As we made our way to Wilderness from Plettenberg Bay, we stopped in Knysna for lunch. The town had some funk (cool funk not smelly funk) and the geography resembled the Oregon coast. We found a cute little place on Thesen island called Ile de Pain where I had the best butternut squash soup of my life.
In Wilderness, we stayed at a backpackers called Fairy Knowe. It was tucked away from the town in the forest so it was very peaceful but also very nature intensive, as in a giant tarantula in our room. Todd discovered it just as we were all getting ready for bed. All I could do was leave and start making plans to sleep in the car (I have a irrational but very real fear of spiders). After a lot of screaming and really odd dancing from Kara, the two of them had eradicated the problem.
Lions Oh My!
Before leaving the coast and cutting up to Robertson, we stopped at The Garden Route Private Reserve for a game drive. It was a totally different experience than the couple days we spent in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi (north of Durban). They had considerably less land so the animals weren't as "wild," but on the other hand it did ensure that you would see them. We also got to drink beer. Which come to think of it we probably could have done on our other game drives because it's not that there are no rules in South Africa, it's that nobody follows them.
I was anxious to see lions so we drove straight away to their 100-hectare designated area. We found them (two females, one male) lounging in the sun like house cats. It was incredible! They were so huge and scary yet so cuddly. They didn't seem to mind that we were there but our guide told us that at the end of the day they grow tired of spectators and will sometimes chase the 4x4s out. Can you imagine?
On the rest of the drive we spotted zebras, rhinos, wildebeests, elephants, a ton of springbok and impalas, and one giraffe that peed for a good five minutes while our guide gave us giraffe facts: they fight by swinging their heads and bashing the opponent, and newborns can walk within 20 minutes of birth to escape predators.
Really sorry about the lack of photos, the computer/Internet situation has not been very easy over here. Will post a slew when we get home.
I was anxious to see lions so we drove straight away to their 100-hectare designated area. We found them (two females, one male) lounging in the sun like house cats. It was incredible! They were so huge and scary yet so cuddly. They didn't seem to mind that we were there but our guide told us that at the end of the day they grow tired of spectators and will sometimes chase the 4x4s out. Can you imagine?
On the rest of the drive we spotted zebras, rhinos, wildebeests, elephants, a ton of springbok and impalas, and one giraffe that peed for a good five minutes while our guide gave us giraffe facts: they fight by swinging their heads and bashing the opponent, and newborns can walk within 20 minutes of birth to escape predators.
Really sorry about the lack of photos, the computer/Internet situation has not been very easy over here. Will post a slew when we get home.
From Rhinos to Winos
Our last stop on the road trip was Robertson wine country. We stayed in a perfect cottage set in a narrow valley of craggy mountains. Fruit trees and grape vines surrounded us and climbed up the nearby foothills. It was incredibly serene. Our gracious hosts, Bruce and Allison of Tierhoek Farm upgraded our accommodations which were total luxury compared to our previous night stay in our spider-infested room.
Our wine tour kicked off the next day just down the road at a cellar called Rooiberg Winery. We loved everything we tasted. Everything we tasted was dirt cheap. This was a problem. A wonderful, backstroke-in-a-vat-of-wine problem, but a problem nonetheless.
Sure enough, after stops at Graham Beck (great bubbly), Springfield (no tannins), Bon Courage (great reserves) and De Wetshof (wasn't even that good but bottles on promotion) we were drunk and there were 24 bottles of wine in the backseat. How we were getting them all back to the States was a problem for future Diana, Kara and Todd.
Back at the cottage, Kara and I made the hugest pot of stew ever and played South African Monopoly: "Do not pass Begin, do not collect 20,000 Rand."
Our wine tour kicked off the next day just down the road at a cellar called Rooiberg Winery. We loved everything we tasted. Everything we tasted was dirt cheap. This was a problem. A wonderful, backstroke-in-a-vat-of-wine problem, but a problem nonetheless.
Sure enough, after stops at Graham Beck (great bubbly), Springfield (no tannins), Bon Courage (great reserves) and De Wetshof (wasn't even that good but bottles on promotion) we were drunk and there were 24 bottles of wine in the backseat. How we were getting them all back to the States was a problem for future Diana, Kara and Todd.
Back at the cottage, Kara and I made the hugest pot of stew ever and played South African Monopoly: "Do not pass Begin, do not collect 20,000 Rand."
