We met our new neighbour's this week as they have just come back from break. Can you believe that
they use to live in West Wyalong and worked at Lake Cowal! They moved to Orange
before we moved to Forbes. So we now have a lovely little boy called Lachlan,
who is a just a bit older than Tom and Isabelle who is 20 months old living next
door. Lachie is in Tom’s class at school.
Monday saw the power go on and off all day. I had just
arrived at the shops when it went off and so had to leave as we could not go
in. The power was off for only 15 or so minutes at a time, but it was pretty
annoying. Thankfully, we had just finished dinner when it went off yet again.
By the time I had the candle and match ready to go, it was back on again. We
decided it was best if we all went to bed early that night! We managed to get a
swim in at the pool in the afternoon. As the weather is cooling down over
night, the water is not heating up that much during the day. So it was quite
fresh, but nice.
Tuesday was Labour Day and so Phil had the day off. This
meant I was able to go out for a nice long walk by myself. I went along the dam
road again and then around the township. It’s really lovely to have some time
away from the kids. I love them to bits, but I am with them 24 / 7 here, so it
is nice to occasionally have some time away from them and vice-versa.
On Wednesday I had to take Laura to the clinic as she had
been having fevers and had developed tonsillitis again. It was not a bad
experience, compared to what I had been told to expect. I packed lunch and a
book and off we went. Then 45 mins later we were on our way. I told the doctor
that Laura had tonsillitis and what medication she usually had and so he had a
quick look, agreed with me and prescribed the medicine. Next door is the
pharmacy for prescriptions and I was amazed that we did not need to pay for
antibiotics or panadol, incredible. I have been told that sometimes you can be waiting for 3-4 hours as there are so many people to be seen to. Thankfully we did not have to wait long and the staff were wonderful.
That afternoon, Tom was outside playing on the trampoline
and before we knew it, there were 5 more boys playing here. It really is great
here how the kids can just wander from house to house. I have learnt from this
however, that you always need a large supply of snacks available for just these
moments. The kids certainly are not shy in letting you know they need a drink
or food!
Friday afternoon we had drinks again. I really love these
days. It is so good to get out and chat to everyone that I have not seen during
the week. The kids all play together and so run off and have a ball, only
coming back for food or water. Tom and Laura are fitting in well and are
starting to spread their wings and get somewhat independent. Tom even asked me
if he could go to Lachie’s house and play without Laura. For Tom, that is a big
step as most of you would know. Laura however had a cry.
On Saturday we went for a drive to Manyama. We were looking for a watering can and a hoe
for Clement. We found the can but no hoe. We went for a nice drive over an
incredibly bumpy road and found some men selling wooden craft. We purchased a
beautiful mask, just slightly shorter than Laura and a beautiful woven basket. During
the drive we came across a small village that was holding a circumcision
clinic. Amazing to see all the men and boys lined up waiting to go in. Could
you imagine that in Australia!!!!!
Today saw me take the said basket and kids and go out
collecting cuttings from the neighbourhood. We then planted them in the tins
that I had been collecting. Hopefully, over the dry season, they will take root
and so be ready to plant in September when the rains come back.
I also managed another walk today. Towards the end I dropped
in to see a friend to get an address of a new girl whom has just arrived in the
township. I then popped by and introduced myself. Elizabeth has a 3 year old
son. It is a bit isolated down there, as that is where the nationals live and
the contractors whom have families. I am glad I live in the rental estate and
have such a lovely group of people all around me.
I have started drinking a drink called Amarula. It is an
extremely tasty cream like drink. It is made from the Marula fruit and apparently
the elephants love it. There is a myth that elephants actually can get drunk
from eating too much Marula! I have yet to taste a white wine that I can
honestly say is really nice (but then again I do like Muscato), the reds
however seem to be much nicer and easier to drink. The beer is cheap at only
AUD$1 a stubbie!!
I get called Madam here, even when you ask to be called by your
first name, it is generally not done. This takes a bit to get used to. Phil
gets called Sir and I have even witnessed the security guards saluting him. A
lot of the security officers are ex-army, so the saluting is generally done by
the new recruits that are yet to get out of army habit.
A cobra was spotted this week and before it could be caught, it disappeared into the nearest ant / termite mound. I am dreading coming across a snake with the kids, even more so, them coming across one without Phil or myself. I am glad we live where we do as we have no bush near us and it is pretty busy with foot traffic, so I am hoping that will keep them away.
I am looking forward to Monday, as I am heading to Solwezi
with Helene who is going to show me where the material shop is. I can’t wait
for our belongings to arrive. Once I have my sewing machine and some gorgeous
material, there will be no stopping me. My sewing skills might, but hey I am in
Africa and everything goes here!
Enjoy the photos. I took a lot of them through the car
window and so they are not of great quality, but they give you some idea of the
people and the way of life here.
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