My final days in Cape Town, South Africa

Hey everyone,

I know it's been about 4 months since I have left South Africa. I have been putting off this last post for quite awhile, and honestly I have not really had the time to sit down and complete it. The other day I was thinking about my experience there and I realized I had not finished the blog. I felt like it was my duty to you all to finish my amazing adventure.

My last week seemed just like every other. I went to work and finished the project I was designated to work on. On Wednesday Inyathelo threw us a little going away party. They all thanked us for the work we had done and gave us some snacks (which I enjoyed of course). Thursday, my last day, came quickly and it was so hard to leave. I wanted to cry when I hugged everyone goodbye. I had built relationships with everyone I worked with. They all had really cared for me and treated me like family. Leaving them was difficult, but they assured me that I was always welcome back. That night our director took us out for dinner at a fabulous restaurant. I got the best steak I probably ever had...no exaggeration. Friday we all went to Simon's Town, one of South Africa's oldest cities. It felt like my little town of Burton, Ohio. It was early when we arrived so we walked to a little coffee shop and then made our way to Boulder's Beach. Boulder's was famous for the penguins that lived and nested there. As many of you all I know, I absolutely love penguins. There were so many of them and there were also a lot of babies. They were so cute I just wanted to take one home. After walking through the boardwalks and taking lots of pictures, we headed to lunch. After lunch we were preparing for our tour to Seal Island, but sadly it was cancelled due to inclement weather. Instead we went to the naval museum which was definitely worth it. They had so many cool things inside the museum that really represented the history of the navy their in Simon's Town. We left after the museum, but stopped at Long beach. As always, the beach was beautiful and I wished it was a little warmer out. Later that evening, Jenny, Allison and I met up with Vivienne, one of the interns I worked with from Nigeria. She brought along her boyfriend and his best friend. The restaurant was beautiful and very classy, a great place for the end of our fantastic day. Throughout the dinner we talked about our lives, and Vivienne's boyfriend began to explain how he met her. After a long romantic story he PROPOSED! I honestly was speechless and of course she said yes. I had never watched someone propose before, and it was an amazing feeling to be there to watch a very important moment in two people's lives. This was a great way to end the perfect day, and I was looking forward to the weekend we had ahead of us.

 



 

Saturday we went to Kalk Bay. If I could live anywhere in South Africa it would be here. It was very trendy but quiet. It had the small town feel to it, but they were in with current fashions and trends. They had a lot of really cool shops. After walking around for awhile we got some fish n chips. I loved it of course, and that was my first time actually ever having it. We then walked out onto this concrete pier that had a lighthouse on the end and took a lot of pictures. Sunday was my last full day in Cape Town, so we did what any other visitor to Cape Town would naturally do...went to Mzoli's. Mzoli's is basically just a massive braai with food, drinks, music, and dancing all under a large red tent. Here we met up with a bunch of the local people we had met. I had so much fun here, and did not want to leave. We ended up moving to another township to eat, drink, and party more. We stayed until it got dark, then everyone convinced us to leave because it wasn't safe there after dark.

Obviously I was really excited about his shirt. I'm from Cleveland in case you didn't know!



I went to sleep that night thinking about my entire experience in South Africa. It couldn't have been any better than it was. The memories I made will last me a lifetime. Luckily, I still keep in touch with many of the people I met while in Cape Town. Hopefully I will be able to go back someday and share my experience with my family. Thank you to everyone who took the time to read my blog and keep up with my adventures along the way!

