Molweni!
I haven’t had the chance to update my blog a lot while I’ve been in South Africa, because the Wi-Fi here is absolutely horrible. Not only is it not available all the time, but also I have a certain limit I can use a month and I always go over. Once I go over, there is nothing I can do about it unfortunately unless I wanna purchase more for a lot of money.
But wow! I have so much to write about; I don’t even know where to begin. I think instead of sharing things in chronological order, I’m just going to share some amazing things I’ve done in the last couple weeks… that’s more interesting anyway!
But wow! I have so much to write about; I don’t even know where to begin. I think instead of sharing things in chronological order, I’m just going to share some amazing things I’ve done in the last couple weeks… that’s more interesting anyway!
Aquila Reserve safari
What was interesting about volunteering, was that the children of the township spoke Xhosa. This is the language I am learning in school, so I absolutely loved being able to communicate with them. Sometimes they would laugh at my Xhosa because, of course, I’m still learning. Xhosa is the most unique language I’ve ever heard. It is a very spiritual language, so when someone asks how you are doing “unjani?”, the common response would be “ndiyaphila”, which means I am alive. It’s crazy how much languages can differ in not only words and meaning, but also in the manner in which people respond.
After we finished volunteering, we drove to the Aquila Game Reserve. The place was absolutely stunning. I shared a room with 2 other people, Alex and Odan, and we each had our own bed. There was 1 king bed and 2 double beds. The resort also had an infinity pool, a beautiful restaurant and a bar. All of these were overlooking the reserve, which had so many different animals. When I first got there I saw a waterbuffalo and during breakfast the next morning I saw two elephants in my backyard. For any of you who don't know, South Africa is known for the big 5: Lions, Leopards, Elephants, Rhinos, and Buffalo. They are kept in the game reserve for many reasons, but one is for conservation purposes. Rhinos and elephants are frequently poached for their horns. Their horns can sell up to 500,000 dollars. However, if their horn is completely cut from their head, they will most likely not make it very long. I recently saw on a conservation website the other day that elephants are estimated to be extinct by 2025. If this is true, that means that my children will most likely grow up without having the chance to ever see an elephant. Western Black Rhinos are actually already extinct; the last one was seen in Cameroon.
We all boarded the jeep and began out safari in the game reserve. The first thing you see is a big water hole where there are a lot of hippos, ostrich, antelope, and springbok. The safari guide went to the water hole quite often on our safari, because it is one of the only water holes on the reserve so animals have to go there to get water. We only got to see the tops of the heads of hippos during the day because they only come out of the water at night. Hippos can hold their breath under water for up to 6 minutes! They don't come up very often, because their skin will get sunburned and start drying up. They are incredibly dangerous animals. If I heard right, more people die from hippos attacks then any other animal in South Africa.
Here are some pictures of the first game drive we went on. The lions that you will see in the picture are actually seperated from the rest of the animals on the reserve. I asked this before we went on the reserve because I was not about to watch an antelope or something get attacked by a bunch of lions. They separate them because they are trying to raise the numbers of other animals they have on the reserve before they introduce lions.
If you would like to see more pictures, feel free to see my album "Aquila Game Reserve" on Facebook.
P.S. Most, if not all, of these pictures are NOT zoomed in.
Enjoy!
If you would like to see more pictures, feel free to see my album "Aquila Game Reserve" on Facebook.
P.S. Most, if not all, of these pictures are NOT zoomed in.
Enjoy!
If you're wondering why this blog is called "Chased by a Cape Buffalo", during our game drive a Cape Buffalo started chasing our jeep. Our driver said this doesn't happen very often, but it has happened before. Basically, we were looking at a small herd of Cape Buffalo and we accidentally got too close to it and pissed it off. The male buffalo (who was protecting it's young) started to storm off and chase us (keep in mind it does have horns..). We had to zoom off as fast as we could so it wouldn't pierce the side of the vehicle. My camera died before this happened so I was playing with it, trying to turn it on, and all of a sudden we were driving so fast... I just turned to my left and their is this huge buffalo like 15 feet next to me chasing after us... it was crazy. The other jeep that had the other half of a group saw this entire thing happen.. but of course it happened so fast no one got a video :(
After we went on a game drive, we all went back and they served us this huge buffet. We got ourselves multiple plates, found a place next to the infinity pool to eat, and watched the sun go down over the game reserve. It was so incredible. After we ate and took showers, we got a couple drinks and played cards games. Then we all went outside to have a bonfire and to look at the stars. Since we were in the middle of nowhere and there was no light pollution coming from Cape Town, the sky was as clear as could be. I am taking an astronomy class here, and it was cool to be able to see everything we talk about in class.
The next morning we woke up bright and early to go on another game drive. Here are some pictures of the morning game drive (6 in the morning to be exact) ... The drive was mostly about white rhinos!
