Posts tagged South Africa
10 New Things I Did During the World Traveler Internship
I have an awful memory, which is why I spend half my days scribbling notes and lists in order to actually remember things.
And as my mind sifts through the chaos of this summer, sometimes all I can remember is, whoa – that was wild and nothing else! Therefore, I made a list of things I did over the World Traveler Internship that were either new or incredibly exciting for this absent-minded, globe-lovin gal.
1. Drank kava in the Fijian Highlands in a special ceremony sat in by 20+ people just for me, fit with singing and schoolyard games
2. Tandem skydived from 10,000 feet
3. Dove in a cage surrounded by great white sharks
4. Visited a new continent: Australia
5. Dune bashed in the desert
6. Laid eyes on Mt. Kilimanjaro and flew next to her
7. Volunteered at a township in South Africa
8. Belly danced with an actual belly dancer
9. Came within ten feet of a male lion
10. Hiked Table Mountain from bottom to top
Volunteering in South Africa
As much as I love the idea of picking vacation spots based on beaches and the cheapness of beer, it gets old…fast.If you love to travel and are looking for something more unique to do with your free time, look into volunteering. From your own backyard to every corner of the globe there are programs that invite you to help out.
Think of what you would like to do. Be it teaching English, conserving the environment, coaching sports, building schools, playing with kids – whatever – there are opportunities to do what you love, make a difference and explore the coolest places on earth.
Some programs are just a week long, others can go on for months if you find yourself loving it, and you will if you give it a shot.
In South Africa, Lindsay and I met up with a group of about thirty girls (reason enough for me to return but that’s besides the point) who were all volunteering on a variety of projects in and around Cape Town. Everyone was able to choose which project fit them best and at the end of the day they all returned to a communal house that was as cool as any backpacker hangout I’ve seen anywhere in the world.You get to meet travelers from around the world who have been brought together with a common purpose of trying to make one little part of the world a bit better.
Lindsay and I agree that some of our best travels have been when we volunteered in foreign countries and both of us will always be looking to do more of it. It’s an amazing experience and I promise you will have as good of a time helping out than you would have had pounding Coronas and getting sunburned in Cabo.
Wine Tasting in South Africa
Wine Tasting: a classy concept that seems to inspire smarter ensembles, a listening ear and a more discernible palate than one actually has.
Wine tasting isn’t something you can’t do elsewhere. And during our planning sessions for South Africa, we almost vetoed this idea because of that fact. But that would have been a mistake, as everyone – travelers and residents – that we asked for suggestions on activities in South Africa mentioned we needed to spend a day trying the grape products of the Western Cape. Not only is there delicious alcohol involved in the equation but beautiful landscapes, a little bit of learning and no doubt fun people in it as well.
We were in.
Our guide, Merinda, picked us up in the morning along with five young others who all possessed that wine sparkle in their eye. Our schedule was to hit four or five vineyards that all had something special to offer: unlimited goat cheese tasting, sparkling wines, stunning views, and the best, most varied selection of Pinotage around.
And it was here we found the one thing that made wine tasting in South Africa unique: a combination of Pinot and Hermitage (so I was told…can’t remember exactly for some reason…hic!). The king of Pinotage had white, blush and red versions of this South African specialty, and we tried every single one of them. I tried to differentiate the tastes between an oaken barrel and steel tank fermentation and decided wood trumps steel any day.
The drive back was dramatically different than the drive there. Everyone had a plastic glass sloshing recent purchases and chocolate fingers. Red teeth dressed up every photograph captured. And a massive sing-along of Aussie national songs and American classics like “American Pie” commenced that probably rocked our driver’s ear drums. The day ended at 5 p.m., and for some of us, that was pretty much all we could handle.
What’s Going Down in Cape Town
Are you aware of the seven natural wonders of the world? No? Perfect, because I’m about to list them off:
- Victoria Falls in Zambia/Zimbabwe
- Mt. Everest in Nepal/China
- The Grand Canyon in Arizona
- The Great Barrier Reef off Australia
- The Northern Lights
- Paricutin Volcano in Mexico
- The Harbor of Rio de Janiero
Do you know what is missing from this list? I propose to include an eighth natural wonder of the world based on the fact that its just as spectacular as the landscape of Rio.
Cape Town. It’s beyond words.
Beyond words, indeed, but I’ll attempt anyway. Not only is this stunning coastal city hugging beautiful chilly waters of both the Atlantic and maybe a smidge of the Southern Ocean, but it’s topped by a plateau that throws the clouds over its summit like a table cloth as well as the twelve jutting crags that line the western face of the mountain range. To look up any street in the city and see in the crisp sky this massive formation just makes the heart melt. The best is when this view comes at you from your hostel WC. Talk about a loo with a view!
