rugby, braai, and the madhatter tea party

my weekend trip to the drakensberg mountains was postponed, so i instead joined the men in town to watch the sharks/griquas currie cup game at the beautiful tourgar estates owned by chris and his wife, who are neighbors to the brits family. it was a gorgeous afternoon with the sun out and not a single cloud in the sky. a few other neighbors showed up as well with their kids and there was plenty of cold beers, snacks and wine to go around. if you think american football can rally up a crowd of men with their budweisers, the afrikaaners and their windhoek will most assuredly humble you – and with a belgian in the house you might as well consider your plans to ‘drink responsibly’ – done with.

after the game, we hung out on the terrace overlooking the entire city of maritzburg. the estate is an impressive and beautiful plot of land – and was bought for only R600000 in 2003 (~$60,000)! there is an expanse of farm land where cattle and wild pigs are raised, and the property is surrounded by the most beautiful reservoirs occupied by swans and geese. extending out towards the back, there is literally an entire kingdom of cottages that chris has been building and maintaining over the past 6-7 years – all of which are inhabited by staff members or other families. you can tell that the entire place has been built with an impeccable eye for quality and is completely sourced by the areas own natural resources. quite amazing.

meanwhile, ali (miranda’s niece), who is in town from the cape, had been busy hosting a bachelorette party for her friend with 28 other girls at the dunaverty – though it was only a matter of time before the men would invade the premises and set the stage for the ‘unofficial’ max and chris show – the real knoxvilles of maritzburg.

after sundown – max, chris, stefan and i settled out into the backyard and fired up the grill to braai us some lamb chops, pork and sausages – filling up our wine glasses in between and chattering away through the night with stories that had us all laughing on our knees. i’ve never been happier to meet such stand-up guys. they are all such brilliant men with the most incredible histories and perspectives i have ever come across and they each share such an immense joy and passion for living. they will remain close brothers the day i leave this country through to the day i come back. i love them all dearly.

the remainder of the night was filled with festivities, new friends, song and dance, amarula and wine, beautiful desserts and cocktails, and an abundance of good conversation that would last throughout until the early hours of the morning … to a final close of the most memorable weekend yet.