USA pictures: a therapy

Being now again very much "back in jo(y)burg", back to work (yes, I have a job that keeps me from constantly travelling, and well finances the times I do get to travel), back home (as in with my parents, because I have these big plans that need a savings account.. donations welcome), I find some use in sharing my favourite USA photo's with you.

Firstly because, I know how you missed the updates. I know.

Secondly because this blog is part of my therapy to deal with the times that I'm not travelling.

So here for you and for me:

These are from the Washington/Idaho and Montana area:

From the 5/4/5 day, drive 5 hours to Seattle, spend 4 hours, drive 5 hours back... because that's how you gotta roll as a traveller.

Then the most non-disappointing city of all the world:

I'll soon get back into the swing of being a Jozi Tourist again... back to appreciating my own city, stop resenting people who get to to live in Cape Town and New York. Start shopping at intersections again, and love our wonderful weather.

Snow: A beginner's tale

Up until a few days ago I have had three memorable experiences with "snow".

I say "snow" and not snow because about 2 out of those 3 times some bubble buster had to break my heart and tell me it's sleet. What ever.

Experience number one:

I'm two or three years old, my family, minus my unborn sister at this stage, is driving back from Durban. We hit snow somewhere in the middle. I remember white, I remember my dad making a snowball and I remember crying because of the unnecessary pain that snow causes little two or three year old hands.

Experience number 2:

I was in primary school, and the snow came down hard. Which should have been my first clue that the "snow" was in fact freaking sleet. My memory of this basically involves a very painful snowball.

Experience number 3:

A few decades later I wake up to white windowsills and a silver car turned snowmobile. I wake up my roommate so we can go frolic about in the "snow" that fell early. We built a snowman...FINE ... a sleetman, (8cm tall). I slipped and fell on ice, in front of my neighbours, my then single and handsome neighbours...

Soooo you'd imagine the excitement a southern hemisphere snow-less African like myself would feel when she knows she's about to experience real snow. Super excited, and all this at Christmas time too. What a treat. Just like in the movies, but I could do a whole other post on 'the just like in the movies' American experience.

First real experience: Road trip to Missoula, Montana.

At first I took a million (now) boring pictures like this one.

But truly the magic didn't wear off fast. I've been around old snow, on the Alps of course, but the delight of new, fresh, fluffy, sparkly snow is an experience nobody forgets.

First snow experience excitement dance, right before first snow excitement snowball attack.

I'm still to be in actual falling snow... which better happen North West America!! No pressure. I'm still to build that SNOWman, debating the whole snow-angel thing, is it really that awesome? I like to have that option.

One experience involving snow I can tick off my list is hiking into a forest for 2,5 km taking all my warm clothes off and jumping in a hot-spring. Check.

Hot-water springs in middle of nowhere Idaho.
You'd think the 2,5km hike back would suck, but no, because it looks like this:

Walking back was surreal, I tried not to get too caught up in taking pictures or stretching my limited writing brain at how to "capture this magic". No none of that, just doing my very best at being in those beautiful moments.

Now for the snow to hit Spokane(current and month long location btw)... Why I ask you with tears in my eyes would the weather look like this, and not snow???

You got distracted by the 'jello wrestling' too huh?

(To be fair, there is has been way more sunshine than cloudy days, I just somehow needed to work in my picture of the 'jello wrestling' sign)

Anyway, I think I have a few new top snow experiences for next time I'm searching for small talk topics.

Shopping at intersections: the easiest way to shop this festive season.

I'm simply amazed at the amount of drive through everywheres and convenience of getting anythings here in the good ol US of A. Wow, America, impressive. I for one want to stop and get coffee just about every 50 meters (or yards or feet or something), just because it's possible.

As one does when travelling, I compare the strangeness of countries. "Ooo you can drink tap water here but not there" "I can afford a full day at the Spa here, but nothing to eat there" "I would go to jail for this in this country but not in that country... interesting".

