South Africa in Pictures

On Dec. 27th, Mark, Nicole, Olivia, and Nicole’s parents (aka Nana and Poppy) left for South Africa. The trip had been in the making for over a year. With lots of preparation (traveling with a baby in general is difficult, but especially traveling to another country and 24 hours travel time each way make it even more challenging), we made it to Port Alfred, South Africa. As most of our friends know, Mark is from South Africa and lived there until he was 14 years old. Most of his relatives still live in South Africa so we were excited about visiting so they could meet Olivia. We especially were excited about Olivia meeting her great grandparents, GiGi and Ted!

The two weeks we were in South Africa were a whirlwind, with safaris, game drives, visits with family, yummy meals, beach visits, shopping, and boat rides. Mark’s parents have a house on the marina in Port Alfred and we spent time catching up with family while watching boats pass by on the marina. Mark’s family were extremely gracious hosts, showing Nicole’s parents (who were visiting South Africa for the first time) all the sites and welcoming them with open arms.

To try and capture all we did would be too difficult but for those friends and family we see often, we have around 1,200 pictures to share with you next time we get together! For everyone else here are a few highlights in pictures of the trip.

Starting with beach pictures:

Olivia at Kiddie Beach (where Mark played as a kid)


Riet River






Family Pictures on the Beach