Every Day is Sunday

Our trip from South Africa to Kenya was an adventure in itself.  We flew from Johannesburg to Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania and spent one night in Dar.  The PLAN was to take a bus to Kenya in the morning.  Our Lonely Planet guidebook said the buses to Kenya run daily at 9 am.  The website of the bus company said the bus to Kenya runs daily at 9 am.  We were all set for a 9 am bus, but of course, there was no 9 am bus to Kenya!

To make a long story short, we ended up on a ”matatu,” which is a privately owned and operated van that doesn’t run on a schedule.  The driver chooses a location (which he announces by yelling it out to passers-by) and only leaves after he has filled all the seats.  The matatus don’t leave until they are full . . . really full.  Like 13 actual seats but 17 passengers full.  We were a little wary of climbing in past the rows of five people sharing 3 seats, but we felt comforted by the fact that this particular driver named his matatu “Air Force One.”  We spent the trip chanting O-BAMA, which although a little annoying, helped to pass the time.

Marty:

On the second week of the Wertkinborn family vacation we left for Ngala Safari Lodge, a 35,000 acre private game reserve on the outskirts of Kruger National Park in the northeast corner of South Africa.  Ngala Safari Lodge is designed to give an old-world, somewhat rustic appearance, but the insides of the individual cabins were far from rustic, and the staff went out of their way to pamper us.  Ngala means “lion” in the Shangaan language.  And we did see lions, as well as the rest of the big five (African Buffalo, Rhino, Elephant, Leopard, Lion).

 

Not only did we see the big five, but we also saw giraffes, zebras, impalas, kudus, buffaloes, hyenas, leopards, jackals, hippos, baboons, wildebeests, warthogs, and dozens of bird and insect species.  We were even lucky enough to see the elusive and peculiar dung-beetle who lays its eggs in elephant poop, rolls it into a ball, and buries it until the eggs hatch. 

Our amazing guide was Dyke, whose breadth of knowledge is encyclopedic.  Not only does he know everything there is to know about all of the animals, birds, insects, flora, and fauna; he was also able to point out every major star, constellation, and planet in the clear, starlit African sky. 

The philosophy at Ngala Safari Lodge appears to be “Feed the Humans, See the Animals”.  We ate at 5:30am, 9am, 10am, 1pm, 4 pm, 7pm, and 8pm.  We drove around and saw animals the rest of the time.

After four days of Safari, it was time to say our tearful good-byes and go our separate ways – Steph back to work in Cape Town, Barb & Jim to Paris for a few days before returning to Madison, Sandi & Marty back to New York (after a brief stop-over in Cape Town), and Erin & Jeff north into central Africa to continue their amazing adventure.

Sandi:

The next stop after Cape Town and Johannesburg was Ngala SafariCamp outside Kruger National Park.  This place is truly a vacationer’s heaven on earth.  Our day starts at 5 AM when someone knocks on your door.  At 5:30 was our first feeding of the day, and by 6 AM all 7 of us were on the Land Rover for the morning ride.  Ngala is a game reserve which is contiguous with Kruger National Park, and the animals are all indigenous to the area.  There are no fences, so they all roam free and your time is spent tracking them and, at times, hoping that they aren’t going to decide that you are their prey.

This has been a wonderful two weeks.  As parents, we were the source of comic relief and embarrassment to our children.  They laughed at us and with us for the past 2 weeks.  In the end, we were so happy to spend two weeks with Stephanie, and to become part of Jeff & Erin’s journey.  None of us will ever forget it.

Marty (Jeff’s Dad):

Jeff’s sister, Stephanie, has been teaching high school science at the American International School in Cape Town since last August.  She had a one week vacation in March, so we decided to come for a visit.  The timing worked out perfectly since Jeff & Erin were planning to leave South America for South Africa at about the same time.  In the spirit of “the more the merrier”, Erin’s parents, Jim & Barb Erlenborn decided to join the party.  We all spent 2 weeks together, and ate 42 consecutive meals, as one big happy Wertkinborn family.

