First week off!

Our first Monday without a test! We did our best to be good students and do some work during the day on Monday and Tuesday, but it’s very difficult when it’s warm and sunny, and you could instead be chilling by the pool with a glass of wine or beer. Still, we have to keep our futures in mind and make sure we keep working towards those goals whilst having fun.

Wednesday morning was another nerve-wracking day for us internationals as we had our learner’s test in the morning. It’s similar to the driving theory test back in the UK, but without the hazard perception test and with a South African twist to it. Thankfully we all passed the sight test (even though sometimes I feel completely blind) and held our breaths until we all left the test room, only to find out that we’d all passed the learner’s test!

After a celebratory lunch at Sleeper’s we started on our roadtrip down to Marloth Park where Stian’s parents have a holiday home. We took the same route that Ryan and I drove when we visited Nelspruit going into Kruger through the Crocodile Bridge gate, so it was awesome to see that not much has changed as it’s a beautiful drive. We were all stunned when we got to Marloth as the house was gorgeous and perfect for a week off to party and relax. The first night was inevitably a bit crazy, with us all playing drinking games around the fire until late into the night.

The first morning we woke there was pretty awesome. A herd of kudu and zebra spent the whole day hanging around the house, watching us and taking food from our hand. It’s a pretty amazing feeling to get so close to wild animals, even if they’re a bit more tame than usual. I was kicking myself that I hadn’t brought my camera, but Ty got some amazing shots, and at least my phone captured some cool moments. A few individuals stood out, including one young kudu bull who allowed us to stroke and pat him all over his body! And one poor bull who had a broken shoulder and was hobbling around but still managing to keep up with the herd. Hopefully the rangers will find him soon and be able to help him.

The rest of the week was a blur of chilling in the pool, drinking, playing games, and watching films. Everyone came home with new nicknames, new catchphrases that would make us burst into laughter, and some crazy memories with my Bushwise family. Luckily, we didn’t get in too much trouble and got back to campus safe and sound to be reunited with everyone else who had gone home. After many hugs and storytelling, Sunday night was the usual mad rush of trying to cram in revision before our test on Monday and trying to get back into the swing of working hard.

Next week is tracking week for some of us and rifle handling for the other half. It’s definitely exciting to be learning new skills, so we can’t wait to get our teeth stuck into it!