What is there to do in Cape Town, you ask? If you like to spend money, look at things, eat things, climb things, free fall, ride around, drink things, or dance around, you’ll enjoy yourself in Cape Town.
What cannot be overlooked, though, is the history that barely dates back more than a decade. In our lifetimes, there was complete havoc between racial and socioeconomic lines, travesties committed against people by people. And now this place waits for you at the bottom of Africa, tempting you with sports, wine and awesome views.
It doesn’t seem like the dust could have settled by now, and in many ways it hasn’t. Racism will continue to flourish probably for decades to come (sadly). So in the mix of traveling throughout this great city, it pays to visit the townships and orphanages that resulted from the human cruelty of apartheid. It’s not quite “dark tourism,” but it gives you an awareness that could easily be avoided (to your disadvantage) and could definitely enhance the trip.
Garden Route in South Africa
Africa is like a really big trail map.
Cairo to Cape Town.
Malaga to Douala.
Nairobi to Victoria Falls.
Tour companies and travelers alike have realized that those who make it to Africa are there to spend some time and see a good lot of incredible sights. You won’t meet many people who travel to Africa and hop around by air to all the different destinations. Everyone overlands. And everyone takes the same paths, whether in an overland vehicle, a fully-loaded Jeep with their families, or a cramped and ancient public bus. They do this because there aren’t many distinct “sites” in Africa. Africa is the sight to behold in itself.
See the land in between and connect destinations with the open road. Follow along these well-known paths and you’ll often see the same travelers at the same junctions on the way. People swap stories and can relate to each other because they all know Ma who works at Snake Park in Arusha and that one fantastic beach bar in Nungwi, Zanzibar, where the local boys practice their dance moves. Following these trails creates a community of vagabonds that all move by different means but all move to the same places.
In South Africa, the trail to follow is the Garden Route.
Starting (or ending) in Cape Town, one can experience the endless activities of this harbor city and move on via Baz Bus to a plethora of towns along the southern coast. Whether you want to hit up the wine lands in Stellenbosch, the whale watching and cage diving near Hermanus, the beautiful landscapes of Mossel Bay, or the adventure sports of Plettenberg Bay, there are tens of stops to choose from and so many travelers to tell you good advice for your route.
The views are pretty much stunning everywhere and we were there in the wintertime, when the sun was always at about half-mast and the wind was gentle and cool. Perfect. It can only get better from an already sky-high standard of vacation. And one of the best parts of the Garden Route, especially during that time of year, is the laid-back atmosphere that encourages relaxation and taking your merry time to blaze the trail.
Africa seems like a tough place to begin thinking about visiting, but after a quick glance on the internet, anyone will find a slew of routes and easy ways to digest the birth continent of mankind. And with a name like the “Garden Route,” you know you’re not going to be disappointed on your tour of South Africa.
Trekking through South Africa
Have you been keeping up with our World Traveler Intern journey? Yes or No.
If the answer is yes, you’ve aced today’s coolness test. It’s based on hundreds of factors developed by brilliant scientists in order to accurately determine someone’s personal awesomeness level. If you answered no, you can’t possibly have less internet access than we have, so there’s no excuse. Catch up now!…then come back and finish this blog 
The reason I ask this hard-hitting question is that if your answer was yes, then you know we’ve been boarding tour bus after tour bus thus far with strangers-turned-friends around the world. You’d also know that Chris and I weren’t really tour people to begin with but have had experiences thus far that would need “best time ever,” “once in a lifetime,” and “hooray for life” phrases attached to them.
But with South Africa came a whole new experience…an unplanned one! Though we had our hostels and Baz Bus reservations all set, we had open-ended days in spectacular cities along the southernmost coast of Africa in need of filling. So when STA Travel’s marketing manager, Carly, joined us in Johannesburg for a lil’ South Africa getaway, we started rambling off all the things that had to get done.
- Great White Shark Cage Diving
- Hiking Table Mountain
- Stellenbosch Winelands
- Adventure Sports
- Long Street and the Waterfront
…and a healthy slew of others. With only one or two days in Cape Town to do it up right, we talked to fellow travelers (lots of the volunteers from i-to-i) and travel agents to find out the scoop, which was that adventure sports could wait until the Garden Route.
What’s unique to this area? The best ways to spend a few days in Cape Town? Hiking tall, flat mountains and savoring fine wines, of course. And so we did. We actually extended our time in Cape Town in order to allow for more enjoyment of this city that is idolized by her visitors and especially her residents.
