Just in time- for football season!

So, most of you probably don't know it but I'm a closet football watcher and fan. The preseason just started. Farve just signed with the Vikings. Can it get any better than this?! Ahem, for you South Africans out there, I am referring to American football, not soccer. And yes, I know what else you are thinking, "football players are wimps, what's up with all those pads?...". Sorry, you can't compare football and rugby; they're completely different. Trust me. One you throw the ball forward, the other you throw the ball backward to move it forward...still not sure about that one.

Cash for Clunkers

The first thing on my list of things to do to 'settle back into life in America' was to buy a car. Well, I may be going to plan B. The timing of my arrival coincided with the start of the government's Cash for Clunkers program which was so successful, it is shutting down on Monday. Everybody's buying cars, trading in their clunkers. The inventory is little to nil, especially for the Toyota Rav4. And the incentives and rebates I heard about the entire time I was in South Africa, nearly non-existent. This is crazy. So, I'll either have to custom order and wait a couple of months or wait for new inventory to arrive and make sure it includes the car I want for the same amount of time. Decisions decisions. On to looking for a house to buy in the supposed current buyer's market. Although, I just saw that it seems the housing market is recovering?! What timing.

Mangwanani Spa Day- Baie Baie Lekker!

I heard about this fabulous spa retreat (good and relatively cheap) outside of Pretoria (close by) but never had the chance to visit. So, I finally brought up the subject with some coworkers and we had a girls Saturday at Mangwanani. It was originally supposed to be a night spa but for whatever circumstances we made it a full day. And it was completely worth it! Thanks Danielle for the treat. (If you have never experienced being pampered for a day, I highly recommend it at least once in your lifetime!)

Our welcome upon arrival.

The bed for my first treatment.

Relaxing between treatments.

Sonja, Danielle, Yolande.

Aliwal Shoal with the Sharks

We took a weekend trip down to see the ragged tooth shark at Aliwal Shoal. I didn't think I would get a change to go shark diving as 1. The best time to go is July/August 2. My time in South Africa was running out. But, my friends Dewald and Heidi graciously invited me to go with them one July weekend. This was my chance to dive with the sharks. And no, this was not cage diving. To be honest, I was not scared at all. And while down below, they just seemed like big fish. With big, ragged teeth. The picture below shows one smiling at us, showing off his teeth :)

More pictures:
http://picasaweb.google.com/backroads.traveler/AliwalShoalSharkDiving?authkey=Gv1sRgCOesuI_O4YXifA&feat=directlink

I've landed.

It's been just short of 2 weeks since I landed in Minneapolis, MN to start my new job with Medtronic. After a whirlwind 1st week of landing one day late (due to a cancelled flight out of Joburg), one luggage short, my brother's wedding in Colorado Springs, I've had a pretty subdued 2nd week of work, car shopping, and settling in. I think I'm going to continue this blog for a while since part of my time in South Africa includes my transition back to America. As I adjust, my perspectives are definitely changed. There are things I now realize I've missed these past 2 years. And I'm trying to decide if the bigger culture shock was moving to South Africa or back to Minneapolis working at our corporate headquarters after 14 years being away. I'm thinking it's the latter. Stay tuned.

Meanwhile, the following entries will be a follow-up to display pictures I promised from my busy July in Africa.