The SA Expat UK - September 2011 by Stephan Theron

r e t t e L Ed's Hi There

CONTRIBUTORS

It's great to be back, and yes, I do need a holiday! We haven't been around for a while but all is sorted and we are looking forward to bringing you some good reading over the coming months. In this issue we will be looking at a overview on the London Riots, there's a feature on legendary South-African musician, Robin Auld, as well as some interesting places to visit,good food to eat and of course something to spoil the ladies with in our

Lauren Harley is well experienced within the world of beauty and will be our resident contributor.

beauty section. Also some information regarding the London 2012 Olympics and then there is ofcourse the big one - “The 2011 Rugby World Cup”. I hope that you will enjoy the reading as much as I have enjoyed putting it together(into the early hours of a couple of mornings). Please let us have your thoughts on the magazine and it's contents. I would like to invite you all to submit any relevant contributions to me for

Samantha Hartmann has been a chef in some of the worlds top hotels and restaurants.She will be hosting our foodie section every month.

publishing in our coming issues. Also visit our updated website at: www.saexpatuk.com Well,I hope I haven't left anything out except to thank all of this month's contributors. Take Care and “GO BOKKE-BRING IT HOME”

Tim Stones was born with a hearing impairment but this hasn't prevented him from representing Britain and South Africa at International and National levels.

WWW.LIQUIDIGNITION.COM

SEPTEMBER 2011

contents 8 ROBIN AULD FEATURES Rioting Britain 6 Robin Auld – In his own words 8 MOTIVATIONAL Tim Stones – Wait For Me! 10 INFORMATION All about UK Visas 22 UK Property Buying Guide 26 EXPAT KIDS CLUB Polka Theatre 36 Colour me In 37

50 RWC 2011

BEAUTY Microdermabration Systems 39 FOOD Home-made Chutney Recipe 42 TRAVEL Visit Britain's Royal Palaces 44 SPORT London 2012 Paralympic Games 46 PRIZES TO WIN !!! 10 RWC 2011 – Game Guide 50

VISIT OUR WEBSITE: www.saexpatuk.com

'Rioting' Britain

What caused the recent Riots in Britain?. A variety of opinions are still being thrown about ranging from alleged racist action against black people by the police force to poverty and unemployment of youth being at its highest level ever. Whatever the cause, no one was prepared for the scale of the riots and the impact and effects that it has had on communities throughout Briton. A major concern has been levelled against the Police with claims that there approach has been to soft handed. In stead of being pro active, the Police Force Force has been blamed for being to complacent in many ways. The general feeling amongst a large number of individuals are that many of the riot related incidents could have been prevented if the Police Force acted with more vigour. Socio Economic reasons is also deemed as a major contributor to the riots. The current number of unemployed youth is at its highest in a decate. Current statistics indicate that more than one in five young people are out of work. The number of people aged between 16 and 24 who were out of work has exceeded 963,000 at the end of February 2010 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 12,000 more than at the same time in the previous year. The number of people aged 16-to 17-year-olds hit record levels in the same period, increasing by 14,000 to 218,000.The number of 18-to 24-year-olds fell by 2,000 in the same period to 745,000. Riots in Numbers: - 3,443 crimes have thus far been linked to the Riots between August 6 to 9 - Burglary Related Offences : 1,172

- Criminal Damage to Vehicles : 403 - Robbery Related Offences : 310 - Arson Related Offences : 162 - Number of Arrest : 2,006 (arrests on going) - Number of People Charged :1,135 (number of charged people on going) - Court Appearances : 954 (court appearances on going) - Sentenced : 82 (sentencing on going) - Jailed : 42 (on going)

Whatever the cause,it is going to be a long road to recovery. For many people it is about mental as well as physical recovery and for the British Government an issue that they will have to address accordingly.

Robin Auld

New album "Fingers in my pocket" available now

www.robinauld.co.za

IN BLACK AND WHITE

SINGER, SONGWRITER, LEGEND.... (in his own words)

The first music I can remember hearing was my mother in the kitchen, singing songs from the opera Carmen. We lived on the upper Zambezi river, Zambia, in a place called Sesheke, my father was a circuit magistrate. It was towards the end of the great post war American boom; all the cars had fins. My parents were working class Scots, Britain was all pooped out and many Brits had left for the former colonies. Zambia was Northern Rhodesia until 1964, and with my dad being in the service of the crown I got a British passport. There were no other white folks around and I spent my days running around with my mates in the bush with a bare arse, quite fantastic. Hippos used to trash the garden. My abiding memory of the people there was of generosity from folks who had nothing. The big thing at the time was calypso, Harry Belafonte, and my folks would play him a lot. The sound of those songs, the emotional tone, was something that made a lot of sense and still does. It was warm-blooded music, made by people who were born under the sun, and even though it was in a major key there could be a sadness inside of it. When we moved back to Ayrshire, after my folks got divorced, I heard Celtic music…... Scottish music…. Andy Stewart, Kenneth McKellar, also I enjoyed Peter Paul and Mary and Hermans Hermits. Tunes. Hey, I was ten years old, but the tune is still the cake...all the rest is just icing. I loved Rodgers and Hammerstein, Sherman and Sherman and the songs from the musical Oliver, written by Lionel Bart. He had that English music hall tradition, lots of chromatic movements that tied right into some of the songs from Carmen...the Beatles used it too. Someone's older brother played me Bob Dylans "Blowin in the wind", and the Beatles "A hard day's night", and that was that...I was hooked on rock 'n roll.

