We are a bit behind in our blog posts, and are trying to catch up! So, here's some fun we had last month around the Area Office and on our adventure to finally see the Voortrekker Monument and Museum in Pretoria, South Africa. Enjoy!
Interesting day at the Area Office (our home-away-from-home every day) as workers cut into an air conditioning line and the gas set off the fire alarms... we all had to evacuate!
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Had to throw this one in :) This is a T-Bone steak that cost us about $5.50 US.
Yeah, my kind of dinner! |
South Africa celebrated Good Friday on April 3rd and our offices were closed, so we decided to take a short trip north to Pretoria and visited the Voortrekker Monument. It reminded us so much of the Mormon Pioneer Trek across the United States, covered wagons & all!
Sharon's parents had told us a lot about it, and it was great to finally see.
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| This is an example of the covered wagons that the Voortrekkers used to cross the southern African continental area from Cape Town to the East Rand. |
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| Details on the walls as you went up the stairs. |
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| Looks like the Mormon Pioneer wagons. |
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They had these statues on each corner of the monument.
We thought they looked so much like our Mormon Pioneer leaders. |
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| An unusual tree. No clue what it is. |
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| Isn't that Brigham Young's statue? Wait, this is Africa! |
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| This is Sharon at the top of the Voortrekker monument overlooking the city of Pretoria. |
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| The inside of the monument was full of these amazing carved panels, following the Voortrekker's journey from Cape Town to the East Rand. As you can see, some were very graphic depictions of the battles between the natives & the pioneers. |
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This is a local high school rugby team that scaled the stairs very quickly to get to the scenery.
They were a lot of fun to talk to. |
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| These are powder horns that they used. |
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This is an original bible of Andries Pretorius.
Sharon put her hand close to it to show how large it was. |
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| The Torch Flame stays lit all the time. |
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| These are hand-embroidered panels. Very detailed & beautiful. |
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| Looking up from the main floor of the monument. |
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| One of my favorite displays....GUNS! |
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| Lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe in Mandela Square at Sandton Mall (about 10 minutes from where we live). Sharon had to be sure to take a picture with her grandson's "Flat Stanley". |
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| Yeah, that's what I'm talking about!!! Bring on those scrumptious ribs!!! Sean and I loved them! And yes, I took half home in a 'take-away' (South Africa's term for 'doggy-bag'). Made for a nice meal the next day, too!!! |
As you can see, we love having a chance to take some time off from our normal missionary routine and enjoy the amazing sites of this beautiful country of South Africa. We are so blessed to serve here. To all you "seniors" out there...if you've been thinking about whether to serve a mission...DO IT!!! It will be some of the best 18 months of your lives.
We love all of you and hope you enjoy reading our stories and enjoying the pictures.
Bob and Sharon Berg
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