DOUBLE CHEQUE

7 October 2001

I didn't post the last piece I wrote - incitement and species-hate would have been the least of my worries. It's been a hectic two weeks with some really dubious moments. We've been filling in visa applications and forms. Maybe we're just exceedingly stupid and suspicious but those forms seem designed to confuse people just a tad. The British government's Web site boasts of a "crystal mark" (or some such) for clarity and plain English on the page of notes which are supposed to tell you about the forms you're trying to fill in.
Pity the forms themselves weren't vetted too! And the notes tell you, very simply, about the general reasons for the forms' questions but they don't offer much help as to what specific questions mean in English: It would be nice if they could explain items like "Are you applying as a non-EEA dependant of an EEA national?".

On Form
Generally, the forms put out by the African and Middle Eastern countries we've applied to - where English is 2nd, 3rd or 4th language - seem to use simpler, more understandable English than the European countries.
Wednesday was the start of the worst patch: we had to go into the city centre (just driving through South African city centres these days is an exercise in depression) to apply for a new driver's licence.
After getting the runaround there - and instructions to come back after hours because that is apparently the only they do any real work - it was off to a couple of banks. By the time I got back to the truck, which was parked on the street because there isn't anywhere else to park something as high as it is, there were R260 in fines waiting for me. It's so nice to know the official crooks (meter monsters et al) are still more efficient than the petty thieves.

Unspokeable Acts
Not surprisingly, I was in a foul mood by the time I got home and things didn't improve once here. Some vile excuse for a lump of excrement had stolen my mountain bike - all R8 000 of it. That bike was one of the few really precious things in my life - it fitted me like a glove and made me feel like a superhero (we all know I'm not one!) just sitting on it.
The rest of the week didn't get much better as we watched the Rand/Dollar exchange rate drop faster than a sailor's pants in a brothel. We've lost about a quarter of our funds for the journey through the exchange rate fluctuations. Our Rands are still the same but seeing as how we need to pay for most things in dollars, our stash is dwindling frighteningly quickly. We've spent most of the last four days counting our resources and wondering if we can still afford to go for the full journey for the full six months and looking at alternatives.
At this stage everything is still on track and we should just scrape through! We'll let you know if things change - after we stop crying about it!

Here Today, Lost Tomorrow
The one really bright point was this morning, when we collected our GPS system - thanks, Irvine and Kay. Now we really are gung-ho adventurers! It looks like a cell phone and using it is a bit like sending an SMS - you push hordes of buttons and it eventually spews out a series of numbers (coordinates if you want the proper term) which tell you "exactly" (to within 15 meters) where you are. Then all you have to do is find a map and work out where the coords are in the real world.