Author Archives: puppy1952

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Back in the Classroom – A Magical Outing

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What fun it is to be a Grade 1!   I took my class to The Magic Classroom on Thursday where they spent two hours enjoying the wonderful world of illusion.

They giggled in glee when the ‘professor’ pulled coins from their ears, fleeces and hair.  They had fun with mirrors, kaleidoscopes, illusionary pictures, magnifying glasses and spoons. They learnt about colour, fibre optics and light, and that anything is possible.

The morning began with the children sitting in a classroom and having the professor teach them a hands on lesson.  They were allowed to mix paints to make new colours.  Each child got a box of everyday items were allowed to play with them and see the interesting ways they could be used.  How they shrieked when they saw themselves suspended upside down when they held a mirror upside down and horizontally below their eyes. The magnifying glasses were the greatest fun too. Then they were allowed to wonder around the classroom looking at all the interesting, magical items. They roared with laughter when looking into mirrors that distorted their image to make them look short and fat or tall and thin.   The kaleidoscopes drew gasps of wonder and they stared google-eyed at optical illusions that made patterns bulge from the page.

The morning ended with a magic show in the theatre.   I think we might have some buddying future magicians keen to attend the College of Magic to learn these exciting and fascinating tricks.

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Back in the Classroom – Something Sad

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The flags flew at half mast at my school this week. First thing on Wednesday morning we heard that one of our Grade 7 girls who suffered from cyclic neutropenia, died shortly after being admitted to hospital when her blood count dropped. We were all affected by this and I can’t imagine how her parents must feel. Our Grade 7s were summoned to an assembly before lessons began and sobbed when the news was broken to them.  Our school counsellor as well as a grief counsellor were there to help them through the trauma.

At our school we have what we call Hoofies – the entire school is divided into family groups consisting of a Grade 7 as leader and then a child from each grade down to Grade 1.  They meed regularly and the idea is that the older children mentor the younger ones and the younger ones always have a big brother or sister in the school to turn to if they need to.  This minimises bullying and builds a camaraderie and culture of caring throughout the school.   The Grade 1s adore their Hoofie leaders. One of mine was in the late Grade 7s group and was devastated to hear of her passing.  Her Hoofie family was called to the counsellors office at break and she just couldn’t stop crying when the news was broken.  I spent some time holding her and letting her cry. “It’s not fair,” she said “Sarah was too young to die. I loved her so much.  I will never forget her.”

There were other girls in my class who knew her and they all shared their feelings in a care circle. Discussing it and crying together helped the mourning process. I told the girls that Sarah would not want them to be sad forever and that we should continue our day and dedicate it to her. They agreed and soon we were back into lessons, though in a more sombre mood than usual.

Being a new teacher to the school, I did not know Sarah personally.  But having heard from my girls, the other teachers who taught her, had her for sport or choir, it appears that she was a caring, friendly girl a popular with all who came into contact with her.   She will surely be missed.   Most of our Grade 7s went to her Memorial Service.  A friend of mine who knew the family went to and told me that it was beautiful and inspiring.   Rest in Peace Sarah – My school will always remember you.

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Struisbaai – Couples Weekend

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Last weekend I spent a most enjoyable girls’ weekend at our holiday house in Struisbaai so when my hubby suggested going up again to do some necessary chores at the house again on Friday – I thought, why not.   We invited our friends Tony and Sharon to join us and although it was short notice they persuaded a friendly neighbour to look after their cat and as soon as I’d finished school at 3 o’clock we were off.  The weather was awful. It was cold and wet but we were in high spirits – after all it’s better to be miserable in Struisbaai than miserable in Cape Town. We cheerfully handled the traffic in Somerset West, had a clear run over Sir Lowry’s Pass and dashed through intermittent showers before arriving in Struis at 6 o’ clock.    Once we were unpacked and settled we decided to treat ourselves to a meal out at Angelo’s in Agulhas.  It was raining when we arrived and really cold but inside there was an inviting fire which warmed us inside and out.

The menu had a variety of delicious items and it was difficult to make up our minds – but in the end Earl, Tony and Sharon had the prawn and calamari basket.   The only reason I went for a pasta dish was that I eat seafood so often at home that I felt I should have change. Our meals were superb and Tony and Sharon were amazed that such good cuisine could be obtained in a backwater like Cape Agulhas!

