Cape of Good Hope and Robben Island

It is Monday evening here in Cape Town. Sorry if you haven't heard from me in a little while...been real busy.

On Thursday, we went to Hout Bay in the morning to see the seals. Unfortunately, about five minutes after we got on the boat it started to rain...horizontally. We were drenched. After finding our way under the deck, we reached the spot where the seals hang out. They were very energetic. Our drenched clothes made for a very cold trip on the way to go see the penguins.

We drove along Chapman's Peak Drive and saw some of the magnificent sites Cape Town has to offer. After seeing the penguins and having a very delicious fish n' chips lunch, we made our way to Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope.

The Cape of Good Hope is the most southwestern point in Africa. Just before entering the park, we saw some baboons who looked somewhat vicious, but very interesting to see. After arriving at the trailhead for the Cape of Good Hope, we started hiking out to the farthest point. The hike out was breathtaking. About halfway there, we looked down and saw a beautiful beach. A few of us were very sure that we were willing to take the extra time to hike down and then back up the very steep trail in order to spend some time on this beach. The sand was so soft but the wind was blowing ridiculousy fast and whipping the sand at our faces...we did not care. Me, Cole, and David were the first to go down and after everyone saw us down there just goofing around taking in the beautiful view, they decided it was worth it to come down and check it out. If it wasn't for the deadly current just around 15 feet off where the water comes up, I would have been swimming off the most southwestern tip of Africa.

After climbing back up to the main trail, we noticed a set of very unpleasant clouds rolling in. We knew we were going to get soaked...again, but we did not care. We had to go the farthest point. The views were so beautiful, it is hard for me to put into words. There wassomething just in the air, something that you could, some kind of energy that is indescribeable.

We finally made it to te farthest point and it was gorgeous, despite the storm that was pouring down on us. If I would have been anywere else, the cold temperatures and the horizontal rain probably would have made me uncomfortable. It was just something about being there that allowed me to ignore the conditions.

Pretty much everyone came out to look quick and then made their way back down to the van to go home. We still had about an hour before we needed to be back. So four of us stayed out on the ledge and just took it in. It seemed like at least every thirty seconds someone would say, "This is absolutely amazing!!!" And it was. TJ, Hillary, Elisa and I just sat there and took in the view. It literally is kind of indescribeable. The energy the whole area was giving off was very moving. The mountains behind us and the meeting of the Indian and Atlantic Oceans right ahead of us. Breathtaking.

On Friday, we had a very good lecture from Steve on the current events in South Africa. This man could write a book. Steve lived in exile pretty much his whole childhood, as his Father was a political activist. Steve has studied at many universities and obtained many degrees. The lecture really made me think about how easy my childhood was and how hard it must have been for Steve having to constantly move schools. He persevered and utilized his opportunities to his full potential.

Later that day we went to Robben Island, the prison where Nelson Mandela was for awhile. Learning aout the conditions in which the prisoners were forced to live was horrifying. I couldn't beleive some of the stories our guide was telling us. He was a former prisoner at the island for bombing a governmental building during apartheid.That night we went to a local African band concert that Steve invited us too. A few of us werer not going to miss the chance to hang out with Steve. My friend Porter was also in town on his last night during his semester in South Africa. So we met up and he came to the concert with us. It wa very cool to be able to hang out with him here in Cape Town.