The only person not pictured is Sandi, who served as the official photographer of the Wertkinborn Family Vacation

Cape Town, deservedly, is often referred to as one of the most beautiful cities in the world.  Bounded by water on three sides, and dominated by the imposing Table Mountain, there are spectacular views from almost any vantage point. 

We enjoyed many of the sights within Cape Town proper (e.g., the District 6 Museum, Kirstenbosch Gardens, and the Waterfront), but some of our most memorable experiences were on side trips out of the city.  On one of the days, we drove south to Cape Point.  We climbed to the top where we could see the Cape of Good Hope (often mistakenly thought of as the southernmost tip of Africa which is actually Cape Argullas, several miles to the East).  The stark beauty of the barren cliffs meeting the ocean was breathtaking. 

On the way to Cape Point, we stopped at the Boulders Beach Penguin Preserve.  One would think that after Antarctica, Jeff & Erin would have had enough of penguins.  But then again, penguins are always cool. 

One day we spent touring the wine country with our guide, Philip Costandias, a local winemaker himself.  South African wines are starting to be appreciated in the global market.  The most popular white varietal is sauvignon blanc which rivals the New Zealand brands in quality.  The red varietal which in indigenous to South Africa is pinotage, a cross between pinot noir and hermitage, a medium-bodied wine which goes down easily with kudu steak or ostrich.  We went to a total of 4 wineries in the famous Stellenbosch and Franchoek regions.  The final stop of the day was a wine-and-chocolate tasting.  Erin was in heaven.

One evening, we were treated to a “Jazz Tour” of Cape Town.  Our first stop was to visit Ezra, a local jazz musician.  Ezra lived in a modest house in one of the Cape Town townships.  Ezra’s wife cooked us a typical South African feast which included such dishes as potjiekos (beef & vegetable stew), mielie pap (corn meal mush), morogo (spinach), tripe (intestines), and home-baked bread.  Ezra is one of those larger-than-life figures.  He’s a jazz saxophonist who is fairly well-known in South Africa.  After dinner, he played us some of his music and regaled us with stories from his past and his associations with jazz greats such as Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie.  Ezra could also be somewhat ornery.  If someone asked him a question which he thought was a little too personal, he would snap back:  “What you botherin’ me with that shit, man?”   

On Saturday, we left Cape Town for a brief, sobering weekend in Johannesburg.  “JoBurg” underwent rapid growth in the late 19th century after the discovery of diamonds in nearby Kimberly, and for many years was a thriving metropolis.  Today, downtown Johannesburg is a ghost town of empty office buildings, high crime, and hordes of homeless, many of whom are refugees from neighboring Zimbabwe.

We toured Soweto (SouthWestTownship), a sprawling, heterogeneous area with homes ranging from one-room tin shacks with communal out-houses to relatively luxurious, 2-story dwellings occupied by black professionals. 

Nice houses of soweto

Not-so-nice houses of Soweto

We also saw the Hector Peterson Museum (Hector Peterson was a 13-year-old boy who was the first casualty of the Soweto Uprising in 1976), Nelson Mandela’s house, and the Apartheid Museum which documents the atrocities of apartheid as well as the successful campaign against it. 

Sandi (Jeff’s Mom):

Let me start by explaining briefly (although I don’t do “brief” very well) why we are all here.  Stephanie, Jeff’s sister, decided to come to South Africa to teach.  Jeff & Erin’s time in South Africa coincided with Steph’s school vacation.  We wanted to visit Steph at some point during her year here.  Why not have a family reunion in South Africa?

We arrived in Cape Town to a spread sheet (I kid you not) detailing our schedule of activities for the week.  Every day may be Sunday, but every day is also planned to maximize our time to enjoy the culture, diversity, and beauty of our surroundings.  In the U.S., we have wineries with delicious wines and beautiful views, we have gorgeous beaches, we have majestic mountains, we have botanical gardens, and islands that served as prisons.  Cape Town has all of these things practically within the city limits.

