Farewell Feral Cat - 11/30/12

Just Before the Collision

GABBY - Today, Ben and I decided to hike a loop around the river.  It was one of the hikes on our list of things to do.  The day was a bit overcast, which actually made it quite nice for a longer hike.  This loop was about 5 km in total.  We set off down the driveway and made our way to the right, over a small foot bridge.  We followed a path to the left, which led us underneath a peak we had hiked to previously: Mzimkulu Lookout.  We walked along the path, which continued to parallel Drakensberg Gardens Road until we came to a fork.  We took the longer route, which led us to a trickle of a waterfall, but it was still a waterfall and it was beautiful in its own way.  We turned back and took the other fork’s prong until we realized we were adjacent to the Little Mzimkulu River, which feeds into the much larger Mzimkulu River.  We walked to the place where tubing begins, which starts on the Little Mzimkulu River and ends on the Mzimkulu at Pebble Beach.  Ben and I had packed a picnic lunch of sandwiches and Sour Cream and Onion Pringles, which were devoured at our lunch stop.  We took some time to enjoy the scenery and discuss possible names for the hike we were currently treading.  We came up with things like Calla Lily River Walk (for all of the calla lilies), Ben and Gabby’s Romantic Love Stroll, Calla Lily Swallow’s Nest Passage, but all of those were a bit much.  We settled on Swallow’s Nest Loop.  While we were walking, we observed loads of birds, dive bombing us from above.  They were going down towards the river where they had built their nests.  The nests were made in the reeds along the river bank of the Mzimkulu Rivers (both Little and Big).  They were constructed by swallows that took 2 reeds, tied them together with long pieces of grass and wrapped lots of stalks around and around.  It eventually looked similar to a bees nest or a cocoon as Ben referred to it as.  The nests were tight structures with a single hole, big enough for a swallow to pass through.  We thought the name was fitting seeing as there were hundreds along our walk.  Our not-so-strenuous hike concluded when the path looped back to the road where the Old Trout Hatchery stood.  We walked back up to the farm and began preparing food for Tash’s goodbye party.  Everyone on the farm has basically left Steve.  Adrian, Lulu and now Tash.  It will be Steve, Ben, and me for Christmas it seems – small but mighty. 

The Beauty that is: Swallow's Nest Loop

All of the Zulu staff were invited to the braii, but they got their super early.  We put in Pirates of the Caribbean, which turned into us watching Eric and Sipho’s reactions to the movie.  They had never seen it before and really didn’t know what pirates were.  Zola and Happiness were shrieking with laughter and surprise at some of the scenes, while Sipho and Eric were hooting and hollering at all of the violence.  Finally the food was ready and we enjoyed lots of meat, potato salad and bread.  During the braii, Tash talked Ben and me into going out with her in Underberg.  We had been warned many times about Tash and her tendencies as a “feral cat”.  We figured we should try the Underberg scene at least once, and why not with Tash for her last night.  Eric, Sipho, and Zola jumped on the bandwagon and into Tash’s 4 person car (notice that we are 5).  I was way too squished sitting on Ben’s lap in the front seat, so I climbed in the middle of Zola and Eric in the back, Sipho crushed on the other side of Zola.  We went to a bar that was having its Grand Opening that night and was attached to The Grind.  It turned out to be extremely lame and definitely not our scene.  We were the youngest people by far.  The clubbers were creepy older women, preying on anything that moved and old fat guys looking to score.  It was a gross idea of a party, so we quickly left.  Zola had stayed behind with us while Eric and Sipho went up to the 2 Rander, which is known as the black people club.  The 3 of us, Zola, Ben and me headed up there to grab the guys and make the 10 km trip back to Khotso.  We stood outside and flagged them down, took an overpriced cab home and drunkenly collapsed into bed.  Not our idea of a great night out, but I guess it was worth doing once.  I guess?  Oh, and Tash did not return with us.  We later found out she got back to Khotso “early for me, around 5:00 am” – Tash.

 

When Snakes Fly - 11/29/12

Eric and Gabby venture into some rock formations in Lesotho

BEN - As you can tell, Gabby and I are a bit behind in our journal/blog entries.   If one of us hasn’t taken notes or written about a particular day, it can be difficult to type about.  As such, I honestly have no idea what we did this day, other than for dinner Gabby and I made burgers and fries along with butternut squash soup that was delicious.  That being said, I will just write about a particularly funny/absurd occurrence that happened and really shows a regular interaction that we had with nature and wildlife, which is a consistent theme of our time in Khotso. Neither Gabby or I am sure when this actually happened, so this seems as fitting a day as any:

From Left: Tofalax, Me, Gabby, Jackie

Gabby was up at the main house (Steve’s house) doing our laundry.  At the time, Steve and Lulu were not home, but Alistair was hanging out and doing something (most likely something Steve and Lulu would not approve of) up there as well.  I was down in the backpackers, and realized I needed something from the house.  As I was walking up the driveway, I heard Gabby’s scream and subsequent squeals of terror.  I ran as fast as I could up to the laundry to find Gabby out in the yard, tears in her eyes.  “SNAKE!!” she cried, “there’s a snake in the laundry.”  We are particularly wary of snakes at Khotso, because the farm houses two of the more venomous types of snakes in Africa (and thus, the world) the Puff Adder, and the Cape Cobra.  We have heard various horror stories from just about everyone we know on the farm of both types of serpents (the puff adder is the only snake that can bite backward in a 360 degree turn, the cobra can spit and blind you, rotting skin, etc.).  With all this in mind, I warily stepped in to the laundry room and spotted a bright green snake curled in the corner, about 4 feet long.  I was almost positive this was not one of the venomous species, but still armed myself with a laundry basket.  By this time Alistair had come to see what the commotion was about, and stood laughing at the comical scene of Gabby in near hysterics, and me wielding a laundry basket at what was almost certainly a harmless tree snake.  I eventually was able to wrangle the snake, scare it out of its corner, and to my relief, out of the laundry room.   However, to my horror, instead of turning left, out to the lawn and obvious escape route, the snake turned right and went straight under the small gap between the ground and Steve’s back door and into the house.  Shit!  The snake was 95% under the doorway, when Alistair suddenly leapt into action and grabbed the snake’s tail.  He struggled with it a second and eventually yanked the entire snake out from under the doorway.  As soon as the head appeared, the snake whipped around and went for Alistair who immediately chucked the snake backwards.  All three of us stared in awe as the snake sailed through the air, across the lawn, and with unbelievable accuracy landed in a lone bucket that had been left about 20 feet behind us.  SWISH!  We all sat for a minute with our mouths open, dazed at Alistair’s ridiculous capture of the beast in a bucket farther away than I would have ever thought possible for one snake to fly.

Farewell Lulu - 11/28/2012

French Eric, King of the Rock!

