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LOWVELD LIVING ISSUE 65 | SUMMER 2017

R30.00 (incl VAT)

The foodie edition

PART ONE OF GREAT LOWVELD CHEFS | BIKE TRAILS | JOLLING IN JOZI KIDS’ PROGRAMMES IN THE BUSH | SOCIALS GALORE | KITCHEN TRENDS

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“first we eat, then we do everything else”

M.F.K. Fisher

We are blessed

in the Lowveld to have some stellar dining establishments. For the most part they are unique, and offer a dining experience that you may not find in other parts of South Africa. From molecular dining and country food to good old-fashioned deli-style deliciousness, there is something for everyone. This is Part One of our Foodie Edition and we are celebrating the men and women behind the restaurant, brand or establishment. In these pages you will find eight great Lowveld foodies, who all hide a hell of a lot of talent beneath their Chef hats. Another eight will follow in Part Two, Dec/Jan 2018. (Some of them pictured above with Audrey and I.) It’s also summer, so get outdoors, get adventurous and bask in the beautiful Lowveld, Enjoy your read

Meet the writers

Diana Tipping-Woods

Nicky Manson

Lynn Haken

Annelle Whyte

André Fiore

With thanks to Weylandts, Nelspruit for providing the location for our Chef shoot and to Africa Photographic Services who took amazing pics.

EDITOR Nicky Manson, nicky@lowveldlivingmagazine.com | EDITORIAL Nicky Manson, Lynn Haken, Diana Tipping-Woods; Andre Fiore, Bev Tucker, Annelle Whyte | ADVERTISING Audrey Ford audrey@lowveldlivingmagazine.com | PHOTOGRAPHY Africa Photographic Services DESIGN Creative Union | PROOF READING EditPro | EDITORIAL info@lowveldlivingmagazine.com | DISTRIBUTION GMF Consulting PRINTING Paarl Media KZN | CONTACT US 013 751 3330, 013 750 0049 | COVER Image courtesy of Le Creuset – www.lecreuset.co.za © Copyright 2017 Lowveld Living. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the express written permission of Lowveld Living Magazine or the publisher. The opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. All editorial information contained herein is, and remains, the property of Lowveld Living Magazine and/or its writers and/or photographers. Lowveld Living Magazine, its publisher, staff and contractors accept no liability for loss or damage in any form whatsoever arising from information, submissions or opinions expressed in this publication. Public comment and submissions are published at the sole discretion of Lowveld Living Magazine. E&OE.

inside play

Great chats from The Lowveld Book Festival, bike trails and races everyone should know about, straight shooting with the RISE fm breakfast show and fabulous events

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kids

A new section for our little Lowveld readers – books, cool stuff & kids in the bush

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Part 1 of our round up of our favourite local chefs; wine & dine and the goings on of a White River supper club

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Looking at kitchen-cool trends and gorgeous crockery

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Staying local in the Sabi Sands and jolling in Jozi

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Chatting with award-winning author Jayne Bauling and discovering the world of hyenas

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eat style go live

YOUR FIRST CHOICE TO LIVE, WORK, SHOP, PLAY

& celebrate Summer in Mbombela

spaces

An eclectic home in Nelspruit and home trends straight from Decorex

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Offering a complete, self-contained lifestyle with endless entertainment, dining and shopping opportunities. info@riversidepark.co.za #LiveWorkShopPlay riversideparkprecinct www.riversidepark.co.za

ubscribe & wi

Win a getaway to Tomjachu valued at R14 500!

Sign up to the LL experience and the latest copy will be delivered to you.

For only R204.84, you will receive a year’s subscription of six editions of Lowveld Living Magazine. Subscribe in the months of October and November 2017 and you stand the chance to win a getaway to Tomjachu Bush Retreat for eight people. This includes accommodation, breakfast, a bush dinner experience and a game drive or guided walk.

Tomjachu Bush Retreat is an exclusive private nature reserve set in over 550 hectares of game fenced mountain bushveld, located within the Crocodile Valley Nature Conservancy. Just 20 minutes from Nelspruit, it overlooks the southern boundary of the Kruger National Park and the great Crocodile River Valley.

Set in its own valley with breathtaking views across the Bekker Mountains, the Homestead and three nearby cottages are surrounded by beautiful gardens, all sharing the splendours of nature. The cottages are fully equipped for self-catering, or guests can dine in the Homestead’s elegant dining room. Perched high on the mountain above is the recently launched, award-winning Valbonne Villa with spectacular views from its extensive veranda and infinity pool. The villa offers exquisite luxury of a 5-star self-catering TGCSA villa suitable for six couples or 12 guests sharing, en suite.

Relax, unwind and listen to the gentle sounds of the bush, spot some of the 265 bird species, walk or cycle amongst plains game on the many kilometres of trails, fish for bass in the dams, go for a game drive in a safari Land Rover with a knowledgeable guide – at Tomjachu there is something for everyone. INFO 082 704 4804, reservations@tomjachu.com TO SUBSCRIBE – CALL: 079 523 4671 or EMAIL: lowveldliving@gmfc.co.za Ts & Cs: The prize is for accommodation and breakfast only. All travel expenses, lunch and dinner and the bar are not included. Subject to availability. Voucher valid until 25 March 2018. Excludes Christmas 2017 period. Magazine: Rate applicable to one-year subscription of six editions at R204.84. Processing of the subscription may take up to a week.

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talking books Words Nicky Manson

Lowveld Living chatted to Fikile Hlatshwayo, Adam Cruise and Bridget Hilton-Barber at the Lowveld Book Festival held recently

Their stories

and books are very different but somewhere along the line, Fikile, Adam and Bridget all embark on a road trip, sometimes in search of discovery and, in other cases recovery. We look at their books and points from the discussion we shared.

FIKILE HLATSHWAYO is a successful Johannesburg businesswoman who was burnt out, disillusioned with the corporate world, and even diagnosed as depressed. When her husband and two children convinced her to embark on a caravan trip around South Africa, she reluctantly agreed.

But don’t you know ‘blacks don’t caravan’? Fikile took her kids out of school for three months and off they went. Part memoir, part travel book, Blacks Do Caravan, explores the family’s experiences and also gives insightful advice and information on the caravan parks and hot spots they visited.

WHAT MADE YOU WRITE ABOUT YOUR TRIP? The book came about when I saw that there was a lot to share. This book is written in my perspective. I spoke to my publishers and said don’t change my voice so when you read it you are talking to me. Depression is seen as a white man’s disease.

Blacks don’t get depressed. So it was a stigma I wanted to overcome. I have been through it; black people are not immune. There were other stereotypes I wanted to voice.

Caravanning. It’s not just for the white man. I wanted to say to South Africans, let’s do away with apartheid thinking.

Let’s look forward and build this country together.

We met wonderful people; we were invited to our neighbours’ campsites for drinks; I tasted numerous types of biltong; my kids learnt Afrikaans and I felt safe. So much positivity came from the trip. Camping allows you to

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become part of the community. South Africa is a beautiful country and you don’t see it unless you explore. In this guide I try to showcase this beauty.

YOU HAD SOME UNFORTUNATE EXPERIENCES ALONG THE WAY TOO. I love singing in the ablutions and one day I was approached by a ‘madame’ with a R10 note, which she gave to me to say thanks for cleaning the toilets.

Another time, I was washing my dishes in the caravan site’s kitchen. This young couple came in and asked me how much I charged to wash the dishes? My actual answer was quite different from the one I published in the book!

I wanted the book to be about building relations so there were going to be odd moments and beautiful moments.

Sometimes you will laugh and sometimes you will reflect when you read between the lines.

Blacks Do Caravan: R225, Jacana Media.

ADAM CRUISE’S book is a boyish adventure story. He has long been intrigued by the many explorers who have looked for the fabled Lost City. He has made numerous trips into the Kalahari on his quest and his book reveals the successes and failures of those who went before him, as well as his own adventures.

HOW DID THE LOST CITY FIRST COME TO YOUR ATTENTION? I am a journalist and I like to investigate things, especially things that don’t add up. About 10 years ago I was given a book

by Alan Paton (author of Cry The Beloved Country), about a hairbrained scheme in 1956 to go into the Kalahari to find this Lost City – the so-called ruins of a Mediterranean city that has found its way into South African folklore. This is

where Sun City got its name. So why would Alan Paton do this? I found out that the source of the story was from The Showman, a circus man in the 1800s called The Great Farini, who went into the desert and stumbled across these ruins.

This story was picked up by Paton, and later several others, including a Rhodes scholar, an esteemed ecologist, and a Wits professor. It’s an intriguing story so I wanted to follow these tracks. Even Wilbur Smith’s The Sunbird is based on the Lost City.

HOW MANY TRIPS DID YOU MAKE? About 30 over 10 years. There were lots of lions and snakes; I got to know snakes really well. I should have taken a caravan, as a tent doesn’t give you much peace of mind with wild beasts roaming around at night.

YOU DID SOME ROAD TRIPS ALONE? It’s a strange feeling when you are out there all alone and the nearest town is 10 000km away. I got lost a few times. Sometimes you get to thinking, how am I going to get out of here, especially when your water is not looking so good. And there are also many stories about people who go into the Kalahari and don’t come back. I wrote another book called In Pursuit Of Solitude that looks at this more closely. It was very cathartic. There is so much more to life than what we are experiencing. I got back home and ditched the TV, and ditched the city.

HAVE YOU NOW EXHAUSTED THE KALAHARI? The Kalahari has a special place in my heart. There is no way I can exhaust it. There are so many places to see. When you think of the Kalahari, you think of the desert but there are parts that look like dense forests. A sunset in the Kalahari is the best thing in the world and will stay with me forever.

When I die I want to be buried under a Camel Thorn tree in the Kalahari. Actually don’t even bury me, just prop me up and let the hyenas eat me.

King Solomon And The Showman. The Search For Africa’s Lost City: R280, Tafelburg.

BRIDGET HILTON-BARBER has written a memoir of her time at Rhodes in 1982 when she was a student activist during the height of the anti-apartheid movement.

It follows her betrayal by a close friend who was actually a police spy and her detention in jail without a trial. Thirty years later she seeks peace by going back to the Eastern Cape and revisiting the places where so much hurt was caused.

WHAT MADE YOU DECIDE TO MAKE THIS JOURNEY? In Fikile’s book she puts aside the past and looks to the future, while I had to look to the past to move forward. It all began while I was driving alone one day and a bunch of youngsters drove past me wildly at top speed. I cursed them but when I got to the bottom of the hill, the car was on fire and the bodies were burning. I had a flashback to

when I was 21 years old and I witnessed my first apartheid atrocity. It was the death of my comrade’s girlfriend who was firebombed and we had gone to fetch her to take her to hospital. I was struck by the smell of burning flesh. I realised then that I had unprocessed trauma. I think I had just buried my experiences and so I needed to go back in order to heal. I needed to reduce these experiences from something truly awful to something manageable.

DID IT LEAD TO HEALING? Yes, very much so. The road trip experience was hellish but I felt better once it was done.

One of the things I did do was visit the jail where I was detained. It was quite a powerful experience. It was a tiny cell and I could touch both sides if I stretched out my arms.

I met the captain of the prison who had been my warden at the time. I ended up having a temper tantrum with her because I heard a sound from the cell and I said that I remembered the ship’s hooter but the warden said no, it’s the sound of the train. And I said no no, it’s the ship and she said no no, it’s the train. This went on and I was about to smack her in frustration when the male captain came in and took me aside. He said that many detainees come back here looking for solace, but “my dear, I suggest you get to that bottle store across the road, find a friend and go to the beach”. Which I did.

YOU TALK A LOT ABOUT YOUR COMRADES AND THE WOMAN WHO BETRAYED YOU. DID YOU NEED THEIR PERMISSION TO WRITE ABOUT THEM? There is a wonderful genre in writing called memoir where you are able to tell stories with reference to other people but you don’t need to get their permission. I was sensitive to everyone I wrote about, I hope, and I wrote truthfully. There is a lot of stuff that went on at Rhodes that is seriously unpublishable. I consulted widely. I got hold of people whose memories were often better than mine.

