Hopetown to Potchefstrom

Good evening from a chilly (like 6°C at night chilly) South Africa! Once again it's been a hectic two weeks here so this is what's been happening...

Week 37 (Monday 13th - Sunday 19th) - Sedgefield to Hopetown

So on Monday we spent most of the day packing the trailers and bakkies with everything we would need for the next couple of weeks (also said bye to Scott since he's heading to Cape Town to see his friends for a while). Why were we packing? Because we were hitting the road! We left at 6am on Tuesday morning to reach Hopetown - a small town situated on the edge of the Great Karoo in the Northern Cape. It took us over 11 hours to get there driving up through the Western Cape and through a large part of the Karoo (a semi-desert region) where I spotted a lot of cacti and caught a glimpse of some springbok (national animal of SA).

We weren't actually staying in Hopetown but rather ~20km away on private land. So on Wednesday we started exploring this new area (OB hasn't ran any courses here before), starting with a small walk up a hill in search of some bushmen paintings. The views were spectacular and I absolutely fell in love with the place. After unsuccessfully locating the paintings we headed back down and to the river in search of a launching site for the raft. We also pitched a watch tent, cleaned the bakkie and created a spiders web for the upcoming course. Later that afternoon a few others went up the hill again and found the paintings, so the rest of us rushed up to see them. They were completely different to the ones we saw in Citrusdal - these ones were carved into rocks on the ground - but were absolutely amazing to see. Once you knew where to look more kept popping up and it was so cool to think that these people saw the animals they drew here where we were staying for the week.

Thursday was another day exploring. We took another walk to and along the river, even spotting some water monitor and snake tracks in the sand. We split up into two groups for the rest of the morning, some people going across the river in the raft in search of a good abseiling site, while the rest of us took a hike up to the main road - where the participants would be dropped off. We also created a limpopo swing, set up the other small activities for the course and filled out RAMs and LOPs (basically health and safety paperwork) for some of the activities we were going to be doing.

Friday morning we all (minus Talitha who was really ill) headed down to the river to raft across. The river we were paddling across was the Orange River - the longest river in South Africa. The paddle was really easy but then further downstream was some rapids so we just had to do a spot of white water rafting! Rhere were definitely some screams as our raft got turned around by the rapids. On the other side we all headed to check out the abseil site that the others had found the previous day. It's quite a small abseil maybe 7 or 8 meters high but the view of the river and land from it is amazing! Once we had crossed back over we started pitching the rest of the big watch tents. After a quick lunch Deon, Sanri and I drove out to the land owners house to pick up all the food for the groups. And also bottled water for us instructors to drink as the water from the taps (river water) seemed to be the cause of why so many people were not feeling 100%. Just before the sun set us three headed back out to the main road where we would meet the participants. This course was for the 'Father a Nation' programme which aims at tackling gender based violence here in SA. So all 85 participants were men who also only mainly spoke Afrikaans. Since it was dark by the time they had all walked down to base nothing else really happened that night.

The first full day of course was Saturday and I headed out early after breakfast with Emily to cross the river and set up the abseil. I love being abseil support and two groups did it that morning. However, when we went back over the river for lunch I was not feeling good at all. It seemed that I couldn't evade whatever the water had given most other people. So Talitha swapped in for me at the abs site while I mainly slept. I did help with water support on the raft though later that afternoon for a while.

Thankfully I was feeling much better on Sunday (though other instructors were not) so headed back across the river to set up the abseil again for the last two groups. The last group helped me carry all the bags down and by the time we re crossed the river it was time for lunch. Afterwards it was time for the closing circle before they all made the walk back up to the main road. Support stayed behind and we started clearing up - sorting through the abs gear, cleaning the water equipment and then taking down all the small activities. The groups had taken down the tents that morning so there was a lot less work for us to do. Once everything was packed back into the correct trailers and bakkies we all headed off in search of a shower (which were the coolest outdoor showers I've ever seen!). That night we debriefed around the fire pit before having a braai.

Us stopping to admire the views across the river.

Me, Talitha and Aphiwe in Hopetown.

Testing our new limpopo swing.

Collecting drinking water before we all became ill.

The view from the top of the abseil ft. The rapids we rafted down.

A participant from Shirley's group abseiling.

The view from the bushmen paintings hill.

Top of the hill.

Bushmen carving's.

Our fire the first night (they increased in size each night).

An elephant carving.

Me and Talitha's room for the week.

Our room from the outside.

