Garden Route - heading east from Cape Town...

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Since leaving Cape Town I've been heading east along the Garden Route via the BazBus - a hop-on hop-off bus service that picks you up and drops you off at whatever hostel you're staying in at the next town. I think that back home in England the BazBus is pushed pretty hard by places like STA as the only safe way to travel across South Africa. Having travelled for a little while now in South Africa, I think that the security aspects of this country are slightly overstated. Obviously, there are areas which are dangerous and you shouldn't head to after dark - just like in any other city across the world, but for the majority of places I've felt pretty secure and safe. With hindsight, I'd have to say that the best way to explore this fabulous country is at the wheel of a hire car. They are cheap to rent over here, and allow you to get about at your own pace and to explore areas further inland which are a little bit out of reach to me at the moment.

The BazBus has taken me to Jeffrey's Bay with 3 friends, Maria, Gary and Neil. J Bay is the surfing capital of South Africa and during my visit was just gearing up for the South African summer holidays when apparently the place goes absolutely crazy. Unfortunately, with my usual great timing I turned up boardies (big shorts) in hand, and slops (flip flops) on - and it hammered down with rain for two solid days!! Anyway, the weather finally cleared enough for me to take part in my long awaited surfing lesson. Two hours long and absolutely exhausting, this surfing lark is not as glamorous as the pretty girls in skimpy bikinis (and there are many of these in J Bay) make it seem. However, the pain of swallowing half the Indian ocean as well as getting my face pummelled into the sand over and over was wholly worthwhile as I managed to stand on the board a grand total of ......ONCE! But I'm sure I did look damn good that one time!

Further along the coast the four of us moved along to Buccaneers Backpackers in Cintsa - highly recommended as one of the best backpackers in South Africa, but it had a slightly strange feel to it as almost all of the people staying there were couples. That said, the location was absolutely top notch, up on a hillside where a river joins the sea and opens out into a massive beach, and the hostel had a massive swimming pool and a volleyball court too.

One of the best little villages we visited was Port St Johns. Here we went for Sundowners, which are basically when you take a cool-box of beers to a beautiful location to drink and watch the sunset. One of the guys who worked at the hostel took us to a place called the gates of Port St Johns. At Port St Johns there is a mountain (from the same range as Table Mountain apparently) at just over 1,000 metres high, and a river has carved a gorge all the way down through the mountain to form the two “gates” which were at the mouth of the river. Getting there was half the fun as Gary, Neil and I were on a mattress in the back of a pick-up truck that had a serious case of altitude sickness!! As soon as we began to climb the engine spluttered and stuttered its way to the top - making the already bumpy ride on the off road tracks even more bone-shaking!!

I've reached Pretoria, the capital of South Africa, and starting point for my Safari in the Kruger National Park. There's not that much going on, but the Houses of Parliament are pretty impressive. Left over from the time when the British Empire really did span the globe and Britain wanted to let everybody know about it, the Union Building is a massive piece of colonial architecture set in huge, beautiful grounds on a hillside that just screams out "we're the boss around here".

During my journey through South Africa I have met many of the national stereoptypes along the way - all of them true. The mad Kiwis, the hard drinking Aussies, the slightly annoying spoilsport Germans, the dull Swiss (sorry Dad), the slightly odd French and one nymphomaniac Swedish girl! Next up is the Safari which I am really looking forward to so much!!

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Photos

Union Buildings
South Africa's Houses of Parliament.

Buccaneers Backpackers
Gary, Neil, Maria and I in Cintsa.