WERE THEY HAPPY TO HEAR FROM YOU? They were delighted!! But some weren’t happy with my book. Some said “why are you doing this? Just leave it. Let sleeping dogs lie,” but I needed to tell the story. Olivia Forsyth, the spy, had also starting writing her own book so the manuscript went carefully through the lawyers.

Student Comrade Prisoner Spy: R230, Penguin Random House.

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play A number of tours, tracks and races in Hoedspruit and further afield are attracting the attention of cyclists who are keen for new adventures, new routes and any excuse to get on their bikes...

Words Diane Tipping-Woods Photos On Your Bike, Mark Lotwis, Mike Kendrick

The sun had dipped

below the mountains at the Swadini Forever Resort at the base of the Blyde River Canyon and peloton five was still missing in action! Over the course of the previous couple of hours, 80 riders had made their way over the finish line of the 2017 Rotary K2C Cycle Tour, but the last group was late.

When their first rider appeared, he had just one word to say: “elephants!” The cyclists had been held up by a breeding herd of gentle pachyderms that was in no rush to move out of their way. “Eventually, we grouped the riders between two support vehicles and moved through the herd like that,” said guide Ian Shoebotham.

This unique Lowveld cycle tour takes riders on almost 100 kilometres of tracks and routes that are usually not accessible to the public, traversing the Timbavati, Thornybush, Kapama and the Blue Canyon Conservancy.

Each group of riders has two lead guides armed with

rifles and radios. A support rider at the back keeps each group together and each of the pelotons is followed by a vehicle carrying water and spare parts for the bikes, with emergency vehicles stationed along the route.

“To cycle with a group like this is really uplifting,” said guide Ashraf Sayed. “It was brutal in places, but so rewarding, especially at the end. I love the camaraderie that developed; that feeling that you can ride into anything; and the freedom that comes with letting your mind wander as you cycle,” he noted.

All 100 places were booked out soon after the tour dates were announced, a sign of just how much passion there is for cycling in the Lowveld and in nature reserves in particular, says Debby Thomson, who helped scope out the tour’s route more than three years ago.

INFO Rotary K2C Cycle Tour, 100 kilometres. Moderately difficult. Contact Rose White: posy@mweb.co.za, www.k2c-cycletour.co.za

EXPLORE

THE PARK

ON PEDAL POWER Experience the magic of the Kruger from the saddle of a bike. Choose from 4 Mountain Bike Trails to suit your skill and fitness level.

015 781 3447 | info@bushveldterrace.co.za www.bushveldterrace.co.za B&B rates from R1050pp* MTB Trails from R950pp

4787 Angelcy 2017

*Visit our website for information on adventures, activities and to make a direct booking

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tours & races

Mariepskop Mountain Bike Challenge – 14 October Starts & finishes at Swadini, A Forever Resort 50km, 30km, 15km & 4km routes Not particularly technical, lots of jeep track and great views Cycling South Africa sanctioned event INFO 082 550 7826, louisette@vodamail.co.za

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The Hoedspruit Vlakvark – September Starts & finishes at the Rhino Convention Centre, Hoedspruit 50km & 25km routes Not difficult but some technical challenges, graded 3-4 out of 10 Categories for the Not CSA over 40s, 18 - 40 year olds and riders under 18 sanctioned, anticipated by the cycling community INFO Pierre 076 632 4004, Clare on 071 557 5147. hoedspruit@fineandcountry.com, pierre@ecologic.co.za

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Mango Mania – February Starts & finishes at Bavaria Estate, Hoedspruit This popular event is getting a facelift with lots of exciting developments underway – potentially even a floating bridge.

Expect cycling with amazing views and lots of family fun 70km, 40km & 15km races INFO Pierre 076 632 4004, pierre@ecologic.co.za

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UPLANDS

Today’s thinking child is tomorrow’s achiever Uplands is an independent, Englishspeaking school offering schooling to boys and girls from Grades 000 to 12, with boarding from Grade 6 upwards. Children receive a broadbased education founded on Christian (Anglican) values. We offer an exceptional all-round education that has provided our graduates with the platform to launch their careers in South Africa and around the world.

Ryan Terry, Uplands pupil

Ryan is one of 3 cyclist nationally that has been selected to represent South Africa at the 90th edition of the UCI Road World Championships to be held in Bergen, Norway.

White River, Mpumalanga | Prep: +27 13 7513806 | College: +27 13 7513141 | www.uplands.co.za

play Old Lowveld favourites Mankele Mountain Biking – huge variety of routes and regular events INFO www.mankele.co.za

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Magnolia trails Starts & finishes at Magnolia Restaurant in White River INFO www.facebook.com/Magnoliamountainbiking Uplands Mountain Bike Classic Fun, challenging, with something for everyone INFO www.uplandsfestival.co.za

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Also look out for the Mopani Series of mountain bike races, the Vodacom Hippo Hollow and rides organised by Sunshine Events; www.sunshineevents.co.za

cycling in private, big five reserves Debby Thomson and cycling-buddy Jane Frampton have turned their passion into a business, specialising in big five cycling safaris in the Lowveld. “We’re not sure if we are mad cyclists who are passionate about wildlife or if we are wildlife junkies who are mad about cycling, but either way, we’re privileged to be able to combine both on a regular basis,” she notes. Their tours can accommodate up to eight riders at a time through some of the Lowveld’s most exclusive game reserves, either camping or enjoying fivestar accommodation, depending on taste and budget. Wild encounters on two wheels are guaranteed.

INFO Ride Wild Big Five, length and degree of difficulty tailored to suit riders, encounters with big game guaranteed. www. ridewild.co.za CYCLING IN KRUGER If a multi-day cycling safari or a 100 kilometre epic is too much of a stretch for you, there are various options for

shorter, guided rides in Kruger National Park, where you still have a good chance of encountering wildlife. These depart from Phalaborwa Gate, next door to Bushveld Terrace Hotel. These trails cater for various levels of fitness and skill and are for groups of up to six adults, 16 and older, accompanied by two armed field guides. The 13km is an easy there-and-back route from the Tshutshi river to the old quarry. With the 20km circular route, cyclists are dropped off at the starting point 5km south of the gate.

The trail takes you south and across the Tshutshi river, then along the Mulalani spruit, northwards towards Vudogwa koppie and below the Sable dam wall, then west again back to the vehicle. Moderate fitness. The 30km follows this circular route except that you cycle to the start of the circuit.

Moderate to very fit. The 40km goes from Phalaborwa Gate north on the Mahlangeni road to old Malopeni Gate, then to the old disused Malopeni windmill where the trail picks up the Malopeni river. The trail then winds north to

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play the Letaba river and to Black Heron dam before ending at Malopeni camp site. Good fitness needed. There are also guided cycling options for shorter rides from Sefapane River Lodge in Greater Kruger and all rides can be facilitated by Bushveld Terrace Hotel. The hotel also provides an included breakfast snack for the morning rides as well as pre-arranged cooler boxes.

INFO SANParks, short rides of three hours at a slow pace.

Not technical, but potential Big 5 encounters. 015 781 3447, www.bushveldterrace.co.za. www.sanparks.org; www.sefapane.co.za ESTATE CYCLING If you’re not quite ready to encounter the Big Five on two wheels, but still want to ride with wildlife, Unembeza Boutique Lodge in Hoedspruit offers guided mountain biking trails on either a 25 or a 12km track in the Hoedspruit Wildlife Estate. A number of other lodges on this estate also give visitors access to these well-loved tracks, which are exclusively for residents and overnight guests. The trails include many well-established single tracks with the odd bridge to cross. Game is plentiful and the route is moderately technical.

INFO Unembeza Boutique Lodge, guided 25 or 12km. Beginner to moderate. www.unembeza.com; www.hoedspruitwildlifeestate.com GOING SOLO If guided rides, tours and races aren’t your thing, there are some wonderful single-track options in the Hoedspruit area, but very few are marked, says Pierre Diederichs, chairperson of the Hoedspruit Cycling Club. Working with the local cycling and lodge community, he is hoping to change this by “developing safe, marked cycling routes for cycling enthusiasts staying in and around Hoedspruit”.

“My best is the 25km to Three Bridges along the railway line service road. It’s remote, nice up and down, sand, loose stone, a couple of eroded sand roads, lots of sickle bush stumps (tubeless a must!) and a nice 50km round trip,” says cyclist Pippa Moolman. And what’s more, Three Bridges Restaurant offers cyclists a 10% discount!

INFO Facebook/ Hoedspruit Cycling / Fietsry.

Pierre 076 632 4004, pierre@ecologic.co.za NEW PHALABORWA CYCLE PARK With an active club membership, lots of technical trails, organised moonlit rides and more, this is a great addition to the Lowveld’s cycling scene.

INFO Facebook/Phalaborwa Cycling Club

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Must Read

On Your bike by Chris & Tim Whitfield: Tips & trails for MTB riders, this is one for the cyclist fiend. It includes must-ride trails, interviews, events, maps and advice for newbies. The authors Tim and Chris are veteran journos and avid cyclists. R250, Tafelburg.

socials

HAIR TRENDS 2017/2018 EVENT Lowveld Living Magazine and Gary Rom Hairdressing in Nelspruit hosted an exclusive hair trends event at the new salon based at Crossings Offices. Guests were treated to a hair and colour consultation, tips from ghd specialists, canapĂŠs from The Courtyard CafĂŠ, champagne from TOPS at SPAR and spoiler goodie bags.

The social blogger of the day walked away with a hair makeover valued at over R4 000.

Photos Anthon Wessels, Africa Photographic Services

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socials

THE SPORT OF KINGS The Mpumalanga Show hosted the Spring Glamour Polo recently; a first for Mpumalanga. Four of the most competitive teams in the country participated, sporting the best polo ponies in the business. Sport aside, the fashionistas were also on form, revealing the latest fashions straight off the catwalk, and the who’s who of the Lowveld came out to support.

Photos Etienne Oosthuizen, Africa Photographic Services

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socials

singing a tune for charity winner

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Lowveld Living hosted a table at the recent Cansa Tea at Emnotweni, whose arena was spectacularly transformed into a cabaret theme. Hosts and guests dressed up in fishnet stockings and, while having a wonderful day, raised a lot of money for an amazing cause. Lowveld Living and Coricraft judged the Best Table of the day, which went to Classic Flowers.

Photos Nicholas Ings.

socials

Lowveld book festival

The second Lowveld Book Festival was held in August and what a fantastic weekend of intellect, wit, humour, in-depth discussion and brilliant writing it was. We were lucky to host some of the great authors of our time. Some pictured here include Gareth Cliff, Sam Cowen, Arthur Sithole, Athol Williams, Fikile Hlatswayo, Adam Cruise, Bridget Hilton-Barber and Mario Cesare.

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straight

shooting RISE fm has an exciting, new Breakfast Show team to wake up Mpumalanga in the form of Mpumi Mbethe and Cheese.

TELL US HOW YOUR BREAKFAST SHOW STANDS APART FROM OTHERS? M: There’s a youthful energy in the studio and we all come from different parts of the province.

C: It stands out ‘cos it has an extra talented, young team of presenters who are appealing to the young, old, rich, poor and every type of listener.

WHO ELSE IS PART OF YOUR TEAM? M: Zandile Ngubeni, our news reader, and BonoSwagg our sports presenter. Kwazi Khoza is the show’s producer.

WHO IN THE RADIO DJ WORLD INSPIRES YOU? M: Redi Thlabi; watching her journey from intern to hosting drive time has always inspired me since my journalismstudent days.

MUSIC OR TALK RADIO? M: A bit of both, but probably more talk.

C: Music. I love music and I don’t think I’d be able to cope at a talk radio station.

HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR EACH SHOW? M: We meet after every show to have a debrief. We read through newspapers and watch TV to find out what’s happening in the world. We also interact with our listeners on social media to stay connected with what’s happening in and around the province. We get to the station an hour before each show to do final preparations.

