Hello!
So I realized that I suck at keeping this updated. My last post was from our spring break adventure...which began two months ago! I cannot believe how fast time is flying by...I only have two more weeks until I have to leave this beautiful country. I am excited to go home, but I am so sad to be leaving the places and people that have become my home for the past four months. I never thought November would actually show up (speaking of the date...HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALLY!) and now that it has, everyone is starting to freak out. Many of my friends are off on some cross country / inter country adventures (I had my own for spring break so I'll be sticking around Stellenbosch for the last few weeks with some friends). My roommate is on a safari in Kruger national park and then she is going to Victoria Falls in Botswana. Lots of people are exploring the other big cities in South Africa like Durban and Jo'Burg. I am trying to remember some of the interesting stuff I did in the past month or so to tell you about, so here goes!
Back at the end of September there was an AIFS exursion to the whale festival in Hermaus. There was alot more festival than there was whale...but that was okay. According to Mike Leslie there are usually tons of whales that come to that particular bay, but we came a little bit earlier in the season than usual so perhaps they had not all arrived yet. We explored the town and got some delicious gelatto and scoped out the handful of whales that were in the bay. We also got free t-shirts and had a rather lengthy discussion on how much Americans love free items (especially t-shirts). On the way home Mike felt bad because he promised us whales and we didn't see very many, so we stopped at a huge penguin colony and walked around for a while.
The first weekend of October my Econ professor took our class to a Western Province rugby game at Newlands stadium in Cape Town! The Western Province team (WP) is comparable to the Paw Sox...they aren't the major national team but just one step lower. They beat Boland 50-7. It was really fun to actually see a rugby game and hear the chants the crowds came up with. Newlands is also the stadium where the national team (the Springboks) play, so there were tons of advertisments and concessions all around us. Before the game we got a tour of the brand new world cup soccer stadium in Cape Town. The stadium, called Green Point, is massive (capacity of about 68,000 people) and still under construction. We didn't get to play on the pitch because the grass had not arrived yet, but we did get to walk around the seating areas while wearing hard hats and neon construction vests. Learning about the stadium and how the world cup and FIFA are going to affect the country has been very interesting, and I cannot wait to watch the games on TV back home in June/July. I have seen two of the ten stadiums (Green Point in Cape Town and the stadium in Durban that looks like a giant spaceship) and some of the semi-final games will be played at Green Point.
As October progressed the weather got continuously nicer as we approch the summer months. It has been about 70 each day, occasionally reaching 80 and quite sunny. The South African sun is HOT! Much worse than the sun at home. However I have been using enough sunscreen and have not burned yet! There was another AIFS excursion in October to Cape Point and Boulders Beach. It was one of the rainy days in October, but a group of us had the chance to go sea kayaking despite the weather. We climbed into tandem kayaks and paddled around the bay and harbor. The weather was creating massive waves so our guides taught us how to paddle through them and let us go off into the surf for a short while before bringing us back home. We were lucky enough to see some seals swimming beside us as we kayaked. After kayaking we stopped by Boulders Beach to see the penguins that live there. We found a few hiding under some rocks and we also saw an animal called a Dassie which looked kind of like a groundhog. After this we went to Cape Point (I had already gone earlier in the semester with some friends) and explored. The major difference between my first time there and my second time was the amount of baboons! The first time we only saw a few from the car. However this time they were EVERYWHERE, and they are MEAN. They will come right up to you and snatch food from your hands. As we were walking up to the restaurant for lunch, we saw a baboon go running toward a baby who was holding his hands out toward it. The Dad grabbed the baby and then monkey went into the trunk of their car and grabbed a bag of chips instead. After it around the car and got in the front seat, while the other two children were screaming. It was a really crazy thing to see! We saw many more baboons just walking around as we explored Cape Point and there were tons in the road as we left. If you ever come across one, do not feed it! They will never leave you alone after that!
October 23 was the offical last day of classes and then the start of exams. My Econ and Afrikaans written exam were during the last week of classes so I was finished with most of my work pretty early. Our Service Learning final presentation went quite well! We were all relieved and excited that it was over too. That morning we had to get dressed up and ready to present and they gave us a free breakfast before we got started. Two of my site supervisors as well as Hestea and Mike and my professors were among the audience which made me pretty nervous! However we all made it through successfully and they gave us a free lunch afterward! That afternoon our class got together and headed to my professor Antionette's house for a braai and potjie celebration. We hung out by the pool and just relaxed because we were finally finished with everything. It was a really great way to end the semester, especially for this class. I am officially done with all of my school work so I can just relax now and enjoy the rest of my semester. Our grades should come out tomorrow but I already know that I got an A in service learning, which was a huge accomplishment.
October was the busiest month activity and academically-wise during my time here. I cannot believe how quickly it went by and how soon my departure date is approaching. It seems like there is so much left to do, but it is amazing how much we have actually done. At the end of October we had our AIFS end of semester excursion, which was quite sad because it was our last time getting together as an entire group, drivers included. We got all dressed up and piled into the vans (as usual) and drove off to an unknown location which turned out to be MamaH's house! We stopped there for appetizers and drinks as well as a video and picture slideshow put together by the group. After this we got back in the vans and were taken to a beautiful wine farm called Dorneir where we sat at a giant table for 35 and enjoyed a delicious three-course-meal. MamaH made a few speeches about the drivers and about us. This is unfortunately Mike Leslie's last semester working for AIFS so it got pretty emotional for everyone. However we still enjoyed ourselves and the company. After dinner we got a little restless and eventually found a huge pirate ship playground which entertained us for quite some time. Once dinner was over they brought us back to Stellenbosch where we went out as a big group. I am really going to miss these people! Next semster there are supposedly about 55 students coming (6 of which are from Saint Michael's! that's an incredible amount from such a small school!) but I really enjoyed our smaller group.
Today is rainy and pretty cold, so I have been snuggled up watching movies but I forced myself to come out and get some other work done too. I am officially all registered for classes this Spring back at SMC. Everything seems to be winding down now. We are all trying to fit in last minute souvenir shopping and exploration. I still don't know how I feel about coming home, but I know that I am excited to walk through the gates at Logan's Terminal E and see everyone again :)
I will write again soon, I promise!
Totsiens,
Megan
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Epic Spring Break Adventure Part 2
Sorry again for the delay. I am currently procrastinating writing my journal for service learning...but technically it is not due until Thursday morning at 9 am...so I have time right? Right. Anyways I left off the spring break adventure after we split from the AIFS group on Friday morning. We picked up our rental cars and hit the road. Our first stop was a small beach town called Kenton-on-Sea where we had lunch at a local pizza place overlooking the ocean. After lunch we drove to Port Alfred to catch Eli's (a fellow AIFS member) boat race. He is on the rowing team here at Stellenbosch for the semester and their big race was the same week as our Garden Route tour, so he missed that. However since the town the race was in was close to where we were, we stopped by and got to see his boat win that race! It was pretty cool especially since I have never seen a rowing competition before. After the race we talked with Eli for about 5 minutes and then got back on the road for the long drive up to Hogsback. We were following a road called R345 when all of a sudden, after a small town called Peddie, it turns into a dirt road going through a nature reserve. I'm not sure how we managed to stay on this road the whole time but we did, getting out occasionally to take obnoxious pictures and just look at the views all around us. We couldn't believe that we were just somewhere in the middle of the South Eastern part of South Africa. It was really amazing. With the help of our awesome navigator Brooke and our drivers, we got to our hostel in Hogsback called "Away with the Faries". Let me start by saying that Hogsback is a mountain range and we were nestled right up in the middle of it. Everything in the town of Hogsback has to do with magical things...for example the restaurant where we had dinner was called the enchanted cafe, and we were staying at away with the faries, and there was a magical treehouse on the property. Needless to say we had a great time at dinner and then spent some quality time with the fantastic people staying at this hostel. They placed all eight of us in the same dorm room and we proceeded to try and all sleep in one bunk. After we had gone to sleep the owner came in asking us if we wanted to come back and play more, but we all kind of just grumbled at him to go away. The next morning we went for a hike in the local mountains looking for a giant tree and a waterfall. As a sidenote: we have learned that every good hostel has a great dog. At this place, the dog, named Flo, joined us on our hike. She literally came with us for a good 4k hike to the waterfall and back and then joined us when a man who worked at Away with the Fairies saw us walking back and offered us a ride. Once back at the hostel we showered and packed up the cars to head to our next destination.
