We are hitting the final stretch here. What was once months left, turned to weeks, and now days. I’ve recently realized that I’ve experienced enough here to satisfy my “checklist”. Between adventure, travel, and must-sees, we’ve done it all. Now it is time for me to make peace with Cape Town, to soak in the last days and gain some closure. Thus, as you will see, my daily itinerary has changed quite a bit. What was once a life centered on activities, is now one rich in relationships and wonderful company. Because, what I now understand is that the “things” I’ve done here have provided me with stories and memories, yet the people I’ve met here will change my life forever.
In the past 2 weeks I've…
----Travelled to Stellenbosch with Byron to see Plush live with some new friends: Nick, Carin, Carla, Hilke, Liesa, Nick, and Dale (aka “the night walker”). Of course the evening wouldn’t have been complete without a late-night visit to McDonald’s, which-let me tell you- is a 5-star hotel here compared to Ronald’s American houses (think, two stories). For those of you who haven’t heard the band, I highly recommend their new CD. I managed to stay awake for whopping four minutes on the car ride home. Thanks for driving, By!
----Watched Due Date with Mike and Rafe for the 3rd time in two months. “Why are your dad’s ashes in a coffee can?” Just watch it.
----Stood in line for Tiger Tiger (a dance club) for 1.5 hours with some Northwestern folk. Part way through the line a girl asked us which one of the “52 US states” we were from. I was tempted to tell her I was from the state of Boston, in case she was counting that as 51. *A common misconception here is that Boston is its own state since the area of Boston is much better known than the state of Massachusetts. Luckily we gained entrance into the dance club and had a fabulous time.
----Lunched on quiche at Mango Ginger as a group of seven (missed you Sam) before taking Eliza to get her nose pierced. The woman that did the deed was covered head to toe in piercings and tattoos, in places I’ve never imagined. Tattoos on her fingers and knuckles, piercings on her neck…she told us she had pierced either side of her nose over ten times so Eliza was not to worry. Needless to say, that fact helped little, but Eliza was a trooper and the nose ring looks great on her. Of course, we had to stop at a health food store en route back home, into which we excitedly entered and out of which we immediately fled, after seeing how delicious everything looked and how much money Cathy’s Date Balls and things were about to drain from our wallets.
----Dined on half price sushi at Food Lover’s Market before going to see Water For Elephants in Cavendisch. Before that night, I wasn’t aware that all are given specific seats in movie theatres here; you book them beforehand. Gone are the days of arriving half hour before a movie even after you’ve purchased your ticket, just so you aren’t kissing the screen or behind the tall guy in front. But, be forewarned, there are no ushers.
----Spent over an hour on a bouncy castle at Tegan’s 21st, themed around childhood fantasy. What began as quick jol on the “bounce house” (ahem) turned into a mass chaos of bodies running and back and forth as the blow-up child’s toy gave way under the pressure of a clear weight overload. It was nearly impossible to resist the flow of the black hole of random limbs tangled around deflating pieces of the jumping castle. At one point, Ashleig and I became stuck in place, feet in the air, heads touching the ground. What a wonderful birthday that was.
----Watched Despicable Me on a laptop while crammed on a bed with seven other people. It was a feat, let me tell you. Yes, I do believe I used that word correctly; feat: an achievement that requires great courage.
----Spent the day in Stellenbosch with Ashleig, Nick, and Byron. We went to breakfast in town at Jan Cat (everything is in Afrikaans in Stellis, heads up). From there they gave me a tour of the campus and we were off to go wine tasting at Tokara. Because many of the wineries make most of their profits on wine bottle sales versus tastings, they often offer tastings for free. This is the perfect opportunity for poor university students like us who have no intention of buying wine but would be more than happy to partake in free samples. We spent the rest of the afternoon lounging at a park just outside of campus, surrounded by the beautiful Stellenbosch mountains. I fell asleep immediately upon entering the car on the way home.
----Attended Jaryd’s 21st at Neighbourhood. Tegan brought along her pink, furry cowboy hat, with which we took around 20 pictures, all with different guests wearing it.
----Went to three church services in one day. I attended church on main campus service in the morning, went for a run, and then went to both the Common Ground and Church on Main Claremont evening services with Mike and Rafe. It was one holy day!
---- Saw Rosemary Towns End, (Chris, Jaryd, and Cyle jamming together) perform at Zula Bar. They were fantastic! It was an occasion that both my local and American friends attended. It is always interesting to compare and contrast the “going out” dynamic of the two cultures.
