Howzit everybody?! (That is the accepted greeting here in SA) So since I wrote last, a lot has happened. On Wednesday I went on my first dive. I was so nervous because we were going to a wreck dive, and I have never been on a true dive before, just my training. So James and I drove to Hout Bay to launch the boat and meet the other divers. We went to go to the boatyard to pick up the boat, and James asked me if I could just move his truck down the road to the parking lot. Mind you…I have yet to drive in this country because they drive on the left side of the road, on the right side of the car, and almost every car is a stick with the shifter on the left! Trying to be a badass, I told him it would be no problem to move his truck. So as James went in the boatyard I started up his bakki (truck) and attempted to reach the peddles, but they were so far away, and I could not for the life of me figure out how to move up his bench seat. Being the problem solver that I am,I just sat on the edge of the seat and basically had to "Stretch Armstrong" my legs in order to reach the clutch. So I am sitting there on the edge of the seat, one toe reaching out to the clutch and another on the break. I put it in reverse so I could turn around, and voila…success! Very proud of myself, I quickly threw it into first like a pro, and stalled. No big deal, nobody was watching. Another try...stall. And another….stall. At this point, the gate opened behind me and a tracker towing James and the boat were right behind me, so my embarrassment turned to mortification and I tried again…stall. I looked up in the rear view mirror gazing at this gigantic red tractor rumbling loudly being me, the tractor driver getting annoyed, and then James behind him on the trailer looking at me and yelling at me at to go! No s*** James, thanks! Don't you think if I could go, I would have done it in the last 10 minutes you were behind the gate loading the boat?! So much like everything in my life, this became a big embarrassing show for everyone to see, and James got off the trailer and walked up to me shaking his head and apologizing to the tractor driverfor my pathetic display ofstick shift driving. He came to help and asked me what was going on and took one look at the car and said…Kate, you have to release the e-brake to drive! DEFEATED! I undid the e-break, threw it in first and the truck jumped for about 10 seconds down the road, but I didn't stall. I was thinking seriously about renting a car here, but after that being my first driving experience, I think I will reconsider! So after that we launched and went to sea. I went on a wreck dive called the Boss 400. It is a gigantic ship that is sticking out of the water, it was amazing. Then after that dive, James let me drive the boat, which was a mystery to me considering what he just witnessed in the boat yard! Our second dive of the day was at a seal island with literally thousands of seals. Despite the wretched stench of seal s***, the dive was amazing (and besides, after you are under water you can't smell anyways). When I submerged into the freezing water below, there were so many seals fluttering around me I didn't know where to look. I was overwhelmed by their playful nature, they were more like domesticated dogs than any other animal I have ever seen. They come up and tapped me on the head with their mouths and played with pieces of kelp like it was a dog bone. Only after the dive did I realize that seals are a great white sharks favorite meal!

That night I went to my first braii (BBQ) and there were 4 different nationalities represented. Obz is a very international community and most of my friends are from Europe. From the braii we proceeded to go out on the town because Wednesday's are Obz's biggest party night. South Africans need a break in the middle of the week I guess! We went to a bar/club called the Armchair Theater and there were two guys beat boxing and singing African Hip Hop. It was so interesting because the music was so similar but instead of rapping "from LA to the Bay" like rappers in the US, they sang "from Cape Town to the UK".

Thursday was a serious work day and when I arrived at the office that morning Sean had a two page list of directions for my tasks for the day. He had me revamp and edit the brochure, and since he was not in the office I didn't know what I was allowed or what I was really expected to do. When I called him to ask he said, "it is all up to you, Kate!" It is so amazing how much autonomy they allow me. I did not expect to have such important roles in this company and it is crazy to me how much they trust me (but I really like it). I finished all my tasks by 1:30 and so Peter and I went on an adventure to the beach. We went to a fancy beach called Cliffton. There are four beaches there and each one has its own vibe. One is a gay beach, one is a "poser beach", one is a family beach, and one is an alternative beach. At the beach there are several merchants selling food, drinks, and ice cream/lollies. They yell funny lines like "a frozen lolly to make your boyfriend jolly" or "an ice cold water for your sexy daughter?" There were passion fruit lollies that looked so refreshing on such a hot day, so Peter and I bought some. Apparently mine was at the bottom of the ice cooler, and thus, was completely frozen solid. But in the intense heat, it looked so appetizing. I proceeded to take a giant lick and my tongue got stuck! Not just a little stuck, A LOT stuck! Because I took such a big lick, the oval lolly was stuck from the tip of my tongue all the way to my throat (or at least that is how I felt). I started laughing and showing Peter how I could let go and have it just hang there.He laughed so hard he couldn't control himself. I also thought it was quite funny for about 10 more seconds until I realized it was actually completely stuck and was not in any way about to come off. My laughter turned into gagging as I was unable to remove the frozen lolly from my tongue. I was half laughing, half crying, and at this point, drooling all over myself. It became completely un-amusing to me at this point (although Peter was still curled in a ball laughing at me) until we decided we needed to do something. We poured warm water all over my face to detach the lolly, and I lost all taste buds. It felt like I had just soaked my tongue in a burning hot cup of coffee for 5 minutes, it was completely raw. I was so disappointed because I desperately wanted to enjoy this lolly, but now I had no taste buds. I found a patch of salvaged taste buds on the side of my tongue and for 20 minutes I rubbed the pop on the side of my tongue to get a little taste of the flavor. Soon after this incident, our other German friend Bodo came to join us.