xoxo,

Alexandra

July 20-21, Cape Point and Franschhoek

Ok, just in case you were wondering (my family already knows this) I have been waiting for this weekend for basically the entire time I've been here. Cape Point was a must on my list of things to do, and my dad and I had been talking about Franschhoek since before I even left. We started off Saturday morning very early. We were surprisingly able to get the whole group to the train station by 8 a.m., which is quite an accomplishment for seven people. We took the train down to Fish Hoek where we met Erin and James, who were kind enough to not only join us but to drive us to and from Cape Point. I was quite a drive, and we drove along the ocean basically the entire way down. The views were absolutely stunning. When we arrived at the entrance of the park I was a little worried about all of the clouds, luckily in no time the disappeared and gave us the best possible weather we could have asked for. We first went to the Cape of Good Hope: the most southwestern tip of the African continent. It was beautiful, and being surrounded by nothing but cliffs and water was so peaceful. After taking lots of pictures, we headed to the point, where our lunch was waiting. On our way we passed by some ostriches running on the road, and also stopped at beach where the water was the most blue water I had ever seen. We finally made it to the point and found the Two Oceans Restaurant. We had a beautiful view overlooking the Indian Ocean. I got some delicious gnocchi and the most fabulous sushi I've ever had. After lunch we started walking toward the cars and out of no where, a baboon jumped up to grab Jasmine's leftovers. Several men came running with batons to scare away the baboon, but by that time it was too late and had already stolen the food. Baboons are sneaky mean animals if you didn't know. After our lunch we made our way up the hill to the lighthouse. The view was spectacular: seeing the green covered cliffs plunging deep into the bold blue water. It was very surreal.  A few of us decided to walk down the hill on the other side to see the WWII bunkers and the newer lighthouse. After leaving the point we stopped at Buffels Bay beach, which was very quiet and calm. We were almost attacked by a baboon there so we decided to leave and head to the other side of the peninsula: the Atlantic Ocean. We took the long way home to Fish Hoek and stopped in Scarborough. Scarborough was everything I expected it to be and more. A little hippie surfer town where small homes lie right on the beach. It was an everybody knows everyone type town. I took some time to myself out on the big boulders that rested on the shore. The sunset was beautiful, and the waves crashing into the rocks and surfers in the backdrop really added to the view. It was the perfect way to end my perfect day.

 

 

 

Sunday we woke up early, once again, to head to Franschhoek. I could not contain my excitement and was thrilled to be experiencing this so-called amazing town. When we arrived in Franschhoek at the bike shop we were immediately given our bikes and helmets and headed out to our first winery. The first one was Grand Provence, where we got to taste an amazing Shiraz and look at some local artwork. On our way to the next winery we faced some challenges including a flooded bridge and several massive hills. At La Bourgogne we tasted five different wines and also got to try their fresh olive oil and olives. We made our way to lunch by winding through the vineyards and olive trees. Our final destination was at a fabulous fancy restaurant that served us French-style foods. We headed back to the starting point where we were given a complimentary bottle of wine. After the long day, our driver was kind enough to bring us to two other wineries to see their amazing views of Franschhoek and the Black Mountains. I couldn't imagine a more beautiful place, and if it was that beautiful during their winter months than I can't even imagine what it would be like in the summer. I will tell any person who goes to South Africa, to make a trip to Franschhoek because it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience filled with beauty, great food and wine. What could be better?!

 

On our way home we drove through Stellenbosch, a college town, and stopped in Muizenberg. Muizenberg beach, or Surfer's Corner, was extremely busy and filled with surfers. It seemed really fun and I wish I would have known about it earlier, but we were exhausted and ready to go home. Later that night we went out to eat at Chai Yo, a Thai restaurant. It was my first time having Thai food and I absolutely loved it, of course. I definitely will be eating much more of it when I come back to the states. The weekend was amazing and I couldn't have pictured it any differently. I only have one week left and am looking forward to what it will bring me.

