The first day in Ghana, I had nothing planned except for going to Accra with my friends. The group consisted of Rebecca, Natalie, Abby, Alysa, and Austin. After the group was formed we headed outside to wait for our shuttle to take us Accra. The weather outside was not the greatest, it was warm and muggy. Oh joy. We had buses come and pick us up every hour to take us to Accra, as well as a shuttle that would take us to the front of the gate so we can get a taxi to take us where ever. So we got there for the second round of buses to come and pick us up. The only problem was that it did not come every hour. So we waited and waited and waited some more until we finally said screw it and jump into a shuttle. We waited for the bus for a good hour and a half in the sun. After we got into the shuttle we found some taxis to take us to Accra. We split up respectably and made our way to Accra. The drive was nice to say in the least. Our taxi driver was bumpin’ music with the windows done. Things started looking up. After about a 45-60 min drive we finally made it to Accra. Found an ice cream shop and had some delicious snacks. After we got cooled off we made our way out into the town. We made our way to the right and just took in the sights. Our goal for right now was to find food (some authentic Ghanaian food) and as well are walking, I see something out of the corner of my eye and it was Tyler, Adam, and two others staring at us until we made eye contact. It was pretty funny to say in the least. After that we continued on our way to find food. So we finally found us some food. Asanka Local Chop Bar. The food was amazing. I got this food called fro-fro. It was bomb.com. Ate with my hands, it contained this doughy, bread stuff as the base, then in the other bowl there was this stew like substance which had meat, gooey stuff and then I crab. I went to town on that sucker. Tasted sooo good and I ate everything in and around that bowl. From there we made our way to an open market. Now this place was crazy! We got bombarded with guys trying to sell us stuff. They all became my friends (rastafars). We were there for like 45 min. got asked for some weed twice and I got two shirts, coconut earrings and some funky pants. Also I traded a wallet for a wallet. I got the better end of the deal on that one. I then got a drum ceremony which was freaking awesome. From there we hit a bank and then went back to the ice cream shop for some food. Met up with Kari and Richard, said hi and went on our way. Had dinner, and then made our way back to the ship
The next day I went on a SAS day trip to the Slave dungeons and Castles. We made our way down to the buses and low and behold there was only one bus for enough to fill two buses. So thus we had to wait for like 30 or so for the other bus to come. Oh joy. The bus came and we got on it. We then made our way to the Elmina St. Georges Slave Castle. Now is takes about 90 min to get to Accra and then another 2-3 hours to get to the castle. So we were looking at a 3-4 bus ride. And not a smooth bus ride, a jarring, bumpy, and other verb you want to put in there. Needless to say it was not the greatest of bus rides I have taken thus far… but I did fall asleep here and there. We finally got to the castle and got bombarded with hawkers trying to get us to buy stuff from them. This castle was big with a lot of history behind it. It was actually quite daunting to walk though this castle not really knowing what went on during those times. Our guide gave us background to the history of this castle and gave a walk through the castle. Showed us where the slaves were put in for holding. The conditions were horrendous. There was very small percentage of survivors in the 3 months they were there before being sent to the Americas or somewhere else and then even then there was a small percentage of people who made the voyage. The living conditions for the women we really bad because there was very little air circulation and with them having their monthly cycles made the area very bad. There is still residue till this day because there was so much of it. Each room was more desolate the last, which was quite disturbing to say in the least. Though the white man was living quite nicely… We then made our way to the door of no return. Now when we made our way to the door, we were spread out and were able to take our time to get through the small passages to get to the final door. But back then they were chained together (ankles and hands) being forced, pushed and shoved to where they were sent through the door. And now the door was no wider than 2 feet. And now the slave could not go through it sideways, so they were too big, they could not go (but most of them did because they were all malnourished and lost a lot of weight. So pretty much the conditioned they lived in were horrible. After that we made our way to lunch at a golf course club and had some bomb food with beach front views. (Little hypocritical from where we just came). I devoured that food and had seconds as well as a beer. It was quite refreshing to say the least. From there we made our way to another castle/dungeon, though we were under some time constraints so this one was going to be cut a little short. This dungeon was much the same as the last. Though it was different as well. We were shown around the castle. The guide gave us a tour of the place, showed us where the slave were held and showed us where the church was set up (right above the male holding cell, corrupt much?) he showed us the horrible conditions the slaves were given and how they survived and died. He also showed us a shrine that was in remembrance for those who died as well for those who tried to escape. This shrine was placed in front of a door that was blocked off so that the slaves could not escape. It was very interesting to say in the least. From there he showed us the walk way to the door of no return was as well as the holding cell for the women. As we looked out from the door of no return we saw men making fishing nets. So as we walked through the door of no return we came back through the door of return. That door was to signify the stoppage of the slave trade. From there we made our way back to the ship. Another 4 hours of bumpy roads and jarring bodies. Oh joy… After we got back to the ship we unpacked our stuff and made our way for the night.
