I fell in love with the 'Kalahari Oasis Pub' from the moment we discovered it in December and in the back of mind, I knew this was where I wanted to celebrate my 40th. I 'uhhmed' and 'aaahed' and finally my sister took control and booked everything. A general 'this is what I am doing and would you like to join' invite was passed along to family and friends.
The pub can be found at Mabalingwe Nature Reserve and it's a really nifty place. It is a photographer haven with so many opportunities to get some really cool shots. I'm probably going to kick myself for missing more than a few.
We stayed in the Kalahari Bush Tented Camp and Dome Camp, and both of these are not too far from the pub, but crawling back to camp could be painful and I wouldn't recommend it. LOL
On Saturday, the fires were lit and the Potjies started. Potjie is basically a stew cooked in a 3 legged Cast Iron Pot. This was the Oxtail Potjie - Gareth outdid himself and it was really yummy!! The meat was tender and fell off the bones.
Hubby and I loaned Craig's Jeep and went on a self-drive game drive which on Saturday afternoon turned out to be a dud. Not many animals to be seen at all. Sad face!! We then asked Craig if we could hang onto the keys and give it another bash in the morning. This time around me had more success. Our first major siting being Girafffe and then 2 Rhino - I was in heaven. When we found the rhino I was squealing like a girl - wait - I am a girl.
It was a weekend of family, friends, divine red wine and good food. We laughed and laughed some more and really enjoyed ourselves. It was a great way to celebrate my 40th. Josh my 8 (yo) whispered to me on Monday morning - "mom, I wish we were still at Mabalingwe". I had to agree. It was hard to leave and come home. I love spending time in the bush. I relish it and it's always hard to leave, but I guess we are fortunate that we have these places not to far from home. Mabalingwe is only 2h30min drive.
