The Return of the Jedi

Christmas has come and gone and a new year is upon us. I hope that everyone had a great Christmas. It is a wonderful time of the year to remember Jesus and to spend time with family.

As many of you know, I spent Christmas with Claudia in South Africa. We both had an amazing time and got to see some really cool things. We were in Cape Town from Dec. 14 until Dec. 22, when we began the 14 hour drive to Johannesburg. In Cape Town, we saw Robben Island (where Nelson Mandela was in prison), the waterfront (lots of nice and expensive shops), Cape Point, Table Mountain (but then if you’re in Cape Town it’s hard not to see it) and the beach! Robben Island was very neat. We had a local university student as our tour guide and he did a really good job.

While we were in Cape Town, Claudia and I decided that it would be fun to climb Table Mountain…so we did. And it was fun, but also tiring and a little cold when we got to the top. We both took lots of pictures so if you want to see them you’ll have to invite us over when we’re back in Canada.

Cape Point was also pretty cool (as in neat). There were some really nice views and we managed to get there before all the tour busses arrived. Seeing as it is summer here, Claudia and I also went to the beach three times! And I only got burnt once but it’s pretty much gone now. We also saw some of the wineries near Cape Town.

After our adventures in Cape Town, Claudia, Megan (Claudia’s friend that we were staying with) and I started driving up towards Johannesburg. We spent the night in a town called Colsburg and finished the trip the next day.

In Johannesburg, we spent a lovely Christmas with Megan’s family. Megan’s mom is German so we opened our presents on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas morning. Here is a picture of Claudia and I beside the tree.

On Jan. 27, we went to Krugger National Park for three nights. While we were there we saw all sorts of animals, including the big five (elephant, buffalo, rhino, lion and leopard) plus two cheetahs, lots of giraffes, hippos and impalas. We also saw Pumbas (warthogs) and one Timmone-look-alike (dwarf mongoose) some hyenas and ostrich. Again, we took lots of pictures and if you want to see them, you’ll have to invite us over when we get back to Canada.

After Krugger, we stopped by and Aunt and Uncle of Megan’s for a night and then returned to Johannesburg for New Years. After that we relaxed and got prepared to go our separate ways again. I arrived back in Lusaka on Jan. 3 and Claudia got to Dar that day. She traveled to Iringa on Jan. 4.

Overall, it was a really good vacation. We both had a great time and it was wonderful to be able to spend it together. I think it helped that we were together so that we didn’t miss home as much (although I am a little sad that I missed seeing my sister Kate and her boyfriend Anthony…oh and I also missed being able to throw a snowball at her…) Now that Claudia and I are back in our countries, it’s back to work. It was nice to have a little break, but unfortunately plants don’t take breaks, they just keep growing. Needless to say, there’s lots that needs to get done here.

I think that’s all for this post. I would love to hear about other people’s Christmas break, even if you think it was nothing special. Just send me an e-mail and let me know how it was.

Here is a random picture of some lightening that we saw on Christmas Day (or Christmas Evening I guess).

P.S. Don't ask about the title of the post...I have no idea why I chose it other than the fact that I just returned from my vacation.