Our Family Newsletter Christmas 2008
The Woods Down Under
Special events in our
family’s life:
SA & Thailand visit July
2008. Page 1 & 2
The Woods acquire a
camper October 2008 The Woods on the Deck at 124 Carlisle Rd.
Page 3
Happy holidays from our family to yours!
Individual Highlights:
It has been a long time since we sent out a newsletter so I thought a Christmas
Alf self-publishes his first
newsletter from Down Under would be a good idea.
book. Page 3
Evan goes into the final
Eight years down-under
year. Page 3
Darren & Amanda’s new It’s hard to believe that we have been in New Zealand for eight years.
home. Page 4 It is almost as if we have never lived anywhere else.
Irene’s Column. Page 4 Life in NZ has been good to us. We have had our share of ups and downs but
generally we have no regrets moving here.
We have managed to acquire a small property portfolio and have had three
overseas trips, to Australia in 2005, London 2006 and SA & Thailand 2008.
We have two of our three boys here with us so life is good. Of course it would be
better if we had more family here in NZ. Thank goodness for the Internet.
Thank goodness for the internet.
SA & Thailand Trip July 2008
As previously mentioned, we decided to make a return trip to SA after an eight year
absence.
We thought it a good idea to incorporate a week in Thailand en route. Unfortunately
Evan was writing exams at university so we had to leave without him. He joined us
in Bangkok a few days later and only had two days and one night there. We, on the
other hand, had five wonderful days in Bangkok. What a great city; a shopper’s
paradise. The Thai people are fantastic, so warm and friendly – such a beautiful,
smiling people.
Alf & Evan in China Town Street It was great to be back in SA after so long. We noticed a huge change both positive
market Bangkok and negative. Security is an issue and we found that not being able to walk around
freely was restraining. We have become so used to the relative freedom of living in
New Zealand.
Lone Hill - Johannesburg
Page 2 of 5
The wonderful thing about going back Ingrid’s dad were also in JHB and we
to SA was catching up with all our managed to spend a day with them at
friends and family. The highlight the Oliver Tambo Botanical gardens.
being the great Spit Braai which Even though it was winter the weather
Margie and Jo put on for us at their was glorious and we had a lovely day.
lovely home in Lone Hill. It was a
brilliant day and seeing all the family
and friends again was a very
emotional affair. That is what we miss
the most about living so far away. We
miss our friends and family. It was
On the way to the Bangkok also wonderful that Brad, Denise and
International Airort Ethan joined us in Jo’burg. We were
very spoilt grandparents, having our
grandson with us for two weeks.
Irene’s brother, Anthony, his wife
Ingrid and son Sammy as well as
Durban & Umhlanga
After a week in Jo’burg we headed off It was lovely to see Irene’s Brother
to Durban. We hired a holiday flat in Richard and his family again. They are
Umhlunga for a week. We drove down well and still living in Durban.
in two cars, Brad, Denise, and Irene in Christopher, Richard’s eldest is studying
one car and Alf, Margie, Evan and Civil Engineering at Natal University and
Ethan in the other. Andrew (the youngest) has just finished
The weather in Natal was fantastic; I matric. Both are very bright and have
had actually forgotten how perfect done well.
the weather can be in Durban and the Steven Stead and Mary Cooper, dear
Natal coast in winter. The friends from Bluff Drama organized a
temperature was in the early to mid lovely re-union get-together at Dee
twenties, just perfect. Stead’s house on the Bluff. It was
We did a lot while in Durban. We wonderful seeing all those great people
visited Phezulu Safari Park in the again. Unfortunately due to Mary and
Valley of a Thousand Hills. U-Shaka Bob’s son Alan being mugged and
the new entertainment centre south assaulted that very day we were unable
of the old Addington hospital near the to see Mary but Bob and Angela came as
docks. We also visited all our old well as Don Jones, Wendy (Nicholson)
haunts like Ballito, Blythedale Beach, and her Husband, Rory and Sascha,
Stanger and the Bluff. Steven and Greg and of course, Dee. We
had a lovely evening reminiscing about
Zulu dancers at a cultural turist
Pilansburg the wonderful days of Bluff Drama.
----------------------
park. Phezulu – Feel the rhythm
of Africa.
On our return from Durban Margie and see them on the web cam on the
Jo had booked us into a Chalet at Kwa television set in the room. You could
Maritane resort in the Pilansburg then make your way through the tunnel
Game reserve. It has become the third to the hide at the waterhole and
largest game reserve in South Africa observe the animals close up. Just
and now belongs to the National Parks wonderful.
Board. We had a lovely Chalet with
We saw four of the big five; only the
all the mod cons including a web cam
cheetah was elusive. We had a great
hook-up to the water hole near the
holiday in SA and Thailand and vowed to
resort. So if there were any animals
do it again soon.
drinking at the water hole one would
Page 3 of 5
The Woods acquire a camper!
