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WEDNESDAY 21-4-2010
South Africa, a young country coming to
terms with democracy and crime. We have
entered in the North driving along the coast
until evening, when we reached Lamberts
Bay and looked for a camping place for the
night. On course south, the land gradually
changed, more precipitation mean more
green and soon we entered the wine land.
Before we had fueled at TOTAL in Namibia
as
there fuel is cheaper than in South Africa.
clouds
shade the land
fine juice for JAMBO
It was sunset
when we arrived and realized at once the
problem everyone faces here. Crime. The
campground was protected by
barbed wire as you can see. Immediately
an uneasy feeling crawling up within myself,
which did not left me until we sat in the
plane
to Europe.
Nice
setting of Lamberts Bay on the shores of the
Atlantic ocean
barbed wire campground protection
THURSDAY 22-4-2010
Now dear reader, if you have followed our
story last October, you might remember that
we had met two south Africans in a camp
ground in Italy. "Alora" as the Italians
would say, we were on the way to the farm of
Andrew and family a 200 km east of Cape
town.
That is him
the host with Ronell his wife and the two
great kids bushes
planted in rows act as windbreakers
We traveled in the afternoon eastwards.
After having contacted GAC Laser, the
forwarding company in Cape town to finalize,
when
and how they will take possession of
JAMBO for his trip to Argentina.
It is autumn now, harvest was taking in,
fields are plowed for the next spring
already. Hacienda style farms surrounded by
meadows
and farm fields, by cattle and sheep,
grazing along with Cory bustard, blue cranes
and ostriches. All are organized estates,
where
there is no square meter land unused. In
Zimbabwe the "black man" encouraged by
Robert Mugabe took over such farms. Taking
over meant, mutilate the animals or drive
them away for slaughter and cash, burn the
stores and houses, hack the farmers family
to
death with the tool of their manhood, the
bush knife; not before raping anything
female. Are these humans?
No, these are no humans; these are monsters driven by Satan.
Farms are here measured by thousands of
hectares. Since the last century, they are
in possession of mostly white farmers. There
was no black population then.
Cared for in the most natural and
profitable way. They feed the nation and not
only that, they are export earners too.
However, the ANC, the black government
does not like the ownership as it is.
For now, we enjoy the clear air and the
view. Irrigation rainers as we know them
from southern Europe irrigate cattle fodder
the alfalfa.
However there is a problem emerging.
Power cuts; a thing unheard off in old
days. As the system needs electricity; such
a Rainer
stop to work at once.
"Irrigate at night" said the Government.
And besides they increased the price of
electricity by 35%. Hey wait a minute. The
farmer
should now work at a loss and at night?
Is day work not enough? What the farmer will
do, is increase the grain, milk and cattle
price
too.
"Aha! the government does not like cheap
products, they want the public to pay more"
may say the cynic. But more on this problem
and an eventual although drastic solution
later, in the end of our story.
sometime on standstill ,due to power
cut
looking this side, the Andrew family farm
buildings
and
on the other side his land as far as you can
see
milk production with about 500 cows
preparing fields with
large
machinery
The farm buildings nesting in the
agriculture land
the irrigation waters on Andrews
farm
and a small house on the river
Stay as long as you want, said Andrew,
You are my guest. But unfortunately, we had
to decline the offer, as a few repairs and
checks had to be done on JAMBO. Thank you Andrew
for this kind gesture and maybe we see us
one day in Austria.
The night in his home, a nice old stone
house went fast, Andrew knowing of our
worries with JAMBO directed us to park it
right in
front of our window where an entrance lamp
shone and watched over our companion.
While I write the story in the guesthouse
we are staying, I hear every 10 minutes a
siren of a police car passing. A violent
place this
Muizenberg, so it seems. But there is
more. Much more to that.
FRIDAY 23-4-2010
JAMBO got a new number plate south
African style. Having it fixed, we went to
Cape Agulhas the southernmost point of
Africa, a
must for every visitor. The wind was
blowing devilishly and it was very cold. Yet
we camped there for a night, hidden behind
the
"women's comfort" building, as the wind
had grown to a storm rattling on JAMBO.Only
a few ladies went to that
place, everyone feared the storm and
chill.
two of the great
explorers
a group seeing JAMBO, now curious asking
questions
And finally, there stood JAMBO in the
evening light. The proof of endurance of man
and machine. I raised, as always the flag of
my
beloved country. She was flying strong
and steadfast, just as my small and
beautiful nation, Negara Brunei Darussalam.
