Home Sweet Home

Good bye South Africa! I will miss you! I can't believe it went by so fast! 

I'm home already. I'm actually in College Station, moving to my new house and unpacking. 

On Monday I turned in my report and we had a goodbye lunch. Here's a picture of everyone at the office

At 3 PM we left for the airport. We traveled for 24+ hours. The plane had a touchscreen and I played chess against the really bad AI, I even beat it on hard!

The highlight of the trip was that a plane landed alongside ours and I was able to take a sweet picture. 

Also, an hour after we left Washington there was an earthquake and a day after we arrived in Houston it rained pretty hard, after the driest 10 month period. So I think nature was not very happy we were back in the States. 

Well, I'll try to update the blog if there's anything amazing happening in my life but other than that I will be busy with school and research and Engineers Without Borders. 

Thanks to everyone who followed my blog. Let me know if you are going to South Africa and I'll go with!

Cape Town!! The Mother City!

This weekend we went to Cape Town and the winelands. There were so many cool things we saw that we felt that there weren’t enough adjectives to describe them all. So I'm going to list a bunch of adjectives and you can just fill in the blanks: Awesome, Magnificent, Marvelous, Incredible, Amazing, Astounding, Wonderful, Brilliant, Magnificent, Superb, Intense, Excellent etc.

On Friday we drove to Stellebosh through endless _____ fields of farmland and sheep grazing. I had a work meeting with Johan one of the MBB engineers. Then we went walking around to see the town. We went to the Stellenbosch University campus and stumbled upon a bunch of people in a line. Turns out the dorms were having an acapella competition. It was packed and it seemed to be the main event of the town. Five teams competed that night and they were pretty good. They sang mostly American songs but they also sang in Afrikaans and Xhosa.

A capella Competition

Stellenbosch University

On Saturday we drove through the winelands and it was _____, _____, and very much _____. The drive was a lot of fun through the mountains. We went to a Huguenot (French protestant) Museum and a monument to the Afrikaans language.

But I’ll let the pictures talk.

Afrikaans Monument

_______ Landscape overlooking Franschhoek

In Cape town we stayed at Willow’s house who we met at the Mexican party a few weeks ago. There we met Andi and Alexa. We went with them and their friends to the Tin Roof that night and had a blast.

Sunday we went to Table Mountain, not too early, and we did NOT climb it considering Saturday night, though I planned to. It was _____ and _____. And the view was __________!

So there is a new MEME going around called planking, and while I’m not a professional planker I thought Table Mountain would be the place to do it. So here it is.
Kids: Always practice safe planking!

Planking the plank at Table mtn.

Don't fall!

Table Mountain was originally sea floor in Pre-Pangaea, then the continents came together to create Pangaea and pushed it up. That is why it has a very flat top!

Pockercito at the top

Later we went to Cape Point  and the Cape of Good Hope (south-westernmost point) Again it was _____ and ______ and _______.

South-westernmost point in Africa

Southernmost point in Africa

We also stopped at Boulders Beach to see the famous African Penguins. (They used to be called Jackass Penguins for their donkey like bray) 

Jackass Penguins

Penguins I found under a bush

Monday we went to Robben Island, where political prisoners were sent during apartheid. It still brings up sensitive racial issues. We saw where Nelson Mandela was kept and learned about the plight of the freedom fighters. A couple of days later I finally finished "A Long Walk to Freedom", Mandela's autobiography.T The way he brought about the demise of apartheid was an incredible tour de force. After 27 years in jail, incredible harassment and mistreatment he comes out with a message of peace, unity and galvanizes a nation to move to a better future. He is truly a model of selflessness for humanity; a hero in the classical sense. 

Nelson Mandela's Cell

So... are you still reading this? Good because I saved the best for last. Here are the links to all the pictures

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.197138537013537.48842.100001521768928&l=8909924654&type=1

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.197176790343045.48849.100001521768928&l=9af39332ec&type=1

RASTAFARI

This weekend I went to the Rastafarian festival!


It is a  week-long festival to celebrate the 119th birthday of the former emperor of Ethipia Haile Selassie whom they worship as God incarnate. The first few days are church service but the last two days they play music and sell arts and crafts. 


What is very interesting about the Rastas is their spiritual use of cannabis. They consider it a sacrament and its use is often accompanied by Bible study. They have a group prayer every time before they smoke. 


Matt and I took a bus to Judah Square, an underdeveloped community (called township here) around noon. Walked around a bit and stopped at a yard where we met Congo, Lee, Simon, and others. 

Judah Square

We told them that we were here for the festival and they said that the music would start much later. So we sat down and hung out with them. They all had very cool dreadlocks and talked in a very distinctive Rasta accent. Instead of a handshake they hit their fists and say "respect" or "rastafari". They were some of the nicest people I've ever met. Talked about their religion and philosophized about life and how we should recognize all people as brothers. I'm not a religious person but I do agree with their inclusive philosophy of brotherhood. They also gave us some tasty unleavened bread made with wild garlic and cooked over a grill and we ate it with a banana. Again, very generous and welcoming people. 


I really liked the fact that in the middle of the conversation they would spontaneously burst into song and dance. After a few verses we would continue talking. They were very happy, but also very thoughtful (which can be partly attributed to the cannabis). 

Rasta Friends

Irie mon!

After a few hours Matt went home, but I decided to stay to listen to the concert. I walked around town with Lee and we played pool at the Jah Works B&B.  We also met Sister Kerri and more people around town including some of the musicians who were playing that night. 

Murals of Haile Selassie at Jah Works B&B

Jah Works B&B

Only until around 7 did the music start at the tent, but by that time there were no more buses back to Thesen Island. Sister Kerri told me that it was no problem we would find someone who could give me a ride. Even though it was a humble community I felt very comfortable around them and I knew safety was not an issue. 


