South Africa 11

Jamie and Heather Make it to Cape Town

Text and images by Heather Rider and Jamie Grumet.

Heather and I had three days to acclimate to the 9 hour time change and we decided to spend that time in Cape Town.

After roughly 3 solid hours of radiant sunshine, the clouds took over and we quickly realized we left the start of a beautiful California Summer for a drizzly African winter. Or as Heather put it, she left the Bay Area for the San Francisco of the southern … Keep Reading!!!

The Lap of Luxury in the Middle of the African Bush

We said goodbye to Cape Town and jumped a couple of flights over to Sabi Sands, South Africa.

We entered Lion Sands 1933 Lodge and we were really taken aback by our accommodations. The 1933 Lodge is a proper house built along the Sabi River. The Lodge is rented out in it’s entirety to allow the group renting it full privacy and an experience that is completely different than at a game lodge with other paying guests.

We took … Keep Reading!!!

Bringing Your Baby To Work

Allowing infants to stay close to their mothers, by their side at work, is one of the key components to the happy and well-rounded staff at Henna Preschool in Huntington, South Africa.

Peggy O’Mara has a popular quote that isn’t technically about bringing your child to work, but I thought was very fitting of this circumstance:

“Don’t stand unmoving outside the door of a crying baby whose only desire is to touch you. Go to your baby. Go to … Keep Reading!!!

Fireflies – Lighting the Fire of Childhood

I am still captivated by Disney movies. Even though I’ve grown to be slightly disillusioned by certain parts of life, I will never become so jaded as to not appreciate a fairy tale.

I was lucky enough to have an extremely positive childhood, and to know what it is like to feel hope and wonderment in a world full of possibilities. It is interesting how life experiences try to take that away from us as we age. I think, with … Keep Reading!!!

Breastfeeding in South Africa

When visiting any country, I am always curious about the cultural differences regarding child-rearing practices and the attitude towards breastfeeding compared to the US.

South Africa is an interesting country because it can be viewed in many areas as Western, with a lot of European influence, but there are so many different cultures and subcultures in the country that the viewpoints of the people living within the borders of South Africa are vastly different.

I think that the idea of … Keep Reading!!!

My Birthday in Cape Town

I spent my 27th birthday in what has now become one of my very favorite cities in the world.

I woke up to a completed 27th year to discover Aram was on the road to recovery from his epic illness, which was the best present I could have asked for. We made our way to breakfast at More Quarters to find a tower of handcrafted cupcakes (complete with edible sparkles) waiting for us at our table, with a note … Keep Reading!!!

Exploring the Winelands in South Africa

Early on in our trip, we decided to have a company take us on a few tours around Cape Town. Our first stop was to The Winelands.

We had lunch in Franschhoek (some us ate, some of us took the time and shopped)…

And finally we ended at the Cheetah Outreach where we all learned about this breed of dog (Anatolian Shepherd) that is helping save the cheetah.

We also were given the opportunity to pet the cheetahs in … Keep Reading!!!

Cape Town: More Quarters Review

I wasn’t sure what to expect when we arrived in Cape Town. Many people have told me it is their favorite city in the world, but there were others, (who maybe have never visited) who were telling us how dangerous the city was and that we needed to be very careful.

When we landed, I was surprised how much Cape Town looked like various parts of California. I saw Big Sur, Santa Barbara, Napa, and other … Keep Reading!!!

Madikwe Safari Lodge Review (Safari Activities for Kids)

I really want to encourage families who are interested in traveling internationally with their children. As I mentioned, although Brian and my worst fear of traveling with kids came true this trip, we really can’t find any reason to fear it anymore. Although having Aram sick was so sad for him and we hated him not being able to enjoy everything to the fullest, he still had a great time, and we felt so safe.

What we noticed about Madikwe… Keep Reading!!!

Madikwe Safari Lodge Review (Game Drives)

We arrived to the beautiful Madikwe Safari Lodge and were escorted to our bungalow to freshen up. You can see more pictures of our room and our review of accommodations here.

Well, what can one expect on game drives?

The day we arrived at the lodge we were eager to go on a game drive. We took in the views from our room, splashed water on our faces, and rushed back to the common space to meet for tea … Keep Reading!!!

Madikwe Safari Lodge Review (Accomodations)

After about a five hour drive from Johannesburg, we made it to Madikwe Safari Lodge (very close to the border of Botswana).

This was the first stop for this trip and we were all eager to see animals…really any animals. From the moment that we entered the Madikwe Safari Lodge border we were welcomed by hundreds of animals. On just the drive up to camp, we saw right next to our vehicle: elephants, giraffes, impalas, zebras, wildebeests, and many many … Keep Reading!!!