Richmond

KwaZulu-Natal and The Kruger National Park 2009. - Richmond

All the family came round one Sunday and we had a braai out in the garden.

There were lots of oranges in the orchard so we could have freshly squeezed orange juice.

The twins had new hockey sticks for the start of the new term - and persuaded Diana and I to have a game with them.

While Diana and David were in Richmond Pat and Colin were having their house re-thatched - it should have been finished before they arrived but took considerably longer than promised.

The 'scafolding' that the thatchers used was very basic!

The house now looks fantastic with its new thatch.

Sugar cane is a huge industry in KZN. It's grown all year round so it can often be seen in all stages of growth in a single day.

Sugar cane growing in the fields.

Once the cane is ready for harvesting it's burnt and cut.

Huge lorries take the cane from the fields...

....to the mills

We took Diana and David to Tala Game Reserve (40 minutes from Richmond). Although there are no predators there it's still got plenty of animals and birds. This was the first time that we'd seen the hippos out of the water.

Stonechat.

Spoonbill.

Blesbok, impala and Wildebeast.

One of a group of 6 giraffe.

Howick, about an hours drive from Richmond, has an impressive waterfall.

At the top of the falls some of the local women were washing their clothes in the river - water supplies are still a big problem in outlying areas.

1. Richmond
2. Beaches
3. Royal Natal, Drakensburg Mountains
4. Battlefields
5. Kruger National Park
6. Arathusa Safari Lodge, Sabie Sands, Kruger
Diana's diary