GABBY - We slept in a bit this morning preparing breakfast for Eric around 8:30.  I made a final feast for the French, which consisted of eggs and boerwors.  We truly had an incredible time with these people.  It’s amazing that all four of them were total strangers to us just a couple days ago, but have impacted our lives in such a way that we will never forget them.  We have shared something way too unique with each other to forget.  We exchanged information and pictures before parting ways.  I went to Underberg with Tash all day.  I bought all of the groceries for the backpackers, sat in the Trendy Bean and proceeded to bask in the access to technology.  I was also able to buy Ben a Christmas present, which is hard to do when you are together constantly!  You really have to be sneaky.   Later on, Lulu picked me up from town.  Today happened to be Lulu’s last day at the farm, well the last time Ben and I would see her on the farm.  She was really stressed out and anxious about all of the loose ends she still needed to tie up.  On the way home, Lulu pulled out an envelope from her purse which she handed to me.  I immediately recognized the handwriting as Amy’s, my sister’s.  I could barely contain myself as Lulu described that the letter went to Drakensberg Gardens Hotel.  Candice, Steve’s daughter recognized my name and gave the letter to Lulu to give to me.  It was pretty miraculous that the letter actually made its way to me, but then I thought of course it would make its way to me.  The letter sparked a meaningful conversation with Lulu about our families.  I think I managed to get her a bit more excited to return to Mexico.  We finally made it home where I was able to read Amy’s letter in the privacy of Ben and my bedroom.  It was such an amazing thing to receive.  It truly made my day to get that from Ame. 

The Happy Couple, Steve and Lulu

For dinner Ben and I made Spaghetti Bolognese and green beans.  Ben took over the green beans and concocted a dish, which as buttery, garlicy and incredibly delicious.  We said some tearful goodbyes to Lulu because she was leaving early in the morning for the Pietermaritzburg airport.  Lulu is a really sweet person and I sincerely hope that our paths cross again somewhere.  

FrEnglish - 11/27/2012

BEN - This morning we decided to Americanize our breakfast and make everyone breakfast sandwiches, which I think blew everyone's mind.  Eric was smitten.  After breakfast, we said goodbye and paid Bernard.  The morning was a bit grey, but there were patches of blue peeking through, and throughout the morning the sun slowly burned away the gloom.  We rode back through the rock formations from the first day, this time really able to see all of them and marvel at their uniqueness.  We eventually exited and rode across a huge field filled with all kinds of colorful flowers.  In the midst of singing all the Lion King songs in a mix of French and English, Eric (Zulu) asked if we were ready to really run.  With that Jackie (Gabby’s horse) absolutely took off with Mashai and Nandos close at her heals.  My horse, Tofolax along with Trigger, was a bit slower but we all flew across the field whooping until a stream crossing slowed us down. Here we waited for Eric and Eric (not running due to back pain) as our horses gratefully drank from the clear water.

Bushman's Nek

Francois is nuts

A short while later we came across Tsoelikane Falls.  That small river we had been crossing all morning had turned into a giant 25 m waterfall.   It was absolutely beautiful.  We all took pictures, but Francois had other ideas.  He stripped down and leaped!  Holy shit, that is a massive jump.  I snapped some really cool pictures, but was too scared to do it myself.  If I get to come back again, I have to do it.  YOLO.  After Francois dried off, we headed back to the giant valley we had climbed the first day.  We did some more full out galloping, which is a blast, before stopping at the same lunch spot where we were shrouded in mist on the first day.  This time I had the mind bending comprehension of just how high we had actually climbed; looking down at the little trickle of stream way below.  After lunch, the decent began.  The horses were much more timid going down; Tofolax needed goading and direction many different times, trying to pick his way down.  Again at steep sections we would get off and lead the horse by their bridles on foot.  It is much scarier having a giant horse behind you moving downhill on a rock scramble, then uphill.  If they fall, you’re squished. 

We finally reached the river below and the horses started getting excited, knowing that they were close to home.  Again, boom, Jackie was off with all the horses hot on her tail.  The river valley that we had carefully walked through and marvelled at for an hour and a half on the way up was now a blur.  Tofalax forded rivers, sprinted through mud, and just plain ran with reckless abandon.  It was so much fun.  The three lead horses were soon nowhere to be seen.  We covered the entire valley in about 20 minutes at a full sprint.  It wasn’t until the hard concrete of the border post that Tof slowed down and met up with the 3 others.   Hmmm, only 3 others?  Gabby, Francois, and Cecile were nowhere to be seen.  This was very odd, seeing as we were at the border, and I had Gabby’s passport in my pocket.  A few minutes later, a breathless Gabby came panting up and told us what had happened.  Jackie and Co. had decided that international borders weren’t worth their time, and had continued their sprint right on through the border post with Gabby yelling, “Sorry, we’ll be back soooooon!”  The horses didn’t stop until they reached the parking lot where we were dropped off.  They just essentially jumped an international border.  Eventually, Gabby got the horses and two Frenchman to come back and explain what had happened.  

We sat and laughed and let the horses graze.  Tash showed up to pick us up.  On the way out we stopped at a small shop and all bought bombers of Black Label which we drank in the bed of the pick up on the way home.  We laughed and were silly (and a bit drunk) learning French and English words together.  When we arrived at the backpackers, everyone was extremely happy to shower, stuff their faces with Lulu’s dinner, and go to bed early.  What an awesome trip.

Jackie Baby! - 11/26/2012

GABBY - This morning we woke up and all of the clouds from the previous day had dispersed.  The morning was clear, the sky was blue, and we actually had visibility of the surrounding mountains.  Ben and I got started on making breakfast and preparing lunch.  Ben has become an expert at sandwich making, which allowed me to fully concentrate my efforts on making a scrumptious and filling breakfast.  Everyone seemed pretty keen on fried eggs, so I began cracking each egg.  I had realized (a little too late) that there was no spatula to be found in any of the drawers.  I found a sort of wooden spork, which I used to flip the eggs.  It turned into a complete and utter failure.  I got so pissed and frustrated that I cracked an egg so hard on the oven and let the raw, yellow and clear slime run down to the floor.  Without a word, Ben began cleaning up my emotional egg mess.  We are starting to really understand how the other functions under pressure.  I really do need to be left alone sometimes, and it was really helpful for him not to start smothering me with questions or kisses.  We cleaned up the kitchen and eventually were able to get the less than perfect eggs onto everyone’s plates.  After breakfast it was a whirlwind to get ourselves and the 4 French out and onto the saddled horses.  Eric had warned us that it would be a long day and wanted to get us started quickly.  I found Jackie and stroked her facial hair before jumping on her back to begin riding.  Jackie is an aggressive horse and has a tendency of wanting to lead and/or gallop quickly away from the pack.  She is really only supposed to be ridden by experienced riders of that I am not.  She likes to be the 2^nd horse following directly behind the leader.  We followed Eric closely, leading all of the horses farther and farther away from the comfortable Sehlabathebe Lodge.  On our way up into the mountains, we saw some beautiful, vacant stone huts built into the side of massive boulders.  As we continued up, we came to a road where we were able to overlook a Basotho village.  We passed by young children, who gazed at us with wonder and curiosity, unsure of what to make of us until we spoke the universal language: smile and a wave.  Cheesy, I know, but it’s so true!  Most of the people were friendly and responded with the same action.  After a while of riding next to villages, we began our descent into a canyon.  We crossed the river a couple of times until we arrived at the Bushman cave paintings, a highlight of a 3 day trip.  We all stared in awe at the ancient cave paintings, which were drawings of cows, sheep, and humans.  We didn’t spend a whole lot of time there as we were all getting pretty hungry for lunch, so we continued on.  