SATURDAY
24-4-2010
We left early to Worchester a town 150 km
away. The reason being that we intended to
replace the engine mountings, of which one
was quiet bad, the rubber loosen from the
metal. Andrew had phoned around and found
one at a scrap yard.
Reaching the place at noon, the owner a
polish guy helped with a jack and tools and
Harun fitted it within a half hour. Now we
have
one spare, just in case. From there we
drove west on the N1 a national highway,
passing Cape town to find a camping place
somewhere on the sea., And truly, there
was one just in time. A slept again safe and
sound. But before, other campers had to
inspect JAMBO respectfully and one Mama
send her kids with some bakery. Just in
case, should we not have dinner. How kind
they
were to us the strangers.
SUNDAY 25-4-2010
It was a beautiful day without wind.
Weather changes so quickly here.
our camping place in the morning
light
and the rising sun reflected
Wasting no time we drove to the Cape of
good Hope as it is called.
This cliff is Cape of good
Hope
some of the sunken ships
The coast became graveyard for hundreds
of ships, run ashore by tidal currents,
dreadful storms and fog, created by the cold
waters.
One of the first things to
build, was a lighthouse.
But how to see it in fog? The foghorn was
used to warn. But in a storm? Once the
seamen
hear it they were too close to shore already.
the
lighthouse
looking to the west
clean cold
water
and an obstacle, no captain like to face
Stormy seas and rocks together with fog,
which would take in an instant the
visibility, made sailing along the coast a
risky
undertaking. But should a vessel in old
days make it, rich rewards was waiting when
returning with loot and trade cheats form
the
Indies and beyond. That made the risk of life worthwhile.
We had to return to Cape town, as you may remember that our
steering box seals busted in Congo and here
we wanted to repair it.
Along the road is a Penguin colony, we
made a brief stop to look around.
Relaxing in the sun, that is good life.
They are very alerted and know what is
going on around them. "Look Charlie where
are the two
foreigners coming from?" said she and
pointed at us. And Charlie looked long and
said; "she has a black head as we and is
white
on the chest and the feet are black too",
maybe she is a relative from the Antarctica.
"And the big one with her?" "That is easy",
said
Charlie "he is a sea lion, brown, big,
fat and ugly".
Others rushed to look at these strange
creatures and wondered. Only Max and Mizi in
love since they met, ignored our presence.
come
see the "sea lion" and the "strange
penguin"
forever together (penguin mate for life)
going for scuba
diving
kelp floating, the forest of the sea
here
But we were now on the way to Cape town.
Andrew - again- phoned around and got a shop
who repairs power steering. We searched
for the address, found the shop and went
out of town to a camping place to stay a
night and to be by 8:00 am on the doorsteps.
Again as everywhere, the campers are
protected by high walls and barbed wire.
MONDAY 26-4-2010
By 8:00 am we stood
there
Eddy himself on our power steering
The man was good, the work fast within
three hours, the price exorbitant. Rand
2500.- that is B$ 500.-. But now we are
secured in
South America, as we have this spare with
us.
Completing repairs we drove back along
the coast eastwards to Andrews farm. And
what we saw on the outskirt of Cape town and
along the coast was
frightening. A black population living in
squatter homes, not a thousand or ten
thousand, no, hundred thousands
or millions of
them. No one know no one counts.
Many drifted down to South
Africa, uncontrolled or even wanted influx
of black foreigners from countries they
themselves
have messed up and now desert for a
better live in a land which was build by the
white man. Already fights erupt, between the
black
south African and the black foreigners.
"A dead foreigner cannot take my job." While in old days
the Army
protected the border, they have been
withdrawn and police took over. "Guys which
do not know where the border is" said the
guesthouse owner. And further, "Everyday
a thousand people slip into South Africa."
How many squatter homes more? No light,
no job, no toilet but children faster than
money, as laying to the woman is the only
fun they have.
