About 4 years ago, thanks to my friend Diane Katz, I became involved with an organization called
Grannies a Gogo, which provides support to African grandmothers raising their Aids-orphaned grandchildren. I eventually became responsible for creating and maintaining their website. The group raises funds and makes a personal connection through letter writing.
As it turns out, the group we support is in Sabie, located within 150 km of Kruger Park. I made the decision quite some time ago that I would include a visit to Sabie to meet my letter writing partner Martina Makua.
Sabie is located in a beautiful valley where pine and eucalyptus plantations grow as far as the eye can see. It's obvious that forestry is an important part of the economy and it's what brought Susan Fenner, the founder of Grannies a Gogo, to Sabie in the first place. This view of Sabie is from the road high above as it winds down the valley.
Although Sabie is a typical small, rural, African town, with many fruit and curio stalls by the side of the road, it also has many beautiful waterfalls, canyons and vistas which bring many tourists to the region. This is one of the better known - Mac Mac Falls.
I had arranged with Joy, one of the local woman who helps with the organization, to bring Martina to meet us for lunch; I'd also suggested in a note to Martina that other family members were welcome. I was very pleased when she brought her younger sister Jane, Oupa, the grandson she'd raised and who had just passed the matric (graduation) and her daughter Carol, who was on a lunch break from her job at a Sabie furniture store. After lunch we followed Joy as she drove into Simile, the township where Martina lives. I had a chance to see the place where the gogos meet, although it was closed for the holidays. We wound our way up the hill past all the shacks, through the chickens and children on the road, almost to the top. We had no idea what her living conditions would be - I was kind of thinking that she might have no electricity or running water. But what a lovely, tidy house greeted us, with a well tended garden outside. It's obvious Martina has a green thumb as the front area was filled with a variety of plants. The interior was full of colourful flowers, plants and knickknacks. She's lived here since she was 'relocated' by the government in 1971. At that time certain areas were set aside for blacks and the area where she lived was designated a 'colored' area, not accessible to blacks. In this photo you can see her in her living room wearing her uniform for the 'golden games' that she has twice been selected for.
I think it was equally thrilling for all of us - I know that most of the Vernon Grannies won't ever have the opportunity to meet their letter writing partners and it's only through a variety of coincidences that I was able to. My son Scott, met and married Sam, from Johannesburg which is how this journey began. Below, l to r: Ross, Martina, Jane, Oupa (grandson), Sam, me, Joy in front of Martina's house.
The plan was to have the ceremony at sunset, but with the delay in transporting the guests from town, we had to wait until Sam's dad arrived.
After we arrived at the Lower Sabie camp we took a night drive. We'd heard about an impala kill further up the road but first we encountered a small group of hyenas.
I love the zebras - very photogenic:
One of the white lions, apparently a teenager.
Ross easily wrestled a lion cub into submission:
Does he look hungry? He was about to pounce so Sammy stepped on the gas. It turns out he was just looking for another tree to lie down under. Scott says that lions sleep 20 hours/day.
What a fabulous day and I think this is just a taste of what we're going to see in Kruger Park.
We walked past many, many small and barely liveable shacks, many roadside businesses such as barbers or hair salons and spazas - little 'stores' that sell mostly stuff like pop and chips. It seemed curious but apparently during apartheid, they weren't allowed to have businesses in this area so, despite so many thousands (millions?) of people living there, there are no real 'shops' unless you go to the main roads. 
Present opening took place Christmas Eve (apparently their tradition but to our dismay!) Scott got the most presents for the first time in his life - apparently Mike generally gets more. The stack of presents quickly outgrew the space under the tiny tree so we moved it all into the middle of the room. Sammy was in charge of distribution.
There were about 25 of us eating an out door feast with ham, lamb and even turkey.
We later had a sunset boat ride down the river to cap off one of our more unusual Christmases. As you can see by this photo some people actually do get into the spirit of things.