Fire pit and monkey viewing spot.

Another view of the base.

Road trip in the bakkie!

The 'why do we need to drive all the way back' pose.

Week 38 (Monday 20th - Sunday 26th) - Hopetown to Potchefstroom

So on Monday most of the staff left at 5am to drive back down to Sedgefield. Me, Talitha, Joe, Aphiwe and Nthabiseng however left just after 8am as we were going to be driving further north to another OB base near Potchefstroom. We stopped off at the popcorn factory (the land around Hopetown is all corn) and bought some popcorn before beginning our drive. We drove across the Northern Cape and into the Freestate then started driving up. The journey took ~8 hours and we were all very glad to get to our base in Venterskroon - which is actually in the North West province (we did three provinces in a day!).

Tuesday we spent the day unpacking and I got to see the base properly in day light for the first time and it's great! I really love being up north. That afternoon we headed into Potchefstroom to go shopping for the course and on the drive back we saw two giraffes!! It was INCREDIBLE to see them and I'm still not over it. Thursday we took a walk up to the campsites away from base and also up the trail we'd be walking with our group. We put in an approach line at the top of a dried up waterfall for the groups safety. Saturday was prep for the course. Me and Talitha are getting to co-instruct (under the supervision of an actual instructor) which is super exciting so we threw ourselves into planning out our course. We also went back to Potchefstroom to buy some more food and other stuff we'd need for the next week. Today (Sunday) the group was meant to arrive but now they're not coming till tomorrow (hopefully!!) so it's not been a very busy day.

 The pool is so much colder than it looks.

 More of the base here.

 The river for rafting (our side is the North West province, the other side is the Freestate).

 Modelling the father a nation the shirt.

 We love new tshirts!

 Our room before we get into our tent.

 One of the giraffes!!!!!

 Top of the waterfall.

And another at the top.

I'm really looking forward to instructing this course and once it's finished we're straight onto supporting another 'Father a Nation' course here. It's going to be a busy week!

Hope you enjoyed the pictures!

Rachel :)

The week of LOC'S

Good evening from South Africa! We've all been super busy the past week so there is SO much to cover. I suggest making yourself comfy because this is going to be a long blog...

This week has been all about LOC reassessments. For those who don't know, LOC stands for 'level of competency' and when an instructor begins their training they have to pass all of the LOCs before being able to instruct groups (and get the job!). There's a LOC for every activity we run here and also a bunch of othere LOC'S. Emily has been redesigning the whole LOC layout and requirements so it was very different to what we did when we arrived here at OB those many months ago...

So on Monday we started with the expedition LOC. This involved us going around in small groups to different stations where we'd be assessed on everything to do with an expedition. This included camp craft, pitching tents, map work, correct packing of rucksacks and much more! We were also assessed on mental health and were given different scenarios to act out and resolve. After lunch it was the land fitness LOC. In under an hour we had to complete the 5km loop hike up round the hill while carrying a 14kg rucksack, then do 20 push ups, 30 sit ups and carry someone on our back for 30 metres. The sun also decided to come out properly for the first time in days when we started the hike. Fair to say there was lots of tired people lying on the ground by the flagpole afterwards. The day still wasn't done yet as we still needed to do the search and rescue LOC. This involved us splitting into two groups and having to act out a real life scenario. So we had to get all the gear we'd need and head out in search of our casualty. Our groups casualty had a fractured leg so we patched it up as best we could and made am improvised stretcher (we were not allowed to use the actual stretchers kept on base) with sticks, rope and the sleeping bag from the search and rescue pack. After a busy day me and Talitha decided to go for a quick swim and quick it was... the water was COLD.

Tuesday morning we did forms, course paperwork and report writing LOC'S. This may be one of the less exciting things we do here at OB but knowing how to do these properly is important (and also makes management's jobs much more easier). I loved Tuesday afternoon. We did all the water activity LOC'S - kayaking, canoeing, rafting and raft building. Like yesterday we spilt into groups and went round stations. There was a raft building one where we had to run the activity as we would to a group, I'm glad I remembered all my knots! We also had to do the same for the rafting and then the final station was just some questions about the weather and other safety measures. We then hit the water! We started by taking out the canoes and showing the correct paddle strokes and then done some rescues with people in them and then empty ones. We then got to go out in the raft paddling for a bit before capsizing it. After turning it back the correct way (remember it's about 14ft long!) we had to get back on with no help from others. As you can imagine some people took delight in pushing people back in multiple times! We also had to get onto the whaler with no help twice as part of a LOC. After we got the raft back to shore we swapped it for a kayak and paddled out and showed that we could do braces and rolls. For the rolls we had to do 5 including a bomb roll (where you start with the paddle behind your back) so I chose to do a 180° and then three 360° rolls. I'm thought the water wasn't too cold (definitely warmer than the previous day) but many others disagreed. That night if you walked into the kitchen you would see a bunch of people huddled round mugs of hot chocolate or coffee.