Out here in the North West of the glorious USA they have a lot more drive through stops. Cool.
Back home in darling Jozi we have drive by intersection shopping. (Yes, this is yet another post about fun at the intersection.)

So let me share just that:
Let's start of the basics, not to uncommon a sight world wide I should think

The newspaper guy.
The guy who started it all. The guy who made other guys think "hey, that guy earns a living selling stuff at redlights... hmmmm, must find a gap in the market and fill it"

So important events created a gap.

Just by driving around on a Saturday you'd be able to know some important game was on. Fail-proof.
Sadly I have no pictures of this but other events like Christmas and Valentines day will surely fill the streets. I'm not home right now but I could bet my favourite Disney character's life on the fact that Santa hats are being sold on William Nicol right now (well not now cause it's the middle of the night now...well)

Then, the basics you'll find just about anywhere:

Sunglasses... because you know, you're driving, you forget your sunnies, you're sad because the possibility of an accident just increased, fret not, this guy will be there for you within stops.

Phone cover guy, this gap must have been created because busy people upgrade their phones like every week, and who has the time to actually go out and buy a shocking pink cover? Clearly nobody.

Again, making perfect sense, license covers, for your car. You're in a car when you see this so it's pretty easy check if you need one.

Food guy

That's one less trip to the store for you. Jo'burg can do convenience too.

And then there must surely be a big market in the kids section. I'm rather childless myself, but imagine the power of buying toys for kids to shut them up works wonders. Or there must just be a significant amount of parents that forgot to buy little Suzzies friend that birthday gift. Now it's Saturday morning, time for the party, but no gift... suspense. No problem Mom can just drive the Beyers Naude route to fix that dilemma.

a barbie poster, fancy?

pink ladybugs, yes?

a marching Winnie the Pooh, wish I had a better picture of this.

a toy bow and arrow kit... hoping that this is a 'toy'

fake snakes, how awesome

There are so many other amusing things sold at traffic lights, I could go on forever, or could at least do this post in volumes or maybe alphabetical order.
Hmmm... coming next. Volume two: Atlas posters to chargers. Volume three: Dinosaur blowups to Tacky paintings... we'll see.

under what to add "juggling plastic chicken guy" ???

And just because I'm in the States at this minute I'll end off with this pretty darn weird thing you can buy at the side of the road.

I heart my backyard

Honestly the urge, itch, scratch, desire, pain, agony, character-building-in-between travel times, can get so challenging for me at times, that all I want to do is race to the airport like a mad woman and ask anybody, anything if I can climb into their suitcase.

Sadly this is not allowed, and I'm so painfully well behaved, so I have to find other ways to deal.

This blog as some of you know if my therapy for just that. Learning to appreciate what I do have around me, my hometown, good ol Jozi Jo.

So today, with no hope of any free-time in my so called 'flexible' schedule, being overcome with intense despair of not travelling, I decided to go take a picture of my pool and self-help my way to loving the here and now.

Because my backyard looks like this:

which is by no means supposed to evoke pity by the way, I know it's awesome... I'm just reminding myself that it's awesome

And not like this:

Taken this weekend, at Pilgrims Rest


Or this:

my parents having a glass of sunset wine this last weekend

My pool is now the symbol of these happy thoughts to hold onto.

-It's gorgeously hot out today, so yay for having the pool.
-I actually haven't even used it since being back, so a reminder that there is something new to try always, even in your backyard!
-I live in a house with a pool, which means a great many things that I am very thankful for.
-It's a pool, not the ocean, so no danger of Tsunamis have to cross my worried mind.
...Or pirates for that matter
-I don't have to pay 80 000 VND to use it like in Hanoi. Saving me time and money. Snaps for that.

I sincerely hope that this post hasn't wasted your time but in fact has inspired you to: blow up that rubber duck, whip out that bikini and love your own backyard.

Splash xx

***As established in a previous post... I'm a brat, because really, all I have to do is wait 2 more weeks and then I'll be off to travelling the States, can't wait. But o how deeply I will miss my pool! #appreciate!

