This is a shorter edition, I was abroad for half the month which made it a little difficult to put together. I experienced a longing for home whilst I was away, and on the plane back listened to some South African complaining that winter was on its way.
Well, yes, the time has come to prepare ourselves for the oncoming winter. But most of us love winter, as we bask in the relative ‘cool’ of the day and the crisp nigh time air. With the added benefit of a retreat of the dastard ‘skitties’ and other bugs – it bodes well for a time in absolute paradise, which is where we live. It’s almost like a holiday, to recharge the batteries for the summer that inescapably is on its way.
There are many reasons why we should love winter – besides cooling down. Durbs will have the best weather in the country, and together with the warm Indian Ocean – it really cannot complain about the weather. Cape Town of course will be cooler and wetter, and there may even be some snow on the ‘berg. Johannesburg will be very crispy. But I think that we in Hoedspruit may well contest the perception that Durbs has the best winter weather – what better place than to be in the lowveld?
Beautiful clear skies during the day, crispy mornings and cool (sometimes very cool) evenings, all point to a very comfortable season, cuddled around a fire with the sounds of the bushveld expressing the cacophony of sound that we love. How could you beat that?
Our braais in that atmosphere and surroundings, must beat the who’s who in Cape Town into a distant second place. Nothing like a great boerie roll around the fire, with a good dose of amber liquid to see it down.
Yes, you could go and see the flowers in Namaqualand, or set your sights on the snow covered Matroosberg in the Cape or the Drankensberg Mountains in Kwazulu-Natal – but once again I think we take the cake.
Winter is the best time to head for the bush – it’s cool, which makes those game drives a whole lot easier; the thinner bush allows for better and easier sightings and the animals tend to congregate a little more around the waterholes and rivers in these months.
So, let’s all embrace the winter ahead knowing that we DO live in paradise!
Enjoy the read.
