South Africa

South Africa

       There were only two days at sea between Namibia and South Africa, but I was itchin for some freedom to walk. So naturally the first thing I did in South Africa was hit the pavement and start walkin. Benson, Jocelyn, and I didn’t take a map and had no particular destination in mind, we just got going. I must say that the difference between Walvis Bay and Cape Town were more than noticeable. We weaved our way between skyscrapers and meandered through the shops, stopping and going as we pleased. It was actually quite easy to make decisions about which way to go because none of us had been there before and coming to consensus was simple with only three. This aimless wandering led us to an outdoor marketplace in the middle of a large square. The market consisted of about a hundred poorly constructed tents with barely-there walls and curtains. For the most part, the goods being sold were common to most souvenir shops, but there were a handful of great craftsmen sprinkled in. Benson and I found a mask maker who was in the middle of carving when we came by. He immediately began his spiel and I knew Benson was done for. They bargained back and forth for a few minutes and Benson held his ground (for the most part). He ended up buying a rather large mask for 450 Rand (about $55). While the man was wrapping up the mask, Benson got a phone call and stepped outside the tent, at which point I knew I was the next victim for the spiel. Of all the masks, there was one in particular with beautiful colored paint and round features that caught my eye. The problem was I wasn’t sure that I wanted to bother bargaining and knew I didn’t want to spend 450 Rand. Sure enough, the man started asking me to give him a price, and I just told him I wasn’t going to buy one. He said he’d give me one for 700, I said no. “…”no.” “Ok, special price for you…….”no, sorry.” “Alright alright, don’t make me go lower than this, you’re killing me……. “No, I’m not going to buy one.” At this point he picked up the mask I’d been looking at and began to wrap it. I told him to stop and that he shouldn’t do that because I wasn’t going to buy it. “he whispered in my ear. “No,”I said. “C’mon, 300”…”No.”Benson was still on his phone call (who just answers their cell phone at a time like this…in Africa?!?!). Finally the man selling the mask told me that he was only going to give me one more price. Curious, I obliged and leaned in for the whispered figure. “…I let that number sit for a quick second and thought about what a great story it would make getting a WAY cooler mask for 200 R cheaper than Benson, especially while he was otherwise occupied. I agreed and took a picture with him. We thanked him, said our goodbyes and left. We decided this adventure was expensive and long enough for our first steps off the ship and made our way back to the Explorer. Benson had a friend from Cape Town that had told us about a local group performing at a club close to the ship. We actually bought tickets ahead of time, and luckily we did because it sold out! The show was incredible and the venue was a lot of fun. It was primarily students from the University of Cape Town who went, and we didn’t run into to any other SAS kids the whole night! (Which was one of our goals, as they can get pretty obnoxious and embarrassing).
       Our plan for day two was to climb Table Mountain, which if you haven’t seen a picture of it, I suggest/demand that you Google it right now…I hiked with Benson, Darren, Jocelyn, Autumn, two Michelles and a guy named Jeff. I was a little nervous about the concept of hiking/ climbing because of my knees, and though I did have a lot of pain towards the end of the hike, I made it through and it was well worth it. It took about an hour and a half to get up and man did the weather change. At the bottom of the hill it was reasonably warm, shorts and t-shirt weather, but by the time we reached the top I was wishing I had long pants, gloves, and a beanie. I was FREEZING! We chose one of the few clear days, so the view was incredible. We spent some time taking photos and goofin on at the top. We had lunch at the top before taking the cable car down. The cable cars held about 30 people and the floors rotated on the way down the face so everyone got a 360-degree view! After the hike, we all crashed for a few hours before heading out to Long Street for the evening’s festivities. We went back to the same venue as the night before for another night of local talent.
       For day three I was looking for something a little unique and out of the ordinary. Benson and I headed out into the city once more and ran into our friends Autumn and Jamie who had hired a driver to take them to a place called Simon’s Town. Since we hadn’t heard of it and had no plans for the day, we decided to join them. Our driver took us out to a swap meet style market on the beach and then to another city by the beach with shops, restaurants and a boardwalk. Benson asked if I wanted to buy kites. I said sure, thinking he was talking about a Batman or Ninja Turtle kite. You know, the one string, plastic, breaks-in-two minutes kite…this is not what he had in mind. Before I knew it, I was in this extreme sports store watching Benson shop around for what I thought looked a great deal like a parachute. He wound buying a 4-line kite with a wingspan of 4 meters…like I said, not what I had in mind. The wind was too strong that day, as the salesman warned us we’d be pulled off the ground with a kite like that. So unfortunately we’ll have to wait to use it. Though, I’m kind of nervous. After the kite shop, we drove up the coast a little further and saw about 6 right whales breaching in the bay before we got to a place called Boulder Beach, Simon’s town. Back in 1985, some penguins landed on the beach and decided to stay and populate. Now there are multiple colonies of penguins that live on Boulder beach and in the surrounding areas. They are referred to as Jackass penguins for their distinct donkey-like mating call. They sounded a little more like Chewie than a donkey to me, but what do I know. There we were able to walk along the beach with them and watch them run and swim around. 
