South Africa Expedition

Day Six

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 15:57:42 -0400

Arrived not quite as early as the day before. We met downstairs at 10 AM (this time Grandpa was late!). We set out in our own large van for the Cheetah preserve and Spier Winery. They were at the same place so we only had to park once.

We began with the Cheetahs. They were absolutely magnificent! Watching their bodies move with such precision was an amazing experience all by itself.

Once we were done looking at them we got the chance to actually enter and enclosure and PET one! It was just like stroking a cat (minding that you didn’t touch their head, legs, tail, or stomachs lest they attack you). Their fur was nice and soft and we got to discover that their spotted pattern is based on a gene code whether they had a wild spotted pattern, a king spot, or a mix of the two.

We also learned that it is becoming increasingly hard to maintain the cheetah’s numbers on the planet due to an extremely weak immune system that they have evolved over the years. The preserve we went to works hard to raise money to help care for them and increase their numbers so that they do not become extinct.

This preserve also had Anatolian Shephards, which were HUGE dogs (kept to help control the livestock as the lovely and informative sign put it). These canines were quite the beauties themselves.

After we were done looking at cheetahs and dogs we headed down the path to a gift shop and restaurant.

The restaurant was very lovely, with wonderfully nice waiters and gorgeous African decor. (Even the bathrooms were photo worthy!)

We began our meal with welcome bread, salad, and soup. While we ate these a lovely man came around and painted each of our faces to “enhance our beauty.” After our appetizer we headed to the buffet where a few adventurous folks tried dishes such as antelope and ox tail! The buffet ended with a huge selection of desserts which were conveniently cut into bite sized portions so we could try a little of everything! After all, our waiter did say if we ate until we were full and fell over they would carry us out! The meal also came with wonderful entertainment. We had some lovely drumming as well as a clever pantomime of jazz instruments!

Dinner ended and we headed towards the wine shop, where five members of the family indulged in a lovely wine tasting.

Those of us who didn’t taste went exploring! (or reading as I believe Jane did. I was exploring so I’m not entirely sure but it seems likely). We found some bamboo growing as well as a beautiful view of the vineyards.

There was also some interesting animals hanging around. We found some odd looking birds that made some even odder noises. As well as a couple small cats and squirrels. So half way across the world we stopped to take pictures of house cats and squirrels…of course they ARE South African cats and squirrels!

Once the exploring circled back around most of the troupe stopped to hang out and rest while Ben and I went back out…twice… Of course we had fun exploring the small glades of bamboo and the old Manor house we found which was built in 1822.

We finished our little trip by going back to the preserve to see the birds.

There were eagles and owls out and around for you to see (you could pet the owls which were attached to their perches). The most amazing part though was getting to go into an owl enclosure and actually hold and feed the owls. The handler would give you a chicken foot (it was so gross!) and the owl would come straight to you often times before it successfully passed hands.

Sometimes multiple owls would go for the same foot at once and any given person could have one owl on their hand and one on their arm! These owls would also climb up on your shoulder or even sit on your head! They would stay here for several minutes or sometimes just long enough to eat the chicken foot and leave. I even saw once owl steal someone’s hat!

After the highly entertaining owl adventure we all headed back to the van which would take us to the condo to enjoy a pleasant evening and a little more chess!

Day Five

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 15:40:50 -0400

Happy Birthday Grandma Clark!

We woke up much earlier in the morning than any of us wanted to for an 8 AM tour of Capetown. Most of us were downstairs promptly at 8 but it seems that we have discovered that in “Capetown time” everything is about 15 minutes later than the given time.

The first stop on the tour was Maiden’s Cove where we got to take in beautiful scenery, and be a little adventurous on the rocks. After climbing around for a while, we all piled back into the bus for the next stop. We headed back out and were warned to keep an eye out for Baboons because they are EVERYWHERE!

We unloaded out of the 15 passenger van again to pile onto a boat. The waves were ideal for seasickness as we rocked and rolled across the ocean.

