Not Birds

There are still a few more things I want to write, but my previous blogging piece is so full of birds I decided I had to make a new category.
We had a resolve ever since we read about Jacob’s Ladder to go up there every day. When you see the pictures you will understand why we did not keep this resolve, both for the energy it takes out of you and because of the time. Climbing 300m almost vertically up 699 steps takes time, you know. And laboured breathing. And lots of stops. And the need to ignore your complaining legs . . . Did I mention stops? Also resist the temptation to look up or down as you will see no difference in the distance covered or yet to cover, especially in the middle of the staircase. On the way down, but still close to the top, I got some nice photos of some Red-billed Tropicbirds (Phaethon aethereus) because we were at the same level that they were flying.
It was a blessing to be able to fellowship with fellow believers again. The pastor and his wife (Uncle Graeme and Aunty Hazel) were a special blessing. They opened their home to us and Uncle Graeme gave us trips around the island in his tiny car. In their home, while my mom helped Aunty Hazel build puzzle and my dad chatted to Uncle Graeme, we children discovered the Becketts’ comic collection. It started with a few Archie’s and ended with lots of TIntins, Asterixes and three Lucky Lukes.
On our very last day on St Helena us four girls decided to end the visit exactly like we had started it: By climbing Jacob’s Ladder (notice there are no parents mentioned). It just felt right to end our stay off that way, and I am proud to say I did it with a lot fewer and shorter stops than the first time, plus I kept up with Sophia which is a real feat. I do not think that our more-or-less 15 hours, er, minuets it took to climb the ladder was at all bad, only three times as long as the record for the fastest climb. The only thing is, my legs are still stiff three days later, and for some reason the staircase beneath me took a whole lot longer to shrink than it did last time, with no convenient bird photographing opportunities this time.
Well, we are now back on the water and the sea is a bit rougher than it was last time. How do I know this? For the simple reason that irregular big waves have the tendency to push a bit of themselves through my bathroom porthole, which they never did before. Naughty waves. I tried valiantly to keep my porthole open, but enough was enough and it will now stay closed until further notice.