The garden is beautiful and relaxing, although it did a number on my allergies (though that could be the spring coming too). Enjoy the pics!
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Did I mention that South Africa was beautiful?
Today, some friends and I went and enjoyed the weather and spent the afternoon at the Hortus Botanical Gardens. The garden was established in 1923 and is supported by the University of Stellenbosch. It serves as an open-air laboratory for plants and is a center for training, science, conservation and recreation. Many people come and sit in read among the flowering plants or have a pic-nic with friends or significant others. Rare plants have been imported from all over the world and is a gem in the heart of historical Stellenbosch.
The garden is beautiful and relaxing, although it did a number on my allergies (though that could be the spring coming too). Enjoy the pics!
The garden is beautiful and relaxing, although it did a number on my allergies (though that could be the spring coming too). Enjoy the pics!
Shark Cage Diving!
This is probably the most anticipated post on my blog to date!
Shark cage diving was probably one of the most unforgettable experiences of my life. It was phenomenal and spectacular. I know, plenty of you back home have heard how shark cage diving is harmful to the balance of the ecosystem and to surfers here in South Africa. This might be true to some extent in South Africa. Enforcement of the laws that are established to protect the Great White Sharks in the area has been minimal due to lack of federal funds and in the area has been minimal due to lack of federal funds and the shear fact that South Africa has bigger problems of social unrest to tend to.
Anyways, we went with a company called Marine Dynamics. They are one of the only companies who operate on a consistent conversational basis. They work to with the Department of Marine and Coastal Management to identify individual sharks, track their movements and assist in researching these magnificent creatures! On each trip out to Dyer Island (which is where the sharks feed on the seals that inhabit the colony on the island), they have a person who photographs the shark’s dorsal fins. Each shark has a series of notches on their dorsal fins that act as a “finger print” to identify sharks. They also tag sharks with a harmless satellite tag that tracks the shark’s movement up and down the coast of South Africa.
On our specific trip, we saw a total of 10 individual sharks. Most were female and only about three of them were really big. One I would say was about 25 feet in length. The rest ranged from 10 feet to about 15 feet. To draw the sharks attention the crew of our ship has a sludge of fish guts that attracts the sharks to the boat. The second part of the lure is a tuna head tied to a line. They toss this out into the ocean and as the sharks swim by they pull the lure back towards the cage. This allows for most of the divers in the cage to get within touching distance of the shark. Although, touching the shark is strictly prohibited for obvious reasons (no one wants to loose a hand). We were on the water for about three hours. It was a wonderful trip. I have a link to their website (http://www.sharkwatchsouthafrica.com/) if you want to check out their tours. If you ever make it Gansbaai, South Africa you should definitely take a tour with these guys!
Shark cage diving was probably one of the most unforgettable experiences of my life. It was phenomenal and spectacular. I know, plenty of you back home have heard how shark cage diving is harmful to the balance of the ecosystem and to surfers here in South Africa. This might be true to some extent in South Africa. Enforcement of the laws that are established to protect the Great White Sharks in the area has been minimal due to lack of federal funds and in the area has been minimal due to lack of federal funds and the shear fact that South Africa has bigger problems of social unrest to tend to.
Anyways, we went with a company called Marine Dynamics. They are one of the only companies who operate on a consistent conversational basis. They work to with the Department of Marine and Coastal Management to identify individual sharks, track their movements and assist in researching these magnificent creatures! On each trip out to Dyer Island (which is where the sharks feed on the seals that inhabit the colony on the island), they have a person who photographs the shark’s dorsal fins. Each shark has a series of notches on their dorsal fins that act as a “finger print” to identify sharks. They also tag sharks with a harmless satellite tag that tracks the shark’s movement up and down the coast of South Africa.
On our specific trip, we saw a total of 10 individual sharks. Most were female and only about three of them were really big. One I would say was about 25 feet in length. The rest ranged from 10 feet to about 15 feet. To draw the sharks attention the crew of our ship has a sludge of fish guts that attracts the sharks to the boat. The second part of the lure is a tuna head tied to a line. They toss this out into the ocean and as the sharks swim by they pull the lure back towards the cage. This allows for most of the divers in the cage to get within touching distance of the shark. Although, touching the shark is strictly prohibited for obvious reasons (no one wants to loose a hand). We were on the water for about three hours. It was a wonderful trip. I have a link to their website (http://www.sharkwatchsouthafrica.com/) if you want to check out their tours. If you ever make it Gansbaai, South Africa you should definitely take a tour with these guys!
Monday, August 10, 2009
Wondering Around Cape Town
This time it was without a tour guide or a giant bus to keep us safe. Dana, Sarah and I decided because it was a holiday weekend (National Women's Day) we would spend the day in Cape Town! We took the early train from Stellenbosch to Cape Town at 9:00 am. The train ride itself took about an hour to travel the 40 km between Stellenbosch and Cape Town. The train ride itself was boring and uneventful. We paid only R14 for a round trip tickets (at the current exchange rate it was about $2) and we sat in third class. Traditionally third class was reserved for black South Africans, whereas white South Africans took the more expensive first class coaches.
We got into Cape Town about 10:00 am. After stumbling our way through the crowded train station we made it to the street. It was from here that we took a 10 minute walk to the V&A Waterfront. We went and saw the Two Oceans Aquarium, which was fun, interesting and educational. Some of the high-lights include the sharks, the kelp forests and the penguins. It was quite an experience, though we were surprised at the small size of the aquarium. We figured a city boasting about four million people would have a bigger aquarium.