But then
again, there are the determined ones, like
the guy with the stolen supermarket cart on
the way to his trading place, a traffic
light perhaps where people have to slow
down. Company owners, managers, we call on
you. He should have a work with a decent
salary as he does not give up,
but takes opportunities. He can be an asset
to you.
a white society living
in
fear, squatters are rising behind
new homes for the voters
This peaceful village on the shores of
the Atlantic, we forgot the name. had
disaster striking them. White and colored People worked
hard
to save and borrowed from the bank to
build a nice home and settle here.
Now by a decision made
somewhere by incompetent politicians, (or
maybe on purpose to drive the whites out), you
see
squatters rising for a 10.000 blacks
perhaps. Government planned. How are they
going to find jobs so far from city and
industry?
And are these not foreigners? From Malawi, Zimbabwe, Angola, Congo,
Cameroun, as far up as Nigeria? To vote for
ANC and can be
called upon if the need arises.
We passed through such a
squatter area, more as a coincidence. It was
frighten. A future "house" build
by the government consist of
a entrance door, a hole for a window and three walls in zinc sheets, one
next to the other. You hear everything what is going
on. In
such a room live up to six or more
persons. Toilet? none. Maybe outside somewhere,
a small zinc sheet hut 1m x 1 m one for 20
houses. Is there any water? How clean would that place be?
Look at the right picture below, houses in an estate for sale. See
what security they use. First a chain link
fence, with barbed wire.
Then the wall. On top of it we see insulators for electric wires.
Five rows electric wires to hold thieves and
potential killers at bay.
Next to the
highway
The newspaper says "last year
two women and three children were hacked to
death. Now again..."
Dear reader do you want to live in such a
society, constantly in fear of yours and
your children life? What do the whites do?
They raise fences around their property and
electric wires. Become prisoners in their
own house, or leave the country where their
grandfathers have worked on already. This is not right!
The youth leader of the
black governing ANC party came up
with a song: "Kill the Boers" .Boers are whites. Inciting hatred into the
mind
of simple folks . "It was just a song of
revolution" defended the guy his lyric
and went to Venezuela to study
Nationalization.
Nationalize! That is
Communism. The Government takes over
industries and farms as it pleases.
How safe
you feel as a farmer when some of your cows
are hacked to death by black mob by night?
demanding communism
mutilating cattle
We have not seen throughout our journey one
honest, efficient functional government in
black Africa. They are not ready for
responsibility of democracy, not fit to lead their people. Every
country we passed, men say, their
Government steal and do not care.
And indeed
seeing how foreign powers manipulated them
for their benefits, there must be truth in
it. The little yellow Chinese
behind
the steering wheel of logging trucks
loaded with huge trees, as seen in Gabon
make us wonder, what is going on here. How
much
money wanders under the table into Swiss bank accounts. They
must be stopped for the sake of our planet.
Look at the
beauty of the country, the roads ,the flying
cranes. We have nothing of that seen in any
of the black governed countries
we traversed. A nice road paid
by outsiders like the EU yes, but nothing of
an cultivated landscape. Only shabby homes, poor
blacks
and a tree depleted environment. If there is rain forest, they
are active to destroy it too.
taking
off
a courtship ritual
Again, we slept in a camping lot,
protected by high fence and security guard,
an alerted sleep. Crawled into my sleeping
bag I
dreamed about my home Brunei.
TUESDAY 27-4-2010
Returning to Andrews farm, we took the a
countryside road, it was as nice as it can
get. A throughout check on JUMBO disclosed a
leak at the fuel pipe joints, we fixed
that afternoon in the garage of Andrews
brother next door. Now, JAMBO is in top form
again and
ready for the south American winter
roads. We slept in Andrews farm, perhaps the
last time.
WEDNESDAY 28-4-2010
The container shipment, including port
and custom charges were about Rand 18.000,
that is US$ 3000.-. This morning in
Swellendam town we transfer funds and arranged with GAC Laser, that we could store our vehicle
in their warehouse until tomorrow,
the day
of loading.
But first in Swellendam we had to visit a
school. The lifework of Mr. Adrian. Old
buildings, bright students coming here from
far to
learn. They stay in a boardinghouse.
The
headmaster Mr. Adrian with an old
Atlas
"mmmh" fresh beans
Emmy the daughter of Mr. Adrian with
students
what a historic fireplace, a good place for
discussions...
...and the coffee, which we had before we left
the school. Thank you Mr. Adrian,
for showing us around.
