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Published: July 11th 2009
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Sunset from Table Mountain
Sun going down as we were hiking. Well, my last few days in Cape Town were full of fun and enjoying the winter sun of South Africa. Oh yeah, and a little bit of packing and preparing for departure. Since we got home a day early, I had one more day than anticipated, and I used it going with the flow. The plan for June 8th was to drop off the car and then pack and do some other productive things. Well, as usual, a quick morning of dropping off the car turned into a much bigger adventure. Susy, Lull and I drove to the airport to return the car, and since Lull’s dad and brother had flown in that morning we decided to try and find them. So, we walked to the international terminals to find out they had landed two hours before that. All we knew was that they were staying in town, so we caught a cab to town, and we were just going to go in and out of hotels in town until we found them. Well, while we were in town, we decided to stop at one of the local restaurants and used Susy’s I-touch to check Lull’s facebook messages. We then discovered
that her dad and uncle were staying at the Peninsula hotel, the only problem is that we didn’t know where that was. We finally discovered that it was in Sea Point, not town, so we hopped a bus for Sea Point. When we got there we just hung out for a while, then Lull’s dad and brother went to get a rental car while we chilled. We ended up being there all day, and her dad and brother were gone for a long time. The room had a great view of the beach, so from their 12th floor balcony, we watched the sunset over the ocean. We had supper at the hotel, and I had a nice talk with one of the chefs. Finally, Lull’s Dad and brother got back and we all went home. Then, we headed to the Waiting Room for the evening to watch one of the local bands that performs quite frequently.
While at the Waiting Room, Ben and I decided to go to the beach the next morning, so the morning of June 9th I woke up before the rest of the house and went to Muizenburg with Ben. Ben surfed for a couple
Waterfront Harbor
What the water front looks like from the harbor. hours, and I sat on the beach and read. It was really great to have some time to myself after spending four days in a car with Lull, Susy and Guy. After Ben was done surfing, we went to this store called Knead, and Ben bought us cookies to celebrate the end of finals. We then caught the train home.
After a little bit of time at home packing I had plans to hike Table Mountain with my friend Rachel, so she came and picked me up. We met some of her friends at the bottom near Camps Bay, and we hiked up Table Mountain to a ski hut on the top that is owned by UCT. As we hiked, the sun was going down, and it was really pretty. Once we got to the hut, we all settled in, and then some of us decided to go swimming in the dam. It was really cold, but totally worth it. We then sat and watched the moon rise. It was amazing, just like the sun rising, only easier on the eyes. Thankfully, Dan stayed back to heat water for us, so we got back to the hut we had
Pre-Cruise Picture
While we were waiting to go, we had a photo shoot. hot chocolate. We all just hung out and had supper together and then headed to bed.
The next morning we got up pretty early and hiked back down. My friend Rachel wanted me to try this ice cream from a place called Sinful Ice cream. It is supposed to be the best ice cream in South Africa, and I hadn’t had it yet. There is one in Camps Bay, so we headed for ice cream. Unfortunately, we were too early and they weren’t open for another 45 min, so to pass the time we went to the beach. Rachel and Steve swam while Dan and I played on the sand. After Sinful ice cream, which was AMAZING, Rachel dropped me off at home. Once I got home, some of my friends were going into town, so I quick showered and then went with them. We had lunch on Long Street, and then went to Green Market Square and I did the remainder of my shopping for friends and family back home.
June 11th was my day to finish taking care of some things. I went to campus to give a binder to the IES office, so I was
Yay!
We were excited to be there, can't you tell ?!? on campus taking pictures. While up there I met Susy and then went with her to her internship. I read while she was there, and afterward we went to town and found fabric for my grandma. We then took a Jammie back home. That evening we had our final IES dinner at a restaurant in Langa. It was a lot of fun to have us all in one place again, but it was sad to have it all coming to an end. After supper we all went back, changed quick and then went to Hemisphere. I ended up being on the last van out of Langa with a bunch of kids from Alma, so I just went over there. Susy lent me clothes, and I took a cab with them to Hemisphere. After a long night of dancing we called it an evening and went home.
Friday, June 12th was my final full day in Cape Town, so I finally had to buckle down and pack. I had started and done some packing, but not a lot. Midway through the day, I had to go to upper campus for the last time because I had to return the gear
Table Mountain
Boats in the Harbor with Table Mountain in the background. that I borrowed for our road trip. I then went home and packed some more. That evening Susy had a surprise for me, so I went to Alma. We caught a Taxi into the city, then transferred and caught one to the Water Front. It was an early birthday surprise for me, so I didn’t really know what was going on. Turns out, she was taking me on a sunset cruise. We had both been wanting to do it, so the fact that my birthday was coming up was a good excuse. We had a wonderful time on our cruise, and the sunset was beautiful. Afterwards we had pizza on the water front and then headed home. Since it was our last evening in Cape Town all the IES students had planned to go to Long Street together. Also, my friend Shalagh-Ann joined us. True to IES ways, we called a cab, thanks Boogie Steve, and we packed all 26 of us into one van. We spent the night on Long Street just enjoying each other’s company one last time.
June 13th was my day to go home, and it was quite the day. Most people were leaving that
Our Ship
The sails that were unleashed on our ship to carry us to Table Bay. day, so it was pretty long. We all hung out at Church Street, because everyone left from there. People left in waves, and each time another group left there was lots of hugging and crying. I was in one of the last groups, and I went to the airport. From then on it was typical international traveling. I got to the gate right as they were loading, and I found my seat. The next 26 hours were very long. I barely slept on my flight to Georgia, and at Georgia I said goodbye to my friends Sam and Guy who were both on the flight to Georgia with me. I then caught my flight to Minneapolis.
I was met at the airport by all of the most wonderful people in my life. Mom, Dad, Melanie, Christine, Uncle Roy and Aunt Juanita were all there. They had signs and balloons and everything. They were going to hold them up for me, but I snuck up behind and caught them off guard. After we got my bags I handed out presents and we headed home. Even though I hadn’t slept for approximately 36 hours it was just good to see them
Here we go!
Susy was nervous because we were standing on a large net. again. And with that, the flurry of activity that I had become so accustomed to was over, and it all seemed like a dream.
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