We beat the chill by adding an extra duvet to our beds and we all reported a good night’s rest the following morning.   Earl cooked up one of his famous “Early Breakfasts” in the form of delicious omelettes filled with bacon, cheddar, blue cheese and tomato.   Then once we’d had a hot cup of coffee, fed the garden birds and donned our warmest jackets Sharon and I went for a stroll around Struisbaai while the boys went to fetch some provisions from the shop.   We ended up at Struisbaai ‘mall’ and browsed around my friend, Lynn’s shop – South Bound -Lifestyle Gifts.  She’d just returned from the Far East and her stock was wonderful.  She has everything and anything – “I look for stuff that is interesting and that I think will sell,” she told us.  And she certainly does have an eye!   We didn’t have our wallets with us but as we left we found the boys and told them to come and look at what we’d found.   It turned out to be a good day for Lynn – Earl and I bought a bedside cupboard and Tony and Sharon left with two beautiful silver statuettes.

We then took a drive to Arniston and of course did some bird watching on the way.   Sharon and Tony are not birders but enjoy the feathered friends that visit their fynbos garden on the mountainside of Fish Hoek.  We promised not to bore them by stopping for every sparrow and dove.    “And Sharon – I promise there is one shop in Arniston.” I said.   “She has her black belt in shopping,” Tony quipped.   I turned out to be a most productive drive in spite of the intermittent showers and chilly weather.   We saw yellow mongoose frolicking and chasing each other, there was a dead sheep in a field that must have been taken by a jackal or a lynx and a bird of prey was being chased from it by the crows.   A beautiful jackal buzzard flew from its perch in front of us and there were dozens of weavers, sparrows and canaries about.  We also saw lots of blue crane amongst the grazing sheep and the elusive Denham’s bustard made an appearance when we took a detour to Die Mond for a quick walk onto the suspended bridge.   On the way back to the Arniston Road we found a single Southern Black Korhaan.

Blue Crane

Mating Dance

Tony and Sharon on the Bridge – Die Mond

Denham’s Bustard

Southern Black Korhaan

The sea at Arniston was wild and fun to watch, the waves breaking as high as the cliffs.   We drove around and looked at the dunes and the houses and then went for a light lunch of roast vegetable soup and whole-wheat bread at the hotel.  Delicious.  Of course, we had to check out the gift shop too but all Sharon bought were some pretty elastics for her hair.

It is compulsory when visiting this part of the world to do the Southern Tip of Africa – so we dutifully took our guest to Cape Agulhas before going home.   Bravely they stood with smiling faces and chattering teeth as we took their photographs at the tip of the continent! We also showed them the surrounding Agulhas National Park, Suiderstrand and of course the wreck.

Sharon bravely posing at the Southern Tip of Africa

Potpourri Gift and Coffee Shop was our next port of call.  The gatherer instinct was once again satisfied and a cup of coffee consumed.  At five o’clock we were the last patrons to leave.

Thank Goodness for our indoor braai!   Earl lit the fire and we warmed up beside it until it was ready to cook our supper – starter of spiced bacon on a skewer followed by lamb chops, rolls and salad.    Then an early night in our snug little beds.

Sunday Morning dawned without precipitation.   We had buns and tea/coffee for breakfast and then the guys did some maintenance chores.   While they were busy Sharon and I took a long walk around Struisbaai – the harbour, the board walk and the neighbourhood.   Then we went back to Southbound to chat to the other half of Lynn – her husband, Glyn as he wanted to see Earl.  Sharon and I spent a few more cents then it was time to pack up and leave.

Struisbaai Harbour

We took the scenic route home, stopping at The Black Oystercatcher for lunch.   It was a lovely wine estate and a pretty venue indeed. We sat outdoors in the warm sunshine and enjoyed the lovely views.   We all ordered fish cakes, potato wedges and salad.  Big mistake!   The wedges and salad were fine – but the fish cakes were dry. However, we were hungry and we did not complain and they were edible.

The Black Oyster Catcher

We drove home through the picturesque mission station of Elim where the young men are famous for their thatching skills.   Soon after this Earl asked me to drive – he had a pain in his chest – indigestion from the fish cakes we realised.   We stopped at Kleinbaai to look at the harbour and the fishing and shark diving boats.