Paradise Lunch Spot

Eric brought us to a beautiful spot with shade underneath a cliff overhang just up from the river.  We chowed on some of Ben’s special sandwiches and splashed around in the freezing, cold water.  Eric got us moving again after we had explored the river and boulders surrounding our quaint lunch spot.  We had another 1 ½ of riding until we reached the Chinese shop in Sehlabathebe.  After some sporadic galloping and subsequent groans from the peanut gallery, mainly French Eric whose back had become seriously sore, we reached the shop.  Ben and I each enjoyed a luke warm Coke from the shop and bought some famous Lesotho socks!  Steve had told us about these socks, which are basically glorified soccer socks.  They were high socks with a shoelace at the top to keep them from slipping down to your ankle.   We bought 5, all different colors and left satisfied with our purchase.  They also had beautiful Basotho blankets there, but they were expensive and probably not real (according to Steve).  While we were sipping on Cokes, we saw a couple sheep herders herding hundreds of sheep down the dirt road.  When we began to ride again, we passed the sheep herd.  As we passed the sea of wool, the sheep herder in the back cracked his whip hard.  That got our horses moving a bit so that we passed them in no time. I was riding right behind Eric for most of the time until Jackie decided she wanted to be on the opposite side of the road.  Eric said it was fine as long as she didn’t wander off.  Well, wander off she did, more like canter off she did.  She had spotted a farm on the right hand side and felt inclined to start cantering up the dirt road to the top house!  I had absolutely no control of her.  While Jackie was up at the top house, I saw French Eric’s horse take off and get up on his hind legs.  He managed to hang on, but all hell had broken loose.  Trigger, Pascaline’s horse took off and followed Jackie to the top house.  I tried to keep it together and guide Jackie and Trigger down on horse, but they were not having it.  As soon as I would get her going the right direction, she would continue to turn so that she was facing the completely wrong direction.  I had to jump off the horse and guide her down the drive to the main road.  It was embarrassing for sure.  I asked Eric why she had taken off like that.  He told me that Steve used to own that farm and had some of the Khotso horses staying there in Lesotho.  Jackie was one of those horses, so she was familiar with the farm and wanted to hang out there.  She’s a really smart horse, but super stubborn and not for someone as inexperienced as I am.  We were all getting very hot, tired, and sore by that point, but still had another hour or so until we reached the lodge again.  We had basically done a giant loop, which was great because we got to see so much more.  We climbed some tricky mountain passages and ascended to a flat plain.  We walked and walked, stopping for pee breaks until we finally reached the lodge again.  It was an absolutely incredible ride, but it was long!  We were riding for about 7 hours in total, which left my tail bone a bit worse for the wear.

Check out those Lesotho socks!  

All of us sat outside, enjoyed drinks and each other’s company.  Ben and I took a load off by resting and taking baths before beginning to conquer dinner.  We ended up cooking steak on the braii and enjoyed the remains of the potatoes that took 2 days to cook.  I whipped up a simple salad with an oil, salt and pepper dressing.  We were so blessed to be with such a great, easy-going group of people.  We really had a blast with them throughout our entire trip.  We ate, drank and were merry until about 9:00 when we all passed out with   exhaustion.

Up in the Clouds - 11/25/2012

BEN - We had yet another early hectic morning of making breakfast, lunch, and packing food for a Lesotho trip.  The difference today was that this time we were actually packing for ourselves!  Both Gabby and I were giddy with excitement as we accomplished everything, and got everyone all geared up.  We threw some clothes and cameras into a saddle bag, and we were off.  We jammed into the bed of the pick up truck with our four new French adventurers; Eric, Francois, Cecile, and Pascaline.  We started climbing up the mountains and toward Lesotho.  The Frenchmen were just as excited and enthusiastic as we were, making for a fun ride.  They really seem like a great group of people, which should make our trip that much more enjoyable.  After about 40 minutes of uncomfortable, but scenic driving in the bed of the truck, we reached Bushman's Nek, the border post and giant valley that separates South Africa and Lesotho.  Eric was our guide (which I was happy about) and started saddling up the seven horses for our trip.

Some rock formations appear from the gloom

I would be riding Tofalax, a huge toffee colored male known for being strong, but slow.  Gabby would be riding Jackie, Lulu’s horse who is temperamental and extremely fast when she wants to be.  The pairings seemed pretty fitting.  We set off and had a brief wait at the border, where we just handed in our passports for a stamp.  With that, we were off and within minutes had to face our first river crossing.  We had a number of these, the horses expertly maneuvering the slippery rocks.  The day was hot, and I felt as if I was in Middle Earth, riding through the breath taking beauty of the valley surrounded by sheer mountains.  About an hour into the ride, I realized that those sheer mountains were what we were about to climb.  As we started our ascent, I began to realize just how strong these horses actually were; sometimes leaping up a few feet to take the next step.  As we wound our way up some clouds began to roll in, and before we knew it, we were enveloped by them.  Visibility became zero and the temperature dropped, making everyone reach for their sweatshirts and rain coats.  We continued to ascend, occasionally having to get off the horses and lead them by their bridles up particularly steep and rocky sections.  It was after one of these sections that we crested the lip, and Eric called for lunch.  

We had reached the top, a mountain plateau with lots of grass for the horses to chow down on.  We all sucked down some warm tea and coffee from thermoses to warm up.  We all devoured my homemade cheese, tomato, sweet Thai chili, mayo, and ham sandwiches.  We were clearly missing a spectacular view of the valley below, the cloud cover was just too dense.  After lunch we followed the grassy plateau.   The land was mostly flat so we were able to gallop and cantor quite a bit.  Once again, I started shaky  but got the hang of it eventually.  Suddenly, out of the gloom in front of us, giant rock formations appeared.  The terrain completely changed as we navigated through rock arches and past strange twisted rock pillars.  Together with the dense fog, it mad quite a fantastical, mythological feel.  After many twists and turns through the rock, we reached our goal, a lodge situated right next to these rock outcrops and next to the high peaks of the mountains.  Apparently the King of Lesotho comes and spends his holidays at this lodge.  We met Bernard, the owner, and settled in to our cushy rooms, complete with an absurd number of blankets, and ridiculously soft pillows.  

We enjoy some sherry in the lodge.
From left: Eric, Pascaline, Cecile, me, Francoise, Gabby, and Eric

After 5 ½ hours of riding, everyone was tired, so Gabby and I made tea, coffee, and popcorn for everyone while Eric fed and tended to the horses.  We broke out a bottle of sherry, a staple in the area, and all toasted to the trip, and our guide Eric.  Eric let me buy a Muluti, Lesotho’s own beer, which tasted eerily similar to Pennsylvania’s Rolling Rock.  We spent some time getting to know our new travel buddies, and laughing about how much our butts and backs already hurt.  Gabby and I started cooking; tonight we would feast on chicken, potatoes, beans, and salad.  The potatoes took forever to cook, so we eventually just ate without them.  The French can certainly eat and drink, each of the girls took the chicken skeleton and literally sucked every bone dry.  The best part of the night was when they refused to let Gabby and I do any dishes.  They insisted on helping.  Awesome!  This really was the perfect trip with the perfect group of people.  Gabby and I curled up in our cushy bed and were instantly asleep.