After a week in Cape Town, it was time to move on to Jo- burg and the Apartheid Museum, Mandela’s house, and Soweto.  We also have poverty and homeless in the U.S.  What we don’t have are hundreds of refugees arriving daily, setting up squatters’ camps next to skyscraper office buildings that have been abandoned because it has become too dangerous for businesses to exist.

Jeff’s sister Stephanie teaches high school science at the American International School in Cape Town, and she graciously opened up her home to us for two weeks.  Stephanie was the perfect hostess and helped us make the most of our Cape Town experience.

On our first night out, Stephanie took us to “Pub Quiz,” a trivia contest at a local bar that she attended most Mondays.  We were joined by Steph’s friend Sarah, a B.A. from Harvard who teaches AP English, AP History, and AP Calculus  (all in one semester) at the International school.  Perhaps thinking a bit too optimistically, Stephanie named our team “The Dream Team.” 

Sarah was REALLY excited about pub night

Contrary to its name, Pub Quiz was held in a sophisticated-looking wine bar with an impressive list of wines and pretty good pizza.  We planted ourselves at the Dream Team’s assigned table, ate a few slices of pizza, and made good headway into our first bottle of wine.  We were in pretty good spirits until they announced the theme for the night: South Africa trivia.  The four Americans at the Dream Team table murmured a collective “Oh shit.” 

Can anyone reading this blog name the highest grossing South Africa film of all time?  No, of course you can’t.  Those were the type of questions we were dealing with.  (The answer is Mr. Bones 2, which apparently just barely edged out the original Mr. Bones).  On the topic of South African pop music: 0 out of 5 correct.  On the topic of South African film: 0 out of 5 correct.  It was a disaster.

Although we did come in last place, the night was saved during the “bonus round” when we were asked how many human eyeballs weigh as much as Jennifer Aniston.  Using our incredible powers of deduction (assuming an Aniston weight of 110 pounds and eyeball weight of 3 oz) our guess was off by just 7 eyeballs.  Our correct answer won us four shots, which we drank with much national pride and American bombast.  

Stephanie lived on campus which gave us a chance to get involved in the school.  Jeff gave a lecture to the AP History class on the tension between the judicial branch and the legislative branch.

Much more fun, however, was giving a lecture to a class of first graders about our trip to Antarctica.  Steph’s roommate Joanna teaches first graders and her class was about to perform a play about Antarctica in the primary school play.  Joanna asked that we come to the class and show some photos of our trip.  We hooked up the projector and spent the morning with a group of 15 seven-year-olds.  

They absolutely loved it!  We fielded somewhere between 150 and 200 questions.  Our favorite question of the day was: “What does it smell like?”  Quite an interesting question that could only come from a 7-year-old.

 After we finished showing them our pictures, the students to perform the play about Antarctica that they had been working on.  SO CUTE!

We touched down in Cape Town almost ten years to the day that Erin arrived to attend the University of Cape Town (UTC) for the spring semester 1999. Ten years? When did we get so old??

Some parts of Cape Town have changed in ten years, but much has stayed the same. It still remains one of the most beautiful and livable cities in the world. But it continues to be plagued by a huge disparity between the rich and the poor. Townships seem endless. There has been progress in addressing the squalor – single family homes are being built. Unfortunately the need is great and the government response is slow.

Erin was an excellent tour guide as we took advantage of the best Cape Town has to offer. We had a wonderful picnic at a vineyard in Constantia, and spent the afternoon relaxing on the grounds with bellies full of food and wine. We didn’t have a chance to try the bread, however, as the vinter’s dog pulled a Homer (see Entry 5) and stole the baguette right out of our picnic basket.