Shark Diving Boats

Kleinbaai Harbour

Kleinbaai

It was then that Earl realised he needed the loo.   Then again we stopped at a One Stop outside Hermarnus and he was man down till we got home.  Definitely a case of food poisoning.  Sharon, Tony and I were okay – although I also had an upset tummy – but didn’t feel as ill as he did.   He is sleeping peacefully as I write and I’m sure he’ll be fine in the morning.

In spite of Earl’s mishap, it was a great weekend and we all felt as though we’d been away for a week.

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Struisbaai Weekend with Just the Girls – Sunday

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This morning we woke up and had coffee, hot cross buns and strawberries for breakfast, sat around and chatted, solved the world’s problems and then went for a walk along the boardwalk from the harbour to the beach.

Struisbaai Beach

By this time it was 12 noon and we decided to do lunch at The Pelican Harbour Cafe where they are famous for their fish and chips.   We hall settled for pan-seared hake except for Chrissie who had the cob.   For starters we shared a small plate of calamari. It was a good choice – the food was excellent.

We enjoyed the outdoor ambience of Pelican Harbour Cafe

Then it was back to Potpourri as the girls wanted to get a few more things – gifts for friends – but Cheryl needed us to leave by 2 – so there was a 15 minute limit set for shopping time!    Well – it took a tad longer but then it was back the the house to pack.

We all felt that our batteries we were recharged, we’d found our lost souls and were ready to face the real world again.

It might be Marmite toast for some for a while but the art purchased was definitely worth it!

And to end I could not resist posting a picture of this beautiful boubou that visited our garden this morning.

Southern Boubou

 

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Struisbaai Weekend With Just The Girls

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For many years I have been meeting friends I have known since my college days (sh – way back in the 70s) every month for breakfast – We call it, predictably, Breakfast Club.   There are seven of us and its one of those girlie things that keep us sane – taking a break from our normal routine of work and family and just chilling for a couple of hours in each other’s company.   On our birthdays, the birthday girl gets presents and her breakfast paid for by the others!   One of our number, Margie, who has now reached retirement age is planning to join her children in Australia.  So for her birthday we decided to have a grand send off.  Five of us left Cape Town at 4:30 on Friday afternoon and took off for our holiday house in Struisbaai.   Don’t ask how we managed to get the three hubbies involved to let us go.  There might have been great sulking if they hadn’t agreed to release us – wonderful men that they are! The fun began right from the start – everyone relaxed and the Caravelle was abuzz with laughter and chatter and we enjoyed the drive through traffic, dusk and finally darkness till we arrived at our destination at 7:30.  Just before we arrived I realised I’d forgotten the milk but lucky for us there was one cafe open and we got to it just before they closed for the night. The catering was well under control – no effort involved – Woollies spit roast chicken, veggies in a bag and baby potatoes followed by Melba pudding and custard!   Oh – and of course Champers to celebrate Margie’s 62 years. It was almost midnight when we found our beds and crashed for the night. Unfortunately it had to be a working weekend for me – my reports being due on Monday – so I was up early on Saturday and spent a productive hour working.   By the time everyone was up and ready for action I had accomplished a fair amount. After enjoying a cup of coffee and a bun together we got ourselves ready to go out for breakfast – “You have three choices girls – a fancy brekkie with white table clothes but no view, a basic brekkie at the harbour – with a view or The Lighthouse Restaurant in Agulhas.  Unanimously we decided that  the Harbour Brekkie with a view was the only place we wanted to be.   What a busy place a fishing harbour is – and so picturesque.   When we arrived we noticed some police and rescue vehicles.  Margie asked – What’s happening?”  And we were told that a ski-boat had capsized at the 12mile bank – but all on board were safe.

From the Pelican Restaurant we were able to watch all the interesting activity the harbour had to offer.  The sea was flat and lots of the commercial and ski-boats were out at sea.  But the commercial, Big Blue was there offloading her catch.

Big Blue

Offloading

Gulls waiting for tidbits

Gulls receiving tidbits

Hanging on the wall in my lounge is a painting of two Arniston fishermen’s cottages.  Margie instantly coveted it and said, Where can I buy some art like that!

