A white Christmas with snow covered roofs, toasty fires and eggnog is a far cry from a summer Christmas and New Year in South Africa.

Our Christmas and summer holidays are all rolled into one. Families take off on vacation, factories and businesses close their doors and, those that can, head for the beach. You would be more likely to see Father Christmas (Santa Claus) in shorts and slops than a full red suit; barbeques and beers replace cooked dinners around the table and Christmas Day is spend lounging around a pool exchanging gifts with family and friends. South Africans love this time of year and summer fruits like fresh watermelon and spanspek are passed around. Children forget their school worries and spend all day in swim suits running around the Christmas tree. The New Year is a warm evening filled with cold drinks and bonfires.

Beaches are a riot of coloured umbrellas and swimmers. Shopping centres become a hazy mess of Christmas decorations, harassed staff and exhausted patrons. It’s just a part of the holiday season! We all complain about the chaos but secretly love the rush to get ready and the enjoyment of finally relaxing with family and friends as the festivities wind down.

I even have a favourite story about a family of holiday makers who celebrate Christmas Eve by waterskiing in nothing “butt” Christmas hats!

However, there is another, lonelier side of Christmas in South Africa, as in many parts of the world. Many children are left forgotten at this time of year, especially the orphans. It is a sad fact. However, there are a multitude of angels in our country who give selflessly of their time and money to remind those lost babies how beloved they are.

So, this holiday season, when you are piling your shopping baskets high and hugging your loved ones, spare a thought for those who smile in spite of their sorrow.

International superstar, Josh Grobin has recently rereleased “Weeping” and I was so moved by the powerful words that I did some research into the meaning.

Written during Apartheid by, Dan Heymann, a white South African soldier on the border of the country, it is a bitter-sweet allusion to the uncertain political times of the late 1980’s. South Africans were aware that apartheid was coming to an end, but were unsure of their future in the country. What would a new government mean for all South Africans? What would the retribution be for crimes committed on both sides of this “non-war”?  The words of the song “Weeping” speak of disillusionment, fear and a conviction to do the right thing. A white South African during Apartheid looking at the deaths both black and white and trying to reconcile government propaganda with what his eyes seeing:

“I knew a man who lived in fear
It was huge, it was angry, it was drawing near
Behind his house, a secret place
Was the shadow of the demon he could never face
He built a wall of steel and flame
And men with guns, to keep it tame
Then standing back, he made it plain
That the nightmare would never ever rise again
But the fear and the fire and the guns remain

It doesn’t matter now
It’s over anyhow
He tells the world that it’s sleeping
But as the night came round
I heard its lonely sound
It wasn’t roaring, it was weeping

And then one day the neighbours came
They were curious to know about the smoke and flame
They stood around outside the wall
But of course there was nothing to be heard at all
“My friends,” he said, “We’ve reached our goal
The threat is under firm control
As long as peace and order reign
I’ll be damned if I can see a reason to explain
Why the fear and the fire and the guns remain”

The man who lives in fear is former South African president PW Botha, protecting the Apartheid regime with stern determination. The “demon” they sing of, the larger South African population and their growing dissatisfaction. Heymann saw crimes committed by both blacks and whites and is asking “why”?  Is this really best for the whole country?

The “neighbours” are foreign journalists that were closely watching the political situation in South Africa. It is a poignant song and managed to escape the censors of the time and spent 5 weeks atop the charts of the government’s radio station.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-izLZ1g_U0o&feature=related

The coastline along the Garden Route is a mixture of sandy bays, and dramatic cliffs dipping down to rocky shores. In spectacular fashion, the warm Indian Ocean laps at the beaches and crashes against the cliffs. Still Bay is a bit remote and can only be reached on foot. The hike down to Still Bay is through rare Cape Fynbos vegetation and offers panoramic views of the ocean.

It was quite a walk, but totally worth it. The first day we visited Still Bay, we followed the path down to the beach, losing sight of the sea. Although we could still hear the waves, we were unsure of our route. Suddenly, we stepped out of the trees onto a shoreline completely sheltered by cliffs on either side.

It truly looked like a deserted paradise. Before us lay enormous, clear rock pools conjoined by small waterfalls, beyond that the ocean stretched to the horizon and dolphins were spinning in the waves. We have since found it to be an excellent whale watching spot.

An abandoned hut, once used by nature conservationists, sat alone on the shore with a braai pit out front and a deck for shelter. Glancing to the south, we saw a massive archway further along the coast – spectacular and eternal.

We now visit Still Bay regularly to recharge and enjoy a spot of swimming and snorkelling. This is truly an untouched and rarely visited spot and we hope it stays that way!

I am a 37 year old English-speaking white woman born in South Africa. I grew up in Johannesburg during the Apartheid era and my childhood was typical of that time. We had black domestic workers and gardeners. “Whites Only” signs were everywhere and black folk had to be back in their township before curfew. In those days, that was just the way things were.

Now I live in the New South Africa, where equality reigns. It has been a difficult period for the country but we are all making the effort to make it work. I now run a backpackers in Plettenberg Bay, Starling Village Backpackers, and have had the opportunity to assist in a township project that has changed me in every way.

The staff at our backpackers are truly multi-cultural: myself, my Afrikaans white husband, a Coloured and a black Xhosa speaker. We all grew up in the same country but have many differences that we enjoy discovering. We are frankly curious about each other’s values and behaviours.

An excellent example of this is how we address each other. In the Xhosa culture, one is addressed based on age: “Mama”(Mother) for an older woman and “Sisi” (sister) for someone around your own age. These are marks of respect in the Xhosa culture. Similarly, Afrikaans will dutifully address their elders as “Oom” (Uncle) or “Tannie” (Aunt). The Coloured culture shows their reverence by addressing someone by name, as in “Simon, would you like some coffee?”

Now English South Africans can have a very difficult time with this! To speak to someone as “Aunt” or “Uncle” is quite informal for our culture, whereas “Mr” or “Mrs” would be too official. So we are left to fumble somewhere in between lost in our own cultural collision.

My greatest joy is working with the children of Africa Dream in Quelweni. They are special children in great need of love, care and attention. Have a look at my next blog for more on our thoughts of culture and diversity.

This Whale was very interested in our boat Damara and swam up to our boat circling us a few times.

We than left the Minke and on our way home we encountered a further 3 Southern Right Whales. What a fantastic day on the ocean.

This male breached eight times off the Keurbooms coastline on our 12h00 boat trip.

We had a total of 13 Southern Right whales and 3 calves in our bay today.

Let’s hope we have good weather this weekend, so you can get your clients out on our boats.

This shows that our bay is in a pristine condition as we are only two weeks into our whale season.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RkAEPpbm-A&feature=related

While watching these 4 whales, a Brydes whale swam past us. On entering the Bay we spotted 4 Southern Right whales off Robberg beach and then a further 5 Southern Right whales off the Keurbooms coastline.