These were the last miles in Africa, and
as usual we drove very careful, reaching
GAC Laser warehouse by afternoon. A big relieve
as
security was our concern. The warehouse
doors closed, JAMBO safe inside, Mr. Gavin
of GAC Laser send us to Muizenberg, to a
guesthouse we stayed in three years ago.
Tomorrow I come by 630 am to pick you up."
he said.
THURSDAY 29-4-2010
At 8:00 am we were at the towns
custom office to get the officer, which came
with us to check the vehicle. The container
doors
open, Harun drove JAMBO in ,after he had
the rear tire pressure reduced, disconnected
the batteries, pumped the tire pressure up
again, crawled like a snake under and
around until finally he stood up saying
relieved: "finished".
Loading in Cape
Town
doors closing
Work completed, Gavin with another
GAC Laser
employee and Hazel, the strict but charming
custom officer were ready for a photo.
The doors closing we felt happy. The next
time we open them, that will be in
Buenos Aires, Argentina, where our journey
around the
world continues.
Three years ago we met Johan in Sudan, he was here in Cape town and
we called him to meet for a meal. Wow was he
happy,
(and we too)
Johan a great character with a troubled
history
the clock tower on the waterfront
table mountain
the gondola up
For our HDV camera filming, we went up once
more. The view
was breathtaking. Not that many tourist
around.
I wonder how many will come for the World cup. Slowly the crime situation in SA is leaking
out to the world.
Cape town
and Clifton, east bay
Dassie
windswept southern land and sea
That is a small elephant! No, I'm not
deranged already. That is what the books
claim. The dassie is the closest relative of
the African
elephant. He likes the sunshine up here and being inspected and
photographed by tourists.
Home to Muizenberg we took the train and reached before dark the
False Bay station. The interior of the wagon
was a disgrace, and
one cannot pass through from one to the other, doors are locked.
Security?
See the
graffiti with marker pen. Why would someone do
like this?
I was afraid while travelling, but there were some white
passengers too. On a stop, suddenly behind
me singing "Praise the lord..."
in a voice out of tune. There came a black girl, leading on a stick a blind
woman, (or she intended to be blind) in the hand a tin box
for cash
alms. They use really any place where one cannot escape their demand.
our route
with pride I raise our flag
Now, having
completed the second sector, difficult as
Siberia, but in another way, we thank
all who had helped. Without your
devotion in sponsorship and otherwise, we would not have been able to make
it. The journey is and will be for a
long time, the only
one of a Muslim /Malay woman and a milestone in the achievements
of my beloved country. Yet I'm not proud,
but rather humble.
There are so many to thank for. TOTAL foremost this great company,
they helped not only with money but with
their worldwide
connections. The Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Industry and
Primary Resources, namely Dato Paduka Hj
Hamdillah, for his
efforts and encouragements, the Agriculture Department especially the
Director Hjh Normah, Sheikh Jamaluddin the
boss of
tourism, The Islamic Bank Brunei, TelBru, DST, they all believed in us and
jumped on board of our journey.
East of Cape town near Sommerset West
Not to forget the efficient staff of the
Brunei Representation in Rabat, and the
bosses, Haji Nordin and Hj Ibrahim, they all
worked for
our success. Thank you very much.
Now, JAMBO safe in a container, we rest a few days and take a cheap
flight to Europe on Monday the third of May.
When JAMBO
has arrived in Argentina, we fly there to continue our endeavor until
such a day when we cross the Brunei border
once more.
May the ALMIGHTY bless you all who made this success possible.
Humbly yours, Norhayati and Harun
5-5-2010
We have arrived in our home in Austria. JAMBO is floating
somewhere in the Atlantic sea towards
Argentina.
My mind is troubled by what I have seen on the route. We are
tourists not racists. When we had lunch in
Sommerset West, on the
next table was a gentlemen, obviously a south African, and we came
to talk about the present government." What
is the solution out
of this crisis" Harun asked him.
"If we leave it going as it is, likely, the blacks will start to
kill more, the whites retaliate and civil
war may erupt. What is needed he
said is threefold.
One, the whites have to integrate into ownership capable colored
workers, gradually transferring them some
responsibility according
to their abilities. Increase the wages of willing and loyal hands.
