Monday, September 15, 2008

The South/Wild Coast

This weekend, our progam went to a little resort at the South Coast of KZN for a little rest and relaxation after a grueling first week of classes. We stayed in a small town called Port Edward at the Merry Crab (funny name, I know). On friday afternoon when we got there a few of us walked out to the beach and I brought my frisbee along. At one point the wind caught it and it landed in the tide and got swept out. I dove into the ocean fully clothed because it's my favorite disc that I have, and I was able to get it back. Unfortunately I lost one of my rings in the process...oh well.

Saturday morning we woke up a little later than usual and head across the border to the Eastern Cape to go on an eco-tourism hike. We started off by canoeing in a little cove, and then proceeded to hike along the beach. We had a guide with us who showed us a petrified forest and lots of different fossils. The petrified forest was really neat because you could see how the forest used to be right by the ocean. Our guide also dug up part of this enormous crystal that is buried beneath the sand. Some of the fossils that we saw included a sea turtle, giant clams (we're talking almost as big as me), and animal bones. We also got to see some small caves that used to be hidden by fig leaves that fishermen used to store things. I found a really cool and intact sand dollar while we walked, and I'm hoping I can make it back to the U.S. with it.

From the beach we headed through some woods and saw some buildings and other spots where parts of the film "Blood Diamond" was filmed, and some of the views were spectacular! We hiked up some hills and through a village where we stopped for lunch, before going to see an Isangoma, a traditional African doctor. I didn't really know what was going on during the ceremony, but it was still pretty cool. Afterward, we went back to the Merry Crab to rest before our braai of American food. We even made s'mores for dessert except we had tea cookies instead of graham crackers because they apparently don't have them in South Africa. Who knew?

Sunday, a few of us woke up extra early to watch the sunrise on the beach. It was a little hazy, so you couldn't actually see the sun, but it was still very pretty. We then had a meeting about how our homestays are going and then headed to the beach for a couple hours before going home. My mama was really excited when I got back, and she gave me a big home and said "Welcome home, baby girl!" It was cute. I watched some TV with my bhuti and WWE wrestling came on and had to explain to him that they're professional actors and have extensive training because he thought it was real...ah the joys of Americanization. Well, I better go work on some assignments for tomorrow, so sala kahle!

1 comment:

Amanda said...

just wanted to let you know i'm really enjoying reading the blog! i keep megan posted on your doings as well, since she's all of two feet away from me right now, in her room :-) miss you!