The next day we made our way to the Wili Falls and Mona Monkeys on another SAS trip. After another 4-5 bus ride we finally made it to the Wili Waterfalls. But once we got there we were told it was going to be a 45 minute walk to the falls. So I toughed it out and walked in the front of the pack with Brooke and had a grand ol’ time up there. I sweated a little bit but it was totally worth it once we got to the fall. The waterfall was awesome! the water felt amazing (after the initial shock. Lol.) stayed in the fall for a good 30 min. and then got a message from the water falling on me. The view was breath taking and I was having a blast. Stepped out for awhile to have some lunch and shared me food with breezy-mic-breeze-breeze. And then got back into the water one last time and skipped some rocks (I got some pretty good skips in there, so I was happy). From there we made our way back to the bus, but this time I was in the back taking my time because I was a little tired from all the excitement. Got back to the bus and made our way to the monkeys. Now these guys were adorable. We were able to feed them bananas and watch them go crazy. We were there for about 15 minutes and then the sky opened up and it started raining on us. It felt good, needed to cool off a little bit. After the rain stopped we made our way through the town and met the people there. The only problem was that the rain stopped and now the sun was baking us (well me literally) heat was coming from the ground as well as my own body. So pretty much I was a convection oven… we walked through the town saw some kids and people make these beautiful pieces of cloth. From there we walked some more and ended back on our bus and headed home. Got back to the ship and had some dinner and went out for the night.
The last day I stay on the ship because I had done all I wanted to in Ghana. So I things done around the room and got caught up with school work. Overall I had a great time in Ghana, though the buses were not the smoothest, the end result from them was great. It is just like last time start from the last picture and goes up from there because that is the order of my adventures. More updates to come :D
Now I am on my way to the last and final port of call outside the USA. Craziness for sure, Brazil is on its way.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Cape Town, South Africa!
I know I have said this before multiple times but Cape Town, South Africa was legit!! There is and was so much to do there and I had so little time, so I did my best to do as much as possible within those five days we were there. The port that we were docked in was awesome; we were right next to the V&A Waterfront which house many interesting things to do. Any type of excursion you wanted to do at sea was there (shark diving, sailing, or go to Robben Island). They had many shops there accommodating any type of shopper. They also had open areas for people to play music and dance, which I think was very cool and laid back.
The first day that we were there, I had a day trip (FDP) set up to go to some wineries and understand how they are able to manage their crops in the weather conditions that they are in. But more on that later… Back to the story at hand, so we were released from the ship around 0930-1000 which gave me a few hours to explore the port and get my bearings all in order. So I started on my adventure, met up with my roommate and walked around, chit-chatted and bought a few things here and there. We made our way over to they were selling tickets to Robben Island, but sadly enough they were all sold out. But on the upside we found this pretty sweet FIFA store and we had to go in and have a look-see. A few things caught my eye and I got them. So now I have something that shows that I was in Cape Town where the World Cup is playing, how awesome is that!! haha. From there we made our way back to the ship because it was getting close to that time. From there we got on our bus and made our way to the first winery, Backsberg. Now going into this day trip, I thought we were just going to listen to some guy talk about how they are able to manage their crops and take us on a tour of the place and that was it. Luckily I was wrong; we got to do some wine tasting! Haha. How cool is that, that one of our day trips is wine tasting. Backsberg was sick! We got to taste 5 types of wine and then brandy to end the treat. We learned how to hold the wine glass, how to smell it, and then finally how to taste it and appreciate it. All of them were delicious :D. From there we made our way to our next winery, Nelsons. It was very different from that of Backsberg in the sense that he told us about the logistics of the place, showed us how it was made and then gave us a taste of the final product. We had 3 different types of wine and we also had cheese and crackers to go along with it, so gooooood. Not going to lie, but best day trip thus far. After that we made our way back to the ship and then headed out for the night.
