Jessie in Cape Town
Tommie at Augrabies fallsAs always, life at Henry House feels about as close as it’s possible, to being at home.
Arriving at their door, on Friday morning….Big informed David that henceforth he was to be known as “Moses” and Tazzy would be referred to as “Regina”…to which he received a double middle finger from the pair of them!
Despite being so incredibly busy at Lime Tree cottage, we managed to catch up with so many dear friends and of course family…regrettable omissions were Di, Marie, Lucy, Amanda, and Adrienne…but I shall catch you in October. Only now, do I realize that if I don’t pen in a diary date, BEFORE I fly, then events on the ground take over and I loose the opportunity of seeing those people that I have promised I will “make a plan with” when I arrive.
Little loved his visit to Cheam, catching up with his old school mates, and very much enjoyed the unexpected bonus invitation to William Chesel`s swimming party on Saturday.
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Lime Tree Cottage looking stunning
I couldn’t resist taking some pictures of the garden which was looking stunning. Showing off everything my Mum and Dad had put into it for the years that they had worked on it..to remind us of how much it was loved by them, and how much pleasure it had given back in return.
The new owners are very keen gardeners and I am sure that the beautiful cottage garden had a great deal to do with their decision to purchase “on the spot”
Little and I left Dorchester, bidding Tazzy and David a very teary farewell [Big having already departed for Holland that morning],we collected Jessie and Tommie ,bidding Finn another teary farewell and headed off to Heathrow for the long journey back to Africa.
Utterly sleepless night for three of us…Tommy had swigged half a bottle of night nurse and was oblivious to the turbulence that dogged us throughout, and prevented the stewards from serving coffee with either supper or breakfast…so by the time I arrived in Jo berg..my nerves were frazzled and my short temper was on full display for the world to see.
Little…who had diced with trouble for much of the night, by informing me half hourly that he “still wasn’t asleep” was keen to flex his “world wide traveler muscles” for Jessie and Tom and on our arrival at Jo berg,and insisted that we stand at carousel “B” where our baggage [rather a lot, and all with “HEAVY” stickers on it] should arrive within seconds. After 30 minutes it hadn’t, and eventually I did what I should have done 30 minutes ago and checked the boards to find that our luggage had offloaded and was in full swirl on Carousel F. I had to do so much deep breathing I came very close to hyper ventilating.
Then onwards to check in for our domestic flight, my temper was not improved when two “official baggage” handlers grabbed our trolleys and whisked them up the escalators to the domestic check in, at the same time as I was being accosted by a gentleman insisting on polishing my shoes…he was given very short shrift, and the baggage handlers took one look at my face and made do with the small change I had scraped from the depths of my bag…As we checked into our domestic flight to Up…the poor stewardess caught the worst of my unbridled temper when she began to ask inane questions. Mercifully, Jessie took control and whisked us all through security, rapidly locating coffee and a smoking room, where she unceremoniously bundled me through the door and shut it rapidly… I watching them all staring at me from the other side of the glass …cautiously sipping their coffees and gauging how my humor was improving with the coffee and cigarettes that were being consumed..
Restored somewhat, I returned to my party and we continued Westwards to Up…nodding asleep for the 1.40 minutes the noisy little prop took to get us there. The "NUT" had been left for us in the car park the previous day..so I had to shake myself down and get my act together for the 100 kilometer drive back to the farm…half heartedly doing my tourist guide commentary for Jessie and Tommy…who were half asleep and couldn’t give two hoots about the landscape at this point.
The greeting from the dogs girded our spirits…they were beside themselves with joy to see us all. Bongo seems to know when “family” are around. Even though he had never met Jessie and Tom, after an initial double take…he treated them as though he had lived with them for all of his 9 months. So after crying pitifully at us and the peeing all over the crazy paving, they allowed us to enter the house and we attempted to take possession of our rather weary faculties again.
It felt very strange being at the farm without Bossy….but even stranger to find that during our two week absence, Winter had really set in ,and from about 4.00 in the afternoon the temperature began to drop so rapidly that we were all shivering in an icy farmhouse which has…. after all,…..been designed to stay cool…by 5.00p.m, it was like an ice box.
A rapid reconfiguration of the lounge was required, exposing the fireplace which had hitherto been concealed behind one of Bossy`s sofas. Tommie and I made a hasty dash to where the beefwoods had been chopped, piled and stored and proceeded to light an enormous fire, which we huddled around ,fighting for the best spots with the dogs, who had got over their affection for us and were also far more interested in heat.
