Under the Baobab Tree

Jane Chidgey is a fiercely independent, happily single city-dweller when she meets Peter Phillip, a director of the mining company where she worked as a PA.

Seemingly overnight, this never-married woman of a certain age abandons her life in Melbourne for life with the man of her dreams in the Limpopo Valley in the far north of South Africa. Instead of catching the tram to work, she finds herself driving an old Land Rover across the veld, tracking cheetahs and coming to grips with the impoverished lives of the local people.

With great honesty, wit and warmth, Jane tells of her transformation from independent career woman to ‘Lady of the Lodge’ on a wildlife reserve and the resultant culture shock. She introduces us to the many colourful characters who populate her new life, the awe-inspiring wildlife that becomes a part of her daily existence, and of the ambitious cheetah re-wilding project she and Peter start up on the reserve.

Fascinating, funny, heart-warming and at times deeply moving, this is the wonderful tale of a woman who fell in love twice: first with a man, and then with Africa.

About the Author

Jane Chidgey was born in Melbourne in 1952 and spent most of her career as a secretary or personal assistant in various companies, including three years working in Tokyo for an Australian company in the 1970s. Jane’s hobbies prior to moving to South Africa were horse-riding and golf. She has now given up horse-riding and taken up bird watching and game viewing. Whenever Jane visits Australia she still manages to fit in a few rounds of golf.