Happy New Year from the Golden Gate National Park.

1/9/2020

Already over a week into the new year and we’ve been pedaling in the same rhythm, but through amazing new landscapes up here in the “Free State” of South Africa in much higher elevations (around 6000f). Stopping here and there to take in the scenery and taking a breath as the sights take our breath away. Lesotho on our right - we wave to the mountain peaks not daring to cross into the other country:We find ourselves with visa issues  - we are learning that - if we leave South Africa to visit Lesotho, we probably won’t be able to come back in to SA unless we have 30 days or more on our original visa (we are due to leave SA on the 21st of this month). So we just pedal around it and wave, stop and gaze.

Dropped pin
https://maps.google.com?q=-28.5157486,28.4129526&hl=en-US&gl=us

The mountains are astonishing in it’s beauty. Higher altitude gives us a variation of temperatures, rain, hail and wind. I’d rather be tossed around by the elements than influenced by the unsettling political state of this country.
We are still getting confused with horror stories about white farmers getting threatened, robbed, rapped and killed. When we left Hofmeyr, I was so shaken up by our hostess’ stories, my teeth were chattering.....We were basically fleeing from the village passing dark humans with dark sunglasses -on a cloudy day- pointing at us and our bicycles. I was so uncomfortable I wanted to scream. All the while I told myself that - even though the stories are true, no doubt - that isn’t all and I soon be talking to somebody with a more positive outlook.
Let me back up to the earlier days, after leaving the coast, when we came through a village named Alicedale. We didn’t get too far, but away from the village when we both realized we are climbing a dirt road into a very remote area high into the mountains with hardly any settlements, but lots of fences...all along the road. So we stopped at the first driveway. James climbed over the rusty gate with a heavy lock in search for humans. Friendly dogs barking, but the heavy cloud of negative thoughts in my head had all kinds of dangerous scenarios build in.
James was gone too long and I couldn’t see him anymore and I kept singing songs to keep my brain from thinking.
He came back signaling thumbs up...I exhaled, not realizing I had been holding my breath.
We were good to go - spending the night in a home made hunters cabin.

Safe, happy, secure....Our hostess and her daughter introduced themselves -she was visibly happy to help us out.
We scored again, but I couldn’t help myself by thinking: this wouldn’t happen if our skin color wasn’t white. (Which our hostess willingly confirmed)
We climbed (pushing the bikes a lot) a difficult pass the next day - so glad we didn’t attempted it the night before.

20km took us 4 hours and we were out of  drinking water.
The village Riebeek East on the other side- finally on a paved road again - provided another surprise: We asked for water in a private residence and wound up staying, getting fed a gourmet dinner and sleeping in a clean beautiful bed in our “own” room.

 Thank you!!!!

Relaxed, fed and watered we took a dirt road shortcut the next day and that proved to be our last attempt on dirt -road -short cuts!

No more after that! Again we didn’t make it very far that day in 115 degrees f and when we hit the paved road after having climbed another difficult pass in the dirt (though the scenery was beautiful, we had to concentrate on every rut and rock right in front of us which could potentially throw one off the bike.), we were rescued again by a generous  older couple (mid 60s..hahaha..) who let us stay in an abandoned, empty farm house. (They rented a litte home on the premises)
It was eerie - I could feel and see that this place was once a happening place ....and now it was undesired/forgotten. Old beauty was lurking in it’s dried out corners and I wished the walls could tell me their stories.

All the way to the end of the year 2019 when we reached the town of Lady Grey we rode through Game farms:

South Africa is considered to be one of the hallmarks for game farms and game reserves. The biodiverse ecosystem that exists in South Africa is the foundation that provides one of the most prosperous game meat in the African continent. The land displays a diverse array of animals such as the Big Five; lion, leopard, rhinoceros, elephant, and Cape buffalo. Game farms are said to have produced new avenues for prosperity such as trophy hunting, game-meat production, and eco-tourism.
Tourism is viewed as key strategy that can eventually lead to economic prosperity which in turn would promote development in the local communities. The South African government has capitalized on this through utilizing their wildlife to promote ecotourism. Post-apartheid, significant developments have been made to achieve success in this area. Today, an abundance of tourists and travelers flock to South Africa with their main goal being to see its natural environment. Game Farms are said to deliver a unique experience because they provide the opportunity for visitors to observe and experience wildlife at close range. The South African government has made efforts to utilize these game farms as developed sustainable ecotourism attractions. Wildlife hunters are extremely attracted to private games farms which can produce higher income compared some of South Africa’s most successful nature reserves. The commercial success of these game farms has forced many agricultural farms to adapt and be converted into game farms.
Game farming in the Eastern Cape has been cited as land-use practice issue which has left many feeling disenfranchised This stems from the context of wealth, class, and race which are said have created a diverse range of problems for local communities. People who do not have the financial structure to enter a game farm are said to appropriate bushmeat through illegal hunting where poachers are the primary actors. Structural inequalities between various stakeholders are at the epicenter of the issue. Game farms create network that is internationally proactive and interconnected but fractured at the local level due to racial inequalities that have plagued South Africa. This dichotomy of the two networks have created spaces for international clients and local elites to congregate and engage in trophy hunting due to private ownership which in turn ignores the advancement of rural employment.

Every little/big town we approach has it’s townships (basically ghettos)
which are bigger than the town itself.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Township_(South_Africa)

I would really like to talk with the families, the township occupants, but I am chicken, to tell you the truth...Never, ever did I think I could feel like this and I can recognize how “white” my thinking and acting is and I don’t know how to get out of this vicious circle....
I am open to learn more. How far do I need to get “out of my bubble” -my comfort zone -to understand more?