Flying Chicago Visit...

After spending the night in Michigan City, Indiana, we caught the South Shore Line train to the Millennium Station in Chicago. We were scheduled to arrive at 10h00, but due to a recent derailment on the line, we had to disembark the train and catch a bus for part of the journey. We rejoined the train further down the line and closer to Chicago. Unfortunately, this added about an hour onto our travel time, and so we were a bit late for Riaan's SA passport appointment. As it turned out, we had to wait a while to be seen and so being late didn't really matter.

The passport application went smoothly (once we were seen) and we then walked back through the city, grabbing a late lunch at Nando's Peri-Peri Chicken. We detoured to show the children Chicago's famous Cloud Gate sculpture (AKA The Bean), before catching the train/bus back to Michigan City.

We arrived back to our car (parked at the Michigan City train station) after 19h30, and then drove the three hours back to Detroit. It was a very long day, but we were exceptionally pleased to see the "Welcome to Pure Michigan" sign above the Interstate. It was another fun adventure for all of us!

Walking quickly to the passport appointment.

More time to enjoy the views on the walk back.

Nando's is a South African restaurant chain.

Selfie at The Bean.

It really is an amazing work of art.

Spot our reflections!

Michigan City, Indiana...

We drove across to Michigan City, Indiana, on the last Sunday in June. We had scheduled a South African passport application appointment in Chicago the next day. We decided it would be easier to catch the train into the city as opposed to negotiating Chicago traffic by car.

We stayed at a hotel in Michigan City, and after checking in we headed off to spend time at the lovely beach, where we watched the sunset over Lake Michigan. It was a beautiful evening!

The attractive Michigan City East Light.

The children loved the calm waters.

Sunset over Lake Michigan.

The setting sun sends a ray of light across the waves.

Father's Day 2026...

I started Father's Day with a lovely cycle in beautiful weather on Sunday, 21st June. I then received cards and gifts from the children, before we all headed to church.

After the service we drove to nearby Fair Lane Estate, where we hiked around the lake. We saw lots of wildlife, including a deer at close quarters, as well as frogs, turtles, a great blue heron, and a rather fierce squirrel. 

The day ended with a family braai. It was a great Father's Day with this crew!

Beautiful setting on my cycle.

Flowers at Fair Lane Estate.

The striking architecture of Fair Lane.

The lovely meadow.

Peaceful waters.

Great blue heron.

A buck in the woods.

Butterfly on a daisy.

Grumpy-looking painted turtle.

Pretty water lily.

Big frog waiting for a meal.

Fierce squirrel.

Father's Day braai. Yum!

Another Date Cycle...

Another parents' night out (where the church provides activities for the children so the parents can enjoy a date night) this past month meant another date cycle for Candace and myself. The weather was beautiful and we had a great time - and I was able to try out my new Cannondale South Africa cycling kit. :)

Decked out in the colours of South Africa's national flag. :)

Library Kites...

The local libraries are amazing places which have a lot of activities, crafts, and reading programmes for children over the summer months. Our children made these amazing kites at one of our nearby libraries last week. :)

Eastern Market and Detroit Riverfront...

We had good friends visit us from Indiana earlier this month. Their time here was limited, but we made sure to take them to the Awake Cafe, the Eastern Market, and the Detroit Riverfront - all on a beautiful Saturday morning. :)

Shawarma meat on the giant skewers. Yum!

Admiring the plants at the Eastern Market...

Including more proteas!

The merry-go-round at the Detroit Riverfront.

Two Canada Steamship Line vessels pass each other in the Detroit River.

Selfie at the beautiful Detroit River.

Yacht sails along in the distance.

A view towards Detroit's Renaissance Center.

Seth on Jeopardy...

Our Mercy Ships friend Seth recently appeared on an episode of Jeopardy, a general knowledge game show here in the United States. We haven't seen Seth since this Mercy Ships wedding in August 2015, but it was still fun to show support for our fellow Mercy Shipper!