our first scuba dive -Ondine's curse

Me and Ceri spent a night at Rocktail bay beach camp and did a pool scuba introduction and then a first open sea dive at 12 metres. This was an incredible experience. We spent quite a while trying to equilize, but this evntually was made easier by a potato bass the size of Louis that seemed to try to rub his scales on our wet suites and managed to take our minds off the pressure! I found the breathing very difficult in the pool and eventually had to tell Ondine that I was unable to concentrate on any activities because i felt I was being suffocated. Turned out to be a closed valve used by experience divers to reduce oxygen intake when diving! With this problem solved I was fee to brathe again and felt like a water baby...probably why my oxygen ran out first when we did the sea dive(I was so relieved to have oxygen in my lungs after my previous day of oxygen deprivation. Ondine was our instructor and Ceri pointed out her very relevant surname in the diveing world ie. Ondines curse!
On a seperate snorkel excursion a slinger bit ceri on the little toe and another slinger bit me on my finger. Ceri almost jumped staright back onto the boat. A large potato bass again came and circled us. Quite intimidating to have a large fish follow us around the weekend.

Louis is now able to snorkel in the swimming pool. We want to go to Lala neck to take him to snorkel. It is a well protected bay which is good for kids to snorkel in.
Ralph loves the tele tubbies and Fifi. He also is a 'dyno thunder power ranger' with a sword and a noise to accompany his movements. Ralph loves the jungle book and espesially the song: ' trust in me...'


Cecily had her birthday last week and we are now organizing things to do when she comes over the Xmas period. It is nice to have visitors because we then plan excursions and this is a great past time.

In the garden - shongalolos, coconuts and a play gym

We have seen alot of thunder the last few weeks. The rain seems to be falling in true Monsoon fashion. This means we will be eating plenty of mangoes and plenty of mosquitos will be eating us.

Ralph loves shongalolos and collects them in cups. Louis put 2 large shongalolos in our bed - I found them in the sheets the same night I admitted a patient to the hospital who was bitten by a spitting cobra in his bed!). The next morning we told the kids about the shongalolos in our bed and the fact that we thought there might be a nest under our bed. Louis just laughed...

We have built the boys a very nice wooden bridge, tower and swings in the garden. Aaron the gardener (who loves to turn bouganvillia into topiary-heart shapes) finished the roof as a traditional zulu thatch.

We have a cement pad for the barbeque area, which means I can make a fire for ambience and a fire for the food. Ceri has started playing the accordian and this is a great music instrument to accompany the beautiful african sunsets and stars. She plays 'all things bright and beautiful' en 'hansie slim'!

We often see owls in the garden and various other birds such as the african hoopoe, the wood hoopoe, the purple backed starling, the collared sunbird, the purple crested loerie and the ever present witbors kraai that likes the coconut palms. One coconut fell on the ground during my trip to England. No one was injured. The boys opened it to have a look.

vegetables and turtles

Ek is nou weer ingesettle hier by die hospitaal. Ek ry nog steeds klinieke toe en ek hou daarvan om grondboontjies en bone by zama zama kliniek te koop. Ek kry dit by die HIV counselor en by die dame -tuinier(pink lady) wat die kliniek groentetuin hanteer. Dit is nice om die middelman uit te skakel en direk vanaf die mense produkte te koop. Dis dan ook die Mboza kliniek hoenders wat so eiers le...n bargain vir R30 n hoender.

Ek swem nou elke oggend 50 lengtes in die hospitaal swembad waar n mens nie regtig lengtes kan doen nie. Jy kry net kans vir 2 vlinderslag bewegings dan is jy aan die ander kant. Ek probeer hoog oor die water opstyg soos n groot vis, en dit maak my onderste rugwerwels teer maar die oefening 6 uur in die oggend is goed vir die hele dag.

Kersfees is aan die kom en cecily se sy wil n klein varkie eet. Ceri se hier is tapeworm so ons sal moet settle vir iets anders. Enige voorstelle. Hier is bok om te eet maar ek verkies curried goat- en dit is nie n sinterklaas maaltyd nie. Kudu? Hier is nie ganse of kalkoene nie..

Ek en Ceri was vir die naweek alleen Banga nek toe. Dis hier waar die turtle tours is en waar ons die hatchlings, leather back en loggerhead gesien het. Ons het in die Community tent camp gebly en ons het sommer net lekker tyd alleen gespandeer. Ons het n afrika visarend op die strand gesien en n geelkeelkalkoentjie.

A snake on the road and the festival of light

the mouth and fish traps

kids in the veggies patch

best advertisement

the mouth

halloween(premature)

the bookshop

Life is back to usual. I am back home after a marathon trip to England to produce my videos for the last component of the GP exams.

Cecily seems to be doing very well and sounded very chirpy on the phone. She sound settled in Edinburgh.

I did the videos in London and worked at Park Medical Centre (old job). It was nice to see all the old faces. Nothing has changed. Sandra is still creating lunch time feasts and Nicky is as annoying as ever.

I came back via Doha and spent 2 days in Joburg. Had a great lunch with Jaco(remember this name Lukas!) and worked hard with the Snymans to produce what we now will call the best video ever. This was achieved with Janine 's large edit machine and patience, Piet's cheese platter and whiskey and the dates from Arabia!(Janine hates dates).

Back in Manguzi...

Eunace goes to the bookshop which is open from 2-4 pm in KwaNgwanase town. Louis is now going to school in flexi-time fashion due to Ceri's working arrangements. Ceri is now doing 2 days of anaesthetics and it is working out very well. I am doing a mixture of clinics, paediatrics, male ward and the occasional septic list which is always a surprise. It ranges from full hand repairs, evacuations and to large absesses...anywhere!

We have celebrated Diwali at the parkhomes. Bavani created a real festival of light. The boys were dressed up as usual and Louis ate a very hot chicken Briyani

Ceri 's vegetable patch is looking good and we are taking our 5 portions a day-some from the garden and some from the trees !

We continue to go to the mouth(pictured) as usual. Louis is now swimming on his own in the sea with only general supervision. This is so fantastic! The fish traps at the mouth are held within the families(handed from father to son)and are very old. They are woven from reeds found in the swampy area and sticks found locally.

The people from manguzi are not truely zulu-they are Thsonga people(fisherman) and the fish traps are important culturally. They are designed in order to cath the larger fish (so the ecosystem is supported). the traps are within the heritage sites within the lake system.

On a trip back from the mouth we saw an african rock python on the road one evening. It was approximately 2 metres long and this was a very unusual sighting. To see such a reptile in the wild is just really amazing! Ceri drove over the snake's tail/ end bit! The snake disappeared into the bushes after an initial slow start, which meant we were able to view it very closely. No pictures sorry!