My mom decided to move out to South Africa, so my younger brother and me came out with her on the Edinburgh Castle, of the Union Castle Line that used to ship the mail. About a week into the trip there were flying fish and dolphins alongside, and things warmed up again. We set up in the False Bay area of Cape Town, and discovered the beach and surfing.

After school, and I would like to point out that I was asked to leave, not expelled, a succession of foolhardy and desperate attempts to have a job then followed. I was a fridge mechanic’s assistant, or “handlanger” in Cape parlance, a fisherman, a curio salesman, and my most successful effort which was a record salesman in the Musica chain. They should give Musica a Patron of the Arts award. Back then they provided gainful employment for 80 % of Cape Town’s musicians. The othe 20% were employed by Paul Bothners, the music gear shop.

I started on acoustic guitar by learning to play Neil Young's "The needle and the damage done". My first lead licks were Santana ones, and then I discovered Hendrix, who I listened to pretty much exclusively for three years or so. I was a guitar player for years before I started singing. I played in high school bands, with the first “proper” band being Lancaster band, as a sideman playing licks and singing the odd harmony. We toured a bit and had a great time through the various incarnations of the outfit in the heady new wave era of anti-conscription campaign gigs, along with bands like Permanent Force and The Safari Suits. After I left Lancaster Band I moved to the bright side of town, Sea Point, to play with Steve Walsh's Roots Rhythm band. I thought that I was moving to the big city (well I had been in Muizenberg til then) and that I was going to get laid like nobody's business. As it happened, I tragically didn't get laid all summer. Steve played a lot of Neil Young, Dylan, Bob Marley, Tim Buckley, Garland Jeffreys..stuff that somehow related to African grooves, and his own material, which had that warmblood thing. The early rural American stuff had a resonance for me, like the dust bowl songs that Ry Cooder recorded. I liked the simpleness, the way they didn't have to be sophisticated city slickers to nail something...that sly delivery. When I hear Leadbelly I don't hear America, I hear Africa. The first concert I went to was Malombo, featuring Philip Tabane who is a legend of African guitar. It made a hell of an impression on me and, along with Juluka, planted the seeds for what I wanted to do with my music. I guess that was: to make where I found myself make sense. I had dabbled a little with African styles, like "There is a wind" on Ocean Motion, but using African elements in my songs only really happened, ironically, after I'd left South Africa in 1986. There was even some press about it back home along the lines of "Robin Auld playing mbaqanga in London shock horror". I had learned to play by hanging around older guys who had guitars, and they played stuff like Santana, Rolling Stones...African music was what came out of the maid's radio round the back, but it had always sounded interesting to me. I needed to learn to play it properly on the guitar, the same way I learned blues, folk and the other western forms, so that I could put it on the wall of the toolshed. Lucien Windrich of Evoid, who I was recording with in London, gave me a bunch of stuff....an imprint called Earthworks, some Revolver recordings from Durban, all mbqanga and maaskande stuff from bands like The Super Tens, The Soul Brothers, Amwazi Emvelo. I dived into it and learned how to feel it through on the guitar.

My songwriting started off, and still does, from guitar playing. I was a guitar player for years before I started singing, firstly with the Lancaster Band. I brought the late Brian Davidson, the singer from SA icons Freedoms' Children, into the Lancaster Band after we jammed one night in Muizenberg. Now that he’s gone, I’m realizing more and more how lucky I was to play with him. He was a real classic rock singer, able to float the note over the top no matter how much racket the band was making, on his day as good as Plant or Gillan. Brian and I parted ways with Lancaster Band when they went ska and I found it impossible to not play lead solos. The rift had been coming for some time anyway, the whole English punk thing never had much resonance for me spending my days, as I did, looking for surf in clapped out kombis listening to J.J. Cale and Little Feat .

