POLL RESULT - and more...

Been out of telecom access for 3 days in Lesotho - but now back on the road to Joburg.

The answer to our poll was...

...ELEPHANT!

We arived at our first camp in the Kruger in the dark and were guided to our tented camp by a ranger. Before we could get there we saw a family of elephants taking an evening drink at a waterhole - this was followed by Pamela using her old African detection skills to spot a couple more in the undergrowth a few metres from our camp.

Its been amazing to see (or not see) how even elephants are well camoflaged in the bush - our prize sighting of a lepoard sleeping up a tree was coutesy of a group of experts who had been put onto it by a tracker - we happened to be passing - it was a very special sight!

We've been lucky enough to see rhino, elephants (loads), impala, kudu, herds of pythonesque wildebeast, buffalos too, lotsa zebras and giraffes, warthogs, hippos, hyenas, jackals, honey badgers, otters, squirrels (a big fave), baboons, tortise, vultures and many more. Will post up some more photos.

The Kruger landscapes and the whole of SA - have been stunning too.

Have covered a lot of km and are now close to joburg from where we fly out tomorrow.

We finish up today with a visit to Pamela's old home where she was raised (apparantly not in the jungle after all) when we get back to JB - then a family braaai.

Today is the first day without a world cup game on since we've been here - we've watched a heck of a lot as its taken the country over - we finished up yesterday with a rather special time with the Kick for Life HIV/AIDS charity in Lesotho including a game of our own - more on that soon..

Lesotho by Joe

For the past two days we have been in Lesotho.

The first night we stayed in Morija which is just off the capital, Maseru. It was really nice. Me and Talia played uno with some English blokes.

Today we drove to Malealea. It is a nice big camp with a rec room with snooker, ping pong, a ripstick and a foozball machine. Its also got a swimming pool and a TV to watch the football.

I played a game of football with a local team for a HIV|AIDS charity. It was 2-2 but we won on penalty shootout. I was the only one on the pitch who was under 20 years old!! (Dad was the oldest!!!)

I took one of the penalties, I sent the keeper the wrong way but I hit the post!!!! The pitch was mostly soil and the grass was extremely lumpy so it was very slippery.

We went on a horse ride this afternoon for about an hour and a half. Overall I’ve really enjoyed Lesotho.

Joe

More Kruger + Bylde River Canyon...

...a few shots from yesterday...Yes - we've finally got a Balmain tractor...You need one when you meet theseSwim at the camp - note the impala springing in the background - and Joe's rather lovely explosive shorts!!!

Then on to Blyde River canyon and the 3 Rondavels --- hmmmmmm, where have us Ozzies seen something like this before....????........

No Russian Linesman This Time!

As Joe wrote - we just went to the England Germany game - they lost 4-1 and England were lucky to get 1.

Whilst one goal was ruled out they would have needed a bucketful to overcome the old enemy. They simply weren't very good - a lot of overpaid poms who are too old and slow - at least when we lost to them we only had 10 players!

Good game nonetheless - Germany look pretty good - though they may find it harder against a team with a decent defence.

We've now finished off all our games we're attending - we've been to 7 - averaging 3.5somethin goals a game - great stuff - more details of which later.

Meanwhile tomorrow we're off to Lesotho to play a game of our own - check out the Lesotho2010 page on this blog for details...

Rubbish!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just got back from the England Germany game.

RUBBISH!!!!!!!

John Terry was man of the match for mistakes, Glen Johnson close behind and Gareth Barry comes in third. Calamity James also lived up to his name with that second German goal.

Well now I have a back up plan if I can't play for Aus or SA it can always be England. It makes me glad as an Australian to watch the old enemy thrashed.

The only negative was getting covered with beer by some annoyed England fan who was not happy.

never mind.

All good.

Joe

Out of Kruger and on to the Next Game...

Just got back to Joburg after a long day started with a game drive at 6am - here's a shot of a couple we met there - now turning in just before midnight after a v long drive back via the Bylde River canyon - 3rd biggest in the world y'know - bet you can't name the other 2 bigger ones???

Tomorrow we're off to Bloemfontain with 40,000 Poms + Germans to see another game end in tears for the former, no doubt.

Will post some more game photos etc over next couple of days. Gotta recommend the Kruger to all - just great fun game spotting - the kids loved it as did we.

More Kruger...

This is bizarre - we are sitting outside our tent in a camp in the Kruger - surrounded by elephants - on-line!!!

Here's some shots of the last few days...
Uncanny resemblance to our new PM ?????


Leopard lounging in tree - Malcolm Turnbull ?!?!?

More later connection fading - Rhino approaching tent................

