Deep Ties

Africa is known for its parks, sanctuaries and zoos. Kruger Park and the myriad safaris are examples of the way animals are nurtured in this continent. It was time to take the little ones to a zoo. So, we decided to visit the Lory Park Zoo, Midrand, which is smaller than the Johannesburg Zoo, mainly because it was a nice hot day, and we thought that it would be better to go to the former before going for lunch to the Mall of Africa, which is one of the biggest malls around, maybe even in the whole of Africa. The Lory Park Zoo is located between Johannesburg and Pretoria and is home to more than a hundred species of various animals. It was started by Edward Philippus Van Eck in April 2002, who was an avid animal lover. He started it as a bird park, but later, it grew into an sanctuary for many kinds of animal species as well.  When Midrand turned into a residential area, people began to drop off wounded or captured animals to Lory Park Zoo. Edward Philippus also wanted to educate visi

  Dearest Z and S, This post is for you and about you, about how blessed we are to be your grandparents. We love you loads!   Seven and four are mighty ages, dear little ones. We still remember the first time we saw you in a little covered baby carriage, chubby - cheeked and so tiny.   Z, you came first, beautiful little baby, holding our hearts in your rose-petal hands with pink- tipped shell-like nails. We watched you grow, day by day, month by month and year by year. You were the apple of our eye, with long hair flying around, as you toddled your way into homes and malls, talking for all you were worth. We saw you grow into a little person in your own right, gentle yet forthright, absolutely transparent.    Today, at seven, you still hold our hearts in your little hands. You turn into Elsa and Red Riding Hood, draw and sing like an angel, read with enjoyment and do everything you want, which makes our hearts swell with joy. S, what do I say about you? You remind us of Huckle

Twitter We had heard a lot from umpteen folks about the delicious burgers that V, our son-in-love, could conjure up. That is if ‘conjure’ is the apt word for he spent a day and a half in prepping it, adding the ingredients to the mince and shaping the raw burgers into round balls which he then refrigerated. He then moved on to the garlic butter, which was not any old recipe, but one that he created with much deliberation and care, finally wrapping the final product into a tight sausage-like roll which also got popped into the refrigerator. Finally, came another masterpiece – spicy, red chilli oil which not only looked potent but was strong enough to fell an ox. Absolutely mouth-watering (and eye-watering too!). The next afternoon was sunny, the perfect day for a braai/ barbeque out in the green lawn. The sky was uniformly blue… it reminded me of the classic song that was recently mentioned in the Oscars – “Not a cloud in the sky, got the sun in my eyes…”                          

  Notable Quotes Every place has its own customs and as visitors, each one of us is supposed to fall in line and follow them. For that reason, sometimes, it is vital to read a bit about the place because in some parts of the world, things can get touchy. I was going through a set of strange customs across the world, and some caught my fancy. For example, in Denmark, some graveyards have metamorphosed into picturesque places to hang out in. People stroll around and spend time together, exploring the myriad gravestones. Talk about waking up the departed souls!                                                                Copenhagen In Japan, no one gets fired. However, a person who needs to be terminated may be isolated in a locked room and given tasks so unsavoury that he or she ends up resigning. Red ink is avoided in South Korea because, in the past, only the names of the dead are written in red. Hence, it is better not to carry red pens and tempt fate, I guess!              

The Voortrekker Monument The Voortrekker Monument stands tall and can be seen from any direction in Pretoria, the home of Afrikaner culture, housing a pictorial and representative depiction of the Great Afrikaner Trek right up to the Anglo-Boer War. It reveals the immense trials and tribulations suffered by the Afrikaners as they made this well documented trek. It is also a beacon of hope as it is a saga of perseverance, bravery and foresight.   Once again, the four grandparents made their own trek to this amazing monument which loomed at a height that made it appear even more imposing. Rustic stone steps led up to it, with various stops from which we could see the whole of Pretoria. There was a café on one of the stops which had salespersons dressed in traditional garb, Dutch caps et al, serving customers local cuisine. We shared a dish called Roosterkoek (grilled cake) which consisted of fresh South African bread baked over coal, piping hot, and served with butter, cheese and jam. Ab