Robin Auld

A young sound engineeer called Kevin Shirley, who was working at Tully McCully’s studio Spaced Out Sound, started coming to gigs because he liked my guitar playing. I didn’t have too many songs, but he took the idea of a record to WEA. Showing a lapse of judgement not seen again, WEA took the record on. That was “At the corner", my first album. It didn’t do much, but the next few, released through a Cape Town indie called Mountain, had a whole bunch of radio hits. There was this throw-away tune called "Baby you been good" which went to number 8 on the Springbok charts. The suburbs loved it as much as the hip underground hated it. They both must have sensed my natural empathy for white trash culture. Due, no doubt, to my listening to Radio Good Hope requests every evening at an impressionable age. That album also contained the single All of Woman, which had already been a no.1. By then we were working non-stop, driving around the country in Murray's beat up van, or flying to gigs regularly. We dutifully trashed many a Holiday inn and did shows with bands like Tribe after Tribe, Hotline, Ella Mental and Petit Cheval. In retrospect people assume a master plan was involved, but we were just hanging on for dear life like everybody else. And we still seemed to have no money. The whole scene kind of imploded after a couple of years, everybody gave up or left. I had had enough of being the phase after the horsey one for teenage girls. Also, despite having an album with five singles on it, my erstwhile label managed a total of 600 sales, allegedly. As acts with one hit were selling between ten and sixty thousand or so, it seemed to be time to get out of Dodge. I moved to the UK and started experimenting more with Celtic, African and blues elements in my songwriting. With trips back to SA and then back to the UK over the next decade, I also set about earning the title of a professional Soutpiel. That’s a salt dick..someone who has one foot in South Africa and one foot in Britain, which causes his umentionables to hang in the water. Very evocative language, Afrikaans. Since those first three I’ve released another ten albums, more or less, through every permutation of the biz from major labels to independents, and worked with a whole bunch of wonderful people. Since the internet and digital recording arrived it's been easier to release music independently, and my label, the optimistically named Free Lunch, is now on its fifth release. I am currently based in the UK, but go out to South Africa when circumstances permit...Cape Town is home and always will be. My personal journey as a songwriter is to use, at some point, everything I've heard and loved. It's a tall order, but it keeps me out of trouble.

“My personal journey as a songwriter is to use, at some point, everything I've heard and loved. It's a tall order, but it keeps me out of trouble”.

www.robinauld.co.za

Hey, wait for me ! By Tim Stones

It is the South African Students' provincial Athletics Championships, and I am standing with a group of students from all over the province, all eagerly awaiting the start of the Senior Mens' 5000m Final. I can see that some of these athletes are excitedly engaging with their counterparts, verbally assessing who will be the one to look out for during the race. I stand aside. I am not wearing my hearing aids, and so cannot join in with their conversations. We line up, waiting for the gun to go off, and the race to start. I stand slightly behind the others, watching their feet. Without my hearing aids, I cannot hear the gun clearly, and am not sure whether it is a gunshot or some other sound. The only way I can know for sure whether the race has started is by looking at my competitors' feet. They start moving forward, and I know the race is on. I run alongside a fellow athlete. I cannot hear the other athlete approach me from behind. The first I know that he is behind me is when he has passed me, and I now tag alongside this new athlete. And so we go, lap after lap until, eventually, I cross the finish-line. If I had not been counting the laps in my head, I would not have known that I had finished, as I cannot hear the bell that is rung to indicate that the final lap has begun. I look up to the stands, and see my team-mates, who have come to support me. I cannot hear what they are saying to me, but their smiles tell me I must have done okay. Later I learn that I have qualified for the South African Students' National Athletics Championships. Some years later, I had the opportunity to represent my country in Athletics, at the World Deaf Athletics Championships, and Deaflympics. These Championships are open to athletes with a hearing loss of 55 decibels or more in the better ear. I competed in the Marathon. Prior to my race, I was able to observe the track events, and saw how technology can enable people with hearing loss to fulfill their potential. Strobe lights for the sprints, red flags for false starts, and other colour flags for the actual start of each race, as well as to indicate the start of the final lap, made all the difference to their performances. Officials fluent in Sign Language, or sensitive to the needs of athletes who rely on speech-reading, ensured that every athlete felt completely part-and-parcel of the proceedings. There were, of course, some problems. In the Marathon, not all the roads were closed. During the race, I did not hear a car approach me from behind, and the first I was aware of it was as it swerved towards me. It was a close call. But I am used to that, as this happens often while I am training. Athletics organised by Deaf and hard-of-hearing people has the inherent sensitivity to ensure that all athletes with hearing loss, no matter the extent of our hearing loss, are fully equipped with the necessary technology to ensure that the athlete reaches his or her full potential. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Mainstreamâ&#x20AC;? athletics in South Africa, however, has a long way to go before it can be said to be equitable towards athletes who are Deaf, or hard-of-hearing. Sensitisation is an ongoing, long-term process. In the meantime, I am going to keep on running.

For it is our endurance, and our courage to persevere despite the obstacles we face, that will be our greatest legacy!

www.wernersoriginal.co.uk

WWW.BUSHMANSDELIGHT.CO.UK

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The Earl of Glasgow, Patrick Boyle, and his son David, the Viscount Kelburn, pose for photographers as they look at graffiti paintings by Brazilian artists on the walls of Kelburn Castle near Largs, Scotland, August 30, 2011. Boyle, the owner of the castle, has written to Historic Scotland asking if the mural, which was completed by Brazilian graffiti artists in 2007, can be kept after the three-year time limit, which was put on the artwork by the local council, has expired.