So the music came and the people came, black and white, to sing and dance and enjoy the reggae music. It was a great time. 

Awesome Music

Also, Rastas practice herbalism and they had many wild plants for sale for many dif

ferent purposes, anything from cancer to sexual performance. At one point Lee gave me a wooden stick, I didn't know what to do with it so I asked him. He said it was a sweet root so I tried it and it was pretty good. Its better than chewing gum. In fact I'm chewing some right now.

The Rastafarian word of the day is..... 

"Irie" (pronounced "eye-ree"), a term used to denote acceptance, positive feelings, or to describe something that is good. Like "Everyting is irie mon" or "RESPECT man, live life irie and you will lead a happy life."

Klein Karoo and Mossel Bay

This past weekend I went to the Klein Karoo region, there were a lot of ostrich farms and some really cool caves, but i'm getting ahead of myself. It all started on thursday when I went to surf. I got an amazing wave and rode it all the way to the shore. My friend and co-worker Werner told be that I would have a dream about surfing after riding a great wave.

That night I had a dream that I was in Acapulco and I was surfing with a lot of people. Someone threw a bunch of hay into the water and it took the shape of a wave, froze in place and everyone took pictures of it. I know it doesn't make sense but it was really cool because it was about surfing..

Friday Werner and I went surfing again but the swell was pretty small. Oh well, it was a good paddling session. Then we picked Matt up, ate at an Indian restaurant and went to see a movie in Afrikaans called Roepman. (the Callman). No, I'm not fluent in Afrikaans yet! The movie had subtitles.

Saturday we started the trip. We went to the Cango Caves and saw some awesome Stalactites and Stalagmites  


Under construction - meanwhile here are some pictures!

Nature's Valley

Fynbos Protea (or as I would call it - Tortilla)

Mussels at J-bay

Interesting sea life

Take care of the wild penguins

The organ

Leaning tower of Pisa

Don't remember how this one was called but it was huge!

Enormous cave

They are very good racers

I was hoping to have a big omelet for breakfast

Bartolomeu Dias' ship replica

Whale's skeleton

Putu Pap - Cornmeal, milk, butter,sugar - Lekker!

Pokercito at work

J-Bay Billabong Pro

I had an awesome week. I've been hard at work during the day but when the clock hits 5:00 I join Werner and/or Liezel in a mad dash to Buffels Bay to go surfing. Last week we went Monday-Thursday.
We have to rush because it is wintertime and we are pretty far south of the equator so the days are very short. The sun sets before 6:00.
Here is a picture

Surfing with Pokercito

I've been able to ride a few waves but once I really get the feel for timing the wave I feel I'll do better. It is harder than I expected.

Werner, Matt and I went to the Billabong Pro surfing competition at Jeffrey's bay on Sunday. It was fun but the waves were very flat so there was no competition. They advertise it as a 11 day event but there are only 3 days of actual competitions. I did get to buy some souvenirs and a big poster of the amazing J-bay's waves.


Today was Nelson Mandela's birthday. He is a very inspirational figure and a hero in the true sense. I'm starting to read his autobiography Long Walk to Freedom. One can only hope to be as kind and compassionate a person as him.

There is a movement that inspires individuals to to take action to help change the world for the better on Madiba's (his Xhosa clan name) day. It asks for people to donate an hour of their day to a charitable cause. Here at the office we decided to plant some trees. I'll upload pictures soon!




The Afrikaans word for today is......... BILTONG - Jerky. They have beef jerky but also ostrich and kudu.

World's Highest Bungee.... 'Nuff said

So this was a really intense weekend. Here is a summary:

• Saw lots of elephants, zebras, ostriches, kudu, and a bunch of other animals at Addo. (No lions tho)
• Bought a surfboard and a wetsuit so I can go surfing after work.
• Jumped off of THE WORLD'S HIGHEST BUNGEE!!
• Met very, very interesting people.

Here is the long version:

Matt and I rented a car and went drove on the left side of the road ( It took a bit of getting used to) to Addo National Park on Friday. We arrived at the Orange Elephant "backpackers" (hostel) at night and met Vicky and Tara. We played pool and had a lot of fun. We woke up early the next morning and went to see the animals. We were really hoping to so the lions and rhinos, but they did a good job in hiding. Here are some pictures and videos!

Pockercito blends right in

Someone had a good luch

Horn comparison

As you can see Pockercito, (the traveling llama) was having a lot of fun too. 

At one point Matt went horseback riding (check out his blog) and I kept driving around. I almost ran over a Warthog after turning a corner. Then I saw an elephant just walking down the road. I drove along with it until he got a bit angry and here is the video. 

Saturday we had the coldest night of our lives and Sunday we started driving back to Knysna. We stopped at  Jefferey's Bay (major surf spot) and I bought a used Surfboard and a wetsuit. I'll go surfing after work as much as I can. 

Then on our way back we stopped at the Boulkrans Bridge to jump off the highest bungee in the world. Did I mention it was the highest? In the world?

Here are some pictures and the video. 

Its really hard to explain what it is like. It felt like breaking the time-space continuum and going through a wormhole into another dimension. Its kind of like in Star Wars, when the stars seem to elongate just as a ship begins to enter hyperspace. Just replace stars with a mountain and a rocky river.

Bungee Hypespace

 It is an incredible experience. 


This week's word is Now. "Now" you say? There is nothing special about now. Well the thing is that now to South Africans means in a little bit, later or even way later. Like... "I'll show you now". Or "We'll go now" - meaning in 20 minutes. So it really throws you off.