We did it!
Door: Melle Bax
Blijf op de hoogte en volg Melle
01 Mei 2014 | Zuid-Afrika, South Africa
Hi fellows,
Lets write another story again, even though writing stories is not my best skill.
One day I went to the Holi One festival, with Nicolas. We heard many different stories about that, so we didn’t knew what to expect. But it was a freaking awesome festival! The weather was perfect, the music was nice, and the people and the atmosphere were very relaxed. Something completely different I did in the same week, was visiting GAPA, Grandmothers Against Poverty and Aids. This is an organization, based in Khayelitsha, a township in Cape Town that consists of grandmothers who have suffered from HIV or have lost a sister, a daughter or a grandchild to AIDS. They take care of children in townships after school, by cooking for them (often the only meal the children will get on a day) and playing with them. When someone is sad, they sing songs, all together, to drive the sadness out of the area. It is amazing to see how these grandmothers, who suffered terrible experiences, still stand so positive in life and take care of the children. Respect.
I also did one day of voluntary work in a township, at Score, a sports center in Mbekweni. The idea behind this organization is to teach children life skills by playing sports together. In my opinion this is a great initiative! Therefore I really enjoyed playing with these kids.
One sunny Saturday, we went to a really cool beach: Cool Bay. The official name is something like Kogal Bay, but everyone calls is Cool Bay, because it ‘s a really cool bay. Obviously. There are not many people, and it is really beautiful there. Perfect. The day after we continued our weekly tradition: a day on the beach in Camps Bay. We were chillin’ in the water, when suddenly all the people were standing at the beach, looking at the ocean. We went out of the water to see what was happing, and apparently there was a shark in the water. We saw its fin above the water several times, just like in a movie. After a while it was safe again to go in the water.
During the Easter weekend, I went to the Cederberg National Park with Theres, Alex and Mark. Even though we came back at 6am on the Friday from a crazy night out, we got up at 8am to start the trip to the Cederberg National Park. The lodge where we stayed was located in some kind of valley, surrounded by orange farms. I have never ever smelled such a nice natural orange smell. The day after, we got up early to start the 8hour hike. First we drove around 1h30 off road.. Ttttthaaattt wasssss fffffunnnn. The hike was long, but very nice. First we had to climb up the Wolfberg cracks, through small entrances. Then we continued on the plateau to the arch, where we had a nice lunch. After hiking back, we fell asleep like little babies at the lodge. The day after, Sunday, Happy Easter, we went hiking along a river in the middle of nowhere, and saw some interesting cave paintings from 10.000 years old. We drove back to Cape Town on Monday, to spend the rest of the day on the beach. Again.
We did it! The three mountain hike. It all started with a crazy idea to hike the Devils Peak (1.000m high), Table Mountain (1.050m high) and Lions Head (670m high) in one day. After some organizing it became reality. We started the hike at 6.30am. While enjoying the magnificent sunrise, we hiked up the Devils Peak. Before we reached the top, I thought we would never make it to the Lions Head. It was so exhausting. A little surprise (Captain Morgan) from Lei at the Devils Peak at 9am made the exhausting climb a little less hard. After we reached the top of this amazing mountain, we continued to the route up the Table Mountain. This was the most exhausting part of the whole hike. At the top of the Table Mountain we had a nice lunch. Then we hiked down a path with some very steep climbing parts. That was really nice. Finally we hiked up the Lions Head, where we almost fell asleep. After hiking down the last mountain, we drove home with the cab, enjoying the beautiful sunset, satisfied and proud, that we all made it. Then I lost my phone in the cab. KAK.
So yeah, that’s the story of the last few weeks. The weather is now getting worse: temperature is dropping and rain becomes more regular. Nevertheless, I’m still enjoying Cape Town to the fullest.
Cheers!
P.s. a bad thing about meeting nice people, is that at some point you have to say goodbye. So unfortunately we had to say goodbye to some amazing people, Philip, Wibke, Laura. It was amazing with you guys! See you soon at the reunion!