Wednesday morning we covered all the philosophy LOC'S. This included the history of Outward Bound international and South Africa, the core values, mission statement, the five pillars of OB and our approach. It might seem boring to some but I think it's definitely some of the most important things to know as an instructor. We also covered some 'systems and procedures' LOC'S - living on base, DP duties and vehicles and trailers. After lunch we did the water fitness and rescue LOC'S. For the fitness one we had to do a 2km run within 15 minutes, 30 push ups (my enemy all week), 30 sit ups, swim 200 metres within 8 minutes without a life jacket (I got just under 4 mins 30 secs), swim under the whaler to the other side and then tread for 15 minutes, with elbows out the water for 5 minutes. To make the treading more bearable we had a water polo ball so we were throwing that around too. For the water rescue LOC the main focus was saving an unconscious and conscious victim from the water. We had to wear a sailing jacket and trousers while we did this to mimic a situation of if we were wearing normal clothes such as a jumper and trousers, when we suddenly had to rescue someone. It definitely made swimming harder! After work we all headed into town so that everyone (excluding us Europeans) could vote (properly and also not) in the election.

It was the abseiling, rock climbing and high ropes LOC'S on Thursday. I was paired with Zanza and we started at the jacobs ladder where I did the gear and safety briefing before climbing up as Zanza belayed me. I also had to pretend to be absolutely petrified of heights and being lowered back down so that Zanza had to climb up using the cows tail and talk me through it all/offer reassurance. For abseiling and rock climbing we had to demonstrate the correct set up (with one of us blindfolded) and all of the safety procedures. For the abseiling we also had to demonstrate the emergency release and z-drag. We also spent the last part of the day doing the group dynamics LOC'S. This involved us all running the briefings for spiders web (where some instructors happily took on the role of being the naughty participants), limpopo swing, tetrus tyres and berlin wall. We even found time between it all to cover the community service and solo LOC'S. Another really busy day.

Friday was as busy as all the other days. We had a staff meeting in the morning and then a talk about the financial side of OBSA from Deon  (the main guy in charge here). The instructors spent the rest of the day going through their pods laying everything out (so Nthabi could check everything) and fixing things that were broken. Me, Scott and Talitha got a watch tent out and cleaned it as we'll be using it next week, packed the trailer for the rubbish run and then separated two buckets. This was much harder than it sounds - we tried every trick in the book including using washing-up liquid. In the end they came apart when we used the volley ball court poles. After an extremely busy week we had a braai that night which was good. We even baked a cake and some brownies!

On Saturday us three helped out at Deons daughters 8th birthday party. We ran some games, did the limpopo swing and did some swimming with them. As a thanks we got lunch (another braai), cake (which was delicious) and a party bag (reliving my childhood). We also went for a swim afterwards. I definitely caught up on some much needed rest last night for sure! Yesterday after doing my washing, we took a walk into Sedgefield and had lunch there.

Our LOC filled week was also filled with spiders - Scott rescued a huge one from Shirley's room and when we were cleaning out the wood shed (we also somehow fitted in maintenance this week as well!) we saw a black widow and genuinely the BIGGEST spider I've seen. I don't know what type of spider it was exactly but it's something like a huntsman or baboon spider. I recommend not searching those up on Google if you don't like spiders!

The photos I have for this week is us doing the water rescues and me and Zanza doing the rock climbing set up.

I hope you've enjoyed this update. I apologise for the length of it but I didn't want to leave anything out! I'm looking forward to another crazy busy week here in SA and I'm excited to share it with you all next Sunday.

Rachel :)

Just keep swimming

Good evening from South Africa! Here's the latest from the past two weeks.

Week 33 (Monday 22nd April - Sunday 28th April)

The weather at the start of the week was quite bad but I still managed to get a swim in on Tuesday once the rain had cleared. On Wednesday the weather was better so me and Scott headed into Sedgefield for lunch then afterwards went for a swim. Thursday and Friday we swam too and also went to a local small cafe. We headed to the market on Saturday morning. I love the market here with all the stalls and local produce. And on Sunday... you've guessed it - we did more swimming. The water is becoming colder and colder as the days pass and winter gets closer.