The boat stopped for a while and floated while we took pictures of the seals on Seal Island. Just before we headed back, we were treated with a seal stampede as they all charged down the rocks and into the water.

Once we got back to the Marina we went around to all the street vendors lined up along the dock. Here we got a few items (including Matt’s really cool hard wood chessboard) then got back into the van.

We drove through the mountains to find many many warnings pertaining to Baboons. Apparently they run rampant through the mountains attacking tourists for food.

After our scenic ride in the van we stopped for lunch at a lovely little restaurant at the base of a hill holding a lighthouse. After a yummy lunch with our tour guide, we regrouped in front of a statue of the ever plentiful baboons. We then headed up on a trolley and climbed several flights of stairs to reach the lighthouse.

This particular light house was built in 1857 and eventually replaced because it was so high that the cloud cover would mask it so profusely that ships would not see and crash in the bay below.

There was a sign at the lighthouse showing which direction and how far different cities were. New York was 12,541 kilometers away!

We left the light house and began heading down the mountain where we pulled over on the side of the road having spotted a set of ostriches. They stopped to eat just a few feet away from us! It was amazing to see them so close, yet nerve wracking to know that if anything were to happen they could outrun us in that van!

Once we left the ostriches, we headed for the Cape of Good Hope (which contrary to our Grandpa Henry’s belief is not also Cape Point). After a family picture in front of the Cape of Good hope sign (in both English and Afrikaan) we got to go out climbing on the rocks again. The sea was still as uneasy as it had been on the boat and crashed on the rocks we stood upon, spraying us with faint sea spray so by the time we left we took the sea with us as we could still taste in on our lips.

From the Cape of Good Hope we headed to Cape Point. We were warned to keep an eye out for baboons, yet again and just like the Cape of Good Hope we saw some fantastic scenery and even larger waves. The large waves we found out were not due to the meeting of the Indian and Atlantic oceans (as popularly believed) but the meeting of the warm currents from the Indian ocean meeting with the cold currents from Antarctica. Whatever the reason, though, the waves were truly spectacular!

After Cape Point came the Penguins. Yes, I said penguins in South Africa, and they were absolutely adorable.

It was mating and maulting season for the penguins, so we had to stay behind the gates and just follow the trail, but we did get to see some really big penguin babies, all fuzzy and cute!

On the way back to the car we ran into a penguin waddling down the walking path. He was strutting around like he owned the place. It was amazing to be about a foot or less away from a penguin with no fence between us. The Penguin made his way down the walking path we had just emerged from and we headed back to our van to head home. We never did see a single baboon…

Once back at the condo we pulled out our purchases and played a few games of chess on Matt’s new board, had dinner, and went to bed to rest up for the adventure awaiting us tomorrow.

Day Four

Tue, 05 Jul 2011 15:06:56 -0400

We began the morning with gasps of awe as we looked out the windows of our rooms. The sun was already high in the sky and the blue ocean was rolling and crashing in the distance. If you looked to the left where the horizon should be there rose a beautiful mountain range that stretched out into the sea. Directly below there was nothing but water, as the hotel seems to be built in the water, not on a beach, and off to the right we could see the western horizon where the sun would eventually set.

After getting ready for the day, and posting the first three days of blogs, we headed off in search of brunch. We found that in the same building we were staying, there was a quaint little bistro which served breakfast all day. We found out that, here in South Africa, the shops typically close early (around 3:00PM) on Saturdays. The exact reasoning behind this we do not know. It seems that food here takes a lot longer to reach the table than it does in America. It makes me think that they stand even more true to “made to order” foods. The food is extremely delicious! We discussed over dinner that everything here seems to taste richer and more true to the natural taste of the food (i.e. fries taste like potatoes not grease).

