The Honey Badger Diaries

We’re not beating about the bush anymore! It’s been two years since I had my momentum elucidated and announced our longing to spend our “retirement” bushwhacking throughout Africa.

Our dream is a reality. With fingers crossed, Precious secured a viewing of a vehicle, and on Thursday two weeks ago, Precious and pal George, whom Butch had accompanied to Botswana for the first time 30 years ago, winged themselves off to Johannesburg to inspect an Isuzu 300 4X4 truck. They put it through many tests, inspected all its vital statistics, and unanimously agreed that this was to be our girl. This model is renowned for its durability and off-road capability, making it perfect for the rugged terrain we plan to explore in Africa.

With a spring in their step, the two inspectors reported to me that we’d hit the jackpot: here was a vehicle with very low mileage, wonderful age, and in excellent condition, with a service record to boot!

A purchase contract was signed, and we settled the deal last Thursday when we took possession of our Isuzu. Sharing this moment aims to make readers feel the thrill and shared excitement of our adventure.

In Afrikaans we say “die een se brood is ‘n ander se dood” (quenching one person’s hunger could be the death of another), and with much emotion Wian Marais bid his vehicle goodbye after he’d safely parked our Honey Badger with our local panel beater, Basil Niemand, the owner of M&N Bakwerke, who has space in his large workshop to garage our truck safely. We’re also free to admire and coo as much and as often as we like!  Basil has his thinking cap on and regularly reports back with interesting tidbits.

My status on Social Media on Valentine’s Day read, “Most gals get cards, roses, diamonds or chocolates from their Valentines; my Precious Vaaltyn bought me a truck! Our dreams of traveling through Africa are coming together! Whoop-whoop! Will keep you posted via my blog”.  A record (for me) 134 "likes" and 53 comments!

Much to our surprise, this announcement has sparked considerable excitement, speculation, and idle chatter wherever we go. We have lists of suggestions coming in, some good, some impractical, but mostly our minds have been opened to ideas which we’ll certainly consider and mull over. Fortunately, we have plenty of time to investigate all our options. Some ideas are far too grand (Debbie), but one can but dream.  Mossie from Tyre King, a tyre centre, has given us an excellent idea for a rooftop gazebo!  So, with a limited budget, we’re going to take baby steps, although we’re already dreaming of a trip to Mana Pools in May to experiment and see how she "feels".

Our engineering friend and perfectionist, Hannes Cook of Vissers Engineering, has been to inspect, and with bated breath we waited for his verdict; he solemnly declared we’ve got a winner on our hands! The most overwhelming and heartening feedback has been that we’re embarking on a dream that many people would love to pursue and add to their bucket lists.

We’re calling her The Honey Badger, and I’ve just discovered that “Nsele” means honey badger in the Zulu language. It is a cultural belief that if a Nsele comes into your life, a miracle has occurred. I agree.

On Monday evening, the other George asked what colour the Honey Badger would be; Emily chimed in, "Cheetah print!", her favourite design. Can you imagine this huge predator ambling along? And I thought red (our Land Cruiser) was like a cloth to a bullfight.

Small-town living has its advantages, and this paid off for registering the vehicle.  The thought of paperwork, long queues, roadworthy tests, etc., was daunting, but with the help of our friend Sam Myers, who took over the administration, we had our new licence within hours. Thank you, Sam, you're a star.

Wian, thank you for driving all the way to Worcester to deliver the truck; your enthusiasm and fondness for the vehicle make us confident that we’ve purchased the right product. We hope you’ll follow our journey, and we wish you the very best with your new venture.  Like the Cottar family's 1923 picnic, we hope to send you a similar photograph in a few years.

If you’d like to participate in our journey and have ideas or expertise for converting our vehicle, please send them to [email protected]. Including photos, videos, or website links can help us better understand your suggestions.   To stay updated on our progress and adventures, please SUBSCRIBE to my blog and join us on this exciting journey.

To email us: [email protected] 

When our Honey Badger grows up, we hope she'll look something like the picture below!