Poop Identification - 11/24/2012

Log Cabin and Rondawels

GABBY - We woke up early to prepare for the super hectic morning that awaited us.  We were cooking breakfast for 10 people, which is a million times easier than dinner for 10 people, but you’re not as awake.  I decided on some standard scrambled eggs with fresh chives from Lulu and Steve’s house.  Lulu has her own garden where she collects a good amount of her vegetables and spices.  She told us to fry up some boervoers for the guests.  It was a cheese infused sausage, which was actually incredibly flavorful and tasty.  We decided to serve the guests about half of the meat and keep the other half for ourselves.  Ooops.  I made Ben and I some epic egg sandwiches containing sausage, egg, cheese, tomatoes and fried onions.  It was a nice way to begin our morning, though a little crazy for sure.  Eric is a guest who checked in late last night with 3 other French people and expressed interest in going on a Lesotho hiking trip.  While we were drinking, I happened to convince him to do Lesotho on horseback with Khotso.  The group seemed super excited about it, which matched Ben and mine considering we were going to be able to jump on the trip with them!  Well, this morning when we saw him, he said that they actually decided to go on a 3 day trip!  Ben and I could not have been more ecstatic.  We weren’t sure if it was going to be possible for both of us to go on a trip before Lulu was leaving, but here was our perfect chance!  We were going to be in another country tomorrow! 

Ben and The Drakensbergs

We successfully checked everyone out and began preparing horse rides for some arriving guests.  One of the groups of guests was a couple from Durban.  He was a stocky bruiser guy and his girlfriend looked like the woman from Legally Blonde, “bend and snap!”.  The first thing he asked me is if I was beat up because of my scabbed eyebrow.  When he went down to the horses, he asked Ben to hold his keys.  They got to talking and he first said this about his girlfriend, “I’m a surfer dude, and she’s my surfer chick”.   Then in regards to the keys, “There’s a lot of land for me to bury you if anything happens to this car.”  What a freak.  

After we were sufficiently weirded out, we met a completely normal, friendly family with 2 young girls both with strawberry red curls.  They also had a 4 year old boy with them who was a firecracker and enjoyed being the center of attention.  Later I found out he was the family’s nephew and his dad was coming to pick him up.  The family of 4 was going on a 1 horse ride while the young boy, Ky was going on a pony ride.  Tash, Eric, Sipho and Sandile saddled up all of the horses, while the kids tried on different sized helmets.  They managed to get the creepy, surfer couple on a ride and out of our sight.  Then Ky started pulling the “I’m tired” card and defiantly decided to skip the pony ride.  The family asked me to check on their dog, Murphey, who was in their car.  I decided to take the black lab out of the car and go for a stroll around the farm.  Ky wanted to come with me, so the 3 of us set off towards the river, just 100 yards or so away from the backpackers.  We made small talk, mostly about the horse and cow poop we were spotting and avoiding on our walk.  Finally, we got back to the backpackers where Ky’s dad was waiting with a smile.  I went inside to clean up some dishes before walking into the lounge and finding Ky sitting on the couch reading The Economist.  I looked at the bookshelf and picked out a kids’ book about the different kinds of poop found in Glacier National Park.  I thought it was fitting seeing as we had just identified some poop on our walk.  We had a nice time sitting, reading and laughing at the word poop.  The family came back excited and satisfied with their horse ride.  I reluctantly gave them their dog and nephew back before saying goodbye.  After they left, Ben and I granted ourselves some time off.  We walked to the Trout Hatchery for lunch, which is just down our driveway and up the road a bit.  Both of us munched on 2 very American meals: Chicken sandwich and burger with fries and chocolate milkshakes.  It was nice to get away from the farm for a little and enjoy the company of each other.  When we returned back, I found Lulu in the backpackers.  She asked me to go up to her place to help with the dinner for the night.  She was in the process of making Mexican meatballs.  She taught me a lot about how to make a Bolognese sauce, how to cook rice, how to make Mexican meatballs, etc.  We actually held the meat together with rice instead of bread crumbs like a lot of the meatballs I’ve seen made.  After the cooking lesson, she took me outside and gave me a tour of her garden.  She wants me to keep it up while she’s gone, which seems like a lot of pressure.  She has all kinds of stuff growing in there.  I think I will really get into using the fresh herbs, though.  I went back down to the backpackers and began tossing a salad, with Ben lending a hand to help chop veggies.  Everyone really seemed to enjoy the meal, which is always nice to hear.  So far, there has not been a bad review!  Ben and I went to bed early in preparation for our big upcoming 3 days in Lesotho!  

Blue's Pool - 11/23/2012

BEN - We woke up and did our requisite chores, which now include breakfast for guests and the clean up afterward.  Once all the guests were fed and off on whatever daily adventure they had planned for the day, Gabby and I had a wide open afternoon.  We decided to do some more hiking on the farm.  We put up the ‘call if you need us’ sign, diverted the phone to our cell phone (actually Adrian’s old one) and set off to check out the Mzimkulu Lookout.   It was a simple 1.5 km hike that wound up and around a small, rocky hill that looks out over the road, the Mzimkulu River, and the valley beyond.  We got up to the top and had a wonderful view of the mountains as well.  We got to the very edge of the hill, which was actually composed of giant cliffs, found the perfect rock, and had a snack of apples and chips while taking in the scenery. As we made our way down the mountain and past the horse corral, where the sick and pregnant stay, we noticed something different.  The large white female horse that was very pregnant since the day we had arrived was coming out of the woods with a jet black young foal!  Holy shit!  In the time it had taken us to hike up, have a snack, and hike back down, a baby was born and was already on its feet!  We stood and watched the newcomer a bit as it tottered around on its new legs.  We would later learn that this was actually a mule (donkey-horse mix) and a disappointment to the farm, as they thought they would have another big beautiful horse.  Whatever, it is still very cute and very cool in my book.

Mzimkulu Lookout

We got back and Steve suggested that since it was such a hot day, we go for another hike up to Blue’s Pool.  A young German couple had just finished their horse ride, so we invited them along.  We hiked upstream alongside the small river that runs through part of the farm, until we reached a beautiful little swimming hole with a small waterfall running into it.  It is right near the old log cabin on the property, way out in the middle of nowhere (Steve wants to fix up the cabin and make it a luxury accommodation).  There is an old wooden platform a few meters up from the pool to jump from, which I of course took advantage of.  It was a bit scary at first, but the water was surprisingly not-freezing and very refreshing.  We jumped and played for a while before making our way back to the backpackers to prepare for our largest dinner yet: 22 people!!  

The leap into Blue's Pool

The Lesotho trip was returning and we had a bunch of newcomers, so it was time for a giant braai.  Lulu made some excellent soup and Steve some Lesotho bread (which is like a giant, delicious cake).   The meat was wonderful, and we had a large fire going, making for a warm atmosphere.  I worked the bar for pretty much the whole night, chatting with whoever wanted a drink, and meeting all kinds of strange and cool people.  Gabby and I spent a lot of time with Michael and Greg, the two Americans, and had fun being silly and laughing at their antics; flirting with the ever crazy-party-girl-cougar Tash.  At one point Tash grabbed two viennas from the fridge, ate them raw, and Greg exclaimed, “O my God! There are two of them and there are two of us!”  It turned out to be a great day and a pretty fun night.