So now we are getting to the good stuff. What I am going to tell you next makes me want to come back and I hope it make you guys want to come to South Africa because of this. I am talking about the SAFARI!!!! So the day started off getting up at 0445 to get ready and head off to the airport by 0530. (oh joy, but nevertheless the day was going to get better). We got to the airport around 0600 and the plane left around 0800. Once we landed we got transferred to another plane to take us to our final destination (which was a private airport on an old military base). As we were landing we saw two cheetahs! Already starting off good, haha. Once we landed we transferred to our 4x4 jeeps!! While the other safari groups got into their bus/cars. Haha. From there we started driving on the air strip to head towards the Kapama River Lodge. Once we exited the gate we literally went right across the street to enter the reserve. haha. While the others had about an hour drive before they started on their own safari. Our 4x4 consisted of: Melissa, Brittany, Christine, Caroline, Rebecca, Tyler and I. Safari leader was named Frikkie (such a sick name!) Right off the bat we saw some impala. Which was pretty sick, and that means we were going to have a grand ole time here in Kapama! We then got to our destination, unpacked my stuff and put on my swimsuit and headed for the pool before lunch. The pool was amazing. It was an infinity pool, though it was a little on the cold side as you were getting in, it felt so good once you got in. Stayed in there for a good 45 min or so and then headed to lunch. Lunch was amazing! So much food, and with such a variety of all delicious food, I pretty much had it all. Haha. After lunch we had some down time to just relax and do whatever we wanted to do. So it came that time where we were going on our Safari… But first we had afternoon tea and snacks (carrot cake with lots of frosting)…. So good, the food was decadent. Yuuuum. From there we went out and met our guide and this time we added two new people, the first one was the tracker named Enoch and the second was Melinda. So we set off on our adventure and the first thing we saw were a herd of elephants! So sick, there were at least 15 or so. It was epic! They got pretty close to us which was awesome haha. Saw a baby albino elephant which was very interesting to see it. We then came across a couple giraffes. Just saw their heads popping out from the trees, which was pretty cool. we then drove around and then we came across a cheetah! It was just chilling there in the middle of the dirt road; we just sat there gazing upon this animal. Though the cheetah had a collar it was still sweet (it was for tracking purposes to make sure they were still alive). We then came across an impala before taking a little break for sunset. We then made a stop for some drinks at sunset, which was awesome because I was thinking it was going to be just water and snacks, but I was wrong, they brought out a full mini bar and all that, I had a Black Label Beer and it was good. How awesome is that, to be able to drink at sunset at a safari!! Haha Epic. After the pit stop we continued on our safari. By this time it was getting dark, so we could not see anything unless the light was point on something. As we were driving along we came to a abrupt stop, then backed up because Enoch saw something, we had no idea what he was talking about, and then he pointed it out and it was a chameleon (how he saw it, I have no idea… he was some great eyes). We then made our way back to the lake area where we saw the cheetah, and we were on the search for some hippos. Once we got there we wanted to get close to the water so we could see them, the only problem was that when we did that we kind of killed the car, so we just chilled there until another jeep came and helped us out. (just our luck right?) as we were waiting for the other jeep, we saw the hippos just chilling there, though we did see some consistent water rippling coming from a certain hippo, then we saw a nose pop out from beneath it! The hippos were getting it on! How awesome/hilarious is that? There was a lot of heavy breathing and noses coming from them. haha We then came back to the lodge and had dinner. And again it was delicious! Had Kudu (which is like venison) and so much more. Pretty much all their food was delicious. After dinner the night was ours so I just kicked it and got ready for the next day.
