Wednesday 22nd December

Went to use the computer at TOP Banana, even though it was closed. We had planned to have the final review meeting at 10.00, but as the time of the football match had now been moved to the morning, we had it at 14.00 instead.

The meeting went well and Kedi, Petros and Lovemore appeared confident that the work already completed would continue in my absence. They were all happy to work together and we agreed a number of actions that would take place, which I would add in to my report.

After the meeting we went along to the playground where football matches were still being played. I was going to take the truck home, but just before I drove off I spied Wada! It was lovely to see her, especially as she was the only child I had seen really since TOP Banana had closed. I ran over and in my delight, did what came most naturally to me and gave her a hug and kiss on the cheek. I think she was a little shocked by this display of affection!

As it was Cecil and Denises last day and night, it was nice to watch a film with them, bake coffee cake and drink Amarula! We watched 'Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe'. Later I gave them each a present to say thank you for letting me stay with them. Both were really pleased and we were all in high spirits.

Thursday 23rd December

My alarm was set for 4.45 so that I could say goodbye to Cecil and Denise. It was so dark! Getting me prepared for back home…. But the sun soon came up and the sky looked beautiful. I hadn't been up early enough to watch the sun rise since I had arrived and it was peaceful watching the sky turn from red to pink.

Cecil and Denise set off at 5.30 and it was strange to think that this would be the last time we saw each other. I waved them off then opted to take Sally for a walk and take advantage for being up so early when it was cool-ish. It was a nice long walk around the village - apart from the point where we were surrounded by 4 barking dogs and Sally ran off to leave me to deal with them. I had to giggle to myself as she is such a big dog, but sometimes she can be a complete and utter wuss!

I had planned to meet Petros at the playground at 08.00, but after 30 minutes of waiting I figured plans had changed! After locating him, I took him to Bobbies Chicken Farm as he needed to get authorisation to play at the grounds.

While we were waiting for the relevant people to arrive, I watched the people at work. It made me think about what I had previously said, and others had said, about the Botswana people and their reluctance to work. Bobbies Chicken Farm employs a lot of people as there are around 30,000 chickens at the farm to tend to. They often work 6 or 7 day weeks. Some work on the roads, some by ploughing land, some through selling Orange and Mascom airtime, ice pops and sweets at the side of the road (not sure how lucrative this is though). So perhaps there is work if you want it…….

I had the tv on today and 'Joy to the World' and a couple of other carols were being belted out! It made me feel Christmassy!

Sitting out on the porch I hear the herdsman making his usual noises…. Whistling followed by "EY! EY! EY!" and other loud calling. Interestingly Kedi and the others make similar noises to the children when they are trying to get their attention!

Friday 24th December - Christmas Eve

I've been opening the calendar that I brought over from the UK which has helped me keep track of the days and remind me its Christmas. But today didn't have the same magic about it, as it would have back home.

So the day started with a long long walk for Sally and then driving around the village with Kedi to get food for the football team. They would be playing two games today, so would be fed in between. I had asked Kedi about the 'big tree' as been told that there was a huge tree which was a bit of a tourist attraction and that I would have to see it before I left. It was nice because as we were getting food in that part of the village, Kedi suggested going to see it.

It was definitely the biggest tree I have ever seen in my life! You could easily fit around 300 people underneath it was breathtaking.

Once back at TOP Banana I helped her to prepare food, although ended up having to wait an hour for Lovemore to get some additional equipment. I had brought along the rest of the coffee cake with me to give Lovemore and Petros a slice as it would be their birthdays over the Christmas break.

Petros was going to his village for Christmas and had decided, as the mornings match had gone so well, that the trophy was in sight and didn't need him to coach them for the last match. He gave the team a pep talk and then told them it was his birthday the next day (he would be 41). I then reminded the kids that water should be thrown over the person whose birthday it was - and proceeded to squirt Petros with my bottle of water, to thunderous applause and whooping from the team. Petros found it very amusing as did everyone else, and with that he said goodbye and that was the last I saw of him…..

When I got back to the house I realised that I had burnt the cake that I had made for Emily and her family - I would have to bake another!

So the afternoon was spent walking to the Post Office (trying to do so before the storm set in) and sending some Christmas messages to friends and family. I gave the two ladies at the Post Office a slice of cake each and Christmas card. They were very pleased! So much so, that I did not have to pay for my 2 hours of internet use! Merry Christmas!

