The Abarders embarked on an epic journey that tested their resolve in their 7-seater SUV for a much-needed vacation by taking to the open road. As written in the latest #SliceofGasant, the road trip was magical and proved to be fantastic quality family time.
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‘But dad, is it a 7-seater?’ This was my son Ziyaad’s go-to line around 2018 when I was shopping for a bigger family car. A dad joke because my constant refrain was that it had to be a 7-seater or nothing for our four family of six plus three dogs.
We would be shopping for something unrelated like football boots or a pair of jeans. And Ziyaad would ask whether whatever product we were looking at was a 7-seater when I asked him what he thought. It was hilarious the first few times before it became tedious.
I eventually settled in early 2019 on a Mahindra XUV500 – a 7-seater that, if you could get past the brand enslavement of popular makes of cars, costs half of an entry-level Toyota Fortuner or VW Tiguan. It is a lovely family vehicle with all the bells and whistles.
The real test came at the weekend with our family road trip to Joburg and Sun City. Just how would this 7-seater stand up to the test? It did brilliantly. This one is a keeper, folks!
We decided to do the trek to Joburg over two days, overnighting in Colesberg, which is smack bang in the middle of the two cities.
Ziyaad didn’t come along to see how the car would perform. He is in Grade 11 and decided he didn’t want to miss out on school. But we were still two parents and four kids. Our niece came along with our three daughters and all four kids fit comfortably in the 2nd row with all our luggage stowed in the ample boot space.
But this isn’t a car review. Rather, it is about the magic of a road trip 1 400km long that takes about 14 hours if you don’t stop. We stopped in Beaufort West, Colesberg and Bloemfontein along the N1 Highway and it was great to chat with fellow South Africans in these towns.
Beaufort West appears to be in an economic downturn. By contrast, Colesberg has a captive market as a transit town and driving around the town you see more B&Bs than residents. And Bloemfontein is, well, Bloemfontein.
But the most impressive part of the journey was the 360-degree views for most of those 1 400 kilometres. For the city folks that are the Abarders, it is quite something to behold. We drove through different weather conditions and the kids were able to identify the cloud types that formed our canopy.
Imagine being immersed in a painting where everywhere you look are uninterrupted views to the horizon – as far as the eye can see. Like a sea of sunflowers for at least 2km flanking the highway. Or crossing the mighty Orange River that forms the Free State border. Or the kids getting excited to see an eagle make a dart to land to snatch up prey.
The most important part of an epic road trip is the company. You don’t want to be stuck in a car for several hours with people you don’t trust or like. (Imagine having to hold a fart for hours when there is nowhere to stop along the road to let rip!)
Equally, the soundtrack is one of the pre-requisites for a successful trip. It was the kids’ playlist for the first leg and I took an instant liking to Olivia Rodrigo’s Sour album. Sorry Taylor Swift, but you’re edged out by the witty and sharp lyrics of this talented singer, songwriter.
In particular, my new favourite song is Rodrigo’s ‘Traitor’. I now have the chorus as an ear-worm as I go about my way in Joburg:
‘You betrayed me
And I know that you’ll never feel sorry
For the way I hurt, yeah
You’d talk to her
When we were together
Loved you at your worst
But that didn’t matter
It took you two weeks
To go off and date her
Guess you didn’t cheat
But you’re still a traitor.’
Heavy going for my 4-year-old but she knows all the lyrics too! Then it was time for dad’s playlist on the second leg. Of course, it was Tears for Fears, A-ha, Depeche Mode, Dr Dre, Notorious BIG and The Beatles.
If you’re weighing up flying versus taking to the open road for your next getaway, the Abarders highly recommend this age-old tradition of criss-crossing the country. My bumper, grill and windscreen would give me away as a bug serial killer. Our car is a crime scene. A 7-seater crime scene!
Also read:
Daughter and dog are showing me all my days – and I love it!
Pictures: #SliceofGasant