xoxo,

Alexandra

July 16-19, second last week and Nelson Mandela Day

Tuesday I began working on a new project at Inyathelo: Philanthropedia. It's basically an encyclopedia about South African Philanthropy. They told me that they had been thinking about this project for about 5 years, so it felt nice to be doing something that was so important to them. It kept me really busy for the whole day. After work I was exhausted, but I knew I still had a lot of work to do, which included blog posts for class and transcribing the rest of the award videos for Inyathelo. Allison, Matt and I decided to go to Cocoa Cha Chi, a super cute restaurant by us. We were able to get a little work done and also got a delicious dinner. I had a chicken sandwich that was covered in a sort of BBQ sauce with olives, tomato, lettuce, and pesto on it. We hung out there for quite some time, just talking and getting away from all of the hustle and bustle of our daily lives here. Wednesday went by quickly again because of the new project I was working on, but the rest of the night was quiet. Thursday was Nelson Mandela day. Every South African is asked to devote 67 minutes of their time to doing some sort of service to their community. I wanted to participate but wasn't sure how. When I got to work I started my daily tasks and then was asked if I wanted to help some of the women with their service for Mandela Day. We made three massive trays of sandwiches, which we were then going to deliver to homeless people in our area. The first place we stopped was underneath one of the overpasses. There were about 3 cardboard box "houses" underneath the overpass. As soon as the children saw us with food they came running and grabbed about 7 sandwiches each. I saw that no one was coming out of one of the boxes, so we asked if anyone was in it. One girl ran over to the box and tried to wake up someone in side. Sure enough, another little girl crawled out of the box. As soon as I saw her, I instantly wanted to cry. This little child was so skinny that her clothes were falling off of her. She literally had to hold her pants up or they would fall down. She grabbed a few sandwiches, nothing excessive, and I kept telling her to take more. I knew that she would be saving those sandwiches for days to come, and even if they started to spoil she would probably still eat them. We walked away and moved on to the next people. We gave some to a man looking through trash, a man sleeping in the park, two homeless shelters, and finally a group of men who looked like they hadn't eaten for days. Even after seeing all of these starving people, no one affected me like the little girl. The hardest part about all of that wasn't seeing the starving people, it was knowing that even though you helped feed someone today, they would be hungry again tomorrow. Even though you helped a few people, there were millions more suffering. Something about that really got to the core of me, and it honestly broke my heart. The rest of the evening just wasn't the same for me. I had that image of the little girl implanted into my mind. I couldn't stop thinking about her. We went to dinner at Fat Cactus later that night, and I sat there eating my delicious food and drinking margaritas while that child ate half of her sandwich. I prayed for her later that night. Friday, was another day of work and nothing very eventful happened.

After reading this post I must ask something of you. I ask that you take time out of your day today to appreciate everyone and everything you have. Tell the people you love the most how much they mean to you. Know that we are blessed with such fortunate lives and surrounded by people who care. Think of someone you know, who could maybe use some help, and help them. Life is too short to be taking things for granted. I have come to realize that I cannot help everyone in the world. I cannot make a drastic change, but helping one person can be the best change of all.

xoxo,

Alexandra

July 8-15, Wine tasting and gardens

Sorry I've been posting weekly, time just flies while we are here and it's hard to find the time to sit and write a blog. Monday was another day of class and Auntie Shereen provided us with some delicious Indian meatball sandwiches. Later on during class we had a man from the MK of the ANC come and speak to us. We were told before he came that many of these men are secretive about what they have done because it's government related. I had a hard time understanding a lot that he said, but what I did understand was extremely interesting.  (P.S. - we were just informed this week that he passed away unexpectedly from TB.) The rest of the night was quiet for me. Some of my roommates went out but I decided to stay in and have a night to myself. The rest of the week was pretty uneventful. Wednesday night all of us girls went to Taste of Asia for dinner. I never usually eat buffets but it looked good in the moment. I regretted my decision later when I was feeling a little sick. Friday, Matt and Jenny came to work with Boyd and I. I felt bad that it wasn't as exciting as they may have wanted it to be. I sadly have an office job so it's not too interesting to them unless they actually do the work. We did go to The Deli for lunch though (since it's Boyd and I's favorite place). When we got home from work Allison helped me do a Bohemian braid in my hair, which I thought looked really cool.

Later that evening we went down to Sea Point to watch the sunset before dinner. It was absolutely beautiful and I also found some really cool shells while walking on the beach. We had dinner at Ristorante Posticino, which obviously is Italian. It was extremely authentic and I had some amazing wine there as well. If any of my readers are from Cleveland than you would have felt right at home in this restaurant. It made me think of Little Italy, and that made me a little homesick. Saturday morning we got up early to go to the Old Biscuit Mill for brunch. Biscuit Mill is like a giant food market. They had some clothing stands (where I got a super cute pink dress for $10), but most of the market was delicious and unique foods. I, of course, got samosas and I also got a shwarma. Shwarmas are like pita pockets with whatever your little heart desires in them. It started to rain while we were there, so Allison and I took cover under a tent where a live band was playing. It was like a modern folk band, and extremely fun to listen to, especially when they played songs I knew. Later we went home to nap before the STORMERS GAME!!!!! I was looking forward to going to a rugby match for awhile and was excited to learn more about the sport. Sadly, Boyd got the times mixed up and we got there 2 hours early. I didn't mind too much though because we got to tailgate, and also meet some of Matt's friends from the states. Once the game started, some of my roommates went to the bars, and the rest of us stayed to watch the game. I sat next to Boyd the entire game so he could explain the game to me. By halftime I felt like I knew what was really happening and I got to cheer the team on. I felt like a part of the community. My boyfriend has really made me into a sports fanatic and I normally try and watch the Browns games every Sunday at home. Rugby really made me think of Sunday football, so it was extremely fun for me. Luckily, the Stormers won, and by quite a lot!