We finished brunch just in time to help unload the groceries, after which we began several heated games of UNO. Let me just say, the two younger boys are UNO sharks. I swear they were cheating and teaming up to make sure that us girls had to draw the most cards, and lose the most turns possible! After a particularly long game we decided to put up the cards and head out to take pictures of the sun setting below the water. The sheer beauty of it I can not describe using words except to say we could not have taken enough pictures of it!

Once the sun was set we headed back downstairs where there was also a bar and restaurant. Here we had a wonderful dinner (which, again, took a long time to get to us) and Amanda found herself with quite the crush on one of the waiters. After ogling him all night she finally figured out a plan to talk to him. She took her to go box and sat with Elizabeth and Angie in the waiting room “waiting on the rest of our family”. The plan was: as he walked by, stop him and ask for a pen to write her name on the box. Well her mother came up and took the box back to the room while we were waiting. So when Amanda saw him she forgot she did not have her box and quickly asked for a pen. Well now she had nothing to do with the pen, so he handed her a pad of paper (without her asking). Not knowing what to write she handed the paper and pen back to him explaining that she was going to write on the box but it had just been taken up and she had forgot, except she was a little more giggly due to her embarrassment. Little did she know there was much embarrassment left to come. We headed into the bar area with Gail, Mike, Matt, Cindy, and Rick. Those who could ordered drinks and we sat talking. Amanda brought up “her” waiter again which gave Rick an idea as he dragged Gail off to the side. After a moment of talking to each other they turned and talked to the bartenders and one of the bartenders left the bar with quite the obvious mission. Soon enough, Amanda’s waiter arrived and was directed towards our table where he asked if he could help with anything. Amanda in all her quick thinking asked him for napkins. Yes, I typed that correctly. They pulled him out of his job for her to ask for napkins. Well he brought back napkins and while he was away we were told that the bartenders thought it was her birthday. Her waiter stayed around the bar for a bit so Rick took the opportunity to go confront him and make sure he knew it was her birthday. So he came back and explained that he could not sing but he could give her a hug. So Amanda got a hug from a cute South African waiter. The story does not end here. He stopped back to check on us again and she quite boldly asked his name which we found was “Mo-r-n-eh” (he spelled it for us but I do not remember how it was spelled). Before we left Amanda insisted on staying long enough to say goodbye. He walked right up to her to waiting on the step (he was still quite a bit taller even though he was down a step). There she asked when he was working next. “Monday.” He replied. She gave him her best puppy dog eyes and pout before saying, “I will be gone by then.” (which is not the case she was just thinking too far ahead) He sweetly replied “Well, I can try to work tomorrow.” and the leaned in to give her a hug completely of his own accord. So we ended our day with Amanda getting two hugs from an attractive South African and getting him to try to work just to see her again.

Day Three

Sat, 02 Jul 2011 08:12:15 -0400

Grandma Pat and Grandpa Henry arrived during the night to share a suite with Elizabeth, Amanda, and Angie (Angie and Amanda not even knowing this had happened until they woke up to find our Grandfather leaving the shower). After the rest of us had showered and dressed we all headed downstairs for a family breakfast and our first family meeting. Here we went over our itinerary and finally heard the story of why we are all here.

You see both our grandparents had come her previously and spent quite sometime enjoying South Africa when Grandpa Henry turned to Grandma Pat and said “You know I wish we could let our entire family experience this beautiful place.” Grandma Pat’s reply was simply “You take care of that then.” Once back in the states Grandpa Henry turned to his wife. “Were you serious about taking our family to South Africa?” Grandpa Pat again had a very simple response “Were you?” “Well yes.” He replied, her answer again was very simple “You take care of that then.” And he did.