WHAT TIME DO YOU GET UP IN THE MORNING? M: 3am C: 4.15am WHAT’S THE REST OF YOUR DAY LIKE? M: I’m a voiceover artist with a media-content company, so each day varies. I go straight to gym after meeting with the team and I usually have breakfast on the go.

C: Immediately after the show I have a snoop session with the programmes manager, then breakfast, attend a few meetings and go to the gym and later pick up my son from his grandparents.

WHO IS THE JOKESTER IN THE TEAM? M: The others might say me but I’d say it is definitely Bono, our sports guy. He has the funniest tongue-in-cheek jokes.

IF YOU COULD SECRETLY PLAY ANY ARTIST’S MUSIC ALL DAY LONG, WHOM WOULD YOU PLAY? M: Yoh! Definitely Beyoncé.

C: Kem. MUSIC GENRE YOU REALLY DON’T LIKE? M: The dreaded instrumentals they play while you’re on hold for customer-care call centres.

C: Hard rock WORST SONG ON THE AIRWAVES RIGHT NOW. M: Tony, our programmes manager, is going to kill me, but that Boogie with a hoodie song is enough to make me pull out my Afro.

BEST CELEBRITY YOU HAVE MET? M: Proverb of Idols still remains the most genuinely nice guy I know.

C: Thuli Thabethe IF YOU KNEW TODAY WAS YOUR LAST DAY ON EARTH, HOW WOULD YOU SPEND IT? M: Travel to Lone Creek Falls in Sabie and spend time with friends and family.

C: Watch TV and eat everything nice all day…

EVER BEEN SENT WEIRD FAN MAIL? M: Yeah, I often get strange guys asking for my number.

IF YOU WERE A CONVICTED PERSON, WHAT WOULD YOUR LAST MEAL BE? M: Avo maki from Fez. C: A really nice chicken, beef and wors meal.

IF YOU WEREN’T A DJ, WHAT WOULD YOU BE? M: I’d go back to my first love, TV presenting.

C: Since I’m a nurse by profession, I might just still be a nurse.

WHAT DO YOU HUM TO UNWILLINGLY IN THE CAR? M: Maroon 5 – Don’t Wanna Know.

C: Any R&B or Deep House track.

You can catch “Cheese & Mpumi in the Morning” every weekday on the RISE fm Breakfast Show between 6 – 9am.

kids

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bedroom fun Create an instant feature in your child’s room with this owl clock by Pylones.

R999.95, buy online from www.pylones.co.za

noise noise noise Nothing makes an entrance better than this bicycle horn. R249.95, buy online from www.pylones.co.za

bath time How cute is this new range of shampoos and body washes from Shampooheads?

Dermatologically tested, hypoallergenic approved, PH balanced and Paraben free.

Available from Clicks.

stufffor kids summer is here

Essence has created a range of makeup for tweens and teens for a hot summer. Think nail stickers, sparkly eye shadows, and colour changing lippies. Fun fun fun! Available from pharmacies.

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books

kids

Words Nicky Manson

My Daddy Is A Silly Monkey by Dianne Hofmeyr, illustrations by Carol Thompson: A little girl compares her dad to all the animals she loves. A bear because he is hairy and grouchy in the morning; an octopus because he does her hair, makes her breakfast, brushes her teeth and more and a crocodile with a big toothy grin. Lovely adventures for daughter and dad.

R155, Tafelburg

Do Not Open This Book by Andy Lee: This little guy will do anything for you not to open this book. He tries screaming, giving you the silent treatment and begging. So whatever you do don’t open it. Ok? Great illustrations, hilarious story. R135, Human & Rousseau.

The Misadventures of Max Crumbly: Middle School Mayhem

by Rachel Renee Russell: Max is a dork! Although he thinks he is a superhero. Follow his adventures, which include Mighty Meat Monster pizzas, hanging out at school after dark and dodging the bad guys. Age 9-13. R155, Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Spider-Man Homecoming Mega Movie Storybook: This is for the fans. Based on the new movie, it has two stories and brightly coloured illustrations. Spider-Man has to fight some high tech weapons – can he do it alone? R195, Penguin Random House.

WIN a copy of Spider-Man Homecoming Mega Movie Storybook PLUS Spiderman Homecoming novel, R145, and the Awesome Activities book, R125. Send your contact details and address to info@lowveldlivingmagazine.com and put ‘Spider-Man’ in the subject box. Closing date is November 30. 2017. Ts & Cs apply.

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kidsgonewild A passion for conservation needs to be grown and nurtured. These environmental education projects in the Lowveld are doing just that, ensuring that kids from all walks of life are firmly on track to become the conservationists of the future Words Diana Tipping-Woods

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Help ensure their tomorrow What to expect during our new HESC@DAWN or HESC@DUSK tour: Experience a drive focused not only on species, but also the variety of strategies employed by wildlife to survive and flourish.

Birds, trees, plants and insects Coffee Break or Sundowner with light snacks 6am - 9am and 3pm - 6pm Accommodation: Eco-friendly, self-catering cottage that offers an authentic bush experience - good value for money

wildshotsoutreach The golden light of a Lowveld sunset gilds a small herd of zebra, as aspiring photographer, Proud Ndlovu, takes aim. Exhaling slowly, he shoots. In this moment, his talent and the Lowveld’s perfect beauty combine to produce a dazzling shot – well composed, gorgeously lit and sharp in all the right places.

Proud may never have discovered his talent for photography, the beauty of the unspoilt bushveld or a budding interest in wildlife if it weren’t for the Wild Shots Outreach Programme. It uses photography to engage the hearts and minds of young people who live around the Kruger National Park in conservation.

“There is a passion that burns in these kids. They have an affinity for nature but no opportunity to exercise that affinity; most have never been to Kruger, despite living nearby,” says founder and photographer Mike Kendrick.

The programme started in November 2015 and to date, Mike’s taken nearly 220 learners through a series of photography workshops using donated entry-level DSLR cameras. Each series of workshops culminates in a trip into the Greater Kruger National Park to apply their new skills to real-life wildlife encounters; like the zebras Proud has photographed so well.

While photography/conservation is a potential career for some of the learners, all of them benefit from the boost to their morale and self-esteem that comes from learning new skills. And all of them gain a new appreciation for the wilderness and conservation, as seen through the lens.

INFO If you’d like to find out more about the project or have a camera to donate, contact mikekendrick@gmail.com

Standard Tour Times: Normal hours: 9am/11am/1pm/3pm National/school holidays: 8am/10am/12noon/2pm/4pm Cheetah Focus Tour (selected days only): Standard tour, Cheetah run, Wild Dog feeding, Vulture feeding ~ Visit our website for more information ~

DELI Daily (on-site) 7am - 5pm

PRE-BOOKING ESSENTIAL! Tel: +27 15 793 1633 Mobile: +27 83 654 2299 frontoffice@cheetahcentre.co.za

WWW.HESC.CO.ZA

kids

bushbuddies

Leaving their cellphones or tablets behind for a weekend in the bush isn’t necessarily a choice the kids who take part in Selati Game Reserve’s Bush Buddies programme would make, but by the end of it, they’re eager for more!

This programme brings kids from diverse backgrounds together to learn about conservation – and each other – through a series of wilderness weekends in the 27 000ha reserve close to Kruger. It pairs learners from Penryn College in Nelspruit with learners from Zivuko Secondary School in Limpopo, creating connections between young people that may not otherwise exist.

Programme founder Rob Snaddon believes passionately in the value of this approach, which teaches learners about respect for one another, sustainability and the value of nature. “This is about facilitating interaction between young people from privileged backgrounds with others from less fortunate circumstances. The long-term hope is to play a meaningful role in breaking down barriers and enhancing inter-societal understanding and learning among the next generation, while also encouraging interest and passion in conservation,” he explains.

The programme’s bush excursions are a highlight for the youngsters. The reserve is home to over 50 different species of mammals, including elephants, sable antelopes, lions, leopards and cheetahs. As well as seeing amazing wildlife, they learn bushcraft basics like identifying and tracking animals, how to assess river health, map the heavens and even dissect an animal. They do all of this without access to cellphones or social media; getting to know each other without the help of an electronic interface.

While the programme is still evolving, it supports the reserve’s long-term vision to contribute to the social upliftment of all South Africans through sustainable conservation practices.

“Ultimately, we wish to give youngsters a new sense of respect for each other and for our environment. The Bushveld is our natural heritage as South Africans. Much like our cultural heritage, we can’t hope to preserve it if we don’t engage with it,” says Snaddon.

INFO Lourette Joubert at admin@selatigamereserve.co.za

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NELSPRUIT

Variety of toys to choose from for the Festive Season.

Awesome gifts from as little as

R50!

kidsinparks

Emerging from their domed tents in Kruger National Park’s Letaba Rest Camp, the excitable learners from Prieska School can’t wait to see what the new day brings. Yesterday, there were elephant encounters, scavenger hunts through the camp and dozens of fun and interactive games to play.

Today’s programme promises more of the same; but first there’s a tasty breakfast to enjoy as the sun burns off the early morning mist and the youngsters chatter about the amazing animals they have already seen in the park; hyenas, giraffes and even wild dogs en route from Phalaborwa Gate.

“It is an experience so far removed from their day-to-day lives that it makes a huge impression on many of them,” says Kirsty Redman, Interpretive Officer based at Letaba in the Kruger National Park.

These are learners who have never had the chance to visit protected areas, despite living within about 50 kilometres of their boundaries. And if you’ve never been to a national park, why should you care about it? This is a very real question in communities living close to protected areas. It’s also one that SANParks’ environmental education programme, Kids in Parks, is working to address.

In 2017, 500 learners have already spent two nights camping in Kruger National Park as part of this well-established project designed to teach them about conservation-related concepts and values.

“Through all these initiatives, we are creating a connection between parks and communities. This brings with it understanding and support and allows communities to participate in conservation in a meaningful way,” says Maria Moate, who heads up environmental education for SANParks.

INFO Maria Moate at maria.moate@sanparks.org

hes ter@ki ds empo r ium .co.za 013 – 752 3019 Sho p 68 C ro s s i ng Shop p ing C entre, N el sp r uit

kids

southerncrossschools

Responding to the Bush Lore teacher’s raised hand, the group of school children stop. He has spotted something on the other side of the Osprey Dam. He signals for them to gather around him. His urgent whisper has an immediate effect on the group as they balance their excitement with the need to move slowly and quietly.

The wild dog is sleeping in the shade of a red bushwillow. Along with the six other animals in its pack, it has killed an impala. There is hardly anything left of the carcass and it is only after scanning the opposite bank with binoculars that the children can pick out a few bones and a set of horns close to the muddy shallows.

After a few minutes, the teacher signals for the children to move back towards the school building. They excitedly gather under a marula tree; it’s time to discuss what they have seen in the time that remains in Bush Lore; a special subject that teaches learners at Southern Cross Schools about the extraordinary environment, a 1 100 hectare nature reserve, that is part of their campus.

An English medium co-educational day and boarding school, Southern Cross is uniquely located within the Kruger to Canyon Biosphere. It offers pre-primary, primary and secondary college education all the way to Grade 12, with boarding available from Grade 6 upwards.

“As educators, we are incredibly privileged to be able to create and implement teaching and learning strategies for learners of all ages that are effective, innovative and fun, using the beautiful natural environment that surrounds the school as an extension of our classrooms,” says Headmaster Ant de Boer.

“Not only do we want to produce confident, innovative, highly-skilled individuals, we want every child to develop an appreciation of the importance of sustainability and a social and environmental conscience that will stay with them forever, regardless of their chosen career path,” he notes.

INFO raptor@scschools.co.za

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eat

eat & drink

dessert makeover Manufactured with plant-based gelatine, Balsimo Beads are vegan and halaal friendly. And they are proud to announce the release of their newest variant, Balsimo Vanilla Beads. Made from vanilla pod extract, this variant adds subtle hints of vanilla flavour to your dish to look good, and more importantly, taste amazing. @balsimobeads, www.balsimobeads.com WIN Balsimo Vanilla Beads. Email your contact details to info@ lowveldlivingmagazine.com and put ‘Balsimo’ in the subject box.

