Alex in Motion

Accommodations in North Dragensberg was more of a resort than a hostel, with a pool, jacuzzi and sauna, encompassed by 3000 hectares of farmland. It is able to host 160 people, not including 400 tents. A few days previous, I met a very tall and well traveled (60 countries!) Swed named Anders and we traveled together for several days, including to North Dragensberg. We also met a sweet French girl named Lara on the backpacker bus, and the three of us became inseparable for the following few days. This included two days trips.

The first was to the nation of Lesotho. Life here reminded me of the villages in Coffee Bay, only much more mountainous and even more remote (e.g., the first cellular tower was erected just a few months ago). The country is completely surrounded by South Africa and is the most elevated country in the world, with the lowest point 1,400 meters above sea level. The day trip was organized by the hostel and we hiked across a village, ate lunch with some children, and visited a natural healer. The healer was actually more practical than anticipated, and she acknowledged she can only help with minor illness using herbs. Patients with anything more severe were directed to the hospital, 3 hours away by foot and is only open 8 hours each day during the week. Villagers had to schedule to be sick, it seems.

The second day trip was to the Amphitheatre, a world heritage site, and was a 6 hour trek along a huge curved mountain that none of us could actually see. A thick fog covered the landscape, and with intermittant rainfall, I had to focus on each footstep. We journeyed to the 2nd tallest waterfall in the world, only to be able to see the first 5 meters of it; my imagination had to fill in the rest and boy was it stunning! 😉

Aside from socializing with other patrons at the hostel, I began practicing my magic card tricks, and hope to have five decently impressive tricks within the next few weeks. It’s exciting to finally learn something new and entertaining.

East of Cape Town lies various types of vegetation, and has become my favourite part of South Africa. I traveled with a backpacker bus called the Baz Bus, which is a long distance hop-on/hop-off van, with a dozens of stops between Cape Town and Johannesburg.

My first stop was along the Garden Route, and a town called Knysna. It’s a quiet town, with several hiking routes through thick forests. Apparently I’ve been quite taken by hiking, and enjoy spending hours exploring the countryside and vegetation. With a British botanist named Tom, I trekked for several hours and admired a 600 year old tree. This is a just an estimation, and I laughingly suggested we cut it down to determine the actual age. The botanist was not amused.

Several days later I found myself in Coffee Bay, which came highly recommended as a must-see destination. Initially, I planned to spend only 2 nights there, and ended up spending 4. The location was surrounded by the ocean on one side, and a peaceful and remote village on the other. The village was mostly huts that didn’t have electricity or running water, and on the first evening, a group of us had dinner in one of these huts.

The locals, through the aid of a translator, taught us about life in Coffee Bay, how they viewed the world, and shared their local food. Their main sustenance comes from the plant maze, which produces their staple food called pap. Pap looks like mashed potatoes, but is flaky and sweeter. The hosts also offered a local beer, which is only prepared for special events, and it looked (and tasted) like carbonated milk with alcohol. Yum!

The following morning began with a long hike along the water’s edge to a famous landmark called The Hole in the Wall, which is a hole in a rock wall. Along the way, I had a long conversation with Henry, an energetic and clever South African, who later showed me some card tricks. It made me recall that sleight of hand magic is something I’ve always been fascinated with, so I added it to the list of things I want to learn over the next year.

It seems my bad luck didn’t end with losing my wallet, as another tragedy struck on the subsequent day. While admiring a natural jacuzzi next to the ocean, a huge and random tidal wave lapped against the rocks, completely soaking me and all belongings. Everything seemed to be alright except for my phone, which no longer worked. I suppose I’m lucky the wave didn’t drag me back into the ocean, but as of this moment, nearly every piece of technology has broken or been lost 🙁 (Did I previously mention my brand new Dell laptop has a fan malfunction? Yah, that’s great).