We spent a day climbing table mountain (which apparently has gotten a lot steeper in the last ten years), and then headed to Camps Bay to enjoy the beautiful ocean at the foothills of the mountains.

 We stopped into some of Erin’s favorite haunts in the Observatory neighborhood to reminisce – Obz Cafe, Stone’s, and the KFC around the corner from her house that turned her off of chicken for many many years.

One of the highlights of the week was stopping by Erin’s old house that she shared with 16 other students in her program. It’s amazing how many of her roommates from that house are still close friends.

It turns out the house is still used for UTC students, and they invited us in to take a look around. “It’s a lot smaller than I remember it,” Erin said, “I can’t believe 17 of us lived in here.”

Erin finally got to show Jeff Parliament Lane – the opening scene from Erin & Brin’s famous “Nelson Mandela Story.”

Last week my grandfather died at the age of 96 after living a very full life.  I didn’t receive word of his passing until it was too late to return home for his funeral, but I did write a eulogy that I would like to share on this blog.  It is my way of celebrating his life honoring his memory from afar. — Jeff

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My grandfather was a devoted husband, a loving father, and a savvy businessman.  He was all of those things, but to me he was first and foremost a wonderful grandfather.

Grandpa Ben was not the type of grandfather who would call you over, sit you down, and tell you how you were supposed to live your life.  He lived his life by example, and I learned a lot just by watching him.  Grandpa Ben’s greatest gift to me was to let me spend time with him and watch as he lived his life to the fullest.

The first time I went down to visit Grandpa Ben – and spend time just the two of us – was when I was 20 years old.  I was a very serious 20 year old.  I was a serious student, a serious basketball player, and sometimes a serious pain in the ass.  It was quite a humbling experience when I realized that my 85 year-old grandfather was more fun than I was.  Ben Wertkin loved to have fun, and watching him enjoy life was contagious.

Spending time with Grandpa Ben on the golf course showed me how enjoyable playing golf could be.  Together we’d drive out to High Ridge – which was always empty – and play a round.  If I hit a shot that I didn’t like, he’d keep dropping balls until I hit a good one.  He used to tell me that the three most important parts of a golf swing was a proper grip, a solid follow-through, and a big smile.  It would take us 6 hours to get through 18 holes, and I loved every minute of it.  Grandpa Ben played golf because it was something fun to do, and he showed me how to enjoy it too.

Grandpa Ben also showed me how to enjoy drinking scotch.  I remember traveling down to visit Grandpa just after my law school exams, and we made plans to go over to my uncle Craig’s house for dinner one night.  We had an hour before dinner so we decided to have a glass of scotch.  I went into the liquor cabinet and found a bottle of Johnny Walker’s Blue Label.  When I told him that I’d never tried Blue Label before, he insisted that we open the bottle.  “What else could I possibly be saving it for?”  Then, of course, we had to try a glass of the Black Label and the Belvenie so we could appreciate the difference.  We wound up having an impromptu scotch tasting before heading to Craig’s.  I must admit, it wasn’t easy sitting through dinner two sheets to the wind, and at one point at the dinner table Grandpa started to nod off.  I kicked him under the table.  He looked at me, then looked to see if anyone else had noticed.  When he realized that his secret was safe, he winked at me.  Man, I thought, my grandfather is cool.

The best part about playing golf and drinking scotch with Grandpa Ben was getting to hear all of his stories. 

He told me about going door-to-door with his brother trying to get his business started.  He told me about the first time he got a one-million dollar line of credit at the bank.  And he told me about working 14 hours a day, seven days a week when Driver Desk was struggling.  Through his stories, Grandpa taught me invaluable lessons that made an important impression on me.  He taught me that hard work pays off; and that enjoying the fruits of your labor is just as important as working hard.