Closing date is November 30, 2017. Ts & Cs apply.

joys of food & drink cheers to gin Dollies, everyone’s favourite gin caravan, introduces an exciting new offering – its own homegrown gin. There are three exciting flavours: Rooibos and Lemongrass, Blueberry and Clove and our favourite, Strawberry and Wild Basil. With their own unique tints and flavours, weekend G&Ts just got cooler. Available from Halls Farm Stall and the Bagdad Farmer’s Market.

WIN a bottle of Dollies Gin. Email your contact details to info@ lowveldlivingmagazine.com and put ‘Dollies’ in the subject box.

Closing date is November 30, 2017. Ts & Cs apply.

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party time It’s summer. The sun is out and it’s time to entertain.

KWV has a great selection of drinks you need to help get your summer party started including its exciting new craft gin – Cruxland – infused with the rare Kalahari truffle.

WIN a KWV drinks hamper including Cruxland, 5-year-old brandy, Classic Collection’s Sauvignon Blanc 2016, 3-year-old brandy and Cabernet Sauvignon 2015. Email your contact details to info@lowveldlivingmagazine.com and put ‘Drinks hamper’ in the subject box. Closing date is November 30, 2017. Ts & Cs apply.

‘born in africa’ beers Striped Horse beer has launched its bespoke new ‘Giraffe Bottle’. It pays homage to the giraffe, following an old African folk tale of how the zebra and giraffe became friends. Enjoy the same delicious beer now bottled with a longer giraffe neck for easy drinking.

Available from liquor stores, Tops at Spar and PnP. Lager, R25.99, Pilsner R26.99 and Pale Ale R27.99.

Also buy online from www.stripedhorse.co.za

summer flava Introducing the Ice Bomb range – sorbet ice lollies made from real fruit. Get your fruit on! Available from Out of Africa shops, Kruger National Park; Halls Farm Stall; Joubert en Seuns Padstal and Marlottis Convenience Store. Facebook/me/icebombs

welcome to winederland The TOPS at SPAR Wine Show is back!

November 30 to December 2, 2017, the show will be held at Emnotweni.

Shop for gifts or stock up for the festive season; there will be many amazing wine estates and brands on show. We have 20 entrance tickets AND 10 VIP tickets (this includes entrance, and access to all public wine theatre sessions) to give away to some lucky readers.

WIN tickets. Email your contact details to info@ lowveldlivingmagazine.com and put ‘TOPS at SPAR Wine Show’ in the subject box. Closing date is November 20, 2017. Ts & Cs apply.

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eat & drink

old school cool

Opened in 1963, family owned and run, Numbi Hotel is one of the real grande dames of the Lowveld. Jenny Chaplain had the pleasure of spending a night there enjoying the warm and friendly hospitality and yummy home-style cooking Words Jenny Chaplin

Dinner was served in the hotel’s Olive and Vine restaurant, which harks back to a more romantic era. Clad in beautiful wooden panelling, crisp white linen on the tables, a gorgeous bar and soft lighting, it felt like we’d arrived in a place before cellphones, deadlines and stress. Despite its more formal look, the atmosphere was anything but and to be honest, I don’t think we’ve ever seen so many smiles on waiters’ faces.

We had the option of choosing from the set or the á la carte menu, which features hot and cold starters, a selection of salads, sea food, traditional favourites like lamb, pork cutlets and chicken schnitzel, steaks, pasta and vegetarian dishes.

Dessert choices include Crepes Suzette and lemon meringue and to finish off, there’s a cheese platter and selection of coffees. Starters are R45 – R65, Mains R85 – R175 and desserts around the R50 mark. Not bad going!

We opted to keep it old school and went for the fourcourse set menu at R215 per person. On offer was trout roulade or garlic button mushrooms. We had one of each and both were tasty. A comforting tomato soup followed and after that it was time for mains. The choices were sirloin steak, spare ribs or baked linefish – all served with thin cut, crispy fries and seasonal vegetables. The ribs and fish took our fancy and generous portions left us wide-eyed. There were two dessert options and I chose vanilla ice-cream, chocolate sauce and nuts, while Eugene went for the home-made granadilla cheesecake served with strawberry sauce.

The next day saw us enjoying the buffet lunch at the Wild Fig restaurant around the pool, which is set in gorgeously tranquil gardens. At just R145 per person, R95 for teens and R65 for under 12s, it’s an absolute steal and a perfect way to while away a Sunday. Families are welcomed and we loved the laid-back vibe. The kids that were there seemed to love it too – it’s not every day they get to choose their own meal! And

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there’s a lot to choose from. Head chef Richard laughingly told me he calls the spread a combination of 1960’s food and ‘boerekos’. I preferred to think of it as hearty, home-fromhome style South African cooking – the kind grandma used to make and just as delicious.

The entrée table featured a selection of 13 hot and cold dishes ranging from spring rolls, cheese puffs, smoked salmon and my favourite, pickled fish. It’s made from a 100-year-old family recipe and tastes absolutely fantastic. The chicken livers have quite a reputation and regulars come from as far afield as Graskop and Nelspruit for their weekly fix. I understand why – they were definitely moreish.

As tempting as the starters are, leave space for the main event. There are two roasts to choose from – usually lamb, beef or pork belly – and as if that’s not enough, a stew or curry, roast chicken and a pasta dish. No roast would be complete without potatoes, rice and gravy, and they’re definitely not in short supply. Veggies and a variety of salads complete mains and then the pudding table calls.

You have 11 – 13 desserts to choose from, ranging from date tart, peppermint crisp fridge tart, apple crumble, bread and butter pudding and of course SA’s fave – good old malva pudding and custard. All are homemade, using traditional family recipes.

I understand why a guest recently shed a tear on her departure saying she was sad to leave the gentle pace of the Numbi Hotel and its restaurants behind. Because whether you go for dinner, stay overnight or indulge in the Sunday lunch, it really is a warm, happy and lovely respite from a busy life.

Numbi Hotel’s Olive and Vine Restaurant and the Wild Fig Pool Deck are located in Hazyview, Main Road, R40 013 737 7301, www.hotelnumbi.co.za

Laguiole by Andre Verdier Carving Set: R499.

Made by master cutlers in France, every Laguiole tool has to go through 50 quality control steps to pass inspection. These tools will separate you from the amateur cooks. www.yuppiechef.com

Boning Knife 16cm by Global: R1209. Used for de-boning chicken and other meats, this knife has a narrow blade with a fine tapered tip. For the Cordon Bleu chef within you. www.yuppiechef.com

Copper Effect Salad Servers: Be on trend with a touch of metallic at your dining room table.

R399, www.woolworths.co.za

tools of the trade

eat

thesupperclub “It’s all about getting together with friends and eating great food”

Words Nicky Manson

The lesser-spotted

white river

supper club is not as talked about as its younger, more extroverted brother, the book club. Although both come from the same family group, the supper club prefers a more regal and elegant existence than its rowdier sibling.

That is not to say that it is above having fun, as I certainly found out at my first supper club that I recently gatecrashed. It seems while books are a secondary priority at the book club, food is actually quite important at the supper club, with a lot of effort going into the preparation and showcasing of the meal and not a Woolies lasagne in sight. This particular supper club is quite established, having been going for almost eight years. Members have rotated somewhat, but there are always 10 affiliates and they have to be voted in by the existing supper club goers. However, should someone not be able to attend the monthly dinner, the host has carte blanche to invite a filler guest of her choice.

Sounds complicated? It is but it is still easier than understanding the offside rule in football.

This supper club is quite special, as they like to theme their evenings and food. Think

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eat food starting with the letters of the alphabet like A for asparagus, aubergine bake and apple tart, meals from different countries (nothing like a good Indian curry), and suppers that have to revolve around a single ingredient á la MasterChef.

Rabbit, for instance, was expertly adapted into a modern version of bunny chow. Colours have also been used for themes.

One member was given the colour black and magically presented black caviar on black sesame crackers for starters, black spaghetti and mussels for mains and black liquorice sweeties for pudding. Intriguing stuff.

This particular evening that I gracefully gatecrashed was themed ‘80s. It was not so much the food that was themed but the guests – I sat across from Madonna and next to George Michael. Seriously.

“But don’t be fooled,” says Cindy Lauper to me. “We can’t all cook very well. But we all try and make an effort and it’s a great way to get you out of your comfort zone when it comes to cooking.”

At the end of our quite delicious meal, we sipped on ‘80s-style shooters and danced in our chairs to Girls Just Want To Have Fun. And fun we had.

Thanks to Rowena, Leanne, Sue, Sally, Ella, Audrey, Dawn and Tina for a brilliant evening.

drink

drinkup

Allée Bleue L’Amour Toujours 2013 offers the varieties of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot and Petit Verdot. A wood matured dry red wine, it’s a beautiful dusty red colour and offers delicate flavours of fynbos, cedar and cigar box, wrapped in blackberry fruit. It’s elegant with soft tannins and quite divine. Will age beautifully over the next 5-7 years. Delicious with beef shin stew. R200. www.cybercellar.co.za

Klein Zalze’s Cellar Selection Chardonnay 2016. Barrel fermented, this is one of the driest and warmest vintages in history. The result is a wine bursting with flavours like oatmeal, apple and lime on the nose, and layers of pear and citrus on the palate. Drink now or age for the next 10 years.

R77, available online www.wine.co.za The Plaisir de Merle Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 was named one of the top three South African Cabernet Sauvignon wines. The 2012 is a blend of Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot and reveals a rich fruit complexity

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and well-ripened tannins. R180, available online from Vinotèque. www.plaisirdemerle.co.za Klein Steenberg Sauvignon Blanc 2016 won double gold at last year’s Ultra Value Wine Challenge thanks to its rating in quality and value for money. It is a crisp and easy drinking summer wine boasting tropical flavours such as granadilla, kiwi and melon. It’s aromatic and has a lovely lingering finish; enjoy with seafood. R60, available from liquor stores. www.steenbergfarm.com Constantia Glen Sauvignon Blanc 2016 reveals strong, concentrated flavours of floral, citrus and ripe fruit thanks to slightly warmer than usual ripening conditions. Aromas of passion fruit, peach and lime dominate with lighter more delicate fragrances of fennel seed, orange blossom perfume and cardamom. It’s rich and creamy on the palate and thanks to a dash of Sémillon (5%), the wine is rich and has depth. Delicious with a creamy blue cheese or dessert.

R150, available from Makro. www.constantiaglen.com

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diningout 38

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eat

Welcome to part one of our round-up of our favourite Lowveld chefs. These are the men and women who create art on plates and we want to celebrate them with you

SIXFIVE |

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eat

feng nian zhang Age: 35. Born? China. Nickname in the kitchen? Micheal, as my Chinese name is difficult to pronounce. Most inspiring chef you have worked with? His name is Liu, he was a chef at Menlyn Fish Market. Fave Sunday night supper? A braai.

Fave tunes to listen to when cooking? Soft , lovely music. Who else in your family cooks? My mother, she cooks excellent Chinese food. Hardest dish in your repertoire? If you prepare well, everything works well. Fave celebrity chef? Jiro Ono, a Japanese chef. Fave takeaway? KFC. Your trick of the trade? You should always improve yourself and always love your work. What’s in your future? To develop my business, to improve my skills, to open a restaurant.

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jeannine venables Age: 51. Born? Tzaneen. Inspiring chef you have worked with? Jonathan Fitt who was my mentor.

Fave tunes while cooking? Singing my own tunes and driving everybody crazy. I love to listen to Bruno Mars. Fave tipple when cooking? Red wine or Margarita. Most under-rated ingredient? Tofu.

Most over-rated ingredient? They look beautiful but taste like nothing – pomegranates and caviar. Your worst dish to cook? Tripe. Best lesson you have learned in the kitchen? Consistency, and build good relations with your suppliers to get the best quality.

