This morning started off with an online patrol meeting for Chris with NZ while Dan tried to keep the boys quiet (ish) for an hour. There was a bit of a storm last night which had the internet out for a few hours so Chris was happy the connection was strong enough to have a teams video call. The backup plan was to drive 20 mins down the road to a mall. After this, we packed up and hit the road.
First we tried to visit a local dam, but we weren’t allowed past the entrance gate (sorry mam, no). Then we decided to see how far over the Franschhoek pass we could go (we are aware it has been closed for a while) but the checkpoint was just outside of town. By now the rain had set in, so we took the scenic route through to Paarl (but we did get to see the green Franschhoek wine trail train on the way.
Over in Paarl, we went to Mini Ninja. This is an indoor playground made especially for kids 0-7 years old, and so perfect for our boys. We purchased a two hour pass and let them go.
Issac was a little overwhelmed and so didn’t take to the activities so much. But he loves climbing up stairs and there were plenty to climb and so up and up he went (he needed the help getting down).
Karl got a little more into the activities and so had a good time. There are different obstacle courses, two ball pits, trampolines, an adventure course up high and lots of other ares to explore.
Karl found Issac and I in the ball pit. There was a big screen on the wall which depicted different scenes; zombie, under water, jungle animals, Wild West etc and you threw the balls at the screen to knock the characters out. One round we all got into it as a family and we think we got one of the best scores. But one by one we dropped off, except of the toddler who has endless energy of course!. The same ball pit also had a very big slide (Karl was brave enough to climb this once) and the machine where the balls were blown up into the air. This one kept Karl amused for while so Dan could continue to help Isaac climb the same set of stairs again and again.
Chris took the kids into the trampoline area and up a longer and more difficult set of stairs (for Issac’s benefit) but it also included tunnels and extra area for Karl to explore. We easily used up 3/4 of our allotted time just exploring all the different parts.
The place was really well set out for kids, so a quick lunch break before our two hours were over. We finished the time in the other ball pit, which also included a big screen with other images to through balls at. We also discovered this screen was a slide, and so had fun going down a couple of times at the very end (you have the most fun right at the very end).
When we arrived our room was not ready yet, so Karl went to feed the chickens and say hi to the goats again.
Back to our room for another soak in the heated tub before dinner and bed.
Oh, and by the way, Isaac has learnt to balance standing on two feet over the last couple of days. So very close to walking now (then we will be in real trouble!).
Chris, Dan, Karl and Issac