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UK Visas Explained If you are coming to the UK as a visitor, you are allowed to stay for up to 6 months in most cases. If you intend to stay here for longer than 6 months, you need to look at the Working, Studying or Partners and families . To be allowed to enter or pass through the UK, you must meet certain requirements. The standard processing time frame is that the Home Office will decide 65 per cent of applications within 4 weeks.

This page explains how an overseas national can come to the UK as a CHILD VISITOR. To come to the UK in this immigration category, you must be able to show that: - you are under 18; - you only want to visit the UK for up to six months, or up to 12 months if you are accompanying an academic visitor and you have entry clearance; - you intend to leave the UK at the end of your visit; - you have enough money to support and accommodate yourself without working or help from public funds, or you and any dependants will be supported and accommodated by relatives or friends; - suitable arrangements have been made for your travel to, and your reception and care in, the UK - and, if a foster carer or relative (not a parent or guardian) will be responsible for your care, the arrangements must meet the requirements set out in the UK Border Agency's guidance; - you have a parent or guardian in your home country who is responsible for your care, and you can provide their address and landline telephone number; and confirmation that they consent to the arrangements for your travel to, reception and care in the UK; - you can meet the cost of the return or onward journey; and you are not in transit to a country outside the common travel area. - You must also show that, during your visit, you do not intend to: * take employment, produce goods or provide services, including the selling of goods or services direct to members of the public; * marry or form a civil partnership, or give notice of marriage or civil partnership; or receive private medical treatment. - If you have been accepted on a course of study, you must be able to show that your education provider is: * a licensed sponsor under Tier 4 of the points-based system; or accredited by an accreditation body that is approved by the UK Border Agency; or inspected by either the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted), Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education in Scotland, Estyn, Northern Ireland's Education and Training Inspectorate or the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI). - If you want to come here to undertake an exchange or educational visit only, this must be provided by a school in the maintained sector, a non-maintained special school, or an independent fee-paying or non-fee-paying school, on the basis set out in UK Border Agency guidance. In addition, child visitors who are visa nationals must have a valid entry clearance which states that they are unaccompanied or identifies the adult accompanying them. In the latter case, the entry clearance will not be valid unless the named adult physically accompanies the child.

This page tells you whether you can come to study in the UK as a STUDENT VISITOR. If you want to come to the UK in order to do a short course of study during your visit, you can apply to do so as a student visitor. The period when you intend to be in the UK must not exceed 6 months (or 11 months, if you will be studying on an English language course). - You must be aged 18 or over, and you must have been accepted on a course of study provided by: * an education provider that holds a sponsor licence under Tier 4 of the points-based system; or * an education provider that is accredited by an accreditation body approved by the UK Border Agency; or * an education provider that is inspected or audited by either the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education, Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted), Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education in Scotland, Estyn in Wales, Northern Ireland's Education and Training Inspectorate or the Independent Schools Inspectorate; or * an overseas higher education institution that offers only part of its programmes in the UK, holds its own national accreditation, and offers programmes that are of an equivalent level to a UK degree. - During your visit, you must: * support and pay for accommodation for yourself and any dependants, without help from public funds; or * ensure that you and your dependants will be supported and accommodated by relatives or friends, and will not take employment. - You must leave the UK at the end of the visit you told us about, and you must be able to meet the cost of your return or onward journey. You must not: * take employment in the UK (including part-time or full-time vacation employment); *engage in business, produce goods or provide services within the UK (including selling goods or services direct to members of the public); *study at a government-funded school; *undertake a work placement or internship (paid or unpaid) as part of your course of study; *extend your stay in the UK; *carry out the activities of a business visitor, a sports visitor or an entertainer visitor; *receive private medical treatment; or * be in transit to a country outside the common travel area (the UK, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands). If you are aged 18 or over and you want to come and study in the UK for more than 6 months (or more than 11 months if you will be studying an English language course), you must apply under Tier 4 (General) of the points-based system. If you are under 18, you can apply to come and study in the UK for up to 6 months as a child visitor.

This section explains the Olympic/Paralympic Games visit visa (OPVV), which is a multiple-entry visa for Games family members - athletes, coaches, officials and accredited media. The OPVV is valid from the date of issue until 8 November 2012, so it allows Games family members to come to the UK to take part in Olympic and Paralympic activities in the lead-up to the Games in 2012. The visa allows the holder to stay in the UK for up to 6 months on each visit. It costs ÂŁ76, the price of a 6-month visit visa. The OPVV does not replace the Olympic and Paralympic identity and accreditation cards - the OIAC and PIAC. Games family members will still need to apply for these through their responsible organisations, such as the national and international Olympic and Paralympic committees. The cards act as a visa waiver for the UK from 30 March 2012 to 8 November 2012, allowing the holder to make multiple visits to the UK during that period, for up to 6 months each time. They will be free.

