What Neil was saying before he was so rudely cut off by the person filming (this is the same person who has figured out that videos longer than about 20 seconds take way too long to upload on a blog) was basically this: Snakes, like lizards, love to eat eggs. They enter chicken coops at night and gorge themselves...swallowing eggs whole and crushing them inside their bodies. (Yum!) Now, the people to whom the chickens and eggs belong do not like this. But, it's difficult to catch snakes in the act, especially if they are up to all this mischief in the middle of the night and may bite you if you disrupt their feast. But people are clever. They set out hard-boiled eggs in the chicken coops. The snakes then swallow these eggs. But since the snake cannot crush a hard-boiled egg once its been swallowed, they are immobilized. The next morning people find the frozen snake and kill it...often with shovels or rocks.
There are also less slithery animals about like this little bushbuck who was quite interested in what we were up to.
The kids especially liked watching the monkeys. (We kept a tight eye on our food.)
They were even more fascinated with squirrels...which are apparently incredibly rare up in Tzaneen. We let the kids borrow our camera for a little while and it came back to us with about 2GBs worth of squirrel documentaries. Can't really blame them though...I remember going camping with my family when I was a kid and being filling with glee whenever I'd see a chipmunk or squirrel scamper across the road and up a tree. (The only thing that lessens my excitement for them now is that I've spent the last 10 years trying to keep them out of our apartment. Trust me, a up-close encounter with a squirrel on your bed is much less fun than seeing them romp around in the wild.)
Unfortunately, the not-so-short film "The Life and Times of an Unnamed Squirrel" had to be deleted. We needed that 2GBs for all the elephant we saw along the way:
After such a long walk, it was nice to put our feet up.
Later that evening we moseyed over to their camp for some festivities. We had a braai (wherein I successfully managed to eat zero meat without having to defend such odd behavior and Neil managed to eat a lot of meat with the constant declaration of its gloriousness).
We played Uno (Neil and I actually won several games without cheating...too much).
By that time we were plum tuckered out, so we headed back to our cozy, air-conditioned digs and settled down to a cool, mozzie-free night. I don't remember much after that which I interpret as some good sleep.
The next day was a scorcher. So, we didn't do too much other than just enjoy eachother's company...
Looks like somebody could have used a little A/C last night!
Don't we all look just swell? These candid shots are great. Give your camera to a five-year-old boy and you're sure to get the real story. Fun, fun, fun in the sun, sun, sun!
Eventually we had to part ways and Neil and I headed home through the park towards Orpen gate.
Along the way we had two great elephant encounters:
Whew! They don't get closer than that!
We learned a few things from this experience:
It's quite nice to camp in Kruger because you can choose from several different types of accommodation. You can get:
In between reading snippets from engrossing (and non-work-related) books we took in some of the scenery and wildlife. It was quite peaceful. Around the camp, many of the animals are so tame that they will eat right out of your hand. Not very sanitary, perhaps, but incredibly endearing. Aaahhhh. A person could get used to this. 
Apparently, monkeys haven't quite yet figured out how to work as a team and scoot the fridge away from the wall. Just give them a couple more generations.
That is a big lizard... 
Although quite exhausted, we were excited about the last leg of our journey. Mostly because whenever we mentioned to a local that we were headed to Port St. Johns their eyes glazed over and "ooh" and "aah" sounds escaped their lips as if savoring one of their favorite holiday treats.
What we found didn't exactly fulfill our wildest dreams.
There were restaurants. But, they were anything but fine. Neil's personal favorite was the N.E.W.S. Cafe where he ordered "fresh crawfish" and got a funny colored one that we deduced was either days old or previously rejected by another customer because he saw the "cook" remove it from the microwave and throw it into a styrofoam box when his order was up.
And there were shops. But, those that weren't boarded up specialized in booze. (Sorry, we only patronize pubs in trees or on mountain tops).
This was looking like a bust. But there was still hope...our accommodation could save us! I'd booked a 3-night stay in self-catering room at the Umzimvubu Retreat. The situation looked promising. This place was well advertised all over the internet and on billboards for several kilometers outside the town:
Plus, it boasted a location not 1o meters from the ocean and had quite an inviting landscape with tree-lined walkways and flower pots outside the rooms.
The bathroom, however, was another story. Downright frightening.
How, we wondered, were we supposed to feel clean after showering in this? Wearing shoes in the shower helped.
Want a relaxing bubble bath after a long day of driving? Forget about it. Unless you find soap scum especially soothing.
Oddly enough, Neil wasn't super thrilled about our digs.
The communal kitchen looked slightly more promising. This was a relief since we weren't too keen to check out other restaurants in town. However, we soon discovered upon preparing some fish and veggies for dinner that the stove didn't work. We tried everything. Including fidgeting with the gas line that ran from the wall to the stove (kids, do not try this at home). Eventually we heated up some nachos in the microwave...after running to the store for a cheese grater. Fully-equipped kitchen...yeah right!
Truthfully, by the end of the day, we were pretty set on suffering through the night and leaving for home in the morning. But then we realized we were only a couple hours away from a few other places we wanted to see. So, come the morning light we shooed the mosquitoes off our exposed appendages, rolled off the sticky bed, schlepped ourselves into the car once more, braced ourselves for a pothole-ridden ride, and ventured south.
Frankly, this felt a bit like Spring Break '89, so we passed through rather quickly.
Eventually the road stops and you find dozens of young boys waiting to take you on a guided walk from the "parking lot" to the Hole in the Wall...for a nominal fee, of course. Actually, I think those who wait and watch your car while you're gone have the right idea ..."only paper money".
Eventually, you arrive at the Hole in the Wall, a place known for and named after, well, a hole in a wall. OK, yes, I can expound...
The local Xhosa call this place "izi Khaleni", which means "place of thunder". During high tide the clap from the waves can be heard throughout the valley.
In short, this place was great. We had a grand time relaxing, exploring, and generally being awe-struck by the capability, power, and beauty of nature.