We drove to a place called Chintsa which is located on the Wild Coast (just a name for that part of the coast). Some friends recommended that we stay in a hostel called Buccaneers which was right on the Indian ocean and had beautiful views. Right when we got there we found a few guys who were our age and we went down to the beach to play soccer with them. One was South African but studied in London and he had brought three of his British friends to South Africa with him on holiday. We spent the afternoon playing soccer and playing in the warm Indian ocean. After we had a delicious dinner at the backpackers with some free wine and then we joined our friends at the hostel bar for the evening. We taught them how to play kings and they showed us some of their card games. The vibe at Buccaneers was very chill and so much fun. It was a very different atmosphere than Away with the Fairies, but that was the best part of the whole trip! Each night was very different from the previous night. We woke up the next morning and made the long drive to our destination of Bulungula. This place was SO COOL. We had heard about it through some friends and decided that we would have to spend a night there. Although I would not call it a hostel, it is still advertised as one. It is located on the coast, completely isolated from anything modern, in the middle of a Xhosa village. In order to get there we had to drive for hours along dirt roads through tons of smaller villages. We parked our cars in a special lot and then get picked up by a man from Bulungula in a 4x4 for another 45 minutes of crazy off-road driving down to the shore wherer the hostel was. We stayed in traditional Xhosa huts painted a bright teal color with thatched roofs and lit by candles. Bulungula was designed as an eco-tourism location where visitors not only experience what it is like to live in a Xhosa village but the entire place is completely sustainable and environment friendly (Josh you would have loved this place!). The toilets were compost toilets where you had to pour cups of dirt into them after using them (and there was one that had cool glow in the dark paint and was lit up by a blacklight at night...I really liked that one). Bulungula collects rainwater for drinking, washing, and bathing in these massive containers hidden behind the main house. The showers were the most interesting I have ever seen. They are called "rocket showers". What you do when you are ready to shower is take the small teapot from your shower and fill it up with paraffin from a giant container in the bathroom. You pour the paraffin into the small opening at the bottom of a giant metal pole that connects to the water spout. After adding the wax, you wrap some toilet paper around your hand and then stuff it in the hole with the wax, leaving a small amount sticking out. Next...you light the toilet paper on FIRE. You turn the hot water tap on all the way and as the fire shoots out of the small hole (hence, rocket) it heats your water, and you have a hot shower for about 7-8 minutes. I showered twice while I was there just so I could play with it. It was a really interesting experience! We had a traditional Xhosa meal at the hostel and went for a long walk along the isolated beach before the sunset. We then snuggled up in one of the rooms of the main house and played Cranuim with a local for a few hours before heading off to our huts to sleep. We woke up before 6 the next morning and I joined the Quinn and Jon to watch the sun rise over the ocean. We walked about ten minutes down the beach to where there was a HUGE sand dune, and we hiked up it and sat down just in time to see the sun starting to peek over the ocean. It was beautiful! The sun made its way up into the sky and as it did, we noticed that there were literally, hundreds, of dolphins in the water! They would wait for the waves and then jump through them as if they were surfing. We couldn't believe that there were so many dolphins; everything just seemed surreal at that point. We stayed for about an hour and then pushed each other down the dune and headed back to sleep for a few more hours. Once we woke up some of us went canoeing, some went to the local village for the day to follow the life of a Xhosa woman, and Amber and I were supposed to go fishing but it was too windy. So we spent the day reading and being lazy and enjoyign the gorgeous place we were in. Around 4pm we got back into the 4x4 and left Bulungula. We got into our cars for what would be our most epic drive through the back roads of South Africa EVER on our way to Coffee Bay. It was getting dark fast and we did not know the correct road to take because there was so much construction going on (all for the World Cup if you can believe it...even in the back roads!) so we relied on asking locals "Coffee Bay?" and then we would follow the road they pointed to. We came to a stop when we were supposed to cross a small dried up river bed with HUGE rocks in it...the bridge was no longer in existance apparently. We asked the people who were near it how to get to Coffee Bay and sure enough they pointed across the river and up this steep hill that curved to the right at the top. This was not an easy task in our tiny, manual, rental cars. So we got out, checked the rocks, and decided we had no choice but to press on so we got back in the cars, buckled up and went for us. Bridget (the blue car I was in) went first. She made it through the rocks with a few dents and scratches but then we gunned it up the hill, struggled a bit at the turn, but Jon is amazing and got us up to the top of the hill safely. Patrick (the green car) bottomed out on the rocks, but was able to make it through and came up behind us. We celebrated briefly that we made it through and continued on to Coffee Bay. Once we finally arrived at our hostel, called the Coffee Shack, we were ready for some dinner and drinks. We knew we would like this place because as we walked in the door they give you a free beer! Cool! Anwyays we split up into groups of 4 and settled into our accomodations. Since it was September 14th we decided to celebrate my birthday that night at midnight, so we all got a little dressed up and ready for some fun. We had a delicious dinner and got to meet tons of new people (this backpackers was much more of a college-aged tourist destination than Bulungula was; the contrasts between our places of stay were so cool! it really made our trip more interesting). I was just beginning my dinner when I see Kate, Jon and Heather all come up with vile looking birthday shots for me to take. Thanks guys. But anyways we spent the night hanging out and spending some quality time in a really cool hammock (that was basically a giant tarp hanging from the trees...so cool!). Once midnight rolled around they brought me into the bar and the barista pulled me behind the counter and sang happy birthday to me in Xhosa, then in English, and then people from the crowd sang it in German and then French! It was probably the coolest birthday ever. And I got a free bottle of house champagne that I split with my friends. They really made the night great and I couldn't have asked for better :)
The next morning was a bit of a struggle for me, but we had a long drive ahead of us so I planned on sleeping in the car. In the morning Quinn and I explored the beach area which was really rocky in comparison to the places we had been. On the drive we stopped at a placed called Hole-in-the-Wall which is a giant rock formation with a huge hole in it that the ocean shoots through. After this we drove straight through to the Drakensberg mountains which are in the north western part of the country, in Kwa-Zulu Natal. We got to our hostel around dinner time and proceeded to make our own family dinner of pasta, salad, and garlic bread because we had a full kitchen to ourselves. We spent the night relaxing, drinking birthday champagne, and playing scrabble. It was a nice ending to my 20th birthday and I even got to talk to my Mom! We headed to bed pretty early and got ready for the next day's adventure. We woke up around 9 and had breakfast before setting out with our guide Phillip en route to Lesotho. We piled into a 4x4 and made our way up the Sani Pass in the Drakensbergs. We stopped at border control and then again at the Lesotho border and I had my passport stamped a few more times. The pass was terrifying to drive up, but it had the most amazing views I had ever seen. The Drakensberg mountain range is enormous and there was even some snow at the top. The turns are treacherous and the drive was long, but Phillip got us there with no problem. We drove to a lodge in Lesotho where we would be picking up our horses. That's right...we went on a pony trek to a village in Lesotho where we would be spending the night. Now, if you know me, I am not a fan of horses. So I sucked it up and got on that horse for our 2 and a half hour trek through the mountains. Once we got to the village I was quite relieved, although during the trip Kimmy made me feel better because it was her first time on a horse and I'm pretty sure she just laughed the entire two hours. The moment we got off our horses at the village we saw a sheep get castrated. That was interesting, and graphic. We immediately realized that we were in a very different place than Stellenbosch and that this is what life is like here. We had a delicious dinner of pap and chicken and cabbage and gravy made in a traditional way and we ate by candlelight. After dinner we went to the local store and got some beers and sat talking with Phillip for a few hours before heading off to bed. We woke up the next morning and explore more of the village and played with the children who were very interested in us. In Lesotho the people often wear these thick woolen blankets fastened over them to keep them warm. Seeing these dark figures in the distance with their blankets blowing behind them gave me an eerie almost surreal feeling. It was like something you see out of a movie; it was almost haunting but without the negative connotation. These are the villages you read about in story and history books, but it was right in front of my eyes. After breakfast and tea we spent some time playing with the lambs (who were the cutest things I have ever seen) and then climbed back on our horses (with sore bums) and headed back to the lodge where our 4x4 was. We drove back to the Sani Pass, but along the way we stopped at the highest pub in all of Africa for a taste of the only Lesotho beer. We spent some time looking around and enjoying the view before making our descent down the Pass. Once we got back to our cars we piled in once again and drove to our final destination: Durban.
One the drive to Durban it was extremely foggy so we took our time. Unfortunately some other driver didn't and they hit and killed a cow...which we saw on the side of the road. Anyways we made it to Durban and after some confusion finally found our hostel for the night. We all showered off the tons of Lesotho dirt from the dust storm we experienced on the pony ride back to the base lodge, and headed out to dinner. We ended up in a place that was similar to sea world and found a restaurant that was still open at 9 pm. We had a delicious dinner and hung out for a little while back at the hostel (called the Happy Hippo) before falling asleep. The next day we spent exploring the city and the Indian market. Durban has a huge Indian population (and really good Indian food!) so we thought it would be best to check out the markets and local food places. We realized after the fact that we were probably in the sketchiest parts of town, but it was quite an experience and everyone made it out alive and well. We got some bunny chow as a late lunch (a traditional Durban-Indian dish of curry in a bread bowl) and then made our way back to our last hostel which was right near Florida street, the popular going out spot in Durban. We settled in and got dressed for the night. One of my friends from Saint Mike's is studying in Durban for the semester so we had arranged plans to meet up on Florida street for a drink or two. Our whole group went out and I found Morgan (which was so strange but so awesome: to see someone you recognize from home in the middle of a foreign country is a very interesting experience!). I spent a few hours with Morgan and her friends while everyone else got dinner and had their own taxi fail experience (I still don't know what happened there guys). But anyways I met up with Heather, Kimmy, and Quinn later on and left Morgan. We spent the night exploring Florida street and dancing before finally coming home exhausted at about 4 am. We slept in a bit the next morning before packing up to leave. We went down to the beach and had breakfast at a restaruant that is literally in the sand. We played in the water and reminisced about our trip that was sadly coming to an end. It was a beautiful day and the last thing we wanted was to get on that plane to come back to Stellenbosch. After breakfast we got the rental cars washed (which did not help make them look any less beat up unfortunately...) and filled up the tanks before heading to the airport. We boarded our bright orange Mango plane and endured the two hour flight back to Cape Town. Being back in the Bosch was sad after such an amazing two weeks, but it was nice to be able to get back into a routine as well. That was the conclusion of our amazing vacation! I will update again soon with more adventures :)
Totsiens,
Megan