With Mike driving the little van and Grandpa Henry driving the little bus we had a much easier and safer ride to the the RCI Strand resort. Here they took our luggage and as we were early for check-in and Mike had accidentally held onto his Best Western key we headed back into Capetown. To kill time we went to lunch at the V&A Waterfront where half of us had duck, including the two little ones. There was also plenty of wine to go around before we headed out to shop. V&A Waterfront is a huge shopping center most closely akin to boardwalk on the beach in Myrtle, except bigger. Much bigger. There was a shopping mall, a craft center, entertainment, boat rides (including and old-fashioned pirate boat), helicopter rides and so much more that we couldn’t explore in the mere 2 hours we had. We met back at a coffee shop where poor Jack got the first injury of the trip (a nasty bump on his head) but after milking it for all it was worth he is doing fine now, just needs to watch where he’s going especially when walking under stairs!

Day Two

Sat, 02 Jul 2011 08:04:04 -0400

The only way that we knew that the second day had begun was to look out the left side of the plane where the sun was rising in the east while the right stayed dark with night. The colors blended together perfectly to create the most ideal sunset imaginable. After staring in awe until the sun was fully in air we began our breakfast as it was served to us and waited the last two hours of our trip in excited anticipation of our landing, after all we were landing in a new country, on a new continent.

After our long, sleepy flight we found ourselves quickly thrust into action at the next airport. We raced to our make our next flight. This time we had to get our bags from baggage claim and seemed that ours were in the very back of the plane and the last ones to come out in the terminal. Rick’s and Jack’s came out long before anyone else’s (as they had been in New York and checked them there instead of transferring them). The two of them left ahead of the rest so that at least they were guaranteed to make it. The rest of us got our luggage at the same time and quite literally ran to recheck our bags and fight of demanding porters trying to make us give all their friends tips. It seemed that we were not going to make our flight as we sprinted the best we could with our carry ons dragging us down. The mad dash seemed like it was going to be all in vain was we heard the final boarding call for our flight announced and we half dashed half stumbled into the boarding line to get on the plane.

All 12 people made it on, but once we landed we were dismayed to find out that not all 12 bags did. Elizabeth’s and Rick’s bags were left behind in Johannesburg but luckily they managed to hitch a ride on another plane heading to Capetown that arrived 2 hours after ours. Once we reclaimed the bags and got our rental cars we all piled in to what was the most terrifying ride of our lives. There were several accounts of people who admitted they were honestly afraid they were going to die in that ride. You see South African cars have the driver on the right side while the roads require you to drive on the left. On top of this confusing change to streets are not designed for a mini bus and an oversized van and are quite narrow. Capetown also seems to have a huge problem with jay walkers. People don’t seem to look before they walk in the road and also have no cross walks to warn you where they will be crossing. We all fell out of the vans quite happily at the Best Western trying to resist the urge to thankfully kiss the ground. Once we were packed and settled in our rooms we headed for the pub attached to the Best Western. Here we were amused to find green cream soda (this was simply a must have for four of us) and ostrich burgers (of which no one was brave enough to try). Once dinner was over most of us headed upstairs and fell instantly into a peaceful slumber.

Day One

Sat, 02 Jul 2011 07:51:39 -0400

We left out before the sun had even started to rise to meet at the airport at 5:30. This didn’t quite happen as planned and as some of us were late and having trouble figuring out where to go tempers began to rise. The frazzled group all scrambled to get bags checked we turned around to find Grandpa Henry standing behind us. Our grandparents were supposed to be on the 6AM flight that should have been leaving as we stood there talking to him. I said we were frazzled before but once we found out their plane had been cancelled and there was no hope of them getting on ours the true meaning of that word became highly apparent. With confusion abounding we all got separated into small groups but managed to meet up at the gate for our plane. Everyone scheduled for 7:00AM made it onto the plane but we all worried about whether or not Grandma Pat and Grandpa Henry would make it. The plane began to roll to the launching bad and faces visibly changed from worry for our grandparents to worry for our lives mixed with a touch of excitement. I know that personally my stomach lurched as the plane took off and I had to tell myself to take deep breaths to keep from losing it.