----Chowed down at the Eastern Food Bazaar with homegroup. This time, I was well versed in the largely oversized (or maybe just right?) portions that is EFB food. Of course, I did feel compelled to order an extra plate of hummus and pita bread seeing as half of my homegroup had never tried it before. The necessities in life…
---- Played squash for the first time with Coach Mike Hobbs. It was great fun, and I have a newfound respect for squash players. However, the right side of my body was embarrassingly sore for days.
----Hiked lion’s head with Melissa, Hellen, and Shewaga (they had never been!). Besides the numbness in my entire right side (yes, from squash) it was a wonderful hike with wonderful company. Because of the scattered clouds overhead, the sunset was an extraordinary array of deep pinks and reds.
----Spent a Friday night making pizza (aka watching Mariah, Geo, and Sam make the most delicious home-made pizza I’ve ever eaten [besides yours, Fred Kass]) and playing bananagrams. It was good to be with all the girls again for a nice, relaxing Friday evening in.
----Woke up at 4:45 AM to be driven to the White Shark Lodge in Kleinbaai (about two hours drive). We went the 8 of us girls plus about 4 others to finally, after a long awaited 4 months, go SHARK CAGE DIVING! The sharks are fascinating animals, not frightening, but rather intriguing. It is very clear that they are not at all interested in attacking/hurting/snacking on us in any way. They simply want the dead tuna head that floated in the water in front of our cage. The cage held five people and was fully submerged under water with the exception of about 1.5 ft of air space on the top in which we could catch a breath between dives. I went in the cage twice (going in again with a small group after everyone had had a go) and had the opportunity to stand on the very left and then the very right side of the cage, surrounded on 3 sides by water. There were a couple moments during which the shark would bump into our cage while turning one way or another. One such time, Taylor and I let go of our holds on the grip bar and just clung to each others’ wetsuits…talk about survival instinct. It was an amazing (but cold) experience to say the least. I have two simple suggestions for future reference: 1) put your wetsuit on the right way the FIRST time, 2) pee BEFORE you put it on.
----Watched the Bulls vs. Sharks rugby game with great company at Ruth’s house. She made a huge batch of delicious butternut soup and pudding for dessert and somehow managed to break her spatula while sanctioning order in the house (wink wink)! What a woman. And, of course, Mike and Jono had me convinced that one of the rugby stars was actually the actor that played Prince Caspian in Narnia. Thanks for that one guys.
----Played a few tennis matches with Storm, Dave, and Tom. Every since I taught Dave the endearment and tenderness of the word “betch” when used in a sentence such as “Luvv ya, betch,” he has begun to greet me regularly in such a way. Of course, it does not work unless said with an American accent, which he happens to be brilliant at. Must be why they picked him to be Ryan Reynold’s stand in in Safe House.
----Lunched with Dylan at Cocoa Wah Wah. He made fun of my tendency to eat breakfast food throughout the day (don’t deny it, you did).
----Spent a lovely afternoon over coffee with Ashleig at Cocoa Cha Chi. We talked about the abroad experience and how it is like living in an alternate reality. It was so wonderful to hear about her many adventures during her time in the UK and about her life in general. She is preparing to lead a missions trip soon! What an amazing woman!
----Celebrated Jo’s birthday with a short and sweet cocktail hour at Banana Jam.
----Made chocolate chip and banana pancakes for a crowd of unknowing Africans who still think pancakes should be thing and very large (aka crepes) during our Disney movie marathon at Tom’s house. I was asked several times for this recipe, to which I replied “your ‘pancakes’ plus the very necessary bit of baking powder.” They really were delicious though, but after four batches and three Disney movies (The Incredibles, Mulan, and Lion King) I had had my fill of pancakes for a few years.
----Became an official member of Church On Main. As I walked up to the front of the room to be mentioned with the other “newbies”, the lead elder smiled at me and said “Just in time, Bryn.” So true…
----Worked out at the Virgin Active gym with Rafe (aka sat in the jet pool for a while).
----Gone on countless runs around the Rondebosch Commons with Mariah.
----Attended Lisa’s final art exhibit at the Hiddingh Campus. Her work is beautiful. She even surprised me afterwards by organizing a homegroup date at Cocoa Wah Wah. When I arrived there, they had arranged a message with the magnets on the wall: “Farewell, Bryn. We love you.” It’s too early for goodbyes guys, seriously. But, it was a very sweet gesture. Highlight of the afternoon: Catching Chris “I don’t smile for pictures” Dudley on camera with a grin on his face! GOTCHA!
Worked? Went to lectures? Hmmm….
I sure do love this place.
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