Traveling the Cape, Trying to Stay Dry

Were you all wondering what has happend to us? We feel like we've been neglecting the blog, but not a lot has been going on. We are moving along the coast now and I think the rain has finally decided to outrace us. We have spent the last few days in a small town called Wilderness. The hostel we stayed at was pretty remote and about 6 km away from the beach. There was a national park right next door with hiking trails, waterfalls, a river to canoe....but, since the heavy rains everything has been flooded. Clean up crews were hard at work trying to remove the evidence of the carnage, the national park was closed, and supposedly the snakes were out in full force (luckily we didn't see any though).

We are kicking ourselves for not renting a car here. Instead we booked a hop-on hop-off bus that picks up and drops off directly at hostels all along the coast. Unfortunately, their schedule is creating havoc with our schedule so it sounds like we'll get a few extra days in Johannesberg. Most unfortunate. We are also prisoners in some of the more remote destinations where it seems a car is the only way its possible to get anywhere interesting. Public transportation here is not reliable, and most people tell us it's not that safe either (taxis included), so we're at the mercy of infrequent bus service. Good livin'.

We did get a nice day in S. Africa wine country at a place called Stellenbosch. It was a good change from Cape Town, but of course the place had the snobbery associated with any fancy wine destination--think Napa Valley. Like the hard core bikers we are, we pedaled about 22 kilometers to get a good taste of the region--and also because we didn't have a car, making it our only option.

We also took a Township tour, which was an interesting experience. It's easy to forget that you're in Africa with so many wealthy white people everywhere, but just beyond the million-dollar homes and fancy streets catering to tourists and businesspeople you can see the way of life that most residents of the country live. The tour itself takes you to the heart of these areas for a first-hand look at the bleak living conditions. Shanon and I were the only two people on the tour (along with the driver/guide of course) and it was slightly intimidating, but we were definately safe. I can tell you more about it another time...but just know that it is a real eye opener to see something like this first-hand. We felt weird taking pictures so we don't really have any visuals for you, but just know it is incredibly bleak for so many people who just eek out enough to survive in the poorest of conditions. It reminded us to be grateful for how good we have it back home.


Hopefully we'll have more adventures to report on soon. Internet (and everything else) is expensive down here so we're trying to be extra frugal. We've spotted Santa a few times so we're hoping we to get a chance to sit on his lap sometime in the next few weeks. Happy Holidays to everyone! We miss you all a little more this month.