       It’s quite difficult to describe jumping in a cage surrounded by flesh eating beasts without showing you all pictures, but I’ll do my best. We went with a group of about 20 SAS kids, so the bus ride there was a lot of fun meeting new people and swapping stories and apprehensions. After signing the necessary release forms and paying for the trip, the skipper gave us a short debriefing, including safety information and a few hypothetical situations of injury and death. There were a few different tour companies to go with, but the one we chose had the largest boat and the biggest cage. It was the only company with a 7-man cage and an included breakfast and lunch. Benson figured this was “if we did get eaten, the sharks would be quite satisfied.” They had real thick wetsuit for us complete with hoods, booties, goggles, and weight belts. I must say we were pretty stylin. It took about half an hour after anchoring the boat and chumming the water for the first great white to show. Because there were 20 of us, Benson and I were in the last group to jump in. We got to watch the sharks from the boat for a while and kind of prepare ourselves before jumpin in, but eventually our time came. We suited up and jumped in. The cage had floats on it, so we were able to stand with our heads out of the water until the sharks came by, at which point we’d grab a quick breath and shove our head down to get a look. I must say being that close to such a powerful animal was both terrifying and exhilarating. We spent about 25 minutes in the cage, saw four different sharks and got lots of pictures and video footage. And for the record, Id like to do it again if anyone else is up to it…We returned to the ship in one piece and met up with some friends who were headed out for some Mexican food. Being from Socal, Benson and I were excited to find some burritos! (If you don’t know Chipotle is an absolute staple of my diet…its been rough). We found an excellent Mexican restaurant in the city and later enjoyed some live marimba music at a club called Mama Africa.
       The following day Semester At Sea had planned a service project with Habitat for Humanity. I had tried to sign up earlier but the spots filled quickly. Fortunately, there is an opportunity to “crash”the field trips if students don’t show, so this is what I did. I made sure I was first in line to get a spot, and wound up getting on. Habitat is currently building more permanent and stable homes in the townships. Benson, Todd, and I worked together, mixing cement for the bricklayers. We had only worked for about 2 hours when the man in charge of the project as us to jump in the back of his pickup truck. We were a little hesitant at first, but figured it’d be fine if we were all together. We helped unload two pallets worth of 25kg bags of paint oxidizer from a semi-truck to the pickup and then into Habitat’s storage bin. It took us two trips because the pickup couldn’t handle the weight. We were separate from the group for about 2 hours, getting a one of a kind township tour from the back of a pickup truck. Neighborhood kids would stop and wave and parents would smile. We returned to the house for lunch, a little more work and some time to play with the kids. Each person we said hello to that day was incredibly friendly and welcoming. To say the experience was eye opening would hardly do it justice. And not only for the obvious reasons of privilege and disease, but also for hope. Conditions in the township are hardly sufficient for healthy living, but the hope the people have and the tangible progress being made through organizations like Habitat for Humanity are encouraging. 
       The next day, I had a field trip to see the Amy Beihl Foundation. This organization was founded by the parents of Amy Beihl, a student who was murdered in the 1994. She was a white girl form the US who was driving a black friend home from class to the township Guguletha. She stood out driving down into the neighborhood as an outsider. An anti-Apartheid extremist rally had just gotten out down the street and once they saw Amy in the car, they began to throw rocks at her windows and crowd the door. Amy stepped out to run, while her friend tried to explain that Amy was there, studying and working against Apartheid. The mob continued to throw stones and ended up stabbing her to death in front of a gas station. During the hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, two men came forward as being responsible for Amy’s murder and were granted amnesty. These same two men have since met Amy’s family and after years of reconciliation have come to work for their organization. The Amy Beihl Foundation provides after school programs like music, dance, and sports in the townships. These men came on the ship later that night to share more about their experiences with the foundation and hosted a question and answer session. It was incredible to hear the joy they have in utilizing this second chance to build up a new generation of tolerant and peaceful youth.
       I went on a kayaking trip with my oceanography professor the last day in Cape Town. We first drove out to Cape Point, commonly known as the point where the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet, although this is technically untrue. Cape Agulhas is the southern most tip of the African Continent, and therefore is the true meeting place of the two oceans. Kayaking provided an excellent opportunity to see the effects of humanity on the coastline (what we’ve been learning in Oceanography) and to just exercise for a bit. On the way into the harbor, we even saw two right whales breaching only a few yards from our kayaks! (I have pictures, that’s no exaggeration). After the kayaking trip, I made sure to get to the grocery store for some snacks to hold me over across the Indian Ocean.
       Cape Town was a very unique place. The divisions of class move out from the city center like concentric ripples in a pond. I was fortunate enough to see sample of these different distinctions from the nights in the city to the days in the townships. My experience in Cape Town is unforgettable.