Grandpa was the consummate salesman, and he never stopped being a salesman until the end of his life.  When we’d drive around Boca West he’d sell the community.  “Just look at the grounds,” he would say, “they’re in mint condition.”  When we’d walk around High Ridge he’d sell the club – the grounds were always “immaculate.”  I may never buy a plot in Boca West or join High Ridge, but Grandpa Ben sold me on the best way to live your life.  Work hard, take care of your family, and enjoy the things in life that are supposed to be enjoyable. 

As I sit in Africa writing on my laptop, I can look above the screen and see zebras grazing in front of a lake full of flamingos.  I know that Grandpa Ben would be proud of me for taking advantage of this opportunity to travel the world.  And although I could not be there today, I try every day to fulfill his legacy by seeking out new adventures and living life to the fullest. 

Grandpa Ben lived a long and full life, but I cannot help but be sad on this day.  I cherished my trips down to Florida to see grandpa, play golf, sip scotch, and listen to his stories.  I loved him very much and I will miss him terribly.

We went looking for an old friend in Durban, South Africa. We found peace players and spiritual healers.

We wouldn’t have stopped in Durban if it weren’t for the fact that Tal, one of Jeff’s closest friends from college, was living and working there. For the last several months Tal has been the general manager the Durban office of Peace Players International (PPI). PPI was founded about seven years ago and has offices in Tel Aviv, Belfast, Cypress, New Orleans and Durban. Originally, the mission of the Durban office was to use basketball as an avenue to heal racial divisions in post-Apartheid South Africa. More recently, the organization’s mission has evolved into using basketball to reach kids and teach them about life-skills and HIV prevention.

The best part of our visit was going out into the “field” with Tal and working directly with the kids. PPI has established basketball teams in more than 15 schools in the Durban metro area. They hire coaches, provide basketballs, and install basketball hoops and rims in school playgrounds or school parking lots. PPI uses basketball as a way to form mentor relationships with these kids and earn their trust. The basketball practices are actually a mix of teaching basketball skills and teaching life-skills. The coaches focus on building basic life-skills with the younger kids, and broach more sensitive issues such as sex education and HIV prevention with the older kids. It’s is an amazing program that really works – the kids are eager, inquisitive, attentive and respectful even when we put away the basketballs and talk about what it means to resolve problems with words rather than fists.

Tal took us to two different field activities while we were there. We saw that most of these kids (especially those from the townships) have no opportunity to participate in organized activities outside of school. They are so hungry for attention and guidance — you can see in their eyes how grateful they are for the lessons they are getting both off and on the basketball court.

In addition to showing us about Peace Players, we also got to hang out with Tal’s network of friends in Durban. Tal introduced us to Rose, who is one of the warmest and most welcoming people you will ever meet. Rose runs a bed & breakfast and, because we were friends of Tal, allowed us to stay for the entire weekend for free.

Rose also invited all of us to her house for a day of spiritual healing. Rose had arranged for a masseuse, a reflexologist, and a detoxicologist to visit the house and to provide therapy to all who needed it. We spent the afternoon enjoying the spectacular view of Durban from her balcony, listening to Andrea Boccelli and Seal CDs, discussing the role of angels in our physical lives, and getting various spa treatments.

We were struck by the extent of Rose’s generosity and the way she seemed to treat Tal like a son. It made perfect sense when she explained her belief that she was, in fact, Tal’s mom in a previous life.

We spent much of the weekend hanging out with Michele, Rose’s daughter in this life. Michele has an incredible sense of style that pervades everything she does. She’s a lecturer in interior design, wears the smartest clothes, and has the most cutting-edge South African hairstyle (think Cyndi Lauper circa 1985).

On Saturday night Michelle took us out for a night of fun at the Zulu Jazz Club. Although we enjoyed the main act, the highlight of the evening came while the band was taking a break. Michelle’s friend Karen took a turn at the piano and played one of her own original songs. She was spectacular and the tune was in our heads for days afterward.