Dealing with my Afrikaans roots: Voortrekker Monumnet

I don't sokkie, don't listen to RSG, I don't have a Kurt Darren CD, I don't even like koeksisters for crying out loud!

So you'd understand my blogging block when it comes to writing something remotely entertaining about the Voortrekker Monument, a proud symbol of the Afrikaans people.

I love being Afrikaans don't get me wrong but being Afrikaans leaves one with a few awkward subjects at times. We're the group that gave the world these words: Aardvark and Apartheid... both rather tricky to explain.

However, when I lived in Hanoi I hardly knew any other South Africans let alone Afrikaans speakers, so when I did find the random boertjie I'd talk just for the sake of talking. Speaking Afrikaans then was like hugging the other person with your words.

Well cultural identity crisis aside here is what I can say about the Voortrekker Monument, because I was rather excited to go.

If you'd like to go there yourself make sure you have something like this:Commonly known as a woman, friend, tour guide... Let's call this one Lallie. She's awesome, she actually paid attention in Primary school history, so she could explain basically what the whole monument was about. Well that and she's actually been to the location of the Battle of Blood River, which is the primary reason for the monuments existence.

What also adds to getting a clue about what this history is about it the useful sculptures that can be found within. Talk about a 3D experience, am I right? 20 min of walking about plus a Lallie equals for an instant history buff. This is my favourite part of the wall: women encourage the men not to give up hope. Girl power!

If that's not enough then there's always the embroidery wall on the lower level of the monument, illustrating daily life and historical events of the Voortrekkers. O look the Voortrekkers setting up camp:O yes and that dragon they fought...WTF?? Don't recall that part.

A highlight of the monument is to go to the top, by stairs or lift. For a stunning view of Pretoria (yes Jozi Tourist is out of her depth here). And a bit of an adrenaline rush view of the inside. What you see at the very bottom level is this: Which translates into "We're for you South Africa". Strangely reading this instantly got "De La Rey" by Bok van Blerk stuck in my head as opposed to our National Anthem (old or new)...Odd.

I didn't go to the museum on the property so don't have much to say about that. The lower levels have some old historical significant stuff, that would interest the history nerd. It at least seemed to interest the couple of Taiwanese tourist there, attentively listening to their tour guide.

In closing: I found the monument interesting, I'm not sure if you'll feel the same way if you're not Afrikaans or Taiwanese. I'd give about 1 to 2 hours to experience the place, that's without the museum also on the property. I'd be really nervous taking small kids up to the top for that inside view, but it is super cool. Entrance R45.

Rosebank rooftop market: it's all for you!

This one is for you, because you're either a tourist or a local:

Dear Tourist
Let's start with you:

Things for your buying and experiencing pleasure:

-Beaded, just about everything you can think of, things:

-Wooden African animals, because NO tourist leaves this country without a wooden giraffe no matter the size

-It's a bit last season, and I'm sure you hated it anyway, but (beaded) vuvuzellas are of course available... and we know you'll buy them and we know you'll misuse them.

-African song and dance... just in case you forgot you're in Africa.


-Driving through Jacaranda trees to get here

-the ability to say that you 'do as the locals do'...

and the locals are here because:

-of the antiques/collectables/second-hand/junk/dead people's treasures

-Thai foot massages, makes us feel exotic, pity it isn't 100 Baht for 30 minutes.

-Ranked the 121 out of 185 things to do in Jo'burg by the Lonley Planet.

-Food, we like food.

-Jumping castles, that's for people with kids, obviously... uhm obviously?

-People watching, we enjoy seeing tourist in our city... makes us wonder if Cape Town is really all that much better... (okay it's just me)

-Jo'burg is yet to catch up with weekend market culture so we don't have much choice but to come here.


Open: 9-5 every Sunday
Where: Corner of Cradock Avenue and Baker Street, Rosebank
Recommendations: Go and try every so slightly to haggle, it's not a given but it does work every now and then. The whole "that's too expensive so I'm walking away now" totally works.