drie susters en ‘n ma

Stii and I took the boys to the beach today, for the first time this season (as everybody knows, the best time to come to the Garden Route for a holiday is during February/March).  We’ve got the best weather during February, and with the recent floods we’ve had, the beach was out of the question.  Today, being extremely hot, we set off to Hartenbos to visit my mom and dad and to take the boys to the beach.  What a joy it was!  I’m not particularly fond of the beach as I hate the sand that gets into places you never even thought you had, but Stii and the kids love it.  I was sitting there thinking how privileged we are having the sea and the most beautiful mountains on our doorstep.  The sad thing is that when you live here, you tend to forget about it.  It’s only when you see all the holiday makers with GP and FS number plates that you all of a sudden realise it’s time to go to the beach again.  Then everything/every place is crowded.  You don’t get parking close to the beach and have to walk for 10 minutes, and you get irritated with the holiday makers, but forgetting that we’ve got the luxury of the sea 365 days a year.  I still don’t see myself paying thousands of rands, to have a holiday by the sea (maybe because we grew up here and  is taking our blessings for granted),  but I also think that people are ripping off holiday makers in the daily rates they’re asking for accomodation.

To all the GP and FS people, you’ve got my sympathy!  To all the locals, look around you, we’ve got so much natural beauty to be grateful for.  Enjoy the mountains, our beautiful forests, beaches and the sea and think of all the people that have never smelled the smell of dampness and wet soil of our fern enriched forests or have felt the sand of the beach underneath their feet, or tasted exactly how salt sea water is when a wave unexpectedly hit you from your feet.