Stuart picked us up at Joburg International last Friday and we ate lunch with his family. Afterward, we passed the afternoon watching Doogie Howser’s independent film, “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog.” If you like corny and inappropriate comedies, go and download it now.

On Saturday, I attended Warwic’s bachelor party (while Hayley went to Robyn’s bachelorette), which was held at his groomsman’s house. The backyard was built for parties with a huge outdoor patio overlooking a pool and braaii (BBQ) area. We talked, ate and drank while Warwic was forced to wear a Borat bathing suit.

We relaxed most of Sunday and Monday, walking around malls and eating with friends. On Tuesday through Friday, we stayed at a B&B called Amritz in Boshoek which is two hours outside of Johannesburg, near Sun City and the Pilansberg National Park. We had trouble finding the place due to road construction, but after finally arriving we couldn’t have been more pleased with our accommodation. Staying on an African farm was a unique experience, although the lodge had all the comforts of home and was very chill. The hospitality of the owners made staying there one of the highlights of our South Africa trip.

Wednesday, we drove through the Pilansberg National Park and spotted a cheetah! It was relaxing under a tree, watching a few zebra in the distance. We also spotted many rhino, and at the watering holes we saw groups of hippopotami sunbathing together. We ate lunch at the park café and watched warthogs, vervet monkeys and exotic birds relax at a nearby watering hole.

The next day we visited Sun City. We walked around, had lunch overlooking the lake and jumped on trampolines. Included in our admission were two free coupons for sixty Rand, fifty of which I played on one hand of blackjack. I was dealt a four, then luckily a seven came up next. The dealer showed a ten so I doubled down- always double down on eleven, baby. It paid off as the dealer flipped over a face card on my eleven! I picked up the chips and cashed out for 150 Rand.

Unfortunately, our luck ran out while driving back from Sun City. Our car bottomed out on an unfinished dirt road, cracking the protective plastic cover under the car. After dealing with the ridiculous, unnecessary bureaucracy of car insurance companies and local police stations, we finally registered our claim. Unfortunately, we will not be able to get the car fixed before we leave, but luckily we have friends that are helping us out. I suppose we were lucky that the damage was localized to protective shield, but we feel badly about damaging a car that isn’t ours.

We drove from Boshoek to Kyalami on Friday for Robyn and Warwic’s wedding. We stayed at another nice B&B called the Blue Gum Lodge. Our room was enormous, comparable to a princess suite in a Las Vegas hotel. Being a B&B, homemade breakfast was included. It was a steal at $100 per night.

The wedding was held at Her Majesty’s, a beautiful rural venue that has a true African bush feel. The ceremony site was a rustic looking chapel overlooking acres of golden grass fields. The wedding was definitely one of the most beautiful that I’ve attended. The food and cake were delicious. There was an open bar for drinks, and everybody I talked to was open and welcoming. We danced until midnight in good company then drove the short way back to our B&B.

After eating a hearty breakfast the next morning, we drove back to Joburg and ran a few errands before meeting up with the wedding party for the after wedding brunch. We ate at an elegant Greek restaurant and chatted with friends. After a few hours, we said our goodbyes.

I started writing this entry last night while watching Da Vinci Code. Unfortunately, the movie was much worse than the book. I switched the channel to the Bourne Ultimatum- what a relief! Today we saw District 9 and ate crépes and waffles at Milky Lane. Tomorrow we fly to Sydney.

Continued down under…

Tags: cheetah, kyalami, pilansberg, rhino, south africa, Travel