If you are coming to the United Kingdom as a Business or Special Visitor, you can usually stay for six months unless you are: - an academic visitor - a doctor taking the professional and linguistic assessment board test - a parent of a child at school - a visitor in transit

This section explains how you can come to the United Kingdom as a GENERAL VISITOR To come to the United Kingdom as a general visitor, you must be able to show that: - you are 18 or over; - you only want to visit the United Kingdom for up to six months, or up to 12 months if you are accompanying an academic visitor; - you intend to leave the United Kingdom at the end of your visit; - you have enough money to support and accommodate yourself without working or help from public funds, or you and any dependants will be supported and accommodated by relatives or friends; - you can meet the cost of the return or onward journey; and - you are not in transit to a country outside the common travel area. - You must also show that, during your visit, you do not intend to: - take employment, produce goods or provide services, including the selling of goods or services directo to members of the public; - undertake a course of study; - marry or form a civil partnership, or give notice of marriage or civil partnership; - carry out the activities of a business visitor, a sports visitor or an entertainer visitor; or

To come to the United Kingdom for Medical Treatment you must be able to show that: - you meet the requirements for leave to enter as a visitor; - if suffering from a communicable disease there is no danger to public health; - your course of treatment is for a limited period of time; - you have made satisfactory arrangements for the consultation or treatment you need; - you have enough money to pay for any treatment and to support and accommodate yourself without working or help from public funds; and - you plan to leave the United Kingdom at the end of your treatment.

This page explains how you can come to the UK as a visitor for Marriage or Civil Partnership. To come to the UK in this category, you must be able to show that: - you are 18 or over; - you intend to visit the UK for no more than 6 months, and to leave the UK at the end of your visit; - you intend to give notice of marriage or civil partnership, or marry or form a civil partnership, in the UK while you will be here; - you can meet the cost of the return or onward journey; and - you are not in transit to a country outside the common travel area. You must also show that: - you have enough money to support and accommodate yourself without working or help from public funds; or - you and any dependants will be supported and accommodated by relatives or friends. - You must be able to produce satisfactory evidence (if we ask for it) of your arrangements for giving notice of marriage or civil partnership, or for your wedding or civil partnership to take place, in the UK while you will be here. You must also show that, during your visit, you do not intend to: - take employment, produce goods or provide services, including the selling of goods or services direct to members of the public; - undertake a course of study; - carry out the activities of a business visitor, a sports visitor or an entertainer visitor; or - receive private medical treatment.

All in formation supplied by the UK Home Office.Please visit their website for more detailed information.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk

YOUR UK HOME BUYING GUIDE You have decided to buy a home - but what next? The maze of legal work, negotiations, dealing with surveyors and solicitors, finding a good mortgage deal and worrying about your deal falling through, on top of actually hunting down the home of your dreams, is enough to make anyone's hair stand on end. Buying a house is one of the biggest financial decisions that you will make in your life. It is a lengthy and complicated business, which while exciting is often fraught with stress and worry. But luckily there is a lot of good advice around helping you to make your home-buying experience as easy and problem-free as possible. After finding a home you like, which can take anything from a few days to many months, the process from having your offer accepted to completion of the sale takes about 12 weeks. This is about twice as long as in many other countries - home-buying in Britain is a notoriously drawn-out business. It is important to have a good understanding of the process as it will help you to avoid some of the most common hazards of home-buying. Home.co.uk has prepared an introduction to the home-buying process to help you to understand how it all works, how to plan it and what to watch out for. After reading this you should have a better idea of what to expect and how to set out to buy a home feeling prepared and ready to go! You have decided that you are buying a property, but exactly how much can you afford? On top of the cost of the house itself, there are many other, one-off expenses involved in buying a home and moving which can tot up to between ÂŁ2,000 - ÂŁ5,000. In order to get a good idea of what sort of homes you can realistically hope to buy, you also need to take these extra costs into account. Take particular care with stamp duty land tax as, with the recent inflation of property prices, for properties over ÂŁ250,000 this has become a major consideration. Looking for the best mortgage deal? How do you get the best mortgage? The answer is simple: Get independent financial advice. A specialist mortgage advisor can search thousands of mortgage deals to find the best mortgage quotes for your particular circumstances. Looking for a new home is a time-consuming process, and it is tempting just to rush into buying the first one you like the look of. But watch out, as it will not be so easy to take back to the shop if you decide you don't like it after you have moved in. Once you have decided to buy a house and found out how much you can afford, it is worth sitting down and thinking hard about what you want from your new home and what your needs are. Most people hire a solicitor or licensed conveyancer to undertake the legal side of buying their home. It is possible to do the conveyancing yourself, but this is a time-consuming business and also risky if you lack the necessary expertise. Although professional services are expensive, they have become cheaper in recent years and it is well worth the cost to successfully complete the purchase and to resolve any possible problems. This part of the process is crucial. Before making an offer, there are a few things you should check: * Keep an eye on the local and national housing market. Check that the house is worth the price you are willing to pay. Have a look at Land Registry reports for houses that have sold in the same area and compare asking prices with actual sale prices. The direction asking prices are heading is a good indicator of the local and national market. * Check whether the property is freehold or leasehold * Agree what fixtures and fittings will be included. Draw up a list of all items with the seller as this will avoid later confusion * You can also check things like planning permission, whether there are plans for new developments nearby (roads, new houses etc), and covenants, though these should be looked at by your solicitor later on during conveyancing. Both you and your mortgage lender need to know whether the property is actually worth the amount of money you have agreed to fork out for it. As well as what is known as the basic valuation, there are two main types of survey: the homebuyer's report and the buildings survey (also known as the full structural survey). All lenders require a basic valuation, but is strongly advised that you also have an independent, more detailed survey carried out as the basic valuation will only show up any obvious problems that you will probably have noticed yourself. The level of survey you need depends a lot on the individual property you are buying.

