Arriving in Omund in 1961 on a Dakota - collected in company red bus - smell of the pure leather seats - crossing the Orange over old wooden bridge. Cycling in the desert on misty mornings. The heart beat of the town - power station turbines. Catching lizards + snakes + chasing gemsbok on our bycicles in the desert - being chased by Hawkie (Mr Hawkens head of parks and gardens) in his Anglia. Cycling to the river and rescuing small fish from mud ponds after the floods. Care free days at the river during the holidays. Building split pole forts at the new houses - running when we saw Hawkie coming. Moth picnics at the log cabin - early 60s + Freemason guy fox nights - company Christmas parties. The great adventure when leaving town on holiday in June holidays. Acting out the movies in the 1st avenue trees on Saturdays. Playing in the dumps and building make shift houses out of the scrap. My first kiss at Allen Tooks birthday party - spin the bottle. Sundays - collecting Walls icecream + The Sunday Times at the cafe'. Boy scout years - being chosen as partol leader in std 5. Being a prefect in std 5 - the good schooling we had at Oranjemund Private School.
The best burgers and double thick malts from Cora's cafe' - never tasted beter!
High School and Working years to follow.
One of my best memories in Oranjemund, was one Saturday morning when I was a lot fitter than I am now, it had rained the whole nigh, that morning I climbed on my bike and cycled past the T junction as the the sun was coming up over Swartkops hill, braeking through the clouds, a rainbow, the desert wet, Gemsboks wandering down to the river, and that smell, the smell of wet, fresh rain in the desert, a clean kinda smell, that I've never been able to smell anywhere else.....
:)
I remeber the day they tarred our front road and pitched our back dirt road. I remeber thinking how sad it was that the lovely cobble road in front of the GM's place was tarred over. Who remembers going to the playschool - I do? I remeber riding all the routes on the 'Free' bus. I also remeber walking home from school through the periodic locust investations we had - those ones with the red under their wings.
yes, thank you I remember -they where biblical in numbers, my gosh, they swished under your shoes and bicycle tyres.
Usually the tar was so hot it melted during these infestations.
Yes Mike. The smell of the desert at all. How I miss that till today. All the smells in Southern Africa. winter
Hey Charles, I see you are on this site, I didn't know you could read! hehe
Paula
:)
Hi george, I agree with you....you never forget the smells of different places,
Mike says we will all be dissapointed with O/M today from how it was in the 60's, but i just want to smell that smell again and see the landscape and stand outside my old house on 2nd avenue and probable cry my eyes out......think dark glasses will be a must for the visit.
Bev x
It will be sad in many a sense, but familiar landmarks are there, and I'm pretty sure many a tale will be retold around the braaifire in the evenings when you lot get here.....
:emot78:
quickdop Yip everybody DRONK VERDRIET
You can't do poledancing and drink at the reunion, you might spill!
:emot19:
better get cups with lids :36_2_35:
I remember play school with Auntie Murgy (?). I remember hating it! Cheryl did you used to live up the end of 1st Ave? I remember coming to your house one day cos your cat had kittens. I still have my SubA school book where we wrote about your kittens! I posted a pic to the site and I think it is of Father Christmas (my dad Wally Jonker) coming to your house but not sure. Not sure if you remember me.... Lucille Jonker.
Cheryl used to live in 2nd Ave. almost at the end of town.
I dropped the kids of at school this morning, drove around the cricket field, it was misty, really misty, I glanced over towards the school, a memory came flashing back, there were the kids walking from the school bus across the cricket field, the grey, murky mist enveloping them..... I remember the fun we used to have in that mist in the mornings before school..... if you dragged your feet along the damp grass, you would create a form of wet art, a hidden pathway through the mist..... Sigh! to be a youth again....
msn emoticon (46)
Oh yes, great memory, Mike.
Remember cycling to school in the mist - when you got to school your cap and blazer would have millions of fine white droplets on them from the mist, almost like snow.
msn emoticon (46) too!
Something I truly miss about Oranjemund is those wonderful misty mornings - pea soup fog - and you knew that usually those days would be gorgeous.
Yep, Cherry Dead on there.
Had to post this in here.... the other day, whilst out the back of Spar, a memory came back to me..... Arthur and I were watching 3 kids on bikes..... cycling through puddles.... then going around in circles..... splashing non stop in that water..... it was there by the karate dojo.... huge puddle.... almost at the age of 40, I just wanted to climb onto a bike and join them.... just to ride on a bike, through a huge puddle in the middle of this desert town!!
23_146_26 :nono1:
Great memory, Mike. We just couldn't resist the puddles. Simply had to speed through them and see how far you can make the water "spat".
woo_hoo
In the 1950's CDM would close the school and send the red bus to take us home lest we get wet! Two days after that the school would send us all into the veld to admire the new smells and see all the new flowers and growth that would bring the desert alive.
Quote from: Michael Alexander on July 13, 2009, 04:35:07 PM
Had to post this in here.... the other day, whilst out the back of Spar, a memory came back to me..... Arthur and I were watching 3 kids on bikes..... cycling through puddles.... then going around in circles..... splashing non stop in that water..... it was there by the karate dojo.... huge puddle.... almost at the age of 40, I just wanted to climb onto a bike and join them.... just to ride on a bike, through a huge puddle in the middle of this desert town!!
23_146_26 :nono1:
Why did you not let yourself go and enjoy it Mike? I would have. I did that the first time I went back to France after spending a year in Dubai with no rain. As soon as the rain came down and the puddles filled up, I ran out and jumped in every puddle along the road. Yes, people did look at me strangly, but I'm sure they envied me for just letting loose ...
Quote from: Bertie Horak on July 13, 2009, 05:13:02 PM
Great memory, Mike. We just couldn't resist the puddles. Simply had to speed through them and see how far you can make the water "spat".
woo_hoo
Yessss!! And the water would often be warming your naked feet.... woo_hoo
As to Mikes comments above, I thought our daughter married a careful sensible and mature ADULT................!!!!!!!!!!!
Don't worry Jenny. That's normal. In Europe men attend cources on learning how to be a child again. Costs you a fortune. That sows the goodness of OM.... trex-073
Hope to see the pics when you've been at it Mike... :buffo9:
Quote from: Mike and Jenny Voden on July 14, 2009, 06:47:30 AM
As to Mikes comments above, I thought our daughter married a careful sensible and mature ADULT................!!!!!!!!!!!
23_146_26 ha ha allgood
As said before .. sooner have an adult that every now and again indulges the child and the joy of it . than an adult that is staid and then when the midlife hits , suddenly wakes up and wonders why it lived this boring life .. and then suddenly wants to get reckless ,, dispose of first wife , get the Harley and a new trophy wife .. seen it ...
getting back to the rain.....my first experience of rain in OMD was when I walked out of the bodybuilding/karate club/Squash club building one evening and felt a few drops of rain falling on me. I could not believe my eyes, but yes it was actually raining in OMD.
Playschool - the teacher's name was INGRID .. ?? 1980 . ex Worcester teacher. Who can remember her surname .. or recognise any of the children
another one. who was the teacher - & children ??