At about 5 I headed over to the playground to catch the final match. The sky was looking very threatening, and having already had one rainstorm, I prepared myself to be caught in a second. The match should have been an easy one, but ended up being a real nail biter. We needed to at least draw and at one point we were 1 goal down. But eventually we turned it around, and when the final whistle blew, everyone went ballistic running onto the pitch! By now it was about 6.30 and in approximately 30 minutes we would be in darkness. As I didn't have the truck, I was anxious to get walking back to the house, and so said my goodbyes.

I walked fast home, deciding to take the road route as it would be less scary than walking though the bush. Not that there was anything to be scared of, but after all, I am a wimp! I made good time and didn't get too much attention from anyone…with Sally being over the moon to see me.

It ended up being a really rushed evening. I had to make a second cake and wrap some presents ready for the next day. Khelina stayed over (somehow the shrimp spiders found out as a couple of those began running around!) which I was really pleased about as I wanted to share Christmas Eve with someone that I was close to. We watched a film and had some popcorn and crisps as a treat, going to bed pretty late.

Saturday 25th December - Christmas Day

To make the most of the day, I was up at 5am this morning walking Sally round the lake - she was a little disappointed that we returned home so soon as had been having some really long walks with me over the past week.

I decided to wear my traditional dress today as it felt like a special day. Khelina and I walked to Emily's so that we could decide on the plan for the day. I met Emily's puppy 'Patch' he was absolutely adorable, but I soon realised after stroking him that he was covered with oil. He looked so sweet. The chickens were even bigger than him! I also saw Bingo, their old one eyed dog - he is the oldest and it's quite clear that all the other dogs respect him and that he is the boss!

We decided that the children would pop down to the house for the morning so that I could make them pancakes. I was really looking forward to it - although I began to regret it once I started cooking…. It was so HOT! About one hour's worth of sweating later - all the pancakes were made and offered to the children. They actually didn't seem bothered at all….. but I hope that it was a nice treat for them.

Then it was on to the preparations for lunch. It was strange as felt a little like a Christmas Day back home as everyone seemed to have their own jobs and there was a focus on getting the cooking done, timing everything so that it was all ready at the same time. My Christmas dinner consisted of rice, coleslaw, mashed potato (with mayonnaise), cold baked beans, Soya mince and a really hot spicy dip. Very different to back home! I was a little surprised that no prayer was said before tucking in to the meal - perhaps this was because of the generation?

I had a call this morning from Josie and then mum called after lunch. I also had a text from dad and Ann saying that I would be missed. It was lovely to be thought of.

After lunch I gave my gifts to the children - all kept them to open later (I hoped they would like them!). I had already given Tapiwa my trainers to pass on to Thande; it was unfortunate as I had hoped I might have seen her today but that was not to be the case. I was really surprised to be given a present from Tapiwa! It was so thoughtful, especially as she has not got much money at all. I was touched.

After lunch, I was able to have 45 minutes on my own. Having just put on a pot of coffee, I heard the screech of the gate and Khelina appeared. She was here to take me up to the house so that I could meet her dad. In a way it was good that she had come down so early as I think I would only have fallen asleep and wasted the day.

I was surprised when I was introduced to Emily's husband. He was drunk and was behaving like an immature school boy! Very different to Emily, but they do say opposites attract! I was also formerly introduced to Emily's oldest son - who was also drunk and had been drinking with his father and other friends since 8am that morning. We cut the chocolate cake that I had made and we all sat down round the table and ate and chatted. I tried the local beer 'Shake Shake' which came in a carton, had a thick white milkshake like appearance and tasted of yeast. Needless to say I didn't drink too much of it!

Later I was introduced to one of the uncles and I was a little confused, as considering family is valued highly in Botswana, the uncle didn't seem to know much about the children….. Tapiwa and Khelina waited hand and foot on him, cooking meat and serving up. Emily seemed to be giving orders and there was a very different dynamic to one that I had seen with the girls before. I asked to be shown the kitchen and was surprised at how organised it was. There was a gas stove, a place on the centre of the floor for an open fire, plenty of shelves. There was one small hole in the wall for the window - but Tapiwa was saying that the whole room would fill up with smoke and often hurt your eyes the door had to be kept open. It was very dark inside, part of this due to the smoke having stained the walls black. It was really great to see.

I wanted to ask to be shown the hut that all the siblings lived in but thought this might have felt a little intrusive - 6 of them stayed in one small hut.

As the skies had started getting darker and it was threatening to rain, Khelina and I said our goodbyes and began to walk home. We stopped off at her Grandma Anna's, the lady that had made the woven bowls. It was interesting seeing one of the houses on the plot of land as it had air-con, electricity and television. One of the poshest I had seen in the village.

