Kokstad to the Drakesberg Mountains

So the last two days (Thursday and Friday) were heavy travel days as we are in the home stretch of South Africa and must arrive in Jo'Burg by Saturday.  The drive from Bulungula to Kokstad, South Africa was 8 hours with a short stop for lunch.  We spent the night in Kokstad at a nice B and B style lodge called The Old Orchard.  The owners were lovely people who had many questions about our trip. We chatted with them and ate well.  

The Old Orchard.

A view from the deck in our room.

After a hearty breakfast on Friday morning, we headed out for the Drakesberg Mountains. The 6 hour drive provided beautiful scenery and a much less traveled road which made this Kathy's favorite (or least hated) of all the drives thus far.

The Drakesberg Mountains are a World Heritage Site for good reason.

We spent last night at the Inkosana Lodge.  Unfortunately, we have to leave today as we have one more lengthy drive ahead.  We will have to return at a later date because one could spend weeks exploring this mountain range. 

Tonight we plan to attend a Kaizer Chiefs game at FNB Stadium in Jo'Burg.  FNB Stadium holds 95,000 people and we are told that a Saturday night game will be a spectacle.  The Chiefs play in the Premier League and are South Africa's most followed team.  The fan base also extends to Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia.

We will be thinking of all of our soccer buddies while taking in the game tonight.  The Chiefs couldn't take this crew.

Chatting with the Boys

The travel experience and uninterrupted time together under such unique circumstances has begun to enhance our communication with the boys.  Roman and Mabret also seem much more carefree, loose and reflective.  The simple yet elusive custom of eating all three meals as a family each day has produced some of our richest interactions. Driving long distances in the car has yielded funny moments as well as a good opportunity to listen to music together.

The boys are also more apt to ask a question that might not find its way out at home. This can create the occasional moment requiring quick parental thinking.  Over dinner one evening, Mabret and Roman whispered among themselves and then asked, "have you guys ever been really drunk before?"  This was likely a result of Mama Tofu telling them not to drink too much and using exaggerated mannerisms of a person being drunk.  Of course, we answered them honestly.  Seriously. 

It is funny how kids measure the importance of things. This morning at breakfast Roman and Mabret reduced their analysis of the trip to the following exchange:  Roman: "Hey, Mabret, I wouldn't trade this trip for the greatest, most amazing IPod in the whole world.  Would you trade the trip for the greatest IPod?"  Mabret:  "Nope".  We decided to just be happy that they are having a blast and stop the analysis there.

Recently while sitting around Bulungula reading the book Game Changer, Mabret began telling me how badly he still feels about a tough baseball loss that he and his Little League All Star team took in July.  Mabret and his team got off to an amazing start in the Little League tournament and Mabret had the opportunity to start a very important game against Archibald.  He was coming off two really strong outings.  Mabret got off to a rough start walking a couple guys and hitting a batter.  He was never able to get himself together and they ended up losing a lead and the game.  Mabret said, "Dad, I really let my team down in the Archibald game and I have been mad at myself since then.  I think about it a lot, he continued. I should not have worried about walking a batter or hitting a batter when I was pitching against Archibald with a chance to go to the championship game.  All these people who live in this village have much bigger problems then I have."  Mabret then said, "next time I will think about other people and not get so mad at myself.  We are going to win the Districts this year."  Of course, I felt badly that he has been carrying that around since July.  I am very happy that he got that off his chest and am proud of his analysis.  

The next day we were out on the beach practicing. Yes, we packed baseball gloves.  Mabret sends a shout out to Coach Smith and Jack. Thanks for following us on the blog.  This picture is for you guys.