Yes, we are learning to drive in South Africa! And our mantra for making turns is "tight left, wide right." Staying on the left side of the road has proven to be the easier part. More challenging is recognizing that taxis (actually minibuses, which are everywhere) will make 1-2 lanes where they do not exist, run red lights, speed on ancillary roads, and go slow on the highway. Driving is an adventure here!
We're so glad the primary language is English (though a different English than our ears are familiar with) and that the people are super warm and friendly. Still there are adjustments every day: Get to bed earlier since the day begins around 5am. Accept that we may have days in a row when the internet is not working (and therefore no email and no VOIP phone...sorry to those of you who have also found this frustrating!). "Brown" sugar is not "brown sugar." And no electricity in the bathroom means Michele was very grateful yesterday when Jeff bought an extension cord so she can blowdry her hair in front of a mirror again!
The days have been jam-packed since we last wrote!
Kate has made a new friend named Kate, also an expat! She is a church friend
and neighbor!
Kate, Kate & Kate's little sister at neighborhood Easter egg hunt
Kate continues to love school! She can shed her shoes as soon as she's on the grounds and she loves the chickens and rabbits running around. She is in a class of six boys and holds her own. You can picture that, can't you?
John started 8th grade (high school, oh my!) at Dainfern College
http://www.dainferncollege.co.za
Downside: uniforms required. UPSIDE: digital tablets required! This is a photo from leadership week when the G8's hosted preschoolers from a local creche:
We received our boat shipment on April 4! It was by far the best unpack we've ever had. I was amazed that without written instructions, Khulumbani and his team could put together every bed and bookshelf--their boss says it doesn't matter if it was made in Germany or Finland or China or US--"they are just clever." When the movers left after two days, more than half our stuff was already where it was supposed to be. Yipee!!
We go to church with the Sixishe (the "x" is a tongue click) family. Their three daughters came for a visit last week and regaled us with stories of their time at Queens College in the Eastern Cape. We laughed for three hours straight!
Michele, Sipetile, Alu, and Pumza
South Africans say we had the unusual good fortune of getting several items working at our rental house already: garage door, security system, cellular repeater box. However, we're still waiting for our landline to be repaired and trying to get Michele added to the local bank account has proven to take much longer than initially forecast. Also, Jeff is still experiencing the painful process of registering the car he bought. Here he is with Lulu Von Merveldt, our awesome relocation specialist, heading out yet another time to the driver's licensing center.
We have learned that when people say something will happen that day, it means something else.
...Ah well, it's Africa, as they say!
A family from church, the Klintworths, invited us over Thursday after school. They live on a big country estate in the town of Kyalami. They have 5 horses, 3 dogs, 1 cat, a pond, cricket pitch, large putting green, stables, house, 5 kids and 2 grandparents! We had so much fun! Their daughter Rebecca is Kate's age and sons Kyle and Angus are just a little older and a little younger than John.
So to wrap up this post: YES! We are learning to drive in South Africa! And the best way to learn is by experience. So here's a story:
(Michele) I was driving John to school on Tuesday. It's only 4.5km away BUT we have to get on William Nicol Parkway (main artery into Joburg) which is currently undergoing construction and is sometimes down to just one lane. Cars sit bumper to bumper in the mornings. Taxis pull off onto the dirt walking paths (sometimes 2-deep) and speedily bump down them then pull in front of people waiting to turn.
Such was the case on Tuesday. I was sitting at the intersection of Peter Wenning Street and William Nicol waiting to turn left as soon as the 2 taxis wedged in front of me were able to merge onto Wm Nic. And bump! The car behind me simply ran into me. I looked in the rearview mirror and saw a mom and her little boy and thought, "they're probably headed to Dainfern too!" Actually, she is a teacher at Dainfern! Her car sustained a lot of damage to the front end, but my car looked unharmed!
Nevertheless, this event made me late for "coffee" with the parent rep (Alice) from Dainfern. She and several other moms hosted Mavis, a Brit named Stella, and me at a cafe near the school. As Alice came to the school to pick me up, she rushed toward me and gave me a big hug and kiss on the cheek. At that, I burst into tears! It was the first time I've cried since getting here and I think the morning's challenges and her kindness created the perfect storm so I could let it all out! She was so great and told me she cried through her whole first meeting with her parent rep when she moved here 2.5 years ago. I managed to pull myself together by the time we reached the cafe and had lots of laughs and got loads of helpful information from the other moms there.
I spent the rest of the day trying to deal with the accident. Because I was driving the GE car, I had to file a claim. That seems like it should be a straightforward process, but see paragraph 9 above.
Also, I needed to file a police report within 24 hours and fortunately our wonderful au pair Caryn (who deserves an entire post all for herself and will get one soon!) knew where a police station was and accompanied me. Picture an open air, small office with officers standing at a counter calling upon a free-form line of people. Picture through the open door behind the counter: jail cells opening into a courtyard. I sat down with a nice constable who filled out a 4-page form by hand (flashback to Russia!). Fortunately, the women at breakfast had told me to bring the requisite black pen! Kate enjoyed watching the comings and goings and made friends with everyone waiting in the que. It was actually a much more pleasant experience than I expected it would be! ...And look at all I learned that day. First on the list: I am very fortunate to even have my own car!
(Some important things to note in photo above: No damage visible on bumper. Even if I never tow anything, I now understand how good it is to have a hitch here. And the "L" for "Learner" decal was given to me by my driving instructor who said it will keep other drivers a few extra meters away from my bumper. Haha!
Guess we saw how well that worked!)
That morning, I had received an SMS from Jeanine Haskell at church. She said she was bringing dinner that night. When she arrived at the door, it was late and I had just returned from the police station. When I saw her there, I burst into tears again. I said "it's been a hard day." She said "I just had a prompting this morning that I should bring you this food." She had no idea about anything that had happened, but God did. He knew I would need help and He knew she would listen and provide it. It was a tender moment for both of us.
That is what I know. We are known to God and He is watching over us!
Until next time--Tight Left, Wide Right! Love, Michele