I also met another uncle (there are 7 families that live next to each other and all had grown up in the village). We had a good conversation about TOP Banana and he said that part of the problem with the community not being fully supportive of TOP Banana, was that the Chief of the village was not and he needed to be more involved. He said that what we were doing was a good thing and that everyone should fully support it.

After our drink with this part of Khelinas family, we walked off back to the house. It was now dusk and I just had time to walk Sally again around the lake before the darkness set in. Once we were showered, and I had spoken with Amy, we settled down to watch a film 'Proof'. Quite a good film, but Khelina went to bed early (never heard of for Khelina!) as she was so tired. I followed shortly after her - it had been a long old day, but as Christmases go, not a bad one at all!

Sunday 26th December - Boxing Day

This morning was overcast and windy, perfect for walking Sally so we had a long walk of about 2 hours round the village. I enjoyed watching her as we walked around, and I was glad that I was not joined by Bonwell.

Back at the house I spent the next few hours packing. Whilst I had given the majority of my clothes away, I ended up filling up with Ricks t-shirts and gifts for people, so my bag was still bursting at the seams.

After the bag packing I cleaned the house from top to toe which took me another couple of hours. Luckily I did this just in time, as soon the water had stopped again. I thought this was so strange, as when I had arrived in the village, there had been no water either.

After this I had to ice the cake I had made for Charmaine… no rest for the wicked. But it was a good job I was so busy because as soon as I stopped I began getting really sad and tearful about leaving.

I managed to squeeze in another walk for Sally before Tapiwa and Khelina came down at 4.30pm to pick up some of their stuff from the fridge and also to help me with my bags, up to bus stop.

Dear me the last 15 minutes were manic! I had to move the cat and dog food to the store room and attempt to get the cats out of the house. However this was rather difficult as the cats didn't like Tapiwas children and so Muse was hiding in Cecil and Denises room and I had no idea where Em had gone! Eventually we located Em outside so I just needed to carry Muse out of the house. I asked Tapiwa to keep the children in the kitchen; as if Muse saw them she would have scratched my arms to pieces….. so when I got the all clear sign from Tapiwa I walked through the corridor to the living room with Muse tightly in my arms….only to be met with ascreaming Amantle tearing through the living room! So the battle was on to stop Muse from using my arm as a scratching post and to get her out of the house as fast as I could.

Finally, 2 cats and 1 dog were outside with the bags and food. And with that I locked up.

By this point Sally had worked out that something wasn't quite right. She was looking at my very large bag with an alarmed look on her face, I think she knew that I might be going away…..we all walked though the gate and once all out, I turned around to go back and say goodbye on my own. I had a bit of a cry as Sally looked at me with a combination of longing and affection. Such a beautiful dog that I would miss so much. Having said my goodbyes, and wiping my eyes so the girls did not see (animals are not something to get attached to in Botswana) I walked out of the gate, closing it behind me, with Sally remaining fixated on my face. She paced a little, but never moved from the corner of the fence and watched me as I walked up the long straight lane to Emily's house. I kept turning and she was still there watching, until both I and her, disappeared from view. I was so upset…..

Tapiwa, and Khelina waited by the side of the road with me (having said goodbye to Emily at this point) and they tried to get me a lift. No one was interested but eventually a mini bus came along with just enough room to squeeze one more person in! It was a very rushed goodbye as I was panicking about getting on the bus, but maybe that was better as otherwise I may have got upset again.

The journey to Francistown went smoothly and I tried to take in all of the surroundings, as this might be my last time I would ever do this journey. Sandwiched between two men, with a cake container and rucksack on my legs, I smiled to myself at my adventure….

I was picked up from the bus stop by Charmaines daughter Roseanne - she was very chatty and I felt at ease right away! When we arrived at Charmaines I was surprised at how many people had come along to the picnic in the park that she was hosting. A long table had been set up with about 20 chairs around it. I talked with some of the expats that I had met before and also others that I hadn't - one of whom was a lady called Elaine. A really lovely Canadian woman that had grown up close to Alaska and invited us to use her pool! It was a lovely evening with nice company, food and wine - but I was pleased when it was time for bed as I was exhausted. It had been quite an emotional day.

Monday 27th December

It was a lovely day today. I slept like a log and got up at 0900, a much needed lie in after all my 0500 starts. I managed to get some more photos uploaded on the blog and pick up a few emails.

Charmaine mentioned that Roseanne and I had something in common…. The Indian restaurant… so we sneaked off here at lunch together. I had a lovely time. The food was really tasty (Dahl and rothi) and conversation thought provoking and humorous!

