7 days left

i've spent many a hour dreaming, working, sewing, talking, and so about the wedding. and the wedding didn't dissapoint.
i've worked and stressed and cried and toiled with getting my K1 visa. and it's in the ,er, passport ready for entry.
honeymoon, what a pleasure to spend so much time, alone, with the my favourite person in the world. it was dreamlike and went by just as fast.

but here i am with one week left of living in south africa. this strange piece of time i didn't really think about.  so in between, so almost final, but not.  i've focused so on being ready to get off that 4th plane in Spokane WA, but haven't found my heart prepared for getting on that plane at O.R Tambo, Johannesburg. i'm getting there... i have to.

in the mean time, just a few recent pictures taken of my country (note: when i say 'my country' it always comes out russian accent sounding, with no reason...)

the knysna forest, i'm yet to find those fairies and those elephants

taken at the congo wildlife ranch, because when it rains on your honeymoon, you go to places like this

camps bay, western cape

driving on the N2 from Jefferys bay to Cape Town is officially my favourite drive in all the land

as long as this guy shows up at the airport next week i know i'll be just fine

when an african marries an american...

... this obviously happens,

meet our cake toppers. wedding is over, cake long eaten, but these cake toppers are still a source of great excitement and pride. i love them, and will keep them forever.

ingrid marais photography

diy bride: how i customized my dress

ingrid marais photography

now that the wedding is over and my handsome husband has seen the dress i can go ahead and tell you all about how I made an off the rack Davids Bridal dress my own.

all that was required of me was:

(for part one)

-the bravery to start doing something to my dress with no guarantee that it will work out.

-the patience of almost a trillion hours, or, evenings spent working on my dress as i watched the entire Mad Men series from 1-5.

-a pack of glass beads... and they cost only R10 (just over a dollar). damn i love china town!

-white thread, fine needle, steady hands.

(part two)

-a fresh and organic African 'veld' to attach itself to my dress.

these are obviously from 'the day after'. i really enjoy the dirt on the dress, like a token of a celebration in nature. proof of the most amazing day.

 

 

married

i'm a married woman!

success.

vietnam

vietnam:
 here i came for a 6 months adventure. here i stayed for almost 2 years, met my favourite person in the world and discovered a teacher in me, and i liked what i discovered.

america

right now i'm waiting for that all important call from the American Consulate JNB.  patiently waiting for a stranger to give me the go ahead.
the go ahead to book that one-way ticket.
a printed piece of paper with only one final destination, the symbol of my new reality. an exciting reality. a simple next step to be with my new husband, my best friend.
all it took was:

.a total of 8 months of anxious waiting
.a novel amount of forms completed, and then recompleted and then over completed and then completed again just for fun.
. 'evidence' of a real romance
.unabridged birth certificate, and R200 on the side to get in a week and not have to wait a dreaded 12weeks
.R1600 worth of medical checks and documents and inoculations
. police clearance. and a celebration of not needing a Vietnamese police clearance... dancing might have featured here.
. estimate 600usd for all together applications.
.  some sleepless nights, a bit of my sanity, a lot of faith.

all this because the attractive boy in the supermarket i met just under three years ago was not 'my own kind'  

rhino and lion say no

this past Saturday was rhino day.   the stats of rhino poaching are simply heart breaking.  what can be done to make it stop? hey asia, enough already!
while i'm at it  i'd like to ask friends to take a moment to punch anybody you know in the face that believe lion bones hold some kind of magical powers to cure them. go ahead and give them a punch.