Australian Holiday

When we planned this relocation to South Africa one of the trips we wanted to add into our two years was a vacation in Australia. I haven't seen my sister Malinda in over 3 years, which in my book is way too long. We talked about when we should go and how we could make it work with the kids and vacation time, etc... and finally decided on Christmas. We figured if we have to be stuck in the Southern Hemisphere where Christmas is hot, sunny, and anything but white we might as well be with family.

So we set out again on another long overseas flight with the boys. The flight over was about 11 hours and then we had another 2 hour flight from Sydney to Brisbane and then a 1.5 hour car ride up the coast to Noosa. Thankfully, the boys were real troopers. We flew through the night and they both slept pretty well, ate their food, and enjoyed the non stop movies.

Our time in Australia was pretty fabulous, we didn't do any big tourist adventures but that was totally alright by us. This trip was really about enjoying time with family. We laid around the house, hit the beach, went on some fun hikes, went fishing, and just relaxed,  it was pretty perfect.
The town of Noosa is a small coastal town, it draws in crowds around the holidays because of it's beautiful beaches and parks. As my brother in law put it "Every weekend is like a vacation here". I can't really describe it any other way except to say to me it is paradise. Being able to hike in the morning and swim in the ocean in the afternoon is fabulous in my book. We spent time on the main beach, and a lot of time on the river where we could play on smaller beaches and fish. We hiked around the Noosa National Park, and through the Tewantin National Park just behind my sisters house! We drove up North one day and fed the Dolphins, and another day we went to the Aquarium where I got to feed the Sea Lion! We took the kids to a couple of movies (Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 and Frozen) We ate fresh sea food and got our load of Fish and Chips for sure! Chase had a list of all the things he needed to eat while we were there. In case you ever travel to Australia his top list of foods include: Lift Soda, Kebabs, Morten Bay Bugs (like lobster but better), and Chicken n Chips from the best little place in Coolum. We also threw Subway into the mix this time because you can't get it in Africa.

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To celebrate Christmas in the southern hemisphere is just weird. We did all the normal Christmas things like baked cookies, looked at lights, visited Santa at the Mall, and listened to music. But, there is just something odd about listening to "White Christmas" when you are swimming in a pool. I think Bing Crosby's "Mele Kalikimaka" was probably a little more fitting, but still off. Christmas morning the kids were up early, they blew through opening gifts and then were in the pool before 9am! Malinda and I did cook a traditional feast; Cinnamon rolls in the morning and Turkey for dinner. It tasted like home and made us all feel more in the spirit.  Even if we did eat out side and sweat our buns off through dinner! :)

 

Having the opportunity to see my sister for almost 3 full weeks and giving my children more amazing  memories has made this move across the world worth it for me. Who knows when we would of been able to do this had we not decided to move.  Taking 3 weeks off work is not an easy thing to do when you have young kids.  When I get down about being so far away from family I keep trying to remember the experience and opportunities we are able to have here.  For these things I feel truly thankful.  Getting away from Africa for a short bit and being with my sister helped me to think about keeping perspective on life and focus on positives of why we are actually doing this.  Since we moved I feel like everything has been non stop and adjustment followed by readjustment. We have set goals and resolutions for 2014 and I am ready for the fresh start of this year.  Happy New Year Everyone! We hope this year brings Joy for you all!

P.S - One of the goals is to keep this blog better updated - I am really going to try!!

Working for the Money

Since being here I have started to see the world in general in a new light. I have to admit I have lived a pretty sheltered life before. I am not one to keep up with the news and for the most part was oblivious to how the rest of the world worked. But, being here and seeing how another country runs is eye opening. We as humans should care about how the world works and what is happening in other countries.  We should be able to give a helping hand when you can, because after all we are all on this planet together.  South Africa is progressing and in many ways they are still young.  Equality for people here is still a new concept, and they are still adjusting. Mandela brought many people hope and made many amazing changes for this country.  His memory will continue to inspire not only South Africans but the world.

I've been asked to talk more about what they people are like here and how the country runs. So, this post is really just about how people work in this country. These are just my observations and finding in the short time I have been here. I am sure there are things I am leaving out. But here it goes...

People of South Africa work and they work hard for very little. On Thursday afternoons I have started taking a group golf lesson with some of the other American wives here. We sat yesterday with our instructor and had a few minutes to compare American and South African culture. I learned that South African minimum wage can range 85 cents to $1.50 yet goods and food at the grocery store are the same price as in America. A man working in a parking lot helping cars park can make as much in tips through out the day as a man working as a Golf Pro at the Golf Club. Two careers you would think would be drastically different in pay range.  Just so you have some perspective on what things cost,  loaf of bread is about $1.00 and a half gallon of milk is about $1.50.