We drove to a place called Chintsa which is located on the Wild Coast (just a name for that part of the coast). Some friends recommended that we stay in a hostel called Buccaneers which was right on the Indian ocean and had beautiful views. Right when we got there we found a few guys who were our age and we went down to the beach to play soccer with them. One was South African but studied in London and he had brought three of his British friends to South Africa with him on holiday. We spent the afternoon playing soccer and playing in the warm Indian ocean. After we had a delicious dinner at the backpackers with some free wine and then we joined our friends at the hostel bar for the evening. We taught them how to play kings and they showed us some of their card games. The vibe at Buccaneers was very chill and so much fun. It was a very different atmosphere than Away with the Fairies, but that was the best part of the whole trip! Each night was very different from the previous night. We woke up the next morning and made the long drive to our destination of Bulungula. This place was SO COOL. We had heard about it through some friends and decided that we would have to spend a night there. Although I would not call it a hostel, it is still advertised as one. It is located on the coast, completely isolated from anything modern, in the middle of a Xhosa village. In order to get there we had to drive for hours along dirt roads through tons of smaller villages. We parked our cars in a special lot and then get picked up by a man from Bulungula in a 4x4 for another 45 minutes of crazy off-road driving down to the shore wherer the hostel was. We stayed in traditional Xhosa huts painted a bright teal color with thatched roofs and lit by candles. Bulungula was designed as an eco-tourism location where visitors not only experience what it is like to live in a Xhosa village but the entire place is completely sustainable and environment friendly (Josh you would have loved this place!). The toilets were compost toilets where you had to pour cups of dirt into them after using them (and there was one that had cool glow in the dark paint and was lit up by a blacklight at night...I really liked that one). Bulungula collects rainwater for drinking, washing, and bathing in these massive containers hidden behind the main house. The showers were the most interesting I have ever seen. They are called "rocket showers". What you do when you are ready to shower is take the small teapot from your shower and fill it up with paraffin from a giant container in the bathroom. You pour the paraffin into the small opening at the bottom of a giant metal pole that connects to the water spout. After adding the wax, you wrap some toilet paper around your hand and then stuff it in the hole with the wax, leaving a small amount sticking out. Next...you light the toilet paper on FIRE. You turn the hot water tap on all the way and as the fire shoots out of the small hole (hence, rocket) it heats your water, and you have a hot shower for about 7-8 minutes. I showered twice while I was there just so I could play with it. It was a really interesting experience! We had a traditional Xhosa meal at the hostel and went for a long walk along the isolated beach before the sunset. We then snuggled up in one of the rooms of the main house and played Cranuim with a local for a few hours before heading off to our huts to sleep. We woke up before 6 the next morning and I joined the Quinn and Jon to watch the sun rise over the ocean. We walked about ten minutes down the beach to where there was a HUGE sand dune, and we hiked up it and sat down just in time to see the sun starting to peek over the ocean. It was beautiful! The sun made its way up into the sky and as it did, we noticed that there were literally, hundreds, of dolphins in the water! They would wait for the waves and then jump through them as if they were surfing. We couldn't believe that there were so many dolphins; everything just seemed surreal at that point. We stayed for about an hour and then pushed each other down the dune and headed back to sleep for a few more hours. Once we woke up some of us went canoeing, some went to the local village for the day to follow the life of a Xhosa woman, and Amber and I were supposed to go fishing but it was too windy. So we spent the day reading and being lazy and enjoyign the gorgeous place we were in. Around 4pm we got back into the 4x4 and left Bulungula. We got into our cars for what would be our most epic drive through the back roads of South Africa EVER on our way to Coffee Bay. It was getting dark fast and we did not know the correct road to take because there was so much construction going on (all for the World Cup if you can believe it...even in the back roads!) so we relied on asking locals "Coffee Bay?" and then we would follow the road they pointed to. We came to a stop when we were supposed to cross a small dried up river bed with HUGE rocks in it...the bridge was no longer in existance apparently. We asked the people who were near it how to get to Coffee Bay and sure enough they pointed across the river and up this steep hill that curved to the right at the top. This was not an easy task in our tiny, manual, rental cars. So we got out, checked the rocks, and decided we had no choice but to press on so we got back in the cars, buckled up and went for us. Bridget (the blue car I was in) went first. She made it through the rocks with a few dents and scratches but then we gunned it up the hill, struggled a bit at the turn, but Jon is amazing and got us up to the top of the hill safely. Patrick (the green car) bottomed out on the rocks, but was able to make it through and came up behind us. We celebrated briefly that we made it through and continued on to Coffee Bay. Once we finally arrived at our hostel, called the Coffee Shack, we were ready for some dinner and drinks. We knew we would like this place because as we walked in the door they give you a free beer! Cool! Anwyays we split up into groups of 4 and settled into our accomodations. Since it was September 14th we decided to celebrate my birthday that night at midnight, so we all got a little dressed up and ready for some fun. We had a delicious dinner and got to meet tons of new people (this backpackers was much more of a college-aged tourist destination than Bulungula was; the contrasts between our places of stay were so cool! it really made our trip more interesting). I was just beginning my dinner when I see Kate, Jon and Heather all come up with vile looking birthday shots for me to take. Thanks guys. But anyways we spent the night hanging out and spending some quality time in a really cool hammock (that was basically a giant tarp hanging from the trees...so cool!). Once midnight rolled around they brought me into the bar and the barista pulled me behind the counter and sang happy birthday to me in Xhosa, then in English, and then people from the crowd sang it in German and then French! It was probably the coolest birthday ever. And I got a free bottle of house champagne that I split with my friends. They really made the night great and I couldn't have asked for better :)
The next morning was a bit of a struggle for me, but we had a long drive ahead of us so I planned on sleeping in the car. In the morning Quinn and I explored the beach area which was really rocky in comparison to the places we had been. On the drive we stopped at a placed called Hole-in-the-Wall which is a giant rock formation with a huge hole in it that the ocean shoots through. After this we drove straight through to the Drakensberg mountains which are in the north western part of the country, in Kwa-Zulu Natal. We got to our hostel around dinner time and proceeded to make our own family dinner of pasta, salad, and garlic bread because we had a full kitchen to ourselves. We spent the night relaxing, drinking birthday champagne, and playing scrabble. It was a nice ending to my 20th birthday and I even got to talk to my Mom! We headed to bed pretty early and got ready for the next day's adventure. We woke up around 9 and had breakfast before setting out with our guide Phillip en route to Lesotho. We piled into a 4x4 and made our way up the Sani Pass in the Drakensbergs. We stopped at border control and then again at the Lesotho border and I had my passport stamped a few more times. The pass was terrifying to drive up, but it had the most amazing views I had ever seen. The Drakensberg mountain range is enormous and there was even some snow at the top. The turns are treacherous and the drive was long, but Phillip got us there with no problem. We drove to a lodge in Lesotho where we would be picking up our horses. That's right...we went on a pony trek to a village in Lesotho where we would be spending the night. Now, if you know me, I am not a fan of horses. So I sucked it up and got on that horse for our 2 and a half hour trek through the mountains. Once we got to the village I was quite relieved, although during the trip Kimmy made me feel better because it was her first time on a horse and I'm pretty sure she just laughed the entire two hours. The moment we got off our horses at the village we saw a sheep get castrated. That was interesting, and graphic. We immediately realized that we were in a very different place than Stellenbosch and that this is what life is like here. We had a delicious dinner of pap and chicken and cabbage and gravy made in a traditional way and we ate by candlelight. After dinner we went to the local store and got some beers and sat talking with Phillip for a few hours before heading off to bed. We woke up the next morning and explore more of the village and played with the children who were very interested in us. In Lesotho the people often wear these thick woolen blankets fastened over them to keep them warm. Seeing these dark figures in the distance with their blankets blowing behind them gave me an eerie almost surreal feeling. It was like something you see out of a movie; it was almost haunting but without the negative connotation. These are the villages you read about in story and history books, but it was right in front of my eyes. After breakfast and tea we spent some time playing with the lambs (who were the cutest things I have ever seen) and then climbed back on our horses (with sore bums) and headed back to the lodge where our 4x4 was. We drove back to the Sani Pass, but along the way we stopped at the highest pub in all of Africa for a taste of the only Lesotho beer. We spent some time looking around and enjoying the view before making our descent down the Pass. Once we got back to our cars we piled in once again and drove to our final destination: Durban.
One the drive to Durban it was extremely foggy so we took our time. Unfortunately some other driver didn't and they hit and killed a cow...which we saw on the side of the road. Anyways we made it to Durban and after some confusion finally found our hostel for the night. We all showered off the tons of Lesotho dirt from the dust storm we experienced on the pony ride back to the base lodge, and headed out to dinner. We ended up in a place that was similar to sea world and found a restaurant that was still open at 9 pm. We had a delicious dinner and hung out for a little while back at the hostel (called the Happy Hippo) before falling asleep. The next day we spent exploring the city and the Indian market. Durban has a huge Indian population (and really good Indian food!) so we thought it would be best to check out the markets and local food places. We realized after the fact that we were probably in the sketchiest parts of town, but it was quite an experience and everyone made it out alive and well. We got some bunny chow as a late lunch (a traditional Durban-Indian dish of curry in a bread bowl) and then made our way back to our last hostel which was right near Florida street, the popular going out spot in Durban. We settled in and got dressed for the night. One of my friends from Saint Mike's is studying in Durban for the semester so we had arranged plans to meet up on Florida street for a drink or two. Our whole group went out and I found Morgan (which was so strange but so awesome: to see someone you recognize from home in the middle of a foreign country is a very interesting experience!). I spent a few hours with Morgan and her friends while everyone else got dinner and had their own taxi fail experience (I still don't know what happened there guys). But anyways I met up with Heather, Kimmy, and Quinn later on and left Morgan. We spent the night exploring Florida street and dancing before finally coming home exhausted at about 4 am. We slept in a bit the next morning before packing up to leave. We went down to the beach and had breakfast at a restaruant that is literally in the sand. We played in the water and reminisced about our trip that was sadly coming to an end. It was a beautiful day and the last thing we wanted was to get on that plane to come back to Stellenbosch. After breakfast we got the rental cars washed (which did not help make them look any less beat up unfortunately...) and filled up the tanks before heading to the airport. We boarded our bright orange Mango plane and endured the two hour flight back to Cape Town. Being back in the Bosch was sad after such an amazing two weeks, but it was nice to be able to get back into a routine as well. That was the conclusion of our amazing vacation! I will update again soon with more adventures :)
Totsiens,
Megan
Sunday, September 20, 2009
The Epic Two Week Spring Break Adventure
Sorry for the lack of posts, I just got back to Stellenbosch last night at around 7pm from our epic adventure! It is going to be so hard to remember all of the things we did, but I will do my best to share some fun stories. The first half of the trip...from September 4 until September 11, we traveled with the entire AIFS group of about 30 or so people along the Garden Route (which traverses the southern part of the country along the coast). From September 11 until September 19 we split off from the AIFS group who returned back to campus and we traveled up the eastern coast all the way to Durban (yes...we skipped an entire week of school! sorry Mom and Dad, but it was so worth it!). I'll attempt to give a day by day description of what we did!