Surprisingly, the busted phone didn’t actually bother me that much, which must be a sign I have detached myself from things. Several sympathetic guests at the hostel offered their phones to allow me to stay connected, and I fixed my phone in the next city, Durban. It took pretty much the whole day to resolve, but aside from the broken camera (no idea how that happened), the phone now works perfectly.

The calm and simple way of life in Coffee Bay really left an impression on me, and the endless bright lights and concrete jungle of Durban didn’t appeal to me at all. The hostel I stayed at was run by a kind couple from the UK, and I ended up having dinner with some fellow guests; 7 blonde Finnish girls who were studying medicine in Swaziland. As we walked to the restaurant, I joked we should tell curious onlookers we were filming an episode of the bachelor 🙂

The second half of Cape Town, lasting just under 2 weeks, was a little different than the first half. The biggest change was spending much more time with locals, the most special of which was Barbara.

About 50 years ago, my mom traveled through Greece and met a wonderful and energetic young girl from South Africa. They had a smashing time, and started a long distance pen-pal friendship, first by letter and later by email. Even though they haven’t seen each other in 50 years, my mom’s diligent and constant communication kept the relationship alive and beating strong. So when Barbara learned I was in Cape Town, she immediately sought me out.

I spent several days with her and her extremely knowledgeable husband, Gavin, and they introduced me to their town from a local’s perspective. This included a few scenic day trips, kayaking at their yacht club, visiting her son’s vineyard, trekking along Table Mountain to Kirstenbosh botanical garden, dining at a savoury Ethiopian restaurant and celebrating Christmas at their place with family and friends.

Thank you, mom! Thank you, Barbara!

Aside from many precious moments with them, I visited the township of Lunga, which is the oldest and most dangerous township around Cape Town. A township is basically a settlement with poor, predominantly black or coloured (mixed races) locals and immigrants seeking jobs. They are the remains of the apartheid legislation and shacks are usually constructed by the occupant with random spare materials, with electricity but no running water.

Most townships are self-regulated, so that if someone commits a crime, the entire community punishes the guilty. The inhabitants are surprisingly cheerful and good-natured, which proves you don’t need much to be happy. With a guide, I entered two huts, and was surprised how clean and orderly they were. The owner of one, named Shooter, was ingenious in creating a sky light from a clear plastic sheet and a folding chair.

Veronica is my brother’s friend from Montreal, who moved to Dubai about 9 years ago and met her husband, Tom, several years ago. As New Year’s Eve approached, I thought it would be cool to visit them in Dubai, but they decided to celebrate with me in Cape Town instead. We made reservations at Pasha, an Ibiza-themed evening at a beach hotel along the waterfront, and cheered at midnight with champagne and fireworks. Tom, the thoughtful and generous man that he is, without knowing me for more than 2 minutes, handed over a couple of hundred dollars in cash after learning about my lost wallet. He had been in a similar situation, and appreciated the kindness of strangers to help him along.

Thank you, Tom!

The last week in Cape Town was mostly spent with a local math teacher, Ashley, who showed me even more of a local’s view of Cape Town, including

• First Thursdays, an monthly event in which downtown art galleries open their doors without admission
• Biscuit Mill in Woodstock , a weekly event where locals sell food, clothing and trinkets
• Die Strandloper, a fantastic coastal seafood restaurant with a 10 course meal, and who’s decorations reminded me of a cross between Pirates of the Caribbean and a remote desert island
• Ceres steam train, a 3 hour ride in a restored steam train along a nature reserve, including a stop for lunch at an organic vineyard
• Cape Point, the southern most point in the Western Cape province and a World Heritage Site, with lots of hiking trails and panoramic views of the ocean

Thank you, Ashley!

Overall, my mood has brightened considerably since losing my wallet, thanks to kind people and shifting my mindset to realize these kinds of problems aren’t so awful in the grand scheme of things.

Cape Town was a lovely experience, one I wish to repeat in the future. For now though, my journey will head east along the coast to Durban, Johannesburg and then Kruger national park for a safari.