Yes, we somehow lost a day and unfortunately we never informed Vanessa. She wasn’t there to meet us – and we weren’t there on Tuesday when she was. A great start! We waited around for a while, looking like lost kids. Made a couple of calls back to De Wildt but got only the machine. Finally we got a VW van and driver to take us to the cheetah center for R$650 - $100US. So much for the budget.
Vanessa wasn’t at De Wildt either – seems she’s in Singapore until Monday so we won’t see her until April. What we’ve seen of South Africa so far isn’t what we expected. Very cosmopolitan and due to recent rains, very lush and green. The highways are like those in the U.S. except they drive on the left. Apartheid might be over but there is a big class difference. We drove past a sprawling shantytown, thousands of dilapidated shacks. I can’t believe things were much worse a decade ago.
The Cheetah Centre, on the other hand, is spectacular. Despite our late arrival we were welcomed with open arms by Linda and Marilyn and were driven through part of the preserve by Gabi who showed us some of the animals, most notably Lord Byron, the ‘cheetah ambassador’. The center has, in addition to cheetahs, a wild dog enclosure, honey badgers, and several endangered vulture species. More on this as we get more involved.
We have a wonderful room at the cheetah lodge, run by Annatika and Nadia. Dinner for two on the patio with candlelight. Very special. Ann van Dyk, the founder of the center and Alan brought ‘our truck' over, a Ford Bantam, ‘bakkie’, a mini pick-up. Brand new but just the basics – no air, no radio, and no power. It’s only 1300cc but it’s ours for the duration. We have been financial contributors to the Centre for a couple of years and a recent inheritance made it possible for us to buy the truck and donate it to the Centre with the understanding that we could use it whenever and wherever we wished. A good deal for all.