Hardest dish in your repertoire? Desserts. If you could cook on TV? Iron Chef. This is where you see a chef’s skills. Fave celebrity chef? Rick Stein. Fave part of being a chef? It is great to get compliments and know that people enjoy their food.

eat

gt lundie Age: 41. Born? Piet Retief. Inspiring chef you have worked with? Matt Whelan, a Michelin star chef I worked with at Glenapp Castle in Scotland. Who would you love to cook alongside with? Locally, Bertus Basson is a lot of fun, and for more serious cooking, Thomas Kellar of the French Laundry in the Napa Valley. Fave Sunday night supper? Braaied lamb ribs, corn on the cob, garlic ciabatta and salad. Fave tunes to listen to when cooking? Frank Sinatra. Fave tipple when cooking? Start off with some nice bubbles, and then wine. Always wine… And more wine… Most under-rated ingredient?

Anchovy. Especially Italian White Anchovy. Most over-rated ingredient? Artificial smoke or liquid smoke enhancers. Your worst dish to cook? Desserts and baking are not my forte… Best lesson you have learnt in the kitchen? Always check seasoning – taste your food and check temperatures before sending. Fave sauce of all time? Love a good Bordelaise sauce.

Hardest dish in your repertoire? The perfect roast duck, on the menu since day one. Fave celebrity chef? Most English chefs, love the laid back style of Jamie Oliver. Fave takeaway? A good Indian curry. Your trick of the trade? There are no short cuts. Good ingredients equals good food equals happy guests.

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petrus jakobus pieter malan Age: 26. Born? Odendaalsrus, Freestate. Nickname in the kitchen? Chef P. Inspiring chef you have worked with? Chef Martin Kobald; he mentored and inspired me. Famous person you have cooked for? Whoopie Goldberg and President Jacob Zuma. Who would you love to cook alongside with? Heston Blumenthal or Marco Pierre White. Fave Sunday night supper? Six-hour slow braised oxtail with buttery mash and Ouma’s Sunday veggies. Fave tunes to listen to when cooking? Planetshakers and Jesus Culture. Most under-rated ingredient? Smoked paprika. Most over-rated ingredient? Fillet steak. Best lesson learnt in the kitchen? Excellence in everything is the only way you will be able to move forward and grow. Funniest cooking story? I love playing pranks; I had a plastic snake that I wanted to hide in the dishwasher to give the cleaners a scare. I never got around to it and hid it in my office with my chef tools. One of my chefs asked to borrow a tool; it gave us all a good laugh as my poor chef is terrified of snakes. Who else in your family cooks? Both my late grandmothers were phenomenal cooks. My mom is also an amazing cook. Hardest dish in your repertoire? My all-time Achilles’ heel, the French Macaron. If you could cook on TV? Culinary Exploration. Your trick of the trade? Always ask the waiter their personal favourite dish.

eat

gustav van aarde Age: 39. Born? Kempton Park, Gauteng. Nickname in the kitchen?

Chef. Inspiring chef you have worked with? Henry La Bonn.

Famous people you have cooked for? Celine Dion, Goldie Hawn, Kate Hudson, Thabo Mbeki, Samuel L. Jackson, John Cleese. Who would you love to cook alongside? Nigella Lawson and Guy Fieri. Fave tunes to listen to when cooking? Coldplay and Arno Carstens. Fave tipple when cooking? Captain Morgan and Coke. Most under-rated ingredient?

Tarragon. Most over-rated ingredient? Truffles. Your worst dish to cook? Any baking. Best lesson you have learnt in the kitchen? Go fresh with your ingredients. Funniest cooking story? When I was working at an exclusive lodge, we were hosting a wedding where the bride and groom requested a spit-braai.

As time was a constraint and we were all in a rush, we put coals in the wrong part of the spit-braai causing it to blow-up an hour before dinner service. We managed to salvage the food and make a plan just in time for dinner, and the guests were none the wiser. Hardest dish in your repertoire? Baked mussel paté – it is my own creation and requires skill.

If you could cook on TV? Definitely Chopped. Favourite celebrity chef? Keith Floyd – loved his show when I was young, he was my first inspiration. Tell us a trick of the trade? Never be tired and don’t cook in a bad mood.

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carl van der merwe & mpho mashigo

CARL Age: 54. Born? Klein Constantia, Cape Town. Nickname in the kitchen?

Pudding. Inspiring chef you have worked with? My amazing mentor Audrey Hull. Famous person you have cooked for? Mr & Mrs Rockefeller. Who would you love to cook alongside with? Yotam Ottolenghi. Fave Sunday night supper? Homemade pasta with pancetta, roasted garlic, burnt sage, cream and a heap of Grana Padano. Fave tunes to listen to when cooking?

Smoky jazz. Fave tipple when cooking? A glass of red wine. Most underrated ingredient? Sage. Most-over rated ingredient? Truffles. Your worst dish to cook? Tripe. Biggest cooking faux pas? I forgot to descale a friend’s freshly caught fish before putting it on the coals. Best lesson you have learnt in the kitchen? Time to lean, time to clean. Funniest cooking story?

I employed a cheeky waitress called Lizzie at The Loggerhead Restaurant in Sabie. She took an order for two guests, one ordered chips and the other ordered a baked potato with their main course. The kitchen confused the chips and the baked potato. When the guests informed Lizzie of the mistake, she picked up the chips and baked potato in her fingers, at the table, in front of the guests, and swopped them. Hardest dish in your repertoire? Ballantine of duck. Favourite celebrity chef? Nigella Lawson. Favourite takeaway? Uncle George’s fish & chips. Tell us a trick of the trade? Be nice.

MPHO (Mpho was a little shy when it came to answering questions) Age: 35. Born? Jerusalem Trust. Nickname in the kitchen? Charlie.

Fave dish to cook? Wild mushroom risotto.

eat

natia van heerden

Age: 26. Born? Pretoria. Nickname in the kitchen? Little Boss. Inspiring chef you have worked with? Luke Dale-Roberts.

Currently SA’s best chef according to the Eat Out Awards. Famous person you have cooked for? Massimo Bottura, a Michelin 3-star chef. Who would you love to cook alongside with? Marco Pierre White. Fave Sunday night supper? Mac and cheese. Fave tunes to listen to when cooking? The Chainsmokers or Coldplay. Fave tipple when cooking? A good merlot or sparkling wine. Most under-rated ingredient? Thyme. Most over-rated ingredient? Micro herbs. Your worst dish to cook? I don’t like cooking chicken. Biggest cooking faux pas? Accidentally sending out a dish containing duck stock to a vegetarian. Best lesson you have learnt in the kitchen? Work like your life depends on the next dish. Funniest cooking story? I had a couple of Game of Thrones actors for dinner one night last year; I have never watched an episode but we took a photo with them anyway. Fave sauce of all time? Café au lait, a complex sauce made from a port base, treacle sugar, crushed peppercorns and cream. Hardest dish in your repertoire? We do everything from scratch. Debone quail, scale and fillet whole fish, break down whole carcasses into usable portions. We waste nothing. Your trick of the trade? Use organic produce.

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when good chefs go bad

style

style

get nail ready Now that your feet are out of boots, show them off with CATRICE ICONails Gel Lacquer that boasts brilliant lasting power. The high shine polish comes in 26 dazzling colours. R59, available from Dis-Chem.

blissful bath time This range of luxury soaps by Morlage & Yorke makes bath time a pleasure. Exquisitely fragranced, they contain a unique floral extract and vitamin complex to help nourish the shin.

Creamy and delicious. R59, look out for the scents Frangipani & Ylang, Fresh Linen & White Jasmine, Moroccan Rose & Argan and Vintage Poppy & Spring Rain. Available from @home

want it colour combos

more than just a candle

Blue and white is a timeless and elegant colour combination and ideal for the outdoor area. And we love stripes! Shop up a storm online for this traditional colour palette at www.netdecor.co.za

Soy Lites’ new range of scented candles – Urbanesque – will transform any room with its delicate fragrances. Think Desert Rose & Orange Blossom, Exotic Amber & Lime or Pomelo & Ginger. Simply heavenly, they provide 60-70 hours burn time. They are 100% natural, scented with aromatherapy oils and double up as moisturising oil for the skin. R380, available online from www.soylites.co.za

beautiful bonito The Bonito range by Zuco for Dauphin is a collection of handmade wooden-shell chairs in oak or walnut. The lean lines are combined with supreme comfort and available in a variety of colours, fabrics, wood or leather finishes. www.dauphin.co.za

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so handy Showing off in its brand new packaging, the Nivea Smooth Care Hand Cream range is paraben-free and has increased levels of glycerine providing 24-hour protection.

R34.99, it’s cute and the perfect size for your purse. Available from Dis-Chem, Clicks and pharmacies.

destroy the crackle

WIN

Get your body summer ready with a little help from Body Crackle, a new product that assists in improving the appearance of cellulite by improving your microcirculation.

Ivy, birch and Asiatic centella help with decongestion. Green tea has an anti-oxidant action while the aloe hydrates and soothes. Available from Face & Body Synergy in White River.

013 750 1406, www.faceandbodysynergy.co.za

WIN a bottle of Body Crackle worth R800 from Face & Body Synergy.

Send your contact details to info@ lowveldlivingmagazine.com and put ‘Body Crackle’ in the subject box.

Closing date is November 30, 2017.

Ts & Cs apply.

room makeover For a summer makeover of any room, first look at Manor by Anna French, designing for St. Leger & Viney.

Fabulous style with a lush European flair.

It’s extravagant and ornate and just too beautiful to ignore. www.stleger.co.za

PRINGLE LOGO new 9/14/07 12:07 PM Page 1 C

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Ocean blue plate by Le Creuset

cool crockery Stoneware plate in grey by Weylandts

The Tracy dinner plate by Ponieskrantz Arts and Crafts

Festa side plate in Cinza by Hertex

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Venice dinnerware by Eetrite Blue ikat-style plate

by Esra Bosch.

Plate by Antjie Newton

Sweet city NY & Paris plates by Pylones

line Tourma treasures. stocklists of: Shop 69UG Ilanga Mall 013 742 2267 sales@violetrose.co.za

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on the

hotplate Kitchen trends to add to the menu Words André Fiore Photos Aga, Easylife Kitchens, Decorex, Grohedawn, Plascon, Lighting Warehouse, Interslab, Clarisse Design

Whether it’s a

kitchen renovation or just a spot of rejuvenation, 2018 is almost on the horizon, and with it come some sizzling new trends that home lovers will want to know about. While DIY is out, granite is out and white is out, they’re being replaced by fresh looks that will have your tastes tingling.

QUARTZ One of the hardest materials in the world, quartz is trending as a countertop for its durability and superior stain and scratch resistance. The fact that it polishes to a brilliant shine, is non-porous and is maintenance free (one never has to seal it!) adds to its allure. Slightly more flexible than granite or marble, this gem is also easier to work with during the installation process. Says Francois Alberts of Active Surfacing, Nelspruit, “Quartz is not just fashionable, it’s also superpractical and very hygienic and the the range of colours and textures is huge. The new rugged concrete quartz is very popular – and although quartz has been a costly option for many years there are new quartz brands coming onto the market with pleasingly competitive pricing.”

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style COLOUR & COLOUR BLOCKING Forget that perfect match. Colour is coming back into the kitchen and we’re seeing it in colour blocking, two-tone cabinetry and very bold accents. “We are getting a lot of requests for colour,” says Maruschka van Rooyen of Easylife Kitchens, Nelspruit. “Red, blue and orange are very popular, but people should definitely choose according to their own personal taste.” Sparking the trend were appliances that added a pop of colour, think Smeg, KitchenAid and DeLonghi. But things have gone way past that with faucets in hues from turquoise to teal and sinks in everything from pink to purple.

Whether you pack a punch with a bright splash back, bar stool, microwave or fridge, think vibrant, think jewel toned. And for those who are not bold enough to invest in an emerald green hood, an easy way to introduce colour is though foliage; – with lush ferns, pot plants and herbs.

