Part one of our trip to South Africa.

Maximum temperature today 12C, minimum 8C.  Very wet!  We were told it had hardly stopped raining while we were away!  The rain gauge was overflowing at 72 mm, so our annual measurements are therefore unreliable and we will never know how much we really had!  It continues to rain, and since being home we have had another 30mm. Today there are cold 19km/h northerly winds with gusts up to 40 km/h. Not weather to be out in, if you don't need to!

We have been back home for the last 10 days, but neither of us feels perfectly well and do forgive me if blogs are slow for a while, as I'm short of the energy needed to go through the many hundreds of photos that I took! HOWEVER, this malaise takes nothing away and did not detract at all from the fabulous welcomes, entertainment and trips organised by our generous hosts, Steve and Cathy, Patrick and Christelle and Gordon and Julie! We really enjoyed seeing them again and joining in with the arrangements. It was to be a truly memorable and varied holiday!

We arrived in Johannesburg on Friday 11 October. Our health problems emerged a few days later in the most unusually cold weather in RSA, which was generally the pattern for all but a couple of days in the Kruger Park, when the temperature rose to 46C; talk about extremes!  Airconditioning is always a concern for us both, and the long flights can be draining on the system.  Three flights going there and three coming home, plus a 9-hour wait in Gatwick to board the final leg between Gatwick and Bordeaux. This was perhaps a "too ambitious" schedule and age is not on our side!

  I didn't take a lot of photos in Johannesburg, as my telephoto lens was playing up! Thanks to an internet search and to Cathy for ferrying us, we managed to get an identical second-hand replacement in a nearby mall. It later proved not to be in perfect shape, but I think I have some reasonable photos to show you over the next few weeks!

Flying from Bordeaux to Gatwick on 10 October.  We then had to bus to Heathrow with all our suitcases!! No luggage transfers by the airline!

Arrival in Johannesburg on 11 October - wonderful Jacaranda trees!

In our friends' garden; some strelitzia flowers.

A distant shot of what I know as a Grey lourie - it seems now that the common name is simply the Go-Away bird due to its call. (Corythaixoides concolor).

Laughing dove (Spilopelia senegalensis).

 Common bulbul or Black-eyed bulbul (Pycnonotus barbatus).

Hadeda ibis (Bostrychia hagedash), They are very noisy and had a liking for the friends' cottage where we were sleeping.  Not only with their call, but they seemed to enjoy jumping up and down on the tin roof (not this one!) as well!!

Our friends, Cathy and Steve's cat Leo.  He is a Main Coon, apparently the largest of the domestic cat breeds.  At just 5 months, he already weighs in at 9 kg!  So beautiful and with a fabulous temperament.

We took a trip to Steve's workshop to see what he was working on.  This is his race car, a Porsche 910, and.....

and he painstakingly restores other sports cars.  This looks like an interesting project with plenty of work to do!

Finally, more jacaranda trees! We caught them almost in full flower and before the heavy summer showers could drive the petals to the ground!

On Monday 14th, we flew to Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape, where Nigel was the first one to feel unwell and he spent the first two days there in bed!

I will be copying this post to My Life in the Charente 2 as well as some folk still follow that !


Sell also my Bird blog at
https://myafricanbirds.blogspot.com/

,

22/01/2019 Cars, Bath and around Devizes

Saw this Morris Minot in the car park the other day.  Having owned one in recent years I still have a soft spot for this icon of the car world.

The Paragon in Bath.  My grandparents used to live here in the 1940's.  They actually lived in two of the houses here at different times but I cannot now remember the numbers.  

Love the Minor but the Porsche is still our favourite.

On the bridge over the canal.

An energetic rower,  I guess the upper half is keeping warm. Just wondering how cold the feet maybe!

Devizes cemetery...

Gorgeous old building.  There are various dates for the opening here but it dates from the mid-1800's

A drive-by sunset.

Back at the canal...

A working narrowboat.

Dogs meeting, owners invited.

A watering point, and I presume originally a drinking trough.

Out for a walk away from the dogs 😊

One of my FIL's ex-carers took pity on us all and arrived with this lovely bouquet of flowers. Thanks George much appreciated.

Devizes is a truly historic town and so full of history.  I try not to put too much information on the photodiary, so I have posted more about the town (part 2) on My Life In the Charente 2 with lots more information which might interest many of you.

We return home at the end of the month and I am not sure when I will have time for another post but will probably see you in February.

I have updated my bird blog HERE.

16/11/2018 Join me on yesterdays walk when the weather was almost as good as today. 8kms.

Maximum temperature today 19C, minimum 9C.  Dry; 14km/h south-westerly winds gusting up to 24 km/h. 

The weather changes tomorrow and winter arrives next week!!

Autumn colours are slow this year.

  

Down the road, I passed the paddock where our Dr's family keep some of their horses...

Nope, not the same horse but similar markings...

Here they are together....

Their little friend is at the top of the hill.

Further on a farm cat watches me cautiously.

I then spotted a huge hornet's nest which should have been reported.  It will be too cold for them next week though.  I think they are Asian hornets! 

An old pump of some kind.

Grapes wearing their autumn colours.

Cattle viewed across a field.

Down the leafy lane.

Sheep watching me closely...

as is number 5701.

 

I just liked this view.

Unusual here to see cattle with full horns.  Most have the tips cut off for ease in handling.

Unusual fungus growing on a tree.

David has given me a bit more info and it seems this is Fomes fomentarius (commonly known as the tinder fungus, false tinder fungus, hoof fungus, tinder conk, tinder polypore or ice man fungus) it is a species of fungal plant pathogen found in Europe, Asia, Africa and North America.

  

Lots of mistletoe.

a small stream.

The oaks are changing colour.

I also saw a few birds which I will put on the bird blog in the next couple of days.

21/12/2017 More photos around Devizes.

Maximum temperature 11C,  Minimum 9C.  Thankfully much warmer but not warm enough for me!

Yesterday at FIL's pensioners luncheon.  He looks pretty good for 96.

It was a misty walk to the lunch...

As above...

Even the swans and ducks were in the mist!

Today the mist had lifted. Church of St James - another grade II listed building.

A chapel  may have been built in the late C14 or early C15 (it was certainly in existence by 1461).  It developed parochial status by the 16th century, and the dedication to St James was recorded in 1505.

 

As above.

Father Christmas water skiing!

Sorry about the reflections in the window but just liked this cat watching the world go by😉

Loving having your comments but I will only get back to replying when we get home in January 😊