From Merrivale 14.2.1993

From Merrivale

14.2.1993

Dear Alan, Lorna & Girls,

Very many thanks to all of you for the lovely holiday you gave us & for all you did for us , it was really appreciated, & I hope it won’t be another 5 years before I see you all again.

We had a terrible journey home & it really has put me off of flying, not that I was particularly fond of flying before.  the plane broke down in Perth & they had us siting on the tarmac in the plane for over 3 hours, while they made up their minds whether to take  a chance & fly  to Mauritius ( have a good look & see if you can see one tiny island between Perth & Mauritius ) or to put us into hotels in Perth, while they tried to find  a new fuel pump in Perth – after 2 hours they treated one & the mechanics fitted it , 7 the pilot came on the air to apologise & say by now it was too late to take us off the plane & get us all back on the plane all 349 of us. I can tell you there were plenty of moans & roans & by the time we got to Johannesburg 2 of the toilets were out of order.  We arrived safely 2 hours late & Neal & Vanessa picked us up & took us to the Hayes for breakfast & then we came straight home.  The Hayes weren’t very pleased with us as they had made all sorts of plans for us, but by that time all we wanted was home.

Neal & all the  Smiths/Jones had put a new window in our room, put in built in cupboards along one wall & Lesley had painted the whole room – so it’s looking lovely & cozy & we are nicely settled in.

We have had nonstop visitors since we came home – then last week I had Debbie’s kids while she was in hospital. Matthew James is very good & looks just like the other 2 boys. Jema & Garrett had a party in Durban this weekend & all the family went down – but Dad & I stayed home to have a quiet time on our own.

It is very hot, but we have had good rains & the dam is full. Jimmy & Jenny have bought the Walter hotel in Bergville so Jenny is trying to sell the house to help pay for it. Jimmy leaves work at the end of the month. Thanks again.

                                Tons of love from

                                Dad & Mum