It’s been a while since I last posted one of these updates on my time here in South Africa. The truth is that the last two weeks here haven’t been terribly eventful. I’ve written lots of articles for class, taken tests, read poetry and battled with a 15-page essay on the role communities should play in natural resource management. Seeing as there is literally nobody on planet earth who wants to read about that, I thought I’d fill you in on spring break instead. So, without further ado, I proudly present a brief recap of two incredibly cool weeks.
My spring break basically started on the 25th of March, when three friends and I piled into a rented Toyota and set off down the N2. The plan was to drive along the world-famous Garden Route for six days before spending the next week in Cape Town and then heading back to Rhodes on the 2nd of April.
We showed up to the first hostel just as it was getting dark, and were almost immediately greeted by a drumming circle and fire dancers. The hostel, called Wild Spirit, turned out to be exactly what one would expect from a hostel located in one of South Africa’s biggest tourist attractions. We hiked to waterfalls and through the ‘magic forest,’ ate their homemade yogurt, and spent nights listening to some white guy play us his mix-tape around a campfire. I’ve never had a chance to go full hippie before, but I can definitely see the appeal.
A mere ten-minute drive from Wild Spirit on winding mountain roads is the world-famous Bloukrans Bridge bungee jump. Those dumb enough to pay $75 dollars for the chance to jump off the side of a bridge get to plummet 216 meters, or five seconds (the highest bridge bungee jump in the world), before the cord catches them and leaves them hanging by their ankles, praying that the guy put the harness on right. I was nervous, but my jump went off perfectly, and I have to say that the first three seconds after you jump off a bridge are probably the three coolest seconds I’ve ever experienced.
The next couple of days were very animal-centric. I walked with elephants, rode an ostrich, fed a baby giraffe and met the elephant’s closest living relative: the Dassie (which looks like a guinea pig). I also got to sleep in a train car parked on the beach, canoe up a river to a waterfall, hike along the cliffs by the sea, go on wine tours, take a ferry ride to the beautiful twin peaks, get a selfie on the southern-most point of Africa and explore the stunning Cango Caves System. The truth is, I could go on and on about any one of these awesome adventures, but seeing as I’m not even at Cape Town yet, I think I’ll let the photos do the talking for me.
Cape Town itself is an absolutely beautiful place. Table Mountain acts as a stunning backdrop to streets overflowing with life, beautiful beaches and waterfronts, mountain peaks and rolling clouds. There is also an incredible amount of stuff to do there. We spent six days adventuring and didn’t even scrape the surface of what Cape Town had to offer. The economic issues in Cape Town are very evident, and it can be very disarming to see so much wealth surrounded by so much poverty (I once saw a man begging for change outside of an Aston-Martin Dealership). There were also incredibly powerful and informative museums, like The Slavehouse or Disctrict Six Museum, which focused on the history of Cape Town, most of which is less than pretty. I got to see a really clever play at the University of Cape Town that focuses on how Jesus would have been treated in Apartheid South Africa, as well as the Robbin Island Museum. All of this information really helped me to better understand the context of the world around me in South Africa.
No trip to Cape Town would be complete without a Table Mountain hike, and once you reach the top it’s not hard to see why. We arrived at the start of the hike before dawn and got to watch the sunrise over Cape Town. The word beautiful doesn’t even begin to do it justice. Lion’s Head, however, puts the Table Mountain view to shame. There really is nothing in the world like sitting on a rock overlooking a major world city surrounded by ocean on a warm summer’s day.
The crazy thing is there’s still so much stuff I haven’t even mentioned. I got to walk on a beach filled with penguins, see seals play on the docks and meet baboons. I snuck into an old castle that appeared to be a military base, film set and museum all at the same time, I went to a comedy show and got seated in the front row so a balding fat man could make jokes about Americans, I met countless cool people, drank something called bone-crusher, went to concerts in botanical gardens, hiked up a beautiful seaside mountain, ate ostrich and so much more. The food was insanely good, the people were (mostly) nice and welcoming, and the city itself is really just a special place.
Finally, I would be remised if I didn’t give a huge shutout to my wonderful traveling partners. My Hobart friends will know the delightful Mary King, who fell in love with a baboon, discovered the wonders of Hakѐ, and deserves a special medal for not actually murdering me and Bart. There’s also the bitchin’ Page Baker, who combined with Mary to be a great mom and an even better wine-tasting partner. Finally, we come to the Flying Dutchman himself, Bart Schermers, who taught us German (a little too much German, perhaps), owns exactly one CD, and loves brotime almost as much as he loves America.
It was a great vacation, and I am excited to report on all the adventures to come.
