Saturday, 21 April 2012

This little piggy went to market!


It’s a cool, overcast day here in George but I’ve managed to get away with wearing my open sandals, t-shirt and jeans and haven’t felt cold. My light cashmere cardigan is always with me though, just in case. Hoping that the heavens wouldn’t open we took a chance and headed to the Kraaibosch Farmer’s Market (Boeremark!) just outside of George with Oupa and Ouma.

We were overwhelmed and inspired by the rich, South African creativity on display. The market was basically divided into two sections and we rambled from one to the other. On the one side all sorts of handmade crafts were on display, from woodwork to potted herbs to mosaics to quilting to dresses and scarves and slippers – and lots more inbetween. South Africans cultivate a creativity I haven’t seen in my travels overseas. The rich colours and vibrant designs are a glorious sight and the variety of things people are able to make and market are amazing! We walked away very inspired and the first new thing I’d like to learn to do is mosaics!

Before heading over to the food side of the market we headed over to the ‘kiddies’ section. There Ethan opted for a horse ride and was in his element as a guide walked him on a short return route. He sat so upright, holding very tightly on the reins and when he waved to us as he past it was a very brief wave as if he was going to fall off if he didn’t hold onto the reins. At one point the guide stopped – and so did the horse – and Ethan was softly kicking the horse with his heels and lifting the reins so that he’d start walking again. I was surprised that he knew exactly what to do, but so relieved that the horse didn’t then respond and gallop off in full swing! The guide walked on and the horse followed, much to Ethan’s delight.

Ryan, Jed and Aimee opted for a stint on the trampoline. It was the sort where they hoist you up on a harness and Ryan learnt very quickly how to do somersaults way up there. Each turn was 5 minutes long and both he and Jed were beginning to perspire after 5 minutes. Jed really enjoyed the jumping, despite the harness hurting his legs a little. He wasn’t going to try do the somersaults, but he managed to get himself quite high off the trampoline with his own momentum. Aimee loved it! She giggled when I threw her up in the air and found the longer drop to the trampoline exhilarating. The lady running the set-up wasn’t really timing anyone and Aimee’s 5 minutes were already up but she didn’t have the energy to keep going any longer so we helped her out of the harness and handed it over to the next little one in the growing que.

Oupa then treated us to something to eat and drink. We took our time walking around the food section first to make sure we made the best possible choice – and choice there was! The variety on offer included a breakfast of scrambled eggs and boerewors with tomato and onion gravy on a larger hotdog roll, falafel pitas, sushi, curries, chipstix, jaffels, fresh fruit and veggies, freshly fire-baked breads, German sausages, olives, cheeses, relishes, a variety of coffee and tea options and fresh juices and smoothies. We opted for smoothies and juices and pancakes and joined Oupa and Ouma for coffee and Dieter’s cousin Aubrey and his wife Riana who had joined us from Knysna for breakfast.

Ouma and I went to buy some grapes and leeks while the men took the kids to climb and swing and play around a lovely climbing frame and play area. Dotted with huge trees and wooden picnic benches, this market was a wonderfully relaxing place to visit.

The biggest chunk of our day chunk of our day was spent at Agnes’s house, a neighbour and friend of Ouma and Oupa. She had invited us to celebrate her birthday and treated us and a few other neighbours to a festive spread which took nearly 3 and a half hours to enjoy. She’s a very special lady and went out of her way to make it special for the children especially. Aaliayah, a little 6-year old girl who lives down the road from us, also joined in the celebrations and our children had a wonderful time playing with her.

Dieter and Ryan slipped away from the birthday party for a couple of hours as today was Ryan’s first football match. He has been attending football practices at the George United football club this week and was chosen to play for the ‘Lions’. The Lions played against the Cheetahs and the two teams drew. The Lions have not beaten the Cheetahs before, but a draw was a great result. Ryan played left defender and says he ran a lot today and Dieter seems to think the teams were of equal strength. Ryan’s really enjoying the football and practicing 3 times is a thrill! On the days he doesn’t have football he then cycles with Oupa or Dad so he get some good exercise every day of the week.

I was able to chat with a lady over lunch who loves cooking and has decided to start selling ready-cooked meals. Already the response has been so positive that she has more orders than she has ready-cooked meals! I ran an idea past her that I’ve had for some time – selling freshly prepared baby food. She was thrilled at the idea! I know for a fact no one in this area is doing anything like that and she says is the first time she’s even heard of it. She thinks it’s a winning idea and encouraged me to first finalise my packaging ideas, so I need to organise a visit to Thrifty Packaging in the George Industrial area soon. I think I’ll start with finding a ‘cookbook’ with ideas for baby foods so that I can refresh my own brain with the needs of 6 – 24 month old children. My own children are long past the baby foods stage and I need some refreshing! Hopefully the local library has something suitable.

An inspiring start to a dull, cool, wet weekend – and the weatherman says that it will be really cold tomorrow!

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