South Africa - Load-Shedding

South Africa

"A place your feet may leave but your heart will always be" 

Load Shedding – the term the term coined by the South African power utility, Eskom, to cover up their inadequacies as regards efficient maintenance of the power producing plants in South Africa.

This has a ripple effect on all business in our country, from large Corporate companies to smaller folk trying to make a decent living. Not everybody can afford a generator so we groan and moan about Eskom and the new F Word = LS.

My mantra for some time now has been “For every Negative, there is a Positive”
So we cannot hide our heads in the sand like an ostrich, we need to find ways to reduce our anger and frustration.

It is often nearly impossible to come up with a positive when the power is out and the volume of work piles up. But it set me to thinking hard while browsing a magazine during the latest power cut. Firstly, I very seldom read magazines anymore – they all end up either in guest bedrooms or in the recycling bags. After all the effort that writers make to write interesting articles, we truly should give them some of our precious time.

So an enforced period of quiet reading brought me to this positive side of Load-Shedding….

We are all so caught up in the fast pace of life in the 21^st century that there is little or no time for reflection in the frenetic pace of our current lives. This is not how many of us grew up – we had so many wonderful moments when summer seemed to go on forever, the halcyon days of watermelon fights in the cooling of the day whilst our parents were having their sundowners and discussing their latest golf scores or the long winter evenings when we always ended up with chilblains from sitting too close to the fireplace!

Many folk are still willing go to places far and wide where there is NO Electricity – just to get away from it all. And, horror of horrors, some folk will even go as far as to visit a place where there is no cell phone reception. If Bear Grylls can barbeque and EAT a dead rat, then we can surely cope with Load-Shedding??

Our beach holidays as kids were incredible despite the fact that our bungalow had no running water, no electricity and cooking was done on a small Primus stove.  The pickled fish that my gran used to make with the fresh cob, just off the fishing boats, lasted us a full year and I have never tasted anything better.

So how to cope with the dreaded Load Shedding in a positive way? We can’t obviously head off on holiday every time the power goes out so we need to focus on using this time more productively.

For Tourists: Cape Town

The V&A is always open - 09.00 to 21.00 hrs 7 days a week, 365 days a year
With so much to see and do, this is a "go to" place for all. The restaurants remain open so nobody needs to go hungry just because the power is out. There are massive generators keeping all business open as usual.

Hire a bike and enjoy a glorious ride in the sunshine

Do a stroll, jog or run along the Sea Point Promenade - it's glorious at all times, and even better when the smell of the ocean is at it's best.

Or try a game of Putt Putt - there are 2 courses of 18 holes each

Book a Kayak for a guided, peaceful, quiet excursion on the ocean. kayak.co.za

Take your camera to Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and enjoy the beauty of the gardens
The flora changes with the seasons but the birds remain, the mountain view is glorious and art work is captivating. With a number of safe hiking trails for those who are fitter and would like to climb higher, entry, via Kirstenbosch, is a winner.

Blouberg beach is ideal for a long walk and those captivating views of Table Mountain
Perhaps try some SUP (Stand Up Paddle) Boarding or Kite Surfing

The harbours of Kalk Bay and Hout Bay are always interesting no matter what the season.
Fishing is a pastime enjoyed by many locals, especially over week-ends!

Plus much more to explore where power is not required......

So, for those tourists who feel that South Africa is no longer worth visiting, think again!!

Our scenery remains unbelievable, there truly is nothing to beat Cape Town!
Wine tasting is a firm favourite, while hunting down some craft beer is fun activity!
And the list goes on and on.....

We look forward to welcoming you soon – we do offer our renowned South African Hospitality as we remain one of the friendliest nations on earth. South African is indeed a Rainbow Nation – this Load-Shedding is a blip that will be overcome by private enterprise sooner rather than later! Moves are already afoot.

For those living in South Africa:

Whilst we can obviously also do all of the above activities, here are some further ideas if you are stuck at home.

Use the time for chatting to the children, work colleagues or friends either face to face or via our cell phones as these still work. Or they will do provided that the batteries for the cell towers can re-charge often enough!

Get out into the garden for some weeding or planting

Read those neglected magazines or the book that somebody gave you that has been on your bedside table since Christmas

Do the horrid (in my books!) job of filing

Plan the next week-end away with friends

Clear out old files – ready for shredding

Go for a walk or run in your local neighbourhood - you are sure to meet up with friends or make new ones.

Plan your shopping according to the black-outs as not all shops have generators either!

Grab your camera and head out for some creative time. 

De-clutter your cupboards and give the excess to your favourite charity

Clear out the garage of all those old paint tins, hard-as-nails paint brushes and other stuff that you will never, ever use again.

Decide to have a “braai” instead of cooking inside – it’s such a South African tradition after all.

Who cares if it’s at midnight? The neighbours will enjoy the wafting smells of good old South African boerewors.

At the end of the day, it boils down to better time management I suppose and, although Eskom keeps us in the “dark” as regards a regular LS Schedule, the App “Eskomsepush” is pretty accurate.

So I managed to find a few small positives in while sitting in the “dark” over lunch time. The frustration does “boil” over from time to time. Some words take on double meanings now as nothing can boil on an electric stove without power. Hurrah for gas stoves!

When did we become so entirely dependent on electricity? It is now an essential for business, school and home. We have lost the art of writing letters by hand - everybody is on the various Social Media platforms and instant communication is the key. The excitement of seeing a letter from friends and loved ones, no longer happens. Progress is inevitable therefore the supply of electricity is essential!
Unfortunately, ESKOM, the South African Government utility, has not moved with the times and they are now leaving us in the dark to cope as best we can.

But cope we will - we are South African after all!

The quote below is a favourite - we are indeed "caught up in one place just where we are"

So let's make it work.

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