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Letter to Barbara Cohen from Eve Hall

Dear Bar
 
We've just had two thirds of our kids here - the twins Andy and Chris, their wives, kids (7 intotal) and Andy's mum-in-law, for almost a month. The wonderful thing about this house is that it accommodates even that many people without bulging too much. And takes the inevitable litter quite gracefully. We spent a few days in Mozambique, at a very pleasant, simple beach place about 30 min boat ride from Maputo - lovely beach, sea, prawns and fish fresh every day..Maputo not looking too bad, considering. Then three days in the Kruger Park, saw enough beasts to keep the kids happy. It's such a lovely time in the bushveld at the moment, both here and in the Kruger. Here we have several lovely corral trees (known in the bad old days as Kaffirboem) flowering profusely - and the sausage tree, which has the most beautiful big velvety plum coloured flowers that shower down almost constantly; and the white wild pear trees dotted over the hillsides...I could go on and on. But I'll spare you the rhapsodies.
 
Memories came when the family started rummaging through the several large boxes of photos - and inter alia came up with one of you and me and my mum and dad at Umhlanga Rocks - we were 15? How young and pretty we were! Somewhere I know we also have one of us on the shoulders of those boys we met -- yours was far better looking than mine, I was quite jealous, I remember...To and I still don't know how to use the scanner, but as soon as we do, we will send you these and pics of our kids.
 
To is watching THE big rugby match - against New Zealand at Ellis Park (I remember your father listening to rugby on the radio, furious if we made a noise anywhere near him). We were just saying that never, in our most hopeful dreams, did we envisage a rugby crowd at Ellis Park singing "Chocholoza"!! To isn't much of a rugby buff, but this one seems to be getting him excited.
 
We've got three lovely weeks at home, though much to do in them, before we go to my Mum's for 10 days in mid-September. We'll take the train from London via Paris, and spend a week-end in Paris, where we haven't been these last 25 years, since my father retired and he and Mum moved from Paris down to Golfe-Juan. We come back home in the first week of October, then I have to do what I hope is my last job of the year, a week each in Tanzania and Zimbabwe. 
 
What have you been doing, apart from working? Did you go anywhere good for summer hols? You promised to send me some pics too, remember?
 
Love
 
Eve
August 19th 2000

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