Due to a recent change of fortune, the chance presented itself for me and my Girlfriend to head out on a weekend break at Manzi Monate, out East of Pretoria in a little town of Kameeldrift. The last time we went blind into a resort like this it didn't turn out as expected, so with a lot of trepidation we set off on the journey. The first order of business is to always make sure that our four legged children are ok and looked after, plus they enjoy spending time at their grand parents any, they finally get a chance to be one of the pack again.
Leaving Johannesburg around 19:00 for the 70km journey seamed like a wise idea, after all, its only 70 km and that could be done quiet easily, most of the trip is highway, and with the aid of the Prius GPS the trip was extremely comfortable, there are tricky bits on the road, especially when it comes down to the construction sites and the road makes some fun twists and turns. The last 5 or so km are on fairly rural roads with no shoulder and very little space between you and on coming traffic. Plus, you are in for a surprise when all of a sudden the road turns from tar to gravel, but shortly afterwards the entrance to the resort is located on your left.
We took it slow and easy, arriving around 20:30, stopping at the gate the security greeted us and proceed to complete the checkout procedure. Unbeknown to us, there was a R300 deposit payable upon check in, something that was never explained anywhere, luckily arrangements were made for us to pay the amount the following day. Finally, we were allowed in with key in hand, following the map through the maze of face brick chalets we finally found where Prius was to sleep for the night. Entering the property, you are greeted by a small but functional kitchen and a spacious lounge area is a old CRT tv. The kitchen is equipped with a Fridge, Stove, Microwave and all the necessary tools, utensils and crockery required for a comfortable stay.
Since we were checked into a four sleeper, there were two bathrooms, one attached to the passage with a shower and toilet, another en suite with a shower, toilet and basin. The main toilet had a rather nasty little surprise, the toilet seat, underneath started to fray away exposing the wood, so it became what my girlfriend refers to as "Furry" due to the exposed wood starting to splinter and giving the appearance of fur. The second surprise came when you turned on the Aircon, because all the windows and doors were closed the sound from the aircon had nowhere to go, this resulted in a deep resonance sound when you stood in certain areas of the room. The noise was so intense at times it would almost hurt with the constant deep pounding of the sounds. The solution is to open the sliding doors, therefore allowing the sound to escape and making like bearable again.
Unfortunately. due to some poor planning, we ended up in a building with no cold drink and no food, so since we had a short drive a nice stroll under a warm African sky exploring our new home was required. The map boasted that the resort has a bar and a kiosk available on site, so we pointed our noses in what we believed and hoped was the right direction and set off on our expedition to find the elusive oasis. It wasn't long until we stumbled onto our destination. Rather surprisingly everything was closed, dead, nothing available. We found the owner finishing off some work and he advised us to head out to the "bush shop", a tiny petrol station that should be able to sell us something to keep us going for the night. So back these two adventures trek, back to home base to re strategies and devise another plan of attack. It has to be said, that we are extremely fortunate to have such wonderful and amazing night time weather, it was perfect for a stroll, warm with a slight breeze, if only the clouds were not blanketing the stars, would have made it absolutely perfect.
I asked my trusted car Prius for some restaurants in the area, News Cafe was around 6km from us and where there is a News Cafe there are drinks, or at least other shops to help us out of our self made predicament. A quick trip back up the country roads we were led to our final destination, the Zambezi shopping center. The ever elusive News Cafe was nowhere to be seen, yet a Ocean basket was beckoning us, calling us like a Syrians song lured fishermen. I ordered us the seemans platter (so many dirty jokes can be made at this time), consisting of Calamari 3 ways, have and chips, a good platter for two to share. That evening we headed back home, time to rest, its been a long day. The bedroom consists of a double bed, fairly comfortable, two bed side lamps, thick heavy curtains and build in cupboards. Honestly, at this stage I was so tired that I would have been able to sleep anywhere, I quickly fell asleep as the sound of rain could be heard falling outside.
Saturday 18 Feb 2012
I woke up early, not due to any external factors, simply because I was in pain. The past few days have been tough due to a herniated disk in my back, Friday I even went home early to relax and sleep due to a huge amount of pain in my neck and back, my muscles were in a spasm, and pills were not helping. Saturday morning was just more of the same pain and I simply wished it would go away. The kitchen comes equipped with some basic coffee facilities, including coffee (if you can class ricoffye in the same category as normal coffee), creamer, tea, sugar, so all the basic essentials were there. We knew that shopping for the day had to be done, so a quick drive back up to the Zambezi shopping center to do out Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner shopping, plus some stuff for my back. On a side note, its extremely strange but after buying some Voltaren tablets my pain went away, without taking a single one, guess I should find a way to trick my body into thinking that I buy pills more often.