Why Life Assurance? Your mortgage is the biggest financial commitment that your family will ever have. If the unthinkable were to happen to you, how would they cope with a large debt and a reduced income? Not a nice thought, we're sure you'll agree. For a relatively small monthly premium your dependants won't have to worry about paying the mortgage, or even worse, losing the house at such a difficult time - giving you complete peace of mind. Contracts are exchanged. You hand over a deposit which is non-refundable if you pull out of the sale. Once you and your solicitor are satisfied that everything is in order, the contracts can be exchanged. You sign a copy of the contract which is passed to the seller, and the seller signs a copy of the same contract which you receive. Once contracts have been exchanged (normally by the two solicitors) both parties are legally bound to follow through with the transaction. You can no longer change your mind - if you pull out it is likely that you will lose your deposit, and you could be sued for breach of contract. You also now have no need to worry about gazumping. At this point you hand over a non-refundable deposit as security to the seller in case the contract is not carried out. This is normally 10% per cent of the purchase price, but it is usually negotiable. If you do not have the money for the deposit at hand immediately, you can arrange for a bridging loan from your bank. Your solicitor draws up a transfer document and sends it to the seller's solicitor Once contracts have been exchanged your solicitor prepares the draft transfer document (if the land is not registered it will require a special kind of transfer or 'conveyance'). This documents transfers the title of the property from the seller to the buyer. Once both parties have agreed on the draft, it is signed by the buyer and the seller. Your solicitor arranges finalisation and signing of your mortgage documents Your solicitor will also deal with the finalisation and signing of documentation relating to your mortgage, and will arrange for the money to be available on completion of the sale. Your solicitor carries out final searches and enquiries Land Registry checks are carried out by your solicitor, to make sure that nothing is registered against the seller (or at the Land Charges Registry if the property is not registered). Problems such as undisclosed mortgages or disputes could be uncovered at this stage. There will be various matters for you to deal with in the run-up to completion. There will be some documents to be signed and payments to be made: you must pay Land Registry fees and stamp duty. Before completion you need to make sure that all the terms of the contract have been fulfilled, such as any repairs. You also need to be arranging all the practical matters related to moving house. You move in! At last! On the day of completion you receive the keys and the seller is obliged to move out. You pay the seller the balance of the house through your solicitors On the day of completion you also have to pay the balance of the price on the house (the agreed price minus the deposit which you have already paid), usually through your solicitor or conveyancer. You receive the transfer document and the title deeds The seller's deeds are now handed over to you, and arrangements are made for any outstanding mortgages on the property to be paid off. You pay extra costs: stamp duty, Land Registry fees and solicitor fees Solicitor carries out final administration After completion the solicitor still has various details to tie up. Your solicitor will: where relevant, inform your mortgage lender, life insurance company, and the freeholder that the sale has been completed register the transfer of ownership at the Land Registry. They will then send the deeds to your mortgage lender who will keep them until you either sell the property or pay off your mortgage pay the stamp duty send you a statement of completion, including a summary of the financial transactions. If you have not already paid their fees, they will ask for these now.

Colourful map of the United Kingdom, showing administrative divisions and capital cities.

