Crystal Pools

When reserving a car in South Africa, be sure to make you clarify that you need an automatic car.  On Friday morning, there was a group of ten of us getting ready to go to Crystal pools, which is place where you hike to a fresh water pool with waterfalls and rocks that you can jump off into the water.  I heard about Crystal pools the first week I got to Cape Town, and could not wait to go.

Finally the day arrived and we went to pick up our car and begin our day trip to the pools.  When we arrived in Cape Town to pick up our car, we ran into a problem.  The car that we reserved was a manual, and nobody knew who to drive stick.  This specific car agency did not have any automatics, but there were a few car rental places in the area that we were going to try to get a car at.  We did not find out luck until the sixth car dealership! At this point we were nervous that we would not get into the hiking trail because they only allow 100 people in a day.

We decided to take our chances and hit the road to the pools.  During the drive the views were spectacular. The ocean had an aqua green tint and glistened in the sun.  When we made it to the hiking trail, our car was the only one there and we easily got in.

The hike to the first pool took around 45 minutes.  The most spectacular view (which is now my desktop background picture), was looking on a bridge with the ocean beyond it that turned into a stream that went into the mountains. Greenery and rocks surrounded the bottom border, which concluded the postcard picture.

We made it to the first pool and it was more than I expected! The water was clear and when the sun shined down on the pool, it looked like crystals.  At the point of the pool was a small waterfall that we eventually learned connected to the other pools.  I was so eager to jump in the water, but was stopped by the rigid temperature.  I jumped in and the water was so cold, but extremely refreshing at the same time.

After hanging out at this pool for while, we hiked up to the other ones.  The second was much bigger and beautiful. We hung out here for some time, soaking in the sun and jumping of the sides of cliffs into the water.  I camped out on a rock at the side of the pool and ate my new lunch of choice; a hummus, tomato and cucumber sandwich on wheat bread…. so good!

By the time we got to the third pool, we had to rush because we had to be back in Cape Town by four to return the car.  My friend Benny, Jamie and myself jumped in the water and swam to the other side toward the waterfall.  We climbed up the slippery rocks of the fall and reached the top to see the small fourth pool.  It was a great climb and hike, and I only ended up with a few scratches on my legs!

When we returned to Cape Town all our stomachs were growling so we went to get some grub at Mexican Kitchen.  Here we slurped down delicious strawberry margaritas, and I enjoyed chicken enchiladas, my go to Mexican dish.  Before hopping on a mini-bus back to Rondebosch, we made one more stop, and that was to McDonalds.  I got an Oreo McFlurry with hot fudge, which brought back memories of being back at home with my friends, enjoying a late nights snack!

This Friday in South Africa has been the best one to date.  All of my favorite things were involved in this day; hiking, swimming, enjoying beautiful views, and of course, eating.

Quote of the Day:  “It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another- Nelson Mandela

Tofo, Mozambique: Final leg of Spring Break

The trip to get to Tofo was an experience I will never forget.  The first leg of the trip started out well.  We boarded a greyhound bus in Nelpruit, SA, to take us across the border to Maputo, Mozambique. The bus was a double decker, had a few TV’s and I had my own row of seat, so I was able to stretch out.  Once we crossed the border, the problems began.  The girls and I needed to purchase our Visas at the border because we had not done so before.  This entire process took a good hour waiting in a small room that had to be at least 100 degrees with no breeze.  We were freaking out that the bus was going to leave without us, but when we went outside it was thankfully still there.

Once all the passengers were at the bus, there was another hold up with leaving. Apparently the driver had brought on the bus at least 50 boxes of ‘long-lasting’ milk. Customs had a problem with this, for the fear that he had an agenda of selling this milk when he got to Mozambique.  They ended up arguing and finally allowed him to cross the border with the milk after we waited 2 hours in the hot Africa sun.  We ended up arriving in Maputo at 7; when we were suppose to be there at 4!  The funny thing when we got there was that a man in an Escalade came to pick up the boxes of milk.... sketchy!

The next morning we got picked up at 5am by a ‘mini-bus’ to take us to Tofo. We were stuffed in this van like automobile with the 5 of us girls, plus 15 other locals.  So uncomfortable! I tried sleeping, but the roads in Mozambique are so bad, that it was too rocky and there were so many bumps in the road that made it extremely hard to fall asleep.  After about 5 hours we began to see the Indian Ocean. At this point all I wanted to do was get out of the bus and jump in the warm water!

We finally made it to Tofo and entered paradise. For the week we stayed in a house with mosquito nets over our beds and fans next to us. We had a total of 3 rooms, 2 bathrooms, a full kitchen, living room, and dining room…definitely an upgrade from the hostels we previously stayed at.  Oh yeah, and the view; from our porch we looked out to see miles of beach and the clear, blue water of the Indian Ocean.

After changing into our bathing suits we raced down to the beach and jump in the ocean.  The ocean felt like bath water, which was a definite upgrade from the frigid Atlantic Ocean off of Cape Town.  The waves were perfect for body boarding and learning surfers.  It was so nice to be able to relax on the beach after the long week we had before we arrived in Tofo.

The highlights of my week were being able to relax on the beach while reading the new book I was addicted to called Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (This is part of a 9 book series and the first book was amazing. If you are looking for a enticing series, check out the Outlander series on Google!), going to the market and buying presents, bread, purple avocados the size of mangos, cooking crayfish with the girls, chatting with an Afrikaans family who gave me free drinks and a pretty bracelet, and enjoying the night sky, where for the first time in my life saw the stars in their fullest.