Morning wakeup call was at 0500. Did not get up until 0515; Started the morning off with some tea and pre-breakfast food and then made our way out into the reserve The first thing we stopped at was this termite hill which was taller than our guide as well as centuries old. There was a lot of history in the termite hill and it was inactive because it was holey, if it was active it would be closed up to keep the heat and humidity at a nice temperature for the eggs. We then came across a female giraffe, and we could tell it was a female because it was wearing a pink bowtie… jk. If you look at the head (specifically the antlers, the females have hair on then and the males do not. Also to the female was in heat (that’s Frikkie said). so then after that we started driving around and we turn left around this corner and we immediately stop because we came across two 9 month old lion cubs (1 male and 1 female) and their mother. It was pretty much simba, nala, and sarabi from the lion king!! Haha awesome! we just sat there watching them play and attack each other in a playful manner for a good 15 min, it was freaking sweet!! The male cub got pretty close to us, testing his manliness and curiosity. Now the mom just kept on walking not caring, cause she knew they would follow. So as the cubs followed the mom we followed them, which was pretty fun to say in the least. We then continued on our way and ran into pumba… I mean a warthog. Haha. We then encountered the Cape buffalo crossing. There was a good 20 of them, some old and some young, saw a baby buffalo, we stayed there for a good 10-15 chillin watching them. We then drove around for a little bit and then made our way to a river and had some snacks and tea. After that we made our way back to Lodge, the only problem was that got caught in a rain storm (which I think was freakin sweet). Came back around 0900 to have some breakfast… food was delicious and I had soo much of it. They had cinnamon rolls, so good, had way too many. After breakfast we had the rest of the day to ourselves until the night safari. So we played some crazy rummy while we waited and we got a good group of people to play (Tyler, Rebecca, Melissa, Brittany, Christine, Melinda, and Caroline). We played until lunch time. We still had a couple of hours to kill so we played another hand of cards. We started on our safari again and by this time it has cleared up we were on the move. We encountered some giraffes, zebras, kudu (the black ghost, because you would see them and in a blink of an eye they would be gone). Ah yes… we then encountered the rhinoceros (these guys were freakin huge! Saw the whole family (the mom, dad, and the kid). And the interesting thing about the rhinos we saw, it was that their horns were straight and not curved like normal ones (something to do with the genetics and the recessive gene). We then got the call… it was for something that we did not know what was going on. all we knew was something cool because he told us it was going to be a long drive to get there. we kicked it into high gear and made dust trails behind us to get to wherever we were going. But just as were about to be there our car broke down…. Just our luck again right? But he started it back up and made our way to the place where we were heading in the first place, and once we got there, I got really excited. It was because we found the king of the jungle (aka mufasa). It was the male lion who was one his “honeymoon” for the last five days and we found him just laying out in the middle of the dirt path. How epic is that?!?!? we literally just stayed there for a good 20 min just watching him. After a little bit he started to move and sat up and roared!! Epic. He was basically telling everyone that this was his land (and from what Frikkie was saying, his roar can be heard from as far away as 8 kilometers, which is pretty far) he then stood up and started walking away and as he did so he marked his area and then plopped onto another area and chilled there. we said our goodbyes and headed back to the lodge. But again we got another call about something else that has been eluding us for the last few days and that was the leopard. We haled rubber to make it to the area in which it was last seen. but by the time we got there it everybody else was there so by the time we got a chance to see it, it eluded us again. But the cool thing was that we got to hear it feeding on an animal. After that we headed back to the lodge for reals. And as we were driving back Frikkie told us that when our car “broke down” he did that on purpose because he did not want us to hear the roar. Lol. Which I think was hilarious and awesome at the same time. haha after dinner we relaxed some more in the lounge area. It was nice and relaxing.
So we got another wakeup call at 0500 for morning tea at 0530. And then instead of going on a safari in the 4x4 we went on elephants!! So siiiiick. We got to the where the elephants were and I got really excited for this. I knew it was going to be epic for sure. Once we got there they brought out the elephant and gave a little background to how it all began. It was really interesting to hear it. After that they showed us some simple commands the elephants know and it was sick. After that we went up top and got in line to get on these elephants. Tyler and I were partners and we got a big elephant named ‘Somapani’, we were told that she was the smartest of them all. So I felt quite honored to be on the back of her. Riding these elephants was like riding a horse, just 10X the size…It was an hour tour. We really didn’t see much, but it was about the experience and not the other. Though we did see giraffe, zebra, impala, warthogs, and some other small critters. After we were all said and done with riding the elephants they gave us a salute, which was awesome and then we left. Pretty much awesome! After that we did a small little safari tour on our way back to the lodge and as we were coming back we hits some bumps and went through some mud holes and then all of a sudden our back left tire went flat. So we were stranded in the middle of the reserve with no spare, just chilling and waiting for another jeep to give us a spare. (Which I think was pretty hilarious to say in the least. Especially since it was not anything new to us. Haha). We finally got the jeep fixed and made our way back to the lodge. Hit up some breakfast (I went to town on it again, just could not help myself. Haha). Went to the gift shop and looked around to see if I wanted anything, and I didn’t so I just went back to my room, packed up my stuff and headed back to the jeep to take us to the airport. So as we were heading back to the airport we took another little safari and until we had to finally leave the place. So once we got front gate to the airport we had some time to kill. So instead of waiting we went on the search for the leopard. So we left in a hurry to find it, we drove and drove but at last there was not luck in finding him, so we had to go back to the airport with our heads down because we could not find it… So we got onto the charter plane to get to our connecting flight and I got a whole row to myself. We got to the airport and had about 2-3 hours to kill, so Rebecca, Tyler and I found a table and played cards until we had to leave. Got onto the plane and fell asleep for the entire plane ride. Finally got back to the ship, dropped off my stuff and headed out for the night with my friends.