Painting on my wall

So we went to Agulhas in search of art galleries.  No problem – The Southern Wright Gallery was found with ease and we spent a long time looking at beautiful pieces by local artists.   It was a bit of a problem trying to get Margie, Dot and Cheryl out of there. After selecting a few pieces that she might like to take with her to Australia Margie said, “We’ll be back – I must just think about this over coffee.  And off we went to Potpourri across the road.  Wow – what a lovely coffee/gift shop!

Potpourri

Our gatherer instincts kicked in and we browsed the nooks and crannies displaying beach-house decor, novelties, bags, jewelry, clothing and scarves.

The gatherer half of Hunter/Gatherer

There was a tricky moment when Margie and Chrissie vied for possession of the same scarf.

I saw it first!

In the end Chrissie said, Okay – its your birthday – you can have it.

Coffee and Cake went down well at Potpourri

It was an expensive visit and we all left with packets full of lovely goodies.

You can’t bring visitors to Agulhas without doing the tip of Africa thing – so we dutifully went to stand on the spot and have a kind young man take our portraits with each ones camera.  “Don’t worry, ” he said when we tried to show him how to use our cameras – “I do this for a living.’ Then when he was done, said, “Thanks Ladies” and started walking off with our cameras.  We laughed –  “So that’s what you do for a living,”   Luckily it wasn’t!

The Southern-most Girls at the Southern Most Point

It was a drizzly day and cool but our spirits were high as we took a drive to Suiderstrand.  We saw a jackal buzzard soaring overhead and spotted several birds on the side of the road – Cape francolin, canaries, bulbuls etc.

Back in Agulhas we found the lighthouse museum closed for renovations and climbing to the top of the tower held little appeal.  We did take a pic of the view though.

The dealer at Southern Wright had a glint of glee in her eye when she saw us returning.  Margie has visions of marmite toast for dinner till the end of the month because after much deliberation and advice and suggestions from Cheryl and me, she made up her mind, bit the bullet and maxed out her card  to invest in  four delightful little paintings of parts of the country that are dear to her.

Give them pride of place in your new Aussie home Margs!

Four special paintings

We returned to Struisbaai, delighted with our day and the fun we’d had.   Margie called out marks for me to enter onto our internet based system and after an hour or so it was all done and dusted and  I shall be ready to print my reports on Monday afternoon.

We enjoyed another pleasant evening together and once again dinner required little preparation – Woollies’ Lasange and micro veggies, rolls and of course the obligatory glass of champers!

Cheers

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Back in the Classroom – Grandparents’ Day

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Never under-estimate how important grandparents are in a child’s life.   I know from my own experience what a large part they play in the  development of of a child.  I had the most amazing grandparents and my youth was the richer because of them.  My parents, too, set me too good an example of what role a grandparent should play in the raising of children by being really awesome grandparents – often changing their own plans when I needed them to help with my kids.   When it became my turn to be a grandparent, how could I not follow in their footsteps and also play an big role in helping my daughter to raise her boys and also to be as good a granny as I could to my distant grandkids making every excuse under the sun to visit them in 1400 km away.   The love between a parent and child is strong but there is something very, very special and quite different about the love between a grandparent and grandchild – is it because all the responsibility of raising that child is gone and now all you have to concentrate on is loving them unconditionally?  I know this feeling – you cannot get enough of your grandchildren – they are perfect – nobody else on earth has ever had such a special creature in their lives – they can do no wrong.

Bill Cosby put it in perspective – In conversation with his father he said, “My son is so naughty.”

“He is not,” replied the grandfather.

“He set the house on fire.”

“It was a good fire!” came the very logical reply.

My school, too, recognizes how important grannies and grandpas are in the lives of grandchildren and each year host a Grandparents’ Day.   This year it was the turn of The Foundation Phase to entertain the senior generation.   Each grade performed an item in the hall, there were musical recitals and the winner of our Speaker-Reader competition told the joke that won him first place. The principal gave a short address and then the ‘old’ people visited the young ones in their classrooms.

Wow – my classroom was filled to capacity – some of the children had all four of their grandparents crowded round their desks to admire and write a comment in their books.   There were a few whose grandparents were unable to be there – distance being the main reason – but one grand couple made a special trip all the way from Springbok so as to enjoy this special day with their granddaughter.    The little ones without grandparents did not dip out as their friends shared their grandparents with them and allowed then to make comments in their books too.

