All posts by Claire

About Claire

Wandering (and wondering) development professional and aspiring aid worker. Contact me on anticipationofwonder[at]gmail[dot]com

Day-time travel

Travel is always invigorating, if occassionally somewhat exhausting. Long-distance buses can be particularly exhausting. I also find them frustrating. I love buses. They’re a great way to see the world. Sadly, buses service in South Africa is limited. Although there are several bus lines, they all seem to run services only at night. Nights are nice. They can be really pretty. But they’re not great for seeing the country. The bits of the country the bus passes through in daylight are beautiful. I suppose part of the reason it is so beautiful is the time of day – dusk and dawn are magical times of day. The wheat-fields glow golden in the early morning sun streaming through the clouds. But I miss being able to see the country I’m passing through. I remember one trip through the Karoo during the day. I was travelling on specially chartered bus (we were off to an event). We left Cape Town in the morning and travelled all day. It was a beautiful opportunity to see the Karoo. It’s a part of the world I love – wide open spaces stretching to the horizon.

*goes in search of buses that travel during the day* Or trains…

One swallow does not a summer make

Two little swallows sit on the wall and watch me through the kitchen window, as I wash dishes and wait for my freshly-baked muffins to bake. Their black-streaked chests framed by red-edged back wings are too small to be magnificent. Their beady-eyed faces looking worried. They have just returned in the last few days from wherever it is they spend their Northern Hemisphere summers to nest under the roof outside the front door.

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Return of the rain

The rain has returned. Outside my window it falls and falls. Gentle, soaking rain. The new green grass (so recently returned) soaks it in. Plants seem to regenerate right there in front of me.

Rain means so many different things to different people. It has taken these few months since my return to love rain again. In Korea, particularly in Daegu, it rains all the time, especially in summer. Rain becomes an annoying, ordinary part of every day. It is something you complain about but also an inevitability around which you organise your life. I took to carrying an umbrella in my handbag or my daypack at all times. Constant, pouring rain becomes the norm.

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