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

June 29-30, Kirstenbosch/Hike

Saturday morning I woke up, and after laying in a bed all week I decided that I wanted to go out and do something. I was starting to get anxious and almost depressed just sitting in the house. I talked to the group and we decided to go to Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. I was quite excited and couldn't wait to walk around for the first time since the surgery. We arrived there in the afternoon and upon pulling in I knew that this place was going to be beautiful. We bought our tickets and walked through the gate into a short wooded area. As we came out of the woods there it was: one of the most beautiful sights of the mountains I have seen so far. The grass was the most vibrant green I've ever seen and there were flowers everywhere. We walked from garden to garden and saw all of the different flowers, some native, some not. Words cannot really describe all of the beauty I saw that day so I'm going to include many pictures so you all get to see some of the amazing sights that I witnessed.

First view at Kirstenbosch

Protea, the national flower of South Africa

Later that evening I went to my first braai! A braai is basically like an American cook out or BBQ. Boyd's friend James invited us all over, but only all of us girls and Boyd went because Matt and Chris were out with their co-workers. We arrived at this beautiful house that James was staying at. A few minutes after we arrived, some of James' friends arrived. We got to talking and I was so curious to here about their lives. After laughing and talking about all of our adventures they got to talking about some things they have done. This couple has been bungee jumping, to safaris, and are planning on going skydiving soon. The thing is, they aren't the first adventurous couple I have met. Many of the people I have met here have experienced so many crazy things and participate in all of the extreme sports. I know part of the reason is because they live in the perfect location for it all, but they also don't take life so seriously and enjoy every aspect of it. I decided that when I go home, I'm going to start being more adventurous. But anyway, back on track...I was talking to Rebecca (one of James' friends) about us wanting to go hiking the next day. She suggested that we hike Skeleton Gorge because it was a fairly simple hike compared to Table Mountain, and perfect for someone who just had surgery done.

Rebecca was completely wrong! We (Jenny, Allison, Boyd, Matt and I) got to Kirstenbosch the next morning and started making our way toward Skeleton Gorge. We quickly found the entrance and immediately we were hiking up the side of the mountain at basically a 90 degree angle. We climbed steep stairs the whole way up and after reaching a certain point we had to literally climb rocks in the middle of the gorge to get to more steps. We climbed three ladders which were attached to the steep rocks and let me tell you, it was extremely difficult. About 30 minutes in I thought I wasn't going to make it. I kept pushing myself and by the time I realized that I couldn't do it anymore, it was too late to turn back. We kept going and pushing on and after many difficult climbs and beautiful views we made it to the top of the mountain. We met a family at the top who said we should take the 45 minute hike over to the cable car, that way I didn't have to walk all the way down. We took their advice, but first walked over to the dam and ate some lunch. The dam was beautiful and unlike anything I've ever seen really. I never expected their to be such a large amount of water at the top of a mountain. Finally we picked up our things and made our way to the cable car. Sadly, our hike that was supposed to be 45 minutes ended up being almost 3 hours. Here we were completely alone on the top of Table Mountain and it was brutally cold and windy. The sun was starting to set and we were getting quite nervous so we picked up our pace. At one point, while we were walking through a valley, I completely collapsed right into a bush. Part of me just wanted to lay down there and give up but I got up, laughed and carried on. The rest of the hike was pretty intense with wild winds and steep ladders that overlooked cliffs. When we finally reached the cable car we had 45 minutes to spare before it closed. After all of the hard things I went through that day I was just ready to get off of this mountain. I will say that even though my experience was hard, it was most definitely worth it. The views were absolutely amazing and probably something I will never see again. And how many people can say they hiked such a hard trail 4 days after surgery. In the end I was quite proud of myself, and I hope that someday I can go back with my family...when it's warm out.

 

xoxo,

Alexandra

June 25-28, My Hospital Adventure

As many of you know (some of you may not) I had an unfortunate incident happen while here in South Africa. When I was feeling sick a week ago it was more serious than I thought. Tuesday morning I woke up with a sharp pain in my stomach and was feeling very sick. I decided to go back to the doctor, which I had gone to the previous week, and figure out what was wrong with me. I arrived at the clinic and after talking to the doctor, for only about 10 minutes, he had a suspicion that i may have an appendicitis. He immediately called a surgeon at one of the hospitals downtown and told him of my symptoms and that I would be on my way to see him. I arrived at the surgeon's office pretty quickly and was promptly brought into his room. He was very calm and sweet, and quite young I may add. I told him how I was feeling and how the antibiotics I was given the week before only seemed to make it worse once I finished them. He pushed on my right side and there it was, a sharp pain. He looked at me and said, "Honey, I'm sorry but we have to operate now." I didn't really have much of a say in the matter so I quickly got a hold of my mom and boyfriend. I told them the bad news and of course my family was shocked since it came out of no where. After a brief conversation with the two of them I was admitted into the hospital which luckily was a pretty simple process once the travel insurance was sorted out. On a side note, the hospital I was staying in (Cape Town Medi Clinic) was absolutely first class, and beautiful. It was extremely fancy and I was told by the nurses that many of the presidents and celebrities stay at the that hospital. As a matter of fact, Nelson Mandela is at the same chain hospital in Pretoria. Pretty cool!. Anyway, I was in the room for less than 30 minutes when they came to retrieve me. On the outside I appeared pretty calm, but in all honesty I broke down on our way to the operating room. I was so afraid and knowing that I was waking up to no one was the worst of all. I just prayed a lot and told myself that everything would be better in an hour or so. After a long talk with my anesthesiologist, they brought me into the operating room and put me on a tiny table in the middle of a massive room. There were about 7 people in the room which made me feel a little more afraid because I knew it was serious. The nurse grabbed my hand and said, "Alright Alexandra, we are giving you a sedative to calm you down, than the anesthesia. Think of something beautiful, and something that makes you happy." I thought of home.