After the classroom visit it was time for a scrumptious tea.   Our Grade 7s were hosts and hostesses and while the young ones were out to play the teachers joined in to socialize with the special guests.

When school was over and I sat down to mark my books and read the comments.  I was blown away.   I was expecting a brief – “well done” – or “keep up the good work” – or  “lovely writing” and other words of praise to their special child.  They did indeed write lovely things about their work but they went on to say so much more – e.g. “I am so impressed with this school and delighted that my grandchild has the privilege of learning in this environment.”    “What a happy school this is – and how relaxed and happy the children are.”  “I love your classroom – it is so bright and welcoming”   “I love the way the children are taught and prepared for modern technology.”

It is good to know that the grandparents have confidence in us and approve of what we are doing.   If any of them are reading this blog – thank you for your trust and rest assured we will continue to strive to give our best to your precious grandchildren.  Thank you for the very important part you are playing in their young lives.

 

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Back in the Classroom – Pyjama Party

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I’ve said it before and I say it again.  I teach at a school that never sleeps.  Yes we had a very long weekend and it was great  – it gave me a chance to catch my breath and work on some new teaching material – but the 3 day week afterwards was a full one ending with a Pyjama Party for the little ones on Friday night.  The older kids had “Night Life” and “Teen Time” and the school vibrated with the sounds of kids having fun.

They were all storming the front doors and demanding to be let in at 7 o’clock.  I was ready to receive my charges and there were shrieks of laughter and cries of Ma’m you’re wearing pyjamas!  Well of course – what else do you wear to a pyjama party.   I thought I looked quite cute in my pink gown and slippers.

The four Grade 1 teachers organised ‘stations’ and the children rotated for a 20 minute slot at each.   My brief was to take them on a ‘night walk’ with torches. This caused great excitement as I lead them round the darkened quad and had them hunting for wild animals and mystical creatures that lurked behind every bush.  There were shrieks of excitement and terror as they ‘spotted’ goblins and tigers and a crocodile paddling in a deep puddle which they meticulously avoided stepping into.   A few of the little girls clung to my hand and said, Ma’m I’m scared, and giggled hysterically. “It’s just in our imagination, hey Ma’m” whispered one hopefully.

But the boys were brave and went forth into the jungle and slayed the dragons and monsters and wild creatures of the dark night.

There was a brief shower of rain that drove us back indoors but it was gone in time for the next group to have their turn at defeating the evil enemy.   The last hour of the evening we had our own classed back in the classroom where after a trip to the tuck shop to replenish supplies and increase the sugar-high, we turned off the lights, put on a DVD and encouraged the over excited little people to quieten down and maybe even sleep before their parents collected them …..  no, of course that didn’t happen!

All too soon the three hours were up and the parents arrived to collect their hyped up  offspring.   It was fun but the hi-jinks and hilarity wore me out big time – I slept very well on Friday night!

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Back in the Classroom – Grade Ones on show.

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Each grade has a to present an assembly two or three times a year at my school.  Our little Grade Ones have watched the older children performing on stage and now it was their turn. Last year we relied on a wonderfully musical and dramatically talented colleague to come up with creative ideas when it was our turn – but this year we had to do it ourselves.  We decided to make our theme – Blast off to Big School and my grade head came up with a wonderful script.  Each teacher wrote a rhyme about her name and taught her class to recite it.  The children were interviewed on video – What do you like about school and a power point presentation of what they are learning was presented. They recited a poem about starting school and quite a few of them had to learn a line or two to say alone. We (the kids and the teachers) were pretty nervous about how it would go down but our first practice went off well – but the last one was disastrous. The kids were restless and noisy and forgot their lines.  The video froze in the middle which our sound man said had never happened before.

It’s going to be a disaster, I whined to my grade head.

No it won’t, she said.  Bad rehearsal – good performance!  But she wasn’t looking too convinced and It don’t think one teacher slept well the night before.  But – wow – our little angels came through in the end and did not let us down.  The parents laughed in all the right places and from where I was sitting in the sound box – they looked so precious doing their thing on the stage.  The power point and video went in sync with the children’s presentation and there were no technical hitches at all – PHEW!

