71) Leaving Zimbabwe
Our Last Christmas in Zimbabwe 1982Jonny got a job with a contractor in Durban and worked there for a while but when the work was finished he decided to go back to the Transvaal and look for work there. He went once again to stay with his sister Cecilia in Witbank and worked for an engineering company there until it was time for him to come back to Zimbabwe to collect the boys and me.
Cecilia offered to lend Jonny her pick-up (or as it was called in South Africa, her bakkie) to make the journey. Unfortunately the old Land Rover had to be returned to Zimbabwe or we would not have been able to get our other car out of the country. Jonny decided to make an “A frame” so that he could tow the Land Rover without another driver to steer it. His brother Don helped him to make it and he started the journey, which is about 1000 kilometres, in Cecilia’s Mazda with the Land Rover attached to the back. He made the trip in one haul, not stopping to sleep at all. In one place, near Fort Victoria I think, he took a wrong turn and as he tried to turn around to go back the Land Rover jack-knifed and he was stuck. All alone in the middle of the night he was trying to sort it out when a car full of young lads coming home from a party passed and stopped to help him. He would not have managed with out them.
When he had entered South Africa a few months previously he had explained to the people at immigration that he was coming into the country to live. He told them that his father and mother were both born in South Africa and although he was travelling on a Zimbabwe passport he was entitled to South African citizenship. He also explained to them that his wife and children were going to join him later in the year and he would be going to collect them. The immigration officials understood all this and asked him to leave his passport with them so that the process of confirming his South African citizenship could be started. They assured him that he would get it back when he was ready to make the trip to Zimbabwe. But when he went back to collect the passport he had quite a bit of trouble getting it off them. He just about had to throw a tantrum in the middle of the immigration office to get his passport back. In the end one of the managers came to see to him and gave him the document and told Jonny to come and see him when he was back in South Africa with his family and then they would continue the process of confirming his South African citizenship.
While Jonny had been away I had been arranging to have our furniture moved to South Africa. One of Jonny’s friends said that he could get me steel packing crates that were used to bring motor bikes into the country and that they would be suitable for packing all our smaller items, like books and things. I thought this was a great idea and asked him to get me two. After a rather long wait the first case arrived. It turned out to be much bigger than I had expected it to be, it was about 6 foot long, by 2 foot wide and 2 ½ foot high. (It looked a bit like a coffin) I started packing our books into it and was pleased to see how much I was getting in. I thought ‘At this rate I won’t need two crates’. I had contacted a furniture removal firm and they arranged for a representative to call on me and give me a quote for the removal of our furniture. When the gentleman arrived he looked all around the house, garden and workshop to see how much of our stuff we intended taking with us. He saw my steel packing case and shook his head in disbelief. He said that there was no way that they would be able to take it as once it was full it would be far too heavy to lift. Even as it was, only about a quarter full it was just about impossible to lift. He told me that if I was determined to take it with me I would have to find other removers as he knew his company would not touch it. Then I had to find some other way of packing all our ‘smalls’. I thought “We are living in a tea growing area there must be tea chest around somewhere”. I called the Tanganda Tea company and asked if they had any old tea chest for sale and they said “Yes, just come around and collect as many as you want, 50c each” I don’t think we could get more than four into the car and I know I ended up with 20 of them so I suppose we made five trips to the tea factory but it was worth it. They were lovely clean tea chest with lids, although they had been used once to pack tea, and had a lovely smell. I had them for many years and we used them every time we moved. I remember the receptionist at the factory. She was a lovely black girl called Bernadette, she was always so friendly and helpful and she thought it was so funny that we kept coming back again and again for tea chests. Eventually everything was packed and ready to be moved. The removal company came the day before Jonny arrived back so when he came home there was nothing in the house except a few borrowed pieces of furniture and mattresses on the floor for us to sleep on.
Jonny told us that he had found a house for us to rent and we were pleased about that. He did warn us that it was not a very posh house but he felt it would do until we got on ourselves sorted out. So within a few days we had sorted out all the business involved in emigrating and were ready to go.
Our house in Hatfield was sold, I was very sad to sign the papers for the sale. Knowing that 71 Alexandra Drive was no longer ours made the fact that we were leaving Zimbabwe more real. I did not want to go, I loved the country and we had been very happy there. Looking back I can see that it was a wise move, I would not like to be living there now. We sold our house for Z$21000 (twenty one thousand Zimbabwe dollars) which was a fair price at the time. Now 24 years later this money would not buy three loaves of bread.
Before he had gone to South Africa Jonny had bought a red Triumph sports car. We got it for a good price because there was a problem with the engine. We had hoped that Jonny would have been able to sort out the problem while he was in South Africa but it proved harder than he expected so the Triumph had to be towed to South Africa. We must have looked a bit like a travelling circus. First came Jonny and I in Cecilia’s pick-up with the dogs and their kennels on the back, towing the Triumph with the “A” frame. Then Jonathan driving the V.W. with Dominic as a passenger and all our luggage in it.
Before we left the country we went to Salisbury to say “Goodbye” to friends there. We saw Beryl and Mervyn Shaw, Ginger and Geraldine Norton, and Roy and Maureen Arnold. Roy and Maureen told us that they were also going to live in South Africa so we would see them again soon. But a lot of our friends, Sonny and Isabel Mathison, Wendy and Stuart Hall, Doug and Anne Marshall, Veronica Campbell-Howard and her children had already made the move south so we knew we would probably be able to meet up with them some time or other.