Day 1:
We piled into the vans and drove for about six hours to Buffalo Bay backpackers. We spent the afternoon playing on the beach or just lounging in hammocks on the deck with a drink in hand. The water was definitely warmer than the Atlantic, but it was still a little too cold for me to want to swim. We went to dinner at an amazing seafood restaurant in Knysna where we got to try oysters and some wine. After dinner we were told that we were going to a "surprise" and MamaH drove us around aimlessly for about 20 minutes and then brought us back to the backpackers where there was a Rastafarian reggae band waiting for us! We spent the night drinking, dancing, and celebrating our spring break. I think this may have been one of the best nights of my entire abroad experience so far, simply because it was pure fun. We were in a beautiful hostel literally meters from the Indian ocean with our whole group together dancing barefoot and singing obnoxiously. We also taught MamaH how to play kings which she absolutely loved! She told us we had to play it every night while we were there. Eventually we all faded off to bed in the early morning hours.
Day 2:
We got up in the morning and went to Judah Square...a Rastafarian community in a local township. We got a tour of the neighborhood and learned about the Rasta culture and way of life, as well as took a walk down a nature path that lead through the woods surrounding the area. The Rasta's were the same ones that came to perform for us the night before so we got another chance to talk with them and play with the children in the streets. The neighborhood was super colorful and the people were all very friendly. We left Judah Square and went to Knysna Elephant park where we got to drive out to feed and play with some elephants. Since it is spring here there are tons of baby elephants as well...which are still quite large if you ask me. We got to feed them fruit and vegetables and they will literally take it right out of your hand. After the elephant park we went down to the waterfront for a late lunch then headed back to Buffalo Bay backpackers for a second evening of beach relaxation. We had dinner at the hostel - a traditional potjie. Following dinner everyone just hung out an enjoyed the evening.
Somewhere in between Days 2 and 4:
For whatever reason, whether it was food poisoning or the 24-hour bug, starting our second night people in our group began to get really sick really fast. Literally we went to bed and four people felt sick and we woke up and 9 more felt awful. In total, 21 of the 30 people on the trip got sick for at least 24 hours. MamaH, who got sick herself, spent nearly 2000 rand on medicine for the group and she went above and beyond her director-of-program-role and entered into concerned-mother-role. I luckily escaped what became known as "the garden route plague of 2k9". People would feel fine in the morning and miserable by the afternoon, so some stayed at the hostel and slept instead of going on the daily excursions, but some would come anyways and we ended up dividing the vans into sick vans and healthy vans. It was pretty crazy! Thankfully everyone began to feel better in about 24 hours, so by the end of the trip everyone was back to normal health and strength. This garden route will defintely go down in the AIFS history books!
Day 3:
We left Buffalo Bay and headed north to Oudtshoorn to the Cango Caves. We were guided through a few kilometers of caves with plenty of places to squeeze through such as the "mail slot" which is only 27 centimeters high and a meter wide. It was surprisingly warm and damp in the caves so we were pretty happy to get back into the fresh air at the end. From there we traveled to an ostirich farm where we got to learn about ostriches, hold babies, watch chicks hatch, and play with adult ostriches as well. There was even an opportunity to ride them, but it was a little inhumane (although entertaining to watch people do). After the ostrichs we piled back into our vans and drove to the next lodge that we were staying at. The lodge was gorgeous and consisted of small houses that would sleep 2-4 people and a big house broken into smaller sections for 4-6 people. This lodge came at the right time for our group which needed some serious rest and quiet in order to feel better. We had dinner at the lodge around a fireplace, and I am pretty sure the entire group was fast alseep by 8:30 pm, in order to try and avoid/get rid of the plauge.
Day 4:
We woke up and had a delicious breakfast on the veranda in the middle of the lawn. That morning I was supposed to go sea kayaking but the weather wasn't cooperating, so I got to sleep in instead. After breakfast I headed out with a smaller group to go on a canopy zipline tour! Our group, aptly named "team extreme" geared up with all our carabiners and helments and set out to the trees. There were ten ziplines in total, the longest one over 90 meters. The tour lasted a few hours and we got to swing around and learn about the trees in the forest. After the canopy tour we met up with the rest of the group at Tenikwa, a reservation for wild and rehabilitated cats. We got to see and pet cheetahs as well as see leopards, caracols, and tons of other cats that I do not remember the name of. After Tenikwa we went to Monkeyland! There were literally hundreds of monkeys just wandering around us in this huge preservation area. We got to see gibbons and the blue-butt monkeys like in the Lion King, as well as the black and white striped lemurs from Madagascar. After Monkeyland we headed to a pizza place on the ocean for endless amounts of pizza. Although we are a comparably small AIFS group this year (there is usually around 50 or 60 people) we are becoming famous for our appetites. We ate copious amounts of pizza and then headed back to the lodge for a rather unsettling night of sleep due to the looming bungee jump in the morning...
Day 5:
We all woke up pretty early and stomached whatever breakfast we could before packing the vans and driving to Bloukrans Bridge in Tsitsikamma national park. Driving over the bridge does not give you the full story of just how high that bridge actually was. We got out of the vans and went into the bungee cafe to get a full view of what we were about to jump off of. I took one look and turned around to sign up before I got too scared. We signed the forms, got weighed, and then strapped into a harness. I was with the first group of jumpers (about 22 of 30 in our group jumped that day and many who didn't have already jumped in the past). We walked out to the middle of the bridge on a smaller suspended bridge where you could see the ground the whole time. Once we got on the bridge (there was about 17 of us in our group) the workers blasted pump up music and we all decided to dance instead of wait and be scared. All of a sudden a worker just starts screaming out names...Paden was first! They literally call your name, strap you in, and away you go. It took maybe half hour for all of us to jump off that bridge it was so crazy! I was jumper number 12...right after my roommate Kimmy! When they called my name I stopped talking and just sat and waited as they attached these shin pad-like cushions to my legs and tied them together. They attached the bungee cable and stood you up to jump. This entire time they are talking to you and telling you about the cables but I sure wasn't listening to them, but I could hear my friends yelling and cheering me on, as we did for everyone who jumped. Finally they stand you up and you hop to the edge...you have to scootch up with your toes hanging over the edge. I looked down just long enough to see my toes, then looked back to the horizon as I heard "5...4...3...2...1...BUNGEE!". I closed my eyes just long enough to get off that bridge and then I opened them on the way down and it was AMAZING. All you hear is air rushing by you...I screamed at first but then decided to listen to the air as I literally flew down the 216 meters. I only felt my stomach drop for the first second or two, and then the rest of the time I felt like I was flying, but waiting for that bungee cord to pull was almost torture. Once the cord streches you swing under the bridge to the other side with full views of the ocean and mountains surrounding you. After you stop swinging you wait for about a minute upside down for the worker to come down and attach you to him to be pulled back up. Waiting there seems like much more than one minute, but it was the most peace I have ever felt. My head was completely clear and there was nothing but natural sounds. I looked back up at my feet and the bridge seemed light years away. For all of your viewing pleasure, I bought the video that the FaceAdrenaline company makes and the pictures they took of me jumping! The rest of the day everyone walked around exhausted from adrenaline but very happy. That afternoon we traveled to our final stop in Jeffrey's Bay at Island Vibe backpackers. This place was also right on the beach and since we are a small group we were all located in the Beach House with rooms that led right out to the beach. We had a delicious dinner and hung out for the night in the bar/lounge area with tons of other students and travelers who were staying with us at the backpackers.
Day 6:
Day six was filled with various activities depending on what everyone signed up for. That morning I spent downtown shopping with some friends at the Billabong and Roxy outlets...J-Bay is an avid surf area with some of the best waves in South Africa, so needless to say the beach and the people are awesome. In the afternoon I went on a township tour with a few people. We got to explore the streets and learn about the culture of the area. We went to a man's house for tea and delicious Xhosa bread and then our guide took us to the local shabeen or bar for a drink. We got to meet tons of people from the community which was different from the other township tours we have done in the past. After the tour we went back to the hostel and had a fantastic steak dinner before partying our last night away. At some point in the night a local traditional dance group of children came through and we got to watch them perform. We were up until about 3 that morning playing pool, hanging out, and being obnoxious as usual with the drivers.
Day 7: The Split
This morning we woke up and packed our stuff with the group. However, eight of us went to pick up our two rental cars at around 9. We left J-Bay at the same time as the AIFS group and there were plenty of hugs and well-wishes all around before we left. MamaH told us to be careful of course, and we all climbed into our cars and started our adventure.
Okay so I am running out of time to finish this post...so I promise there will be a part two in the very near future! Be well everyone!
Totsiens,
Megan
Day 1:
We piled into the vans and drove for about six hours to Buffalo Bay backpackers. We spent the afternoon playing on the beach or just lounging in hammocks on the deck with a drink in hand. The water was definitely warmer than the Atlantic, but it was still a little too cold for me to want to swim. We went to dinner at an amazing seafood restaurant in Knysna where we got to try oysters and some wine. After dinner we were told that we were going to a "surprise" and MamaH drove us around aimlessly for about 20 minutes and then brought us back to the backpackers where there was a Rastafarian reggae band waiting for us! We spent the night drinking, dancing, and celebrating our spring break. I think this may have been one of the best nights of my entire abroad experience so far, simply because it was pure fun. We were in a beautiful hostel literally meters from the Indian ocean with our whole group together dancing barefoot and singing obnoxiously. We also taught MamaH how to play kings which she absolutely loved! She told us we had to play it every night while we were there. Eventually we all faded off to bed in the early morning hours.
Day 2:
We got up in the morning and went to Judah Square...a Rastafarian community in a local township. We got a tour of the neighborhood and learned about the Rasta culture and way of life, as well as took a walk down a nature path that lead through the woods surrounding the area. The Rasta's were the same ones that came to perform for us the night before so we got another chance to talk with them and play with the children in the streets. The neighborhood was super colorful and the people were all very friendly. We left Judah Square and went to Knysna Elephant park where we got to drive out to feed and play with some elephants. Since it is spring here there are tons of baby elephants as well...which are still quite large if you ask me. We got to feed them fruit and vegetables and they will literally take it right out of your hand. After the elephant park we went down to the waterfront for a late lunch then headed back to Buffalo Bay backpackers for a second evening of beach relaxation. We had dinner at the hostel - a traditional potjie. Following dinner everyone just hung out an enjoyed the evening.