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style BLACK AND DARK HUES Taking colour a step even further, black is the new black in kitchens and it’s sizzling, sexy and sultry. From faucets and sinks to cabinetry, counter tops and appliances, it’s unexpected, moody and sophisticated. Look out for matt black stainless steel appliances (refrigerators, icemakers, dishwashers, wine cellars and beverage centres) and tableware, black faucets and mixers and sleek black cabinetry. And for those who can’t take that final step to black – try navy or pair with metallic or white for a classic contemporary combo. “The black look is absolutely amazing, especially combined with beautifully patterned Hadeda tiles or bronze accent handles. It also works wonderfully teamed with grainy, marbled countertops,” comments Chanté Schwartz of Chandi Kitchens, White River.

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WARMING DRAWERS Don’t be left out in the cold. Whether your guests are late or you’re lingering over starters, warming drawers are certainly back in style and can save the day. Gone are the times when the humble warming drawer was part of every oven unit, and now that they’re not stock standard they are being missed. But these days they’re better than in grandma’s time. Discover slick designs, spacious interiors, ergonomic controls, plate warming, food warming and slow cooking options. “Slim line warming drawers are often added along with a microwave next to a built-in oven. Deeper warming drawers are available for people with more extensive catering needs,” adds Maruschka van Rooyen of Easylife Kitchens. Look out for multifunctional warming drawers including brands like Bosch, Miele, Smeg, Siemens and KitchenAid.

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Delicious Monster Light by Clarisse Design FEATURE LIGHTING Light is a great way of adding personality and ambience and can shift a kitchen from utilitarian to dazzling whether your style is traditional, industrial or modern. “Clients are moving away from fluorescent tube lighting to down-lighters which are generally used in combination with a feature light such as a small to medium sized chandelier or shaded pendant which would be fitted over a central island or other fixed structure,” says Greg Neil of Zebbies Lighting Nelspruit. “The nice thing about chandeliers is that they are adjustable, and pendants cast a lovely direct light over an area. Uniquely shaped pendants and brushed aluminium pendants are currently popular.”

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WOOD With its inherent qualities of warmth and integrity, wood is a longstanding favourite throughout a home, and while wooden countertops in kitchens have been far less popular than wooden floors to date, interest in them is on the rise. Thanks to recent technological advancements and innovations, wood and wood-like products are now safe to use and looking good. Of particular interest, butcher block counter tops are being used as a main food prep surface, being incorporated into custom wood mixes to create pattern and texture, or being paired with other surfaces such as polished stone or stainless steel for a little drama. “The trend is very much towards an industrial look at the moment and combining that – industrial stainless or black steel – with natural, raw wooden accents is a definite must. I think wooden accents are an essential in every living space!” adds Schwartz of Chandi Kitchens.

INFO www.easylifekitchens.co.za; www.activesurfacing.com; www.caesarstone.co.za; www.cachet.co.za; www.weylandts.co.za; www.chrisbamdesigns.co.za; www.facebook.com/lightplusliving; www.clarissedesign.com; www.grohedawn.com; www.zebbies.com; www.facebook.com/Chandi-Kitchens-Built-in-Cupboards; www.chanteschwartz.wixsite.com/chandikitchens

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adventures in the bush Words Nicky Manson

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go We are flying to Sabi Sands on a shuttle flight from KMIA to Arathusa via Singita with Federal Airlines. An American family has booked the flight to Singita and we are hitchhiking a ride to Arathusa airstrip in the Sabi Sands

The plane is small.

Not quite ‘get up on the wing’ small, but a 12-seater Cessna Caravan nonetheless. Our co-passengers point out a herd of ellies below and then a buffalo or two. The excitement is palpable.

I’m not a good flyer so I am relieved when we land just 20 minutes later at Singita’s private airfield. After dropping off the others we are back in the air. This time we stay low and do a spot more game viewing as Arathusa airstrip is just another eight minutes away. All in all it takes us just 28 minutes to fly from KMI Airport to Sabi Sands and it’s undeniable that this is the way to travel in style. We wave off our friendly pilots and jump onto the vehicle sent by Jaci’s Sabi House – our home for the next two days. Our guide is Ralph Mabunda. A big man, with a round and cheerful face, he is our ranger for the duration of our stay and will show us some amazing sights.

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Jaci’s Sabi House only opened last year. It’s a unique concept, as it’s an exclusive-use private home in the middle of the Sabi Sands game reserve. There are only three bedrooms so it sleeps six and guests have the luxury of their own chef, housekeeper and gardener/maintenance man extraordinaire. It’s a surreal experience having your own place in the bush. The staff are discreet and there is a lot of alone time spent on the bush swings hanging from the old Marula trees, on the chairs outside or spread out on the loungers in front of the pool, admiring the views of the Jacis Sabi House dam ahead. There are no rowdy guests to navigate and almost everything is on your own time. When do you want to wake up, eat, relax? It is a luxury to be in charge of time.

The house is decorated in typical Jaci van Heteren style and if you have been to her other lodges in Madikwe, you will know exactly what I mean. With creative input from Almi of Amalia Interiors, there is no neutral palette here. Instead a bright and colourful collection of fabric

by Design Team shouts hello. The bedrooms have lime or tangerine walls and matching outdoor furniture. Painted calabashes act as chandeliers.

Woven baskets adorn the walls and small objets d’art fill the blank areas.

Even the bar stools are cool in a shiny metallic copper.

The main lodge is open plan so the inside and outdoor dining areas flow into each other with the kitchen and lounge side by side. Outside a splash pool, a couple of hanging chairs, a fire pit and a small boma for bush dining share the space with the beautiful, manicured indigenous

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Clockwise from top left: Eye popping Design Team fabrics dominate the living area; dining in the kitchen with a thatch roof above; one of the cottages; metallics and navy blue feature in the kitchen; the amazing gardens; the main bedroom in tangerine, and brightly coloured deck chairs by the pool.

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gardens. The gardens are actually a focal point of the whole space. As soon as you arrive you are greeted with the colours and textures of this magical green belt; an oasis in the dry bush. Succulents, cycads, aloes, orchids, Zebra aloes and my favourite, red, white and pink Impala lilies, all planted by land owner Annette Niemandt and maintained by the very clever Peter Hlalele.

There are two cottages and a main bedroom, all en suite. Giant showers accompany the rooms in the guest cottages while the main bedroom features a large clawed bath, which begs to be filled.

Dining is a luxurious affair. Two-course breakfasts, high teas and three-course dinners are the norm and created by the wonderful Dimpho Mothusi. She calls herself the House Mom but she is really a Cordon Bleu chef and a real highlight of our stay. Discovering that one of us was gluten intolerant, she went out of her way to create a spread of homemade rolls, cheesecake, breads, cupcakes and more that suited.

Nothing is too much to ask and you can help choose your menu every evening and pair it with great wines. Think crumbed lamb racks and panfried kingklip topped with prawns. We enjoyed every single bite.

Elinda van Lelyveld is the housekeeper. She is in charge of making sure you are comfortable during your stay. What pillows do you like? Extra blankets? She regaled us with funny tales with her dry wit, confirming that Jaci’s team really make your stay.

Our game drives are fabulous. The Sabi Sands is currently thriving

GETTING THERE Federal Airlines offer a daily shuttle flight to lodges in Sabi Sand Private Game Reserve, Kruger National Park, Timbavati Private Game Reserve, Madikwe Game Reserve and Manyeleti Game Reserve. Their premier shuttle service also flies daily from OR Tambo International Airport and Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport (KMIA). Federal Airlines offer a private charter department too. Here flights are moulded to each individual’s needs and requirements, which include private flights to luxury game lodges in the bush or at the coast, incentivised trips for large groups of guests, and flights for corporate executives for whom time is of the essence, and where confidentiality can be guaranteed. Large corporate groups can even be accommodated.

Each flight is tailored exclusively, taking into account all passenger comforts.

INFO Johannesburg office, 011 395 9000, shuttle@ fedair.com. Air Charter Services, 011 395 9000, charters@fedair.com, www.fedair.com

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THE 55 000 HECTARE SABI SAND GAME RESERVE LIES ADJACENT TO THE KRUGER NATIONAL PARK, WITH WHICH IT SHARES A 50 KILOMETRE BORDER thanks to heavy rainfall and despite the recent winter months the vegetation is growing. There is a lot of wildlife. We spot lion cubs, leopards, buffalo, jackals, rhino and are even mock charged by an angry teenage ellie who is quite persistent and follows us along the dirt track, forcing us to change our sundowner spot quite quickly.

Sundowners here are lovely and with the prerequisite gin and tonic in one hand and another full of biltong, there really is nothing better.

We are all treated to a bush walk; my first one. These are subject to a walking guide being available. We set off early one morning, having convinced the whole house’s team to come with us. A gaggle of nervous girls, Pieter, Ralph leading and Cheetah Plain’s GM Gary Ray bringing up the rear. Safety is paramount in Big Five territory. Everyone is on alert, especially me, having interviewed renowned wildlife photographer Horst Klemm last year who was charged and thrown by a rhino.

But luckily for us it is a quiet day. Birds, impala, kudu, a squirrel or two and a lesson in tracking. Fascinating stuff and just another day in Africa.

INFO 079 694 8430, reservations@jacissabihouse.co.za, www.jacissabihouse.co.za

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GETTING HOME Aside from flying, there are road transfers from Hoedspruit Airport or KMIA. We travelled with Rocketshark Adventure Tours. Simon was our driver and it was a comfortable ride, which takes just over three hours from Jaci’s Sabi House to White River. Rocketshark also offer day tours, car hire, and accommodation as well as road transfers. Their road transfers extend to and from Johannesburg and further afield such as Sabi Sands and Madikwe Game Reserves, Nelspuit, Phalaborwa, Polokwane and Pretoria.

INFO 061 738 7744, bookings@rocketshark.co.za, www.rocketshark.co.za

Daily direct flights to

Sabi Sand Lodges

Singita Sabi Sands

We are for the jouney

Federal Airlines provides a direct flight service to Southern Africa’s most exclusive and luxurious lodges with shuttle and private charter flights. Choose Federal Airlines and enjoy the benefits of bespoke flight transfers, seamless connections, express check-in, our exclusive passenger lounge and direct airside boarding.

shuttle@fedair.com charters@fedair.com

+27 11 395 9000 www.fedair.com

Flights can be booked through your travel agent or through one of our partner lodges.

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Hennops Hiking Trail

jozi

Need a family or business stopover in Johannesburg?

Holiday Inn Sandton delivers on all fronts

Words Nicky Manson

Gold Reef City

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Apartheid Museum

Walter Sisulu Bot Gardens

Rooftop pool

The hotel sits

Standard room

on Rivonia Road, located in the heart of Gauteng’s corporate, financial and shopping mecca. A modern and stylish lobby greets you. High-rise ceilings, warm chatter and soft lighting fill the space, thanks to the handmade chandeliers above and a 10-metre long fireplace below. Couches and chairs are plush, newspapers lie neatly folded waiting to be read and a big screen showcases the news of the day. The lobby shares the space with the Chairman’s Bar, which is open 18 hours a day. It’s a great place for a coffee or something stronger for a quick catch up. Today, the hotel is full, as it’s home to the players of the World Hockey Championships, so there is a buzz in the air.

For business travellers, the hotel has everything you need. Its own state-ofthe-art conferencing facilities, a 24-hour self-service Business Centre and several meeting rooms. The location really is ideal with the Gautrain to OR Tambo International Airport around the corner and Sandton Convention Centre up the road.

For tourists or visitors like me, the hotel is close to shopping spots like Sandton City and Nelson Mandela Square and to keep me busy on site, there’s a new mini gym, the Skye Bar for sundowners and the swimming pool on the ninth floor, which may just have the best views in town.

Breakfast and dinner can be taken at the Lettuce & Lime Restaurant. Brekkie is a buffet affair and a real spoil. Think cold meats, yogurts and cereals, pastries, all types of eggs and deliciousness, while dinner is ordered off the a la carte menu alongside an extensive wine list.

