Anna and I left Grahamstown a week and a half ago a little teary but excited for our Great African Adventure. Our adventure began as most adventures do: hungover and running late. We had to leave very early in the morning to drive to Port Elizabeth with some friends for the cricket match - England vs. South Africa. I've gotten totally obsessed with the South African cricket team so I was so happy to finally go watch them play in person. The vibe at the game was great, with everybody dancing and chanting and waving South African flags. Cricket is a "gentleman's game," pretty slow-paced, but still exciting. (It's like a more exciting version of baseball - don't get me wrong, I like baseball.) It lasted most of the day and then we all went out at night. PE (Port Elizabeth) has much more exciting nightlife than Grahamstown. The first bar we went to we saw Wayne Parnell, one of the South African cricketers. I was very excited, because he's elevated to celebrity status in my mind. (I think I high-fived him on the dance floor... yeah, cool move, I know.) Little did I know that the next bar we went to we would see almost the entire English cricket team! It was one of those nights that you look back on and wonder with awe, 'Did that really happen?' Dancing on top of a table with Luke Wright, Stuart Broad, and James Anderson is pretty surreal. Despite my unwavering support for South Africa, I couldn't resist partying with the English. (You could compare it to partying with the Yankees and Red Sox.)
the crowd at the cricket The next morning was another early morning as we got picked up by my friend Tanja to drive to Cape Town. We lucked out that we had a friend coming in this direction rather than having to take a bus. The drive was about ten hours and the bus would have been longer, less comfortable, and more expensive.
I've been in Cape Town for nine days, and I don't ever want to leave! I had a bit of a shock when I first got here and saw things that I haven't seen in six months - things like SUVs and shopping malls. When I was here two years ago, I claimed it as my favorite city in the whole world. Since then, I've traveled to many more places, and I can still say that Cape Town is my favorite city in the whole world. This time has been even better though, because instead of doing all the touristy things that we did last time, we feel like we are doing "real" Cape Town things. Our first night here, we were pretty tired so we thought we would go downstairs to the bar of our hostel for "one drink." Five minutes later, we find ourselves sitting at a table with a globe-trotting five-star chef and a Colombian-turned-South African ex-Israeli Defense Force soldier-turned-mercenary in places like Sierra Leone, the DRC, and Afghanistan. Now he's a journalist. That is what I love about traveling. I've met the most interesting people along my travels. The next day we met a group of English people - Paul, Simon, Wayne, and Jenny - and they quickly became our new best friends. With their thick Central London accents, they were very entertaining - especially Paul who is a walking stereotype. It'd be a hundred degrees outside and he'd be like, "Anyone fancy a cup of tea?" Our friend Jess was here in Cape Town at the same time so it was really nice to have a few more days with her. We explored the Waterfront, went to the beach at Camps Bay (the most BEAUTIFUL place I've ever seen, with perfect ocean, sand, and gorgeous mountains as a backdrop), and met her Capetonian friends.
with our Brits - Paul, Simon, Anna, me, Wayne, and Jess Friday was the Final Draw for the World Cup next year. They made it into a street festival on Long Street, which just happens to be where we were staying. I can't even describe how amazing the day was. They cordoned off the street so it was only for pedestrians and set up a stage at one end of the street where bands performed all day long. Our hostel was in an amazing location where we could enjoy the party without having to be jostled around in the crowd below - which reached 50,000 people! Our location was so good, it was where a lot of the media set up. We shared a balcony with CNN and the BBC. We were also interviewed on a South African radio station. David Beckham and Charlize Theron were down the street drawing the teams. USA and England are in the same pool, so we got some competitive talk going with our Brits. Can't wait to see how that game turns out. We were amazed the next morning when we woke up and the entire street was cleaned up - you couldn't even tell that there had been a street party the day before! It was a good sign for South Africa's readiness to host the World Cup next year.
getting the street festival started
World Cup final draw festivalOur English friends have a rental car so we've done a lot of things that we never would have done on our own. One day we drove down the Cape peninsula to the Cape of Good Hope, stopping off in little beach towns along the way. It was a nice day and the historic lighthouse at the Cape of Good Hope has stunning views. We stopped in Simon's Town to see the penguins (yes, there are penguins in South Africa) and explored small towns outside of Cape Town a little bit.
penguins!
Paul, me, and Simon at the top of the Cape of Good Hope
We had a nice week or so with "our Brits" (as we came to call them), but they left today to go home. It was sad to say goodbye, especially after we became so close so fast. But we're glad we met them and we'll stay in touch. And who knows, maybe my travels will take me to London someday.
walking back down from the lighthouse at the top of the Cape of Good Hope