A Khotso Thanksgiving- 11/22/2012

Feast

GABBY - We woke up really early for a Lesotho pack-out session with Lulu.  As I walked into the kitchen, I found a distraught Mexican woman who looked seriously burnt out. She told me that she needed to talk to me about something.  Lulu and Steve had gone into Pietermaritzberg yesterday to sort out her flight home to Mexico.  She was supposed to be leaving in mid-December, but she found out that there was about a 1000 USD difference if she left in late November.  Obviously she could not pass that up, but she was emotional and clearly stressed.  Both of us teared up and groaned about how awful the situation was.  Ben and I were going to be left alone again by someone who knows how things run around here.  Come November 28^th, we are here with Steve.  Tash is also leaving after the 30^th of November, which only provides Ben and me with more responsibility.  I know that we are starting to really get the hang of it here, but it is nice to know that you always have someone to call if things get stressful.  When Lulu leaves, Ben and I will be doing all of the cooking, grocery shopping, bookings, and pack-outs.  Woah, talk about experience.

Our eclectic international Thanksgiving

Anyway, back to the Lesotho trip.  Lulu ran through the Do’s and Don’ts of how to start the morning of a pack-out, which also includes breakfast.  She went through her pack-out routine, while Ben and I wandered around like worker bees collecting frozen food items from different fridges.  Breakfast is also included on the morning of a Lesotho trip, so we cooked up some French Toast and got the guests packing.  Each person takes a saddle bag balanced on both sides with food and clothes for the trip.  We hurried them along a bit so they could get out around 8:30 am.  It was a mad rush between 6:45 and 8:30 serving breakfast, packing out, making sandwiches for their lunch, and loading the truck with horses, saddle bags and people.  After we got everyone on their way, Ben and I relaxed for awhile.  I was feeling pretty homesick knowing that I wasn’t going to be with my family on Thanksgiving.  Ben is now becoming my family, which is great, but different.  I was longing for turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, salad with bacon dressing and the company of my family.  Ben and I decided to make Thanksgiving here, despite the fact that it is not celebrated.  We made up a list and gave Tash our requested ingredients, which consisted of turkey, cranberry sauce, and potatoes.  Tash came back with a gammon (ham) and cranberry jelly.  Not quite what we had in mind, but it shall suffice.  Ben and I started preparing Thanksgiving dinner around 4:00.  We made a big Thanksgiving feast for 10 people.  We cooked up mashed potatoes, gammon with a sweet baked bean sauce, peas, corn, and bread stuffing.  I put the cranberry jelly out for good measure, which Gabriele used on his mashed potatoes.  Hmmm, interesting.  I gave an explanation of what Thanksgiving means to me, said a quiet grace with Ben and chowed down on the feast set before us.  It was definitely different from our traditional Thanksgivings at home, but it was our own and it was special.  It was a difficult day not being with our families for sure.  I think we’ve both decided that being away during the holidays isn’t the best and probably won’t ever happen again.  Although, I think we did do a pretty great job bringing Thanksgiving to South Africa.   

Hearts and Hooters - 11/21/12

Gabriele enjoys the spread

BEN - We woke up today and had a mass exodus of check outs, as we got rid of (and collected) both the four Cape Townians and the German couples' money.  The couple was so happy with their stay and our service, that they gave Gabby and me a R80 tip (about 10 bucks!).  Nice!  We got them out the door, sent the American guys (Michael and Greg) on a hike and actually had a few quiet minutes to ourselves.  The day was extremely grey, foggy, and bit chilly; not ideal for any outdoor activities.  We lit a fire and enjoyed its warmth until the American guys got back.  We hung out and chatted with them a bit.  They were super interested in both Expedition 2012 and Keewaydin.  I think one, or both may actually apply to work their next summer.  What a crazy story that would be if it worked out; 'Well we met Ben at the foothills of Lesotho and he told us about this summer camp in Vermont, and now we work there.'  Eventually, Michael and Greg busted out some playing cards, and knew how to play hearts!  YES!  We played a full game to 100, but the boys just weren't up to caliber, passing shooting hands way too often.  I ended up winning on a shoot.  It was nice to have some American company, and a great reminder of home with a game of cards.

The endless game of fetch with Karoo

After our extremely relaxing afternoon, the evening got crazy.  Steve and Lulu were out of town and dinner was on us.  The guests started rolling in:

• Gabriele and Carol - Two 60 something space cadet Frenchmen.  Very frustrating to please
• Xandra - German couple who were very weird.  He only eats eggs and bread and she a vegetarian.  They told us they have were married in Vegas and love to travel there.  They always go back just to visit Pizza Hut, Hooters, and Walmart.  They will be travelling to Lesotho with Greg and Michael tomorrow.
• 2 South Africa Motorcyclists - Older Afrikaans men who liked to drink
• 2 Argentinian magicians who would be doing a magic show for payment for their room (a typical non money-making deal made by Steve)
• A Luxembourgian Couple - Befriended the old Frenchmen instantly, and didn't speak English again for the rest of the night.

Gabby (with my increasing prowess as sous chef) again prevailed against the herds with a delicious curry chicken.  We all ate happily and talked about this and that.  After dinner, the magician decided to do a show for everyone.  We all sat down and were amazed by a variety of card, ball, and rope tricks; all performed in broken English.  He was quite good, and a pretty cool guy to talk to.  He and his wife have been traveling for almost two years, performing magic to all kinds of audiences.  Interesting way to travel.  Gabby and I cleaned up dinner, served a last round of drinks to anyone who was interested, and retreated from the madness to bed.

What the Hail?!? - 11/20/2012

Hineville and me - My horse for the 2 hour ride

GABBY - This morning, I got up early to make breakfast for the incredibly kind German couple.  I cooked up a simple meal of scrambled eggs with onions and fresh chives from Lulu’s garden.  The group of 4 friends from Cape Town easily convinced me to join them on their 2 hour horse ride in the morning.  Ben whipped up a thermos of tea and sent along a packet of biscuits (standard for a 2 hour or 3 hour horse ride).  It was a perfect day to be outside and riding a horse.  It was my first time since a 2 hour meander in the woods on horseback 6 months ago in Wyoming on a family vacation.  Out of the 4 South Africans, Anton, Janice and James were scared shittless to be on a horse, while Hayley was calm and experienced.  Eric led the way after taking a few pictures and set up towards the foothills of the Drakensberg Mountains.  All of the horse rides are done on the farm and provide an incredible view of the Drakensbergs, while also getting a view of Lesotho.  We climbed some steep and tricky passages through boulders before reaching the highest point on the farm: Eland Peak (the point Ben and I hiked to yesterday).  It’s an incredible view up there, so we stopped for some tea and biscuits.  On the way down, Anton decided to pull the Trigger (horse’s actual name) and gallop through the field.  Holy crow these horses can move!  I was pretty terrified to be running that fast without a guide in front, but I managed to hang on and breathe normally again.  I couldn’t believe the contrast of the 2 hour ride I did in Wyoming and the 2 hour ride I was doing at Khotso.  The difference was pretty much night and day.  In South Africa, the mentality for these activities is that if you want to act like an idiot and get hurt, then it’s your fault.   After we got back from the ride, I went into Underberg with Anton and James to buy the groceries for the backpackers.  I bought a bunch of food for dinner, which I was making for the German couple, Ben and me.

Check out them balls!  Hail this size...can you believe it?!? 