Holiday Inn also caters for kids. Of all sizes. Children aged 12 and under stay for free when sharing their parents’ room. There are also family suites and babysitting services available. The rooms are spacious and sport the usual bed, desk, flat screen TV and compact bathroom. The beds are large and comfortable and it’s a great feeling to drink a cuppa in bed while looking out across the striking Sandton skyline. INFO www.tsogosun.com

The Skye Bar

go EAT IN JOZI Perron, Illovo Junction, corner Oxford Road and Corlett Drive. Possibly the most amazing Mexican food I have ever eaten. Fresh, tantalizing, delicious.

Bean There, 44 Stanley Avenue. Best place to get your morning java.

The Great Eastern Food Bar, 53 Rustenburg Road, Melville.

Could be one of the greatest meals I have ever had. Asian fusion at its best.

Sushi Burrito & Co, Crescent Drive, Melrose Arch.

Think Ponzu marinated salmon with crispy kale wakame, edamame and enchilada mayo. Enuff said.

La Boqueria, 17 Third Avenue Parktown North.

This all-day Spanish eatery will delight with its worldwide influences such as Peruvian style ceviche, rock shrimp burgers and sweet GinTonic tart

PLAY IN JOZI Gold Reef City, corner Northern Parkway and Data Crescent, Ormonde. Entertainment galore. Shows, rides and restaurants, all set in a turn of the century mining town.

Apartheid Museum, corner Northern Parkway and Data Crescent, Ormonde. An interactive historical space.

Sci-Bono Discovery Centre, corner Miriam Makeba and Helen Joseph Streets, Newtown. This is a world-class science centre that supports maths, science and technology education and offers innovative experiences.

Montecasino Bird Gardens, 1 Montecasino Boulevard, Midrand. Wander along enchanted walkways within magnificent gardens and marvel at a variety of colourful birds, mammals, reptiles and unusual animals from around the world.

Johannesburg Zoo, Jan Smuts Avenue and Upper Park Drive, Parkview. This is still such a fantastic place to visit.

The 55-hectare zoo houses about 2 000 individuals of 320 species.

Johannesburg Zoo

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Gold Reef City

SHOP IN JOZI The Beautiful Life Store, Fourth Avenue, Parkhurst.

Stocks all things beautiful including Jinger Jack leather bags.

Hamleys Toy Store, Nelson Mandela Square, Sandton.

An amazing array of quality kids toys, demos, crafts and more.

Bookdealers, 39 Gleneagles Road, Greenside. Wonderful bookstore for collectables and second-hand books.

HIKE IN JOZI Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens. Flora, bird watching and waterfalls. www.sanbi.org Modderfontein Reserve. 275ha reserve with flat walking and cycling trails. www.modderfonteinreserve.co.za Melville Koppies. Discover archeological remains from the Stone Age and Iron Age settlements plus great hilltop views. www.mk.org.za Klipriviersberg Nature Reserve. 600 hectares boasts blesbok, zebra and other game. Hiking and bike trails available with a Green Flag status. www.klipriviersberg.org.za Hennops Hiking Trail. Three circular hiking trails, a mountain bike trail and a cable car that takes you over the Hennops River. www.hennopstrails.co.za

The Great Eastern Eatery

promotion

bon voyage TRAC’S travel safety tips for the hols

When it comes

to travel, parents and caregivers must lead by example. Being road safety conscious and obedient is a lifelong principle that everyone should learn and adhere to and pass on to their children. With the festive season around the corner, now is the time to remind everyone about being road safe in the car.

The golden rule when driving with children, regardless of their age, is to ensure that they are buckled up. If you are driving with a baby or toddler, a properly fastened car seat (at the back) is imperative, while older children must always wear their rear seatbelts. Couple this with defensive, safety conscious driving habits and you’re helping to ensure that your young passengers travel safely.

REAR-FACING CHILD SAFETY SEAT: Babies (0-1) and those who weigh less than 10kg should sit in a rear-facing, child safety seat on the backseat of the car.

FORWARD-FACING CHILD SAFETY SEAT: Toddlers and children weighing between 10kg and 20kg (usually between 1-4) should ride in forward-facing child safety seats. These seats must be placed in the rear of the vehicle until the child reaches the weight or height limit of the particular seat.

BOOSTER SEAT: From the age of four (or when weighing more than 20kg) kids should sit in booster seats.

A child can safely progress to a seatbelt when the belt fits properly across the upper thighs and chest. As with all the other car seats, booster seats should also ONLY be used at the back.

ALWAYS WEAR A SEATBELT: Children under the age

of 12 should always ride in the backseat with their seatbelts properly fastened. Seatbelts should be put on before the car gets into motion and should be left on until the end of the trip.

NEVER SHARE SEATBELTS: It might seem like fun, but two kids should never buckle up as a pair.

PROPER FIT: It is essential that seatbelts fit properly.

Seatbelts are designed to contact the body at its strongest parts. For an older child and adult, these parts are the hips and shoulders, which is where the seatbelt should be strapped.

Young children must be taught road and car safety responsibility. This is to ensure that they are aware of the role they play in their own safety in a car.

SIT IN THE BACK: Kids younger than 12 should always ride in the backseat. This protects them from possible injury when a passenger-side airbag deploys. Airbags were designed with adults in mind and open with great force (up to 200 miles per hour) to protect an average-sized, 75kg male from injury. While this force is appropriate for adults and teenagers, it can be dangerous (even deadly) for small children and could result in neck and head injuries.

PLAY IT COOL: Kids should be calm and quiet in the car. No yelling, screeching and jumping around.

FOLLOW THE RULES IN EVERY CAR: Kids need to follow the rules if they are in a friend’s or relative’s car, even if other passengers don’t follow the rules. Teach your child that if asked to sit in the front seat of someone else’s car, he can politely decline the offer and tell the driver that he would prefer to sit in the back seat.

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from love stories to life stories

Words Annelle Whyte Photos Anthon Wessels, Africa Photographic Services

Following on from last month’s Lowveld Book Festival, we chat with acclaimed local author, Jayne Bauling.

Jayne has reinvented herself from a prolific Mills & Boon writer to a young adult literature author. We discuss her transformation and the significant impact of her work on our youth

LEAVING THE BRIGHT LIGHTS OF JOZI FOR LAID-BACK LOWVELD LIFE COINCIDED WITH THE REVIVAL OF YOUR CAREER. WHY YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE? I was in a life (and writing) rut in Johannesburg; it was time to make a change. I moved to White River to be closer to my sister and two young nephews. And so started the reinvention of my career. Young adult literature happened by accident. Although I used to be a more disciplined writer, my nephew, being a teenager at the time, roused my curiosity. Regardless of their circumstances, the

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teenage years are tough. Growing up, dealing with changing hormones – these are difficult things to deal with.

I began to observe teenagers’ emotions and noticed how extreme and absolute they are. In 2009 I submitted my first young adult book, E Eights, for The Macmillan Writer’s Prize for Africa. To my surprise, I won! This boosted my confidence and belief in my abilities.

YOUR NOVELS ADDRESS THOUGHT-PROVOKING, SINCERE AND SOMETIMES SEVERE TOPICS. WHERE DO YOUR IDEAS ORIGINATE? Primarily I want to tell a good story. But raising awareness of the acute circumstances and social issues our youth face and instilling a sense of hope, matters to me. The adults and children I meet inspire me, and so does my environment. As a discovery writer, I don’t plan too rigidly: the plot emerges as I write and the characters take on a life of their own – sometimes in a way I hadn’t imagined.

HOW DO YOU RESEARCH YOUR STORIES AND ARE THE CHARACTERS EVER BASED ON PEOPLE IN YOUR LIFE? I often think about cultural appropriation and whether my stories may be seen as presumptuous. I feel that by immersing myself into

communities and responding with empathy, I have managed to interpret the context. Feedback has been positive, which I’m grateful for.

I am involved in educational outreach programmes, both in local communities and further afield. This gives me the opportunity to learn. I visit schools and talk to kids (who are inspiring in their aspiration and confidence) about my books. Many of them dream of being writers – mostly poetry – and they’re interested in the process. Getting started is the hardest part. A story will percolate in my mind for a while before the characters come to life.

DREAMING OF LIGHT, WINNER OF THE 2011 SANLAM PRIZE FOR YOUTH LITERATURE, BECAME A GRADE 11 SETWORK BOOK. HOW DOES THIS FEEL? Continually rewarding. I anticipated teachers contacting me about the novel although I have been overwhelmed by how many teenagers, especially young chaps, get in touch asking questions and sharing their thoughts. One expects kids to rebel against their prescribed school reading, but based on feedback the book seems to resonate. Illegal mining and the young children (“zama zamas”) trafficked and forced to work in disused mines is extremely harrowing. for my books, starting them on their journey. Awards also help immensely with marketing, you get taken more The book was difficult to write, especially because of the seriously if your book has been recognised. violence. The ending is realistic, although it carries a message of hope. In responding to questions about the book, I try to be positive and encouraging; that it is a sign of WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE AUTHOR? Although it changes all the time, Salman Rushdie’s humorous and compassionate style and strength to ask for help and not the other way around. language stays with me. I’ve recently been blown away by

Fred Khumalo’s haunting Dancing the Death Drill. In young ALTHOUGH YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE IS NOW YOUR CORE WORK, YOU ALSO adult literature, J.K Rowling’s work WRITE POETRY AND ADULT SHORT STORIES? Writing and Crongton Knights by Alex Wheatle a novel can be intimidating; you know stand out. There are also many how much work lies ahead. Short stories “AS A DISCOVERY amazing young adult authors in and poems offers an interlude, an outlet WRITER, I DON’T PLAN South Africa like Zimkhitha Mlanzeli and break. Although their lives manifest and Sicelo Kula who, with their differently, the characters in my short TOO RIGIDLY: THE exceptional talent, may be the future stories tend to live lives of quiet of youth literature in our country. desperation, wanting to reach out. My PLOT EMERGES AS I

short stories and young adult books may WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY WORKING ON? My offer a sense of connection, of not being WRITE AND mind is in the youth groove, and the alone, be it emotional or practical. My third book of my soccer trilogy, Game poems are reflections, observations, and THE CHARACTERS Plan, is in final stages of review. I had a moments suspended in time: they could TAKE ON A LIFE OF huge amount to learn about the be about anything. A fragment of a life, sport, both the rules and its nuance, sometimes mine. I’ve contributed to the THEIR OWN” to use soccer as a vessel to land Poems for People Opposing Women universal themes like friendship and Abuse (POWA) collection with Breaking leadership against a backdrop of the Silence and Murmurs of the Girl in Me, difficult circumstance. I still hold a flame for romance and a among others. story is filtering in my mind, a romance with issues of

identity. I’d love to also write a dystopian novel that breaks WHAT DOES WINNING AWARDS MEAN TO YOU? They give me affirmation that I’m on the right track, and are a springboard away from the formula and is totally original.

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animal magnetism Words Dianna Tipping-Woods

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The road ahead

of us is scuffed with tracks where early this morning, hyenas tangled with giraffes. As Sharon Haussmann stops the vehicle to make sense of what she sees on the ground, she scans the bush for movement. We are parked opposite the den site she discovered in early June. Within minutes, two curious faces have emerged from the termite mound.

“There they are,” says the Hoedspruit-based owner of well-loved Lowveld brand Khaki Fever, her face breaking into a smile. The tiny hyenas check us out for a moment, before coming out to play in the late afternoon sun. Sharon knew they were there and when they would emerge.

“Hyenas have their routines, just like we do,” she explains as the cubs begin to play, tackling each other and tumbling through clouds of golden dust.

They are offspring of a big clan of hyenas in the South Western part of Greater Kruger’s Balule Nature Reserve, where Sharon has been living for the last six years. The clan has split but she knows them all. “These babies have different mothers,” she says of the six and eight-week-old furballs. One is still black, while the other is just starting to get spots from the neck down.