In view of the empty cupboards in the kitchen, we decided to take advantage of Marica`s “Friday PIZZA night” at the lake, and arrived to kisses and welcome hugs from all our friends there, which was lovely…although I think that Jessie and Tommy may have been a little overwhelmed by how physical these people are..and they sat looking very coyly at everyone .It could just as easily, have had something to do with the previous sleepless night ,which was catching up with us rapidly!!A weekend of quading and sussing out the farm followed [Tommie and Edwin swore blind they had seen “millions of merekats”]…fillet steak was braai`d, and huge fires lit in the lounge fireplace. By Monday we were ready to escape the farm and head out to the dizzy heights of Kak….stocks of food and beverages of the most fortifying type were purchased. We headed off to the rock place…about 15 kilometers out of Kak…where large lumps of very beautiful rocks are shipped out to garden design companies in Europe…the owners of this place are the people who’s daughters wedding we went to…remember the copious amounts of “langarm” and the man who whirled me round!!!...their daughters also have a jewelry business and so we went [the boys under sufferance] to look at the jewelry.
DR JELLY MAKES HER FIRST DIAGNOSIS!!
On our return to the farm…Little started to complain of a sore throat and feeling very tired…so he removed to bed for a nap, which very strangely lasted the entire afternoon. That night his temperature rocketed and no amount of paracetamol would reduce it…By morning he was looking white, was unable to talk, and still had a raging fever.
Dr Jessie was armed with the handle of a fork, as a tongue depressor and my art light for a torch ,and immediately diagnosed a very unpleasant tonsillitis…she suggested that he see our doctor as soon as possible. So an appointment was made and we all found ourselves wending our way to Kaimous [half way between here and Up] where Little was examined and the Dr concurred with Jessie, but also said that in view of our recent return from England………he needed to test for Swine Flue…
IN QUARANTEEN IN THE BUSH!!!!!
He explained that he was waiting for his swine flue swabs to arrive [swine flue has not yet hit the desert in ZA,with only 34 cases having been reported in the entire country] but would drive out to the farm the following morning to take a swab. In the meantime we should all consider ourselves in Quarantine. Having given Little anti biotics ,and drugs to combat his very high temperature, he practically pushed us out of his surgery ……and I could see one of the cleaning ladies starting to squirt and wipe every surface that we had been anywhere near.
Rather crestfallen we made our way homewards, convincing ourselves that had Little really contracted swine flue, we should all have been suffering some symptoms by now. having been in such close proximity with him on the plane etc….Suddenly, the car started to make an awful thumping noise, and pulling over into the sandy verge in a particularly deserty spot, we soon spotted the problem, the rear offside tyre had a 3 inch wide section of rubber that had stripped away from the core of the tyre.. the tyre itself remained fully inflated, but when the car moved the long strip of rubber, slapped the underside of the vehicle and made a dreadful noise….We did attempt to replace the tyre with the temporary one that sits strapped under the boot…To our great irritation, soon realized that a special little tool, that was responsible for removing the wheel nut covers, was missing from the set.
Secretly I was rather relieved as the temporary tyre, is one that you have to use the cars compression system to inflate and I hadn’t a clue how this would be achieved! With Little looking pale and ill, I made a management decision to potter back to Kak and the tyre repair centre there, on flailing rubber!!!! So we set off at a diminutive 30 miles an hour with our warning lights flashing and our progress being beaten out underneath us from the shredded rubber.
Despite our attempts to ignore his attentions, we were flagged down by a very persistent friend, who recognized the car. He insisted on viewing the damage to the tyre and agreed that we should attempt the trip into Kak..he even wanted to drive the car there, for me, But I was painfully aware that we should not be within 20ft of anyone on account of our spurious “swine flue” status, and insisted that we would be fine.
We arrived at the tyre repair man in Kak safely…but it was packed and everyone insisted on coming to have a closer look…the Tuareg always causes interest. Jessie and Tommie, Little and I kept giving each other worried looks and holding our hands across our mouths.
It became clear that I was going to have to leave the car there as they had to order a tyre from UP, and I had no option but to call Arnou, the factory manager ,to collect us and take us back to the farm….Within seconds of hearing that Edwin was unwell he made the assumption we ALL had swine flue, and zipped his fleece over his nose, put on his sunglasses, AND his hat!!!! I think he must have held his breath for all of the 10 minutes it took to drive us to the farm..as he was looking a touch grey when we removed ourselves from the car….Unceremoniously he skidded round in the drive and sped off down the road leaving an orange trail of dust billowing behind him…..I knew that within moments the “bush telegraph” would be activated, warning everyone in the district to give us a very wide berth. I made the decision to call Regina and tell her not to come in for the rest of the week as Little was unwell, as I knew that her sister [who lives with her] had, only days before, given birth to a baby boy.
