I'm
leaving my beloved country after 39 years, and it's hard.
What
will I miss the most? Sunshine, Afrikaaners, being near the bush, African
smells, wide open spaces nearby.
What
I won't miss? Do I really need to go into that? SA has its problems, like everywhere
else. Perhaps there are just more of them here - but who knows.
Sunshine
The South African summers, no matter where you are, are just brilliant. But I
live near Cape Town, and the winters are miserable, mostly. When it’s cold, it’s
cold and the trouble is, like in the rest of the country, the houses are built
for summer. So it's cold even inside, particularly now with Eskom running the
country’s economy. So, in a funny way, I’m looking forward to an English
winter. I grew up in the South of England, and it’s here that I am moving to,
albeit a different part. And my childhood memories are of glorious summer days
playing in the Downs of Kent. We walks, fished, rode bikes and loved every
minute of it. I draw a complete blank when trying to remember the horrible winters.
Afrikaaners
Without
a shadow of doubt, Afrikaans in the finest language on earth when it comes to
descriptive colloquialisms. One of
my favourites is, “Die drol is in die drinkwater”. It means, literally, the crap (animal droppings) are in the
drinking water. And I have come to enjoy the company of Afrikaaner folk I think
a little more than my Anglo-saxon counterparts. Don’t ask me why, but when reminiscing about my adventure in
Africa, these people are one of its highlights.
Being
near the bush
With
fuel prices as they are, getting into the bush for most of us is becoming rarer
and rarer. Even I, who has made a job of being in the bush, has found it so
hard to get into, and do what I love the most, I’ve had to leave it, to get
closer to it. To explain myself – I am going to the head of the world’s
non-fiction TV industry to find the funding needed to do more of my shows, and
no doubt some of them will be right back here. But the comfort of not being
near the bush physically, will I hope, be made up for the fact that I will be
closer to it, financially.
African
smells
What
can compare with the smell of wind sage in the Kalahari? Or boeries on a braai? Nothing in the
world. Nuff said.
Wide
open spaces nearby
This
is the one I fear the most. England is crowded. Will I be able to find
solitude? Only if I go running on the Fells of northern England, or climb
mountains. But in my 4x4? No. I doubt it very much.
Leaving
soon
I
will be leaving early August, after I have shot my YouTube mini-series with
Paul March mid July. Meanwhile I have put out eight proposals to motor
manufacturers, to produce another series for TV. I’ve approached Mitsubishi,
Ford, Isuzu, Suzuki, Land Rover, Jeep, VW and Mercedes Benz. I’m offering two
episodes shot in an exotic Southern African location, vehicle exclusive, which
includes a vehicle test feature on YouTube. The cost is less than a double page
spread in an average magazine – the type that gets chucked away after a week or
so. Last year’s TV series vehicle reviews on YouTube alone have received over
200 000 views, and the number still climbing. I think what I am offering is
outstanding value.
The
reaction after 10 days since sending the proposals is one ‘no’, one ‘no thanks’,
six no reaction and one that looks promising. Three yeses means I come back in
September and shoot it. Less than that, and it’s not worth it, and all I have
to do is the YouTube series, which Alu-Cab and Toyota are sponsoring. Within a
few weeks, I’ll know if the TV series will happen.
One of the places I am going to try and reach next week in the Kalahari is South Island, in the Makgadikgadi Pans. Since going there in 2006, I've tried three times to reach it, and failed. This time, I'm determined to succeed. The picture below was taken there - a 2000 year-old baobab.
In
case you are wondering, ITSALONGWAY trans-Africa has been postponed
indefinitely. But don’t think I have
given up on it. Far from it. I’ll be back!
