We went for a drive yesterday and ended up at the Nan Hua Buddhist Temple in Bronkhorstspruit – the largest Buddhist temple and seminary in Africa. The temple is normally closed to the public on Mondays, but because it was a holiday we were able to get in. We walked around for a bit and I took a few photos:

You can view the rest of my photos of the temple on my Flickr page.

I’m not looking forward to Steve being gone for almost two weeks. He flies to Saldanha on Monday and will be gone until the 28th of August. I was originally going to go with him and we were going to drive down to Cape Town after for a short vacation, but the trip got pushed back so many times that we no longer have time as we’re flying back to Canada on the 31st. Also, originally, his trip was only going to be about five days long. I could still go with him, but sitting in a hotel room all day by myself for two weeks with no internet access or regular meals doesn’t really appeal to me. So I’ll be stuck here, and will more than likely be too scared to sleep at night.

A few photos from the Zoological Gardens of South Africa:

More zoo photos on my Flickr page.

I’m really looking forward to the long weekend. Steve has been working long hours at Sentrarand this week, and it will be nice to have him all to myself for three entire days. We’ve been throwing around a few options as to activities and such, and decided to postpone Durban for now. I’d rather go there when it’s warmer, and I can swim in the ocean.

Tonight we’re going to the drive-in, which is located on the roof of Menlyn Mall. They’re playing Management and A Haunting in Connecticut. You have the option of viewing the film in your own vehicle, or you can rent a fully restored veteran car for about $15. You can choose between a ‘36 Ford Sedan, ‘46 Chryster, ‘55 Chevrolet Bel Air, ‘56 Pontiac, ‘57 Studebaker or a ‘58 Ford Custom. I think we’ll probably skip the car rental this time and watch the film from the comfort of our lovely, cramped Peugeot.

Tomorrow we’re going to the National Zoological Gardens of South Africa. It’s located right here in Pretoria – about a 10 minute drive away. Unfortunately, it’s in the CBD (central business district), which is considered to be quite unsafe. All the major parking areas in South Africa have security guards, though, so it should be okay. It’s probably not safe enough to bring my DSLR, so my point & shoot will have to suffice.

On Sunday we’re driving down to Johannesburg and going to the Rosebank Market, which is also located on the roof of a mall. We’re flying back in three weeks, so I’d like to pick up a few souvenirs for people back home. Sunday is the only day the market is open, and we won’t have time any other weekend because Steve is flying to Saldahna for two weeks the week after next.

On Monday we’re going to Andrew’s house for a barbecue – a friend of Steve’s from work. He lives in Benoni (Charlize Theron’s hometown!). Supposedly the town is a bit sketchy, so we’ll have to make sure to be out of there before it gets dark.

I can’t believe we’ve been here for over two months already! We fly back home for a visit in 24 days!

I found this flyer in our mailbox the other day. I especially liked #2 and #3.

No wonder I needed three blankets last night. It was -1°C in Pretoria overnight! It’s supposed to go up to 17°C or so today, which I still consider to be freezing. I’m always cold. Not sure when the seasons start and end here, but I think we probably have about four weeks of winter left. The temperature should start rising soon, though.

We’re thinking about driving to Durban this weekend. It’s about 500km from Pretoria, so about a five hour drive. It’s always around 10°C warmer there than here and is supposed to go up to 28°C by Friday. I’ll get to swim in the Indian Ocean!

The Magaliesberg Canopy Tour is also on our agenda, which we will probably do the weekend after next.

Our balcony overlooks a golf course:

View from the front of the guest house:

Back of the guest house. Our room is the one on the top right:

Flying over France:

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A few more differences I’ve noticed:

- ketchup is referred to as “tomato sauce”
- traffic lights are called “robots”
- a pickup truck is called a “bakkie”
- ground meat is called “minced meat”
- when you tell someone something, they respond with “izzit?” instead of “really?”

We went to Pilanesberg National Park today and saw giraffes, elephants, zebras, buffalo, warthogs, rhinos, hippos, impalas, and wildebeests. The park is gigantic and we only managed to cover about half of it in the four or so hours we were there. We had sandwiches on a patio overlooking a family of giraffes. We were tired and it was getting dark, so we only drove through Sun City, but will definitely be going back sometime soon.

We had McDonald’s for supper because I was homesick.

We landed in Johannesburg a little after 9pm last night and arrived at the Woodpecker Inn at 11:30pm, where we will be staying until we find a house. They get up super early here, so I’m going to have to change my sleeping schedule if I want to eat breakfast in the mornings. Since we got in a little late last night, we were served breakfast at 9am today. After breakfast we headed over to Menlyn mall to set up Steve’s cell phone and pick up some power converters. A few things I noticed at the mall:

- They don’t serve fountain drinks, anywhere. I really wanted a coke with ice, but had to settle on a bottle, instead.
- Cream soda is green!
- Even though it’s 20C+ right now, a lot of people wear hats and scarves. I guess this is winter season for them, though.
- The stores are overflowing with employees. They are literally everywhere, just standing around or chatting.

I love our room. We have a balcony and a view of the golf course. I’ll post some photos in a bit.

We’re leaving for South Africa in two days!

Depart Toronto, Canada: 5:45pm
Arrive Amsterdam, Netherlands: 7:00am
Depart Amsterdam, Netherlands: 10:30am
Arrive Johannesburg, South Africa: 9:25pm

So excited! I can’t believe we’re finally going!