That afternoon we lit a huge fire and all sat around it feeling a little fed up. At some point I received a call from Arnou to say that he had just dropped off the Taureg in our drive, complete with new tyre…and that….No…..he wouldn’t come in for a cup of tea.
Bongo to the vet.
Bitterly cold weather, a sick Little and unable to get out …we were all feeling pretty miserable. but I had to get Bongo to the vet in Upington on Wednesday for an x-ray on his shoulder which continues to cause him great pain…since the appointment had been booked and Bongs is clearly in pain…I decided that Tommie and I would have to make the trip to Up, and Jessie would have to stay behind in order to see the Dr who was arriving to take Little`s swab. All went well until we realized that the X-ray experience was going to take rather longer than we expected…..so Tommie and I, hung around in Up trying to amuse ourselves and NOT get involved in conversation with anyone…difficult…as Tom was immediately recognized as being “new” to the area…and in the way that people do here, they delighted in quizzing him. So much so that I almost screamed at them…..”we have swine flue….go away!”.
A very bleary eyed and limbed, Bongs was returned to us at around 4.00 in the afternoon, and we made a hasty retreat back to our quarantine at the farm…to find a very fed up Jessie and a very sick Little…who was still in bed and feeling utterly miserable.
Tommy and I had purchased a bread making machine whilst in Up…I have for months been threatening to do this, as I am so fed up of buying stale bread from Kak…So Jell,Tommie and I set about making our first loaf, which did rather cheer us up…. over supper we broke our first homemade bread and all pretended it was fab and far nicer than the shop stuff…actually it tasted very sweet and more akin to brioche than bread….Must look up some recipes on the internet. The First Loaf
AUGRABIES GAME PARK & FALLS........“For want of a special little tool……….”
On Thursday morning Jessie and Tom were feeling very fed up and I managed to persuade them that they could drive to Augrabies in the NUT [about 15k up the road], and at least spend the morning doing something! ....None of the rest of us is showing any symptoms of swine flue!.
The gorge at the falls
A Dassie or Rock Hyrax
So they departed at 9.00 a.m,and Little shnooked up with me in front of a roaring fire and slipped in and out of sleep all morning.
Just as I was starting to clock watch,around 12.30, I received a call from Jessie to explain that they were both well, that they had decided to venture into the huge Augrabes game reserve , and had driven about 35km in, when they had had a PUNCTURE!!!! The other back tyre this time!!!!!!! 
Despite reading through the manual several times and using the internet at the farm to try and access clearer instructions than those provided in the manual….we simply couldn’t jointly work out how to do it. 
Tom fed up of being the subject of a safari photo shoot !Being around 2.00 o’clock, and knowing the park closed at 6.00, I suggested that Jessie call the emergency Ranger number on their admission ticket,just to let the rangers know that they were stuck out in the depths of the bush…and were attempting to inflate a tyre. Thereafter followed a succession of calls between Jessie and I, between the head ranger…Simon and I, during which it was agreed that the rangers would go and find them and bring a compressor for the tyre inflation. The problem was that Jessie and Tom could only explain that they had driven about 35 kilometers into the park, that at some point [when they had become bored !!!]they had turned to retrace their steps, and that they were near a hill with a telegraph post on top of it and Tom had seen a grey watering station about 5 kilometers before they had broken down.
I resolved to access the bakkie [“The Raisin”] from the factory, and if needs be, to wrap Little up, and drive to Augrabies myself and go out and look for Jessie and Tommy. One of the girls from the factory had clearly drawn the short straw to come and deliver the bakkie to me, and when I dropped her back to the factory, she sat in the back with a scarf wrapped around her mouth…in all of this latest excitement I had forgotten that the locals remained convinced we ALL had swine flue!!!!!.
A very stoic"Little" By this time is was around 4.30 p.m. Little and I were reunited with them at around 5.00 p.m ,when we beat a hasty retreat back to the farm, having alerted the Head ranger to the fact that they were safely out of the game park and that the search for Jessie and Tom could now be called off.