When I started to awake, I thought I was in heaven. This was most definitely the anesthesia talking. The lights were so bright and I couldn't really see anything. I could only hear people saying, "Hi Alexandra! Hello Honey! Everything is okay now." I felt so relieved but I was in a lot of pain. They brought me up to my room, and not even an hour later three of my roommates (Allison, Jenny, and Boyd) came to visit me. I must say that I'm extremely proud of myself for not crying once while in the hospital. I had to stay at the hospital until Thursday afternoon so they could keep an eye on me. The surgeon came and visited me the morning after my surgery and he explained his findings. Supposedly (in his words), my appendix looked fine on the outside, but the inside was completely destroyed and my lymphnoids were "obliterated". He told me I had about two more days before it would have burst. I thanked God that I went to the doctor when I did because I would be still be in the hospital. For the next two days after the surgery I laid in bed and slept. My roommates would come visit me every night which was extremely comforting. The nurses were all extremely nice and really catered to me. Oh and the food! Of course it was delicious as well. I mean really, Cape Town just amazes me with food. If their hospitals have good food, then you know the food everywhere else is just a million times better.

I tried very hard to gain some strength back and the same day as my surgery was walking to the bathroom. I did have an extremely difficult comeback though from the surgery. I was in extreme pain constantly, but I knew that in a few days time it would be so much better. Thursday I left the hospital and as I was leaving all of the nurses were saying goodbye and hugging me. They told me I was one of their favorite patients, which I'm sure they probably say to everyone. The drive home was quite difficult. You see, Cape Town has a lot of speed bumps, and every one that we hit was like a jab in the stomach. I went home and rested for a while and then bathed myself for the first time since the surgery. I made the horrible mistake of going out to eat that night. I ended up having to leave the restaurant in a taxi because I was in to much pain to sit upright and eat that much. I came home and got a little emotional, so my guy roommates came in my room and sat with me for a few hours. We all just talked for a long time and they did everything they could to make me feel better and happier. Friday I stayed in bed all day and slept. I knew that on Saturday, I wanted to take a leap of faith and go on a walk somewhere for the day, so I had to gain some strength.

Although it was a horrible thing that happened, it ended up being a good experience. I was surrounded with nothing but love and given all of the proper care plus more. I happy to say that I survived surgery in Africa and did it like a champ.

xoxo,

Alexandra

June 18-24, work and Allison's Birthday

So the week was usual and nothing exciting really happened throughout the week. I was feeling a bit under the weather for a few days but by the end of the week was ready as ever to celebrate Allison's birthday. Friday morning we woke up and of course I had to go greet Allison with a big "HAPPY BIRTHDAY". We decided to go back to Langa to pick up a few things that we wanted there the weekend before. On our way there our driver got lost. It was quite obvious he had been drinking a little so we think he may have just forgotten where it was. We ended up about 45 minutes away by the airport. All around us were the squatter camps, which had homes the size of a small bathroom. This was the moment for me. At this time I finally realized that this was all real, that people really lived this way here. The saddest part was that the camps went for MILES!!!!! I thought to myself, "this would never happen in America, ever." Although we have homeless people and people living on the streets, we don't have it to this extent. I've never felt so heartbroken, knowing that there were children raised in these camps that would never see the outside. I knew there was nothing I could do, so I just prayed. Maybe someday, someone would take these people out of their misery and give them the homes they deserved. (I was quite hopeful.) I knew that I just had to be grateful for what my family has provided for me, and after seeing all of that I definitely am grateful.

*I wasn't able to take a picture of the camps, but in all honesty I don't think it was something you would want to see. If you are really curious just go on Google and type in "squatter camps, cape town".

