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Third Stop - Oudtshoorn
(pronounced Oats-horn, or Oats-warren in Afrikaans with plenty of rolled Rs)
Hometown of another of Hannah's old colleagues, Princess Stasie (to her family), Annastasia. Also hometown of ostriches, ostrich eggs and the Cango Caves. This time the temperature peaked at a ridiculous 40 degrees C! Even the wind was stiflingly hot and we were thankful for the pool at our hostel; less so for the barking dogs 'guarding' the property and barking loudly at every passer-by and all through the night.
Overall, Oudtshoorn appeared to be a very quiet, family-oriented farming town. Heading out the first night at 8pm to get food, we found ourselves wandering deserted streets and every shop closed. Cupa-Soup from a local corner shop had to suffice.
Luckily the next day we learnt our lesson and headed out during the day to find a much more lively and bustling market feel. And we had a real treat - visiting Annastasia's family-run fish and chip shop called 'Market Fisheries'. Introduced to practically everyone in the shop, it was wonderful to be welcomed so warmly. And the food? Unbelievably good. Even in 40 degree heat, the hake, chips and SA-special snoek fish went down a storm. Plenty of salt & vinegar of course. Delicious.
Our appetite the last couple of weeks hasn't been huge because of the heat, but that wasn't the case that day after a visit to the Cango Caves. Millions of years old, these are huge caverns of limestone and slippery stalactites and stalagmites (formed by water rather than made of it). We opted for the 'adventure tour' along with the others from the hostel.
3 Brits, 1 American, 2 Dutch & 1 Frenchman who speaks no English: we spent the next hour and a half slipping and sliding our way through minute crevices, ducked along 1ft high passages and somehow scrambled our bodies up through the 'Devil's Chimney', a vertical passage barely one-person-wide. Throw in 96% humidity and there were some sweaty bodies by the end of it. Fantastic fun though.
En route from the Caves to fish and chips, we stopped off at the local Ostrich Farm. A quick biology lesson (each egg counts for around 24 normal chicken eggs), photo opportunity and an amusing showcase of Ostrich rodeo - but we still weren't convinced by these funny-looking creatures.
Fourth Stop - Wilderness
As previously mentioned, our main mode of transport has been the Baz Bus. Advertised as a "convenient hop-on hop-off" service, it sounded ideal. First stop, Stellenbosch we thought, but no, the 'hop-off' is actually a town called Somerset West about 15 minutes away (thank goodness for Chantelle). Second stop, Hermanus; again utter rubbish. The actual stop is 30-45 minutes inland at a random, remote petrol station in 'Bot River'. OK, not going well so far. Third stop, Oudtshoorn, in fact meant getting dropped at a McDonalds in a town called George, nearly an HOUR away.
It's a great way to make friends though, you have to give it that. Not because of any particular set up or incentive; simply because, when you've spent 3 hours together in a MaccyDs in the middle of nowhere and shared a few Baz Bus war stories, you've suddenly got a lot in common.
Second helpings of McDonalds later (naughty), we thankfully got onto the bus, only to reach our stop about half an hour later. Worth the wait?!
It did, however, drop us at a little haven of heaven, the Beach House Backpackers in a tiny village called Wilderness. Arriving in perfect time for a sunset overlooking crashing waves (occasional dolphins, although sadly, not for us) and home-made pizzas going into the woodfire oven. A lovely pool table, stocked bar and open campfire makes for the perfect setting.
We spent the rest of the evening chatting to a 74 year old Japanese-American hippy-dude and a Portuguese & Zambian couple with an adorable 5 year old English daughter (who live near Brighton now - but at 5, she's already picked up the barefoot, backpacking African way).
A bottle of wine later and our new German friends from Bremen rocked up after cycling down the hill from the other hostel. After the pleasantries of getting to know one another through polite conversation, Ben and Hendrik couldn't resist a bit of anglo-german competition. The girls got involved too and we're pleased to report that the English won out after a tense and close-fought game of pool and darts. Despite the win, Han missing the dartboard three times in one go meant penalty shots of tequila at the bar. Ouch.
The perfect cure for any slightly sore head is a day (afternoon!) at the wide, white-sandy beach with paragliders landing all around and crashing waves and dangerous currents making for a dramatic seascape (but no swimming here).
You'll be pleased to hear that today started with rain and is now consistently cloudy. But we cherish these calmer days as our fair faces are still as pasty as ever. Great opportunity to update the blog. And despite the lack of photos, hopefully you can picture it all.
Next stop, Knysna, and some more Baz Bus banter.
Much love,
Ben & Han xxxx
- comments
Philip and Jill Hi little Han and big Ben, wonderful to get your news and views. I've just returned from 4 good days in Cambridge, leading an intensive on Contemplative Fire for a really good bunch of ordinands. Your rich descriptions of the ghastly bus service speak volumes. How you describe Wilderness in your email and your blog is hugely evocative. The Pembrokeshire coastline in South Africa - wow! Let me be there! Having driven from Cambridge to Sheffield yesterday evening in glorious winter sunset clarity, today has been truly magnificent in the Peak District. We actually took a day off walked in the deep frost, icicles on Burbage Brook and wall to wall blue sky and sunshine. And then we did some gardening - miracles will never cease. Remember, with all the humility (and all the alcohol consumption!), drink tons and tons of bottled water. Dehydration not fun... Brilliant that you've got friends to guide, rescue and groove with. Mega happy travels to you both. Dad/Phil and Mum/Jill xxxxxxx