The last day in Cape Town was going to be a chill day, which it was. I hung out with Austin, Nat, and Abby. We headed for Century City Mall. Now this place was HUGE (it was like the Irvine Spectrum, but all in doors! Crazy). Walked around for a little bit and got some snacks and what not and then did a little more site seeing and then headed back to the ship.
My overall experience of Cape Town was amazing! I would not mind coming back in the future. I had such a blast, and have great memories from there. Sorry about the long entry, but there was so much to talk about :D Next stop is Brazil! It is our last port before I am home. But nevertheless I am going to have a blast there!!! More updates to come :D
The first day that we were there, I had a day trip (FDP) set up to go to some wineries and understand how they are able to manage their crops in the weather conditions that they are in. But more on that later… Back to the story at hand, so we were released from the ship around 0930-1000 which gave me a few hours to explore the port and get my bearings all in order. So I started on my adventure, met up with my roommate and walked around, chit-chatted and bought a few things here and there. We made our way over to they were selling tickets to Robben Island, but sadly enough they were all sold out. But on the upside we found this pretty sweet FIFA store and we had to go in and have a look-see. A few things caught my eye and I got them. So now I have something that shows that I was in Cape Town where the World Cup is playing, how awesome is that!! haha. From there we made our way back to the ship because it was getting close to that time. From there we got on our bus and made our way to the first winery, Backsberg. Now going into this day trip, I thought we were just going to listen to some guy talk about how they are able to manage their crops and take us on a tour of the place and that was it. Luckily I was wrong; we got to do some wine tasting! Haha. How cool is that, that one of our day trips is wine tasting. Backsberg was sick! We got to taste 5 types of wine and then brandy to end the treat. We learned how to hold the wine glass, how to smell it, and then finally how to taste it and appreciate it. All of them were delicious :D. From there we made our way to our next winery, Nelsons. It was very different from that of Backsberg in the sense that he told us about the logistics of the place, showed us how it was made and then gave us a taste of the final product. We had 3 different types of wine and we also had cheese and crackers to go along with it, so gooooood. Not going to lie, but best day trip thus far. After that we made our way back to the ship and then headed out for the night.
So now we are getting to the good stuff. What I am going to tell you next makes me want to come back and I hope it make you guys want to come to South Africa because of this. I am talking about the SAFARI!!!! So the day started off getting up at 0445 to get ready and head off to the airport by 0530. (oh joy, but nevertheless the day was going to get better). We got to the airport around 0600 and the plane left around 0800. Once we landed we got transferred to another plane to take us to our final destination (which was a private airport on an old military base). As we were landing we saw two cheetahs! Already starting off good, haha. Once we landed we transferred to our 4x4 jeeps!! While the other safari groups got into their bus/cars. Haha. From there we started driving on the air strip to head towards the Kapama River Lodge. Once we exited the gate we literally went right across the street to enter the reserve. haha. While the others had about an hour drive before they started on their own safari. Our 4x4 consisted of: Melissa, Brittany, Christine, Caroline, Rebecca, Tyler and I. Safari leader was named Frikkie (such a sick name!) Right off the bat we saw some impala. Which was pretty sick, and that means we were going to have a grand ole time here in Kapama! We then got to our destination, unpacked my stuff and put on my swimsuit and headed for the pool before lunch. The pool was amazing. It was an infinity pool, though it was a little on the cold side as you were getting in, it felt so good once you got in. Stayed in there for a good 45 min or so and then headed to lunch. Lunch was amazing! So much food, and with such a variety of all delicious food, I pretty much had it all. Haha. After lunch we had some down time to just relax and do whatever we wanted to do. So it came that time where we were going on our Safari… But first we had afternoon tea and snacks (carrot cake with lots of frosting)…. So good, the food was decadent. Yuuuum. From there we went out and met our guide and this time we added two new people, the first one was the tracker named Enoch and the second was Melinda. So we set off on our adventure and the first thing we saw were a herd of elephants! So sick, there were at least 15 or so. It was epic! They got pretty close to us which was awesome haha. Saw a baby albino elephant which was very interesting to see it. We then came across a couple giraffes. Just saw their heads popping out from the trees, which was pretty cool. we then drove around and then we came across a cheetah! It was just