The Mother City
Cape Town is just as fantastic as I thought it would be. We stayed in a bright purple flat in De Waterkant, a hilly, cobblestone street, cute pubs kind of neighborhood. I loved being in a city, it feels like home. But you're from Nebraska Diana. I know, isn't that weird?
Michelle and Bryan had been in Joburg for a couple games and flew down shortly after we drove in. We started tackling the wine surplus and swapping South Africa stories before heading down to the game at Greenpoint. Walking to the stadium was amazing! The main street was only open to pedestrian traffic over a mile out, it was a full-on parade of fans. The game was brilliant, I was afraid that Spain would let a Portugal goal slip in but they stayed strong as a whole.
We had just a couple days to explore Cape Town so we designated one day to exploring the city and the next to drive the cape/peninsula. We walked the Bo Kaap area, which I think is populated with Cape Malays, a community in South Africa whose earliest members were slaves transported by the Dutch East India Company. In addition to the pastel and neon-colored buildings and insanely steep cobblestone streets, it seemed suddenly quieter and calm. A man from the neighborhood stopped us and told us stories of living there and what we should do while we are in Cape Town. So randomly friendly, I love it. We also toured through an art studio called Streetwires where over 100 previously unemployed people had stable jobs creating art from wires, beads and recycled materials. There was some awesome stuff. We went down to see the artists and it was a jamming craft party. They each get a commission on their products and you can find them all over.
The walking tour was overtaken by a two and a half hour lunch so all we had time for before dark was checking out Green Street Market. At first I felt so tense because the hassling and hustling was too intense ("Looking is free sista. I give you good price. No pressure.") but then you give in to it and you actually get a little assertive with bargaining. I think we all came out pretty good in the end; we got some good stuff and supported the locals (at least I hope we did). We topped off the evening wandering the V&A Waterfront and then got groceries at the SPAR to eat-in. Bryan and Todd grilled an awesome dinner of shish kabobs and we ate on the roof top deck. It was wonderful. So glad the whole group was finally together.
Michelle and Bryan had been in Joburg for a couple games and flew down shortly after we drove in. We started tackling the wine surplus and swapping South Africa stories before heading down to the game at Greenpoint. Walking to the stadium was amazing! The main street was only open to pedestrian traffic over a mile out, it was a full-on parade of fans. The game was brilliant, I was afraid that Spain would let a Portugal goal slip in but they stayed strong as a whole.
We had just a couple days to explore Cape Town so we designated one day to exploring the city and the next to drive the cape/peninsula. We walked the Bo Kaap area, which I think is populated with Cape Malays, a community in South Africa whose earliest members were slaves transported by the Dutch East India Company. In addition to the pastel and neon-colored buildings and insanely steep cobblestone streets, it seemed suddenly quieter and calm. A man from the neighborhood stopped us and told us stories of living there and what we should do while we are in Cape Town. So randomly friendly, I love it. We also toured through an art studio called Streetwires where over 100 previously unemployed people had stable jobs creating art from wires, beads and recycled materials. There was some awesome stuff. We went down to see the artists and it was a jamming craft party. They each get a commission on their products and you can find them all over.
The walking tour was overtaken by a two and a half hour lunch so all we had time for before dark was checking out Green Street Market. At first I felt so tense because the hassling and hustling was too intense ("Looking is free sista. I give you good price. No pressure.") but then you give in to it and you actually get a little assertive with bargaining. I think we all came out pretty good in the end; we got some good stuff and supported the locals (at least I hope we did). We topped off the evening wandering the V&A Waterfront and then got groceries at the SPAR to eat-in. Bryan and Todd grilled an awesome dinner of shish kabobs and we ate on the roof top deck. It was wonderful. So glad the whole group was finally together.
Mother City: Part Deux
On our second day in Cape Town we rented a car to drive the cape. We got as far as Camps Bay before we let yet another meal drift the hours away. It's nice to not worry about time. The next couple stops were quick photo ops as the coastal scenery was absolutely stunning, but our main destination was the Cape of Good Hope. It was tourist central when we arrived but that didn't take away from how beautiful it was. We climbed up a pretty good cliff to get the ultimate view of the Indian Ocean meeting the Atlantic (this is actually disputed, most believe it's actually Cape Agulhas) and just breath it all in.