When you arrive here you sort of feel like you have stepped back in time to the early 1960s America or to put it simply a scene from "The Help".
Every morning at the gates to my neighborhood there are rows of mini buses dropping off domestic workers. Many of the workers are house keepers that are heading to clean for the day, and may even be wearing traditional maid uniforms.  Some of the workers are gardeners or pool cleaners.   Others may be taking care of odd jobs around some one's home, or heading to the golf club to work for the day.  Several families here have domestic workers that work full time and live in separate quarters attached to the home and will help take care of the children in the house as well. Then on the weekends or a couple of times through out the year they will go home to see their own families. When you drive through the streets you will see people out cutting grass, trimming trees, and in general maintaining homes, and rarely is it the home owner who is doing the job.

When you go out around town there are people everywhere and all are working for their money and "tips". We have been surprised how this many things you tip for here. When you pull into a shopping center or grocery store there is a parking attendant there to help you park and pull out of your spot, and its normal to tip them a little change as you leave. When you go out to eat there are play attendants there to watch your children and again as you leave you give them a tip. On the side of the streets you may not see many people out begging for money instead they are trying to sell you some good. It may be sunglasses, bags, or a car decal but they want you to buy it and will beg at your car window for you to try it! Even the gas stations here are full service. You pull in and sit in your car while they fill it up, check the oil/ tire pressure, and clean your wind shield. At the golf course you can get your shoes or clubs cleaned easily after you play a round, and if you don't feel like carrying your clubs a caddy is very cheap. What I learned yesterday is that most of these people working for "tips" are living off of their "tips". This is true for waiters too they make what you tip and when you eat out at dinner meals here are cheaper than the United States and it's customary to tip only 10%! I started tipping %20 based on good service and will continue now that I know that this is all they get paid.

We have seen locals treat the working class pretty poorly. I've been at the golf club and seen an older man yell at a waitress for spilling his beer. I've seen snotty women talking down to their nanny at the grocery store. It's very difficult to be around, and though these issues still exist in America it just seems to be more open and a normal occurrence here.  It's been a strange adjustment for us, and while we have hired a domestic to come and clean our house twice a week I am still not completely used to having someone here cleaning while I am drinking tea or heading out to play golf. However,  now that I have gotten to know Joyce (our domestic) a little I am happy that we have hired her. She has explained that a good job can be hard to find here, and a good boss can be even harder. So, we feel better knowing that we are giving someone stable work for a few years. Some of the Black & Veatch families have been able to help their domestic workers repair their homes and have provided them with things they may not have been able to have or do before. We can't give things to everyone we come across in this country, so I have tried to help those around us when we can. I try to do good gestures by making sure the pool man has a cold drink when he comes by and for Christmas our family and another family supplied Joyce's family with some new clothes.


I know being here that one person cannot change the routine of society, so I strive to be a good roll model for my children and to treat everyone I meet with the respect they deserve.

A day with Lions

This past Sunday we took an hour drive to The Lion Park. It's wonderful how many animal attractions are available for quick day trips it makes seeing things really easy. On our way we ran into a bike race that had several roads closed and of course here they don't provide you with detours, so we had to do some map reading and navigating to find a new route.  However, once we got there it was well worth it! The Lion Park is a large park that has an area in which you can pet lion cubs, feed giraffes, and see a few other African animals, and then it also has a game drive in which you can either drive in your own  vehicle around the park or ride in a large truck to see the big lions and other African animals they have. You do have to pay to do all of these things at the park, but for our family of four it was only about $75 for everything.

We had heard that Sundays are busy days so we headed straight to the lion cubs and giraffes. As we were walking up a handler was moving the female giraffe from one enclosure to another. So directly in front of us we saw him leading this giraffe, baiting her with nothing more than white bread! I had never really put much thought into how big giraffes are until we were right next to them. They are amazing! The female had a baby about 3 weeks ago, so we got to meet the baby too! She was adorable and at 3 weeks old already very tall.  We learned that when giraffes are born the mother gives birth standing up so the babies actually fall right on their heads at birth. Also, their hearts stop beating during birth then start again when they reach the ground. Its a hard fall, but obviously they can handle it.  The baby was still pretty skittish so she wouldn't let me pet her. When we went to feed, you buy a bag of food and then walk up a tall deck so that you can be at head level with the giraffe. The male giraffe was standing at the platform so we got to meet him and give him some treats. He also didn't appear to care for much affection. I attempted to stroke his head but he kept pulling away from me, he was focused on the food.  Mitchell was really brave and came up to pet him and feed him, but the minute he felt that giraffe's saliva he was done as he says "That was really GROSS!"  

 

View of the grounds

Baby Ostrich

Baby Giraffe

That was GROSS!

After we fed the giraffe we moved on to the lion cubs. They have three lion cub enclosures, but only open one up at at time so that the cubs can get some rest. When we went in all the cubs were sleeping. The handler told us that they sleep 20 hours a day and of course are most active at night. We were instructed not to touch their heads or tails and when you pet them to give firm strokes. Both the boys wanted to feel the lions, so we pet a few. One was a little frisky and tried to bite me but a handler was right there to distract him. They were pretty soft and seemed to enjoy the affection.  