Just as we were packing our bags to head to Cape Town, a yell came from the bathroom.  “Jeff?  Hey Jeff?  JEFF!!!”

“Yes, I’m here. What is it?  Are you out of toilet paper?”

“No.  I’m stuck in the bathroom and I can’t get out.”

“What do you mean you’re stuck in the bathroom?”

“I was brushing my teeth and the door closed behind me.  I didn’t lock it but now I can’t get out.”

We pulled and pushed at the door from both sides but it wouldn’t budge.  We tried taking off the knob, and then we tried removing the hinges. It looked like we might be in Durban for a few extra  days than we planed.

Erin sitting dejected in her porcelain prison

We put our heads together to devise a strategy for liberating Erin.  Cries of “Free Erlenborn” echoed through the halls.  Finally Tal had enough – he lowered his shoulder and broke down the door. The frame splintered and the door finally opened. Erin was free!  We celebrated with eggs and toast for breakfast.

Close your eyes. 

Wait, that’s not going to work.  Ok, you can keep your eyes open but please engage your imagination because we left our camera at home for one of the most special nights of the trip. 

We just happened to arrive in Paraty as the town was celebrating its 342nd anniversary.  As we walked down the cobblestone streets we were transported back three centuries.  There are no cars on the pedestrian-only streets of the “old city” of Paraty, and all the buildings have retained their original colonial-era architecture.

On this night, all of the streets in the old city were decorated with banners and tinsel for the grand anniversary celebration.  They had music, fireworks, dancing . . . . and the biggest cake you’ve ever seen.  For the occasion, the local government baked a cake for the entire town – it was about 98 feet long by 2 feet wide!  After the fireworks, all of the local townspeople lined up for a slice of the cake.  Since there seemed to be plenty of cake, we grabbed a napkin and got in line.  It was delicious.

As we walked through the streets that night, we felt like we were on a movie set.  The sights, sounds, and giant cake didn’t fit into any reality were familiar with.  We kicked ourselves for leaving the camera in the hotel room that night, but agreed that we couldn’t possibly capture the energy of this place - on this night - in a picture. 

Thankfully we remembered the camera for another highlight of our trip: renting a boat for the day and visiting the remote beaches of the Brazilian coast.  The private boats were expensive, but we were lucky to find another couple to split the cost.  She was from the Ukraine and he was from France, they met in China, got married while they were living in the Ivory Coast, and currently live in Cairo.  Truly a cosmopolitan couple.

We spent a perfectly relaxing day on the boat, stopping a few times for swimming, snorkeling, lunch and to admire the beautiful coastline.

View of Paraty from the water

Paraty was also the last place we visited with Pete and Alina, our UK friends that we traveled with in Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil.  After nearly a month of sharing meals, drinks, stories, books, music and travel tips, it was time for them to head to Central America while we were off to Africa.  We felt so lucky to be able to share our experiences with such a great couple, and we have no doubt that one day we’ll meet up again.

Our time in Paraty was like a dream.  Before we realized it was over.  We were sad to leave but very much looking forward to our next stop… South Africa.

Carnival in Rio left us mentally and physically drained.  We said a sad goodbye to Brin and Paul in Rio, and traveled with Bret and Marisa to the small beach town of Buzios.  The beaches of Brazil were the perfect cure for our Carnival hang-over. 

Buzios is a quaint little beach town with about six or seven small beaches scattered around a peninsula.   It was a fishing village before it became a premier holiday spot for Brazilians.  At the end of the day, when the boats docked in the bay and the sun started to dip below the distant mountain range, Buzios had a distinctly Mediterranean feel.    

Bret showed off his language skills and arranged for a 2-hour boat tour of Buzios conducted completely in Portuguese.  We traveled from bay to bay and had a swim. 

Check out the guy in the background of the photo above.  He’s living large as his girlfriend paddles him around. Can’t you just hear him saying “Honey can you paddle a little to the left, now a little more, your shadow is blocking the sun.”