So when I got asked whether I wanted to go to a South Africa - Australia Cricket game, I agreed immediately thinking it would be a peaceful day out: a bit like a picnic in the park with nice food and a few drinks while people throw some balls as “background” entertainment. I don’t think I could have been more wrong!
When Ewa and I got to the stadium for the afternoon session (figuring that a whole day of cricket might be a bit too much for a first impression), we met our friends, who had already been there since ten in the morning. This is South Africa, it was a cricket game and they had been there three hours already – so, unsurprisingly they were wasted! As were the 40 000 other people in the stadium and the atmosphere was accordingly! Where I was expecting sophisticated approval of good bowling and polite clapping to excellent batting, there was screaming, shouting, swearing and a lot of banter! As it turns out, cricket might look like a gentlemen’s game – but that doesn’t mean that the people watch it in a gentlemanly fashion!
But either way, Ewa and I had a great time with the Joburg crowd – laughing and joking and occasionally cheering for some good cricket action. Unfortunately South Africa had a bad day and there wasn’t too much of it, but it was still good fun! Next week we are all going to watch the rugby in Pretoria – the Bulls are playing the Storms ... or was it the Sharks? I am not actually too sure, but I was told it would be a legendary game that people would tell their grandchildren about …
Looking back at the past weeks, I really cannot complain about a lack of social life! Since we moved into our flat, I hardly spend an evening at home! In fact, having been in the flat three weeks, we have only managed to cook a soup. And by that I actually mean that we warmed up a tinned soup … so it really doesn’t qualify as cooking at all!
But people out here are just so friendly and we get invited to lots of cool things that are just too good to miss! It might be someone’s birthday or leaving drinks, a night out with the girls from work or a movie with the book club girls, clubbing or cricket with the Joburg crowd! There’s just so much to do and I am “booked” for the next weeks! Last weekend we had the ODI girls from Swaziland visiting us and we went to Daan and Ian’s Cuban themed birthday party on Friday night. It was a really mild evening and the guys had organized a really good venue and put on fab music. So there was lots of dancing and chatting, later on in the night people went for a swim in the pool and one girl actually managed to injure herself quite badly when jumping in – and only realised the day after!
As a birthday present Ewa and I decided to take Daan and Ian on a trip to Sun City and yesterday was the big day! After less than two hours on the road we entered the fairytale-Disneyland world of Sun City! Build during Apartheid, Sun City was supposed to provide wealthy rich white people with a place to gamble legally, which was forbidden in South Africa. Today gambling is legal and Sun City’s casino’s not the best ones around, but the place is still a big fairground with plenty of things to do and explore! The hotels are amazingly exclusive – it is forbidden to enter some of them unless you are staying there – the slot machines incredibly tacky and the fake beach just what I needed after a few long weeks at work! I spent a beautiful day chilling on the beach, having a few drinks and justifying why I did not fancy going in the pool, where the powerful wave machine had left me almost naked on my previous visit…
All together it was the perfect end to a lovely weekend! I now feel all relaxed – even if slightly burnt – and ready to tackle the next week with the big climate change conference coming up!
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