I need to give the Zambezi Spar a lot of credit, they had one of the most amazing shops I have been into with their selection of freshly baked items, caked, rolls and meats, I was truly blown away. The cheese rolls were huge, one roll could easily fit into two hands. The decision was easy, we would be making a Braai that night (what the Americans call a Barbecue), so we need some essentials, Borrie Wors, Chicken Skewers and Pork Ribs, Rolls, Cool Drink, Beer (Castle Light), Wine, Potato Salad, French Salad and the most amazing Garlic Bread I have ever seen. All Set and ready we head back, for some reason it was almost 12:00 already, I mean where did the time go? What happened? Did I enter a area of immense gravitational flux causing time itself to compress? Strange how time flies when you are having fun. Back at the rooms we had such grand plans for lazying by the pool, relaxing, drinking beer, ja - that never happened. instead the day was spent doing, well, nothing... I took the time to finish off some work on websites, reload my tablet with new software, listen to some 702 Golden oldies and achieve very very little. I have always been one who appreciates the more older taste in music, for some reason I find it hard to gel with today's rhythms.
That evening, the fire was started. two hours later the coals were all ready and the meat went on and around 45 min later all was ready and done. I have always been a chef at heart, guess it comes from my mother who always made the most amazing food and her cakes were the talk of the town, damn I miss those cakes. An old tradition from my scout days was the good old marshmallows on the fire, big mistake there, it was just the ingredient to send me over the top and cause me to pass out, literally pass out snoring and that was the end of me for the day.
The lesson learnt was that a day doing nothing, can be a day well spent, that a day simply relaxing can be good for the soul. I guess, the idea of simply getting away from home, not having to worry about dishes, laundry, cleaning allows you to put your feet up and simply enjoy your day in some peace and quiet.
Leaving Johannesburg around 19:00 for the 70km journey seamed like a wise idea, after all, its only 70 km and that could be done quiet easily, most of the trip is highway, and with the aid of the Prius GPS the trip was extremely comfortable, there are tricky bits on the road, especially when it comes down to the construction sites and the road makes some fun twists and turns. The last 5 or so km are on fairly rural roads with no shoulder and very little space between you and on coming traffic. Plus, you are in for a surprise when all of a sudden the road turns from tar to gravel, but shortly afterwards the entrance to the resort is located on your left.
Unfortunately. due to some poor planning, we ended up in a building with no cold drink and no food, so since we had a short drive a nice stroll under a warm African sky exploring our new home was required. The map boasted that the resort has a bar and a kiosk available on site, so we pointed our noses in what we believed and hoped was the right direction and set off on our expedition to find the elusive oasis. It wasn't long until we stumbled onto our destination. Rather surprisingly everything was closed, dead, nothing available. We found the owner finishing off some work and he advised us to head out to the "bush shop", a tiny petrol station that should be able to sell us something to keep us going for the night. So back these two adventures trek, back to home base to re strategies and devise another plan of attack. It has to be said, that we are extremely fortunate to have such wonderful and amazing night time weather, it was perfect for a stroll, warm with a slight breeze, if only the clouds were not blanketing the stars, would have made it absolutely perfect. 
I woke up early, not due to any external factors, simply because I was in pain. The past few days have been tough due to a herniated disk in my back, Friday I even went home early to relax and sleep due to a huge amount of pain in my neck and back, my muscles were in a spasm, and pills were not helping. Saturday morning was just more of the same pain and I simply wished it would go away. The kitchen comes equipped with some basic coffee facilities, including coffee (if you can class ricoffye in the same category as normal coffee), creamer, tea, sugar, so all the basic essentials were there. We knew that shopping for the day had to be done, so a quick drive back up to the Zambezi shopping center to do out Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner shopping, plus some stuff for my back. On a side note, its extremely strange but after buying some Voltaren tablets my pain went away, without taking a single one, guess I should find a way to trick my body into thinking that I buy pills more often.
That evening, the fire was started. two hours later the coals were all ready and the meat went on and around 45 min later all was ready and done. I have always been a chef at heart, guess it comes from my mother who always made the most amazing food and her cakes were the talk of the town, damn I miss those cakes. An old tradition from my scout days was the good old marshmallows on the fire, big mistake there, it was just the ingredient to send me over the top and cause me to pass out, literally pass out snoring and that was the end of me for the day.