-mason

“We are all frail; but think of yourself as more frail than others.”-Thomas Kempis

Namibia

        After the grueling 8 day crossing of the Atlantic I was pretty excited to get back on land.  I had signed up for a safari with my buddy Ben, which we were told, left the day after we arrived in Walvis Bay.  The morning we did arrive and were being let off the ship my friend Jocelyn (who was also on the safari with us) came to my room and asked if I was ready to go.  I looked at her a bit puzzled and informed her that my group was leaving the following day, at which time SHE informed ME that our safari was 14 hours away from the port and that leaving the next day would be impossible.  I immediately called Ben and he assured me the plan was still to leave on the second day.  I had him call the travel agent to be sure, which he did so reluctantly.  He called me back a few minutes later to apologize and ask if I could be ready to go in the next 5 minutes, as it was now noon and our bus would be leaving in the next half hour.  So we packed up quickly enough, ran down the gangway, and set off into the unknown city with no idea of which direction the bus stop was. (Did I mention we didn’t have tickets yet for the 7-hour bus to the capital?) We found our way to the bus stop as it was pulling into the parking lot and while everyone was loading up I approached the woman collecting tickets and asked if we could still purchase tickets for that day.  She said to just hop on and they would come around to charge us.  So we found seats on the upper level (that’s right, a double-decker greyhound;-) and waited.  She only came by once, but said she’d come back a second time.  Long story short, she never did and by the time we’d taken our luggage out once we’d arrived, they were pulling out of the parking lot on the way to the next pickup.  Dishonest you might say?...ok well maybe, but hey a free road trip through Africa makes quite a better story right?  Upon getting to the hostel where we were staying for the evening, we met a Swiss couple that was headed out for dinner.  So we joined them, though I’m not sure hanging out with 6 college kids on their first night in Africa was their idea of a nice night out, but to each his own.

        The next morning the safari company, Wild Dogs, picked us up from the hostel.  I mentioned the 14 hour drive earlier, but that actually wasn’t made known to us until we had already been driving for about 4 hours in the safari bus.  Somewhere around lunchtime Lombard (our eccentric Afrikaner safari guide) pulled over on the side of the road and announced we’d be making lunch there.  We drove on along the one major road in Namibia until we reached Etosha National Park.  The sun was beginning to set by the time we had to set up camp, but we managed to get the tents all together before dark and enjoyed the meal our guides had prepared for us.  There was a water hole within walking distance from the campsite, so naturally we went over around midnight to see if any animals were getting thirsty.  Sure enough we were able to see two rhinos and a couple hyenas grab a drink.  We played cards for a little before getting some rest for the next day’s adventures.

