When we did get up, I put up our beach umbrella on the bank of the river while MBH prepared breakfast; then she and kids went to swim and laze while I repaired a suitcase with a fascinated Ginger as audience. In due course he and I joined the family, and I had some lovely swims and sunbathing. Ginger ‘did his thing’ round us, but was never far away. After all this activity we felt like having eighty winks, so after a scratch lunch we had them, cat included. At 4 p.m. we woke and went for yet another swim and laze (cat not included in the former).
‘Want hotel!’ chorused the brats.
I started to pull off. Ginger gave a sigh of pure bliss, and curled up on his ‘spot’. He continued to snooze quite happily in spite of the fact that our subsequent trip was a very stop-start affair while we asked all over the campsite for anyone who knew anything about the cat. Nobody admitted to having ever seen him before. Finally, in desperation, we enquired the whereabouts of the local SPCA or its equivalent. There wasn’t one. Ginger stayed put, and we set off for the hotel.
This was a lovely white one which became the standard of comfort for the kids for years after. ‘Want a white hotel,’ YD would demand.
We booked in for dinner, bed and breakfast at a dent of R20.25 in our ‘savings’ from our daily allocation. Then we went shopping on Ginger’s behalf – a stock of pilchards and a sand-box. He seemed quite happy to remain in Cambi while we gorged ourselves on an excellent dinner and then took a stroll round the metropolis’s shopping area. Even at a leisurely pace, that didn’t take long.
I gave Ginger a good walk in the environs of the hotel before shutting him into Cambi and retiring at 11:30 p.m.
This entry was posted in Cats, Personal Journal, Roving, Travel and tagged caravanning cat, cat hitchhiker, Colonialist, family adventure, Ginger William of Orange, journal, Namibian adventure with cat, Orange River, travelling cat, Upington. Bookmark the permalink.
Even I find it so, reading it again. I take the events far less for granted than I did at the time – we tended to take much of it in our stride, then.
It sounds like you found a new pal!
Thanks for bringing it to the party! There are many links to click and friends to make.
Thanks – I have been!
Good story Col, love the photos of Ginger.
I’m just sorry I didn’t get more of him. Then, or later. These are all from slides.
This story reminds me of my childhood holidays traveling to the coast. One year the scene was: mom, dad, me plus my two siblings, my cousin, our dog and a parrot! Needless to say the traveling was done in a vw kombi… Ah the memories!
The mind boggles. The back of that Kombi must have been a most interesting and active place indeed!
I’ve always thought that cats who choose their people are rather special in nature. I love how he just settled right in and, of course, you fell in line and took care of him.
He certainly revealed very special attributes! Even when giving us shocks and surprises.
Would that be a VW combi?
It would. Fuller pictures thereof will follow!
They say dogs have owners but cats have staff. Obviously, Ginger knew good staff when he saw it! So glad Susie sent me here for Ginger’s story.
He certainly decided we were employable.
You are so lucky to have such lovely photos of Ginger.
I took far too few of Ginger, actually. They were all 35mm slides which I am rephotographing. Some have deteriorated, sadly.
So glad you were directed!
That cat was quite expert at registering displeasure.
Interesting that another blogger also had one such – who also came from the then South West Africa!
I’m just loving this story, Col!
I’m glad I decided to repost it!
I’ve traveled with kids. And with dogs. But never with a cat – and the few times I did have a cat in the car it’s been somewhat hair raising!!
That’s what one would expect. This one just loved it. It was weird!