What a Weekend!

Earlier this week I mentioned to Emmi that the ballet was performing this weekend in Cape Town and that I'd like to go see them. She then brought up hiking Table Mountain since we have a long weekend without VCE. Our plan was to go to Cape Town Friday to see the ballet and then maybe stay the night in a backpackers and hike the next morning then come home. Then, Molly told us she and a few others were planning on going up Saturday to the Green Market. The three of us and Maura went to breakfast and talked about plans, thinking there were at least 5 spots left in one of the backpackers on Long Street. Then we realized it was game weekend for rugby: SA Springboks v. Australian Wallabies. We got home around noon with the intention of catching the next train, but then Emmi looked online and saw there were no spots left like we thought. She searched backpackers after backpackers and there were no rooms left, so I decided just to look for hotels, couldn't hurt. Turns out, there were a few rooms left at Circa on the Square, in the city center. Next thing I know I've booked an executive suite with king bed for only $85!! 

We caught the train at 3p and were off to a great weekend. Emmi saw her first zebras on the train, and we got pictures of some other beautiful scenery as well. We arrived in Cape Town around 4:15p and went straight to the hotel to check in. At first the woman at the front desk said she had no record of our reservation, but this was because it had literally been booked a few hours before. She sorted things out and we took the elevator up to our room. It was amazing! There was more room than we had expected and the kitchen was fully stocked. We were most excited about the TV and couch because we don't have them at Concordia. A few of our guy friends were already in the city because they had to get tickets for Rocking the Daisies next weekend, so we invited them over and made dinner. 

The next morning we decided to book the hotel for a second night, so we wouldn't have to rush out, then walked over to the Artscape Theater to check times for the ballet. This theater is so awesome! The architecture is really cool, so of course I took tons of pictures. The ticket sales office said to come back at 1:30 so we went out for groceries for later. At 1:30, we went back to the theater and it was packed, mostly with older women with white hair dressed like they were going to a fancy brunch. We were told tickets were sold out and to have a seat and wait to see if anyone comes to sell theirs. We got three tickets for R130 each. Since it was just a receipt that we were handed, we couldn't figure out the seats. We thought for sure they were in the back, but the usher took the receipt and told us they were the 2nd row from the stage! We were really excited, but then another woman sat next to Molly and said she had the ticket for seat 5, where Molly was. We asked the usher and she said it was a mix up with the box office since we had just gotten our tickets that day. So, our new seats were in the back, but we really didn't mind because we could see more that way. The ballet was really fun; there were a few numbers that were too slow but others that were amazing. 

After the ballet we decided to eat lunch at South Africa's only Burger King, which is right next to our hotel. The game was on at 5p so we watched it in our room. We were all pretty tired so we watched a movie and felt like falling asleep but finally decided to go look around town around 10. We found a restaurant called Mama Africa. There was an African music band playing with drums and xylophones and a cowbell and whistle. They were a lot of fun and we actually knew one of the songs they played because the isiXhosa teacher taught us during orientation. Long Street was pretty crazy when we left, so by the time we got home we knew it was time to crash. 

Burger King! 

Sunday morning the weather was amazing but we knew it would be too much of a hassle to try to get to Table Mountain and hike with all of our stuff. So we headed to the waterfront and had breakfast at TriBakery. Afterwards, we wanted to go on the ferris wheel, and Emmi decided she'd face her fear of heights. She started to relax after the first loop and did really well. The views from the wheel were amazing, with the mountains behind us and the ocean in front. When we got off the ferris wheel we still had 2 hours before we had to leave for the train so we went to the aquarium and got gelato. We decided we'd try the 4 o'clock train so we could relax and eat. We went to Hildebrand, the Italian resaurant we ate at last time. Finally around 3p we were ready to go to the train station. We thought the next train would be at 4:40, but when we arrived at 3:15 we saw the next one was actually 3:35. Perfect timing! The train ride home was nice and sunny and breezy and we all fell asleep.

We had an amazing weekend, especially considering we didn't plan any of it! :) 

The Hunt for Hummus

About a week ago, after eating at Man'oushe, I decided I like hummus. In fact, I've been craving hummus and pita bread ever since. I keep meaning to buy some, but with Tuesday and Wednesday off I had no motivation to go into town. Finally, today, I went to Checkers to pick up a few things. I took my time and walked down every aisle but couldn't find anything. I asked a woman who works there and she looked at me like I was crazy. I had to repeat myself twice, then she passed me off to another guy who works there. I swear he said "hummus? like in a cup?" and even made the hand motion, then led me to the other side of the store. Once he took me down the hardware aisle I realized we might have a little confusion... Then he handed me a hammer. I tried to explain hummus as a Mediterranean spread and he asked for another translation but still had no clue what I meant and thought I was crazy, so I gave up on Checkers and headed home.