Somewhere in between Days 2 and 4:
For whatever reason, whether it was food poisoning or the 24-hour bug, starting our second night people in our group began to get really sick really fast. Literally we went to bed and four people felt sick and we woke up and 9 more felt awful. In total, 21 of the 30 people on the trip got sick for at least 24 hours. MamaH, who got sick herself, spent nearly 2000 rand on medicine for the group and she went above and beyond her director-of-program-role and entered into concerned-mother-role. I luckily escaped what became known as "the garden route plague of 2k9". People would feel fine in the morning and miserable by the afternoon, so some stayed at the hostel and slept instead of going on the daily excursions, but some would come anyways and we ended up dividing the vans into sick vans and healthy vans. It was pretty crazy! Thankfully everyone began to feel better in about 24 hours, so by the end of the trip everyone was back to normal health and strength. This garden route will defintely go down in the AIFS history books!
Day 3:
We left Buffalo Bay and headed north to Oudtshoorn to the Cango Caves. We were guided through a few kilometers of caves with plenty of places to squeeze through such as the "mail slot" which is only 27 centimeters high and a meter wide. It was surprisingly warm and damp in the caves so we were pretty happy to get back into the fresh air at the end. From there we traveled to an ostirich farm where we got to learn about ostriches, hold babies, watch chicks hatch, and play with adult ostriches as well. There was even an opportunity to ride them, but it was a little inhumane (although entertaining to watch people do). After the ostrichs we piled back into our vans and drove to the next lodge that we were staying at. The lodge was gorgeous and consisted of small houses that would sleep 2-4 people and a big house broken into smaller sections for 4-6 people. This lodge came at the right time for our group which needed some serious rest and quiet in order to feel better. We had dinner at the lodge around a fireplace, and I am pretty sure the entire group was fast alseep by 8:30 pm, in order to try and avoid/get rid of the plauge.
Day 4:
We woke up and had a delicious breakfast on the veranda in the middle of the lawn. That morning I was supposed to go sea kayaking but the weather wasn't cooperating, so I got to sleep in instead. After breakfast I headed out with a smaller group to go on a canopy zipline tour! Our group, aptly named "team extreme" geared up with all our carabiners and helments and set out to the trees. There were ten ziplines in total, the longest one over 90 meters. The tour lasted a few hours and we got to swing around and learn about the trees in the forest. After the canopy tour we met up with the rest of the group at Tenikwa, a reservation for wild and rehabilitated cats. We got to see and pet cheetahs as well as see leopards, caracols, and tons of other cats that I do not remember the name of. After Tenikwa we went to Monkeyland! There were literally hundreds of monkeys just wandering around us in this huge preservation area. We got to see gibbons and the blue-butt monkeys like in the Lion King, as well as the black and white striped lemurs from Madagascar. After Monkeyland we headed to a pizza place on the ocean for endless amounts of pizza. Although we are a comparably small AIFS group this year (there is usually around 50 or 60 people) we are becoming famous for our appetites. We ate copious amounts of pizza and then headed back to the lodge for a rather unsettling night of sleep due to the looming bungee jump in the morning...
Day 5:
We all woke up pretty early and stomached whatever breakfast we could before packing the vans and driving to Bloukrans Bridge in Tsitsikamma national park. Driving over the bridge does not give you the full story of just how high that bridge actually was. We got out of the vans and went into the bungee cafe to get a full view of what we were about to jump off of. I took one look and turned around to sign up before I got too scared. We signed the forms, got weighed, and then strapped into a harness. I was with the first group of jumpers (about 22 of 30 in our group jumped that day and many who didn't have already jumped in the past). We walked out to the middle of the bridge on a smaller suspended bridge where you could see the ground the whole time. Once we got on the bridge (there was about 17 of us in our group) the workers blasted pump up music and we all decided to dance instead of wait and be scared. All of a sudden a worker just starts screaming out names...Paden was first! They literally call your name, strap you in, and away you go. It took maybe half hour for all of us to jump off that bridge it was so crazy! I was jumper number 12...right after my roommate Kimmy! When they called my name I stopped talking and just sat and waited as they attached these shin pad-like cushions to my legs and tied them together. They attached the bungee cable and stood you up to jump. This entire time they are talking to you and telling you about the cables but I sure wasn't listening to them, but I could hear my friends yelling and cheering me on, as we did for everyone who jumped. Finally they stand you up and you hop to the edge...you have to scootch up with your toes hanging over the edge. I looked down just long enough to see my toes, then looked back to the horizon as I heard "5...4...3...2...1...BUNGEE!". I closed my eyes just long enough to get off that bridge and then I opened them on the way down and it was AMAZING. All you hear is air rushing by you...I screamed at first but then decided to listen to the air as I literally flew down the 216 meters. I only felt my stomach drop for the first second or two, and then the rest of the time I felt like I was flying, but waiting for that bungee cord to pull was almost torture. Once the cord streches you swing under the bridge to the other side with full views of the ocean and mountains surrounding you. After you stop swinging you wait for about a minute upside down for the worker to come down and attach you to him to be pulled back up. Waiting there seems like much more than one minute, but it was the most peace I have ever felt. My head was completely clear and there was nothing but natural sounds. I looked back up at my feet and the bridge seemed light years away. For all of your viewing pleasure, I bought the video that the FaceAdrenaline company makes and the pictures they took of me jumping! The rest of the day everyone walked around exhausted from adrenaline but very happy. That afternoon we traveled to our final stop in Jeffrey's Bay at Island Vibe backpackers. This place was also right on the beach and since we are a small group we were all located in the Beach House with rooms that led right out to the beach. We had a delicious dinner and hung out for the night in the bar/lounge area with tons of other students and travelers who were staying with us at the backpackers.
Day 6:
Day six was filled with various activities depending on what everyone signed up for. That morning I spent downtown shopping with some friends at the Billabong and Roxy outlets...J-Bay is an avid surf area with some of the best waves in South Africa, so needless to say the beach and the people are awesome. In the afternoon I went on a township tour with a few people. We got to explore the streets and learn about the culture of the area. We went to a man's house for tea and delicious Xhosa bread and then our guide took us to the local shabeen or bar for a drink. We got to meet tons of people from the community which was different from the other township tours we have done in the past. After the tour we went back to the hostel and had a fantastic steak dinner before partying our last night away. At some point in the night a local traditional dance group of children came through and we got to watch them perform. We were up until about 3 that morning playing pool, hanging out, and being obnoxious as usual with the drivers.
Day 7: The Split
This morning we woke up and packed our stuff with the group. However, eight of us went to pick up our two rental cars at around 9. We left J-Bay at the same time as the AIFS group and there were plenty of hugs and well-wishes all around before we left. MamaH told us to be careful of course, and we all climbed into our cars and started our adventure.
Okay so I am running out of time to finish this post...so I promise there will be a part two in the very near future! Be well everyone!
Totsiens,
Megan
Monday, August 24, 2009
so do you like fishsticks?
Hey everyone!
So, this weekend was absolutely fantastic. Last week was hectic and filled with work, so I promised myself that I would get it all done and be completely ready for the Cederberg mountain camping trip that we went on. Luckily I made it through the week and even got some homework done for this week, so I could really enjoy the weekend. Friday afternoon all the AIFS kids and a handful of drivers/chaperones (if you could really call them that) piled into some Stellenbosch University vans and drove about three hours North of Stellenbosch. For the first half of the ride we were on the highway passing through small and rural towns, and the second half was spent driving down gravel and dirt roads that traversed mountains and had some serious twists and turns right next to massive cliffs, but Mike Mullins got us there safe and sound. The cabins where we stayed were at a private campground called Sanddrif and they were the cutest houses ever. They were nicer than our flats on campus, but they still didn't have heat. The weather all weekend was gorgeous but the nights were FREEZING. We arrived around 6 on Friday night and settled into our cabins. We had a braai that night and spent our time hanging out around the fire and looking at the stars. On Saturday Mike Leslie woke us up bright and early for our hike! The first part of the hike was tough but we had amazing views the entire time. We stopped at the base of the Wolfberg Cracks and waited for everyone to catch up. From there we started climbing through the cracks and up rocks. It was one of the coolest things I have ever done...we were literally squeezing through space surrounded by 30 foot sheer rock walls on both sides. One part of the hike consisted of all 30 something of us walking down a narrow hallway of rock that was wide enough for maybe one or two people to go through at a time. At the end, there was about an 8 foot wall straight up that we had to get over before continuing. The method of climbing was by pushing your back up against the wall and putting your feet out in front of you against the other wall, and inching up the walls to the top. Now, for all of you from SMC you know how we climb the hallways in the suites? Well this skill helped me get up this crack without any help at all...I was so proud of myself! It was really cool to be able to do that without any extra help, even though there were people waiting to help you if you needed it. After that there were two more intense cracks to climb through, and then we reached the top where you could see for miles around. It was an amazing view that neither my pictures nor my words could describe accurately. We hung around at the summit for a while and we also had a snowball fight because there was snow at the top! It was pretty crazy seeing snow, but also a nice reminder of home. We took tons of pictures and I really wish I could put them online, but I'm still trying to find a way to do that without my computer. We slowly made our way down the mountain again, and everyone made it to the top and back with minor bumps, bruises, and scrapes. My knees are impresively cut up, but it was all worth it. After the hike we headed to a spot along the river where we could cliff dive into the water. The jump was about 10 feet or so and the water was ICE cold...like you come up to the surface and gasp for breath cold. However the jump was quite fun and felt amazing after the long hike. We left the river and headed back to camp for hot showers and dinner...potjie! (That is pronounced poy-key). It is kind of like a beef stew with meat and vegetables cooked in a cast iron pot over a fire and coals for about four hours. It was delicious and filled us up after such a long adventure-filled day. On Sunday Hestea woke us up (much more gently than Mike, I must admit) and we cleaned up camp and after breakfast we drove to the Cederberg winery where we got a tour and a chance to taste some delicious wine. Cederberg is world known for their wine and their Shiraz won an award for being the best Shiraz in the world...which it definitely is. We got to try a a few different kinds and learned about the process of wine making. After the tour we got back in the vans and drove out to where there were some bushman paintings. The paintings we saw were done by the Khoisan people about 8000 years ago. They were incredible to see and the caves that they were in were equally as cool. We had lunch here and then piled back in the vans for the long drive home.
