Dysselsdorp – 26 September 2021

Friday we said goodbye to our Bushcamper who is now in the parking lot with brother-in-law Michael and sister-in-law Vanessa. We cleaned the car and put all the stuff away. The past few weeks we have driven about 10000 km and he has done this excellently, without protesting once. Compared to the Landcruiser we had three years ago, this Hilux is a lot more comfortable. Maybe the Landcruiser can be more in really rough terrain but those are places that we no longer look for.

For us, the car was excellent and he can now rest for a while. Last week I received the official ownership via e-mail so, after a long time, I own a car again! For the time being we keep the car in possession but it could be that we sell it again in the future. Of course, everything depends on our future plans regarding holidays in South Africa and it has become clear to me over the past 2 months that a combination holiday and family visits is very complex. The future will tell because you never should take decisions when emotions run high.

Friday afternoon I picked up a rental car at Cape Town airport. Of course again with the usual problems (the type of car you have rented is not there, do you want to settle for this sedan) but those were solved to (my) satisfaction. I now drive a Citroen C5 Aircross and that drives wonderfully.

Friday night we went to Lisa’s sister Lilly and said goodbye. We slept with sister-in-law Vanessa and from there we went to Dysselsdorp around 11 am to bring Lisa’s mother home. The trip was nice due to the beautiful Tradouw pass and we were around 3 o’clock at Lisa’s parental home.

Of course there were visitors but I was lying on my bed early and slept peacefully. My food digestion is slowly starting to recover.

Today we head for Johannesburg but we travel with a detour. We want to arrive at the airport on Wednesday so that we can take the mandatory COVID test on Thursday to be able to travel into our own country, despite the fact that we have been vaccinated for months. Perhaps, in the future, we should put the Outbreak  Management Team (OMT) for election because they determine our lives more than the politicians of The Hague and any criticism of their actions has immediate major consequences.

Although a lot of things are and are going wrong in South Africa, the way the population deals with Corona is a breath of fresh air. Here one keeps ‘an eye on the ball’ and every effort is made to give everyone as much freedom as possible to live his or her life. This in stark contrast to the Netherlands where rules, control and commandments from an, unelected, OMT are leading.

Since February of this year, I refuse to watch the news on television, read newspapers or follow news sites. The press is, in my humble opinion, insufficiently critical and this has resulted in shameful dossiers such as, for example, childcare allowances. The past few weeks I have started again more but, from today, I will stop ‘cold  turkey’ again. I’ll hear it when something changes again!

In the coming days I will report on our return trip to Johannesburg where, if all goes well, we will get on the plane on Thursday evening