Then, we need the east west great African wall. By mortar or
electronically. The Chinese did it, we can
too. Separate southern Africa,
perhaps along Angola eastwards, including Botswana, Namibia.
Stopping all influx of foreigners from the
Equator zones.
Repatriate the existing ones to give work for south Africans. I
know these countries will cry "foul". But
they must go home to solve
their own problems.
Copy from other countries several laws.
From China: two children per family. Strong punishment for
corruption, up to death penalty.
From Singapore: death to drug traffickers. Everyone must work. The
government provides jobs.
From Saudi Arabia: amputation of fingers for stealing (we
agree, as no one steals in Saudi, fearing
the punishment)
Capital punishment for severe crimes.
But first, the outside world must know of the rising danger here.
They must be informed.
Perhaps no more democracy, where the commoner can vote for what he
does not understand, rather the south
African state is led by
a group of wise individuals, (it does not matter which color they
are), who have the wellbeing of civilization
and environment in mind.
( We read in the newspaper the Minister want to alter the
university curriculum because only 5% of
black students master it. "That is
an apartheid system" insisted he).
The man sat long silent, we thought that he has forgotten us. But
then:
"Southern Africa with all its resources under a proper caring
Government would be the Paradise on earth;
We have it all.
But if nothing happen, the ever-growing masses of blacks will tear
the country down. A coming thunderstorm
sends his signals
ahead, you as tourists must have seen it", said he, stood up and left.
We
never know who this guy was.
Looking at all black governed states we have seen on our journey,
he had a point there.
22-5-2010
Intermezzo In Kaernten, Austria
The last two weeks were just flying away. We were busy, every day,
all day,
organizing our self, repairs on the house,
get a cheap
flight to Buenos Aires, drive to Vienna for a Argentina visa, book hotel,
connect to the clearing agent in Buenos Aires and all the
nitty
gritty, needed,
including new passports. At this point it is
only fair to praise the efficiency of GAC
Laser in Cape town and in
particular Gavin Walbrugh mail
gavinw@gaclaser.co.za who, going far beyond his actual
duty, fixed our shipment, made contacts,
supported us right into Argentina.
Dear
reader, should you be one the Overlanders,
in or out of South Africa, this is the
company and the very man you can trust.
Friesach.
From
our place up here we have a good view of
this little town, down in the valley. At the
mountain heights snow was still visible in
depressions, driven and compacted by stormy weather. But up
here in 1100m around the home of my hubby an 300 year old
farmer
house, sometimes spooky, so he complains. The sun was shining warm.
View towards
west into the Metnitztal
some of our neighbors wildlife
On the southern
slopes chamois and ibex the
rock climbers, enjoyed the
green fodder, or relaxed sleepy in the
warming rays. Live
was good to them.
We on the way down to the valley had a last
gimps of Zeltschach, a few houses nesting
around an 1000 years old church.
Picturesque
and pretty. This is holiday country.
And
since it became my second home, I will tell
you dear Brunei reader a bit of the unique
place founded somewhere 1200 years ago.
High over Friesach are ruins of castles,
build over centuries. Here in
old times, in1224 A.D. precise, a
conflict between duke of
Kaernten and
Heinrich of Istria was avoided. One which
would have taken many lives of husbands and
fathers. How? Smart Duke
Leobold VI of Austria invited about
600 honoraries to a tournament, held a
few days before .Here the quarreling gentlemen could
fight, to live out their aggressions. For
hours running against each other
sweating and stinking, while the maids held
their breath,
trying with lances or other middle aged weaponry to unseat the
opponent .There was a guy, who, so the
chronics tell, smashed
the heads like ripe and soft peaches. The fierce slaughter among
themselves cleared the atmosphere, that on
the very meeting, the
gentlemen had no desire for war anymore. Maybe we should
reintroduce such tournaments where presidents and
quarreling leaders
fight among themselves. The
Destiny of Iraq decided on the market of Friesach between G. Bush and dictator Sadam!.
"Klingeling"
spectators would pour millions Euros into the cash strapped town
coffers and millions of- now dead Iraqi-,
would be alive and well.
But history has it otherwise. Moreover, there is no one on our
earth to summon the warmongers to a court of humanity.
(I do not
mean Den Haag). That will be left to
the Almighty who's plans are for a commoner
like me, anyhow obscure.
castle ruins and
churches are impressive signs of the
medieval ages and its turbulent times.