We were so super close. Rhinos are actually extremely hostile animals for the most part.. actually so are most of the Big 5. They are only dangerous if you piss them off or get too close to them without being in a jeep or something they are used to seeing at the reserve. Sometimes lions will act as if they are going to attack, like this female lion that came next to the other jeep, but our driver said she only does that because she wants to make sure you know she's the dominant female in the territory... but she has never actually attacked the jeep.
We were so super close. Rhinos are actually extremely hostile animals for the most part.. actually so are most of the Big 5. They are only dangerous if you piss them off or get too close to them without being in a jeep or something they are used to seeing at the reserve. Sometimes lions will act as if they are going to attack, like this female lion that came next to the other jeep, but our driver said she only does that because she wants to make sure you know she's the dominant female in the territory... but she has never actually attacked the jeep.
AQUILA GAME RESERVE REHABILITATION CENTER
The lions, leopards, and cheetahs that you see below are actually enclosed in fences where they are completely separated from other animals. These cats are in a rehabilitation center because they either have something wrong with them or were saved from brutal treatment by a past owner. The leopard for example, was saved from someone who wanted to stretch it's skin so later he could skin it and sell it. Although it seems unfair that they have to be enclosed, it is really the best situation for them. They will never be able to be introduced in the wild most likely, because they are losing survival skills that they would need to be in the wild. For example, the cheetah below is lacking muscle because it doesn't have room to run as much as it should. All of these cats are also given food instead of learning to hunt for it on their own.
First Thursdays
Every first Thursday of the month, all of the art galleries on Church Street and Bree Street in Downtown Cape Town are completely free. So my friends and I went to a couple art galleries and shops. My favorite, was this gallery of photos of Cape Town a long time ago. It was just interesting to be able to experience Cape Town's art life and it's history at the same time. We then went to dinner and then to Bob's bar after for a couple drinks.
Art of Living Beach yoga
I am apart of the "Art of Living" club at school which is a yoga club that meets every Tuesdays and Thursdays. Sometimes, they go to the beach for yoga. You meet at campus, take a shuttle, do yoga on the beach, then eat a snack afterwards.. and its completely free for study abroad students if they're in the club! To be honest, yoga isn't really my thing (hence why I took pictures instead of participating most of the time).. but I still thought it was an awesome and something you will have to experience at least once in your lifetime. This was all at a beach called Clifton in Cape town.
stellenbosch
Stellenbosch, or Stellies, is a wine country about 45 minutes from Cape Town. My friends and I spent the entire weekend there last weekend! It is so beautiful, but definitely a different kind of beautiful from Cape Town. I know my Aunt Tammy would be IN LOVE with this place, because all people drink in this town is wine. First, we drove there and went to a market that was in the middle of the city. It had so many different kinds of food, sweets, and souvenirs. I actually spent all my cash I had with me for that weekend at that market.. not even kidding. All of the people that sell the products made them themselves too which I can appreciate.
After going to a market and having the HARDEST time trying to find a taxi, we finally got to go to a ranch/vineyard where we went horseback riding. All of my friends are intermediate horseback riders and I think I've been on a horse probably twice in my entire life. I got the cutest horse ever but I swear he was the Courtney of all horses.. both in a good and bad way. Also, he was super attached to the tour guide's horse which no one before I got put in the BACK of the pack.. so you can imagine how well that went. My horse just sprinted up to the front as soon as we started... and would cut other horses off whenever they tried to get in its way.. it sure was determined thats for sure. Another horse got so pissed off at my horse it actually bit it's butt..
After a reckless but fun time with my horse, we got to have a little wine tasting and eat a bunch of snacks.
After a reckless but fun time with my horse, we got to have a little wine tasting and eat a bunch of snacks.
We stayed in a hostile that night, which was interesting I've never done that before... it wasn't the nice place in the world but it worked for 6 girls who just needed a place to sleep. We also went out to dinner that night and experienced some of the nightlife of Stellenbosch.
The next day we went wine tasting to 3 different vineyards... I think I might be a pro wine taster now ;)
Although I won't go into the process of making wine, I think the coolest fact he told me was that wine producers actually want the root of the grapevine too dry up and not get any food, because then the vine will focus on keeping the grape healthy and, therefore, the grape becomes more concentrated. Aka, when the plant suffers, we get good wine :)
Signal Hill
The other day we went to signal hill, which is one of the mountains in Cape Town. It is an amazing place to watch the sunset because it overlooks Camps Bay and the Ocean. You can see a lot of Cape Town and all the boats in the water. My friends and I also brought some wine with us and grapes of course.
Other cool stuff
The other day Cape Town was literally THE HOTTEST CITY IN THE WORLD. It was absolutely insane. Although the picture below says 105, the temperature ended up getting to 110 at one point. I talked to my dad that day, and he said it was 11 degrees back at home.. I didn't know who was having a harder time with the weather.
Although I won't go into detail about some of the pictures below, you can check what they are by scrolling over it! A caption should appear with what everything was and where I went! P.s. my family always asks me if any of the guys I'm with are South Africa... They are NOT! hahaha they are just my American friends from my program.