Burnt, bruised, and burned out

---

So, I am officially burnt, bruised, and burned out, but I have had an amazing week. Since I only have class on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, I have been trying to go on some adventures on my long weekends. This weekend I have been surfing, cliff jumping, hiking, and of course braaiing!
On Wednesday I decided to join the surf club with a couple of my friends. That night, my friend Stanley made some of us a wonderful dinner. He is from Zambia, and made us a tradition Zambian meal. We had pop (kind of like rice, but very different), veggie gravy, and nshima chicken. It was delicious, and we couldn’t use our silverware, hands only!
On Thursday, I went surfing! We all meet outside the Neelsie (the student center) and packed into four vans (surfboards and students). I was a little intimidated at first, surfing with good surfers and I had only been twice in my life. But they were all so friendly and helpful. The club is very laid back and it seemed that this was just a ride to the beach for some of the guys. They took turns to help us learn to surf, and I got up a couple of times. I had so much fun, and who knows, maybe I will be pro when I get home (it will be a useful skill in the land locked state of Colorado). That night, Emilee and I went out for sushi dinner. It was absolutely delicious!
Friday, rise and shine at 5:45 AM. We spent the day in the sun at Kamakaze Kanyon. We had breakfast at this bed and breakfast and then started the day with a hike. It was a short hike, but extremely hot. We hiked about 45 minutes until we reached crystal pools. Unbelievable views, we were surrounded by green mountains and there were natural pools and waterfalls. We went kloofing (cliff jumping). We went off of two diiferent cliffs a smaller one, about 10 m (25-30 ft), and a huge cliff, 15-20 m (45-60 ft). As some of my family knows, this isn’t the easiest task for me. But I did it will a little hestitation, and it was awesome and a little painful. I did go into the water wrong and have a little bruise on my thigh (worth it!). We ate lunch and swam in the pools. In the afternoon, we went abseiling, propelling down a mountain. We were suppost to go down a waterfall, but it was too windy. We abseiled down the mountain about 30 m (90 ft) and had incredible views. Then we hike back down, and I tripped of course, cutting up my shin. But we got back to the bed and breakfast and there was dinner and beer waiting for us. INCRDIBLE DAY
We got back to Stellenbosch and had about thirty minutes to get ready for the surf club social. I was exhausted, but went anyways. It was in the polo clubs cabin. There was live music and many new people to meet. Some of the girls I went with went out with them after the social was over, but I had to call it a day. I was too sunburned and too tired. I wish I could say that I slept fantastically, but the sunburn kept me awake for hours.
Saturday I had one mission, hide from the sun. I spent the day watching movies, cleaning my room, and getting some rest. The first time I actually left my room (around 2pm) I got locked out. My roommate, Emilee, was at the beach, so I had to just hang out until she got back. This wouldn’t have been terrible, but I was still in my pjs and had no shoes. So lesson learned.
Last night we went to my friend Burgers parents house. AMAZING! They live on a vineyard, literally the grape vines are in their backyard. We wondered around, walking the vine rows and snacking on the grapes. Burger actually works at this vineyard, we drank some of the wine that he made last season. He works all the time right now, its harvest season. He will work from 7 AM till 2 AM, but he loves it. We had a braai in his backyard and sat around the fire. It was incredible and I don’t think I can even explain the beauty of this place.

---

Photos

Crystal Pools
Sitting of the edge of a cliff, the pool is down about 20 m

Waterfall
Swimming and hanging out on a waterfall

The Vinyards
The girls exploring Burgers backyard

Vineyard
Another view of the vineyards

Ceiling
I love the ceiling of this house

Kamikaze Kanyon
Some of the girls who went to kamikaze kanyon

Mountains
The mountains surrounding the crystal pools

Comments

[sally horn]

Katie, I'm not sure how I got this e-mail from your mom but was delighted to read your blog and see the wonderful pictures. So glad you are having a great time. Stay safe (stop jumping off the cliffs) and enjoy. What an amazing experience! love, The Horns