Friday started with a quick trip to the city of East London. We visited Hemingways casino, but we didn’t stay there too long.
Then we visited city hall, and there was a statue of Steve Biko outside. Biko was the leader of the Black Consciousness movement, and at age 30 was brutally beaten to death by the henchmen of the Apartheid government.
Then we had a quick stop at the Lock St Gaol, a womens prison, which at one stage housed Winnie Mandela. I tried to lock the in-laws there but had no luck…

We then had a quick look at Buffalo park, where they play cricket in East London. It was quite a big ground but had little infrastructure.
This was followed up by looking at Basil Kenyon stadium, the home of rugby in East London. Very small, and run down. Considering they have played a few internationals here, it was not overly impressive.

Me and Rheanna had lunch with Jono Kruger. Jono is a recently retired professional rugby player from Border (East London area). He played currie cup and also played for the Springbok sevens! Apart from being a fantastic player Jono has a rugby development project, called Champions development. He is involved with running coaching clinics for young disadvantaged children. He had a clinic planned for me to get involved with but the 3 days of storm weather has left the field in a mud bath so we had to scrap that. Instead we talked about Springbok rugby and came up with a master plan to make the Springboks world dominators! (well more so than we are already…seeing as we are World Champions!). Now they simply need to make us the Springbok coaches…

We went out to the other project Jono is involved with, as Champions development is not all about sport. Jono is building a complex that kids can go to to learn life skills and practical skills such as woodworking etc
It is almost being built out of nothing, in the African bushland. We were able to see them building the woodwork centre, African style. They are using sand bags packed by the kids, covered in chicken wire, and then plastered over. Not the most scientific, but here you make do with what you've got.

We aim to help Jono out as much as we can with his projects, and I hope to find the next generation of Springboks through Champions development!

At night we out to dinner to a place called Michaela’s, which was about 40km north or East London. We had to drive in the pitch darkness (this is Africa, where in rural places there are no houses and street lights that take away the pitch blackness). Aat one stage a car drove toward us with its brights on. I was blinded temporarily…I just prayed we stayed on the road!

Michaela’s required catching a small cable car up to the restaurant. We went with Jono, his wife Sarah and his sister Shan who is a Border (East London) hockey rep. For an entrée I had my first taste of Springbuck…raw! As I ate it I could feel the power coursing through my body…It tasted very nice, although it’s more a delicacy so you wouldn’t eat too much.
It was a beautiful dinner and we have made some awesome friends…

Photos
1. East London city street
2. City Hall
3. Steve Biko statue
4. Lock street gaol
5. Buffalo park (cricket)
6. Basil Kenyon stadium (rugby)
7. Building the woodwork centre - using sandbags and chicken wire - at champions development
8. One wall plastered, the other one before plastering
9. View of the bushland at champions
10. Future admin block of champions
11. Springbuck capricossa (raw)