Alf, Irene & Evan
124 Carlisle Road When we left SA in 2000 we had the
Browns Bay notion of buying a camper and travelling
Auckland, 0632 around the country. We were never
New Zealand
quite able to do it until now. In
Phone:
+64 9 476 8406 October while browsing around TradeMe
(our equivalent of Ebay) I came across
E-Mail: this little camper. It was advertised for
alfred.wood@gmail.com a very reasonable price so I decided to
irene.c.wood@gmail.com
etwood@gmail.com put in a bid. Well, to cut a long story
short, we won the auction and are now
proud owners of the little beauty.
Unfortunately we have had a very wet
winter so haven’t been able to take it
Darren & Amanda out enough. We have managed three
1/39A Fourth Avenue trips with it. The first time out it rained
Kingsland the whole weekend. And the second
Auckland, 1021
New Zealand
time it only rained half the weekend,
Phone: but the last time we were lucky and had
+64 21 784578 perfect weather. The summer has
finally inched its way in so we are really
E-Mail:
darren@dontcom.com
looking forward to using the camper
more often.
amanda@vortex.net.nz
Alf self-publishes his first book
Though I won’t win any prizes for literature, I do enjoy writing and have self-
published my first book. It is a trilogy of three short stories.
Slit trench
The story explores the friendship which develops between two young white South
African soldiers during the Angolan war of 1976. They are from completely different
backgrounds. One, Seun Joubert is from an ultra conservative Afrikaner family and
the other, Joel Lapinski is from a liberal Jewish family.
They are stuck in a slit trench together during a tense contact situation. While in
the slit trench they share their experiences, dreams and most intimate secrets.
It is a story of prejudice, bigotry and tragic sorrow, as well as an uplifting story of
warmth, friendship and love.
Mind the gap
An amusing mini story about an embarrassing situation experienced by a young man
on his overseas experience in London in the early 1970’s.
Gemini
A heart-warming tear jerker about a talented music student from Auckland, New
Zealand whose life makes a complete about-turn when he discovers something quite
incredible while studying at University in England.
Evan goes into his Final year
Evan has completed his second year at part of his course.
Auckland University. He is a very He has become very fitness conscious
conscientious student and has done and does quite a bit of exercise. He is
well, achieving A’s and B’s throughout looking really good and has lost an
the year. amazing amount of weight. He has
He goes into his third and final year in reached his goal of below 75 kg.
February and there is talk that he will He is still working hard in his spare
be spending one semester in China as time at the video shop on weekends.
Page 4 of 5 Darren & Amanda’s new house
Darren and Amanda have bought a See pics on Darren’s Flickr: (CTRL Click)
house in the lovely quaint suburb of
http://www.flickr.com/photos/darren/sets
Kingsland in Auckland. They have
/72157604164328148/
become very domesticated and keen
DIY-ers. The wedding is planned for February 2010.
This is to allow all friends and family from
They have had their bathroom
afar who wish to come to gather funds for
completely renovated as well as
the long trip down under.
adding a very functional laundry to
the house. They have also refurbished The wedding arrangements are well
the bedrooms and are constantly in underway. It’s going to be a cracker of a
the garden putting in veggies and wedding. We are so looking forward to it.
We wish you all herbs, etc.
Have a look at the renovation set on
a wonderful It is amazing how the time flies; I just Amanda’s Flickr. (CTRL Click)
realized that we actually spent last
http://www.flickr.com/photos/explode/col
festive season Christmas with them in the new house
lections/72157603786410121/
so they have been there over a year.
and a happy and
Oh and by the way, they have also got
prosperous 2009. engaged to be married.
Lots of love from
Alf, Irene, Evan,
Darren and
Amanda.
Darren & Amanda’s engagement party at Joy
Bong Bar on K 'Rd
Irene’s Column
Kiora. That is not how it is spelled but equals really tasty spice-laced meat –
that is how it is said - means, like seriously big pieces of meat cooked
“Howzit” in Maori. NZ has finally and served with “polenta”.
realized the value of South Africans. The Kiwi term, brick and tile, means a
Slowly but surely we are infiltrating shell, designed to look exactly like
their Kiwi-isma. bricks and mortar - comes in about 1m x
The Kiwikaaner or Amakiwi is your 1m sheets, (plak-on). Well, one nails it
dinkum boetie who comes here, all on, I think, but it fools South Africans.
hopeful and dry. The hope can last “Ek gaan vir my een van daai brick and
for a long time buy not the dryness. tile huise koop. Ek soek nie hierdie
This past winter would make England tooth picks en bruin papier huise.” We
feel arid. Jo-kiwi now knows what a smile indulgently and say, “Dit is net die
braai is. They consider themselves dop, oom!” Eventually they all
very lucky to be invited to one and capitulate and buy a paper and plank
feel doubly lucky if there is a house. We did! Looks like I have run
“poykie”. They all know that a braai out of space. Kisses to all of you! Irene