The past two days has felt more like five. We had Friday off from school and a group of us decided to use the time for a trip. 14 of us decided to charter a taxi to take us to the Cape of Good Hope, Cape Point, to the Penguins and eventually, Stellenbosch for the evening. We had reservations at a bed and breakfast and then we planned on spending all day in Stellenbosch - hanging out in town and then doing wine tours of vineyards in the afternoon.
*The weather on this off day is definitely the worst weather we've had since we've been in Cape Town. It rained and misted on us the entire time we were in the van --- this made visibility at all of our stops fairly poor but at least we can say we've been there.
*The first stop on our trek was a winery -- there are 500 vineyards in South Africa so wine is a huge part of the economy and culture. After the winery we made our way to the Cape of Good Hope.
*The Cape of Good Hope is the Southern most tip of the African Continent. When we got out to take photos - I can honestly tell you I've never stood in winds like that in my entire life. Our cab driver said they were easily 60-70 mph. The wind was literally picking me up! Keep in mind that while we were dealing with the wind we were also being pelted by rain. We were out of the bus for literally 8 minutes and all of us were completely soaked. We stayed soaking wet for the next 10 hours we were on the road because it was pouring down rain everywhere we went. Despite the weather - the views were incredible.
Most Southern-Western tip! And the windiest conditions I've even been in. 60-70 mph.
A view from the Cape of Good Hope.
Our entire freezing cold, wet group. Despite the weather - we had an awesome time. Maybe.
*Cape Point is the place where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet. I was fortunate enough to put my feet into the Indian Ocean on the first night of the Garden Route at the beach where our hostel was situated. Cape Point was neat. We all bought tickets to ride the trolley to the top since the weather was so miserable (there was also a hiking option). After we went up to the top - where the lighthouse is - Eric, Scott and I got so turned around in the rain and wind that we accidentally hiked down rather than take the trolley. It really didn't matter because we were already soaking wet but it did make for a funny story. You can tell from the pictures how bad the weather was!
Lighthouse!
This picture is absolutely terrible but you can see the weather at work. The wind was literally knocking us off of our feet!
Where the Indian and Atlantic meet!
Eric and I decided to swim to Jerusalem - it was the closest!
Part of the hiking path that Eric, Scott and I found necessary to use despite the fact that we bought a two way trolley ticket. Yeppp.
*After Cape Point we stopped to see the African Penguins. They were awesome little guys. We didn't stay for very long because of the rain but it was so nice to be able to say that we saw them - and close up and personal too. At this point, 4-5 hours into the trip, my feet (because of holes in my boots) had been soaking wet for quite some time. Eric bought me some penguin socks in the gift shop so that I could have warm feet in the car ride on the way to Stellenbosch.
*We stopped for lunch in a fishing village where we had stopped once before. We sat in a covered area that overlooked the ocean --- there were lots of surfers out. Hardis (our escort) told us that they were crazy because the area was known for its GREAT WHITE population. No. Thank. You. I will stick to my fresh - water sports, thank you very much. Anyway, lunch was fun - and then we were on our way to Stellenbosch.
*Stellenbosch is a college town - very similar to Athens. We checked into our bed and breakfast - I quickly hopped into a warm bath because I'd been soaking wet and freezing for a whiiiile. Biggest bath tub I've ever been in - it was incredible. Anyway, the group made plans to go out and see the town around 9:30. Well because we were all staying in cottages, each room had a key to a gate that opened the area where their cottage was -- it was definitely a nice security feature -- however, the lady at the BandB failed to give some of the guys the proper key and they were legitimately stuck in the gate for over an hour. We had to phone the policemen. They were absolutely thrilled. The boys finally got out and we were on our way. The clubs were fun - our group did a lot of dancing. We all made it home late but knew we'd need to rest up for the next day!
*After finishing all of our dancing -- and wandering through Stellenbosch's campus for quite a while trying to search for our B&B -- I returned home to find thousands and thousands of ants in my bag and in my clothes. I'm pretty sure that I had this problem because I bought a pastry from a bakery last week and it leaked a little honey in the bag. At any rate - I'm not exaggerating when I say THOUSANDS. No worries. I have pics. I also got our room a discount. I am my father's daughter, right?
Love you all.
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