South Africa > On the way to Graskop

I slept restlessly during the night, probably due to the events of the previous travel day and the overall excitement of the trip. We have breakfast in the lodge restaurant. At half past eight, we set off. As we are leaving, Gerhardt receives a call that two suitcases were left behind. Fortunately, we haven’t gone far yet. The suitcases are brought to our bus in a small van. We leave the Johannesburg area. Today is going to be a long travel day. We drive via the N12 towards Witbank, Middelburg, and Belfast. At a roadside restaurant, we stop for coffee. Several buses are already there, so it takes a little longer for everyone to get their coffee. Along the way, Gerhardt gives a lot of information about the trip, the program, and especially about South Africa. He is clearly very proud of the country. In Dullstroom, we stop for a lunch break. We walk through the town and settle on a terrace at the far end, where there are hardly any other tourists.

South Africa - South African women walking through the goldmining village of Pilgrims Rest

I order a chicken toastie. In the afternoon, we continue to Pilgrim’s Rest. Pilgrim’s Rest is a former gold mining town. Today, it’s more like an open-air museum with souvenir shops catering to travelers on their way to Kruger Park. Pilgrim’s Rest consists of two sections: a lower town and a higher upper town. Because of the dark clouds, we decide not to walk the distance between the lower and upper town, and instead take the bus. The upper town, in particular, has many market stalls selling figurines and a lot of woodcarvings. We then drive on to Graskop. Our lodge is just past Graskop (and is apparently for sale for only 12 million Rand). When unloading the bus, some of the luggage is found to be wet—rain must have leaked into the storage area. Annoying! For some, this means clothes will need to be washed or dried. Even though we haven’t done much today, I feel a little fed up. Using the kettle, we make some soup. With the soup in hand, we watch the South African news (Nuus). In the evening, we have dinner in the lodge restaurant. Outside, it is lightly raining and misty. During dinner, the power goes out twice. Candles are everywhere, so this probably happens often. At the table, the conversation quickly turns to previous trips. When I mention the small plane in Suriname, another traveler says they read the whole travel report and recognize that passage—funny coincidence. As we walk back to our room, a dense fog has settled in. Later in the night, the fog turns into rain, and it rains steadily throughout the night.