When we arrived back at the backpackers after our trip to the Spar, we noticed interesting clouds forming over the foothills outside.  Within the hour it began to hail down on Khotso.  I have never experienced anything like it in my life.  There’s a green card in Apples to Apples that says golf ball sized hail, which I always thought was a strange card.  It now has an entirely applicable meaning for both Ben and me.  Instead of golf ball, it was actually hailing field hockey or lacrosse balls.  I have never seen anything like it before.  It was complete madness at the backpackers.  Everyone was running to their cars, dodging the potentially impairing hail to cover their vehicles with towels and blankets.  Ben and James were having fun running through the hail to collect the biggest balls of hail.  We stared in wonder until the hail passed and brought a steady flow of rain.  

I began to cook dinner with a recipe Amy (my sister) found from the show, The Chew.  I made a pasta dish with corn, bacon, chicken, cherry tomatoes, spinach, garlic, and other spices.  It was delicious (if I do say so myself) and left everyone full and satisfied.  After dinner, 2 guys checked into the dorm rooms who happened to be American.  Greg and Michael were both from California and were just finishing studying in Port Elizabeth.  They were staying for a couple days, which was exciting since they were American, young, fun and friendly!  They were the first Americans we had seen at Khotso, so we befriended them quickly.  Ben and I called it a night after a few beers with the Californians.

Eland Peak - 11/19/2012

The Drakensbergs from Eland Peak

BEN - We woke up and crushed through our morning chores.  Gabby's eye looked almost normal; so much so that she was able to put her contacts back in, and we decided to hike.  At around 11:30 we made a bunch of sandwiches and geared up for a hike to Eland Peak, the highest point on the farm.  We walked out the back door and through a few barbed wire fences, and we were off.  The day was bright and hot, but it felt amazing to be out of the confines of the backpackers and exploring the beautiful countryside.  There are no trails on the farm (some horse paths) so we just had a general idea of what direction we needed to go.   We hopped a stream and headed up a large valley, our only landmark being the river.  We ended up spooking a large herd of grazing cattle, but continued to follow the river bed, occasionally spotting little geckos or giant colorful grasshoppers.  We eventually got up high enough for our first view of the Drakensberg Mountains.  At this high point we also spotted our destination, Eland Peak.  Rather than follow the circuitous horse path up the top, we decided to just go for up and push straight uphill.  Both Gabby and I were absolutely covered in sweat, and were relieved to reach the cool breeze of the summit 15 tough minutes later.  We sat down and devoured our sandwiches while taking in the spectacular 360 degree view.  After some pictures we headed down the mountain and valley, and retreated to the backpackers.  We had a bunch of newcomers arriving so we made sure everything/everyone was prepared.  The first arrival was a nice German couple who we got

Mountain Babe

along very well with.  The man had burned his feet quite badly during the day.  They were driving through a small town with traffic and a boy had opened their back door and grabbed his bag which contained camera, passport, wallet, etc.  Without thinking (and without shoes)  the man chased after the kid, grabbed him, broke his sunglasses, and got his bag back.  Pretty good work for an unassuming, kind German guy.  They were tired from their ordeal, so they went to their room to rest for awhile.  The next party that came were four 20-22 year old students from University of Cape Town (2 guys, 2 girls).  At first they were a bit stand-offish, but they eventually loosened up and hung out with us a bit.  They were a bit strange, and Gabby and I still cannot figure out their group dynamic.  It didn't make sense.  Anyway, a friend of Steve and Lulu's named Lee also came.  He is the South African representative of an organization called World Challenge, which sounds pretty cool.  We ended up having a pretty full house which means one thing in South Africa, time to braai.  With Lulu's help I manned the braai and cooked up some steak and borvost.  We all sat down and had a big family dinner, laughing at Steve's antics and stories.  This backpackers certainly has a warmer, more welcoming feel than others we've been to.

A Lazy Sunday - 11/18/12

Lamby and me 

GABBY - We woke up around 7:15 in order to be at reception at 7:30.  The German couple was leaving today, so we needed to collect their cash money.  While they were eating their porridge, we dumped our knowledge of the Garden Route on them.  We went through the Coast to Coast book together and gave them the best tips and treasures that we discovered on our trip only a month ago.  I think it was a little too early in the morning for them to appreciate the gems we were providing them with, but Ben and I took a nice trip down memory lane.  Lulu called during our info sesh to alert us of the time she was leaving to go into town.  We hopped into the car around 9:00.  I spent the entire ride to Underberg in the back of Lulu’s truck learning Zulu from Thembi.  She speaks both Zulu and Xhosa, which happen to be way more similar than I expected.  Lulu dropped Ben and me off at one of the two internet cafes in Underberg called The Grind for about an hour.  It was especially nice to upload the blog and check in with friends and family.  We met up with Lulu and Thembi an hour later and learned about another one of Lulu’s side businesses.  She sells one or two wash packets of shampoo, conditioner, hair cream and Vaseline.  She was talking to a man named Alex about selling the packets in his local craft shop.  While Lulu and Thembi sold products to some local women, Ben and I took a look inside Alex’s store.  We learned that he was originally from Kenya and sold crafts mostly made in Lesotho and Kenya.  We knew it was time to go when we heard the honking of a horn coming from Lulu’s truck.  We drove to the local Spar (supermarket) and bought some of Ben and my essential foods.  We left with avocados, mushrooms, viennas (hot dogs), and chocolate (of course with Ben).  It was a really slow day and a Sunday, so Lulu told us to relax and chill.  Ben and I made a feast consisting of cheese dogs and guacamole with Doritos.  

There's a storm a-brewin'

We decided to watch “The Hurtlocker”, which was good the 2^nd time around for the both of us.  While we watched the movie, an extremely friendly Dutch couple came and wanted to go on a 2 hour horse ride.  We kicked ourselves in gear, called Eric and told him to rally some horses, made a pot of tea and sent along some biscuits.  A successful send-off!  We finished our evening eating pasta with mushrooms, tomatoes, spinach, garlic in a cream sauce and beginning the fourth season of “The Sons of Anarchy.”  The night reminded me of a casual date night in the states with Ben.    

Football's for Pansies - 11/17/12

Ben with Storm

GABBY - We woke up very sluggishly and began our daily duties of stocking the bar, feeding Fergie (Fluffy/Fergeson) and cleaning up around the backpackers.  Adrian came down around 9:00 after we had finished checking our e-mail, Facebook, and blog.  He was going into town to sort out some banking issues and told us that we could hang some posters of other backpackers on the walls inside.  There were also a couple pictures of Steve that he wanted hung somewhere.  Ben and I organized the posters geographically starting with Cape Town and ending with Joburg.  Adrian has been a bit of a backpacker’s mentor when it comes to this place.  He has told us our duties as volunteers and is always available for questions.  Today is Adrian’s final day at the backpackers because he has let his visa expire.  He has to leave the country by Monday, so he has booked a flight to visit his family in Hong Kong, which leaves at an absurdly early hour tomorrow morning.  Ben and I are essentially running this backpackers after being here a grand total of 4 full days.  We are definitely getting the hang of it, but it will be very strange not having him around as a lifeline.  Lulu and Steve stopped by on their way to Drakensburg.  They were going to deliver some of the water that they bottled for a company called Drakensburg Gardens.  Lulu gave us a couple of tasks to keep us busy, which included trimming the hedges, cleaning rain gutters, and moving some things down off the porch and out of the way.  Our day was spent sprucing up the backpackers with posters and pictures of Steve, while completing the jobs Lulu laid out for us.  