chilling there in the middle of the dirt road; we just sat there gazing upon this animal. Though the cheetah had a collar it was still sweet (it was for tracking purposes to make sure they were still alive). We then came across an impala before taking a little break for sunset. We then made a stop for some drinks at sunset, which was awesome because I was thinking it was going to be just water and snacks, but I was wrong, they brought out a full mini bar and all that, I had a Black Label Beer and it was good. How awesome is that, to be able to drink at sunset at a safari!! Haha Epic. After the pit stop we continued on our safari. By this time it was getting dark, so we could not see anything unless the light was point on something. As we were driving along we came to a abrupt stop, then backed up because Enoch saw something, we had no idea what he was talking about, and then he pointed it out and it was a chameleon (how he saw it, I have no idea… he was some great eyes). We then made our way back to the lake area where we saw the cheetah, and we were on the search for some hippos. Once we got there we wanted to get close to the water so we could see them, the only problem was that when we did that we kind of killed the car, so we just chilled there until another jeep came and helped us out. (just our luck right?) as we were waiting for the other jeep, we saw the hippos just chilling there, though we did see some consistent water rippling coming from a certain hippo, then we saw a nose pop out from beneath it! The hippos were getting it on! How awesome/hilarious is that? There was a lot of heavy breathing and noses coming from them. haha We then came back to the lodge and had dinner. And again it was delicious! Had Kudu (which is like venison) and so much more. Pretty much all their food was delicious. After dinner the night was ours so I just kicked it and got ready for the next day.
Morning wakeup call was at 0500. Did not get up until 0515; Started the morning off with some tea and pre-breakfast food and then made our way out into the reserve The first thing we stopped at was this termite hill which was taller than our guide as well as centuries old. There was a lot of history in the termite hill and it was inactive because it was holey, if it was active it would be closed up to keep the heat and humidity at a nice temperature for the eggs. We then came across a female giraffe, and we could tell it was a female because it was wearing a pink bowtie… jk. If you look at the head (specifically the antlers, the females have hair on then and the males do not. Also to the female was in heat (that’s Frikkie said). so then after that we started driving around and we turn left around this corner and we immediately stop because we came across two 9 month old lion cubs (1 male and 1 female) and their mother. It was pretty much simba, nala, and sarabi from the lion king!! Haha awesome! we just sat there watching them play and attack each other in a playful manner for a good 15 min, it was freaking sweet!! The male cub got pretty close to us, testing his manliness and curiosity. Now the mom just kept on walking not caring, cause she knew they would follow. So as the cubs followed the mom we followed them, which was pretty fun to say in the least. We then continued on our way and ran into pumba… I mean a warthog. Haha. We then encountered the Cape buffalo crossing. There was a good 20 of them, some old and some young, saw a baby buffalo, we stayed there for a good 10-15 chillin watching them. We then drove around for a little bit and then made our way to a river and had some snacks and tea. After that we made our way back to Lodge, the only problem was that got caught in a rain storm (which I think was freakin sweet). Came back around 0900 to have some breakfast… food was delicious and I had soo much of it. They had cinnamon rolls, so good, had way too many. After breakfast we had the rest of the day to ourselves until the night safari. So we played some crazy rummy while we waited and we got a good group of people to play (Tyler, Rebecca, Melissa, Brittany, Christine, Melinda, and Caroline). We played until lunch time. We still had a couple of hours to kill so we played another hand of cards. We started on our safari again and by this time it has cleared up we were on the move. We encountered some giraffes, zebras, kudu (the black ghost, because you would see them and in a blink of an eye they would be gone). Ah yes… we then encountered the rhinoceros (these guys were freakin huge! Saw the whole family (the mom, dad, and the kid). And the interesting thing about the rhinos we saw, it was that their horns were straight and not curved like normal ones (something to do with the genetics and the recessive gene). We then got the call… it was for something that we did not know what was going on. all we knew was something cool because he told us it was going to be a long drive to get there. we kicked it into high gear and made dust trails behind us to get to wherever we were going. But just as were about to be there our car broke down…. Just our luck again right? But he started it back up and made our way to the place where we were heading in the first place, and once we got there, I got really excited. It