During the weekend there were tons of good conversations, laughs, and discussions. It was great to have the chance to get to know our AIFS group because so far we haven't done anything as just our group. The next chance we will have is over spring break (two weeks away!!) while we are on the Garden Route. Our leaders (or whatever we could call them) are wonderful and I cannot say enough good things about them. They are so helpful and offer us advice about anything and everything. As if AIFS doesn't pamper us enough, they give us a mom as well. MamaH (Hestea) is one of the nicest people I have ever met and we are truly blessed to have such a wonderful person with us. This weekend was full of adventure and my knees are thanking me for it today, but I am so glad I went! I think that is all I have to update on now...I'll post again soon!
Totsiens,
Megan
So, this weekend was absolutely fantastic. Last week was hectic and filled with work, so I promised myself that I would get it all done and be completely ready for the Cederberg mountain camping trip that we went on. Luckily I made it through the week and even got some homework done for this week, so I could really enjoy the weekend. Friday afternoon all the AIFS kids and a handful of drivers/chaperones (if you could really call them that) piled into some Stellenbosch University vans and drove about three hours North of Stellenbosch. For the first half of the ride we were on the highway passing through small and rural towns, and the second half was spent driving down gravel and dirt roads that traversed mountains and had some serious twists and turns right next to massive cliffs, but Mike Mullins got us there safe and sound. The cabins where we stayed were at a private campground called Sanddrif and they were the cutest houses ever. They were nicer than our flats on campus, but they still didn't have heat. The weather all weekend was gorgeous but the nights were FREEZING. We arrived around 6 on Friday night and settled into our cabins. We had a braai that night and spent our time hanging out around the fire and looking at the stars. On Saturday Mike Leslie woke us up bright and early for our hike! The first part of the hike was tough but we had amazing views the entire time. We stopped at the base of the Wolfberg Cracks and waited for everyone to catch up. From there we started climbing through the cracks and up rocks. It was one of the coolest things I have ever done...we were literally squeezing through space surrounded by 30 foot sheer rock walls on both sides. One part of the hike consisted of all 30 something of us walking down a narrow hallway of rock that was wide enough for maybe one or two people to go through at a time. At the end, there was about an 8 foot wall straight up that we had to get over before continuing. The method of climbing was by pushing your back up against the wall and putting your feet out in front of you against the other wall, and inching up the walls to the top. Now, for all of you from SMC you know how we climb the hallways in the suites? Well this skill helped me get up this crack without any help at all...I was so proud of myself! It was really cool to be able to do that without any extra help, even though there were people waiting to help you if you needed it. After that there were two more intense cracks to climb through, and then we reached the top where you could see for miles around. It was an amazing view that neither my pictures nor my words could describe accurately. We hung around at the summit for a while and we also had a snowball fight because there was snow at the top! It was pretty crazy seeing snow, but also a nice reminder of home. We took tons of pictures and I really wish I could put them online, but I'm still trying to find a way to do that without my computer. We slowly made our way down the mountain again, and everyone made it to the top and back with minor bumps, bruises, and scrapes. My knees are impresively cut up, but it was all worth it. After the hike we headed to a spot along the river where we could cliff dive into the water. The jump was about 10 feet or so and the water was ICE cold...like you come up to the surface and gasp for breath cold. However the jump was quite fun and felt amazing after the long hike. We left the river and headed back to camp for hot showers and dinner...potjie! (That is pronounced poy-key). It is kind of like a beef stew with meat and vegetables cooked in a cast iron pot over a fire and coals for about four hours. It was delicious and filled us up after such a long adventure-filled day. On Sunday Hestea woke us up (much more gently than Mike, I must admit) and we cleaned up camp and after breakfast we drove to the Cederberg winery where we got a tour and a chance to taste some delicious wine. Cederberg is world known for their wine and their Shiraz won an award for being the best Shiraz in the world...which it definitely is. We got to try a a few different kinds and learned about the process of wine making. After the tour we got back in the vans and drove out to where there were some bushman paintings. The paintings we saw were done by the Khoisan people about 8000 years ago. They were incredible to see and the caves that they were in were equally as cool. We had lunch here and then piled back in the vans for the long drive home.
During the weekend there were tons of good conversations, laughs, and discussions. It was great to have the chance to get to know our AIFS group because so far we haven't done anything as just our group. The next chance we will have is over spring break (two weeks away!!) while we are on the Garden Route. Our leaders (or whatever we could call them) are wonderful and I cannot say enough good things about them. They are so helpful and offer us advice about anything and everything. As if AIFS doesn't pamper us enough, they give us a mom as well. MamaH (Hestea) is one of the nicest people I have ever met and we are truly blessed to have such a wonderful person with us. This weekend was full of adventure and my knees are thanking me for it today, but I am so glad I went! I think that is all I have to update on now...I'll post again soon!
Totsiens,
Megan
Monday, August 10, 2009
TIA...where are the monkeys?!
Hello hello!
It's been far too long since I last updated this thing. I've been quite busy as usual, but I have lots to talk about now! First off, classes are still going well, I'm in a routine now which is really nice to finally be settled. My service learning site is a Jessie Keet Creche, which is a preschool and daycare center for children from 8 months to 6 years. Me and another student in the class are working there together so we go to the school on Mondays and Thursdays from 1-4. So far we have been getting acquainted with the staff and the children, but soon we will start working more directly with the children and coming up with activities and programs for them to do. I went to my first Kayamandi afterschool session last Wednesday and that was pretty cool. We work with 7th grade students doing homework help and fun activities. After homework time we have snack and then play outside for a while before heading back to campus. The language barrier makes things pretty difficult, but they are so much fun to work with, and they are teaching us as much as we are teaching them.
Last weekend was great! On Saturday we went to the Stellenbosch Wine Festival. Stellenbosh is situated right in the middle of wine country and there are hundreds of vineyards in the area. There were three tents of wine vendors as well as free food samples, so needless to say we were quite content. There was also a fashion show sponsored by a local supermarket called Checkers, so we went to that as well. On Sunday I went shark cage diving! It was one of the coolest things I have ever done, despite getting epically sea sick. It was a bit of a struggle to put on the 7mm wetsuits on a rocking boat, but it was also hilarious to watch. There were about 25 of us total on the boat including the crew. Me and three other friends went together and the rest of the people we met at the place, which was about a two hour drive from school. Lucky us got to leave campus at 5 am, but we saw a beautiful sunrise over the water. The way shark diving works is pretty cool. There is a giant cage on the boat that they drop over and attach to the side of the boat. Five people go into the cage at a time in full wetsuit/booties/goggles gear. Once everyone is in the cage, they teach you how to sit so that your head stays above water, and then when they tell you to "GO DOWN" you take a deep breath and go down into the cage. There is a bar at the bottom to hook your feet under and you wear weights to help keep you underwater long enough to see the sharks swim by. They are SO CLOSE! It's really amazing to see them. We saw a total of 10 great white sharks while we were out, and there were two circling us as we had our time in cage. They are huge! There was one shark that was 14 feet long. If you watched anything on shark week during this past week you might have heard about Dyer Island or Shark Alley...which is exactly where I was! It is the great white shark capital of the world. On the way back we saw tons of seals as well.
This weekend was quite an adventure as well. Friday night the Dutch house threw a "Neon" themed party which was tons of fun. There were lots of people there but it was a nice change from going out on the weekends. Yesterday my roommate and I took the train from Stellenbosch to Cape Town to meet some friends who had spent the night there. It was about an hour train ride, but it was only 12 rand one way so it was definitely worth it. Once we got to Cape Town we met with our friends who had rented a car for the day and we had lunch down on the waterfront. There were ten of us total, and we had two cars. Lucky for us, one of the guys with us is a local and he had his own car, so we only had to rent one. Another perk is that he knew exactly how to get to the places we wanted to go, and he made an awesome tour guide and put up with our obsessive picture taking. When we finished lunch we decided to head to the Cape of Good Hope which was about a 2 hour drive away. Madi was our driver and she was awesome, especially since all cars here are manuals and they drive on the other side of the road. It felt very strange to be on the opposite side of the road and it was really disorienting at first, but after a while we just grew used to it. We took the most beautiful way to the Cape, with mountains on one side of us and the ocean on the other. The Cape of Good Hope is the southern most part of the Western Cape, but not all of South Africa. Still it literally felt like we were on the end of the world and we pretended as such. There were amazing views from the cliffs and the lighthouse observatory. We even saw seals swimming in the turquoise water below, it was beyond words. I took so many pictures but I don't think any of them can do the view justice. On our way out of the national park, we saw BABOONS! There were tons of signs warning against them but we did not see any on the drive in so we were a little disappointed. However on the way out we saw around 20 of them just hanging out on the side of the road. It was so cool and they got so close to us! Once we got through the monkeys we drove to a nearby beach that is famous for having PENGUINS. We saw probably about 10 or 15 of them, but we tried getting close to them and scared them into the water. They are so cute and funny to watch. We declared it a successful adventure day and headed back to Cape Town. From there me and three other girls got a ride back to Stellenbosch where I promptly fell asleep.
I cannot believe I have been here for just shy of a month, it's absolutely mind-blowing. It seems like each weekend from now until spring break (in September!) is booked with fun activities, and the weeks are just flying by. For now we are all just enjoying the ride and not wanting it to end any time soon. I think that is it for now! Keep reading and I'll update again (sooner rather than later hopefully!)
Totsiens,
Megan
It's been far too long since I last updated this thing. I've been quite busy as usual, but I have lots to talk about now! First off, classes are still going well, I'm in a routine now which is really nice to finally be settled. My service learning site is a Jessie Keet Creche, which is a preschool and daycare center for children from 8 months to 6 years. Me and another student in the class are working there together so we go to the school on Mondays and Thursdays from 1-4. So far we have been getting acquainted with the staff and the children, but soon we will start working more directly with the children and coming up with activities and programs for them to do. I went to my first Kayamandi afterschool session last Wednesday and that was pretty cool. We work with 7th grade students doing homework help and fun activities. After homework time we have snack and then play outside for a while before heading back to campus. The language barrier makes things pretty difficult, but they are so much fun to work with, and they are teaching us as much as we are teaching them.