Lets write another story again, even though writing stories is not my best skill.
One day I went to the Holi One festival, with Nicolas. We heard many different stories about that, so we didn’t knew what to expect. But it was a freaking awesome festival! The weather was perfect, the music was nice, and the people and the atmosphere were very relaxed. Something completely different I did in the same week, was visiting GAPA, Grandmothers Against Poverty and Aids. This is an organization, based in Khayelitsha, a township in Cape Town that consists of grandmothers who have suffered from HIV or have lost a sister, a daughter or a grandchild to AIDS. They take care of children in townships after school, by cooking for them (often the only meal the children will get on a day) and playing with them. When someone is sad, they sing songs, all together, to drive the sadness out of the area. It is amazing to see how these grandmothers, who suffered terrible experiences, still stand so positive in life and take care of the children. Respect.
I also did one day of voluntary work in a township, at Score, a sports center in Mbekweni. The idea behind this organization is to teach children life skills by playing sports together. In my opinion this is a great initiative! Therefore I really enjoyed playing with these kids.
One sunny Saturday, we went to a really cool beach: Cool Bay. The official name is something like Kogal Bay, but everyone calls is Cool Bay, because it ‘s a really cool bay. Obviously. There are not many people, and it is really beautiful there. Perfect. The day after we continued our weekly tradition: a day on the beach in Camps Bay. We were chillin’ in the water, when suddenly all the people were standing at the beach, looking at the ocean. We went out of the water to see what was happing, and apparently there was a shark in the water. We saw its fin above the water several times, just like in a movie. After a while it was safe again to go in the water.
During the Easter weekend, I went to the Cederberg National Park with Theres, Alex and Mark. Even though we came back at 6am on the Friday from a crazy night out, we got up at 8am to start the trip to the Cederberg National Park. The lodge where we stayed was located in some kind of valley, surrounded by orange farms. I have never ever smelled such a nice natural orange smell. The day after, we got up early to start the 8hour hike. First we drove around 1h30 off road.. Ttttthaaattt wasssss fffffunnnn. The hike was long, but very nice. First we had to climb up the Wolfberg cracks, through small entrances. Then we continued on the plateau to the arch, where we had a nice lunch. After hiking back, we fell asleep like little babies at the lodge. The day after, Sunday, Happy Easter, we went hiking along a river in the middle of nowhere, and saw some interesting cave paintings from 10.000 years old. We drove back to Cape Town on Monday, to spend the rest of the day on the beach. Again.
We did it! The three mountain hike. It all started with a crazy idea to hike the Devils Peak (1.000m high), Table Mountain (1.050m high) and Lions Head (670m high) in one day. After some organizing it became reality. We started the hike at 6.30am. While enjoying the magnificent sunrise, we hiked up the Devils Peak. Before we reached the top, I thought we would never make it to the Lions Head. It was so exhausting. A little surprise (Captain Morgan) from Lei at the Devils Peak at 9am made the exhausting climb a little less hard. After we reached the top of this amazing mountain, we continued to the route up the Table Mountain. This was the most exhausting part of the whole hike. At the top of the Table Mountain we had a nice lunch. Then we hiked down a path with some very steep climbing parts. That was really nice. Finally we hiked up the Lions Head, where we almost fell asleep. After hiking down the last mountain, we drove home with the cab, enjoying the beautiful sunset, satisfied and proud, that we all made it. Then I lost my phone in the cab. KAK.
So yeah, that’s the story of the last few weeks. The weather is now getting worse: temperature is dropping and rain becomes more regular. Nevertheless, I’m still enjoying Cape Town to the fullest.
Cheers!
P.s. a bad thing about meeting nice people, is that at some point you have to say goodbye. So unfortunately we had to say goodbye to some amazing people, Philip, Wibke, Laura. It was amazing with you guys! See you soon at the reunion!
Reageer op dit reisverslag
Je kunt nu ook Smileys gebruiken. Via de toolbar, toetsenbord of door eerst : te typen en dan een woord bijvoorbeeld :smiley
