Lifestyle festival - it's a South African thing!

Today we sent out our June newsletter which was full of exciting competitions - Johnny Clegg tickets, VIP box and detials on how to win an £8000 car!



The important information however is regarding the 'Lifestyle festival - it's a South African thing!' which is taking place on the 21st August in Welwyn Garden City. This is one event you will not want to miss....so far the following has been confirmed:

• Cross bar challenge - prize is a car!!
• Live SA bands - Feral Sun and Swarm
• Sevens rugby w. London SA club, Springbok Supporters Club, WGC Rugby and ZAUK
• Braais - boerie rolls, burgers
• SA bakery - including koeksisters and melktart
• SA bar
• South African shop
• Saracens merchandise
• Children's play area - jumping castles etc
• African drumming
• Rugby training by the Saracens for £5 per child
• Potjiekos competition
• Boeresport - tug of war, sack races etc
• .....and we are organising more everyday

Part of the proceeds will be going to the South African charity - Round Table Peninsular 77. The ZAUK owners were members of this charity when living in SA and go to see how much good this organisation do.

Tickets are limited so make sure you get yours today....£10 per person (under 16 year olds, free).

Life in the UK test

The ZAUK team have now been in the UK for 5 and a bit years, so it was time to do our 'Life in the UK' test, which is the test that we have to take to prove we have integrated in the UK way of life and can communicate in English.

It has been years since any of us had studied or taken a test which was probably the cause of most of our nerves. Well this and also having to know the answers to things like....what percentage of London is made up of the ethnic minority? Where is the European Parliament based? How many seats are in the Welsh Assembly? How many Buddists live in the UK? Did you know any of these answers...? So after much studying and practice tests we ate our Pronutro and drank our Milo for optimum energy and brain power then made our way to the test centre. The waiting felt like forever (you know when you just want to get it over with?) but we met a lovely South African family in the waiting room so the time started going faster. Eventually we sat the test and although it is only 24 questions and multiple choice you start doubting yourself as you really don't want to be the first South African in the history of this test to fail! It actually only took about 5 minutes (yes that was including the time to double check all the questions and answers) and then we got the news that we passed...woohoo!!!!!

So this allowed us to apply for our Indefinite Leave to Remain which came through today (yay!) and means that in just one more year's time we can apply for our British citizenship which is the ultimate prize for any South African wanting options in life. The next step is to get our letter from the SA Home Office confirming we can have dual nationality before we apply for our British passports.

It has been a good week :)

SA weather in the UK!!

Did you see this article in the Daily Mail today?

TROPICAL UK IN 15 YEARS
South African scientists working in the UK have made the astounding announcement today that the equator is shifting. Within 15 years the equator will lie along the South of England resulting in a tropical climate of hot, humid weather and heavy rain storms.

Karl van Rensburg, University of Cape Town, today announced that the equator is shifting by 0.00583 degrees a year and has been doing so for the last 25 years at least. It is not yet know what triggered the shifting process, however if it continues at this rate the world’s climate will be completely transformed in just 15 years. Speaking at the Green Summit in San Francisco, van Rensburg stated ‘in just 15 years we believe that the UK will have a tropical climate and the tip of America will form the new South Pole.’
A spokesman for the Prime Minister said they were excited about this new development and were looking to encourage South Africans, New Zealanders and Australians to stay in the UK as they could teach the British how to create the lifestyle they are accustomed to.

The response from Dr. Heinz Hrycyk of Green America was one of complete fury as this announcement goes against all findings to date. ‘We will be looking through Karl van Rensburg’s evidence and plan to have a view in the next 6 months’. Van Rensburg wasn’t available for further comment, however his team of expert climatologists stated that they had been observing these movements over a span of 10 years and that Dr. Hrycyk would have to come to the same conclusion after looking at the evidence.

Events in the UK

The main reason we started ZAUK was to unite South Africans in the UK. It seems that expats from other countries all group together in specific areas of the UK, however South Africans can be found all over the UK and for those Saffas who are here for the long term, we seem to integrate into the UK life and don't seek out other South Africans. This is great as it is important to embrace your new home, however we also feel it is important not to forget our roots and who we are.

We were thrilled to be approached by a few people around the country wanting to help us with this goal so we now have a Scotland, NW England & Wales, Newquay, Oxfordshire, Kent and SE England reps who are working to arrange events in their area for Saffas. We are looking to get reps in other areas so if you are keen get in touch with us at info@zauk.co.uk

You can read all about the ZAUK reps on our newsletter which you would have received if you are registered on our website.

Also, just another reminder to keep the 21st August free for our 'The Lifestyle, it's a South African Thing' event in Welwyn Garden City. It is going to be great, so you won't want to miss it!

Is it February Already?

This year has started at full speed for us at ZAUK - it started with us finalising details for our big summer party 'The Lifestyle - it's a South African Thing' which is taking place on 21st August in Welwyn Garden City. We are really excited and finding that from all over the UK, South Africans are coming together to offer their services to ensure that this is the best SA day that has ever taken place in the UK.

There is lots more news, but you can read about it in our newsletter.

Make sure you also take a look at our new 'specials' section of our South African shop at www.zaukonline.co.uk - we have all sorts of specials for the month of February, so get in whilst stocks last.

See ya all later.

The lifestyle - its a South African thing

Firstly, happy new year everyone! Hopefully yours was as good as ours :)

We were in LA for two and a half weeks which, although was the middle of winter, was 24 degrees - warmer than most days in the UK summer LOL. It was great and it made me realise how accessible the world is when you are living in the UK.

As a very young child I had wanted to go to Disneyland, but it was always a dream which my family couldn't afford living in South Africa. I mean how many people in SA can afford to travel overseas? The percentage must be tiny! Well our family went to Disney and it was everything I had ever hoped and dreamed it would be. It really is the happiest place on earth. I am still amazed that we were able to take our ZAUKettes (children) to this amazing place. Some really special memories were made.

So we are back in the UK now and our fantastic holiday feels like it was a lifetime ago.....sigh. But we are back in the swing of things and our plans for ZAUK are getting really exciting. We have two confirmed events, the Homecoming Revolution event in May and the ZAUK SA day on 21st August. Make sure you keep these events on your radar cause they are going to be great. The SA day in particular is going to have everything you as a Saffa in the UK would want - spitbraai, potjiekos competition, children's entertainment, rugby tournament (we are looking for some players for the ZAUK team!), SA bar, braai and so much more.

We have also asked some of our members to consider putting together some monthly pub evenings in their area so keep an eye open on our website and facebook pages for details. If you are keen to get involved please get in touch, also via our website.

Then although we have lots of things going on we aren't going to spill all the beans now...LOL... so I'll leave you with one more bit of news which is that we are working with the Round Table in South Africa, Peninsula 77, and will be looking to raise as much proceeds as possible to assist them in the great work that they do.

Hope January hasn't been too tough for you....payday is just around the corner (so don't forget our online shop.....heehehehe, so cheeky).

Remember the lifestyle, its a South African thing!