We particularly enjoyed the pool because it has continued to be very hot although yesterday started out with a threat of rain.
We went to the Big Hole but because we’ve seen it before and time was tight, we just had a tram ride,
..and looked around the museum.
The Big Hole Museum consists of an old village with different shops and institutions. The Standard Bank,
Cigarette makers,
Chemist,
Musical Instruments,
including an old organ,
and many more. We saw the first house in Kimberley which was pre-fabricated in England in 1877 and conveyed from the coast to the Diamond fields by ox-wagon.
By now it was time to have a Cappuccino and make for Christiana where we had arranged to meet up with an old (good) friend, Wicus Esterhuizen, who used to be in charge of Bayswater Retirement Village in Bloemfontein when Brian’s parents were there. After his Mom’s death, Brian had many dealings with Wicus and they built up a friendship. We were going to have afternoon tea with them and then go on to Bloemhof where we had not yet located a caravan park although there were two at the side of the dam, mostly for fishermen.
That’s when the adventures started. First we somehow got onto the wrong road and drove along second grade roads only to end up on a road with a signboard of two opposite places we didn’t want to go to. I had to consult my Google Maps which took us back into Kimberley a different way. Then, just as we were now leaving Kimberley on the right road (N12), a car overtook us, then slowed down in front of us and stopped with his hazard lights on. He came to tell us there was something wrong with our left back tyre. Sure enough there were two big bubbles in the inside wall. How he had been able to see we’re not sure but he had been very observant and we were very grateful. By now it was after 1pm. We tried Super Quick, Hi-Q and another tyre place but they were all closed.
By now it was raining and we turned into a Total Garage just as the heavens opened. We phoned the AA and they arranged for someone to come to our aid. Meanwhile I put on my rain jacket and tried to save a parking under cover near the shop for the motor-home but somebody just ignored me and I had to get out of the way or get run over.
The road behind the garage soon turned into a river.
However, we did manage to enlist the help of the garage staff and after a while managed to get a parking outside the shop under cover and Brian was able to access the spare wheel in anticipation of the roadside assistance.
Meanwhile we tried to phone Wicus to tell him we would be delayed but were told ..“The subscriber you have dialed is not available at present. Try again later.”
Meanwhile we didn’t want to drive long distances without a spare and thought perhaps we’d have to stay in Kimberley till Monday, staying at the caravan park next to the Big Hole which we had been advised to avoid. However the friendly garage staff referred us to a place nearby where we might be able to get a tyre on a Saturday afternoon. They didn’t have the right size but referred us to another place which was closed. When we phoned the after-hours number we were referred to still another place which was able to help us. There was a weekend levy, however and it cost us R1,600 for a new spare tyre!
The adventure was not yet over. We had still been unable to contact Wicus although we tried intermittently and left two text messages.
The black storm clouds continued to hang around and we had more heavy rain as we negotiated stop/go road works delays.
When we reached Warrenton after 5pm, we finally managed to get through to Wicus. We asked him if we could park somewhere on his property and just plug in our motor-home to an electrical outlet. Our fridge is a three way one - it works on electricity, battery and gas. Electricity is best. We have to turn it to battery when we travel but it doesn’t work nearly as well and we usually end up at the end of the day with soft butter and almost frozen meat.
Wicus and his wife, Marlene, were very happy to have us stay and offered us the choice of staying in their house but we preferred to sleep in Cubby where all our things are.
We wasted a bit of time by not having fully understood the meeting point and ended up at dusk at a shabeen soon after the first turn off to Christiana. However a phone call later and we were following Wicus, as the sun set, to their beautiful retirement village which once was Rob Ferriera Holiday Resort, a much sought after holiday destination with hotel, hot springs, a caravan park and chalets.
The Chalets have been turned into retirement cottages which are spacious and are each surrounded by plenty of open lawn. Unfortunately, because of the storm and lightning, the electricity was off.Wicus and Marlene epitomize Afrikaner hospitality. As soon as we got in we were offered coffee and tea (heated on gas) and home-made muffins.They started the generator and we plugged in Cubby but I don’t think it helped very much because when we went to bed our battery status light was on red.
We were cooked a delicious banting supper and spent a lovely cozy evening chatting and sharing news.
This morning the electricity was still not back and the generator had sprung a petrol leak.
After a yummy breakfast we were shown around the estate and we met some of the residents. then we left with many thanks for the wonderful hospitality and lots of good wishes (and marmalade and a home-made brooch and some padkos) from Wicus and Marlene..
…..and we never got to stay in Bloemhof after all.
We believe the Lord was looking after us. Had we not got onto the wrong road, we might have been somewhere remote and had a blow out. The same would have happened had the observant motorist not told us about the tyre problem. We drove into a garage with a bit of shelter just as the first downpour hit. Then we spent a lovely evening with friends instead of setting up camp in the rain at a dam surrounded by fishermen.
Another great adventure and another memory! Thank you, Lord.
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