Week 34 (Monday 29th April - Sunday 5th May)

So this week we started working again. Monday morning was a bit different than usual as a photographer came and took pictures of us all doing some of the activities! She was taking photos for the new brochure OB is getting made so we did the Jacobs Ladder, Trapeze and Spiders Web. We also started safety checks that lasted the whole of Tuesday as well. Wednesday and Thursday we spent doing maintenance around base. Maintenance here can really range of anything but this week I fixed new whistles to the PFD'S (life jackets), cleared the cut down tree, laminated some signs, swept stairs and loaded the trailer for the rubbish run.  While helping fix the railing for Berlin Wall, me, Scott and Sicelo were looking for a good bit of wood in one of the many piles of logs on base. After just warning us to be careful of snakes, Sicelo runs - faster than I've seen anyone run before - all the way up to the kitchen. Why? Because he spotted a puff adder. It's the most common venomous snake in SA and this one was huge! Monday - Thursday we got to finish work at 4pm so we could go and practice swimming (more or why we've been swimming so much in Sundays blog).

Friday was 'bark chip day'. We spent the whole day loading the gear trailer and bakkie's with bark chips before driving back to base to offload them. The bark chips were to replace the worn ones at the high ropes activities and the group dynamics. And we also replaced the ones on the paths outside the office and the kitchen. On the drive back to base I spotted a baboon and at base we had a rare visitor - a monkey!

As usual, on Saturday morning me and Scott headed to the market. The walk was made much more enjoyable due to how cold it was! It was also raining a bit which was even better. I've loved the cold weather we've been having here. At the market I bought some yoghurt and oranges (they are SO big). Talitha also arrived back today after spending two weeks back home so it was nice to see her again and catch up. Sunday, we went swimming for a short while (the water was very cold, even after swimming for a while). I got timed doing the 200 meter swim (we have to do it for our water fitness LOC) and did it in 4 minutes 24 seconds - well under the 8 minute cut off time so I'm very happy. We also cooked dinner - chicken stew and rice. 

The next few weeks are going to be very full on so I'm aiming to return to a blog each week because there is going to be so much to cover. This week we are all updating our LOC'S (level of competencies) then next week we're going to be hitting the road. I'll be spending over 3 weeks away from home here at 'base' traveling to different bases for courses!

I don't have many photos from the past two weeks so here's a picture of the puff adder we saw.

Rachel :)

April and Autumn

Good afternoon from a cloudy South Africa! Here's the latest about what I've been up to here...

Week 30 (Monday 1st April - Sunday 7th April)

On Monday and Tuesday we were just finishing up the safety checks and cleaning base after the DSD course before we all go on leave. Wednesday we went to George and the mall before coming back to base and packing for our trip to Coffee Bay!

Early Thursday morning we started the long drive to Coffee Bay and managed to get to the backpackers there just before 5pm. On the drive there, we spotted a rock monitor crossing the road! It was so cool to see even for only a few passing seconds. The weather was terrible on Friday with heavy rain and thunderstorms for most of the day. That night the backpackers organised a trip to the local village where we would be able to have dinner with a family and see some traditional dancing. However when we got there the women of the family were not there - due to the heavy rain, they had thought that we would not be coming so had not prepared anything for us. Our guide Issac (a Coffee Bay local) did show us around a house and told us information about the area and the people who live there.

Saturday morning we got a lift to 'hole in the wall' with some people staying at the backpackers. Hole in the wall is an arch in the rock formed from years of corrosion due to the waves from the sea. Talitha decided to get a lift back to the backpackers while me and Scott decided to hike back with a local. The walk was 9km and took us along the coast. We got to see the baby hole in the wall too and cross the top of a waterfall. We also met other PT volunteers staying at Coffee Bay for the night. It was really good to catch up with them all!

Sunday was my favourite day during our time at Coffee Bay. We went on the guided caves and cliffs tour! As we walked along the coast we visited a cave (that had hundreds of bats inside!), a natural jacuzzi and did some cliff jumping into the sea too. On the way back we also stopped off at a point in the river where we were allowed to spend time jumping in from some rocks (the highest being around 7 meters or so high). This was clearly a favourite spot for the local kids as there were so many of them swimming and jumping when we got there. It was such a nice spot to swim, and I'm glad the sun was out for it! Lunch was the classic Coffee Shack toastie - anyone who's had one will tell you how good they are!!

