Fun and Frolic on the Indian Ocean

Fun and Frolic on the Indian Ocean - July 7-9

After our heavy day visiting the townships, we got ready to hit the road bright and early on Tuesday morning. Our first stop was Arniston - a small fishing village about 6 hours from Cape Town. It made for a very long busride day, but we managed to keep ourselves entertained by reading, listing to music, and asking crazy questions like, “if you were going to morph your dna with an animal, which animal would you choose and why?” Needless to say, I have some very entertaining people on my trip. We are becoming this great little family - so many bonds are being created and I fell so fortunate that I now have friends all over the US to visit after sharing these 6 weeks together.

On our way to Arniston we stopped at Cape Agulas which is the southernmost point of the African continent. Next stop…ANTARTICA! It is also the point where the currents of the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet. There were some pretty wicked waves blasting at the point. We took lots of “wow this is so cool” pictures and headed back to our bus on time so that Rich wouldn’t get mad at us and make more comments about how “keep you all together is like herding cats…” Yeah, he’s really funny.

When we finally got to Arniston we discovered we were put up in beach houses just a short walk from the beach….holy wow the views were amazing! The first thing we did once we got there was run to the beach (we’re on the Indian Ocean at this point). We bundled up in scarves, and fleeces and then proceeded to kick off our shoes and roll up our jeans and frolic in the Indian ocean. My pants kind of got soaked because of the strong waves, but wow…was it a cool moment. We stayed out there and watched the sun set and the moon rise. It was a totally awesome experience, but the best was yet to come.

When it started getting dark we headed back to our “house” and got ready for dinner which was going to be cooked by some fishing wives. Wow…what a cool experience! We were all packed in this tiny old house - very much like a rugged old Irish home (I know…stop comparing to Ireland…but it really is so much alike!). There the women sang us songs in Afrikaans, fed us the most delicious meal topped off with Malva Pudding which is a true South African dessert…man it is good! It was just a very cool cultural experience. At the end of the meal, they sang us one more song and it sounded like they were singing “We love Obama!” which then we all proceeded to sing when we got on the bus back to our houses.

The best part of the night was after we returned. It was pitch black and a few of us decided to walk down to the beach. There was a full moon, and no other lights to be seen, so the entire ocean and sky was lit up by the light of the moon. It was so bright, we didn’t even need flashlights!! We sat on the beach for a while until Mary suggested that we climb up the dunes just adjacent to the beach. Chris, Maile, Mary and I began our trek….holy wow those dunes were huge!!! But the view from the top, under the moonlight, was just wow…indescribable. The moonlight reflections made the sand look pure white and we each perched on our own dune and claimed the moment as our own. We could see for miles as the Southern Cross was illuminated above our heads. It was just one of those “wow, I feel so small” moments, and I know it will probably be one of the moments from the trip that I will always remember. After running down the dunes (much more fun than climbing up), we all made a pact to always remember the dunes…and no matter how bad a day gets in the future, we can always email each other to collectively remember that experience. It’s one of those things that I can’t ever truly explain to anyone else - just one of those memories that I will carry with me forever.

The next morning we headed out early on our way to Tsitsikama, a national park on the coast in the Eastern Cape. Another long busride ahead of us, with stops at an Aloe Factory (the woman who gave us the tour was named Vera…) and then to the Diaz museum where we all played “Goonies” on the replica ship. We finally got to Tsitsikama around 6. This time our accomodation was in oceanettes right on the coast overlooking the tide pools and some pretty awesome sea swells. When I walked out into my huge balcony, my jaw about dropped to the floor…some of the most beautiful scenery ever. I feel like I keep saying that every day! J Later that evening we had dinner and then went exploring in the tidepools. The waves were crashing over the rocks and spraying us with sea mist. The pool we found was huge and Tadashi decided to seize the moment, strip down to his boxers, and jump in. Despite freezing, he gave it a go and we all had a good laugh. That night I fell asleep to the waves crashing through my open door. Truly a great night.

The next morning we awoke to head out on a hike. I was enjoying some of our last minutes in the oceanettes when I looked out and saw a whale!! We got to see the fin and the mist from the blowhole. After staring in awe, we hit the road for our hike and on the way we saw a pod of about 50 dolphins playing in the surf! What luck!! We also stopped to take some pictures of rock dassies which are little rodent like creatures that look like muppets. They are also the smallest member of the elephant family...strange. We trekked on our hike to a swinging suspension bridge over the mouth of Storms river. Great views and a little bit of fun and vertigo while jumping on the bridge. Took some great pics and managed to ALMOST lose my glasses in the Indian ocean...thank god I didn't!!

I'm now sitting in an internet cafe in Grahamstown for the National Festival of the Arts. What an awesome place. So many performances, crafts, street performers, great food...ahh it's heaven. And we're just free to roam for two whole days, so I no longer feel like a hearded cat. :) The weather is great and I'm enjoying every second of this experience. I truly am very lucky. Not sure when I'll post again - probably when I get to Durban in a few days. Wifi and internet are sketchy on the road!! Wish I could post pictures, but I don't have access...

Peace from Africa!!