i heart south africa

I will be living in Capetown someday…or at least I will be returning. From the morning we pulled into port I could tell that this week was going to be amazing. The sight of Table Mountain is so spectacular, especially when you see the sunrise through it at 6 in the morning. When we got off of the ship docked at the V&A Waterfront I was immediately stunned by the beauty of the area. The waterfront is very hip as it has been built up in the recent years and it is the number one spot to visit in Capetown. There are the malls, restaurants, jazz cafes and street entertainment. My dearest friend, Kate Laudermilk, once said that I am looking for tall, lengthy men, with long hair and prominent noses…if you add amazing fashion sense and a British accent then you get the boys of South Africa. Let me say it again, I will be living in Capetown someday.
On my first day in Capetown I went on a visit to the District Six Museum and to the Langa Township. Although the tour was ridiculous since we were rarely allowed off of the bus, it was still such an eye opening experience to see where many of the people in South Africa still live. It is such a contrast to the cleanliness of Cape Town city center as the streets were lined with shacks built from scraps. At the Langa Community Center we were able to see how the township attempts to support it self and create jobs. They make pottery and do metalwork as well as have a community theatre project. This juxtapostion between the impeccable beauty of the waterfront and the inland lifestyle was intense. It is hard to think that the Apartheid took place so recently in the past and that they have come so far already but still have such a ways to go.
On the second day, Molly, Mary, Sherri, Corrine and I hopped on a train to Simon’s Town. We were attempting to see the penguins on Boulders Beach. Needless to say, it never happened. We rode the train from Cape Town for an hour until we reached the end of the line. We passed some beautiful houses atop the hillsides as well as beaches for surfing and hangouts for the locals. The billboards we passed boasted advertisements for AIDS awareness and condom use and we even saw signs for abortion clinics. Once we ventured off the train into Simon’s Town, we were unluckily caught in a downpour. Of course we were each decked out in shorts and tank tops assuming that there would be sun but that absolutely wasn’t the case. To make matters worse, the Rikkis, a form of taxi, never came and we were forced to walk. We only made it to the nearest convenience market where we ate the local Gatsby sandwich, then we had no choice but to walk back to the train. Apparently there are no cabs in Simon’s Town and the Rikkis only come at random. Luck was not on our side as our only option was to walk to the beach that was 20km away or go back to Cape Town. We went back to Cape Town, but even that was not as easy as it sounds. As soon as we boarded the train we hit our first stop and then we never started moving again. Apparently someone had stolen the cable off of the track. A worker for the railway said that this is a common practice as everyone needs to make a little money. The cables were stolen a few times a week and then sold on the black market. This was fine and dandy, as the man said it should be fixed within an hour, but 3 and a half hours later we were still sitting and waiting. We asked if there was a way to call a taxi but the man said that there the taxis would rip you off and rob you so we continued to wait. Finally after the hours of delirium, stupid joke and interesting riddles, we were herded onto a bus. The bus took us to the nearest train stop where the line was working. We finally made it back 5 hours later than planned, but at least we didn’t miss our dinner reservation. The food here is absolutely amazing. I didn’t have one bad meal. That night the girls and I went to Mama Africa, a trendy restaurant serving African food, and we tried the ostrich, crocodile and venison game meat. It was very good but difficult to describe.
My safari was unbelievable. Myself and a group of 12 others traveled to Johannesburg and made our way to Kruger National Park. After a 2 hour flight and a 6 hour drive we found ourselves in the middle of the African Bush staying at the most fabulous secluded lodge named Castleton. The lodge was so serene and beautiful it is hard to realize that I was in the same world. Every two of us shared a private bungalow and we had the most fantastic common area with outdoor dining and lounging areas that looked out to our open backyard of greenery and a herd of grazing impala. I cannot even begin to describe my four days there. We had morning and evening game drives that were conducted on open Land Rovers with our own private German guide who was reminiscent to Brendan Frasier from “The Mummy” but much more handsome, and then we had our incredibly knowledgable local animal tracker. The drives were a fusion between Indiana Jones and Jurassic Park. I could hear a John Williams soundtrack playing in my head as we pulled out at dawn and ventured into the wild. Seeing rhino, elephant and buffalo made me picture a dinosaur hiding around the corner. I have never been so close to animals before and these ones seemed so fantastical that it was hardly believable. We saw everything including lions on the prowl and feasting on impala, leopards stalking through the drainage, giraffes 10 feet away and hippos playing in the water.
Every morning we were woken at 5 AM and after enjoying tea and biscuits we bundled ourselves up in the vehicles and departed for a four hour drive. Each day featured a different path, a different feel. The reserve owned by our lodge was 40,000 acres and so there was plenty of land to roam. The best part of the safari experience was that it was a real hunt. It wasn’t set up knowing where each animal commonly resided, rather we had to track the footprints and follow instinct to come upon a surprise. Themba, our tracker, was amazing. He could sense which direction an animal traveled, he knew how long ago it passed a particular area and he could spot a chameleon in the dark from a mile away. This journey we had to take to find each animal made it more worthwhile as it added our own story to the experience.
Themba lived in the local village of Justicia, where many of the trackers have their homes. We were fortunate enough to get a tour of the area and it was a surprising experience. One of the boys in my group said something about feeling guilty for looking at their misery as entertainment, but by the end of the day he ate those words. The people of the village were so happy. It was unlike anything I had ever seen. I don’t know if the phrase “ignorance is bliss” truly applies to Justicia, but I think it is quite possible. The people of the village were so friendly and pleasant and the waved to the visitors as they approached. The children were so pleased for a high five or a hand shake and although they lived in poverty they appeared unphased. This village differed from the township for they were not near a city for miles. All they have is the African bush and their small rural areas for play. They did not know of skyscrapers and fast paced technology, rather they enjoyed the simple things of life. I believe that this community did not measure happiness upon wealth as they appeared to be most content with their life and in no hurry for a new one.
Ahh I have so much more to write...