was because we found the king of the jungle (aka mufasa). It was the male lion who was one his “honeymoon” for the last five days and we found him just laying out in the middle of the dirt path. How epic is that?!?!? we literally just stayed there for a good 20 min just watching him. After a little bit he started to move and sat up and roared!! Epic. He was basically telling everyone that this was his land (and from what Frikkie was saying, his roar can be heard from as far away as 8 kilometers, which is pretty far) he then stood up and started walking away and as he did so he marked his area and then plopped onto another area and chilled there. we said our goodbyes and headed back to the lodge. But again we got another call about something else that has been eluding us for the last few days and that was the leopard. We haled rubber to make it to the area in which it was last seen. but by the time we got there it everybody else was there so by the time we got a chance to see it, it eluded us again. But the cool thing was that we got to hear it feeding on an animal. After that we headed back to the lodge for reals. And as we were driving back Frikkie told us that when our car “broke down” he did that on purpose because he did not want us to hear the roar. Lol. Which I think was hilarious and awesome at the same time. haha after dinner we relaxed some more in the lounge area. It was nice and relaxing.
So we got another wakeup call at 0500 for morning tea at 0530. And then instead of going on a safari in the 4x4 we went on elephants!! So siiiiick. We got to the where the elephants were and I got really excited for this. I knew it was going to be epic for sure. Once we got there they brought out the elephant and gave a little background to how it all began. It was really interesting to hear it. After that they showed us some simple commands the elephants know and it was sick. After that we went up top and got in line to get on these elephants. Tyler and I were partners and we got a big elephant named ‘Somapani’, we were told that she was the smartest of them all. So I felt quite honored to be on the back of her. Riding these elephants was like riding a horse, just 10X the size…It was an hour tour. We really didn’t see much, but it was about the experience and not the other. Though we did see giraffe, zebra, impala, warthogs, and some other small critters. After we were all said and done with riding the elephants they gave us a salute, which was awesome and then we left. Pretty much awesome! After that we did a small little safari tour on our way back to the lodge and as we were coming back we hits some bumps and went through some mud holes and then all of a sudden our back left tire went flat. So we were stranded in the middle of the reserve with no spare, just chilling and waiting for another jeep to give us a spare. (Which I think was pretty hilarious to say in the least. Especially since it was not anything new to us. Haha). We finally got the jeep fixed and made our way back to the lodge. Hit up some breakfast (I went to town on it again, just could not help myself. Haha). Went to the gift shop and looked around to see if I wanted anything, and I didn’t so I just went back to my room, packed up my stuff and headed back to the jeep to take us to the airport. So as we were heading back to the airport we took another little safari and until we had to finally leave the place. So once we got front gate to the airport we had some time to kill. So instead of waiting we went on the search for the leopard. So we left in a hurry to find it, we drove and drove but at last there was not luck in finding him, so we had to go back to the airport with our heads down because we could not find it… So we got onto the charter plane to get to our connecting flight and I got a whole row to myself. We got to the airport and had about 2-3 hours to kill, so Rebecca, Tyler and I found a table and played cards until we had to leave. Got onto the plane and fell asleep for the entire plane ride. Finally got back to the ship, dropped off my stuff and headed out for the night with my friends.
The last day in Cape Town was going to be a chill day, which it was. I hung out with Austin, Nat, and Abby. We headed for Century City Mall. Now this place was HUGE (it was like the Irvine Spectrum, but all in doors! Crazy). Walked around for a little bit and got some snacks and what not and then did a little more site seeing and then headed back to the ship.
My overall experience of Cape Town was amazing! I would not mind coming back in the future. I had such a blast, and have great memories from there. Sorry about the long entry, but there was so much to talk about :D Next stop is Brazil! It is our last port before I am home. But nevertheless I am going to have a blast there!!! More updates to come :D
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Kevin Downs
- A Semester Spent @ Sea Spring 2010
- I am Junior at Vanguard University, currently working towards a Business Administration degree but more than likely switching to Marketing. But after that, I do not know for sure what I am going after I graduate because right now I am thinking of becoming a Fireman. But we will see what this upcoming Semester has in store for me.
