A WEEK ON THE HIGH VELDT

BOKSBURG, GAUTENG. FEBRUARY 25 - MARCH 5

Whereas the South Coast of KZN was a bit laid back and the economy stagnant this area is thriving. The drive along the motorway from the airport to where Alex lives in Boksburg is bustling with new small industry and the houses are being built on any available piece of land and some places we are talking of huge luxury mansions. With the UK struggling under a recession and austerity measures being legislated Gauteng appears to be rolling in money and things are definitely growing and expanding.

We spent the week we were here visiting my old running friends and former workmates in African Products. We walked over to see Tom on our first morning here and Lynne phoned while we heading round Homestead Dam. She arranged an outing at a local Italian restaurant on the Thursday. At Tom's it was mostly discussions about Afprod and the changes they are proposing to make to the pension scheme. He said it is more or less cut and dried, waiting for Government approval of the transfer of the funds and administration to the insurance company, Old Mutual. There was area that is still under dispute, the Company is taking R350M out of the pension fund to boast profits and there is an action group taking the issue to court. This group has the least likely militant in Willem Hazywindus, the personnel director when I was with the Company and I thought him a buffoon. We got a invite from Tom to join him and Rita for a braai on Sunday.

Alex is back working three days a week at his old Company, he is training a new guy to do his job. The person that took over when Alex retired had left. He seems to be doing quite well out of the deal and has negotiated himself a good package. He is still mad about cars, he had built an extension to his garage to accommodate, three MGs, a Lancia, his old Sani 4x4 and the BMW that he has given us to use. He goes to rallies organised by MG and at the weekend is going to Kimberley on one. One of his MGs, the MGA he has stripped down and rebuilt and the bodywork powder coated, it looks like new. He is also playing golf regularly and visiting game parks, he had some wonderful photographs of a leopard that he spotted. He seems to be very active and having a good life, but I wouldn't fancy the three days of work each week, I'm glad to be retired.

On Thursday evening we went for dinner at the Italian, along with Lynne and Donnie there was also Neville and his wife Cheryl, Neville is also an another old running mate. Lynne's lad, Jaryd, also came along. I don't think he is a lad now, more a man and very well built from all his swimming compared with the little skinny boy we used to know. It was an evening of pizza and beer and reminiscing about races we and run and other runners we knew. The people missing were Ivan and Hanamie, it appears that Neville has fallen out with them and not speaking. I got their phone numbers from Lynne to contact them. After a lot of engaged lines and not available signals I eventually got through to them. We had coffee with Ivan a few days later and it was more talk about runners and running. He didn't know what he had done to upset Neville and when we visited Hanamie on Saturday she appeared clueless as well. The visit to Hanamie didn't involve much discussion about running it was all about Suzanne and Margaret's weddings and viewing the photographs and video of her son's nuptials. 

On Friday evening we went to McGinty's bar at Northmead Mall for a drink with Tom. Allan my boss when I worked a Germiston Mill was there and we had a pleasant chat about old times. He is looking very well and fit but his wife Cath is suffering from dizzy spells and balance problems that the doctors can't diagnose or cure. She has resorted to a hypnotherapist for treatment and it is looking promising.

I am still apprehensive about my Achilles and haven't tried running. I don't want to seriously injure it before our trip to the Himalayas. I wanted to do the park run in Benoni while here, but instead of running both Moira and I walked it. It is held at Rynfield Dam where they used to run the time trial, the Dam Dash, years ago. This was another example of the prosperity of the the region, the houses now built on the one side of the dam are unbelievable in their size and opulence. They have also a new golf course laid out there. Some old running acquaintances were there but like me were now reduced to walking the course. I was happy to break 50 minutes walking the 5 km route, helped along the way by a former Benoni Harriers friend, Dannie Ooshuizen. That afternoon Moira visited a couple of her friends, Marlene and Sandra while I stayed in and watched football on the TV.

The braai at Tom's on Sunday was a pleasant surprise when the other guests were Jan and Carol former colleagues at Afprod. They were both married to other people when I knew them but divorced and married each other four or five years ago. It was good making contact with them again and we had to go through all the things we had done and places we had been to since retiring. Karen and Jenny, Tom and Rita's daughters both called in to see us. They are both runners now and Karen has run three Comrades Marathons. She ran her qualifier marathon for this year's Comrades and Two Oceans Marathon that morning at the Vaal. We talked for half an hour about running and I gave her the benefit of my experience, I hope it helps. Jenny has just started running and is having problems with pains in her knees. We advised her to see a podiatrist and get orthotics as she is pronating badly.

My last visit was to Meyerton Mill where I worked for the last 6 years before retiring. On the drive down it was another example of industry sprouting all over the place. There is a big new Amstel brewery just off the highway close to the other big Afprod mill at Kliprivier which is supplying it with maltose syrup. After driving down this road every day nearly for 6 years one would think I would know the way but I took the wrong junction from the highway for Meyerton and had to think for a minute or two where I was, but I realised I was all right when I spotted the large maize silos of the plant at the edge of town.  I spent most of the time with Vivian who is now the production manager but old faces kept popping into his office to say hello. There was Mariska his secretary, Shabeer, the Operations manager, Shaheer who worked with me and is still with the projects department, Nicki, the nursing sister and Andrea who is still looking after the quality, safety and environment in order to meet the different ISO requirements. Gert Ferreira and Chris Woolmerans who had both retired were back as consultants. It was good meeting them all again and to talk over old times.

Our last outing was to take Alex out for dinner at a nice Indian restaurant. The curries were excellent and it was a good practice for the next six weeks in India and Nepal. The next day, today, it was packing and we are now waiting to set off for the airport as I post this blog.