Luckily, after Afrikaans and without the heavy bags to carry home, I decided to look somewhere else. Thank goodness for Food Lovers!!!! I found hummus right across from the cheeses! Cannot wait for that afternoon snack of hummus and pita tomorrow-- I think I put in enough work, it'll be a well-deserved meal!

Happy National Braai Day!

Just as I was about to post this last night, I heard this loud, awful noise. It sounded like a car alarm but intensified by 10. Then we opened the front door and it was times 100. I've never been to Tornado Alley, but I'm pretty sure this is almost what it would sound like. Turns out it was a fire drill and we had to evacuate for 20 minutes, sign a paper, and go back inside. A fire drill. Weirdest fire drill of my life.

Anyway, yesterday was a public holiday so we didn't have class. It was Heritage Day/ National Braai Day. We woke up pretty early and then decided to start braai-ing around 10:30am. I've talked about braai-ing before, but I don't know that I've explained how long it takes. First, you have to set up your wood and then you light a piece of white styrofoamy/chalk thing and throw it in.You have to get a full fire going then let it burn down to smoldering cinders. The process takes anywhere from half an hour to two hours, then you throw the food on. We had lamb and chicken, but a couple other people braai'd more stuff like green beans and potatoes and burgers.

We sat outside all day because the weather was amazing. It would've been really nice to have had lawn games like cornhole or frisbee or a football, but we still had fun. We started our second fire around 4:30 and ate at a little after 6, and then sat around the fire until 9. That was when we decided to go to bed, but the fire drill had other plans for us. Luckily, Braai Day didn't lead to a real fire but they could've picked a more appropriate time.

Hope everyone back home is enjoying the start of fall! We'll have to bring braai-ing to America for next year's tailgating!

My Weekend

Saturday Emmi and I met up with Molly and Maura for lunch at Julian's and then went shopping. We bought a few outfits for Rocking the Daisies, which is a music festival on the first weekend of October. I always used to tell my mom that if we went to high school together we wouldn't be friends because we're so different, but since I've been here I'm starting to see that I am my mother's child. I bought 2 flowered head garlands to go with my outfits and I fully intend to be a flower child that weekend. I'll see how closely I can replicate her in the 70s! ;)

After shopping I relaxed for an hour or so and then went to dinner at this place called Man'oushe. It's a Lebanese restaurant in the art district. I was skeptical but it ended up being SO GOOD. I had a lamb and chicken kabob with pita and hummus. I should have listened to everyone's warning about how spicy the chili bread is because I took one small bite and started to cry and sweat haha. Since the only seats left were at the bar, the chef himself came over to bring me normal bread and water. He was very sweet but also very talented, which made for a nice dinner show. The food was amazing; it pays off to try new things! And, I will admit that I am now a fan of hummus! :)

Yesterday was a relaxing day. The sun was out and hot so Emmi and I stayed in the courtyard for most of the day then watched a movie with our friends last night. Overall, it was a good weekend and the weather seems to be getting nicer now :)

The Start of the End

As you know, this was our first week back to class after our week-long break. It is also the start to the 4th term, and therfore, the home stretch! I now have five weeks of classes left and I can't believe how quickly time has gone by.

This week in drawing we were able to get out of the classroom and draw a corridor in the Visual Arts Building. It was actually a lot of fun because I'm used to this kind of perspective drawing in interior design, plus it was only Emmi and I in our corridor so we were able to talk and the time passed pretty quickly. Plus, the buildings here are old and beautiful! That night we went to a movie, but it started at 10:30, so needless to say I fell asleep pretty quickly when I got home.

Tuesday I had Afrikaans and German. I got an 89% on my Afrikaans midterm. I'd be okay with that at home because it would be a B+, just 1% short of an A, but here an A- starts at 75%, so I did pretty well!! :)

As usual, Wednesday was my day off so I had lunch with Vici, Lisa, and Emmi, and then got a few groceries. I hate to use my card so I took cash out, this time from NedBank which I've never used, and I was charged an $18.00 fee!! Sooo, I think I'll stick to ABSA or Standard. That night we went to see The Bling Ring. I've been so excited to see this movie, but it was a little bit of a let down because it never got too exciting.