After our trip to Langa we headed home to take a nap before we went out for Allison's birthday dinner. We decided to go to this restaurant called TrenchTown Beer Garden for dinner, and boy was that a great decision. The restaurant was covered with a tent, somewhat like a circus, and it had a really fun atmosphere. Our waiter tried to convince us to get bubblegum tequila shots since it was Allison's birthday, but none of us seemed up to it. Instead we got some Miami Vices and ate chilli poppers (jalapeno peppers stuffed with feta and cream cheese than deep fried) and a mexican burgers, which were like tacos but on a burger. After dinner some of my roommates got milkshakes, and sure enough the waiter not only spiked Allison's milkshake, but made her a special blue drink for free. We then went home and spent the rest of the evening in quietly.

Saturday morning we woke up ready to explore. We first decided to go to Hout Bay, knowing there was a really cool market there that everyone had been telling us about. As we arrived to the Hout Bay Market we got a beautiful view of the mountains and the ocean. Of course we had to take plenty of pictures, but the wind was extremely cold so we didn't stay outside too long. The market was so cool, with little stands set up with many different items. I got this really beautiful wooden bowl, and a present for my sister since her birthday was coming up the next day. I also got a really cool necklace that had a pendant, which was carved out of stone. The pendant had a special meaning behind it: the sharing of knowledge and wisdom; that everyone is interconnected and in some way infinite. It was amazing to say the least. There were stands with all different types of foods, juices, and desserts. The tables were all family style and people were sitting next to people they didn't know. There was a band playing music in the corner for all of the people to listen to. I absolutely loved the feeling of this place, and although it was somewhat big, it felt homey and small. Allison and I got these delicious "paninis" for lunch. They used some type of oat or wheat and sprinkled it on top of cheese, chicken, and basil pesto. It tasted nothing like a panini but was a million times better. We also got samosas, of course I couldn't pass those up. After my delicious lunch I got some fresh juice, which had mango, pineapple, apple, carrot, and passionfruit in it. It was really really good and perfect instead of dessert. After hanging out at the market for a while we decided to walk down the street to the harbor. As we were walking over there we heard a loud siren go off, which I was told was the signal for a shark sighting. I sadly didn't get to see any sharks, but I did get to see some seals at the harbor. In fact, one very large, fat seal name Peterboy swam up to us while we were sitting on the edge by the water. One of the little boys at the harbor was feeding him fish, and compared to the little baby seal that swam up, Peterboy was HUGE!!!

Hout Bay

Harbor in Hout Bay

Peterboy

On our way back home our taxi driver decided to take us through Clifton to Camps Bay. Clifton is one of the richest places in South Africa, and is sadly somewhere I could only dream of living. All of the homes were huge and overlooking the Atlantic. The each had a lot of terraces and many windows (something my parents would have loved). We finally made it to Camps Bay and pulled up to this beautiful white sanded beach with massive rocks in the high tide. We walked out on the beach and took pictures of the beautiful mountains behind us known as the 12 Apostles. We climbed out on the rocks and watched as the waves crashed into the ones further out into the water. No matter how cold the weather is here, I can never get sick of the beautiful beaches. The all are so unique, each with their own character and beautiful views. We also drove past Sea Point, but it wasn't somewhere I think I would stop. The massives waves were perfect though for the drive past. Later on that evening there was a Springbok rugby match, so we went back to TrenchTown to watch it. We hung out for awhile and watched the game then headed back home for a girls night. As lame as we are, we had a super fun dance party in our kitchen with just the girls, and I tried to teach them how to bellydance (they tried to say the least, and were able to do some things haha).

12 Apostles

Camps Bay

Sunday morning we woke up to the boys making us french toast. I was getting pretty used to the idea of having breakfast made for me on the weekends. It was nice since Jenny and I made most of the dinners. Allison, Jenny, and I got ready for our big day at Waterfront and in the HELICOPTER!!! Allison's boyfriend was so sweet and bought her a helicopter ride was three people for her birthday. Lucky for me I was chosen to go with her. Matt and Boyd decided to come down to Waterfront with us and hang out while we went on our joy ride. We went to this super fancy restaurant for lunch and all got seafood. I got delicious yellowtail sushi and even tried my first mussel ever, which I have to say was absolutely delicious. Afterward, we rushed down to the helicopter pad so we wouldn't miss our flight. I had an absolute blast!!!! It was only a 30 minute flight but those thirty minutes were the best 30 minutes ever. The view from the air was beautiful and we got to see so many cool things, including our house. I got some really cool pictures too.

 

After the helicopter ride, we went back to Waterfront and got some gelato and walked over to The African Trading Post. When we got home we made mac and cheese and chocolate cake for Allison's birthday. We then watched Bridesmaids together which was a lot of fun. Monday was another day of class, and Jim had a man come in and speak to us about Cape Town Jazz. he told us some pretty interesting things and I learned more about Jazz than I ever knew. We stayed home for the rest of the evening so we could relax and we watched another movie, Water for Elephants (one of my favorites) to end the night.

xoxo,

Alexandra