PROJECT 365: Part 13

Welcome, Welcome!

Another day another post.  And also it's a Friday, so there's that.  Today you will be getting a lesson in traditional South African food among other things.  If you want to know, more just click on the name of the scrumptious item. (Wikipedia is our friend)




Day 127: Minty fresh.

Meet my toothbrush.




Day 128: Talita's last day.

My ex-boss, Talita, and me.  This was her farewell party.  We had good South African food; a braai (barbecue), pap (stiff porridge, it sounds gross but it is so good), a chakalaka gravy, and salad.  It was yummy.  I may have cried a bit when we hugged goodbye.




Day 129: Koeksisters! South African food culture at it's sweetest.

Koeksisters are devil's food. They are fried dough, marinated in syrup, and are delicious.

Also, this is the first photo I took with Instagram.  See next photo.




Day 130: My new toy!

I have awesome friends! Lori sent me this iPod Touch, so we could iMessage and stuff.  It used to be her mom's but when she upgraded to an iPhone, this poor iPod was orphaned and Lori thought I could provide it with a good home.  And I have!  And I love it!  I love being able to iMessage Lori.  I told her she's gonna regret it, coz now I can bug her whenever and as often as I want.  She says she won't, but give me time ;)  And the apps! Instagram and Soundtracking are my favourite so far.  Having this iPod just confirmed my need for an iPhone.  This time next year I WILL have an iPhone.  And hugs and kisses to Lori for sending me my favourite new toy!




Day 131: It just tastes better in glass.

I don't know if coke in glass bottles is readily available elsewhere.  Obviously that was the only way coke was available when I was a little girl, but these days, plastic bottles are how it's done and coke in glass is a fading memory.  Well except in certain out of the way places.  Sometime when we've been on a road-trip we've found coke and other soda favourites in glass 1.5 litre bottles or those lovely 250ml bottles which are heaven.  But really that is the exception.  Apparently I live in one of those out of the way places, because I discovered the little shop down the road has the small bottles and the 1.5 litre glass bottles of coke.  And it really does just taste better!  (Parenthetically I have heard that coke tastes different in different countries.  According to PopHaw, Thailand coke is much sweeter and the flavour sucks.  I'd love to know what all you travellers think?)

Day 132: Baby Boerewors Braai.

I was visiting the folks and PopHaw decided to utilize his never-before-used portable braai (yes it's a noun as well) to make lunch.  What you see here is boerewors. The most delicious South African sausage (insert crude joke here).  You get different types these days: cheese boerewors, farmstyle boerewors, karoo boerwors etc.  Its basically just a different combination of spices and meat.  It is SO good, and nothing says 'summer' like the smell of boerwors on a braai. Oh, in case you were wondering it's pronounced boo-rah-vors.

Day 133: Sunday Happy Meal.

Sometimes you just need to indulge.  These are flapjacks, which apparently are the same as American pancakes.  Our pancakes are like the UK kind, thin with no rising agent, similar to crepes.  Flapjacks are also known as griddle-cakes or griddle-scones, as they are prepared on a griddle. I grew up calling them 'girdle-scones' and that's how I know them.

Anyway, my stove has no medium heat.  Just high and low no matter where you turn the dial to, which is why most of these look slightly burnt.  And yes, I do have a pan in the shape of a teddy bear's head.

Day 134: No post today.

Which made me very sad, as I was waiting for parcels.  I still am waiting for one, in fact.  My post box looks all pretty in this picture, but really it's just one of hundreds in a wall of post boxes.




Day 135: Cold weather clouds

Taken from my office window.  Cold weather clouds just look different.  They can be fluffy and white and the sky can be a beautiful blue, but you know just by looking at the clouds that it's icy outside.  And it was.  This was the day that it snowed in Johannesburg.

Day 136: I didn't see any. So this is the next best thing.

There was apparently a little bit of snow in Pretoria, but I didn't see any, and it was nowhere near the snowfall in Johannesburg.  We don't get snow in the Gauteng Province.  The KwaZulu-Natal, Western Cape, Eastern Cape and Free State Provinces do sometimes get snow, especially the mountainous areas, but not in Gauteng.  The last time we had snow was in 2007.  I remember that; my Dad woke us up in the middle of the night and we went for a drive around the neighbourhood to see all the pretty.  I was so tired at work the next day.  The time before that was 1981.  I don't remember that, but there are photos of me in a stylish blue coat.  The time before that was 1964 and the time before that 1962.  There is a photo of PopHaw in a stylish coat.  I'm really kind of pissed off that I didn't see any this time.

Day 137: Warm up.

It was freaking cold.  I don't do cold.

Day 138: Prehistoric Outbox.

Talita's new job is curator of the South African Post Office Heritage Centre.  This was taken outside the Philately Building where her temporary office is situated.  I'm not jealous.  Not at all.  Nuh uh.




Day 139: Windy tree.

It's August.  And here in South Africa August means wind and kite weather!  I enjoy windy days.




Day 140: Wedding planning

For more on the progress of the wedding go here. 




Day 141: White washed wood

Part of the restored Kruger House.  I just liked the texture.

Day 142: Sam thinks she's a salad.

For some reason, this week Sam has taken to sleeping in this salad bowl.  I keep it out because it's so pretty and it's a handy place to keep odds and ends.  However, I did not mean to keep my cat in it.




Day 143: I love my friends.

Have I mentioned I love my friends?  This parcel was from Worm all the way in Utah.  See what was in the package? Yep. That's right.  All for me.  Expect photos of rubber ducks in future posts.




Day 144: The robins are back.

Spring must be getting close.  There are always a few of these lovelies around the museum garden in summer, and when I was walking to my office I heard this guy singing his little heart out.




Day 145: Restoration progress.

Hopefully there are only a few weeks left of this restoration project.  Most of the painting is complete.  The house looks a hundred times better, although the one architectural historian commented that it looks like a wedding cake.  He didn't meant it as a compliment.  I don't think it looks bad at all.  I don't know if this was how the house was originally painted, but the people who did the research on the paint say they found evidence that it was, and it certainly is in keeping with Victorian architecture.  Whatever, it looks better than it did, and this project has also contributed to the ongoing preservation of the house, so I'm happy.

The cleaning of the inside of the house once this project is compete is going to be a huge job.


That's it for this post folks.  Tomorrow is my second last lecture of the year, and hopefully the rest of the weekend will be thoroughly lazy.  For all of us ;)