In the very same week Grade 1 was once again the centre of focus along with Grade 7 and Grade 4 for the Open Day where we all had to be involved in some sort of science lesson.   The children were taught, with the help of a power point presentation, all about 3D shapes. They were shown famous architectural buildings of different shapes around the world E.g. Pyramids and then set the task of designing a 3D construction on paper and then building it with toothpicks and jelly tots.   What fun we had.  And our children showed us just how creative they could be.   Some of the girls, at first, were stuck in 2D and wanted to make pretty flowers but the boys went all out which just goes to show that there is definitely a difference between boy and girls brains!. The girls, did, however, catch on quite quickly and adjusted their constructions to achieve the task set.  It was wonderful to see the kids having so much fun while learning and nobody wanted to eat their constructions afterwards!

Well after this exciting week of activity it was great to get a five day weekend.  And yes I did relax and have fun but I also had time to sit down and create some fresh teaching material and work sheets.  I am looking forward to a three day week ending with some more fun – a pajama party on Friday night.

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Back in The Classroom – Beginning the new term

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I left school on break-up day last term at 12:00 p.m. and at 12:10 I was on my way to The Kruger National Park.   After a wonderful  week there with my husband and 4 grandchildren, we returned on Holy Thursday and I had the Easter Weekend to prepare myself for the new term.  It was good to have those four days to sleep in a bit after a week of the necessary early rising for good game viewing:-)

My princesses were bright and eager on the first day and before we knew it we were into the full swing of the new term. The weather is still warm although the early mornings are darker and somewhat chillier now.    Our first day started with Assembly taken by our headmaster.   He spoke about the importance of being kind to each other and showed a lovely video of how one act of kindness led to another and came full circle when the person who helped a hurt child had an act of kindness shown to him too.   We sang a song about ‘filling each other’s buckets’ and the message really went home to the little people.   A great way to start the term and my girls have continued to refer to ‘filling buckets’ ever since.

Now that the little girls are in their second term and quite adjusted to big school, I have had no more separation anxiety.  They were all pleased to be back and have thrown themselves right into the school routine.   I was a little worried about beginning wide-lined books after only having used unlined books last term but they have surprised me.   Handwriting is a silent lesson, I have to remind them – listen and look and you will get it right – And they do!   I am so proud of their beautiful handwriting.   Every day they write the date and  their names and surnames, do a pattern and learn the correct way of writing a new letter.  Imagine all the concentration that takes when you’ve only just begun.  Where do I start the letter?  Does it touch the top and bottom line? Some small letters are actually quite tall – oh dear is it a whole space or only half?   At the same time I have to remember how to spell both my first name and surname and keep it all straight and neat!   Then there’s reading and sentence writing too! What a lot I am expected to do!

Another first for these little ones will be to present an Assembly.  At my school each grade is responsible for an item in Assembly.   We are busy preparing our classes for their very first one and the theme will be Blast off to Big School.   We’ve worked and worked on getting them to say rhymes and sentences. And next Tuesday will be their big day.  They are so excited – more about this next week.

Today we had what we call a Funscape.   This is kind of like a day off from regular school work.   In the second term the whole grade does a Funscape together – it can take the form of an outing or some sort of activity at school.   We decided to have four stations led by each class teacher.   We had indoor games, outdoor games, making musical instruments and making masks.  I was responsible for making masks. Each class had three quarters of an hour at each station and there was a half an hour break after the second session.   And wow did we have fun.   They used a template to trace their masks, cut them out and then decorated them with feathers and hearts and rhinestones of all shapes.    There was glitter glue and they could also draw designs on them if so desired.   I thought they’d be noisy and messy – but they were absorbed and quiet – they shared the resources beautifully and we had no behaviour problems at all. Yes there was a mess but we covered the tables with black plastic bags and it was all cleared up in a jiffy.  I had my own class last and we ended with a packet of chips and a story and they went off home with their masks and the musical instruments – a shaker made with a paper plate.

So yes the term has started off with lots of activity – a good blend of hard work and fun.   Winter sports have begun and the little ones are throwing themselves into learning these wonderful new skills.  Its a long day for small girls but they seem to be thriving on it.

