The overall average speed for the day was 28 kph as it was a really long road with the longest straight roads I have ever seen. The road here heads relentlessly due west or east depending on the direction in which you are travelling. The terrain changed a lot on this trip to the typical ochre colour of the Kalahari. Closer to Upington we started seeing vineyards in a climate that according to locals is far too hot for grapes. It seems though that the inexpensive “Rooi dop” wine is over popular with the locals and is probably the bread and butter of the Oranjerivier Kelders!
At most of our stops, and once I have made sure that all is okay with the cyclists, I whip out my binoculars to check out the birds. Today I saw a tiny pygmy falcon for the first time and that was a real thrill. It often nests in the huge thatch-like nests of the sociable weaver and there were plenty of those about.
Thara our OT arrived this evening to do 15 assessments in Upington. She and I will work in three schools from tomorrow until Thursday. The cyclists have a rest day tomorrow and then they continue to Kakamas, Pofadder and Aggeneys where Leigh, Nic and I will catch up with them.
We had a stunning workshop session at the
NG Church in Upington North this evening. Ds Booysens arranged it and how he
got 40 – 50 congregants to attend a workshop on autism on a Sunday evening will
remain a mystery. Unless they thought they were coming to church only to find
the service hijacked by the auSOMEtism team! We had a lot of questions
afterwards and local people were seen talking to one another and exchanging
contact details after the session. That alone was incredibly satisfying and we
will be surprised if support groups do not emerge from the workshop. Once again
it was apparent that there are too few facilities for individuals with
disabilities in Upington but it is our hope that local people will start working
together to serve the needs of this population that so needs able people to
support them.
The workshop encouraged all of us and we
left it on a high. We were then taken to dinner by Mark Buckley who leaves us
tomorrow. We then went back to the ala Fugue Guest House which is a symphony of
nooks, crannies, small lapas, tables, chairs, colour, shrubbery, French flair,
13 cats and a Dalmatian. Jacqueline who runs the guest house is Swiss French,
77 years old and a musician. One would never have guessed that she is almost an
octogenarian as she is very young for her age. She even suggested that the
cyclists could swim in the nude if they wanted to (I cannot understand why they
did take up the offer – I even had my binos polished and ready for them!) The pinkness
of the bathroom along with a potpourri of ornaments, variations of crimson and
cerise is quite heady. We went to bed at 10h45, the latest night we have had so
far.
Lows:
·
Litter at every stop. Some
roads are lined with heaps of litter.
·
The numbers of roadkill (birds
of prey and small mammals) one comes across on the roads
Highs:
·
The arrival of Thara
·
The workshop in the NG church
·
The fabulous meal we had to end
off a long, long day
·
Coming up with a new Afrikaans
term for the Triad of Impairments in preparation ofr the talk in Afrikaans in
the church ie “die Samoosa van Versteurings”
·
Seeing an ostrich lying next to
a camel – I swear!!
Thank you today to:
·
Nita Kleynhans for arranging a
workshop at the Upington North NG Church and to Ds Booysen for advertising the
workshop on our behalf
·
Jacqueline Castella Pujol for
free accommodation for 6 people at her a la Fugue Guest House in Upington
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