After our two hours at the aquarium, we enjoyed sack lunches on the waterfront. We then hit up a craft fair that featured local made nick-nacks, photos and artwork. Afterward, we explored more of the Victoria Wharf shopping center and the V&A Waterfront.
On the way back to the train station we walked up Long Street where Cape Town's night life comes to spend most nights in pubs and clubs till odd hours at night. We found many colorful buildings of Dutch, French and Victorian architecture styles. We also tried, somewhat successfully, at avoiding some of the local drifters and poor. In South Africa the homeless beg a lot harder for coins or food. They tend to walk with you for a few blocks before they take the hint. It gets slightly annoying and can be quite intimidating.
Our train ride back was a lot more cramped. Third class filled up quite a bit but most got off the train before our stop at Stellenbosch. All in all, I would say it was a pretty successful day in Kaapstad!
We got into Cape Town about 10:00 am. After stumbling our way through the crowded train station we made it to the street. It was from here that we took a 10 minute walk to the V&A Waterfront. We went and saw the Two Oceans Aquarium, which was fun, interesting and educational. Some of the high-lights include the sharks, the kelp forests and the penguins. It was quite an experience, though we were surprised at the small size of the aquarium. We figured a city boasting about four million people would have a bigger aquarium.
After our two hours at the aquarium, we enjoyed sack lunches on the waterfront. We then hit up a craft fair that featured local made nick-nacks, photos and artwork. Afterward, we explored more of the Victoria Wharf shopping center and the V&A Waterfront.
On the way back to the train station we walked up Long Street where Cape Town's night life comes to spend most nights in pubs and clubs till odd hours at night. We found many colorful buildings of Dutch, French and Victorian architecture styles. We also tried, somewhat successfully, at avoiding some of the local drifters and poor. In South Africa the homeless beg a lot harder for coins or food. They tend to walk with you for a few blocks before they take the hint. It gets slightly annoying and can be quite intimidating.
Our train ride back was a lot more cramped. Third class filled up quite a bit but most got off the train before our stop at Stellenbosch. All in all, I would say it was a pretty successful day in Kaapstad!
Springboks Rugby Match
International sports are awesome! In the States we have a few international teams but none get as much recognition as the NFL, NBA, or NHL. On Saturday I experienced my first Springboks rugby match. The Springboks, who are the national team of South Africa, played against the Wallabies from Australia. We killed the Wallabies with a final score of 29 to 17. The Springboks star player, Morne Steyn, scored almost all of the points for the Springboks. He is apparently the up and coming star on the team and is expected to surpass some of the older players on the team in terms of stats and skill.
Rugby is the national sport for South Africa, even though South Africa is hosting next year’s World Cup in Cape Town at the Green Point Stadium. Rugby is a much more rough form of American football. Although, the two games share very little commonalities, other than there are two teams fighting for control over one ball and forcing their way into either end zone. Rugby players play without padding or helmets. Both teams’ players take a beating on the field, mostly getting tackled and racked with cleats.
No sporting event is really complete without an appropriate pregame complete with plenty of meat and beer! Thanks to some local connections, the gang and I went to Guguletu (a township just outside of Cape Town) and went to wonderful restaurant call Mzoli's! It was an experience to say the least. We ordered meat from a local butcher and then took our bowl/tray of meat to the back of the restaurant. It was there in a smokey room that a Braai master took our rare meat, seasoned it, and cooked it to order. It was probably some of the best meat I had since coming to South Africa. The best part is that we ate with our hands and got pumped for the Spingboks together. Can you imagine anything better than Black Label, steak, braai sausage and friends? The correct answer is NO!
The Springboks play in the Tri-Nation tournament with Australia (Wallabies) and New Zealand (All Blacks). Currently the Springboks are number one in the tournament as we have defeated both New Zealand and Australia. I’m not exactly sure how the ranking works out or when the actual tournament is finalized. All I know it is all very exciting!
Rugby is the national sport for South Africa, even though South Africa is hosting next year’s World Cup in Cape Town at the Green Point Stadium. Rugby is a much more rough form of American football. Although, the two games share very little commonalities, other than there are two teams fighting for control over one ball and forcing their way into either end zone. Rugby players play without padding or helmets. Both teams’ players take a beating on the field, mostly getting tackled and racked with cleats.
No sporting event is really complete without an appropriate pregame complete with plenty of meat and beer! Thanks to some local connections, the gang and I went to Guguletu (a township just outside of Cape Town) and went to wonderful restaurant call Mzoli's! It was an experience to say the least. We ordered meat from a local butcher and then took our bowl/tray of meat to the back of the restaurant. It was there in a smokey room that a Braai master took our rare meat, seasoned it, and cooked it to order. It was probably some of the best meat I had since coming to South Africa. The best part is that we ate with our hands and got pumped for the Spingboks together. Can you imagine anything better than Black Label, steak, braai sausage and friends? The correct answer is NO!
The Springboks play in the Tri-Nation tournament with Australia (Wallabies) and New Zealand (All Blacks). Currently the Springboks are number one in the tournament as we have defeated both New Zealand and Australia. I’m not exactly sure how the ranking works out or when the actual tournament is finalized. All I know it is all very exciting!
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