not bad, but I prefer good old OBs
D  - (6 3/4) (spat it out - no comment)
C - (10 3/4) I'm not even going to taste it. I'm scared. (Relents) *cough, hack, cough* Very potent (eyes watering)

So there you have it.  The opinion of connoisseurs.  So, did you try it?  What do you think?

Sunday was even colder and windier, but we decided to go to the beach anyway.

Harry decided she'd had enough, so Lara Croft came to the rescue and carried Harry to safety

Meanwhile, the boys decided that no beach trip is complete without splashing and being splashed

A hot outside shower is the perfect way to warm up!

This is a replica of a pic taken forty-mumble years ago with me and the same duck.  Sadly, duck has become brittle with age (don't we all?), and shortly after this pic was taken, he went to the big duckpond in the sky.

This is a replica of a pic taken forty-mumble years ago with me and the same duck.  Sadly, duck has become brittle with age (don't we all?), and shortly after this pic was taken, he went to the big duckpond in the sky.