Hello, again! I am finally back from
my 2 week vacation. It was incredibly busy but very much worth it!
Because of all that we did, I'm going to summarize the first week of
our holiday in this blog update. Week 2 will come at a later date ;)
We headed out of Stellenbosch in two
big vans being driven by a wonderful couple, Pierre and Antoinette.
About a half hour into our ride we had to pull over for pictures. We
could not get over the incredible views of both mountains and the
ocean! Unfortunately, over the past few weeks I've seen so many of
these great scenic views that I have to keep reminding myself how
awesome they really are. I'm afraid I'm getting too used to them to
appreciate it!
We got to the Knysna backpackers place
around dinner time and ate at a nice seafood restaurant on the
harbor. For most of our trip, we stayed at backpackers. These
places are a mix between a bed & breakfast and a hostile. In my
opinion, I'd have to say they are cozy, fun, and sometimes lacking
privacy :P
The next day in Knysna we ventured
through the Feather Bed Nature Preserve/Estuary. None of us knew
what to expect. We had really only heard about a hike and some rare
sea horses. We didn't really get to see any of the sea horses,
however, the hike was incredible! We took a ride up to the top of a
cliff that overlooked where the ocean water comes into the estuary.
From there, we hiked down through lush plant life and incredible
views of the rocks, coves, and sea. We all took wayyy too many
pictures, but it was worth it!
After one more night at the Knysna
backpackers, we ventured onto Addo Elephant National Park. This Park
holds over 600 elephants, 2,000 antelope of all kinds, 9 lions, and
so much more. Sandy told us that there have been times in the past
10 years of her traveling here that she's hardly seen anything.
Because of this, we weren't getting our hopes too high of seeing
anything. The park is absolutely massive! Despite our seemingly low
expectations, on the first drive alone, we saw over about a hundred
elephants, 5 buffalo, kudu (a kind of antelope), zebra, dung
beetles, jackals, caracal, warthogs, and 3 of the lions! Later that
night some of us went on a night ride through the park with a tour
guide. On it we had an elephant walk right passed us, saw a few
different eagle owls, watched 2 creepy looking hyenas, AND spotted
one of the very rare rhinos! Basically, in our first day at Addo, we
saw 4 of the Big 5. The Big 5 are a major deal in South Africa
alone. They include elephants, lions, buffalo, rhinos, and leopards.
Everyone knows about and loves them here. They're pictures are even
on all of the rand (dollars). The only one we missed out on was the
leopard. Addo has about 8 total but they are nocturnal and extremely
rare to see.
On our last night at Addo we
experienced our first South African Braai (pronounced Bri). Braai's
are a very big deal in this country. We have something very much
like them in America—Barbeque's! Over this holiday we've tried all
sorts of braai foods: chicken, pork, beef, lamb, potatoes, pumpkin,
etc. They're also very into covering braai meats with chutney. Let
me tell you, this is a very nice country to eat in :)
After 2 nights at Addo we headed back
down the coast to Tsitsikamma National Park. We arrived there around
dinner time and found our 2 person cabins right on the Indian Ocean
with the incredible South African sun setting behind a cliff
(“Another sunset down in Africa...”). Sigh :)
On our first full day at Tsitsikamma,
we went on a Zip-line Canopy Tour. It was so much fun! I am not the
biggest fan of heights but gliding through the trees was such a great
feeling and experience. Our tour guides were hilarious and
encouraged us to have a lot of fun during our trip (i.e. singing and
calling through the trees). After the tour, a few of us hiked up to
the suspension bridge that crossed over the Storms River mouth.
Gorgeous! On the way back, however, it started to pour on us. It
ended up raining the entire rest of the night. Not a problem,
though! The next day (without rain), included an incredible hike
across rocks and trails by the Indian Ocean that led to a completely
gushing waterfall. So worth all of that rain!
Whew! As you can see, it was a pretty
packed and adventurous first week of holiday! Stay tuned for Week 2
which is slightly more exciting. [It's where I'll let you know
whether or not I survived Sky-Diving in Mossel Bay!! ;)]
More Later!
AB
More Later!
AB
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