 

Sunday our director took us on a wine tour at Groot Constantia. We began the day with a meal at one of their fabulous restaurants. I got a steak for the first time since being here, which was absolutely perfect, and some bruschetta. We then got to go on a tour of the winery. I was extremely proud of myself for knowing so much about wine, but I guess I got that lovely information from my parents. Good wine has always be a must in our house so I knew all of the tricks and trades of wine tasting and such. We got to taste 5 different wines, and of course I loved the most expensive one (great taste buds for wine I guess). Sadly I couldn't ship any to my parents because the shipping cost was just ridiculous. I did, however, find a distributor in Florida that sells their wine.YAYYYY. After our wine tasting we went to see the original house built on the vineyard, as well as the building that housed the carriages. It amazed me how simply, but elegantly they lived.

The following Monday, instead of class, we got to go to the Company Gardens. We got a guided tour of The South African Jewish Museum. It was interesting to learn about how and why the Europeans Jewish people immigrated to South Africa. The only downfall was that she bombarded us with information, so it was difficult to remember it all. Afterward, we went to a little Greek restaurant for lunch, and I most definitely got an eggplant pita. I don't think I need to even explain how good it was. We then went to the National Gallery, the countries art museum. The artwork was beautiful, and being an artist, it was great for me to have that experience and to see their styles of work. The gardens were absolutely beautiful and we got to explore them for a bit after the gallery. Next on our agenda was St. George's Cathedral (Archbishop Desmond Tutu's "home"). I always love going to cathedrals, especially because I'm a pretty spiritual person. I was raised Catholic so I felt very at home there. Finally, we walked around George's Mall for awhile, which was more or so like an outdoor craft and clothes market. I got my final gifts for my family and boyfriend and then we made our way home. I was happy that I was able to end my week/begin my week at the Company Gardens

.

xoxo,

Alexandra

July 1-7, Independence Week/Safari

Monday morning, instead of class we went to Auntie Shereen's house for cooking lessons. Shereen lives next door to our director and has made of all the food that he has brought over for Monday classes. While there we learned how to make different curries and malva pudding. At the end we were able to eat all of the food she taught us to make, and of course it was so delicious. We came home for the rest of class and played out our mid-term assignment. The rest of the week went as normal and we were all preparing for Thursday, our Independence Day. Thursday I was lucky enough to get off work because I had to get my stitches out. Finally I was going to be fully recovered from the surgery and I was so happy that it happened on one of my favorite days of the year. Later that day, Boyd and I walked to the grocery store to buy food for our evening braai. We made hot dogs, hamburgers, sausage and bought coleslaw, chips, and salad. It was so nice to eat an American dinner, or the closest we could get. Even though my 4th of July with my little family here was fun and homey, it still wasn't home and I felt sad that I couldn't be with my family watching fireworks like I had always done in the past.

Friday I woke up and went to work. Sadly the internet wasn't working so Boyd and I really had nothing to work on since all of our work required internet. They told us we could go home and I was happy we got home in time to go hiking with the rest of the group. We decided to go hiking up Lion's Head, which I was looking forward to more than any other hike. I had heard that Lion's Head was like no other because of it's 360 degree view. I couldn't wait to say the least!!! We got ready and headed toward the mountain. When we arrived, the hike immediately began. The first part was mainly just a path that winded around the bottom of the mountain. As we started getting closer the top, the hike got a lot harder. We had to literally rock climb to get up the 90 degree angle. We were climbing ladders and pegs that stuck out of the side of the mountain. I was extremely frightened and am pretty proud of myself for accomplishing it. If you knew me, I'm the last person to do anything involving heights. Since I've been here I've probably done more things involving heights than I ever have.

