22nd of November to 15th of December, 2018.
Volunteer work in South Africa: Karoo
I am surprised in how the people from the service station are helpful. They make a call for me; they let me wait for some minutes and make the call again; without results from the phone, they let me use the wi-fi to get Paula’s father address; and they help me to get directions. All so promptly and in a friendly way. It is the first Caltex in Graaff-Reinet. The one in the road which comes from Cape Town.
Graaff-Reinet have some beautiful houses, schools and streets. All very cute. It also has this traditional style feeling, which Paula completely confirmed to me later. She gave it an emphasis: “They are very traditional”.
After ringing the bell for three times, I decided to ask for help to the neighbors, since their small dog it was barking a lot. A girl sees me through the window and come outside. I can say that at first she seems quite afraid of me but as soon as I explain everything, she promptly helps opening the gate and going inside the house. She quickly ask me about Brazil and say that sounds exiting to live there. Oh, if she only knew…
I love Paula’s parents house! It is so incredible well decorated, full of those old furniture and stuff that I love. And there is this huge book of aero pictures of London, which almost makes me cry. Robert is a nice old man, very friendly, always moving around and trying to make me feel comfortable. After I have some toasts with cheese, we leave to the farm.
When I arrive at the farm, I am like – Whaaaat? A beautiful farm house, so many trees around, a garden, a huge green free space in front, an amazing forest just nearby, and the gorgeous mountain just on the back of the house. It is massive! There are two guest houses, both quite big for me, but they called them The Top Cottage (the bigger one) and The Garden House (a little bit smaller). There are three houses for the staff. And a few different rooms for different purposes.
I first meet Ean. He seems like a really nice guy. When I meet Paula, I like her immediately! She is dressed in such a cool outfit: jeans and those large plaid shirt that I love, plus a bandanna in her head. I hug her, and she hugs me back. Then I meet the kids. Well, kind of. They ran away from me and I ran after them. That is how we meet. Just some minutes later, when they settle down, I could look at them and realize how cute they are.
Supposedly, I would stay in The Garden House but when Ean tells me that I could also stay in the caravan I am like – hell, yeah! I can sleep in a normal house any time of my life. I slept for the first 27 years of my life in one. But Loki knows when I will be able to sleep in a caravan again! Wow! And here I am until now. Almost three weeks in this cute and beautiful vintage caravan. Man, I could live in a caravan without any problem. In my first morning, as I step outside, I see a giant eland, a common antelope from South Africa.
The first week the whole family leaves to Joburg for a few days, and I am in charge of the Christmas party decoration. I make something like 500 paper swans; I paint and sprayed some dry local trees; I make bouquets of dry plants; I decorated jars to put the flowers on , for the tables; and a few more small things. I just loved!
For the next few days I am helping in different things: with the cows, cooking, watering the vegetable garden, playing with the kids, etc. On my free time, I read book an do a jigsaw puzzle. I climb the mountain behind the house and go for small walks. The kids and I have a lot of fun and take some pictures together. I also spend some time with the doggies Lida and Jackie and with the cat Shadow. We have our lunch and dinner together. Paula and Ean always prepare some delicious meals.
In the last week, Paula decides she wants to redecorated the Garden House. Yay! It is also a lot of fun having ideas, hanging pictures, making crafts and lots of stuff.
I enjoy a lot my stay in the farm! The peace and the quiet of the place is amazing! The incredible starry sky at night. But after three weeks I need to leave. Luckily, Paula is going to Port Elizabeth and gives me a lift. She even found a nice place for me to stay there. Now I have a few more stops before Cape Town. And in the next few days, I will face some really challenging but incredible things…
10 Years Around the World 