I first met Marcia when she worked for my son John and wife Shannon as an Au pair for their two sons. Marcia was from South Africa and invited us to South Africa when she got married. Wow, what a wonderful opportunity to visit another part of the world. We would be staying with the family and not in hotels. This is my favorite way to learn about the people, the customs, and the culture. Learn from the inside instead of as a tourist that only gets to see things from the seat of a passing bus.
Reading up on a guide book about Africa, the continent was more confusing because it talked about all of the countries, but at that time the country of South Africa was not firmly configured in my mind.
My wife Ruth and my daughter and her 5 year old son headed to Atlanta for an international flight to Johannesburg, South Africa. A 12 plus hour flight, but we were on an adventure!
We had gotten up early to drive to Atlanta, about a 4 hour drive. We had been up for about 16 hours or better when we got to South Africa. It was time to settle down, but we were in a way different time zone and everybody was wide awake and getting about their day.
I met Marcia’s brother and instantly found a friend. It was nearing lunch time and all sorts of things were running through my mind about what we would end up eating. I was hoping that it would not be something “way out there”, but this was an adventure so, when in Rome…
My adventure was put into high gear when I told Wayne that I would eat anything that he ate. Visions of elephant trunk or some other exotic food began to race through my mind. Don’t let it be something that causes me to grimace or hesitate. I did not want my host to think that I was ungrateful for their hospitality and friendship.
We walked to the restaurant and it looked like a normal city. We were not walking past grass huts, no one in loin clothes, no bows and arrow carrying pedestrians. None of the painted faces that we always see in pictures. This was quite a “normal” place!
As we walked, there was nothing that drew any particular attention. There was an assortment of restaurants, some featuring Oriental food, Thai, Indian and other styles that you find in a large city. Still the anticipation of entering an African restaurant would be a completely new adventure, but I was up for it, I kept telling myself. Anticipation was building until the moment we turned into the building with the two big yellow humps on it. Yep, we had entered the land of the golden arches. Mickey D’s… Good old McDonalds, home of the Big Mac, complete with a replica of the Ronald McDonald character, was the source of my first meal in South Africa.
There was a bit of relief in knowing what to expect, which is the only reason that I dare venture into them in my own country. The hospitality and friendship of my new friend Wayne made yet another visit to McDonalds a pleasant one. Now I really began to look with anticipation to something new, something different, something adventuresome.