Week 31 (Monday 8th April - Sunday 14th April)

Monday we spent a few hours at the beach swimming and making the most of the sun while it was out. The rain was back Tuesday morning which meant that the 'beach day' being run was cancelled but it did mean we got a free surf lesson! The rain soon disappeared though so we were surfing in the sun once again. When I was talking to someone from the Netherlands who was staying at the backpackers, I learned that he was going to Scotland in June for a wedding at Winton Castle (where I worked before I left for SA)! It really is such a small world!

We left Coffee Bay on Wednesday to head back to Sedgefield and stopped off at La Piazza for dinner. Thursday and Friday we caught up on sleep and I managed to dry my washing between all the rain showers. Saturday we went to the market and bumped into John (another PT volunteer) who was with his family. It was nice to see him again! We met up with Jacob that afternoon for a braai which was really nice. I also saw my first porcupine!

Week 32 (Monday 15th April - Sunday 21st)

Our plans for Monday was to head to the beach but more rain washed that plan away. Instead we headed to the mall in George. Tuesday the weather was much better so we headed to Vic Bay where me and Talitha did some body boarding. The waves were really good and the water warmer than we were expecting! Afterwards we were sitting on the rocks watching the surfers and I thought I saw something swimming near them... Turns out a pod of dolphins had stopped by! It was very cool to catch a glimpse of them as they swam past!!

On Wednesday we dropped Talitha off at the airport - she's going home for two weeks to visit her family. Friday me and Scott went out on the kayaks. It seems like months since I've done kayak rolls. Yesterday we went to the market before swimming some more. It's been very sunny the past two days which has been a very welcome change. It's also getting darker earlier now with it nearly completely dark by 6.30pm! Me and Scott were meant to be working on different courses this coming week but unfortunately they've all been cancelled.

The photos I have are from Coffee Bay and then some of the moon I took last night.

Rachel :)

Evacuations, Tents and a lot of canoes.

Good evening from South Africa! It's been very hectic here (and at Graubow) the past three weeks so I've not found the time to uploaded a blog each Sunday. I was determined to not let another Sunday pass without posting anything so here's the past three weeks...

Week 27 (Monday 11th - Sunday 17th March) - Maintenance, Greenwood and Graubow.

So for the start of this week I spent a lot of time doing jobs around base such as cleaning the bathrooms the groups use, prepping the A-frame (the house where teachers sleep) and digging a MASSIVE hole (nearly the height of me) for all the organic waste from the kitchen to be put in. Wednesday was equally as busy as it was 'prep' day for course. We had the course brief in the morning and spent the rest of the day putting up four big watch tents and moving mattresses into them for the participants to sleep on.

Thursday was the day the course started - four groups of kids from grades four and five. I spent most of the day as water support doing float tests, canoeing, swimming and raft building. In the evening the groups all went on a night hike in an attempt to try and tire out the kids. This however did not work, and the instructors spent a lot of time that night trying to get the groups to sleep. Shirley even went as far as to take a group of boys that wouldn't sleep on a walk up the hill at 2am. For the final challenge the next morning I ran relay races with them for nearly an hour but still they had so much energy!! I think all the instructors were glad they were staying for one night only - but it was a really great and fun course to be on.

Five hours away in Grabouw, Scott, Talitha and the other instrucors were having a completely different course. A seven day course for the local high schools grade tens started well until the rain arrived... On the second day all groups had to be evacuated and taken back to their school as the rain was so bad. One group had to be rescued by the nature reserves rescue team as the river they were camping next to was impossible to cross after only one night of rain. Being taken back to school gave the groups a space to dry out their gear (and themselves!) and get given new dry clothes by their parents. After spending the night at school, the rain thankfully cleared so they all headed back into the mountains to finish their course.

Everyone arrived back on Friday night and it was good to hear all the stories from their course and share ones from ours. We had Saturday off so we spent the whole afternoon in the kayaks then we also had Sunday morning off before prepping base for the next course.

I also saw two different snakes this week -  a green boomslang and what I think was was a puff adder.

Week 28 (Monday 18th - Sunday 24th March) - I observed a course!

