This is our last full day in Swaziland.  I did a little wash and hung it out on the line so we’d have clean clothes to start the long trip home.  It’s a beautiful day today, again.  We ate breakfast on the veranda and watched the birds.  We saw the turaco again and watched it fly.  The wings are such a bright red. It is something to see.  Quite a few different varities came to visit the bird bath.

Today we plan to go to the office to get some more money.  I am not trying the bank again especially since  I don’t need much for today and tomorrow. Then we plan to go to the market where I hope to buy some material and maybe a few seed necklaces. Then we’ll go past the supermarket and buy some boerwors for a braai tonight then out to the transmitter site to join the guys for lunch.

Makes 7-8

250 g. flour

15ml. baking powder

pinch of salt

60g. margarine

60g.raisins

30g.castor sugar

125ml. milk (about)

6.5 cm. cutter

Set the oven to 220 degrees C. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl.  Cut margarine into pieces: add to flour and rub in until mixture resembles bread crumbs. Stir in raisins and sugar.  Stir in most of the milk and mix to a soft, not sticky dough using a round bladed knife.  Turn on a lightly floured surgace. Knead lightly. Flatten dough and cut out. re-roll pieces to cut out. Place on greased baking sheet. Brush with milk. Bake towards top of oven. 10-15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.  Serve with butter, or cheese or favorite spread.

Today we had another busy day.  Lorraine did some laundry and then we went to town.  We stopped at the office to take care of some things and then went to Ruth Crowie to pick up some things she wanted to send to her daughter in America. Her daughter married an American and now lives in Ohio. We had tea with Mrs. Crowie and Jillian Zwane came to have a time of prayer with Mrs. C.  We had a nice time visiting with both of them.  When we were ready to leave, Ruth Crowie brought out two scarves she had knitted and gave us each one.  They are beautiful.  She said that she made E1,000 last winter selling them. Today, that is only about $100. I think it was probably more last winter.  She does beautiful work.

We went to the grocery store and I bought some candy for the grandkids. It is different from American candy. Some think it is better.  I can’t say if it is or not.

After the grocery store we went to the office where Lorraine did some work and I worked on the blog and read some e-mails.  It was nice to use the office computer. It was much faster and the print is bigger so I can read it easier 🙂

This afternoon I saw one of those beautiful birds again, the purple-crested turaco.  It was up in the tree and flew down to drink and then flew off.  It is a beautiful bird.  The birds sing constantly here.  All kinds of bird songs and birds.  Blue birds of some kind, birds with lots of colors, big birds, little birds, there are so many and their songs are so different from our birds.  After the rain yesterday, the frogs also started singing. They sound pretty much like all frogs.

Tonight we are having pot luck dinner with the Schillers. They are a German couple with Trans World Radio. They have three young children.  It will be fun to have the kids around.  We haven’t seen too many young children while we have been here, not even in church.

There are a lot of children in this country.  Many of them have no parents because of HIV/AIDS.  There are orphanages everywhere. Pray for the churches and others that they will be brave and speak out against this life style that brings so much suffering. Pray for those who have lost family members and are losing family members.  It is becoming so common, that they can’t morn any more. It is a way of life to bury someone they love. Pray for the children and the grandparents and others who care for these orphans.

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Today we went shopping!! We went through Malkerns to the candle factory, and some other small shops.  They have a lot of stuff for the tourists.  I must say I enjoyed being one!  We also went to a shop where they make silver and gold jewlery.  I picked a couple of charms for myself.  They have beautiful things, and I would have loved to buy more.

I have been looking for something for the grandchildren, but they do not make the things I have been looking for anymore.  So I had to find something different.  I am a little disappointed, but next time I come I will know what I have to do to get what I want.  Things have changed a lot in the 9 years since we last visited.

Milkshake with Oatmeal Biscuit

We visited Guava Gallery again and had “tea” there.  We ordered a mango milkshake for tea and they brought it with a “lovely” oatmeal biscuit (cookie).  It was a nice thick milkshake and tasted very nice.  It hit the spot on a hot day.

Vervet Monkeys--Can you find three?

On our way to Guava Gallery, we saw a troop of monkeys.  Hopefully my pictures turned out and you can see them.  They were having fun running across the road and up the trees.  I thought they might visit us for tea at the Guava Gallery, but they didn’t. Lorraine said she has seen them there before.

In the evening, we had a wonderful storm.  The wind came howling through and the trees were really swaying.  Lorraine rushed out and brought in her proteas that were in pots outside.  We also brought in the patio furniture because the wind was so bad we were afraid that it would blow them around in the screened in porch.  We could see the rain all around, so heavy we couldn’t see the hills.  There was lots and lots of lightening and the thunder rolled and rolled and rolled.  It was quite a storm.  It actually didn’t turn out to be as bad as it threatened in the beginning and brought the country some much needed rain.  Everyone was very thankful for that.

In the evening Larry and I were invited to the Pierces again.  More wonderful food.  Beef curry this time. They sang Happy Birthday to Larry. She had more relatives drop by so there was a houseful again.  It was nice to visit with her neices and nephews.  We had some interesting conversation from politics to chickens.