We continued our drive up the other side of the cape to Boulder Bay where the Jackass Penguin colony resided. I was so excited, I have been waiting to see penguins in the wild for my whole life. Man, what a let down! It was very similar to a zoo. The penguins were able to meander wherever, but were mostly kept in a reserve area and tourists were restricted to the boardwalk above the beach. Lame. I can't deny that they were totally adorable though so it was still wonderful.
Earlier that day, we had booked tickets for a dinner cabaret/Cirque du Soleil-type of show called Vaudeville. We rushed back to the city, rushed to get changed and rushed to the show only to have the doorman tell us they weren't ready yet haha. The show was pretty cool overall. It's was a bit naughty as promised by the woman who told us about it, and some of the acts were really impressive.
I wish we could have spent a month in Cape Town, there was so much to see and do. Guess I'll just have to make another trip.
We continued our drive up the other side of the cape to Boulder Bay where the Jackass Penguin colony resided. I was so excited, I have been waiting to see penguins in the wild for my whole life. Man, what a let down! It was very similar to a zoo. The penguins were able to meander wherever, but were mostly kept in a reserve area and tourists were restricted to the boardwalk above the beach. Lame. I can't deny that they were totally adorable though so it was still wonderful.
Earlier that day, we had booked tickets for a dinner cabaret/Cirque du Soleil-type of show called Vaudeville. We rushed back to the city, rushed to get changed and rushed to the show only to have the doorman tell us they weren't ready yet haha. The show was pretty cool overall. It's was a bit naughty as promised by the woman who told us about it, and some of the acts were really impressive.
I wish we could have spent a month in Cape Town, there was so much to see and do. Guess I'll just have to make another trip.
Neither snow nor rain...
Kara and I did eventually get the packages of wine sent. Whether they'll actually get to us in the States is still a mystery. We really like a challenge so we waited until the morning before our flights to figure out how we were getting the remaining 13 bottles home (yeah that's right, do the math). A couple generous bartenders in the area donated some boxes and we wrapped the bottles in my unessential clothing. Why didn't we put them in plastic bags first asked the Post Office lady after we had already tapped up the boxes with almost an entire roll of tape? Again, the challenge.
Three suspiciously taped, custom-declared "olive oil" boxes and $120 later, we said adios to the packages and pondered if and how they would arrive. My bet is two will make it but one will contain a hot mess of wine, clothing and giraffes figurines.
I don't have photos of this so here is one of Kara struggling with her surf board.
Three suspiciously taped, custom-declared "olive oil" boxes and $120 later, we said adios to the packages and pondered if and how they would arrive. My bet is two will make it but one will contain a hot mess of wine, clothing and giraffes figurines.
I don't have photos of this so here is one of Kara struggling with her surf board.
Howzit and Izit
We said goodbye to Kara in Cape Town and then Michelle, Bryan, Todd and I took off to Joburg for our quarterfinal games. We stayed at Thulani Lodge in Melville, a "cosmopolitan" suburb. The Netherlands v. Brazil game was on so we went to a place called Liquid Blue to eat, watch the match and try to sell our extra tickets for Guana v. Uruguay (long story). There was a rowdy group of South Africans/Netherlands fans next to us that bought our tickets and offered us a ride. These guys were totally fun and a little nuts. Besides feeding us free beer, they apologized for everything: the cold weather, the US not advancing, I think even our crappy accommodations in Durban. Totally funny.
It would have been such a massive pain to get to Soccer City if we hadn't met them, not to mention a total bore. As we sat in the stadium traffic they got everyone around us to cheer and smile; walking in they hugged almost everyone we passed. We bought them some beer (only Bud, what?!) and headed to our separate seats.
The game was crazy fun, Soccer City holds something like 90,000 people and I would say 89,987 were cheering for Ghana. We were actually behind the goal for the shootout, too bad it didn't fall in Ghana's favor. "It wasn't for us" was how many people responded.
It would have been such a massive pain to get to Soccer City if we hadn't met them, not to mention a total bore. As we sat in the stadium traffic they got everyone around us to cheer and smile; walking in they hugged almost everyone we passed. We bought them some beer (only Bud, what?!) and headed to our separate seats.
The game was crazy fun, Soccer City holds something like 90,000 people and I would say 89,987 were cheering for Ghana. We were actually behind the goal for the shootout, too bad it didn't fall in Ghana's favor. "It wasn't for us" was how many people responded.