What’s great about the Garden Route are the landscapes, the relaxed wintertime environment, and the heaps of activities available. I see Cape Town as one of those cities that makes everything in it better because it’s existing and happening in that city. Just like New York, Chicago, Florence, Paris, London, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Sydney…these places live. And when something happens there, regardless of how fun or cool it actually was, it’s immediately on a higher level, solely based on the real estate mantra of location³! Therefore, we had to see the nightlife, had to shop, had to go wine tasting, had to walk up big slopes, had to take tons of pictures and wander around…not because these are things we never get to do, but because they are occurring in this booming and blooming city.
And that’s how we decided on our itinerary for South Africa. Hike. Drink Wine. Shark Dive. Bungee. Sky Dive. Whale watch. View animals. And the trip was perfect…
Volunteering in South Africa, Part 3
There’s nothing louder and simultaneously as comforting as rain on a tin roof – even during monsoons. This must be what makes the Cape Town area look so clear, clean and lush. And surely, when we emerged from our rooms that second day in False Bay, the world was dripping and new.
Into Masi again, we went into a few creches where children from the township can receive child care and an education while their parents work, in hopes that they will someday be at the same academic level as their peers.
The first one was hooked up – resources filled the shelves in an organized, well-labeled fashion. At our arrival, one volunteer was reading a book in English and a teacher next to her translated the story in Xhosa, chocked full of clicks and tongue smacks. Activity time commenced with drawing and painting, and we tried getting our hands and minds in there with the kids. I ended up stacking toys with young five and six-year-olds, trying to teach them colors and shapes. One teacher came over, asking me if I’ve been “teaching her children.” When the kids nodded their heads, she looked really touched, and I was filled with…dare I say…glee.
The second creche wasn’t nearly as organized, discipline-oriented, or effective in making a difference for the kids. These two and three-year-olds, as well as babies, pretty much danced around a building erected by previous volunteers and entertained themselves. Part of the process, though, of programs coming in to help various establishments is waiting for an invitation and a genuine intention to progress towards something sustainable. Though this creche had made great leaps towards improving the conditions for the kids, moving them from a flooded and moldy room in the back of the house to a clean, dry, well-lit structure, they didn’t have daily routines or enough activities to calm their busy minds and bodies. Luckily the ones at this creche move on to the previous creche and receive the skills that will get them somewhere.
And the women who run these places often don’t receive enough donations to function but must work themselves on the weekends and evenings for funds to run their creche. That’s some noble, admirable dedication right there.
Our volunteer coordinators, Ally and Isabelle, treated us to a much appreciated meal and took us to our final destination of an orphanage in a colored community. Something Ally informed us of early on is the use of racial terms in accepted speech. In South Africa, people describe others as white, black or colored. Simply using these words does not imply anything derogatory. The term “colored” differentiates those who have dark skin and other influences of Arabic, Asian, and so on.
The orphanage is better than many that exist in America today and had been visited by Melinda Gates in the past. They had resources, though an odd stance on nutrition (the meals of custard answered questions about the quite round babies). We played for a bit after a tour of the facilities and returned to our hostel, feeling pretty content from the incredible treatment we received for two days straight.
Thomas Jefferson was a fan of travel: “Travel makes you wiser, but less happy.” In a sense, I think he was on target, but global and social awareness can also bring a feeling of hope and enlightenment that can empower and please. I didn’t feel happy seeing children and adults living hard lives that I observed as a cushy tourist, but I loved being witness to their strong characters and seeing the moments of success that emerge from the hardships. You can hear about the problems in South Africa and easily forget about them. You can see the problems in South Africa and remember them well. You can do something for the struggles, learn about the solutions, and interact with South Africans and understand viscerally until the end of your days. For this reason, I volunteer, because I don’t ever want these hard realities to be easy to forget.
Volunteering in South Africa, Part 2
The barking from TEARS reverberates across the entirety of Masiphumalele daily, but what’s represented by those sounds make the annoyance of constant dog yelping kinda comforting. The Emma Animal Rescue Society (TEARS) takes stray animals and domestic pets from the local communities for vaccinations, fixing and disease treatment at a price that no one can argue with: free. Instead of putting down pups with horrifying skin diseases, they do what they can to ensure that every animal gets a chance at survival and adoption. And when they wander across a pet cat that hasn’t been neutered yet, they create a positive relationship and rapport between TEARS and the owner, gaining respect and trust among people who don’t often have the money to do the right thing for their beloved pets.
The mobile clinic invited us to join a ride through Masi to observe how they find needy animals and connect with the communities. There was one man living on the very edge of the wetlands who absolutely adored his large, golden canines but couldn’t feed them and treat them they way they deserved. TEARS built him a kennel and helped him out with dog food. The man was so grateful, he put his palms together and dipped his head in a sign of extreme and humble thanks.