Cecilia offered to lend Jonny her pick-up (or as it was called in South Africa, her bakkie) to make the journey. Unfortunately the old Land Rover had to be returned to Zimbabwe or we would not have been able to get our other car out of the country. Jonny decided to make an “A frame” so that he could tow the Land Rover without another driver to steer it. His brother Don helped him to make it and he started the journey, which is about 1000 kilometres, in Cecilia’s Mazda with the Land Rover attached to the back. He made the trip in one haul, not stopping to sleep at all. In one place, near Fort Victoria I think, he took a wrong turn and as he tried to turn around to go back the Land Rover jack-knifed and he was stuck. All alone in the middle of the night he was trying to sort it out when a car full of young lads coming home from a party passed and stopped to help him. He would not have managed with out them.
When he had entered South Africa a few months previously he had explained to the people at immigration that he was coming into the country to live. He told them that his father and mother were both born in South Africa and although he was travelling on a Zimbabwe passport he was entitled to South African citizenship. He also explained to them that his wife and children were going to join him later in the year and he would be going to collect them. The immigration officials understood all this and asked him to leave his passport with them so that the process of confirming his South African citizenship could be started. They assured him that he would get it back when he was ready to make the trip to Zimbabwe. But when he went back to collect the passport he had quite a bit of trouble getting it off them. He just about had to throw a tantrum in the middle of the immigration office to get his passport back. In the end one of the managers came to see to him and gave him the document and told Jonny to come and see him when he was back in South Africa with his family and then they would continue the process of confirming his South African citizenship.
While Jonny had been away I had been arranging to have our furniture moved to South Africa. One of Jonny’s friends said that he could get me steel packing crates that were used to bring motor bikes into the country and that they would be suitable for packing all our smaller items, like books and things. I thought this was a great idea and asked him to get me two. After a rather long wait the first case arrived. It turned out to be much bigger than I had expected it to be, it was about 6 foot long, by 2 foot wide and 2 ½ foot high. (It looked a bit like a coffin) I started packing our books into it and was pleased to see how much I was getting in. I thought ‘At this rate I won’t need two crates’. I had contacted a furniture removal firm and they arranged for a representative to call on me and give me a quote for the removal of our furniture. When the gentleman arrived he looked all around the house, garden and workshop to see how much of our stuff we intended taking with us. He saw my steel packing case and shook his head in disbelief. He said that there was no way that they would be able to take it as once it was full it would be far too heavy to lift. Even as it was, only about a quarter full it was just about impossible to lift. He told me that if I was determined to take it with me I would have to find other removers as he knew his company would not touch it. Then I had to find some other way of packing all our ‘smalls’. I thought “We are living in a tea growing area there must be tea chest around somewhere”. I called the Tanganda Tea company and asked if they had any old tea chest for sale and they said “Yes, just come around and collect as many as you want, 50c each” I don’t think we could get more than four into the car and I know I ended up with 20 of them so I suppose we made five trips to the tea factory but it was worth it. They were lovely clean tea chest with lids, although they had been used once to pack tea, and had a lovely smell. I had them for many years and we used them every time we moved. I remember the receptionist at the factory. She was a lovely black girl called Bernadette, she was always so friendly and helpful and she thought it was so funny that we kept coming back again and again for tea chests. Eventually everything was packed and ready to be moved. The removal company came the day before Jonny arrived back so when he came home there was nothing in the house except a few borrowed pieces of furniture and mattresses on the floor for us to sleep on.
Jonny told us that he had found a house for us to rent and we were pleased about that. He did warn us that it was not a very posh house but he felt it would do until we got on ourselves sorted out. So within a few days we had sorted out all the business involved in emigrating and were ready to go.
Our house in Hatfield was sold, I was very sad to sign the papers for the sale. Knowing that 71 Alexandra Drive was no longer ours made the fact that we were leaving Zimbabwe more real. I did not want to go, I loved the country and we had been very happy there. Looking back I can see that it was a wise move, I would not like to be living there now. We sold our house for Z$21000 (twenty one thousand Zimbabwe dollars) which was a fair price at the time. Now 24 years later this money would not buy three loaves of bread.
Before he had gone to South Africa Jonny had bought a red Triumph sports car. We got it for a good price because there was a problem with the engine. We had hoped that Jonny would have been able to sort out the problem while he was in South Africa but it proved harder than he expected so the Triumph had to be towed to South Africa. We must have looked a bit like a travelling circus. First came Jonny and I in Cecilia’s pick-up with the dogs and their kennels on the back, towing the Triumph with the “A” frame. Then Jonathan driving the V.W. with Dominic as a passenger and all our luggage in it.
Before we left the country we went to Salisbury to say “Goodbye” to friends there. We saw Beryl and Mervyn Shaw, Ginger and Geraldine Norton, and Roy and Maureen Arnold. Roy and Maureen told us that they were also going to live in South Africa so we would see them again soon. But a lot of our friends, Sonny and Isabel Mathison, Wendy and Stuart Hall, Doug and Anne Marshall, Veronica Campbell-Howard and her children had already made the move south so we knew we would probably be able to meet up with them some time or other.
Saying Goodbye to the ArnoldsI don’t remember much about our journey except how the guard at the customs post thought it would be a good idea to search the back of our vehicle. As he walked towards it Rocky and Cindy on the back saw him coming and set up a huge noise, barking and showing all their teeth. The poor guard took one look at them and decided that searching the vehicles was not such a good idea after all.
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