We were all up and ready to leave at 6:30 AM.
On our way we ran across a field of these beautiful flowers that we came to find out were planted by a very wealthy gentleman who owns thousands of acres where he raises cattle, corn and other crops as well as these flowers. We saw several fields along the road side. We understood that they make fragrances out of these flowers.
A local tourist taking pictures in the field.
We had made arrangements to stay at the Fisant, Bokmakierie & Hoepshep, a bed and breakfast. We are going to stay here for two nights as we visit and see sights that we have on our schedule.
The accommodations were as advertised and the breakfast was outstanding to say the least.
After checking in we headed out for Clarins which was about one and one half hours from Bethlehem. We first stopped for breakfast at Wimpy. From there we were on our way. Clarins is a pricey arts and crafts city like Jackson Hole or Park City. There were many shops to visit and sidewalk restaurants to visit. We found a very nice African table runner for our sofa table in our flat to add to the ambiance.
After a day of sight-seeing and driving we returned home famished. However, it took us some time to find a suitable place to eat & finally settled at Kuba's Italian. It was not the most fancy but all in all the food was pretty good. Some had pizza, some had salads, some had steak, which in my estimation was excellent. Nearly every restaurant entertains with large-screen TVs to watch the latest soccer match.
We returned home from dinner and at around 8 we taught all to play "2's and 10's"; (so fun!) until we were all tired and off to bed. We have a big day ahead of us.
Sunday morning we were up by 7:30 for huge breakfast and then off to Lesotho (pronounced le-sutu). Just outside of town Elder Smith invited me to take the wheel and do the driving. This was my first stint at driving since we arrived in Africa! I need to get used to driving on the left side of the road so I guess he thought this was as good an opportunity as any.
On our way we came across a little cultural village so we decided to see what was there. To our disappointment we were one hour late from seeing several African High School Gospel choirs sing in a native competition. We were lucky enough to listen to one group shown in the picture and their voices and harmonies were fabulous!
Just as we were leaving the village center we came across a group of kids singing and dancing so Elder Smith and I joined in for a round. The kids thought we were crazy but they laughed their heads off at us all the time.
This is a picture of the village housing as we drove out of the cultural center.
We arrived at the border of Lesotho and had to get our passports checked which we thought would be simple but with having to each fill out papers, it was close to 40 minutes before we finished.
Lesohto is a separate African a country within South Africa. It is the poorest of the African nations located within the South African area. Poverty is just the way of life for many African people as you can tell by the pictures. After crossing into Lesotho this is what we saw.
Local means of transportation
Local street side markets
Local vendor shops.
After getting through the border we headed out across the country on our way to see a dam. Unbeknown to us we had to drive up the Drakenburg Mountain range going from an elevation of about 2500 Ft to 9000 Ft. The road reminded me of one of those South America adventure trips, because the road cris-crossed along the mountain with one side straight up and the other straight down. There was not much room to maneuver and luckily they did not let many cars on the road at one time.
On our way up and down the mountain road we ran across herders bringing their lambs and goats down the road heading for the valleys since winter is just a few months away.
The countryside was beautiful but everywhere you looked you saw poverty. However, we were so impressed that on nearly all of the mountainsides were planted rows and rows of corn as far up as the eye could see around these little villages. Corn is the mainstay for the Africans, they make it into what they call melee-pop, covered with a little gravy (sauce made with tomoes, onions, spices ), with a little strip of meat - beef or lamb. The pop is white and resembles grits, only thicker so it and the rest of the meal can be eaten with your hands.
The housing for these people was all the same: small Rondevals or round, thatch-roofed huts all along the roadside and up the hillsides as far as they could or would dare to build.
This is how the local natives harvest and transport their corn from the hillsides to their villages.
Sunday at the local laundromat.
We wanted to go see some other sights but it was getting late and we had no idea as to when the border would close; for sure we did not want to be late and have to stay, - who knows where - in Lesotho.
We got to the boarder to discover that it did not close until 10 PM. But as tired as we were, nobody wanted to turn back to see something new so we presented our passports and exited Lesotho and entered South Africa. It was like going into a new world - the difference between Lesotho and South Africa is remarkable.
We stopped at Spurs Steak House for dinner located in the casino in Bethlehem (that sounds strange enough doesn't it?) After dinner we returned to our little bungalows, played a little cards and then off to bed.
Monday morning after breakfast we headed back home hoping to see a few sights along the way. The owner of the B & B told us of a place where we could go and see lions and other animals. It was called Lionsrock. Lionsrock is a game preserve for the big cats and other animals which have been rescued; these animals have lived in deplorable conditions, malnourished, some with rickets and other diseases, neglected and mistreated in Zoo's all around he world. You cannot believe the deplorable conditions of the Zoo's in the Eastern block - impoverishment countries who have no funds to maintain a good Zoo. This organization is privately funded and has reserves in several countries protecting other mistreated animals like Bears, Monkeys, Apes and African Cats. Before going on our tour we were shown a video explaining the purpose of this organization and pictures of the terrible and deplorable places like Romania, Italy, Russia, Bulgaria and other eastern Europe countries from where they rescued many of the cats. These animals at this reserve are not in zoo cages but are housed in the open, yet enclosed areas for their safety and well keeping. Quite a remarkable place and project.
After leaving Lionsrock we headed for a city called Harriesburg where we were told we could see some Bushman caves and sand paintings. Upon arriving we could not find anybody who knew a thing about the caves or paintings. We decided to get a bite to eat at the local Kentucky Fried Chicken and while eating I spoke to an Afrikanner lady in the hopes that she might know something. She didn't but offered to take me to somebody who might know. So I got into her car while the others waited for me to return. This lady, her 9 yr old daughter and I actually went to three different homes and spoke to people who might know - but all I found out was that it was an undeveloped area with a lot of walking in the bush - certainly not a developed park.
I returned to meet the others and they had wondered if I have been kidnapped or something, especially since the lady was young and not bad looking.
Funny thing while driving around with this lady. She said that she offered to help us because we were Christian ministers. I told her which church we represented (in Afrikaans) and she got excited because she knew of a lady in her city who was a quasi prophettess who was looking forward to the Latter-days, so she assumed we were one and the same church. In all the searching for help to find the Bushman Caves I neglected to get the name of her friend, the "prophetess".
We finally decided to head home, I once again took over the driving and we arrived home to Jo'Burg at about 5:30 PM tired and exhausted. A good trip for all and an adventure not to be forgotten.
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