        Bright and early Lombard got us all up for coffee and biscuits; I’m talking before-the-sun-wants-to-be-awake early.  We set out on the first game drive of the day.  Along the paths were multitudes of zebra and springbok, a few wildebeests scattered here and there, and through the trees in some areas we could catch glimpses of elephants.  We headed back to the camp for a full breakfast of eggs, bacon, range juice and fruit.  Lombard had something special for use in store on the next drive.  So then, after packing up the site, we headed out to the Etosha Pan.  This was one of the most impressive landscapes and settings I’ve ever seen.  It was endless, flat, grey, desert beyond my imagination.  It was as if the ground was screaming for moisture, kinda like when your heels crack and flake off; that chalk-dry, crumbly type ground.  But don’t get me wrong. It was beautiful.  We then made our way to our second campsite, more of a lawn in the back yard of a luxury resort.  There was a heated pool, late night bar, gift shops, bathrooms, showers, and another water hole.  The drive we went on after lunch was the most “successful” as far as safaris go.  We went to the largest water hole in Etosha and found everything from springboks, kudu, and zebra to elephants and giraffes.  I’ve decided that my favorite animal to see was the giraffe.  Something about the way they prepare themselves to stoop to drink or how they glide so gracefully over the uneven terrain just seems so alien and out of place.  Of course some of my admiration may also come from height envy...On our way back to the camp for dinner we got a chance to see what may be the laziest and yet most feared animals; the lion.  Apparently they rest in the same spot for an average of 21 hours each day.  It comes as no surprise then that we arrived in the middle of that 21 hour period, so they were not all that exciting to watch, but I promise I saw lions!  We enjoyed lamb, chicken, corn, garlic bread and salad for dinner, played some cards, and set up our sleeping bags this time on top of the roof of the bus (not everyone, just me and my friends Kurt, Vin, and Jocelyn).  I really enjoyed this because of all things I noticed the stars most.  I’m sure if there are more stars in the southern hemisphere or what, but that sky was one of the most dazzling displays of light and beauty I’d seen in a long time.  It also reminded me a great deal of the summer nights I’ve spent counting shooting stars on the Delta.

        With a long road ahead of us, we rose early, loaded up the bus and made our way south towards Walvis Bay.  On the way down we stopped into a woodcraft market.  This was a tough place to walk through.  You could feel the need of the people before you set foot in the place.  I stopped in at the second little shop and met a man selling some of his carved masks, bracelets, necklaces, soapstones, and salad bowls.  He asked me for my shoes or my shirt and told me I could pick anything in the shop.  The shoes, though they are worn out with holes and tears, were all I had to walk in, but I did have an extra shirt. So I gave him my shirt and he let me choose one of his pieces.  I wish there was more that I could have realistically or more permanently done for the people in that market.  We boarded the bus again and made it back into Windhoek, Namibia’s capital, where our next challenge was arranging a ride to the ship.  Lombard phoned a friend and set up a couple of fifteen passenger vans to take us back down for under $20 a person!  That drive through the Namibia countryside, during sunset will be forever burned into my memory with all its richness of color and excitement.

        For my final day in Walvis Bay, I went into the city to find an internet café where I was hoping to be able to upload some pictures for you all on here, but unfortunately their server could not handle that much file transfer.  So we’ll have to be patient;-)  I finished the time in Namibia walking the town, grabbing lunch, and perfecting my bargaining skills even more.  Namibia is a beautiful country. it was such a blessing to get to go to a port that doesn’t get a lot of attention and certainly not a lot of tourists.  The people there were generally very friendly and almost everyone was approachable and welcoming to talk to.  I even met one of the dockhands, Petrus, who asked me to take his picture by the ship and send it to him.  Namibia was definitely a great way to experience a side of Africa that would not be available in Cap Town, I’m very glad we got to be a part of SAS history as the first voyage to visit Walvis Bay, Namibia.

"Either he was a raving lunatic of an unusually abominable type, or else He was, and is, precisely what He said." -CS Lewis, The Problem of Pain