The newly constructed bridge, eastern access
into the town.
narrow alleys and colored facades
This,
the oldest town of Carinthia,
was besieged, occupied by the Hungarians in
1479, which packed out only 11 years
later. in 1715
the black plague took the life of half
of the population.
Flames reduced Friesach several
time in history but it was rebuild. But the
old town center comes to life again in recent times. The town
fathers long ago realizing, that Tourism money never stinks,
build on
the tradition and great history,
repairing town walls, defense ditches,
pained facades, and at the last Saturday in
July the town is
catapulted back into middle ages. That is the time to be here for
sure, when all amenities are off and town
folks dress in colorful
medieval garment, candlelight shines over knights and dancers, fire
eaters, tumblers, shoemakers, soap boilers,
and perhaps, just
perhaps, a lady of the horizontal trade in medieval dress now,
lingering in a secluded corner, to offer her
service to a happy
"wandering pipi", as it was done in those days back and will be
into the future. After all, desperation is
man's first driving force,
which by no account halt's at the waste line. True indeed. The
lawmakers had various tools to expedite a
confession of which many
can be seen in the towns museum. And should you have been naughty,
whatever that means, you may end up as
Norhayati " to be
in the stocks". She deserved this medieval tool of punishment as
she sung out of tune the foresters favored
melody " I bin halt a
lustiga holzhackerbua..."
"sing better
Norhayati"
or you may end up in the cage lowered into
chilly waters
Friesach’s Open-Air Theatre Festivals are
performed throughout summer up in one of the
castle ruins, the Petersberg.
In fact we went up there to see the preparation and probing,
invited by Mafred, a friend and handsome "Friesacher
Bursch". He plays
this summer a greedy old man, the exact opposite of himself.
We show no picture, as there are so many
lonely, longing maiden
hearts out there. That would be a risky undertaking.
So my question to you dear reader:
Why
spend our Brunei money only in UK?
Here everyone speaks English, you find halal
food, friendly people and a lot of history,
mystical or interesting, funny and sometime
gruesome stories. Check out their homepage
and come to Kaernten a land with 1000 over
castles or ruins.
 
the land from
the viewpoint Dobratschberg.
My father in law. Just been 95 years "young"
Rent a car and travel around. Roads are
perfect and on the Autobahn, the highway,
you can travel to Vienna without leaving it
once.
Or to Sicily, Spain or France and even UK as your desires might be.
But foremost, discover the land here. Some visits would send a
shiver
down your spine, like the story of the ST,
Wolfgang church/Grades:
In Grades less then 15km away west,
there was once upon a time, a spring, in
which a princes was healed of heir ailments.
Gratefully she intended to build a
church there. But the devil
disliking another place of prayer, destroyed
at night, what the
masons had build during
the day. The masons where desperate as the
princes pushed for a quick completion, but
the devil damaged
every night the
days work. One day the devil showed up at
the construction site.
Always on the look out for souls (also yours
honorable reader) he promised the master
mason to complete the church in the
shortest
possible time, provided the first visitor
passing the church entrance will belong to
him. ("with skin and hair" as the saying
goes.) Henceforth night after night, Satan
with his subordinates worked on the church
which was completed within a few days. Now
the master mason got a bad conscience and
went to seek advise. It was decided to tie a sheep
on the church and since those days
back,
wolves where very common, in one of the
following nights, one killed the sheep and
dragged it into the church. The screams
were heard by Satan who at once appeared to demand the soul. "Here
have it" said the master mason and throw the
sheep before
his cloves. With a scream of anger, the devil disappeared
through the wall and was not seen anymore.
The church graces with slim
gothic
windows, and a tall tower still today, for
you dear reader to discover.
Our Friesach story is
merely an introduction. Trust us! You
yourself must discover this unique town and
it's surroundings.
And after a long sightseeing day you might happily sink back into
your bed, between cozy pillows and
comforters, dreaming of your
holiday, the good food, the landscape and the friendly people,
while you may plan the next day excursion.
I dreamed too, of the Mayas and Incas, as it was my last night in
Friesach. Tomorrow the plane will carry us
to Buenos Aires where
our westwards travel continues.
What a fine sleep
Dear reader, should you like to follow our South America
adventures, click
Argentina, where our story continues.
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