More Kruger + Football

So here we are trying to catch up with being off line for a whle.

As Joe notes we have been all over the Kruger in between watching the soccer.
The Serbia game was great - we are all very proud of our boys - nearly got there - you can never rely on the Germans can you?
Still our last game here will be Englkand v Germany - should be another fun penalty shootout. Joe has already coined the term for a group of England players - a 'Rubbish' of England soccer players - still we don't exactly love the Germans after Durban.

Saw Steve Christo at the Serbia game - he's been on the road for a while...
As Joe notes we have seen a heck of a lot of game (as well as games) - please vote for the first one in our poll - meantime - here's a shot of the laughing elephant we saw...much more to follow soon....

Kruger Today...

For the past three days we have been driving around the Kruger National Park. We saw Giraffes, Monkeys, Elephants, Warthogs, a Leopard in a tree, baby Hyenas, Rhinos, Hippos, Squirrels, Tortoises, Zebras, Buffalo, Impala, a Badger, Baboons, a Jackal, baby Wild dogs, Vultures and Eagles. We are just one lion away from seeing all of the big 5 (Buffalo, Elephants, Lions, Leopard and Rhino). It is amazing and we are soooooooo lucky to see a Leopard in a tree!!!! They are one of the rarest animals in the park!! Today we are in Nelspruit and have just got back from the Australia vs Serbia game. Two great goals from Cahill and Holmann gave us a 2-1 victory but wasn’t enough for us to go through to the knockout round. AWWWW! At least an African nation got through. England despite all their lack of everything good got through. So we have tickets to go to the England vs Germany game. That should be good.

See u all soon Joe

Off To The Kruger Park...

Very busy times - sorry no time to upload photos - will aim to soon.

Ghana game was very exciting - we were very proud of our boys - just couldn't sqeeze that finla goal out.

Went to Brazil v Ivory Coast last night - whole continent following Brazil (bar IC visitors) - seems all those photos of Brazil fans are always locals - sadly too cold for the usual samba minimal dress style - but still pretty wacky! Got home at 1am!!

Off to Kruger for a couple of nights now - won't be on line till the Serbia game.

Enter our poll...

Its Ghana be Tough...

...yes off to see the boys v Ghana this afternoon - won't be easy - but should be fun anyway - though we face a 2 hour drive home after with Joe's mood to manage - at least we're off to Brazil v Ivory Coast tomorrow - then on to the Kruger Park...

Apartheid Museum yesterday was very good - kids did pretty well - then the Gold Reef City park at which Joe showed how fearless he was - some of those rides were just crazy - and of course I ended up getting soaked on a water dodgem type effort - details at:



Its very cold here in Joburg - will be good to get to the Kruger and warmer temps.

All for now.

PS Whatever we do today it can't be much worse than the Poms - they looked terrible yesterday - we may not get to see them in the next round after all!

Theme Park+Apartheid

Yesterday we went to the Apartheid Museum and saw what it was like when white people ruled South Africa and how Nelson Mandela changed all that.

We also went to the GoldenReefCity theme park. It was awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I went on a ride that swang up and down like a pendulam and almost went all the way round. I also went on a rollercoaster that went 85kph in a giant loop 40 metres above ground!!

There was also a rollercoaster that was so twisted that for most of the ride I was almost upside down.

After all that I had to calm down so I went and saw the barnyard and there was so many cool animals there. I saw monkeys, turtles, emus, wallabies and a giant pig. I also got to pat a cow, a goat and some stray cats that were just running around.

Today we're off to Rustenburg to see Aus v Ghana.

Can't wait to get back to Aus

Joseph - Post me a comment and I'll reply...

Doing the Maths...

So we're now into the 2nd/3rd game of te groups now and everyone is working out different permutations of who has to do what against whoever to get into the next round.

We just know Straya needs a win on Saturday afternoon. Should be a big day - especially as we're off to a game park in the morning beofre the game in the afternoon. How many places can you do THAT?!?!

Today is a day off games - we'll post something on our stunning day at Soccer City yesterday to see the Argies beat the South Koreans later.

We're off to the Apartheid Museum now followed by Gold Reef City theme park - including a visit down a gold mine! Strange huh? Did you know that Joburg lies on top of a whole bunch of mines? Joe has started digging in the garden for gold.

Even weirder - we hear that Tolkien was born in Bloemfontain where we head for our last game of the trip - maybe England v Germany and a penalty shoot out drama!

More later - obviously the only downside is we're really missing State of Origin and the Toigs.

Another Day ...Another Big Game...

Today's a public holiday here - and co-incides with Bafana Bafana's big game tonight v Uruguay - the nation will come to a standstill...we'll probably watch at a fan site.

