Roadscapes in Late Winter

More than a month since I last checked in here! I expected to have lost all my 'followers' due to being an absent blogger, but hello to a few new ones, and thanks to the rest of you for sticking around! It has been the craziest, busiest month, and now without internet at home, I have not had a spare moment at work to even think about blogging... 

We've been spending a bit of time on the road as usual, as well as opening up our new shop, and enjoying a visit from Janet of Baked Beans Jubilee blog fame! I even have a half written blog post all about a special trip we did in mid-July, but I have not even been able to select any photos for it yet, so I thought for now I would post some impressions of our part of the world in late winter, seen mostly from the car window. More or less making something out of nothing much!

The beautiful golden grass at this time of the year...

Last weekend we took off to an old favourite location, Elephant Sands, escaping from our busy 'town' existence. It is a wonderful place to relax when not busy with tourists, and we enjoyed it so much we stayed another night, despite the conspicuous absence of any elephants this time round. We saw many waterholes along the road that are still full of fresher water, and this is first choice for them rather than the brackish  water here at the moment.

View from 'our' dining table, out towards the almost dry waterhole.

The thatching season has now begun, and the temporary thatch harvesting villages have sprung up on the roadside. After several years of driving through Botswana, it's interesting to note the changing society. Nowadays cheap japanese imported Toyotas mingle with the donkey carts at the temporary villages.

Due to our impulsive decision to stay on, we had to leave early on Monday morning,and arise horribly early for the 2.5 hour drive to get back to work, departing just before sunrise. This area has a slightly more extreme climate, and at the tail end of a cold snap emanating from further south, it was absolutely freezing outside. Our car showed minus one celsuis (30.2 F) as we left.

The roadworks with their eerie white mounds, are studded with surprising golden sunflowers, (presumably the seeds that fall off the transporter trucks from the sunflower fields further north). I had to stop and get out to photograph the brave yellow things, despite it being only 2 degrees outside (35.6F)!!

I find this road north incredibly beautiful, no matter how many times we travel on it, and love to try and capture all its moods. Here is a typical view..

Bushfire season has already started - those thatchers need to work fast to harvest all the grass in time! Here is a section that has now been burnt. As soon as the rainy season starts, this stretch of bush will burst forth in a profusion of green!

Below on the left is a statuesque, leafless Mugongo Tree, typical of this area - which we never seem to recognise in summer when they are covered in foliage! I still need to do some research on this interesting tree, and do not seem to get round to it! Bush fire in progress in the background...

A couple of hours, two degrees of Latitude further North, and we are almost home  - only a bit late for work due to a puncture! The car thermometer was already registering almost 20 degrees C (68F)outside at this point - extremes, indeed!

Have a look out of the car window, at the incredibly shaped branches of the Mukwa trees, which signify closeness to home...

Monday was already long ago, and another week has now flown by! I have to end of right away, as we are doing a quick overnight trip across one of our multi borders - this time to Zimbabwe.

Happy weekend greetings to all!