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Taking the Kids to Kruger – Conclusion

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5 April 2011

Cape Town to Oudtshoorn t0 Kokstad to Kruger National Park for 7 days then  back to Kokstad to Karoo National Park (Beaufort West) to Cape Town.  Phew – a lot of travelling done in 10 days.  But it has been a most rewarding time.   Seeing our grandchildren’s faces and hearing their cries of delight when they’ve spotted cheetah, leopard, lion, hyena, elephant, rhino, buffalo and wild dog has given us great pleasure.   We have watched as they’ve become more observant of the smaller things in the park, they have a fresh appreciation for birds and they’re all deeply concerned about poaching and determined to do their part for conservation.
We would love to take them again but next time we’ll choose a different time of year – summer is best for birds.  Luck was with us as far as spotting interesting things this time and each day had its special highlight but there were long stretches in the car when little was seen.  Many people say June/July is best when the grass is short and its easy to see game but for us summer has always been productive for both birds and mammals.   I think the time has come too when the long drive from Cape Town is just too long.   We will in future fly and hire a vehicle – and this is for the sake of Grandpa who insists on doing all the driving!

We are proud that the kids were so patient in the car, did their chores dutifully and behaved beautifully.  We hope we’ve given them a passion for the wild and that their introduction to photography will become a life-long hobby.

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Taking the Kids to Kruger – Pretoriouskop to Berg en Dal

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FRIDAY 2 APRIL 2012

Pretoriouskop is a lovely camp and we sat outdoors and braaied our supper last night.  It was lovely to see the row of fires as our neighbours all did the same thing.  A group of loud American tourists were next door and their guide came over to apologize for the noise.  He promised it wouldn’t last long as they were all tired and would be going to bed early!  We quite enjoyed hearing them joyfully recount the events of the day – they’d clearly had a good time.

Today was our last full day in the park.   It has not been the most productive holiday game wise that we have had but we each day has had its special sightings. Earl and I are delighted that we have been able to find the Big 5 for the children and that many special creatures have been seen.  The only thing left on our wish list was Wild Dog. We really wanted to show them these beautiful animals also know as Painted Wolves and Cape Hunting Dog.  They are vulnerable and through conservation efforts have been brought back from the brink of extinction.

We took a long route via Lower Sabie to get to our final camp, Berg en Dal.  Check in time is 2 p.m. so there is not point rushing straight there.   The roads we travelled were rewarding.

Miraculously we had everyone dressed, fed and packed by 6 a.m. and Jay couldn’t resist taking a picture of the sunrise.

The periods between sightings can be long and boring for young children specially if they’re ADHD.  Jay is fine once his medication kicks in but he is a natural clown and entertained his cousins by taking their stuffed toys and pretending they were ‘out to get them’.  Poor Grandpa was very patient when Monkey appeared at his window while the kids collapsed in mirth.

But at a sighting the excitement was transferred to the real animals and they all competed for window space to get their photographs.   Jay being the oldest and at the top of the pecking order managed to get the best ones as he shoved the younger ones out of his way!

Early on in the day we found a heap of buffalo.  There were mothers with babies and young bulls fighting and the kids enjoyed watching it all happen.

Elephants also made a friendly appearance and Shannon shot this lovely shot of a young one.

And this one from Jay.

Giraffe were elegant as they browsed from the tops of trees.  Today they were in the mood for a photo shoot.

Shannon was amused to see that not only does a giraffe have a very long neck – he has a tongue to match!

It was not even half past eight when we saw a bit of a traffic jam ahead and there on a rock lay a lazy leopard – our third for this trip!  Its not often we seem more leopard than lion!

So then we had three of the big five for the day.  All we needed were lion and rhinoceros – usually this is not difficult – but today was to be different.

We stopped at Lower Sabie for toasted sandwiches and continued our drive.  We stopped when we saw interesting birds and the bee-eaters were really having a good time today.

We also found purple rollers and managed to take some good shots.

And Lilac breasted rollers are probably the most photogenic of all. Here is one with a gogga in his beak.

It was just before midday when we finally got the one animal we were hoping to see.  Grandpa was felt that his mission was successful – he’d shown his grandchildren the best that Kruger could offer.

After this excitement we stopped at one of the picnic sites for a loo break and to get some ‘slushies’, ice cream and crisps.

A fourth member of the Big Five was spotted next.  At first he refused to lift his head but finally we managed to get a good shot of him.