The terror herself: Smeagal

When Adrian came back, he invited Ben and me to go watch Rugby with Steve, Lulu, and him around 4:00 at the Trout Hatchery Restaurant right down the road.  We excitedly agreed and prepared for our big night out on the town.  I went with Lulu and Steve around 4:15, while Adrian and Ben stayed behind to try and fix the fax machine for Adrian.  The poor guy has had such a rough time trying to fly out and get everything squared away in preparation for his departure.  The three of us (Lulu, Steve and me) walked into the restaurant and sat on bar stools, waiting for the game to start.  I ordered a glass of red wine and cheered for South Africa as if I knew the game of rugby inside out and was a diehard fan.  I must say, football at home doesn’t seem quite as hardcore when you’re watching men hit each other with no padding whatsoever.  In the first 10 minutes of the game a guy was knocked out cold for a couple seconds, shook it off, and setup for the next play.  These guys have some serious cohunes.  When Ben and Adrian arrived we ordered two rounds of chips (fries), which were crispy and delicious with some All Gold ketchup (not quite Heintz, but closest thing to it here).  South Africa won, which was good considering there was a rather aggressive, rowdy fan nicknamed Johno who was getting riled up over anything and everything.  After the game, we decided it was probably best to get back to the employee-vacant farm/backpackers and check on the German couple staying the night.  They had hiked the whole day, so they were already in bed when we got back.  Adrian, Ben and I joined Steve and Lulu at their house for a family TV dinner.  We watched Manchester United play Norwich in football (soccer) and chowed on Lulu’s delicious concoction of lentils, rice, Greek yogurt, carrots, and other veggies.  I always feel very full, but healthy after eating her food.  Ben and I said a final goodbye to Adrian, since he was leaving early the next morning.  It is a really unfortunate situation and blows considering Adrian is the only person our age here on the farm.  I think we really could have gotten along great if given a month and a half together.  Anyway, we walked home and finished the night with 3 rousing episodes of “Friends”, which I have to admit, were pretty funny.  

Hey, Want to Run a Backpackers? - 11/16/2012

Leading a lost lamb back to his pen, just another day at the farm

Some of the horses on the farm

BEN - We woke up this morning ready to go.  Gabby's eye is feeling a bit better and the swelling is finally starting to go down a bit.  Steve and Adrian were down at the backpackers early in the morning and asked if we wanted to paint.  We of course agreed and took on the large undertaking of painting the entire front hallway.  The hallway is kind of a nasty, mustard yellow color with chips and residue of old posters and stickers all over it.  We moved the tables and other furniture out of the way, laid some newspapers down, and got to work.  The wall required two coats each so this was definitely an all day project.  I was on roller duty, while Gabby was in charge of the small paint brush, handling the finer details, ie coloring inside the lines.  The project took the entire day, with requisite stops for lunch, to play with Karoo, or to feed Simon some piece of food that he probably shouldn't have.  By late afternoon, the walls and I were completely covered in white paint, and looked great.  As we were marveling at our own handiwork, Adrian came in and dropped a bomb on us.  His tourist visa was expiring, and no one would help him renew it.  His work visa was not coming through.  In short, he had to leave the country.  He was flying to Hong Kong in 2 days, to go visit his parents for a month before coming back and resuming his duties as manager of the backpackers.  Just like that, Gabby and I were in charge of running a backpackers; a full blown business.  We were now responsible for customer care, finances, and upkeep of a hostel.  What the hell?!  We had two guests at night, a nice German couple, and one of the strangest most frustrating ladies I've ever met.  We were talking to the Germans about India (they had some good advice) and this lady was blatantly making up facts and talking over everything the couple had to say.  She was very frustrating.  Gabby and I ended up making some stir fry for dinner which was tasty as always, and we headed off to bed, our guests happy and new business running nice and smooth.

The Wild West - 11/15/2012

BEN - Gabby's eye looks marginally better this morning, but she is still sleepy and just doesn't feel right.  Together we completed our morning chores, and went out to help Tash.  Gabby and I got the wonderful task of shoveling horse poop out of the main corral because there were some rides going out.  As we shoveled, the main herd of riding horses were herded down the mountain into the area we were shoveling.  A few of the horses were extremely interested in us.  They are truly magnificent creatures; huge and muscular from long treks into Lesotho and around the farm.  Adrian told us we could go on the ride.  Gabby just wasn't feeling up to it, so she decided to go to bed, and for the first time I sadly went off without Gabby.  My horse's name was Storm, sturdy brown male.  Eric was leading the 3 hour trek with me and a couple on their honeymoon as the riders.  The couple both had riding experience, and Eric is Zulu, and thus came out of the womb on horseback.  As we trotted off, Tash yelled some last minute instruction and words of advice.

A small piece of the Khotso Farm

We set off straight up the nearest mountain and climbed to the top; the horses expertly maneuvering the rocky terrain. At the top, my jaw dropped at the unfathomable scenery.  I hadn't really gotten a proper view of the are until then.  We were in the foothills of the giant, beautiful Drakensburg Mountains which make up the Kingdom of Lesotho, or as it is called, The Kingdom in the Sky.  Opposite the mountains is a luscious  green valley filled with farms and streams running from the mountains.  After our first peak, we rode along a high flat plateau filled with wild horses and tall grass.  The Khotso Farm is massive, stretching as far as the eye can see.  Eric took off at a trot which all the other horses began to follow.  At first my balls took some punishment, but I eventually got the correct form down so as to save my future children.  We slowed a bit when Eric turned and gave me a sly grin and said, "Ready? Lean forward, balls of your feet on the stirrups, knees together, Go!"  With that he took off at a full on gallop.  I was still looking down at my feet, figuring out how to get them i the stirrups correctly, when Storm took off.  For about two minutes I hung on for dear life as we raced across the open plain.  We were at the next mountain in no time, and when I finally opened my eyes, there was Eric on his big horse with the same grin.  Whoa!  We climbed a couple of more peaks and eventually reached the highest point on the farm, Eland Mountain, where we dismounted and had sandwiches, tea, and crackers.  We let the horses graze and I chatted with the honeymooners about this and that.  After some pictures we were off again down towards the other side of the farm.  Multiple times I would hear Eric's call, see the grin, and we would take off.  I eventually got used to it, and could actually enjoy the rush by the end; my horse weaving between the others at full speed.  At one long straight away I was a bit behind the other three when I looked up and saw Eric and the other guy on the ground, their horses still running way ahead of where they lay.  "Whoaaaaaa," I cried in true cowboy fashion, slowing down Storm's gallop and cantering over to the guys.  Apparently Eric's horse had stepped in a hole, and had gotten a scare, causing the other horse to freak, and kick off both men.  Eric was up in an instant, but the guest was a bit slower.  No serious injuries, but the guy was a bit shaken and bruised.  Eric took off and grabbed the other horses, corralling them back to us.  Everyone composed themselves and we set off again, trotting back to Khotso after an exhilaration  beautiful 3 hours of riding (I just want to point out that the 'beginner' didn't fall off, but the horse master did. Ha).