After we all went round to Elaine's and used the pool (I just dangled my legs) and took the cake round that I had made. We had already been given a tour of the house; it was stunning and I could certainly imagine myself living there! They had some beautiful craft and artwork. It was a nice afternoon and we had more great conversation. Elaine and her husband John were perfect hosts and made sure we had plenty of snacks and drinks.

In the evening a few of us went to the club and played pool. Roseanne and I ended up staying to play more pool and we had a real laugh. Arriving back at the house we tried to be as quiet as we could - which didn't really work. I think we had worried Dave and William, who had a few stern words to say when we got in. So with our tail between our legs, we crept off to bed, giggling away like naughty teenagers.

Tuesday 28th December - D Day

So here it is. My last morning. Home time. I'm excited, apprehensive and sad all mixed into one.

I woke up at 0600 to go to the loo and had a very thick head. I need to find another drink other than wine!

It was another busy day at Charmaines and she was off to Pilates, so we said a quick goodbye and she was gone….. Would I ever see her again? Soon after I was saying goodbye to Sarah, Rachel and William, and headed off to the airport with Roseanne.

Francistown - Johannesburg, 11.30am

The waiting room was incredibly small with a small counter in which to check your bags in. The weighing scales for baggage was literally that - a small set of weighing scales on the floor! When we arrived we were nice and early so were able to get a seat and watch all the people arriving.

There was a miserable looking couple (the man kept on staring at Roseanne for some reason, the lady looked like a spade had hit her in the face), a group of Chinese people with a really cute child that was wearing corduroy shorts and braces, a white woman with a British passport (we were trying to listen to her accent to try to establish which part of the UK she was from. Later I spoke to her in a toilet in Johannesburg airport and it turned out she was a welsh lady that worked in a school in Francistown and actually knew Rick and Charmaine! Crazy!) and a man that kept on carrying one heavy suitcase at a time from the truck parked outside to the scales and back again (this went on for about 10 suitcases!).

Finally, about 30 minutes before we were due to depart, I went through security. I said goodbye to Roseanne as she had waited with me all this time and walked through to the next room. We discovered that I had left my water in the bag so I had to get rid of that. I also totally forgot to give the house keys to Roseanne so asked the security man to run after Roseanne. Unfortunately he could not find her - but I think she must have heard him shouting as she soon appeared with a grin on her face to take the keys from me.

The even smaller room with Abba blasting away (the music choice is very bizarre in Francistown!) was now getting cramped, but luckily it was not long before I boarded the tiny jet propelled plane.

The journey had a little turbulence but was fine and 1.30 hours later, I landed in Johannesburg.

So this was my home for the next 7 hours! It was quite nice to not have to rush around and so the first thing I did was get some food as it was now about 1pm. I must have stayed in the restaurant for almost 3 hours and used it as an excuse to catch up writing in my diary. Once the checkout had opened, I checked my bag in and was much freer to move around. It was a bit of a mission to try and find the way through to the departures lounge, but eventually having asked a number of people, I was sorted.

I wandered around and bought a couple of keepsakes (I bought 8 lovely handmade African cards which I had worked out as being about £2.50 each, only later to find from my credit card statement that they were £5.00! Ouch!). My last hour was spent with a white wine spritzer, reflecting on my 3 months in Africa.

Johannesburg - Dubai, 7pm

I was hoping that I would sleep on this flight as it was 7pm - 5am so an ideal time, but I couldn't sleep at all. I was sat next to a long haired man, who was very pleasant and ever so chatty. Unfortunately I just wasn't in the mood to have any lengthy conversations - I was so tired, it kept going really hot and there was no air in the cabin at all.

I was glad to finally touch down in Dubai although it seemed to take forever to get us off the plan and inside the terminal building. I managed to pick up a bottle of Amarula (I had attempted this at Johannesburg but was told that as I had a connecting flight to Dubai I was not allowed to carry it) before boarding my final flight to London. Waiting in the lounge to board the plane and seeing the sign that said 'London' I felt so much closer to home!

Dubai - London, 5am

The flight was on time and luckily this one was not full. These meant that I had two empty seats next to me, so could lie down and get some sleep - which I managed 5 hours of on and off. I watched some of the 'Cougar Town' episodes and had some food. Getting a bit sick of plane food now though I can tell you!

So here I am on the A380-800 airbus, with estimated travel time left 35 minutes. Looking out of the window earlier I saw snow everywhere and it brought a big grin onto my face. I have butterflies thinking about seeing dad and the kids at the airport! How exciting! We are about to land! Woohoo! Can't wait to see Felix!