 

Once we reached the top I was relieved. The view was absolutely beautiful and you could see for miles and miles. The only downfall to this hike was that it was freezing cold at the top, and so windy I thought I was going to blow over. After taking many pictures and admiring the view, we made our way down. The hike down was a lot harder than the hike up and I knew that I'd be feeling it the next day. We went home for a relaxing night to prepare for our exciting adventure at Buffelsfontein the next day.

 

Saturday morning we woke up at the crack of dawn to get ready for Buffelsfontein...SAFARI!!!!! This one the number one thing I had planned on doing when I came to Africa. Buffelsfontein is a family-owned reserve in South Africa, like many others, that are home to amazing African wildlife. The only animals kept in true captivity are the cats (lions, cheetahs, and lynx). Their enclosed areas are actually really, really large. Only Allison, Jenny and I decided to go on the safari and in all honesty, I'm happy that it was only a few of us because we got to do and see things that big groups never would have been able to see or do. Our driver, Frikkie, picked us up around 7:30 and we headed to Buffels. The ride there was beautiful and I got a true idea of Africa. It was rural, with barely anything around and all of the plants were native. It was peaceful. When we arrived we were taken into the restaurant, where we got an amazing breakfast in peace by ourselves. Our guide, the ranger of the reserve, came to retrieve us and we headed out on our first half of the game drive. We first got to visit an ostrich who lives with one of the reserve keepers. After letting her peck us for awhile, we headed over to see the lions. I've seen lions in a zoo before, but never close enough to actually experience their size. These lions were HUGE! The male lions had heads as big as my torso. One swing at me and I'm sure I'd be dead. We got to see some 6 month old lions which were already almost full grown. All together there were 7 of them. We left the lion's area and began searching for the rhinos. Our guide told us that we'd be lucky to see them mainly, because they liked to hide. The rhinos are critically endangered, so I was definitely looking forward to seeing them. We came across a herd of wildebeest and zebra, which included a baby zebra. After riding around the reserve for awhile, our guide decided to take us to one of our surprises. We stopped in front of this massive caged in area and he led us in. He said to us, "if you are afraid, whatever you do, do not turn your back and run." That frightened me a little bit but I went with it. We walked through some trees and bushes and there in the middle of the grass was a cheetah. We were able to get about 10 feet away from Tola. He was magnificent. Once we left Tola, we headed back to the main building for lunch. One our way back we ran into the rhinos!!! Our guide said we were lucky charms.

 

 

 

At lunch we got a delicious traditional South African meal, bobotie. After resting for a bit, our guide came back in to take us out for the second half of the game drive. We drove for quite some time and came around a huge bend to see at least 12 giraffes, including a baby. They were a little timid, so we couldn't get too close. We were able to get close enough to take some amazing pictures though. Our guide said he had some more surprises for us, so we headed to the second one. We pulled up to another fenced in area, but this once was smaller. We walked up to the fence and two lynx came right up to the fence. One by one we were brought into the fenced area to touch the lynx. They were so cute and very affectionate. Our final surprise was back by the lion's area. We headed into a building that had cages lined along the walls which led outside. We walked to the corner cage and sure enough there was about 4 lions; 3 of them were the babies. We played with them a little and then heard another lion come into the next cage over. Simba, the king of them all, walked into the cage and started roaring. It was so loud that the ground was shaking. It really scared Jenny and I. After seeing the lions for a bit longer we headed back to the main building to head home. The safari was by far the most amazing adventure I've had on this experience so far. It exceeded my expectations, and I suggest that if you're ever in Cape Town you make a visit to Buffelsfontein.

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After a long day at the reserve we came home to take a nap before dinner. We chose to go to Sea Point for dinner at La Boheme, a wine bar and bistro. The food and wine there was absolutely delicious and cheap. I got some Sauvignon Blanc, tomato and roasted red pepper soup, and a chicken and mushroom gnocchi dish. The day couldn't have gotten much better! I definitely will go back to the Sea Point area for dinner again.

Sunday we woke up and got a late start to the day. We decided to go see Despicable Me 2. After the movie we went to Primi Piatti for dinner and hung around Waterfront for a while. It wasn't a very eventful day since we knew we had class the next day. It was nice to just have a day to relax though, especially since we've been so busy and always on the go. The fun's not over yet though. We still have 3 more weeks to go.

xoxo,

Alexandra