Sunday, August 14, 2011 (Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens)

Today (well, yesterday really, since I'm posting this a day late), we went to the Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens to meet Dad's boss, Christine, and enjoy an opera concert with a symphonic accompaniment.  While there, we took a short walk out to the Witpoortjie Falls (I won't even attempt a pronunciation).  The Opera singers were very talented, singing songs from The Lion King, West Side Story, and other classics, as well as some songs we didn't recognize.

Saturday, August 13 (Wilro Park)

We visited one of Dad's co-worker's houses today, and I wandered down to the edge of the garden where I could see there was a view looking out over the city.  Through the barbed wire, I could see the red rooftops and the brown plants, and the dark, dark green treetops.  What I could see of the city was so BIG, and there was a lot of cloud cover, so I couldn't see nearly as much as I could have on a clear day.  Where we're living now is so different from little, pretty Gig Harbor.  Lots more people, lots more trash, lots more traffic, just lots more.  It makes me rather homesick for Washington.

Friday, August 12 (Johannesburg, Gauteng)

Today's post isn't actually a photo, it's a video, and it's the only thing taken with my camera today.  Two weeks ago, while at the lake, Aunt Amy gave us a puzzle of Yosemite (both Teresa and Mom love puzzles).  This is the completed puzzle.  However, I can't post videos on this blog, so I'm going to link it to my facebook post of the video.
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=205768926143867&saved

Thursday, August 11 (Randburg, Johannesburg)

 We applied for a rental house today, a four-bedroom, three bathroom house with a pool (very important to the youngers), a decent sized backyard, and a big kitchen for Mom.  The owner is very nice, as is the realtor we're working with.  The property contains lots of fruit trees: avo pears (avocados), peaches, grapes, pecanuts (pecans, pronounced picanuts), and some others that I have forgotten.  Another bonus: the dining room (although, just the dining room) has under-floor heating.  Aka in-floor heating.

Wednesday, August 10 (Johannesburg, Gauteng)

For the past two weeks, we have had big brown birds in our garden (yard), and we couldn't for the life of us figure out what they were.  Mom guessed at some sort of ibis and then referred to them as crows on steroids; the noise they make is extremely annoying.  Today, while looking at a house, we heard them in the trees and asked the realtor showing us around the property what they were, and she called them a Hadeda Ibis.
"The Hadeda Ibis is a heavy bodied brown bird with iridescent pink shoulder patches and a long de-curved bill.  The Hadeda Ibis has a distinctively loud, penetrating and recognisable haa-haa-haa-de-dah call that is often heard when the birds are flying or when startled, hence the name, Hadeda.  Hadeda Ibis move around in flocks numbering up to 20 birds or 100 out of breeding season." http://www.sa-venues.com/wildlife/birds_hadeda_ibis.htm

                             

Tuesday, August 9 (Honeydew Mazes, Johannesburg)

Today, again had no plans to start with.  It's a national holiday (Women's Day), so lots of places are closed.  Dad didn't go into work, banks were closed, realtors took the day off.  At first, we thought maybe we would find a nice park and take a walk, smell the flowers, listen to the birds.  However, after looking online, Mom decided this other place, Honeydew Mazes, would be much more exciting.  I can't help but agree with her.  Every year they create two giant mazes, an Amazing Maize Maze and a maze created out of bamboo fencing.  This time of year, they have the fencing maze, and it took up a good hour and fifteen minutes to find our way through.  It's not just a maze though, you also have to find the different gardens, find animals in those gardens, identify smells, sounds, and people, and solve puzzles along the way.  After finishing the maze, you get a popsicle, and there are numerous other brain teasers and games in the surrounding field.  All in all, a great way to spend the day.

Monday, August 8 (Johannesburg, Gauteng)

Earlier today Dad got an unexpected phone call from The King's College informing us that our whole family had been accepted at their school.  Last week, they hadn't had room for Ivan; today, a board meeting took place, and they decided there were enough kids Ivan's age to open up another 4th grade class next year.  And this year, they were willing to take Ivan on as an 'extra' student, number 26 in a class with a limit of 25.  This came as an answer to prayer for Mom and Dad, and although none of the kids are stoked about having to go three more weeks without school, we believe this is where God has called us.

P.s. Mom would like me to mention that she had to buy twelve pairs of shoes for our school attire.

P.p.s. Yes, I know I already used this picture, but I don't have another one of the King's College