The Hungerfords come to South Africa

It was the Hungerfords turn to come for a visit in South Africa.  First up, the infamous Red Bus Tour.  It is a great way to get to know the history of a city.  We got off at Constitution Hill.  This started out as fort for the British.  Then it was turned into a prison.  Two of its most famous inmates were Ghandi and Nelson Mandela.

We visited an orphanage run by the Salvation Army.  We started by holding the infants then went to play with the toddlers.  We fed them yogurt, sometimes multiple kids with one spoon.  Seth entertained the boys, and we held and loved as many as we could.  There were times it seemed like we didn't have enough arms.

After the 3rd day, jet lag was still very real for Seth and Molly.  But we got up the next morning to visit the Rhino Lion Park.  We saw many animal up close as we did a self drive through the reserve.  We also got to feed a giraffe.  He tickled our hands as he ate the food.

Then we stopped at the Lesedi Cultural Village to learn about 5 of the tribes in South Africa.  We learned some Zulu words and ate caterpillars.  We learned that one tribe wears the Scottish kilt.  Back over 100 years ago when the Scots came to fight the tribes, they wouldn't fight because they thought they were women in skirts.  To this day they wear the kilt as a reminder of the mistake made by their king so long ago.

The next day we visited the Elephant Sanctuary, The Hungerfords were able to ride the elephants.  We also brushed them down, fed them, walked with them and even got 

sloppy, dirty kisses from them.

We saved the best for last.  We stayed at the Ivory Tree Lodge in Pilanesburg National Park.  We went on an evening game drive to return to hot chocolate and a warm fire.  We got up early the next morning for a chilly game drive.  But it was worth it all.  We saw a rare black rhino, herds of elephants, a pride of 7 lions who circled in front of us, giraffes necking - practicing their fighting skills, warthogs, wildebeest, hippos, a leopard up a tree with the dinner it had just caught, kudu, impala, and many more animals.  It was the trip of a lifetime!

And our last planned activity was a zipline on the way back to Johannesburg.  We all had fun flying down the lines.  Sad to say good bye to our Hungerford group, but we'll see you in 4-1/2 months for Christmas at our home!

The interim interim Mission President in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo

President Shumard, the new mission president for Lubumbashi Mission in the DRC, has been unable to get his visa.  So he sits in a hotel in Utah waiting.  Sean Donnelly, the Africa Southeast Area Public Affairs Director, was called as the interim mission president with keys while everyone awaits the arrival of President and Sister Shumard.  But President Donnelly was not able to get to Lubumbashi for 5 days.  So Chuck was approved to go and fill in as the interim interim mission president, even though he only speaks English and Portuguese!  He received the all-important telephone from outgoing mission president, President Thomas.  He rescued the assistants when their car broke down late at night.  He went teaching with the assistants.  He took the senior couples out to lunch.  He had a great time.  Liz was unable to go with him because we had family coming into town and she needed to be in Johannesburg to greet them.

Matt and Danielle come to South Africa

 We welcomed Matt and Danielle to South Africa.  First up on our trip was Lesedi Cultural Village.  Here we got to know about 5 tribes from South Africa and we got to eat caterpillars.  One tribe wears kilts.  The background story is that many years ago they were conquered by the Scots because the tribe would not fight what they thought were women in skirts.  To this day they wear the kilt to remind them of the mistake their king made long ago.

We went for an early morning hot air balloon ride.  There was fog on the ground, but we rose above it to see the most beautiful mountain tops.  We even saw giraffe and zebra on the ground below.

We drove 5 hours to Kruger National Park.  Along the way we stopped at God's Window and hiked up to the mini rain forest at the top.  We also visited the Elephant Sanctuary and learned all about these huge animals. We walked with them and fed them and even got kissed by them.

Matt and Dani spent other days visiting Cape Town, Victoria Falls and the Chobe River in Botswana.  They also spent several days in Sabi Sand going on many game drives.  It was a fun trip and we were glad that they came!