Thursday was a long day: HIV course, then Afrikaans, then German. But afterwards Casey and I went to Bohemia to eat and watch the live band. Unfortunately, we ordered our pizza at 7:15, and when it hadn't come by 8:30 we realized something was wrong. That was when our waitress told us she forgot about our order! It was okay though because a lot of our friends came to meet us so we had time to talk to them.

And finally, Friday. No VCE this week or next, so I spent the day relaxing and watching tv shows online. It rained really hard for most of the day; there was even hail at one point!

As for my weekend... Soon I will go to the Oude Bank Bakkerij for brunch and then if the weather cooperates I will explore town a bit. Tomorrow there is a Whale Festival at Hermanus, so we're hoping to go to that. Either we will ride with our AIFS friends, ask a friend for a ride, or rent a car to get there. Should be fun! :)

Back to Sur-reality

It took a week but I'm finally back into the swing of things! VCE is canceled this week and next so I wanted to spend the day catching up on here. I'll start with Recess! :)

We left around 6am Sunday morning. Emmi, Natasha, and I (and all of our stuff-- mostly, Natasha's) squeezed into Alishea's car and headed east. We followed Dawn, who had Delaille, Ruanda, and Sarah in her car. We drove for about 4 or 5 hours before stopping for lunch in Plettenberg Bay. Luckily, it was a really beautiful day. I was tired and car rides put me to sleep anyway, so I slept a lot of the time, but I somehow always woke up to the perfect views. The ride through Wilderness and then down into Plettenberg Bay was so amazing! We followed the coast most of the way.

First time setting foot into the ocean!! :)

We had lunch at The Lookout Deck and then walked down to the beach before drive about another 4 or 5 hours. We arrived at the beach house at 5:30pm. Dawn's house is beautiful! The view was the first thing that attracted our attention. There was also a heated pool and jacuzzi. Naturally, the first thing we did was start the jacuzzi. Once the guys showed up we started braai-ing and then got in the beautiful mosaic jacuzzi, where the guys brought us champagne! Ivan took this picture of us right before he dropped his phone into the water. (Don't worry-- he saved it!)

The next day it was rainy so we made breakfast and sat around playing games and reading. That night we visited Dawn's friend at his beach house down the road. We had 11 people, but he had 18 staying with him! All of St. Francis is very beautiful so it was nice to get out of the house and drive around.

Tuesday started off rainy and very windy. Once the sun came out a little we decided to go down to the beach and lay out because it was pretty warm in the sun, but the wind was too crazy and we eventually decided to go back to the house. The boys went diving while we were laying out so we had a really awesome and fresh abalone dinner. I didn't think I liked seafood but I have to admit it was actually good, and it was so funny watching them make dinner in aprons.

Wednesday was our last full day so we decided to go for a hike. We were told it was a walk along the beach so most of us wore sandals. Little did we know... We rounded the corner of the bay and the wind was really rough. A few people decided to turn back so they wouldn't get sick. Emmi and I started running because it made it easier to get through the wind and we were talking about how the wind was blowing a lot of seawater at us. Turns out, it was actually starting to rain. The lighthouse was on the far end of the bay and looked sooo far away so we stopped to make a decision. Everyone else went back to the house except Emmi, Ruanda, and I, and Christian and Ivan. The boys walked behind us while we ran what felt like a marathon through a sandstorm. The wind was so rough we couldn't hear each other and the rain came straight down at us. Then the wind moved the sand on the beach so it was coming at our shins and ankles the whole run. It was rough but once we made it to the corner of the bay the sky cleared up a bit and we eventually made it to the lighthouse!

That night Emmi, Natasha, and I made a pasta and chicken dinner for everyone as thanks for inviting us to go with them. We had been wanting to go to Jeffrey's Bay all week so we decided we finally would for our last night. It's the off-season so the town was completely dead! And it was night so we didn't get to see the beach.


We left Thursday around noon, stopping for one last meal together in Mussel Bay. We made it to Stellenbosch around 10pm and poured ourselves into bed. The next day I had so much laundry to do and sand was everywhere! But it was such an awesome trip. We're so glad they invited us to come with them and we had a lekker time! ;)

Look for tomorrow's post about my week back in class! Can you believe we're over halfway done?!