Little green frogs.. air balloons and ....

Woke up this morning with another kiddies song in my head .. I am clearly around children too much !!!! ... this time ..

Little green frog, little green frog, where's your tail so small
I swim in the river, I swim in the river, I have no tail at all

kuwa kwack kwack, kuwa kwack kwack, kuwa kwack kwack

Little green frog, little green frog, where's your wing so small .......

Jeanette and my son, Carl, learnt the traditional nursery songs and traditional South African kiddies songs .. Elaine went to a playgroup run by a super young English girl who taught her some traditional and some songs and rhymes I had never heard before - (Elaine was 11 years younger than Carl !!) Now with my grandchildren, there are still more songs I had never heard before .. and there are so many of them!! I also love 'three little men in a flying saucer' and when that is on the CD in the car, I always hit the repeat button (and Bradley doesn't mind .. he knows it's one granny's favourites)... it's so cute!

Anyway, that's not what this is about !!! Wanted to chat about the lighter side of my visit to Somerset West. Flew from Lanseria Airport this time - never been there before - wow, it was like a country airport with none of the hustle and bustle of our major Johannesburg/O.R .Tambo!

Huge mural on the wall in the coffee shop

Departure lounge - note the lounge chairs (not the usual metal or plastic) and the friendly chap at the podium who takes the tickets I have also never come across anyone absolutely afraid of flying. There was a poor young girl, carrying a baby in a carry chair (4 months old maybe) and she ordered a double vodka at 8.15 in the morning! Mmm .. this is interesting .. I thought !! All sorts of things went through my mind until I realised she was afraid, really really afraid to get on "that thing outside" which is "put together with rivets, you know" !!!! She stood next to me while we waited to board and I suggested, very kindly, that she should try taking the herbal Rescue Remedy. She said it wasn't working and had been taking it for 2 days already! Hence the double vodka at 8.15 am !! Ooh but I wander how her flight went - she was seated near the back - and our flight was a little bumpy with a group of chaps seated all around the area where I was sitting laughing and joking amongst each other and to the air hostesses ... and every time the plane plunged into the air pockets they would raise their arms into the air and went .. weeeeeee!!! Poor girl !!

Had a lovely time with Ian and Kathy (my brother and sister in law) who are always SO kind - giving me the spare room in their house and ALWAYS lending me a car to drive. Ian then uses his motorbike to go to work. This time they were doing renovations so my accommodation was not up to scratch !!!! Had to shuffle around on dusty floors, share the only working bathroom which is in the flatlet attached to the house (my nephew stays there on weekends when he comes home from college in Cape Town). And the meals were 'cooked' and served in the lounge !! but the view makes up for all that - it's magnificent!

Taken in 2006 but the view hasn't changed - False Bay in the mist beyond the buildings

I was 'wined and dined' whilst visiting -mainly because of the disorder in the household! Kathy took me for lunch when I arrived, to a super little Italian place (forget the name) ... Kathy and the owner chatting away in Italian for a bit - my sister in law is Italian .. ! Met her again for lunch on another day at Coffee @ Twin Oaks where she was meeting up with an old friend. We spent a couple of hours chatting away in beautiful surroundings. Every day, of course, went to Imibala with Mum and Kathy joined us one morning too -

Imibala

Lots of local artworks and 'things' for sale, including a few animal skins

Ian and Kathy have taken me to the theatre on my previous visits and this time we went to see 'Rock me, Amadeus' at the Barnyard Theatre. Fantastic! It was really really good .. 'mind blowing' .. the music was very very loud, vibrating through the floor and tables and chairs - it was fantastic! Thoroughly enjoyed it!!

Had to add - Ian and Kathy chatting to their daughter Daniella, on Skype, who is doing a 6 months practical in Cork, Ireland (she does her studies at the Hotel School, Cape Town)
And then ... on my last night there, I christened the new bath!!!! The basin wasn't in yet and the shower wasn't ready but the bath was ... and what I surprise I got when I opened the bathroom door .. candles ... champagne ... and yes, I drank the whole lot !!!

Thank you for making me feel so special!