Yesterday watched the Kiwis game at the local fansite then the Portugal v Ivory Coast game - all the time while Pamela met up with some old friends at the same place.

Its getting very cold here - minus 3 degrees last night - and freezing this morning.

We're spending the day with Pamela's old nanny and her family - should be more than a few stories there...

Over to Joe...

Hi everyone. Im typing about a word every 20 seconds because my hands completely frozen. Spent yesterday at a shopping centre while mum caught up with some friends she went to school with. Watched the kiwis escape with a draw v Slovakia and watched Ronaldo rolling around against Ivory Coast. Even my great aunt Ethel was complaining about his diving. Hope its been a bit warmer for you guys. Going to spend the day with mums old nanny today. Should be fun. Will be wathcing Bafana with interest tonight.

See you all in a couple of weeks
Joe.

There are Monkeys on the Roof...They Think Its All Over...More Durban

Now we've overcome the horror of 0-4 against everyone's favourite villians (its a rite of football passage to have a reason to hate/fear the Germans and now we have one) here are a few more photos of the experience...

Monkeys on the roof next door to our apartment...Fansite on the beachfront...
Before the game...

Back to Joburg - Netherlands v Denmark - Balmain at the World Cup

Had a very good orange experience at the new Soccer City Stadium - crazy location surrounded by part landscaped mining soil deposits on the edge of Soweto - we followed Netherlands - though enjoyed watching the Arsenal boys. Joe's Balmain strip fitted in well.Just like watching the Gooners, in fact, with Big Game Bentner missing a couple and Van Persie going off injured.Great fun though - and we'll be back there on Thursday for the Leo Messi Show.

Nice Place, Durban...

...well we had a great time down there - to start with it really is summer all year round there - beautiful weather - also great beaches, good food and really friendlly people.

The new soccer stadium was stunning - great atmosphere, good view easy access, hardly any queuing for anything. So all good really - well actually we did lose a soccer game - but hey, you can't have everything.

Anyway its been a long couple of days - got home after the game in time to pack up then rise at 4am this morning for the 6 hour drive back to Joburg for the Holland/Denmark game - which we're just back from.

Another stunning stadium - great fun - the whole place was decked in orange - 50,000 dutch fans, all the seats + stewards - and the decor of the stadium in a with a burnished rusty orange outer cover finished it off. Denmark never really stood a chance.

Still, Netherlands played some good football and deserved their 2-0 win. Joe + I agreed the best outfit went to the bloke with an orange hamster on his head - but it was a close thing.

Gotta say, can't believe its taken me this long to get to a world cup - the whole atmosphere across the country is amazing - already started saving for Brazil in 2014 - and for that one... for game parks swap an Amazon adventure - just like in 1994.

Decided to give NZ v Slovakia a miss tomorrow - we need a breather - sorry, Joanna - good luck, the Kiwis should have a real chance there. So our next game is Argentina v South Korea at Soccer City - should be good.

Kids will be posting at some stage - when they've sorted out the 200+ photos they've been taking - seems one of the biggest hits of the trip so far with them was the family of monkeys who lived in the garden at our apartment in Durban - now Joe wants to move there so he really can have one for a pet!

More later - cheer up Australia - we'll beat Ghana - and even if we don't the party will be worth the trip alone - the locals know how to enjoy themselves.

By the way, Happy Birthday Liz - bet they've got the bunting out in Trouton Street.

Today's the Day....

That the World Cup really starts - and we're ready here - only problem is our vuvuzelas have England stickers on them (soon to be removed - cause they're RUBBISH).

Pathetic attempt last night by the Poms - just forced me to buy a couple of tickets for the KO game for the 2nd placed team in their group - about the only KO game with tickets left - that won't last long!!!
Just warming up here in Durban - better get breakfast on and practice these...

Wet + Wild in Durban

Spent today at what turned out to be the rather stunning uShaka WaterPark on the beachfront in Durban.

Joe especially enjoyed the 18m drop slide behind the kids in this shot... plus the seal and dolphin shows ...and the aquarium is pretty amazing - built in the bottom of a stranded freighter.

The town is filling up with Strayans - hard to tell apart from the locals in their yellow kits - but lets face it they are going for us and not the Germans tomorrow.

We can see the new Durban stadium with the Indian Ocean behind it from our balcony - it looks amazing - like a spaceship has landed - tomorrow will be crazy.

Strangely we are the only car in town with a Sydney Morning Herald flag on it - but there are plenty of others about from other sources.

Kids will post tomorrow morning - just gone to bed exhausted - we're settling down to watch England's disastrous campaign get off to the usual dubious start. Enjoy it - we are!!!

