Because these unfortunate South Africans don't celebrate awesome holidays like Columbus Day, Presidents Day, and Labor Day they have Womens Day on August 9th (the other 364 days are for men here, as it should be). This menstruating holiday provided us with a long weekend for an ADVENTURE up the garden route (a stretch of highway up the eastern cape).
To set a tone for the adventure to be had, there were fifteen American students in three rental cars and no experience with driving on the left side of the road. Five of us with early classes on Friday were able to get on the road out of Cape Town by 11am with the other cars following after 2pm. Because we had extra time before we met for dinner in Mossel Bay, our car developed a knack for having as many adventures as possible along the way. These came in the form of roadside tweak sessions (just running around and taking pictures of the beautiful countryside), stops to farmers markets and farm stands, and if that wasn't enough..... Fairy Sanctuaries!!!
In the little town of Swellendam, I had the urge to have an adventure so I pulled of the highway and into this Dutch village where our lives would be changed forever..... Grace, the Co-Pilot, noticed a sign on the road for a Fairy Sanctuary and so we followed signs up the hillside until we arrived at a gated garden that was just screaming MAGICAL (and also screaming THE PEOPLE WHO INVENTED THIS WERE ON SOME SERIOUS DRUGS). Still, not to shy away from a epic experience, the five of us entered a land of Gnomes, Fairies, Dragons, Angels, Mushrooms, Wizards, and spiritual awakening. Words really can't describe this place so...
In Mossel Bay we stayed at a really cool hostel and also tried some seafood... not very good, but probably more the fault of the restaurant. In the morning we took a leisurely drive up the coast with frequent adventures. It turns out we went too leisurely because we were late for our appointment for BUNGEEEEEE JUMPING! Fortunately, they had room for us at a later slot and we all did the most extreme event that ever was.
By far, the scariest thing I have ever done! But also one of the best things I have ever done!
Back in the car, we made our way to Jeffery's Bay. Jay Bay, as the locals and myself call it, is a really laid back surfer town on the Indian Ocean. Our hostel was run by a bunch of surfer brus who suggested a restaurant on the beach for us to try. And try we did, it was the best meal i've had thus far in Africa! In the morning we had a full day to see the countryside and make it to our next hostel back where we did the bungee jump. Some people went to a lion sanctuary (not nearly as cool as its fairy counterpart) but I joined a group going to the secret waterfall.
Up a long dirt road that reminded me a lot of Ridgway we arrived at a farm with two signs on the gate. One said "Waterfall" and the other said "Beware of Biting Dogs." Just as the signs said, there was a waterfall and biting dogs. I nearly got a second African hospital visit after 2 or 3 attacked me while I was trying to get directions... the second scariest event of the road trip. After screaming and running back into the car, a farm woman gave us directions to the secret waterfall. The waterfall was tucked down in a little canyon and flowed into a deep pool where we jumped into from the top of the waterfall and where the zipline ended! Really fun and as usual, extreme. We had a lot of fun until on the drive out we got a flat tire... and then we still had a lot of fun. Judy quickly turned on the country hymnal: "Jesus Take the Wheel," and Ross and I got to work on changing the flat, which we did Nascar fast!
After a short visit to Port Elizabeth (Nelson Mandela Bay) we began the drive back towards Cape Town and our last hostel, the Tube 'N' Axe. Not as sketchy as it sounds! Here, we all had a group dinner and played some serious games before getting to bed before our long drive back. Back to Cape Town, back to school, and back to reality.
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