Bright and early on Monday morning the kids started arriving for course. This time it was grade eights from a high school in George. For this course I got to observe Zack which meant I stayed with his group throughout the whole course and got to pick up tips on how to instruct. So on the first day we did spiders web, canoeing and also a loop hike to the campsite we'd be camping at that night. The second day we did swimming, some more canoeing, raft building and jacobs ladder. It was really great to get to see the different participants push themselves out their comfort zones on different activities and watch thew also grow in confidence. The last day was spent doing the trapeeze then cleaning the gear they had used. The weather wasn't that great with it raining then staying dry for an hour or so before raining again, making it impossible for the gear to dry out. 

On Thursday we mainly spent the day cleaning up and packing away the pods after the gear had dried out. Me and Scott had Friday off (Talitha was supporting a different course that was running here so she was still working) so we went swimming for a bit. Saturday morning saw us three walk to the market where we had a pizza for breakfast! We also went for a swim when we got back but the water was quite cold and since summer is over now, it's only going to get colder. Sunday was spent prepping for the two DSD courses that would be happening from Monday, then more swimming. 

Week 29 (Monday 25th - Sunday 31st March) - DSD (department of social development)

So we're finally onto this week... dsd. Since Monday there have been two dsd courses running here so it's been a very busy week. Me and Talitha got to be support here at base while Scott got the chance to observe the groups out in the field. While on base the groups did jacobs ladder, trapeeze and raft building. They also spent time out of base doing a beach hike, abseiling and an overnight solo. The solo is almost always an issue with some of the dsd participants and this time two of them decided that they had had enough and thought the best way about it was running away. They didn't get far - they ran to a dead end. After the final challenge of a run this morning they all left before lunchtime.

While we've been at base, me and Talitha have been super busy doing safety checks, working on different projects and also painting inside the dining hall. We created a 'words of the week' wall, where there will be different words each week in the languages of OB - Xohsa, Afrikaans, Tswana and English (the first language's of some of the OB staff). Talitha also painted exit signs (and wanted them featured in this blog) and she's also been making water polo goals for us all to use! I also found a praying mantis in our room and in some cultures here finding one in your house is a symbol of good luck or an indication of your ancestors being present.

Tonight we are all having a braai to celebrate the fact that March is finished... seven courses in four weeks... HECTIC.

The pictures from this week are of the primary course I supported, the high school course I observed, the 'words of the week' board, the exit sign, water polo goals and me and the mantis.

Rachel :)

Week 26 - 6 months in!

Good afternoon from a cold, rainy and windy South Africa! Although it's summer here, the temperature at Willow Point today is a chilly 19°C, giving me a rare chance to wear a jumper all day and not overheat after five minutes. I'm loving it!

After two weeks off we were all back to work on Monday. We spent the morning doing maintenance around base before starting this month's safety checks. We had PT (physical training) at 6.30am on Tuesday morning which included a run and dip in the water. Once we had finished tidying up the water front, me, Scott, Charmoné and Talitha spent the day in the rox store finishing the safety checks in there. The rox store is filled with all the gear we use for the high ropes activities, abseiling and rock climbing. Each carabiner, rope, harness, helmet all needs individually checked for cracks, cuts or fraying. It's a long task but VERY important. We also went swimming after work was finished.

On Wednesday we spent the morning making visual aids that we and the instructors can use on course to engage groups with what we are talking about. I'm looking forward to being able to use the ones I made in the field with a group! After lunch I was safety checking the high ropes with Talitha and Zanza. I was belaying Zanza while she checked the Jacobs Ladder then Talitha belayed me while I went up the Trapeze to check that. Like yesterday, once everything was finished for the day we hit the water and did some more swimming. We had PT again on Thursday morning (it's now every Tuesday and Thursday morning while we are working!) which was mainly swimming which was great. The rest of the day was spent packing the trailers and bakkie for the course happening in Graubow.

Scott, Talitha and most of the instructors left Friday morning to go to Graubow for the course there. I didn't go as there's a course happening here at base that I'm supporting next week. I prepared some paperwork for that course and then didn't do much else on Friday! I took a walk to the market on Saturday morning which was nice to have a look around and then tydied up our room. I went a run this morning (before the rain began) and spent this afternoon reading and listening to music.

Wednesday marked me being in South Africa for six months! It's crazy to think I've spent half a year here already and even crazier to think I've only got five months left before I find myself on a plane flying back home.

It occurred to me yesterday that I didn't have any photos from this week to put here so when I saw a toad on my way to the showers last night I took the opportunity and snapped a picture of it!

Rachel :)