Cape Town, South Africa

Okay so this is way overdue and I apologize. This week was midterm week and I just never found time to post anything. South Africa is interesting. I didn’t spend my time there very wisely. There were all sorts of trips and interesting things to do but I spent my time being a tourist instead of doing the adventurous stuff. Most people went skydiving and parasailing and things of that nature. I had fun but I just wish I did more exciting things. Cape Town is super touristy. There is so much to do and so much to see. Most of the time I forgot I was in Africa because it was such a big city. Right next to the ship there was a huge mall and a quick taxi ride away there was “Long Street” which is basically a street full of clubs, bars, restaurants, shops, and all other kinds of places to spend money. Another little situation down the street from the ship was an fascinating craft market. I went back to it almost every day in South Africa just in case anything new might catch my eye. All along the port there are dozens of restaurants and bars with such good food. If you ever go to South Africa try to be a little daring and get some ostrich, game, or crocodile when you go out to eat. I also had sushi almost every day. I can’t wait until we get to Japan because I am going to feast on sushi as often as possible.
The first trip I attempted to go on was a trip to Robben Island which is just off the coast of Cape Town. It’s an island with a prison on it, sort of like Alcatraz. It’s where Nelson Mendela was imprisoned for most of his time in penitentiary. Unfortunately the winds kept the ferry from going and my trip was cancelled. The first trip I actually got to go on was a trip to the tip of the Africa. I went with my roommate, Kurt. There weren’t many people signed up and I was the last person on the bus. I actually had to run to catch the bus because I was originally in line for the wrong daytrip. First we went to see the Twelve Apostles; a group of mountains that actually count up to something like eighteen. Then we stopped at an ostrich farm. After that we went to the Cape of Good Hope. The picture got whitewashed but that is Kurt and I. The Cape of Good Hope isn’t the farthest south part of Africa but it’s a few miles away and it’s way more “dramatic” as our tour guide put it. It’s the most south-western part of the continent. Then we went to Cape Point which is where the Indian Ocean meets the Atlantic Ocean. There’s a lighthouse way up on the mountain that has some great views. After that we went to see penguins and then to an enjoyable local restaurant.
The next day my roommate went to go pet cheetahs and I sort of bailed out to hang out with a girl that lives next door to us. Cheetahs were one of my two favorite animals growing up so I’m still shocked that I did that but I ended up having an entertaining day. We attempted to go skydiving but they were all booked so we spent the day around Cape Town doing tourist things and eventually went on two mini-cruises around the harbor. The rest of the week I spent mostly enjoying the nightlife but one day I went with my roommate and a few other people to hike Table Mountain. When you go to Cape Town the first thing you see is Table Mountain. It’s huge. It ended up being one of the scariest things I’ve ever done but I’m still alive so I feel good about it for the most part. The entire hike offered amazing views but I only have one or two pictures to show off. A couple we met on our way up directed us to a path that wasn’t exactly an “official” path but we decided to try it out and as a result we all almost died a few times. I don’t completely regret this because I know that what we did was completely unique. There was one view that I don’t have a good picture of but it honestly might have been the most captivating sight I’ve ever come across. Basically there are two mountains with a little miniature gorge between them and if you could climb through the gorge, which was not the least bit safe, the other side dropped straight down to a beach where the ocean on the other side of Table Mountain met the mountains. I took a picture with someone else’s camera but I haven’t been able to track down the picture. Eventually our goal was simply to get back to the ground. We made our way down after a while and then we just wanted to get back to the ship with our bodies in working order. So technically we never got to the actual top of Table Mountain. It might sound lame but I assure you I had a more exciting hike than anyone else on Semester at Sea.
As I mentioned before everyone spent a lot of time enjoying the nightlife of Cape Town. Long Street has more bars and clubs then I’ve ever seen in one place. My favorite night in Cape Town was when Kurt and I went to this Cuban restaurant called Cape to Cuba. There was a lounge singer doing mostly Frank Sinatra classics and I had the most amazing seafood pasta. After that we went to a few bars and clubs. At one point I’m pretty definite we were in a gay bar. The only girls in the place were the ones that came with us. Yeah so that’s something interesting? The club I ended up staying at had pretty good music and I was so happy to finally be able to just dance! Just a little factoid about myself for you all: I love to dance! When you’re not in high school you never get the opportunity to dance unless you get to go to a wedding or something. I mean there are clubs everywhere but usually that’s just not my scene. I don’t know maybe that’s just me? Anyways… Cape Town was so much fun and there was almost too many things to do. On the last day I went to a restaurant that was open to the beach and I got ostrich steak. I recommend doing that. It was a picturesque, relaxing way to end my time in Cape Town. So we just arrived in India this morning and I’ll be leaving for a three day trip called “The Art of Living.” There’s a website that I haven’t looked at (www.artofliving.org). Leave me more comments! It makes me feel good.