Moving from White River to live on the Hearne family property in Balule in June 2011, Sharon’s hyena fascination was fueled by the discovery of a den close to her house. Her childhood affinity for these misunderstood apex predators was rekindled and she started recording their calls. Hyenas have about 14 vocalisations – possibly more based on her recordings – and she recognises most of them.

Soon after she started hanging out at the den, one hyena caught her attention. He was about the same size as the two we are watching, but his left back leg was missing.

There are documented cases of hyenas losing limbs in fights for dominance, but none of cubs. She wondered what had happened to this little one, and if he would survive.

The amateur naturalist began spending more time at the den. “Tripod’s mom would leave and I couldn’t. He’d lie next to me sleeping. I’d email and work and just be with him. It got so bad that I had to see him twice a day.” As Tripod developed and grew, Sharon’s intellectual curiosity evolved into an emotional investment in this small, threelegged hyena and his family.

“I literally went into a depression when the hyenas moved,” she explains as we wait for the cubs’ moms to return. Alert to every twitch of an ear or change in their body language, she can sometimes smell a hyena before

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she can see it. The hyenas tonight are late though, so Sharon talks some more about Tripod. Her diary is dotted with posts about him. “I find it hard to express in words what it has been like for me to observe and follow Tripod’s development... I live with a constant urge and eagerness to spend time at the den.”

She lyrically describes the sense of awe and connection she nurtures with the world around her while hanging out with the hyenas; cherishing the chirping of a Stierling’s Wren Warbler, or the Double Banded Sandgrouse’s gentle crepuscular call...

She contacted hyena experts like Kim Wolhuter and Gus Mills with questions based on her observations; what are genetic studies showing about their spot patterns and their unique reproductive organs...?

“The more I learnt, the more I wanted to know,” she says.

She has filled dozens of notebooks over the years. She’s documented incredible encounters between hyenas and wild dogs, watched them for days on an elephant kill, observed their complex mating, witnessed females drop their cubs into the sheltering earth and spent hours “surrounded by hyenas, in the dark, on my own... their constant sounds, their movements and even their smell a part of every breath I take”.

Today, sightings of Tripod are few and far between as he runs “free and wild – exactly what I was hoping for”. She’s more passionate than ever though about hyenas and their vital role in a healthy ecosystem. She’s viewed them all over the world, from the deserts of Namibia to the Aberdares in Kenya but just laughs and shakes her head when I suggest she is a bit of an expert.

As easy as it would have been, Sharon has never touched or reached out for Tripod or any other hyena, despite their incredible acceptance of her presence. She’s made it a firm rule to interact with them on their terms and avoid anthropomorphising them. Nonetheless there is a relationship between them that brings her out night after night.

“You can sense so much if you tune in to the natural world and as your senses develop, this enhances your experience of everything in your life,” she observes as we leave our two cubs, still waiting for their moms.

More than just communing with hyenas, I think, we have been looking for something missing in our own lives; time to be in the moment perhaps, a renewed appreciation for the animal in us, or maybe even a space to heal our own estrangement from the wild? Truths seem heightened during this threshold between day and night and later, when the hyenas start to call, I glimpse the beauty in Sharon’s communion with Tripod that has enriched her life, but is fundamental to us all.

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in the

raw

This home in Sonheuwel, Nelspruit morphs unplastered brick, timber and the brute strength of exposed steel into an airy, fashionable home for owners Paul and Marietha Roos Words Bev Tucker Photos Etienne Oosthuizen, Africa Photographic Services

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“This home is among the most effective interpretations of Lowveld architecture we’ve yet seen”

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With a powerful

South African vernacular expressed in raw brick, huge windows and tin roof, this home is among the most effective interpretations of Lowveld architecture we’ve yet seen.

The couple took the lead in its design, assisted by draftswoman Jacolien Steyn of JS Planne and project managed by Hennie van Zyl of Bamboo Rock Construction when it came to the nitty gritty of actual building.

“We wanted something that felt like an industrial loft with modern touches – something different from the run of the mill architecture.” After nearly two decades of being involved with construction projects, the couple were not phased at the prospect of their own build.

Shaded by mature indigenous trees, the property features two complementary buildings, facing inward around a dazzling swimming pool. Throughout the house, the choice of fixtures, furnishings, and decorative flourishes creates carefully considered lines of connection. An example is the tiling around the pool which speaks to the tiles used in the open plan kitchen; the industrial style light fittings showcased by brick backdrops, which refer the eye back to the exposed steel beams in the ceilings – and so it goes. Yet as effortless as the end result may appear, every room is subtly and deliberately connected via the use of these industrial elements.

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“THIS IS A HOUSE THAT EXUDES CONFIDENCE IN ITS RAWNESS”

“I like that it’s a smallish space, but because it’s open plan with lots of light, it has a sense of space,” says Marietha. “One of my favourite features is the angle of the roof, which makes the north facing side double volume. The only drawback is keeping the windows clean because they’re so high and there’s so much glass.” Tricky to clean windows aside, there’s nothing she or Paul would change about their design. “We’re still in love with the place after being in it for 18 months.”

Marietha decorated the interiors from existing pieces and her go-to furniture and décor stores for new items while landscaping was the domain of Faan Boshoff, Nelspruit’s Plant Whisperer. Bordering a conservancy area, it felt natural for Paul and Marietha to think water wise and indigenous when it came to the garden. So much so that they split the house into two sections to save an old marula tree that was growing in the way.

Thanks to this, the guest bedrooms occupy a private position next to the pool.

Although that wasn’t planned, it turned out to be one of the concessions the couple made that was an improvement on their original idea.

This is a house that exudes confidence in its rawness. At the same time, there’s a sense that it will soften over time as the bricks take on a patina and the garden advances. It’s the kind of house you feel you’d like to come back to in a decade, because it will have settled in and gained a depth and maturity which will make it timeless.

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“Craftsmen of fine, bespoke furniture.�

079 888 6110 - Daniel 071 384 7025 - Candice info@the-cabinetmaker.co.za www.the-cabinetmaker.co.za Store 12, Plot 26, Maggiesdal, (Entrance D9, Barberton Road, R40), Nelspruit, 1200

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delving idecorex nto

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This year’s Decorex

Joburg, co-sponsored by Plascon and Caesarstone, was themed ‘Make your space your living dream’. Colours popped, handcrafted decor items stood out, texture was everywhere and the overall feeling in this year’s show was that design should be big and bold, loud and proud, gorgeous and gentry, daring and decadent...

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SIXFIVE |

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trade

market place

TO ADVERTISE HERE CALL Audrey Ford 072 726 4660

For all your editing, proofreading, summarising, letter writing & CV requirements: Call the professionals – EditPro We will dot your ‘eyes’ and cross your ‘tees’!

Gavin Sinclair 013 750 2870 | 083 285 0499 | gavins@icon.co.za www.editpro.co.za

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By Jolian’s Photography

BOOK YOUR YEAR-END FUNCTION NOW Team buidling options available

Tel: 013 758 1222 banqueting@bundulodge.co.za www.bundulodge.co.za R40 main road Nelspruit / White River

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Add some Ooh to your day with facials, waxes, massages, nails & more.

SORBET NELSPRUIT | 013 757 1014

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visit us online

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www.LowveldLivingMagazine.com

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the observation deck

if music be the food of love – play on...

Words Lynn Haken

In Shakespeare’s

Twelfth Night, Orsino asks for more music because he is frustrated by his love of Olivia. He feels an excess of music might cure his obsession of her, as an excess

of food cures the appetite.

In Izak Dinesen’s (Karen Blixen) Babette’s Feast, the story depicts the creative artistry between the aspect of delight and the need for consumption. Who can deny one of the most beautiful pleasures of life is food? In the story there is a dichotomy between the guilt of perceived excess with the pure joy of the main senses: sight, sound, smell, touch and taste. Babette’s menu begins with green turtle soup… so mean a feat to source the animal that an easier version of the preparation for such a dish would be to take 12 strong men and crack the jawbone of a blue whale! Her main course is Cailles en Sarcophage (quails), first marinated in sherry and a little cognac overnight, packed with a luscious fig and madeira stuffing and wrapped in duck-fat pastry, roasted until crisped and served with a sauce containing figs, stock and demi-glazed with white wine. At the feast, one guest puritanically sniffs at a bottle. “Surely that isn’t wine?” And receives the indignant response, “no, that isn’t wine, it’s Clos de Vougeot 1845.” The connection is made between culinary production and the act of consumption. Not only is each a function of the other, neither can be conceived without the other. No matter how artistic, lovingly and delicately presented, it is, at the end of the day, to be eaten and enjoyed.

In the iconic book The Joy of Cooking, there are recipes for every single conceivable dish. You can cook Opossum (best parboiled and served with turnip greens), Raccoon (simmered and then baked. Serve with bread dressing), Muskrat (poached and served with minced onions, butter and creamed celery), Woodchuck (soaked and roasted), Beaver (hang and poach and the tail can be braaied) and even Bear. It advises to remove all fat from the bear meat at once, as it turns rancid very quickly. Good to know. It then suggests to marinade at least 24 hours (except black bear for they aren’t very nice to eat – again good to know before you realise dinner will have to be a take-out). Otherwise one cooks bear as one would for any pot roast. Just make sure you have a big pot. If hungry, use a cub otherwise an adult will take longer. Somehow one’s hunger is assuaged by this fact alone.

The very smells of food flood the brain; the simplified aromas of baking bread, cinnamon buns giving off a crisp, sharp smell to be buttered and consumed hot, fingers burning at the tearing spongey flesh. The very sight of a rich chocolate cake, the icing glistening and folding in pleats down the side, whipped bowls of thick yellowed Jersey cream get a tactile response – who cannot resist dipping in a licking finger for the very touch? Roast pork crackling, fizzing and popping with the fat juices glistening the lips, the crunchiness and colour of fresh produce; crisp, curly-leafed lettuce speckled with the dew of the morning; green marrows the size of a man’s forearm, carrots emitting their earthy tastes from the residual soil creased in the skins. Winter broths glazed from roasted marrow bones and thickened with pearls of barley, the rich gravy absorbing the very flavours of the stock and vegetable broth. And the summer delights of a simple ice cream, finely speckled with vanilla seeds or a melting raspberry lolly, the sweet liquid running crimson down the hand. Crunchy Christmas stuffing made from walnuts and apple, bound with milk-sopped bread and onion sauce; big-breasted, browned turkeys surrounded by petit sausages, crisped spiral-whipped potatoes roasted in goose fat, the peaks standing like small seared granite tors; onions caramelised and coiled in the juices from the pan. Desserts of lemon baked cheesecakes, their surfaces pitted like the surface of the moon and eye-wincingly tart with the crumbly first taste. Thick custard puddings wobbling from the bainmarie, the skin set slightly golden; fruit compotes glazed into a sweetened jam to be drizzled; fresh figs served with flamed alcohol and custard with a crunchy brandy snap for added texture; strawberries plucked from the ground and absorbing the flavours from the overhead blackberries growing from a mass profusion of wild brambles.

Never, ever deny yourself. After all, think of all those women who waived the dessert table on the Titanic.

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Zandspruit

Bush & Aero Estate OWN YOUR DREAM HOME AND LIVE IN A WILD PLACE YOU THOUGHT NO LONGER EXISTED...

Hoedspruit • Limpopo

Redefining Bushveld Living!

• Estate size 1 000 hectares • Only 200 Full Title stands • House styles are Pavilion, Farmhouse and Thatch • An untouched wilderness area of 650ha for game viewing • Breathtaking mountain views • Sundowner locations and waterholes within the wilderness area • Hard surfaced internal roads • 1 000m paved, private runway • Magnificent trees along the 4km riverfront • Bird hide, view points and walking trails • Zandspruit Equestrian Centre for all levels of equestrian adventures • Luxury Bush Camp for home owners to enjoy • Close to all retailers, doctors, restaurants and recreational facilities of Hoedspruit (2 km)

MOVE TO A BETTER PLACE E info@zandspruit.co.za W www.zandspruit.co.za

Die Ryshuis, R 527, Hoedspruit T + 27 15 793 1192