Other creatures we saw today brought us great joy.  We are so proud our grandchildren enjoy the smaller stuff as much or even more than the Big 5 and mega stars of the bush.   Josh is  more aware of the creatures around him and asks questions about how they survive. Simon at only seven remembers the names of all the birds he has seen.   Shannon is becoming quite a little expert and Jay is completely converted to conservation and gets mad when he sees bad behavour of other tourists in the park.

They have all enjoyed getting their pictures and here is a selection of what they captured today.

Magpie Shrike

European Bee Eater in flight

Brown Snake Eagle

Turtle in a mud puddle we nearly ran over!

European Bee-Eater

Lilac-breasted roller

We arrived at Berg en Dal at half past three.  The kids went for to the pool and returned a little later saying that Simon had vomited in the pool – I think he swallowed some pool water because he was quite fine when they brought him back.  “Jay saved me,” he declared.

We had a delicious chicken casserole that Lauren had made and frozen for us and after our ‘prize-giving’ it was early to bed.  They were all winners – Jay for the most enthusiastic spotter. Shannon for naming the most birds. Simon for patience and quick learning of bird names and Josh for spotting birds that Gran really wanted to see.  They were thrilled with the little puzzles, key rings, ‘canned lion’ and bath toys they won.   Hopefully this is a holiday they will never forget.  Grandpa and I certainly won’t.

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Taking the Kids to Kruger – Skukuza to Pretoriuskop

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1 April 2012 – Skukuza to Pretoriuskop

If you are a member of the Sanparks Forums as I am, you always tie a yellow ribbon around the drivers mirror so that if other members are in the park at the same time you can stop and chat.  “Bushcraft” a fellow forum member and his family were staying near us at Skukuza last night and so we got together for a braai last night.  It was great meeting them and their three girls got on very well with our four grandchildren – a nice opportunity for Shan to have some girl company! But bed-time was somewhat later than is wise when  you’re rising early in the park!    In spite of this we managed to get completely packed up and out the gate by 6:15.  From 1 April, gate opening is only at 6.

We have found that finding game is a challenge at this time of the year and there have been long stretches of nothing between sightings.  With hyper-active kids this can be trying – for them and for us but besides getting a bit noisy and the odd jibe at each other the kids have been fantastic.  And what we have managed to find has been super rewarding but we have not always managed to get photographs.   It has been a learning curve for the kids to just appreciate with their eyes and not to be too fussed about capturing the moment digitally.

Shannon is excellent at remembering the names of the birds but the boys  – well – the boys are boys and make up their own hilarious names and mock their cousin when she’s so perfect and say – “No its a jackal striped horned kingfisher” and they all laugh uproariously.

There were some special moments today.  We came upon a traffic jam and were told that a cheetah had been sighted but was now lying in the long grass.   Nobody wanted to move out of the way so Earl politely asked an offending ‘jeep jockey’ to move her vehicle from the middle of the road.  She obliged and we then managed to get through the mess of cars blocking the way.   There is really little point of boring a car load of children with a non-event.  They desperately wanted to see the creature but understood why we would not wait among a crowd of sillies.   And they were rewarded because later in the day we got a beauty, in full view standing on a rock.   The grass was long and made unblurred photography difficult but Earl and  Jay managed to get reasonable shots.

Cheetah on rock by Earl

Cheetah by Jay

We just managed a glimpse of a hyena this morning and then later got a good sighting.   This is one of a pair we saw walking down the road towards us before slipping into the long grass.

We had told the children about green pigeons but not until today did we mange to find any.   A whole treeful appeared before us but they did not feel like posing for the paparazzi.   But Jay kept trying and got a lovely shot.

Another highlight was this little Lizzard Buzzard.  Jay was proud to be able to correctly identify it himself by comparing his pic with the one in the book.

Lizzard Buzzard

Bats used to live under the thatch of the lapas at Skukuza but when we tried to show them to the kids there were none to be found.  The restaurant manager told us they’d all left but he did not know why – they’d been there for years.   Well today when we had breakfast at Pretoriouskop, Shan looked up and saw bat eyes staring down at her.   She insisted on swapping places with me!

We have spotted the buck with target bums from time to time but photography has been difficult.  Today we were determined to at least have a memory shot.

We checked into our Pretoriouskop family cottage 111 at 2:00 p.m.  It is on the perimeter and we hope to spot game at the fence later on.  It is cooler today but the children went to the pool for a swim and are now playing cards and downloading photos.   It will be an early night tonight.