 

 

STAYING ON THE SOUTH COAST OF KZN

UMTENTWENI: December, January and February

The weather over this period hasn't been great. There was a lot of rain and when the skies cleared it became extremely hot and humid. At night we slept with no covers on the bed and the overhead fan spinning at top speed. We did have a relief from this uncomfortable climate when we spent a week in the Drakensbergs at the Royal Natal National Park. There it was pleasantly warm during the day and cool in the night.

We were expecting to have to do a lot of work around the house after three years in the hands of tenants. Surprisingly it was in good condition and only a few jobs that required to be done. The outside needed painting, it hadn't been done for about five years and it was looking a little marked and shabby in places. We arranged to have someone to do it, I painted it myself last time but didn't fancy the high bits that are only accessible from a high ladder or by climbing up on the roof, I may be fairly fit but age is taking its toll and I'm not as agile as I used to be. The complex is 'ruled' by a Body Corporate that is supposed to decide on all aspects of the upkeep and expenses incurred in maintaining the complex. Unfortunately they have trouble making decisions. We went as observers to one of their meetings and it was proposed that the colour of the houses be changed from white to a darker colour that didn't show the ravages of the weather. We thought we would delay the painting of our house and see if there was a change in the rules about the colour. We didn't think about it for long when we realised that there would be just arguments about the proposed change and no decision would be forthcoming. We had the house painted white as originally planned, it is looking very nice.

There were several minor jobs about the house, like jamming doors, which we had a local tradesmen to rectify. The paintwork inside was in good condition, only a small section in the hall where the paint was flaking needed to be attended to and I did that myself. The only major project that took me a while to complete was painting the inside of the garage. The walls were badly marked and some paint was also flaking along the bottom of the walls. There was plenty of paint left over from the work on the outside and I used that for the garage walls.

We went to the Umtentweni Bowling club for a game of bowls.  We were able to play as visitors the first time but were told we would have to join the district bowling association if wanted to play any more.There would be a years subscription to pay, about R1000, and we were only here for three months. It wasn't the cost that was a concern but the petty rules they were imposing. It was made worse by the fact that they were closing for the whole of December for annual maintenance of the green. We tried the bowling club at Southport about ten minutes further up the coast and they were more realistic and a lot friendlier, they said ignore the association just pay the visitors fee and we could play at all the social bowls but not any competitions, which suited us nicely. We have been playing there every Wednesday and Saturday, weather permitting. Bowls seems to be like riding a bike you don't forget, we may not be champion material but we were playing well right from the start.

I had joined the gym, for three months, in Port Shepstone and have been going most mornings, ensuring I get my money's worth. I usually go in early, about 6:30am, when it is relatively cool. I have an hour working out with weights then go to the spinning class. I haven't been running much, the injury I picked up during the cruise to my calf muscle has cleared up but I have now developed a persistent injury to the Achilles' tendon on my right foot. It seems to clear up after a few days rest but as soon as I run again the the pain comes back. I have had to make do with the spinning, cycle aerobics, for my cardiovascular workout. There were a lot of faces at the gym that I recognised from five years ago when I trained here and a lot of the personal trainers are still the same.

We made contact with Carol and Ray who we played bowls with when last here. They came for dinner a couple of times and we had a meal with them after Christmas. They are still playing bowls but are having problems with officialdom at Port Shepstone Country Club where they play now. I think that all the bowling clubs are the same with people getting into position where they can abuse the power they like to assume. They are also a bit disillusioned with the area and found that there isn't much to do other than bowls and the beach. They have put their house on the market and looking at moving to Cape Town. Unfortunately the housing market in is area is depressed and it is difficult to sell any house at the moment. Their house is beautiful and if we were just arriving here and looking to buy, I would jump at their house at the price they are asking.

We also had Donnie and Lynn for a meal during the Christmas period. They were down from Benoni staying at their holiday home in Margate.  They are both still running and I said we would go out for a run when we come up to the High Veldt at the end of February, depending on my injuries. I said that after our stay in Cape Town I was tempted to train and run the Two Oceans Marathon, probably in 2014 or 15. They thought it was a good idea and are happy to consider doing it as well.

Our week in the Drakensbergs was very enjoyable and the weather more pleasant and endurable. The resort we were in, the Mont-aux-Sources hotel, was all right. The unit was clean and comfortable but a bit old and run down in places. We went for plenty of walks in the hills. The long walk up the gorge to the source of the Tugela river and a couple of climbs to some beautiful waterfalls. At a place called the Cascades the mountain waters poured over a series of rocky rapids finishing in a crystal clear pool at the bottom. I thought the water was going to be ice cold as I ventured in for a swim but it was pleasantly cool in the hot mid-day sun. When we went through Durban to the Drakensbergs we called in at the Indian Consulate to apply for visas required for our forthcoming trip to the sub-continent. On the way back home we went to the Consulate again to collect them. Now we are all ready for our next adventure.

We decided not to relet the house and to just leave it empty. We plan to come out again in a year and being in the complex it is quite secure, and there isn't a lot to steal there anyway. Moira made a good job of running down our food supply and the larder was bear on the last day. Fortunately Carol and Ray invited us for lunch and we had a lovely traditional English meal of roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. The following morning we had the two hour drive back to King Shaka airport where we dropped off the car and flew to Jo'burg where Alex picked us up, we were staying with him for a week before heading for India. Moira had made a mistake when booking the Jo'burg flight and we ended up at Lanseria airport north of the city, this didn't please Alex who instead of a five minute drive to Oliver Tambo airport he had an hour's trip.