URGENT FOR SALE – Beach House Jacobsbaai, 7380 West Coast South Africa Excellent Value … Investment … Guest house Opportunity like this does not come easy ... they come once in a lifetime. West facing Jacobsbaai 5-bedroom 5-bathroom mansion in lovely seaside village with authentic and historical look and feel. Only 140 kilometer from Cape Town International airport. Home -- or house with flatlet. Sturdy, neat, spacious and with a unique atmosphere of its own. Heaven for the professional holidaymaker or retired persons. Greenbelt and sea views from the upper deck. The landscape is diverse with rough rocks/boulders to sandy beach. Absolutely no visual, audio or health pollution or hazard. 10 km from Vredenburg West Coast Mall, 8 km from Saldanha, 20 km from Langebaan and 30 km from Paternoster. Very big patio and veranda welcomes you with open arms to a splendid front garden. The totally private backyard offers a large enclosed entertainment room with fold away doors, under-cover patio and BBQ. This spacious home also offers an open plan study plus art deco room with built-in cupboards. And an indoor fire place. The motorized double garage also present a DIY room and garden shed (adjacent). Access from the garage leads via the enclosed patio to the house. Low maintenance and established garden with full grey water system and water pumps for the raised vegetable garden. Loft room/apartment has large lounge area, bath facilities, BIC’s and lovely kitchenette. Security plus … ADT alarm and armed response. Trellidoors over all windows and doors. 150 Meter from rocky beach paths … boating, fishing, diving, biking, wildlife haven … almost in your backyard. This is the life. Beautiful mansion at the beach – quality finishes – value for money

Contact detail: Ms J Jordaan Email: joiedevivre69@yahoo.co.uk Mobile: +27-828596082 Urgent Sale – Price highly reduced Contact owner for price and detailed information and pictures

Foods4u ltd Unit 22 / 24, Manford Industrial Estate, Manor Road, Erith, Kent DA8 2AJ Tel: 01322 340318 Fax: +44 (0) 87 087 45002 sales@foods4u.co.uk www.foods4u.co.uk

Cash & Carry Store open : MONDAY TO FRIDAY 9am to 5.30pm & SATURDAY 10am to 3pm GET ALL YOUR SA GOODS AT UNBEATABLE PRICES.

WE WILL NOT BE BEATEN ON PRICE OR CUSTOMER CARE!

WHA T 'S S O F U NNY ? A first-grade teacher, Ms Brooks, was having trouble with one of her students. The teacher asked, 'Harry, what's your problem?' Harry answered, 'I'm too smart for the 1st grade. My sister is in the 3rd grade and I'm smarter than she is! I think I should be in the 3rd grade too!' Ms. Brooks had had enough. She took Harry to the principal's office. While Harry waited in the outer office, the teacher explained to the principal what the situation was. The principal told Ms. Brooks he would give the boy a test. If he failed to answer any of his questions he was to go back to the 1st grade and behave. She agreed. Harry was brought in and the conditions were explained to him and he agreed to take the test. Principal: 'What is 3 x 3?' Harry: '9.' Principal: 'What is 6 x 6?' Harry: '36.' And so it went with every question the principal thought a 3rd grader should know. The principal looks at Ms. Brooks and tells her, 'I think Harry can go to the 3rd grade' Ms. Brooks says to the principal, 'Let me ask him some questions..' The principal and Harry both agreed. Ms. Brooks asks, 'What does a cow have four of that I have only two of?' Harry, after a moment: 'Legs.' Ms. Brooks: 'What is in your pants that you have but I do not have?' The principal wondered why would she ask such a question! Harry replied: 'Pockets.' Ms. Brooks: 'What does a dog do that a man steps into?' Harry: 'Pants.' The principal sat forward with his mouth hanging open. Ms. Brooks: 'What goes in hard and pink then comes out soft and sticky?' The principal's eyes opened really wide and before he could stop the answer, Harry replied, 'Bubble gum.' Ms. Brooks: 'What does a man do standing up, a woman does sitting down and a dog does on three legs?' Harry: 'Shake hands .' The principal was trembling. Ms. Brooks: 'What word starts with an 'F' and ends in 'K' that means a lot of heat and excitement?' Harry: 'Firetruck.' The principal breathed a sigh of relief and told the teacher, 'Put Harry in the fifth-grade, I got the last seven questions wrong.

www.foods4u.co.uk NOT FOR SALE TO PERSONS UNDER THE AGE OF 18

www.number4club.com 4 FULHAM HIGH STREET SW6 3LQ LONDON

children r o f e r t a ss the World-cla Polka Theatre 240 The Broadway Wimbledon London SW10 1SB Tickets & Information +44 (0)20 8543 4888

About Polka Polka Theatre is one of the few venues in the UK which is dedicated to producing and presenting work for young audiences. Since the doors opened in 1979, this unique venue has been entertaining children with resonant, engaging and exciting theatre.

What's on

Over 100,000 children a year come to Polka and are inspired, stimulated and engaged by theatre, often for the first time. Polka strives to stir the emotions, spark the imagination and, most of all, entertain. Its two theatre spaces, the Main Theatre and the Adventure Theatre are designed especially for children so that their first taste of theatre is welcoming and relevant. At Polka children aged 0 to 13 enjoy a wide-range of experiences designed to make theatre a natural part of their lives: from the powerful drama Stamping, Shouting and Singing Home; to hilarious family shows like Flat Stanley; fantastic world-premieres of new plays for children like Cloud Pictures; and adaptations of well-loved stories like We’re Going on a Bear Hunt. Polka Theatre for the very young is a vital part of Polka’s artistic programming. Over the past few years Polka has developed its Early Years work and established itself as a centre for innovation in this field. Children as young as 9 months and their families are brought into a colourful and stimulating environment where simple stories are told in a sensory and visual way. Early Years shows also visit Polka from across Europe encouraging the telling of a diverse range of stories in a varied and exciting way. Creative programming keeps Polka’s work fresh and relevant. Audiences can expect imaginative new writers, dynamic performers, inventive adaptations of popular stories and resonant subjects. Everything we do is focused on providing children with thrilling world-class theatre.