Eric gives me some advice before Storm whisks me away

I returned to the backpackers to find Gabby sleeping.  I woke her for some food and the next round of meds before heading off to help out Eric and Sipho mill feed.  This meant starting up a big, loud machine that kicked up all kinds of dust.  Eric loaded my bucket with corn, I lifted the heavy bucket up into the machine, Sipho hauled away the milled grains of corn.  Lather, rinse, repeat for about an hour until I was nice and sore and the corn was all milled.  We finished around 4 and I headed back for a much needed shower.

Gabby seemed to finally feel a bit better, and we were happy to be invited up to Lulu and Steve's for dinner.  Lulu made a magnificent chili type sauce that was then drizzled over sweet potatoes.  We talked and laughed; we both really like and respect both Lulu and Steve.  Just as tea was being poured, Steve got a call.  He came back and said, "There is Basotho movement on the mountain, Adrian let's go, Ben can you shoot? Do you guys want to come?"  Adrian pulled a rifle out of no where and with that I was standing in the back of a giant Land Rover with a spot light, Adrian next to me with the rifle, Gabby and Steve in the cab.  Our mission was to either catch or scare the hell out of the Basotho trespassers.   Basotho are natives of neighboring Lesotho and steal horses, cattle, and sheep.  Adrian told me that normally the Basotho haul marijuana over the border.  For their return trip, they steal a horse or two, using the farmer's barbed wire fencing as the horse's bridle. On horseback, they heard sheep or cattle back into Lesotho.  He said Steve has even chased the 'Basoths' into the country and gotten his horses back, but their spirits are broken and they are unrideable due to the barbed wire.  In dry season, the Basoths will set fire near your house and then steal your cattle.  Which would you rather save, home or herd?  As I held on to the back of the cab, standing in the bed of the truck, scanning the darkness, occasionally catching little deer or antelope in the beam of my torch, my adrenaline pumped like mad.  We drove way out into the farm, Adrian occasionally firing shots whose noise ricocheted off and all around the mountainous terrain, hopefully scaring any trespassers.  Eventually Steve cut the engine because he saw some lights, and a bent over fence (usually from passing heavy bags of weed over it).  He grabbed the rifle, and told us to drive 200 m away and cut the lights/engine.  There we left Steve, standing in the blackness, only the thousands of stars lighting his way.  We waited on the truck, heard him fire a few shots, and 15 minutes later he appeared out of the darkness.  Balls of steel.  We drove back and Steve manned the light as I held the rifle.  I had another 'What the hell am I doing moment.'  I am standing in the bed of a pick up, holding a rifle, hunting humans right outside the border of Lesotho as the most stars I've ever seen watches from above.  Not your typical evening.  We returned to the backpackers, me amped up, Gabby a bit shell shocked, but both thankful for the experience. T.I.A.

The Khotso Crew - 11/13/2012

Simon breaking into the kitchen

BEN - I woke up to find Gabby still in a lot of pain with a very swollen eye. She's getting upset and scared and I am doing everything I can to take care of her and figure this thing out. After getting up, we almost immediately met Thembi, one of the Zulu women who cleans the backpackers. She immediately took to caring for Gabby, gently bathing her eye in some warm, soapy water. Thembi is already way kinder than the women who worked at Orange Elephant who would not even make eye contact with us. All the workers here are Zulu people and have gone out of their way to welcome us. Before I continue on with the day's story, I guess I should introduce the full cast of characters:

• Steve: Owner of the farm and somewhat of a living legend in South Africa. Addicted to running. Once ran from here to Knysna to visit his daughter, has plans to run the Iditarod in Alaska (you know, the dog sled race). I immediately respect him and he has been nothing but warm and hospitable to us.
• Lulu: Steve's wife. From Mexico, Lulu was a guest here 8 years ago and since married Steve and loves this place. Incredible cook. Involved in the Zulu community tutoring children. Loves to chat.
• Adrian: 22 year old British guy who is in charge of the business side of the backpackers. Very nice guy with a lot on his plate.
• Allaster: Steve's brother who is addicted to running, the outdoors, and alcohol. In a rough spot and is kind of a lost soul. He is very animated and friendly.
• Tash: In charge of the horses and animal care on the farm. Super fit and pretty much runs the whole farming operation. Seems like a cool person.
• Thembi: Mentioned above, unbelievably kind and motherly. She has set on the seemingly impossible task of teaching us Zulu.
• Happiness: Zulu woman in charge of Steve's house. Have only briefly met her but is apparently the nicest woman in the world and Lulu's best friend.
• Andreas: Head Zulu man. Does any repair/handiwork around the farm. Always smiling with a big goofy grin. He has been dating Thembi for 8 years.  Andreas also leads most of the horse treks into Lesotho.
• Eric: Zulu handyman who does everything. Very outgoing and kind of a goofball. I'm excited to get to know him better.
• Sipho: Always with Eric, very quiet and shy. Apparently is a bit of a thief occasionally.
• Smeagul: Giant Anatolian Shepard dog. Dog in charge of the herds, sheep are her babies. Biggest job is killing jackal and leopard. Must give her a wide berth, and must let her come to you.
• Karoo: Border collie with unlimited energy. Very young, and supposed to be a sheep dog, but has fallen victim to the stick. Incessantly, unrelentingly, obsessed with fetch of any kind of stick/log/branch.
• Fluffy/Fergie: Huge fat cat who lazes around all day and is very talkative. Have to constantly wrestle her out of our bed.
• Simon: Very old horse who thinks he's a dog. Loves Steve, but is starting to slow down a bit. Sometimes comes into Steve's house to lie down and sleep when a door is left open.
• Jess #1: Long haired border collie. Follows Allister around
• Jess #2: Queen bee. A bit old, and follows Steve around. Lovey once she trusts you.



Our backyard

• On top of all those characters there are 150 wild horses, over 300 sheep, cows, and various other farm life making for a full, lively, and always entertaining environment.

Anyway, getting back to the day's story. Gabby was not feeling any better, so I asked if we could hitch a ride with Lulu into town to see a doctor. One beautifully scenic drive later we were in Underberg, a small but cool outdoorsy, farming town. The doctor stoically and silently examined Gabby. He said it could either be a viral infection or shingles. He prescribed a cream to rub on the eye and an antibiotic that turned out to be pretty expensive. All drugged up, we headed back to Khotso. I'm still a bit nervous, but hopefully the drugs kick in and everything turns out ok. We decided that we would try going for a short hike around the farm, but a few minutes in Gabby stopped because she just wasn't feeling up to it. Even in our short walk we saw some absolutely incredible scenery; rolling hills full of grazing horse and sheep leading up to the towering Drakensberg Mountains and Lesotho. We can see the Kingdom of Lesotho from our backyard. We returned and Gabby napped for a bit. Eventually we were able to sit down with Adrian to find out our duties and responsibilities. Pretty simple stuff. It is really nice to have our expectations set up front rather than be expected to know them or try and figure them out. Later, Candice, Steve's 21 year old daughter, came with some friends to make dinner. They made an excellent butter chicken over rice that ran out way too soon for my liking. We ate and chatted with Lulu about education of the Zulu people and how squatters affect the farm. There are some seriously bizarre laws and rules in Africa. After dinner we said goodnight and watched The Emperor's New Groove in bed, much to Gabby's delight.