On Friday we had to collect Bossy from Up airport, and I considered it safest for ALL of us to go…We dropped into the doctor en rout as poor Little had developed what looked like a heat rash in all of his hot places!..the Dr checked him out, including his tonsils and was horrified to find that they looked as bad as when he had inspected them earlier in the week, so another anti biotic was prescribed, despite the swine flue tests not being back yet…the doctor is convinced that Little is NOT suffering from Swine flue but that he does have a very nasty bout of tonsillitis.
Bossy was amazed to see the entire household there to collect him and we quickly advised him of all the dramas that had unfolded in his absence….you can imagine his response. A quick return to the farm and a good sleep for Little who was definitely pepped up to see his Papa.
The weekend was spent catching our breath and watching Little finally starting to show signs of recovery, first his appetite and then his voice, and by Sunday he was begging Jessie and Tommy and I to join him on a meerkat finding mission, so that when Taz and David fly out in November, we can take them to the Meerkat homes.
The four of us set out on two quads. With strict instructions that no “tear arsing” was to be done…for the sake of everyone’s health and wellbeing .Jessie and I were rather perilously hanging off the back of the quads behind our male drivers!
The first location proved fruitless…plenty of the right size holes in the orange sand. and despite secreting ourselves behind bushes for a good 10 minutes nothing appeared…so we set forth for site number two…and stood and waited….finally a little head popped out of a hole,
we almost had 
to 
gag Jessie such was her excitement….. Then another head and another, until in the distance we could see four or five little creatures all standing on their hind legs…we quickly and ever so gently moved towards them….my camera seemed to be very noisy now!!!!!! But as we watched them, doubt started to creep into my mind. were they meerkats?...gaining a closer look I realized that they weren’t Meerkats but striped ground squirrels….what a disappointment…we stayed and watched these cheeky little creatures for some time, watching them pop in one hole and then pop out of another from their complex set of burrows. It reminded me of that game you play at fairs…armed with a plastic hammer!!!...After a long discussion we all agreed that every single “meerkat” we had seen at the farm since our arrival…must have been a striped ground squirrel. Interestingly Tommie and I had seen a meerkat at the vets on Wednesday, his owners were bringing him in for a castration…which indicated to us that they must have more meerkats,and so we have resolved to ask the vet where we can find them locally. Don’t worry Taz…by the time that you and David have arrived I will have resolved this issue for you. Talking of creatures, last week, Jessie and I decided that whilst our tortoises don’t hibernate, they very definitely DO slow down, and in these cold temperatures they must need extra warmth…so we set about changing their facilities, which now include a sandy floor, three caves made from sturdy rocks, the caves having been filled with hay that Moses, had “acquired”.
Having settled Rosy, Guilden and Binks back into their re vamped home..We stood around watching [including Bee, who has always been rather smitten by them]to see what they would do. They all made straight for the caves and then started to consume the hay…much to our delight; they continue to rove around exploring their new home and all look a great deal happier.
Jelly,Tommie & Little at the Harbour in Cape TownThe working harbour The old Harbour masters house
The clock tower on the Waterfront and early morning at The Mansions
Little returns to Cape Town & School
With all the drama of the past week, I had almost forgotten that Little had to be back at school on Sunday evening. Since he had only just started to recover. I put his return on hold until Tuesday evening. This meant that we could take a leisurely drive down to Cape Town on Monday, stay at the Mansions overnight, at Littles behest we went straight to the Codfather for super where he proved that is appetite had returned!!!! We then spent a lazy day with him on Tuesday playing put-put and mooching around Cape Town.
Little with freshly trimmed hair and looking a whole lot better!
Jessie & Tommie at The MansionsBig and Jessie, Tommy and I stayed an extra night in Cape Town …suppering at the wonderfully named Buena vista social club…..and returned to the farm late Wednesday afternoon. In time for a hastily arranged braai at Niki and Magda`s [had they heard that we were now declared free of SWINE FLUE?].
On our return to the farm at 10.30 last night…Bongo had once again disgraced himself …he had found Jessie’s glasses, and chewed them to smithereens!!!!! Not a good note upon which to end the trip
Thursday morning and suddenly it was time to pack and set off for UP airport again. Such fond farewells to Jelly and Tommie…whilst circumstances generally conspired against us during these two weeks, it had been so good having my eldest two back with me…a rare treat ,and one that I have valued enormously and I know Little has as well. Safe trip home to you both..Good luck Jelly for your start at Chichester and Tommy…carry on working on that knee and get really fit for the approaching season.
Kisses on the lips to all
DawnXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
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