Durban Trip; The childs view

On our six hour long trip to Durban the scenery was amazing! We saw lots of animals. Normal animals like horses and cows as well as ostritches, zebras, camels, deer and sheep. We stopped for lunch at a steak ranch called spurs. It was delicious but the name needs work. ARSENAL!!! I had calamari and a cheeseburger and Tal's had grilled chicken and chips. For dessert we had a giant, soft, toasted waffle with soft-serve ice-cream, sprinkles and mint crunchie topped off with maple syrup. When we got to the house we saw that it had two double beds and cable TV so we can watch the soccer. We saw Bafana Bafana draw one all with Mexico and France draw nil all with Uruguay. The guy we are renting the house from said monkeys come on to the balcony. Havn't seen any yet though and if Max is reading say hi to everyone at the school.

Road Trip!

Just done the 600km road trip to Durban. Every road trip has its moments - usually including big rocks...
...and over large desserts in redneck roadhouses...but the kids seemed to enjoy it...
The landscape for the last 3 hours was stunning - lucky for Pamela - she slept for the first 3...

Arrived in time to watch Bafana Bafana nearly beat the Mexicans... the vuvuzelas were sure going off when the opener went in for SA! Everyone is hopeful for the next game - and why not - currently watching a ponderous Arsenal, sorry, France struggle to score against a very average Uruguay in their group - and I have to say the entire nation really is behind Bafana Bafana.

Tomorrow we're off to uShaka World on the beachfront - the SA Gold Coast - then its England v USA in the evening.

Meantime = Joe is soooooooo excited - on being shown round our apartment we were advised to keep the balcony window closed at night to keep the monkeys out!!! Maybe he'll get the pet monkey experience he always wanted after all.

The Birds have Landed!!!

Arrived here yesterday morning after 24 hours or so up in the air - 2nd flight from Singapore full of Socceroos fans - good fun.

Jo'burg airport was buzzing with soccer fans - loads of Mexicans here for todays big opening game!

The city is going crazy - hearing vuvuzelas constantly - first one at 4am this morning - we've been up since 5am anyway with jetlag - watched the opening concert last night with family - just heading off to Durban now to find our apartment and a spot to watch the game with the rest of the nation - Go BAFANA BAFANA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Day Has Come - Off Today....

So the day has finally arrived - off to the airport soon - the house sitters are here - just need to get to the right continent - we're pretty confident that South Africa is in Africa - seems our US cousins aren't so sure...
Next post is likely to via from another country - unless the airport experience is just toooooooooo painful.

2 Days Till Take Off

Joe has been practising wrestling with big cats - and they don't come much bigger or fatter than this one...

He never got his soccer game in this weekend - Canterbury cancelled the whole round even though the field was open for his game - so his next game will be for an Australia Representative XI against Lesotho - see our Lesotho 2010 page

4 days to go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Psyched for the Aus v USA game. Aus 2-1 USA Kennedy and Cahill score with Brett Holman scoring an own goal with 5mins left after being on for 5 secs!

All of a sudden stopped raining today. Hopefully Joe can fit in one last soccer game before we go.

Our overweight cat finally got on to the roof after 4 years of trying. See below:

Pams gone to palm beach with a bunch of girlfriends. Cant wait for SA and Pim, keep Holman on the bench!!

Vuvuzela Corner

Many of you may never have heard of these - but you will certainly have heard a lot of them by the end of the tournament - its a sort of trumpet played incessantly by fans at games there.

They are so popular they have installed one in Cape Town as shown above - its to be 'blown' every time there's a goal in a game. Must get one put in at Bert's Grove.

6 Days Left Now

Not long to go now - for those who are still interested here's a video of Talia's Opera House performance:

http://gallery.me.com/pvandijk#100321

She's 4th from the right in the front row of the recorder group that is focused in on.

On other pressing issues - anyone care to make a nomination for a Pride of Australia Award?
There's a bloke in Trouton Street who surely deserves one - now what category......

http://www.prideofaustralia.com.au

7 Days and counting...

...this time next week we will be on the way!

Meantime Steve Christo is having a good warm-up - nice shot of the boys win over Denmark last night...

But he didn't take this one of the kids at the Opera House last night after Talia's performance!

8 Days Left Now!

Just back from the Opera House - 700 small children playing recorder in unison - had all the makings of a Qantas ad!

Pretty good though - makes yer proud of them - though when the conductor gave them all a name check it dragged a bit.

Got home in time to watch the Socceroos playing Denmark in a school sports stadium in suburban Jo'burg - the game seems to be at the standard of the setting - need a bit more practice boys - though Grella is carving the oppo up nicely.