As we rose into the air the neat little rows of suburban toy houses seemed to shrink beneath us and the small cars that sped along the highway vanished behind layers of fluffy white clouds that looked soft enough to dissolve with one tiny touch. These too eventually fell below as we soared through the air. This tiny plane left much to be desired as far as room was concerned. With only three seats per row total there was no room to move around and we sleepless travelers stayed quiet for most of the flight but began to speak excitedly as we watched the New York skyline rise in the distance and our destination came one step closer and the reality of our travel began to sink in.

Once landed in New York our bags were automatically transferred to our South African Airways flight and we headed to a painfully slow security check. After having to separate each of our electronic devices and take them out of their cases and put them back we made it to our boarding gate. Here we all met back up and were also untied with Rick and his son Jack. With now 12 of us traveling together it became even harder to keep together especially as they boarded the huge plane and everyone flying began to huddle around the lines to enter. With everyone settled in their seats we began to calm down and relax for the 14 hour flight ahead.

Shortly after take off we were served a lovely dinner with beer and wine for those of us old enough to drink by South African standards (18 is the legal drinking age here). The lights were then dimmed to help us sleep so we could get on the proper South African sleeping schedule. For those who couldn’t sleep there was a Media Center at each seat equipped with TV, Games, music, and movies. As well as a camera attached to the outside of the plane to watch what we were doing and a travel map program that showed where we were, when we were expected to arrive, what part of the world was night and what was day, as well as the temperature outside (it got down to -70* F at one point!).

A Quick Look at Our Trip to South Africa

Sun, 26 Jun 2011 21:27:00 -0400

This trip is a once and a lifetime opportunity for all 14 people involved. We will be traveling to South Africa on a two week get-a-way from our regular lives.

Amanda and Elizabeth will attempt to keep an update on here of our travels and experiences. Here is an overview of what we will be doing for the next few weeks:

We begin early on Wednesday June 29th which also happens to be Cindy’s 20th birthday!

Pat and Henry (the wonderful grandparents who arranged and paid for most of this trip) will be leaving for New York at blearily early 6 AM, with the rest of the pack following after at the still very early hour of 7AM. Once in New York we will meet back up with Pat and Henry as well as Rick and Jack who will be there already as well.

At 11:15 AM we will all wave goodbye to the country as we begin the long flight to Johannesburg South Africa. This is where time the time difference effects as we effectively jump 6 hours ahead.

At 10:00 AM on June 30th (4:00 AM NC time) we make our final plane ride into Cape Town! Where we will spend our first night at a Best Western (how American of us!).

On July 1st however we will be moving to the Strand Resort ( http://www.strandpavilion.co.za/)

On July 2nd the real fun begins as we visit Table Mountain (http://tablemountain.net/) in all its wonder, and Robben Island (http://www.robben-island.org.za/) with all it’s history and and nature conservations.

On July 3rd we will take a tour of Cape Penisula.

To celebrate July 4th in a different country we will visit Tableview beach (http://www.uncoverthecape.co.za/local-attractions/beaches/table-view/).

July 5th we will be visiting the Spier Winery (http://www.spier.co.za/) as well as the Cheetah Preserve (as weather permits)

We will have a bit of free time (perhaps that could morph into shopping time as I’m sure all four of the teenage girls involved would love) on July 6th and 7th in preparation for our next plane ride on July 8th.

10 AM on July 8th we will travel to the Bushwise Safari Lodge in Kruger National Park (http://www.bushwisesafaris.com/) and prepare for a four hour evening safari before we eat dinner under the African sky.

July 9th we will depart at 5:30 in the morning for a nearly 12 hour day safari!

July 10th will hold yet another safari adventure for us to embark on before we head back to Cape Town on July 11th at 11 AM.

July 12th at 4:00 PM we will begin our trek homeward through Johannesburg and into New York with another lovely time change.

2:40 PM on July 13th in our time we will make the flight from New York back into Charlotte to resume our daily lives.

This is what to look out for stay tuned for pictures from darling Amanda and recounts of what actually happens from Elizabeth!