Last weekend was great! On Saturday we went to the Stellenbosch Wine Festival. Stellenbosh is situated right in the middle of wine country and there are hundreds of vineyards in the area. There were three tents of wine vendors as well as free food samples, so needless to say we were quite content. There was also a fashion show sponsored by a local supermarket called Checkers, so we went to that as well. On Sunday I went shark cage diving! It was one of the coolest things I have ever done, despite getting epically sea sick. It was a bit of a struggle to put on the 7mm wetsuits on a rocking boat, but it was also hilarious to watch. There were about 25 of us total on the boat including the crew. Me and three other friends went together and the rest of the people we met at the place, which was about a two hour drive from school. Lucky us got to leave campus at 5 am, but we saw a beautiful sunrise over the water. The way shark diving works is pretty cool. There is a giant cage on the boat that they drop over and attach to the side of the boat. Five people go into the cage at a time in full wetsuit/booties/goggles gear. Once everyone is in the cage, they teach you how to sit so that your head stays above water, and then when they tell you to "GO DOWN" you take a deep breath and go down into the cage. There is a bar at the bottom to hook your feet under and you wear weights to help keep you underwater long enough to see the sharks swim by. They are SO CLOSE! It's really amazing to see them. We saw a total of 10 great white sharks while we were out, and there were two circling us as we had our time in cage. They are huge! There was one shark that was 14 feet long. If you watched anything on shark week during this past week you might have heard about Dyer Island or Shark Alley...which is exactly where I was! It is the great white shark capital of the world. On the way back we saw tons of seals as well.
This weekend was quite an adventure as well. Friday night the Dutch house threw a "Neon" themed party which was tons of fun. There were lots of people there but it was a nice change from going out on the weekends. Yesterday my roommate and I took the train from Stellenbosch to Cape Town to meet some friends who had spent the night there. It was about an hour train ride, but it was only 12 rand one way so it was definitely worth it. Once we got to Cape Town we met with our friends who had rented a car for the day and we had lunch down on the waterfront. There were ten of us total, and we had two cars. Lucky for us, one of the guys with us is a local and he had his own car, so we only had to rent one. Another perk is that he knew exactly how to get to the places we wanted to go, and he made an awesome tour guide and put up with our obsessive picture taking. When we finished lunch we decided to head to the Cape of Good Hope which was about a 2 hour drive away. Madi was our driver and she was awesome, especially since all cars here are manuals and they drive on the other side of the road. It felt very strange to be on the opposite side of the road and it was really disorienting at first, but after a while we just grew used to it. We took the most beautiful way to the Cape, with mountains on one side of us and the ocean on the other. The Cape of Good Hope is the southern most part of the Western Cape, but not all of South Africa. Still it literally felt like we were on the end of the world and we pretended as such. There were amazing views from the cliffs and the lighthouse observatory. We even saw seals swimming in the turquoise water below, it was beyond words. I took so many pictures but I don't think any of them can do the view justice. On our way out of the national park, we saw BABOONS! There were tons of signs warning against them but we did not see any on the drive in so we were a little disappointed. However on the way out we saw around 20 of them just hanging out on the side of the road. It was so cool and they got so close to us! Once we got through the monkeys we drove to a nearby beach that is famous for having PENGUINS. We saw probably about 10 or 15 of them, but we tried getting close to them and scared them into the water. They are so cute and funny to watch. We declared it a successful adventure day and headed back to Cape Town. From there me and three other girls got a ride back to Stellenbosch where I promptly fell asleep.
I cannot believe I have been here for just shy of a month, it's absolutely mind-blowing. It seems like each weekend from now until spring break (in September!) is booked with fun activities, and the weeks are just flying by. For now we are all just enjoying the ride and not wanting it to end any time soon. I think that is it for now! Keep reading and I'll update again (sooner rather than later hopefully!)
Totsiens,
Megan
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
From the Mountains
Hello everyone!
Sorry it has been so long since I last posted, I've been super busy with classes starting as well as exploring Bo-land (as Stellenbosch is affectionately known as). Classes officially began this week and despite my brain still being on summer vacation, I've successfully designed a course schedule. On Monday and Wednesday mornings I have Afrikaans, which might become my favorite class. Our classroom has comfy chairs, pillows, carpet, no desks, and tons of decorations...it almost feels like a kindergarten rooms. My professor is fantastic and when we walk in the door she shouts (literally, she shouts) "HELLO MY LOVIES HOW ARE YOU?" Yesterday we learned the Afrikaans alphabet and how to pronounce important letter combinations. The point of the class is to learn social Afrikaans; to learn how to get by while we are here. The accent is going to be difficult (it sounds like a mix of Dutch and British accents) but I am very excited. My second class is Economic and Development Problems in Africa and South Africa, which I haven't actually had yet. The professor is out of the country so class begins next week...I'll be sure to update you all on how that one goes. My last class is the Service Learning class which has three main parts: Community Development Theory (Thursday night class), Application and Reflection (Friday morning class), and Service Learning at my worksite. I will find out where I will be doing my service learning in approximately 2 more hours! I don't think I knew what I was getting myself into when I decided to take a 9 credit class, but I do know that I already had two papers due as well as tons of reading for this class. However I am sure it will be worth the effort in the end, and as my schedule becomes more routine I will find the assignments to be more manageable.
Sorry it has been so long since I last posted, I've been super busy with classes starting as well as exploring Bo-land (as Stellenbosch is affectionately known as). Classes officially began this week and despite my brain still being on summer vacation, I've successfully designed a course schedule. On Monday and Wednesday mornings I have Afrikaans, which might become my favorite class. Our classroom has comfy chairs, pillows, carpet, no desks, and tons of decorations...it almost feels like a kindergarten rooms. My professor is fantastic and when we walk in the door she shouts (literally, she shouts) "HELLO MY LOVIES HOW ARE YOU?" Yesterday we learned the Afrikaans alphabet and how to pronounce important letter combinations. The point of the class is to learn social Afrikaans; to learn how to get by while we are here. The accent is going to be difficult (it sounds like a mix of Dutch and British accents) but I am very excited. My second class is Economic and Development Problems in Africa and South Africa, which I haven't actually had yet. The professor is out of the country so class begins next week...I'll be sure to update you all on how that one goes. My last class is the Service Learning class which has three main parts: Community Development Theory (Thursday night class), Application and Reflection (Friday morning class), and Service Learning at my worksite. I will find out where I will be doing my service learning in approximately 2 more hours! I don't think I knew what I was getting myself into when I decided to take a 9 credit class, but I do know that I already had two papers due as well as tons of reading for this class. However I am sure it will be worth the effort in the end, and as my schedule becomes more routine I will find the assignments to be more manageable.
As for non-academic things, I am involved in a group called ISOS (International Student Organization of Stellenbosch) which involves international students and local students working together. They sponser fundraisers for local charities as well as excursions to places such as Robben Island, Cape of Good Hope, and hikes on nearby mountains. Also through ISOS is the Kayamandi Project, where international students can volunteer to help out in the local township. At last nights meeting I found out that I will be volunteering at the Kayamandi afterschool program on Wednesday afternoons for the rest of the semester. My roommate is going on Wednesday's too, so it should be a great way to get out into the community and also play with some kids! Over the weekend some friends and I decided to hike Stellenbosch Mountain, which is located behind the gymnasium just off of campus. We followed the trail that lead to the mountain, however due to wild fires back in the beginning of the year as well as rain, the trails have completely eroded away. Therefore, we literally climbed up the side of the mountain. I kid you not, we were practically on our hands and knees crawling up the loose dirt and rocks of this mountain. It was quite the interesting experience that brough some scrapes and bruises, but a whole lot of fun. The views were incredible...the mountain has no more trees on it because of the wild fire and the amount of rocks, so the entire way up we were able to see views of campus, the vineyards, and even as far as Table Mountain in Cape Town and the ocean. Even though it is the winter season, the sun is strong and without any shade for the whole hike we were pretty exhausted by the end. The climb up was steep, which led to us sliding down nearly half the mountain on our butts, but we all made it down safe. This upcoming weekend AIFS is taking our group to the local wine fesitval where we will have the opportunity to taste up to 500 different types of wine (I didn't even know there were that many?) and then on Sunday I am going shark cage diving with some friends. My roommate went shark cage diving this past weekend and loved it, so I am super excited to see some great whites!
Along with excursions and academics, I have been exploring more of Stellenbosch. We have found some great restaurants such as Java and Binnendorf (which has half off pizza specials every Tuesday and therefore we are making it a tradition to go every Tuesday night...I wonder which kind of pizza I will get tonight...). Nearly everything you might order here has either feta cheese, avocado (or as they say, "avo"), bacon, or peppadews (peppers) in it. Now since I love all of these things, it has been a great food experience so far, and I especially love trying things at weekend braais (such as lamb or billtong). Everything here is very cheap relative to American standards, so we haven't quite determined if it is cheaper to go out to dinner or to purchase all the necessary fixings for dinner at the grocery store, but so far it has been a nice balance of both.
I am still loving it here, but I do miss home from time to time. I am currently in the midst of an epic laundry fail (lots of broken machines plus like 300 students all trying to wash their clothes plus my student card refusing to work) which led to me handwashing some clothes so that I could make it through the week, so hopefully this will work itself out soon or I'm in trouble. But other than that things have been great. I love hearing from home and I get excited when people read this blog, so that is defintely helping with the homesickness. I wish I could show you all some of the pictures I have been taking but not having my computer here makes it harder to do so, but I will certainly try.
Oh and as a last though: the title of this post is "From the Mountains" and there is a little story that goes along with it. South Africa was colonized by the Dutch so there is a huge Dutch influence on everything from architecture to language. This works in my favor because Vandenberg is a Dutch name, and everyone here can pronounce it correctly (I still don't understand why it is so hard for Americans to say it though). During attendance on my first day of Afrikaans, my professor delightedly asked me if I was Dutch because of my last name. I told her that I had some Dutch/German ancestry, and she asked if I knew what my last name meant. Apparently, Van Den Berg means "from the mountains" (Berg = Mountains). I thought this was both hilarious and approproiate seeing as wherever I am I'm pretty much always surrounded by mountains (even though Mt. Mansfield looks totally different from the mountains here). Some of the mountains here remind me of the aggro-crag from the old Nickolodeon show GUTS. But anyways that was my story, and I will be sure to post again soon! If you have any questions or just want to know something about South Africa, feel free to comment with a question!
