Our 1st Full Day - The Near Imprisonment

On January 3rd 2009 the day started out nicely. We woke up early because in South Africa the sun comes up BEFORE 6am in the summer! We ate breakfast and discussed our plans for the day. It was supposed to be a pretty low key day, or so we thought! We took the morning to get settled into the little cottage, and decided to head to the mall for lunch. We actually ate in their version of an "American restaurant" called Spur. The food was decent, and after a nice meal, we decided that my mom would go back to the house with her older sister, Susan, and her younger sister, Allison, would join them there. Meanwhile my dad, my brother, David, and I would head over to the Flea Market to see if we could find David and Michael some "safari hats".

The Flea Market was busy and full of all kinds of different merchandise, some hand-made, really cool African items, and some completely useless junk, but no hats that either of the guys could agree upon. So we just bought a few authentically African gifts for a couple of people and headed back the house.

Now, here I should note that my dad was driving, and although they drive on the left side of the road in South Africa, he has a lot of experience with driving over there and is a very good driver. However, he had been given some rather inaccurate information regarding one of the traffic rules from a very well meaning person. You see, here in America, when you stop at a red light and you are turning right, if nothing is coming, you are allowed to turn. We knew that rule was not so in South Africa the last time we were there, but that was 7 years ago, and rules can change. So since someone had told my dad that that particular rule HAD changed, he believed them and didn't think twice about turning left on red.

There we all were in the little Toyota Avanza rental car, my dad driving, my brother in the passenger seat, and me and David in the back. We were only about 2 turns from the house when all of a sudden we saw blue lights in the rear view mirror. So we pulled over and an older policeman came over to our car. We knew we hadn't been speeding, and we had just gone through a couple of lights that were definitely green, so we really had no idea why he was stopping us. My dad smiled at the officer and was met with a very harsh, very Afrikaans sounding question, "Why did you not stop at that rrred light?" (said with a rolled "r") A little taken a back by his tone and question, my dad said, "Oh, did I go through a red light? I..." The policeman angrily cut him off and started waving his finger in my dad's face saying, "That answer makes me verrry crrross, because you KNOW you did!" My dad proceeded to explain that he really didn't know he had done anything wrong, all the while apologizing for any traffic violation he may have committed, but the cranky old man would not even listen. While he told us that it was unacceptable to turn left on a red light, his "side-kick", the younger officer, came over as well. The older one asked for Dad's license and registration, and my dad handed him the little white booklet that served as his international driver's license. The older officer turned to the younger and disdainfully sneered, "Look, they're American!" He asked Dad again why he went through the red light, and this time, my dad profusely apologized saying that he did not know that here it was illegal to turn left on red because in America you can turn right on red. The old man was getting increasingly angrier and was nearly yelling now, asking Dad where he got the license and telling him how it was practically useless. Holding the little white booklet between the thumb and forefinger of each hand and starting to make a ripping motion, he said in a VERY thick Afrikaans accent now, "Well if you don't know the RRRules of the RRRoad, then this is no good!" and nearly ripped the international driver's license in half!

It was at this point that David and I both started praying under our breath in the back seat. The officer stopped before tearing the license and asked my dad for his passport which he unfortunately didn't have with him. Dad explained that he had thought it safest to leave with his luggage at the house. Oh, that made the older policeman really mad, and he just said very matter-of-factly, "Then I'm going to have to arrest you. You must have your passport with you at all times, and since you do not have your passport, then I have to arrest you right now." Now we were all getting really scared, and David and I were praying even more fervently in the backseat. Here it was our first full day here, and Dad was going to be thrown in jail!
The policeman proceeded to ask us an absurd question about what happens in America when a foreigner is found without his passport. We all said we didn't know, so the officer said, "I'll tell you what happens. They get thrown in jail and deported immediately!" We knew that wasn't right and thought it really odd that he would tell us that, but we were not in the place to argue. Instead Dad pleaded with the man saying that we were here on holiday and he really did have his passport. It was just around the corner, literally, at the Gunter's house, and if he could just get over there, he would show him. The older policeman began quietly discussing the situation with the younger, much nicer policeman. After what seemed like an eternity, the the older one said, "Ok, if you are really staying just around the corner, we will follow you so you can go and get your passport." Whew! Somehow, God intervened there and we were saved for the moment - at least from jail!
Once we pulled in at the Gunter's, I told my brother to run inside and get Uncle William, who is a pastor and a very good negotiator. My dad went in to get his passport, and David and I stayed outside to explain to the cops that we had just arrived yesterday and had a lovely two week holiday planned, while the rest of the family come outside. Once the policemen saw Dad's passport and realized that we really were staying with Pastor Gunter, they relaxed considerably. A little smooth talking with Uncle William, and they were all smiling and laughing. Dad didn't get thrown in prison and we didn't even get a ticket for "running" the red light! The older policeman was like a totally different person! He just smiled and said, "Enjoy your holiday, and remember to keep your passport with you."
Wow! What a crazy rush of adrenaline and excitement on the first full day!