National Braai Day!

Going back a little ways to catch up on some great experiences... Our hosts have been so kind since we arrived. We already mentioned that they took us out our first night here to watch the South Africa vs. Argentina rugby game at the local Brewery (name of the place and what it is). A week or so later, they also invited us to join them for a fun braai competition on National Braai Day (also knows as National Heritage Day) and then to watch the follow-up rugby match that would determine the winner of the current league competition (a re-match between the Boks and Pumas). Braai is the South African version of what we would call a barbecue. But, to be an official braai, it needs to be cooked over wood -- gas grills just don't cut it.

September 24 is National Heritage Day. It is a public holiday for South Africans to celebrate the many cultures that make up the country. Similar to summer holidays in the USA, it is a good reason to have a braai. So the brewery decided to have a braai competition to see who could do it the best. About 10 teams started early in the morning, getting their fires going and the drinks flowing (which seems to be another part of the culture...).

Here's a fun little video about National Heritage Day. "Gee my 'n dop" means "Give me a drink" in Afrikaans.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/2d7cca_ad6b938055f64d2996d7663b0ffbd97d/360p/mp4/file.mp4

For the day, we needed to suspend our vegetarian ways -- there were just too many interesting things to taste. Jacobus made a delicious braai sushi and he and his partner went out on a limb with an offal potjie (pronounced "poy-kee -- a stew simmered over the coals in a heavy, cast iron cauldron) -- we were not brave enough to try that one, though. Jacobus and his partner won the braai competition and bragging rights over his dad who was a fellow competitor.

Later that evening, the Springboks won the game but, unfortunately, not by enough points to win the league championship. (Weird system where the winner of the championship is not determined by who wins the final game but by a more complicated system of wins and point differentials.) We drank beers and had shots anyway...