Totsiens,
Megan
Monday, July 20, 2009
Definitions
I have a few spare minutes between lunch and my first meeting at 2...so I decided to post an entry that defines many of the words that I will be using in this blog:
Maties = Students at Stellenbosch University (it is pronounced "mah-tees")
First Meeting = At SU the classes offered for international students have these things called First Meetings. They take place at scheduled times during the first week of classes, but the actual class will not start until the First Meeting has occured. Class schedules, exams, and class layout are discussed at these meetings.
Braai = A braai is a barbeque. It is a huge social event here and there are barbeque pits outside of each residence. The students cook various types of meat over these fires and spend nearly all night eating, drinking, and socializing.
Timetable = Your class schedule
Robot = Traffic light
Neelsie = The student center at SU
Another issue that has come up is crossing the street. Campus is huge but filled with main roads that traverse our walking routes. The problem that I am having is that in South Africa they drive on the opposite side of the road. Therefore when I go to cross the street, I look to the right then the left to check for cars...but here you must look to the left then the right, or else you will probably get hit by a car. It is hard to make a conscious effort to look the other way first, but we are getting better at it. The same goes for walking around; people walk on the left instead of the right. On our first day myself and some friends were walking down the stairs on the right, creating an awkward moment between us and some locals coming up the stairs on the same side.
Today the weather is beautiful as it has been for the past few days. The sun shines all day without any clouds (and let me tell you, the South African sun is quite hot even though it is the winter season!). The nights are still pretty chilly and the sun sets around 6:30ish, but it is nice to have the sun back instead of the rain. I will update again soon!
Totsiens,
Megan
Maties = Students at Stellenbosch University (it is pronounced "mah-tees")
First Meeting = At SU the classes offered for international students have these things called First Meetings. They take place at scheduled times during the first week of classes, but the actual class will not start until the First Meeting has occured. Class schedules, exams, and class layout are discussed at these meetings.
Braai = A braai is a barbeque. It is a huge social event here and there are barbeque pits outside of each residence. The students cook various types of meat over these fires and spend nearly all night eating, drinking, and socializing.
Timetable = Your class schedule
Robot = Traffic light
Neelsie = The student center at SU
Another issue that has come up is crossing the street. Campus is huge but filled with main roads that traverse our walking routes. The problem that I am having is that in South Africa they drive on the opposite side of the road. Therefore when I go to cross the street, I look to the right then the left to check for cars...but here you must look to the left then the right, or else you will probably get hit by a car. It is hard to make a conscious effort to look the other way first, but we are getting better at it. The same goes for walking around; people walk on the left instead of the right. On our first day myself and some friends were walking down the stairs on the right, creating an awkward moment between us and some locals coming up the stairs on the same side.
Today the weather is beautiful as it has been for the past few days. The sun shines all day without any clouds (and let me tell you, the South African sun is quite hot even though it is the winter season!). The nights are still pretty chilly and the sun sets around 6:30ish, but it is nice to have the sun back instead of the rain. I will update again soon!
Totsiens,
Megan
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Hello!
Well I figured it was about time to update everyone on my adventures here in South Africa! I apologize for keeping you all in the dark for so long, but this first week has been incredibly busy, exciting, and exhausting. I left Boston on the 12th for the most epic plane adventure of my life. While waiting in D.C. for our plane to South Africa, I met about 13 of the 30-something AIFS students who would be traveling with me. We left D.C. and flew for about 9 hours across the Atlantic and landed in Dakar, Senegal in order to refuel the plane. It was nice that the flight was broken up into two sections, except we were not allowed to leave the plane in Dakar, so we just sat there on the tarmac for about an hour. After that it was back in the air for another 8 hour flight to Johannesburg. We went through customs at Jo-burg and then got on our final plane to Cape Town (but at least it was only a two hour flight this time). I pretty much slept the majority of the way, and spent much time getting to know the other American students that I will be living and studying with for the next four months. We got to the Stellenbosch Univeristy campus at around 11 on Monday night, and were quickly divided up into rooms and houses. My roommate Kimmy and I live in the Academia complex where we have our own bedrooms and share a bathroom and kitchen area. The rooms are nice, but not as decorated as my room at SMC would normally be. The next few days were full of orientation sessions, meetings, tours, and plenty of walking. Compared to SMC this campus is HUGE. It is absolutely beautiful here, and the mountains are stunning. I guess I forgot what 40 - 50 degree temperatures were like, because it is so cold here. South Africa is in the middle of its winter season where the average daily temperature is about 60 degrees and at night around 40. There is also no central heating in any building, so that makes our rooms quite chilly at night. Yesterday we went on a tour of Cape Town and had our first chance to see the landscape in the daylight, seeing as we landed after dark. Table Mountain is daunting but we have already decided to hike it (if possible?) at some point in our trip. We were guided around the historical parts of the city and then got to experience a panoramic view of the area from the top of Signal Hill. We luckily had a beautiful day (it was about 70 degrees, sunny, and very clear) and could see everything from Table Mountain, the entire view of the city, the harbor, Robben Island, and of course, the gorgeous new world cup stadium, Green Point. The world cup is advertised everywhere down here, and there are so many plans in place for the event that starts June 11th 2010. The South Africans are very proud that their country will host the game, and that pride is reflected in their eco-friendly, glass roofed venue that can accomodate over 60,000 people. While on the tour we learned about Robben Island and imprisonment of Nelson Mandela. Speaking of him, yesterday was his 91st birthday and the South Africans most certainly celebrated. There were parties all over Stellenbosch and Cape Town, and many people dressed up for the occasion.
Our days consist mostly of walking, eating, and orienting ourselves with both the campus and the town of Stellenbosch. The school has about 20,000 students (all of whom returned to school this weekend for the start of classes on Monday) and until now campus has been relatively quiet because the main students were on holiday. For orientation we were with all 250 international students, from the undergrade to the post grade level. We had talks on safety and security, classes, culture shock, AIDS, accomodations, and everything else there was to talk about. At night we have been exploring the local bars and restaurants with the other international students and taking the time to get to know some of the South African people who are in the area, especially the students. Everyone has been quite friendly and kind, but I'm sure not everyone is going to react the same way. It is fun to meet so many people from so many different places, but it is very exhausting as well. This morning was the first morning where I had the chance to sleep in past 8 am, and both my roommate and I took full advantage of it. I think this is all I have for now, I have rambled quite enough through this post. I will write again after my first week of classes (ahhh!) and hopefully I can share more stories with you from South Africa! I will leave you all with a short list of things I have learned so far...
1. Smoking is allowed in bars and restaurants...and everyone seems to take advantage of this. All of us who do not smoke are developing smokers coughs, and I'm not a fan of my clothes and hair smelling of nicotine. This could defintely take some getting used to!
2. They do not have regular tomato ketchup in South Africa. They are a variety of other condiments for food, but I'm going to miss my Heinz!
3. The U.S. dollar to Rand ratio is incredible...and everything costs less here. It's been weird to have to convert the money in my head to see how much I have spent by American standards, and to find out that there are much better deals here. (This also goes along with my new ability to understand 24 hour time and know that 17:30 is really 5:30pm)
4. Everyone knows you are American. For some, the Northface jacket is a dead giveaway, or maybe it's the decibal of our speech or the fact that we wore sneakers to the bar, but before we can introduce ourselves people often say "ahh you must be from the states". So far we have had pretty positive reactions at least from the other international students (many from Holland, Germany, Finland, the Netherlands, and Denmark). Some of my friends and I decided that we need to go shopping and learn to dress less American.
5. Nearly everything is closed on Sundays...which is how I ended up here writing this entry instead of grocery shopping...
6. I have so much to say about South Africa already and I have only been here a week. I am really looking forward to the next 19 weeks, and I know that I have so much to learn!
Totsiens,
Megan
Our days consist mostly of walking, eating, and orienting ourselves with both the campus and the town of Stellenbosch. The school has about 20,000 students (all of whom returned to school this weekend for the start of classes on Monday) and until now campus has been relatively quiet because the main students were on holiday. For orientation we were with all 250 international students, from the undergrade to the post grade level. We had talks on safety and security, classes, culture shock, AIDS, accomodations, and everything else there was to talk about. At night we have been exploring the local bars and restaurants with the other international students and taking the time to get to know some of the South African people who are in the area, especially the students. Everyone has been quite friendly and kind, but I'm sure not everyone is going to react the same way. It is fun to meet so many people from so many different places, but it is very exhausting as well. This morning was the first morning where I had the chance to sleep in past 8 am, and both my roommate and I took full advantage of it. I think this is all I have for now, I have rambled quite enough through this post. I will write again after my first week of classes (ahhh!) and hopefully I can share more stories with you from South Africa! I will leave you all with a short list of things I have learned so far...
1. Smoking is allowed in bars and restaurants...and everyone seems to take advantage of this. All of us who do not smoke are developing smokers coughs, and I'm not a fan of my clothes and hair smelling of nicotine. This could defintely take some getting used to!
2. They do not have regular tomato ketchup in South Africa. They are a variety of other condiments for food, but I'm going to miss my Heinz!
3. The U.S. dollar to Rand ratio is incredible...and everything costs less here. It's been weird to have to convert the money in my head to see how much I have spent by American standards, and to find out that there are much better deals here. (This also goes along with my new ability to understand 24 hour time and know that 17:30 is really 5:30pm)
4. Everyone knows you are American. For some, the Northface jacket is a dead giveaway, or maybe it's the decibal of our speech or the fact that we wore sneakers to the bar, but before we can introduce ourselves people often say "ahh you must be from the states". So far we have had pretty positive reactions at least from the other international students (many from Holland, Germany, Finland, the Netherlands, and Denmark). Some of my friends and I decided that we need to go shopping and learn to dress less American.
5. Nearly everything is closed on Sundays...which is how I ended up here writing this entry instead of grocery shopping...
6. I have so much to say about South Africa already and I have only been here a week. I am really looking forward to the next 19 weeks, and I know that I have so much to learn!
Totsiens,
Megan
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
