It was absolutely gorgeous out today so I decided to take a crack at one of the mountain ranges close by. I made sure to let Mark and Mary at my hostel know that I was heading into the mountains.
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| Making Progress! |
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| It's gross how American I look while hiking. Clemson Crew shoutout! |
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The view in the opposite direction!
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| Then this happened! From afar I saw one. Thought it might be a dog. Then I found out the hard way that there were MANY more AND they were not dogs! Baboons can travel in packs of up to 50. I was certain I saw at least 10 coming from the woods. The closer these are found to civilization, the more likely they are to attack. They were less than thrilled to see me. This quickly turned into the most terrifying part of my travels thus far. No question about it. |
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| The big smile on my face is due to the accidental Hitchhiking I did. A couple from Cape Town drove by just in time to see that I had baboons surrounding me. I jumped in their car and they took me to safety! Thank you! The picture taken above is from the safety of their SUV! |
After that close call, I decided to take a crack at the mountains that rise above the farms and vineyards behind where I have been living. I was told to watch out for snakes but that's it.
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| The cross is the goal! This sits 1,600 feet above the farm I have been living on. I see it every morning. Its Steep! |
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Trespassing through a wine vineyard to get there. Hoping not get shot or have dogs released on me!
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| The farm where I started my hike, and that I am living on is on the other side of those vineyards and horse farms below |
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| Things were getting tough! I knew I had to Tebow if I wanted to get to the top! |
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| Victory! |
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Somehow the lighting on this one turned out pretty cool. Too bad the tripod was pointing at the bushes.
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So, I set out first thing in the morning to climb one mountain and ended up at the top of another. Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you are gonna get. Yesterday, aside from the baboons, was one of those days that I never wanted to end. The sunshine was amazing. The fresh air too.
After my hikes, I rested up for a few hours and then went into town for Frances' 29th birthday dinner! (fellow volunteer. The amazing art teacher). We also met up with Mama Jacquie, my bff Sintu, Hillmarie who teaches at the nursery school, and her husband Carl. All great great people. These are the real difference makers at Kusasa! They are changing lives everyday! We had such a nice time. We went to a pizza place! Someone was looking out for me. I ate two pizzas at the table!
(May 6th)
Today, I was blessed to have some hiking buddies to tackle Mont Rochelle. We ended up spending the day hiking up to 5000 feet +/-. My friend Roos and I were fortunate to have Mark and Mary as guides to get us to the peak and back safe and sound. It was an incredible day in the mountains. Thanks so much for taking us!
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| View of town form the beginning of our Mont Rochelle hike |
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About a half hour in. Looking for Leopards!
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| Pretty cool huh? |
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| Just kicked over a termite nest on accident. |
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| Just drank from the river. Said to be the purest water in Africa! |
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| Tebow would blush! |
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| About to throw that sucker off a cliff! |
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| This is when I decided to go a half mile off the trail solo mission! |
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| This is about 3/4 mile off the trail! Getting swarmed by bees and termites at this point! |
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| Falling off this would have used up at least 4 of my 9 African Lives as the cliff behind me was several thousand feet high! Way off the trail! Hiking buddies left me a while back! |
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| Hiking Crew! Mark, Mary, and Roos from Otter's Bend! Thanks for putting up with me! |
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| What goes up most come down! |
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| The Sound Of Music was filmed here Tisha! I actually don't have a clue about that. I doubt it. |
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| Women look at me like this regardless of the continent I'm on... FROWN. So I got caught red handed pretending to eat paint. I don't get what the big deal is. |
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| We are dominating puzzle time! Minati, sitting across from me is teaching me a few things about chatting with the ladies. |
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Killin' it in Capri Jeans!
This is where I have called home for the last month. It's my little cabin on the back of a horse/pear farm in Franschhoek. If you can't do small spaces, you wouldn't like this. Aside from it being freezing in here, it has been great for the mind, body, and soul.
That was my weekend and my Monday! If all Mondays were like today I'd sign up for a case of the Mondays for the rest of my life. Great day in the classroom too!
After being sick in Africa for almost 3 weeks, I think I have beaten the virus. Knock on wood.
I hope all is well.
The Future Is No Place To Place Your Better Days!
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