In the next township of Mountain View, we came across a man who adored his massive pit bull, a canine who was quite obviously not fixed. The dog’s homemade sweater was connected to the chain around his neck and had felt letters sewn on spelling “I’m so hood”. It was just too perfect an ensemble. The owner reeked of booze and had an odd smear of white surrounding his mouth. He insisted that he’d never taken his dog to a fight, but he’s killed 13 dogs before. And he took impeccable care to pair his fella with only the most worthy pit bull ladies, spreading the good bloodlines he called it. In this community, it’s common that the men keep incredibly virile and dangerous dogs to solidify their own manly image. This was a case that would take weeks for TEARS to work, and they began by talking about dog fight victims to get on this guy’s sappy side. We watched from afar at their wicked skills of coercion.
Volunteering in South Africa
We drove from Cape Town to False Bay during the brilliance of a harbor sunrise. The first stop was a “no frills” walk around a township called Masiphumelele (which means “we will succeed”). Township areas were set aside during the apartheid era as a place to “put” the colored and black communities that weren’t wanted in the residential white zones. Masi, for short, is the only informal community in the Cape Town area that’s centered in a “white” zone and is also the township with the highest percentage of people with HIV and AIDS…42%.
Day care for a young child is $10 per month, but since these facilities wouldn’t send a child away if the parents failed to pay, often that fee never gets collected. The township also bordered a wetland area, which floods with each heavy rain, and, unfortunately, it had been pouring the week prior to our arrival. Many children couldn’t go to school or day care because they didn’t have dry clothes to wear and parents flocked to the relief centers for blankets to get through the chilly weather.
We hit up our lunch stop, which also happened to be an educare center for children of pretty abysmal living situations and histories. Carrying in bags of rolls and deli ham, Chris and I began slathering mayo and folding ham for the kids’ lunches. When we walked in, there was earth-rumbling screaming. When we passed out sandwiches, a mouse could have passed gas and all would have turned their heads to look. And once the children consumed the food before them, it was back to unstoppable energy. The volunteers were personal jungle gyms for some kids, while others found joy in just being held. I attracted some gigglers with the always-reliable crowd-pleaser, the tickle monster. Wherever you looked, there was a runny nose and a smile. It was a good scene.
Our expert sandwich assembling abilities came in handy once more when about 20 loaves of bread and flats of peanut butter came into the kitchen. We found ourselves in an efficient assembly line partaking in the relief efforts from recent rains. All those families whose homes hadn’t a dry board received PB&Js to curb the devastation just a smidge. It felt good to spend even part of this trip doing something as useful as making cold and hungry families food.
Swimming with Sharks in South Africa
About six weeks prior, I had trouble jumping off a 12-meter cliff into beautiful teal waters. However – for some reason – I had absolutely no trouble throwing a lead weight around my neck and getting into the chummy, bloody waters that would make a whale shiver. Not to mention, these waters had some terrifying inhabitants, man-eaters for sure, and it was only a couple steel rods between me and the world’s scariest smiles.
Chris and Carly were quite skeptical of this experience, but why was I so gung-ho? Sometimes my travel huevos just decide to show up, I guess.
As the sun rose over the Western Cape of South Africa, Carly, Chris and I boarded a small vessel equipped with wetsuits, soft drinks and a five-person cage for great white shark viewing. Tying the cage to the side of the boat, five or six people piled in, looking like identical Scuba Steves, and awaited the sharks who were being tempted by tuna heads on ropes, bloody water, and chum a-plenty.
The first shark was a little guy, relatively speaking, and he went for the tuna head with patience and very little pre-meditation. Soon after, a couple of bigger guys with a little more fire in their eyes made their way over. One ran straight into the cage beside Chris’ scared-stiff body, its razor sharp teeth squealing as they smashed against the metal. He emerged from the water frantic and not amused.
By the time I jumped into the thoroughly nasty waters, the bad boys circling our cage and boat were like swimming cars…with killer grills. I forgot to hold my breath a couple times and came up sputtering, taking in drops of the bloody, salt water, and nearly tossing chunks. Luckily, the adrenalin surging through my body kept me aware and together enough to know not to put my feet on the back of the cage and not thrash around to attract the beasts. Just as I was about to crawl out of the Southern Ocean, the grand-daddy of great whites went for the tuna head, putting his massive body vertical in the water and smack dab against our rattling cage. He could have eaten the Jetta parked in my garage at home.
Why did we go deep into frigid waters and taunt these terrors? What made us feel safe in this little, rocking boat? These adventure dudes sure know how to make you feel safe and I am definitely pleased I saw such awesome nature all up in my face. Ah, travel huevos…if you’ve got ‘em, utilize ‘em…and go shark diving! Just listen to them when they say, “Don’t try to pet the sharks. I know you want to. But…don’t.”