Tofo, Mozambique is truly a hidden treasure in this world.  It is the most beautiful and relaxing place I have ever been too.  Even though we struggled to get there, every hour of frustration was well worth it.  The next time anyone is planning a trip where you wish to relax by the beach, Tofo Mozambique is the place to go!

The Sounds of Rondebosch

While trying to fall asleep last night I woke up multiple times to interesting noises coming from my window.  My houses faces the main road in Rondebosch, so all through the night there seems to be interesting things going on.

1. Loud conversations coming from my roommates and the security guard

2. Inappropriate door slams

3. Techno music blasting from the cars at the stoplight

4. Men cursing at each other in the road

5. Men having some kind of 'ceremony'/ being extremely drunk and annoying for a good 30 minutes. (I was so frustrated at this point that I got out of bed and was going to tell them to shut the f*** up, but I did not want to deal with their drunkenness)

6. Castle beer semi truck going past our house, sounding like an Earthquake just hit

7.  Roommate falling out of bed screaming thinking there was a spider in her bed.

The peaceful sounds that I have the pleasure of falling asleep to…. One thing I will not miss when I go home!
  

Johannesburg and Kruger

Johannesburg

Johannesburg is the largest city in South Africa and is completely different from Cape Town.  Joburg resembled LA or New York and was a bit overwhelming.  It was storming the night we where there, which was the first storm I had been in since being in South Africa.  After we ate dinner in the city, we were walking around trying to find a place to buy shampoo and other toiletries. All of us got a bad vibe from the city and felt scared walking around as white American girls.  You have to be careful in Cape Town as well, but I just felt much more vulnerable being in Joburg.  After Harry, our hostel owner, picked us up we begin an intense conversation with Harry about race.  He told us how his parent left to move in America because they had personal experience with violence growing up and how he went to a school with all white people and felt like he had to constantly prove himself to the white children.  He also mentioned to us how Cape Town is seen as extremely more racist than Joburg and that fact keep a lot of black people to stay in Johannesburg. 

    The following day continued our cultural experience as we went to the famous apartheid museum.  Its hard to describe in the world the effects you feel from the museum.  It was an extremely eye opening experience and I learned the difficulties that blacks had to face during this time.  It is great that apartheid has ended, but after living in South Africa for two months, racial segregation is still extremely prevalent, and the country has along way to go before it can forget about it horrifying past.

Kruger National Park

The third leg of our trip was off to Kruger to experience our first safari.  We started our day off bright and early at 6 am.  For the next 12 hours we were in safari car searching for the Big Five.  The highlights of our day included seeing zebras up close, watching a family of giraffes feeding on leaves, witnessing the feeding of a hyena cub by its mother, and feeling like I was in Jurassic Park!

The animals that we saw included impala, zebras, giraffes, buffalo, elephants, rhino, baboons, hippos, dung beetle, hyenas and multiple relatives of the deer.  Sadly the lions and leopards were not caught by any of our eyes, but that just gives me an excuse to go back to Kruger later in my life!

SPRING BREAK 2011: PART 1

I missed out on Panama City this year for Spring Break, but instead I had the opportunity to travel around Africa! At UCT, what we call Spring Break is considered their holiday.  Most student stay around Cape Town and chill with friends and family, but being a student from America, I know that I had to go big for the week I had off.  I traveled with 5 other girls and in twelve days we manage to see Victoria Falls, experience the city of Johannesburg, Encounter a majority of the big 5 during our safari at Kruger, and relax on the beach in Tofo, Mozambique.

Victoria Falls

Our trip began bright and early on Wednesday morning, when we boarded the airplane to take us to Livingston, Zambia.  We Arrived at JollyBoys in the mid afternoon and relaxed by the pool after a long day of traveling.  The hostel was very nice; it had a funky bar, an area of pillows to lie on, and a memorable quote by Ernest Hemingway that describes this trip to a tee, “I never knew of a morning in Africa when I woke up and was not happy”.

That following night, we went on a boat cruise that took us on the Zambezi River.  Here we met some very interesting people who were staying at JollyBoys with us.  There were the 3 Belgian girls, who were traveling after they volunteered at a school in Zambia for 2 months; Brad, from New Zealand, who is a pilot in Tanzania; two America guys, who were clearly in a frat in their former college days; and 2 Japanese guys exploring Africa.  This crazy mix of people created a very fun night! We got to know different people from around the world, and on the cruise we saw a handful of hippos, and a beautiful sunset.

 





The following morning we went to see the one of the seven natural wonders of the world and it turned out to be more than I expected!  During this time of year, the currents are fast so the falls were covered in a coat of mist. What amazed me, was the amount of water that was falling down.  The force of the waterfall was so powerful. When we walked through one trail, we had to cross a bridge that was in front of the falls.  When I made it on the bridge, I could not open my eyes, due to the extreme excess water from the falls; it made it seem like there was a monsoon for us on the bridge.  By the time me made it across, there was not a dry spot left on my body.

As we continued through a different trial, which I name the ‘monkey trail’, I was overwhelmed by the amount of baboons we encountered.  These baboons were huge and are known to be aggressive, so I tried to keep my distance.  I loved this trail because it was in the middle of the jungle and all the greenery surrounding me was a sight to remember.

After this trail we walked to the bridge that would lead us into Zimbabwe.  This walk gave us a view of the falls from further distance away, and we saw multiple rainbows during this time.  While on the bridge I was in two places at once.  We had one foot in Zambia and one in Zimbabwe. I guess that technically means I have been to Zimbabwe.... I can now check that country off my world map!

Victoria Falls was all I had anticipated and more. I feel so lucky that I was able to see this natural wonder during my time in Africa.  Leaving Zambia was bitter sweet, but the next step of our trip was to the ‘city of gold’, Johannesburg.