23 Sep - 29 Oct Take a leap into the past in this time-travelling adventure...

At the heart of Polka’s work is a programme of learning that encourages children to explore and develop creatively. Every Polka show is supported by a learning programme. Schools visiting the theatre can benefit from online free resource packs and rehearsal diaries, show-related workshops and after-show talks. Polka embraces family learning and encourages it through exciting family days, after-show events and show-related activities packs. It also runs a regular programme of out-of-school clubs and summer schools giving children the freedom to explore their creativity and learn a wide-range of performance skills from storytelling to puppetry. Polka is first and foremost a local theatre, loved by the people of Wimbledon and the wider London community, but enjoys an international reputation, known the world over as a pioneer of theatre for children, consistently setting the standard and raising audience’s expectations. When you come and see a show at Polka you won’t just enjoy the theatre. Polka’s welcoming building is a resource for local people with its friendly café, worry-free foyer with big toys and a book corner, a charming garden and a playground complete with a Wendy House and giant cat! It is playful, fun and interactive - Polka stimulates even the biggest child’s imagination and is a magical place where you can share a special moment with your children.

Www.polkatheatre.com

1 Oct - 1 Oct

He is currently touring Europe with his CD Doekvoet. He already did packed shows in Milton Keynes, Derby, Isle of Sark, “Die Aardvark”, where he opened for Lize Beekman and the Guildford Braai&Potjie-festival. He is returning to “Aardvark” on request on 9 September 2011 for a full concert. After then, it’s of to Dubai, Al Ain, Amsterdam and Whales. Dorlfing’s concerts consist of music from Doekvoet, as also poems from his collection “Hinkepink”, winners of ATKV 2010 awards. To visit Dorfling’s concerts or to contact him go to www.genotsplot.com Mob: 07879014491 of pdorfling@googlemail.com http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pieter-Dorfling-Afrikaanse-musikant-Europa/104926022935057

MICRODERMABRASION As we head into Autumn, with winter just around the corner, I have been dying to tell you about a new facial concept called Microdermabrasion which has hit London by storm. After having received and performed these facials, I noticed amazing visible results after just one treatment! Gwyneth Paltrow, Madonna and Victoria Beckham are among many international celebrities that regularly use this system. I have recently been working with the Skinbase Microdermabrasion System and have found it to be a system with exceptional performance, quality and proven reliability. So what is Microdermabrasion? Microdermabrasion is a safe, controlled system of intense exfoliation and resurfacing, using ultra fine crystals that rejuvenate the skin. The crystals work as a gentle abrasive on the skin to remove dead skin cells layer by layer. The removal of the dead cells results in skin that feels instantly smoother and fresher whilst promoting new skin and collagen growth. Over a course of treatments skin will be left glowing and feeling rejuvenated. The irregular shape of the crystals help to work on hard-to-reach areas without any damage to the skin. The treatment is progressive, meaning you will continue to see results over the course of the treatment. The crystals are made of Alumininium oxide, a natural occurring mineral which are sterile and non-toxic minerals with no adverse skin contact reactions. The vacuum action draws away used crystals and dead skin cells and also works to stimulate circulation and promotes increased blood flow to the area. The production of collagen and ellastin is stimulated, which results in firmer, more youthful looking skin. Skinbase Microdermabrasion is particularly effective in treating Acne. Getting rid of the dead skin cells from the surface of the skin unclogs the pores, reducing the chance of the new spot developing. Skinbase Microdermabrasion recommend a course of usually 8 treatments, performed on a cycle of every 7 to 10 days. People with acne or acne scarring may need more treatments, and we recommend a monthly maintenance treatment after the course has finished, to help maintain the results achieved. The vacuum action works to stimulate collagen in the skin. As we age, collagen and ellastin production starts to slow down. The combination of the collagen stimulation and increased skin renewal will improve the condition of the skinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s surface smoothing out Fine lines and Wrinkles (Ageing).Normally the skin renews itself approximately every 28 days. Removing the dead skin cells from the top layers of skin, Microdermabrasion speeds up the rate at which the skin would normally renew itself revealing new, fresh skin and giving a radiant glow. Therefore effectively treating dry, dehydrated skin or uneven skin tone. The Skinbase Microdermabrasion treatment can also vastly improve the appearance of pigmentation and stretch marks. It

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