Mitchell giving the lion a High Five

After a quick run through the gift shop we went on to the game drive. The boys LOVE the big safari trucks so we opted to ride instead of drive ourselves. Chase and I enjoy hearing the comments and animal facts from the guides also so it was perfect. The first part of the drive you see a lot of antelope like animals, giraffes, and zebras.

The second part is where you get to go into the lion camps. When you enter the lion camp it is pretty cool to see these lions just walking around the cars and trucks. Being up high it was great to see things, but I thought it would have been really cool to see one walking next to our Corolla. Typically they feed the lions at night time and do special evening drives, but on Sundays they do a special mid day feeding. Once the truck came carrying the food it was neat to see the lions start to chase it. There is a special contraption on the truck for a person can drop the food out of. They don't want arms to be confused with wildebeest legs! It was great to see the lions feed and to see who shared their food and who took theirs off by themselves.  They have four different lion camps at the park so we drove through each of them. They keep them separated so that there isn't fighting amongst the animals, they only have one mature male per enclosure.  They have white lions and brown lions at the park. One of the male white lions was the star of the movie White Lion, I had never heard of it. They have strict rules that you do not roll down your windows on the game drive, obviously this is for your own safety. As we were driving one lady had her window completely rolled down and her arm hanging out of the window taking pictures with her phone. Not the smartest thing to do during feeding time surrounded by lions.  Our guide gave her a talking to... 

I was guessing this was a momma and her older cubs... they all ended up sharing their food! 

Big Male in Camp #1

just thought it was cool to see him carrying the leg

Dont mess with my food! 

Fun Facts : If a male lions mane turns black it means that he has Kalahari lion in his blood stream. Mitchell kept saying like Scar (from the Lion King). Also, if you mate a white lion with a brown lion they call them split Lions not mixed, because the cubs will either be brown or white not anything in between. 

Male white Lion from the movie

After the game drive we had a quick lunch then headed home. It was a great day and very entertaining. We can't wait to have visitors to take so we can go back! 

It wouldn't be an African Attraction without a playground and bounce house!

Living in a Gated Community

As an American living in South Africa there have been many changes to get used to, and believe me we are still in the "adjustment" phase. A big change has just been our life inside a gated community. Much like the States there are a variety of places to live and types of home.  South Africa has a high crime rate, and so security is a big feature of any home here. If you live in a single home outside of a gated neighborhood you will often have a wall around your home with either electric fence or razor wire on top of it.  Part of the regulations set by Black & Veatch is that we must live within a gated community.  Our neighborhood is pretty large there are hundreds of homes surrounding a 18-hole golf course and there is even a nature reserve within the walls. The perimeter of our neighborhood is surrounded by a 8ft wall with electric wire on top of it. To get inside the gate you have to use a fingerprint I.D. to enter. If you are visiting someone within the gates the security has to phone the person you are visiting and you must be allowed in. They then write down your I.D information will allow you to visit. The same goes for anyone coming to your home to do work. As we have moved into the house I have given clearance to various workers coming in. If they don't get ahold of you the visitor will be turned away. It can be a little confusing if you accidentally miss a phone call from the security office. When they do get a hold of you sometimes it can be hard to understand what the security guard is saying as well, I am still getting used to the heavy accents. So, most of  the time I hope I am letting in who I was expecting.

Our home is set back in the neighborhood off the main road we enjoy it because its quiet. Our house at one time had a foreign diplomat living in it. I am not sure which country they represented but they had high security because there are bars on several of our windows. That is not a standard for housing here, but Chase enjoys the extra security. Not that we have felt as though we need it. B&V also requires an alarm installed within the house we set it at night, but thankfully it has yet to go off. We have heard of several people having their alarms go off by accident. At the top of our stairs we have what is called a "Crash" gate. It is an emergency gate that you can close in the event that your house is broken into at night. It prevents anyone from getting upstairs. There haven't been any home invasions that we know of in Silver Lakes, but unfortunately we have to be prepared. We like to close the gate at night so that the boys can't get downstairs. The tile floors and the stairs make me a little nervous as a mom.

The outer road of our neighborhood is about 3 miles so I can go out and get a good run or walk and enjoy gorgeous scenery all within the gates. We have been taking advantage of the golf course weekly. The boys love the driving range and I have been taking lessons also! There are a few parks within the neighborhood also, which the boys have been enjoying. There is a weekly play date at the Clubhouse park and that has been great for us to get to know a few of the other families here with B&V. We haven't driven through the game reserve but a couple families live back in the game reserve and we have seen a few cool Animals while attending parties. Don't worry they don't have any dangerous animals within the walls. ;)

Now that we are more comfortable with driving around here we have taken a few day trips and plan to do much more traveling. I feel like if we are here we might as well see what we can! The biggest safety tip that I think can't be stressed enough is just don't get too comfortable. When we go out I am constantly aware of my surroundings and where our things are. I always double check that our car is locked and windows are up before leaving the neighborhood and we try to walk with purpose when out and about. I don't feel paranoid or worried at all when we are out, and have never felt like we were in danger. I just feel confident that if we are smart and calm we can really enjoy the country safely.