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I know it's been a few days since I posted, but really, nothing that exciting has happened this week that would warrant an individual entry. So, instead, you guys get a whole week's worth of happenings.
On Monday, after class, Eric, Michael, Britt, Kristin and I decided to go to the beach town of Muizenberg, where Britt and Michael wanted to surf. Initially, I thought I might try it, since apparently Muizenberg is one of the easiest places to learn to surf. However, when the surf shop guy told me the water was 15 degrees celsius, I decided I would sit on the beach with Eric and Kristin, and enjoy the scenery. Muizenberg was a very pretty beach, and they had these little multicolored cabanas all down the beach. We got scolded by the beach authorities for having open containers on the beach, so really I felt like I was back home in Cocoa. The little bit of excitement that occurred on Monday was when we were waiting for our taxi back to De Waterkant, and the taxi took over an hour to come get us. We ended up in a dive bar, with lots of surly, salty looking
characters. Luckily, we made it out alright, and I went to bed relatively early.
Tuesday was a GORGEOUS day, and our initial plan was to go to Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned. However, after going down to the waterfront where you buy your tickets to the Island, we discovered that all the tours were sold out for Tuesday AND Wednesday. So instead we decided to hang out by the waterfront and just enjoy the weather. There was also a gathering of a lot of South African athletes...which led to a typical Shylie moment. I went into the rugby store with my friend Nicole, and we perused the goods, then stopped to discuss what the rules of rugby were. Since we were both unfamiliar, I decided to ask a tall, good looking gentleman who was standing by the rugby balls. I went over to him and said "Excuse me, do you know the rules of rugby?" I received a very strange look, and tall good looking guy's friend started laughing. Obviously, I was the butt of the joke. So I asked the friend what was going on, and he pointed at a picture of the Cape Argus rugby
team that was posted on the wall, and was like "THATS HIM! That's big Joe!" And I'm like "oh. well you probably DO know the rules, then." Probably the first time that he hasn't been recognized. The whole South African national soccer team was at the waterfront too, and as Americans, we didn't make a big deal over them whereas everybody else was running up to have their pictures taken. Oh well, I'll cheer for them during the World Cup.
Tuesday night, I went to dinner at Beluga again with Nicole and her husband, Elvis, Katie, and Maura, where the manager saw us four lovely American ladies sitting at the bar, and bought us all drinks. He seemed a little disappointed when Elvis made his way out of the shadows to come guard us, but he was nice enough. I also saw the waiter that I had the last time I went, Kyle, and chatted with him for a while. He's a biochemistry student at UCT. I invited him to the "braai" (Barbeque, for you american folk) we were having on Wednesday for the 4th of July, and he accepted the invite. Yay for UCT students!
Wednesday, of course, was the 4th of July. A bunch of us set off in search of supplies for the rooftop party we were throwing. Hotdogs, hamburgers, and ribs were all purchased, potato salad was made, and beer ordered. Kenny was in search of fireworks, but alas, they don't seem to be in supply around here. He almost settled on a flare gun, but we talked him out of that. The party was great fun, and we even convinced our professors to play a round of beer pong with us. One student jumped in the pool (which he regretted immediately), and I'd say that we showed South Africa what Independence Day means to Americans: booze and meat!
Thursday, after classes, Elvis and Nicole invited Eric and I on a second winery tour. Since the theme of this week seemed to be alcohol for me, I decided to keep the streak going. We went to two more wineries yesterday, and they were by far my favorites so far. The first, Glen Carlou, I had actually heard of in the states, and sampled some of their wine. The grounds were really beautiful, and the tasting room was classy, but the staff was snotty there. Their 2004 Syrah is great, but all the others fell a little short of my expectations. The second winery we went to, Fairview, is really well known in the states, but they have all these other lines that they don't export to the US, so it was nice to try those. Eric is somewhat of a wine expert, so he led me through the tour, and I found that they had a nice pinotage and a nice shiraz. They also had a cheesery, and I purchased a few rolls of their goats cheese. Yum!!
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mommy
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no Penguins?
Wow a whole blog and not one mention of penguins? It is a first but it did sound like you had a nice relaxing week after several thag were full. Did you ever find out the rules for rugby? Actually I think there aren't any. Glad to hear you are learning the law and getting a free wine tasting course as well. altho it ain't a bad way to spend a day. Are you going to Robben Island at another time or is that a scratch? We are enjoying the blog and all the second hand kudos we receive re your writing talent. All the pics are great as well. and we forward it to everyone. Will speak to you Sunday, stay safe. Love Mommy