Irenenenene

Missed out on one very important photo from Gold Reef city: Sunshine in a tin :) After Jo'brg we hit the road again through part of the Free State and the Northern Cape. En Route we encountered the worst thunderstorm I have ever had to drive through. K was driving at that time and if we could see 10 metres in front of us, it was a lot. Thunder and lightning, hail and rain in buckets. Pretty scary stuff. After this adventure, we stopped in Kimberly, but unfortunately the BIG Hole was closed for the day already, so we drove once around it, tried to get close to take pictures and then left for Britstown. Here we were accommodated for the night, but the service was not that great. Also, although we booked for B&B, breakfast was soemhow not included in the price. Mozzies also plagued us all through the night and the aircon was too loud to use. The next morning we left again, drove through the Karoo on the R384 (if you never hear of that road, neither had I until I drove on it...

The journey continued the next morning. We drove via Bethlehem (yes, Christmas in Bethlehem), past Sasolburg and on to Johannesburg. The trip took a while, so we relaxed at my brother's place, and that was the end of the leg. We stayed for a few days in Joh'burg and this is what we got up to: 24th - Gold-Reef City. I've never seen this place so empty. We could even go on all the rides - get whiplash as well, but having lots and lots of fun Then, of course, Germans are weird and celebrate Christmas eve, rather than Christmas, so later that day we went to church and celebrated with the in-laws of brother dearest. Happy Christmas 25th December we went to the Rhino and Lion park, where I did not take any pictures, but K did. It was pretty much like a zoo, except the cages were bigger. We also swam, swam, swam, because the wheather was good and sunny (for a change).

We left early in the morning to find breakfast. After waiting for a while for the little shop to open, we then had a simple meal and headed over to Clarens . The road there was spectacular. However, in Clarens, the road was so bad from all the rain, that pretty much only the main road was drivable. We did have to ask around a little for a place to stay, but eventually found one close to the main road. Rosewood Corner B&B was welcoming, so we dropped our stuff and headed into town. We were told that there is so much to see in this little town, that one day won't be enough to see everything. This was not our experience, and maybe a combination of being a Saturday and holidays we saw all the shops and most of the art galleries by 12h00. We then had the most scrumptious lunch at, I think, the Old Posthouse. Say pancakes with coriander, dried cranberries and cream cheese, and for dessert Ice Cream with brandied cherries...... (they did not skimp on the cherries either!!!) o...

Well, I noticed that I forgot my double adapter at the dodgy B&B (that wasn't one), so had to borrow one from the friendly receptionist at the Kloof Lodge. This meant that after a good night's sleep and lots and lots of rain (the foyer was flooded) we had to go on a shopping spree in the City of Roses. We also just had to visit the Hobbit House (a bit too pricey for our pockets, but beautifully done. Each room is named after one of the characters in Lord of the Rings, and decorated with the most awesome wall papers and linens). We then did some shopping, so did not take any pictures. At around mid-day we departed towards the Golden Gate National Park, since we had a day to spare. We took the route towards Lesotho and then just past the border post to Fochville and Ficksburg and on to Fouriesburg. Because it was getting late, and I did not want to drive to Clarens (CLAAAAAARENCE), we decided to take a tiny detour to Camelroc guest farm. We got a whole bungalow to ourse...

After a night we'd rather have spent in more agreeable accommodations, we packed our bags, headed off into Graaff-Reinet and did our internet thingies. Then we hit the road again to Nieu Bethesda. Well, I can call it "hitting" the road, since the dirt road was not very good and after all that rain probably even worse... Anyway, there is only one thing to see in Nieu Bethesda , and that is the OWL HOUSE . Everything centres on the house and if you want to do anything more, you need to ge tout of town. The surrounding areas are very Karoo-like, but the mountains are stunning!!! Me, myself and Irene out front K greeting the hostess :) Other parts of the garden.....    And just a few things that stood out for me inside the house.... The rest of the town is TINY - sorry tiny .....  They do have a post-office, though, and I'm wondering whether that postcard found its way to Germany?? Hmmmm K?  The church is beautiful,   and since it is an arty tow...