Wild!
Saturday gave me a taste of real winter weather here in South Africa. The rain lashed down accompanied by wild winds that bent over even the mature trees. It was wet and it was cold. In fact, if it had been snowing it would have been exactly like a Huron County snow squall.
South Africans enjoy a wonderful outdoor lifestyle and are not ones to shy away from the elements but even for them it was a tough day. Our friends who were staying in the cabins regaled us with tales of the wind howling through the walls all night and fear of the roof blowing off. We could only imagine what the guests who were staying in the tents were feeling. They probably were preparing for liftoff!
It was a good day to spend indoors and we were content to use the weather as an excuse to laze around. Good conversation and laughter put the day in and Rhino was busy in the lappa cooking from early morning until suppertime. The anticipation was building to see what culinary delight awaited us tonight.
I did venture out during a lull in the weather about mid-day for a quick walk around Elephant Rock. As luck would always have it, when I was at the absolute furthest point from the camp the clouds rolled in again and it began to rain. It wasn’t an overly cold rain so not too uncomfortable; in fact it was somewhat exhilarating. Nevertheless, by the time I got back to the camp the hot shower that I had been reluctant to take in the morning was mighty appealing.
When Rhino called us to the table for supper we were treated to another magnificent feast. The meal he had been labouring over all day is called a potjie. The traditional way to prepare it is all together in one pot (hence the name) but as always Rhino prepared this dish with his own individual flare. Each element was painstakingly prepared separately and then combined in exactly the right manner to meld the flavours perfectly. Both beef and lamb, fennel, beets, (and a few other things that I have forgotten the name of) carefully presented on a bed of rice and augmented with Rhino’s homemade mango and peach chutney. Amazing!
Dessert was equally delightful. Semolina pudding with a compote of fresh berries, elegantly served and garnished. Not too shabby for the wilds of Africa, eh?
Oh! And did I mention the wine …
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Morag