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I can’t believe I haven’t written a diary style post since last year (crikey that sounds bad). I left you all hanging with the impression we would be in Pringle Bay for a few weeks and I am sure you’ve been wondering where in the world (well, South Africa at least) we are now. So before I get started with an update, let me get the excuses out of the way; there have been some very exciting developments, including a new website coming soon that have been keeping me busy with Global Handprints (follow out the GH blog to find out more!) I have been approached by an education consultancy asking me to start working for them (which would not only be great experience but also solve the never-ending visa issue however it does require commitment and a temporary end to ‘life on the road…’ so involves lots of thinking) Also to be honest, I have been embracing the Pringle way of life which is to not really do a lot and to not do it in any hurry!
So, as you may have guessed, we haven’t made it far. In fact, we haven’t made it anywhere at all. I spent two weeks in the city, networking and trying to be professional, before hot-footing it back to Pringle. Big thanks to Lady J for hosting me while there and for showing me the ropes of the networking scene in the city. It was a great experience and a perfect way to get to know the place like a local rather than a tourist. Cape Town is certainly a beautiful city with a large cultural mix and huge variances across the neighbourhoods but I was happy to get away!
Our two weeks has turned into almost 3 months and we are feeling very at home. Although really, with the caravan parked behind a pub, how hard would it be to feel at home? In fact, when it came to renewing the car tax we had to change the registration to this province so are now official ‘Pringolians.’
We have both spent our time adopting this pace of life, getting to know the locals and trying unsuccessfully to catch crayfish for dinner. Our biggest achievement has been to ‘catch’ water snails, which aren’t elephant foreskins like I told you Mummy Reeves, sorry! They are in fact water snails that look pretty gross and don’t taste much better so I won’t be rushing into the water to get more.
Girl Dog and I have been exploring the town on foot as well as spending hours throwing and catching sticks on the beach. (I will leave you to figure out which of us does what)
Pringle Bay is home to Perigators, where all the live music and wild nights take place in this area. They’ve had a great line up over the festive season; ho knew a girls SA rock band could draw such a crowd in a small town…we have spent many a night supporting the ‘musos’ and having a whale of a time.
We spent a long weekend up in Durban for a 60th birthday party with a Disco theme. I hadn’t really given much thought to going back to KZN and was surprised how much landing in Durban and spending time in the Midlands felt normal and homely. There are just so many differences across the provinces and KZN is where I have spent the majority of my time in SA, so it feels familiar.
Back in the Cape, our weeks have been varied. We have been wine (cheese and chocolate) tasting, explored the local markets, found a secret ‘locals only’ spot to swim in the river and the boy has thrown himself off mountain mountains and down sand dunes. We seem to be the new ‘Jim’’ll Fix It’ people in town and the boy often gets calls asking him to repair a fence, build a greenhouse or create a rockery. Despite not being the most productive worker, I often also seem to get roped in to helping him out. In many cases I am sure I’m probably more of a hindrance than a help in all reality! We have helped out at the local animal welfare society looking for injured animals after some of the local wildfires.
Christmas was spent recovering from live music the night before then heading off to a potluck dinner. Although I have been away for Christmas before, this was my first hot one and there was something very relaxing, albeit a little unfestive, about sitting on a deck sipping chilled white wine in the sun!
Pringle Bay beach
We saw out 2015 and welcomed 2016 in at a local’s house here in town. He opens his grounds up every new years eve and invites anyone who wants to come. He provides DJ equipment and fires to cook food on, while the guests bring food, drink and music to play. What a great idea! It started off a little strange being in someone’s house who we hadn’t met but it wasn’t long before the 3 of us (Girl Dog came too) were making friends around the fire. There’s something special about seeing a new year in with new friends. I think Girl Dog partied harder than us and spent the next two days flat out recovering while we cured our hangovers swimming in the river.
Girl Dog recovering from NYE
January has been a whirlwind of making plans, meeting with people about work opportunities, sorting our lives out and getting into some sort of routine. Although it’s summer here still and is very hot, it’s windy too. A gentle breeze definitely helps cool things down a little but plenty of nights I have woken up feeling like Dorothy in Oz and expecting the caravan to be landing somewhere new.
So, it’s 2016 and we are almost one month down. I am not quite sure what the rest of the year has in store but I hope you guys will stay along for the journey 🙂
Let me know what’s been keeping you busy in 2016 in the comments below.
Princess in a Caravan 