That night I went to Pancho's, a Mexican restaurant in Obz, for dinner and Margs. It was slightly different from the Mexican food in San Diego, but the Margaritas were spectacular. When we got home, we had a big poker game with Peter, Jenika, Scott, Jenette, and another German girl named Elena. I lost miserably, apparently Texas Hold 'Em is not my forte.

Friday morning arrived too quickly, but I had another dive to attend. This time we went to a wreck called Mowbray, which was completely submerged under the surface. I followed the dive master (Scuba Steve), and swam through a very narrow cylinder and saw pieces of pottery from the ship still in tact! Friday night I went on a sunset booze cruise in the Waterfront Harbor with the University of Illinois group and had a great time. We were on a huge catamaran, and because our group was so large, we pretty much ruled the boat. We sailed around, drank unlimited champagne, and watched the sunset…one of my favorite activities thus far!

Saturday morning arrived and everyone was too hungover (or "hangovered" as Peter says) to wake up at a decent hour so I did something I swore I would never do in my life…I went to a restaurant all by myself!! I bought a newspaper and went to Obz Café all by my lonesome. Walking into the most popular restaurant in Obz on a Saturday morning and asking for a table for ONE is no easy feat. After this empowering SOLO meal, I went to Sea Point with all the interns and Oliver. We went to a pool that overlooks the ocean and has grassy areas and trees to lay out in. Everyone else was entranced by the beautiful view of the ocean from the pool, but not me…I was most excited about the high dive! Oliver, Jen, and I immediately disrobed and went to the high dive. There were several kids attempting dives and completely belly-flopping and I was laughing at them and boasting about my exceptional Baywatch diving skills but (I am sure this will come as a shock to most of you) I ended up making a fool of myself. I climbed up the stairs, starring down at Oliver who had just done a pretty impressive dive, and thought no doubt that I would outdo him…not the case! I ran from the back of the board and just as I went to leap into the air like a beautiful exotic swan, I slipped! I ended off coming down in an awkward sprawling L formation (it can't even be coined a belly-flop because it was so much worse than that)! Oliver if you are reading this please post a message on my board and let my family and friends know how pathetic my dive was! Needless to say, I did no more diving- instead I curled up in a ball on the grass with a book like a complete introvert to hide my face from the embarrassment I had caused myself. That night I went out to dinner in the city center at a place called Mesopotamia where we sat on the floor on pillows around a low table and ate by candlelight and watched traditional bellydancers- very cool! After dinner we went out on Long Street, which is like the downtown bar/club area of Cape Town and went to a place called Zulu Bar. Zulu Bar was just like any other club or bar I have been to except they had a live band from Mozambique and it was incredible. Everyone was dancing and partying like they were listening to a hip hop DJ, but instead it was traditional African music!

Today Peter and I took a minibus taxi adventure to the African Market in Green Point. The market was giant, but most booths sold similar things. We survived the market just fine, but it was the ride home that is the real story. We were virgins to this route of the minibus taxi service and so we caught a bus back to the main station only to be dropped off in a completely unfamiliar and dodgy area. We went into a police station to ask directions to the minibus station and he looked at us like we were nuts. He looked at me, then Peter, then back and me with confusion and confirmed that he had heard correctly, "YOU? YOU want to know where the MINIBUS station is?!!!" "Yes, sir" I replied innocently. He seemed so disturbed that we "white folks" wanted to take the minibus. He finally gave us directions and with warned and squinted eyes said "just be VEEEERY careful." I was a little confused and concerned at this point. I take the minibuses almost everyday, why is he so worried. And if he is so worried, why cant he get off his lazy ass and walk us up the stairs and make sure that we get there safely?! It was only when I got to the top of the stairs that I realized why he told us to be careful…the people starred at us like we were ghosts! They wouldn't take their eyes off of us. We made it home safely despite the several dismayed looks we received, and only this afternoon did I learn that white people are NOT supposed to use the service on Sunday. It is an unwritten rule here, but how the hell am I supposed to know something like that? I found it so weird that the police man seemed worried for me but took no interest in helping me out. It is almost as if the police force here doesn't really care about anything. The minibus station is supposed to be one of the most dangerous places in all of Cape Town, but then why are there no security guards or police patrolling the area to ensure the safety of the people!? That is the one thing about Cape Town that is very frustrating to me. After this dodgy experience I went to a summer outdoor concert at Kirstenbosch Gardens! It is a gigantic botanical garden that sits below the mountains of Cape Town. It is the most gorgeous place I have seen yet in Cape Town. Every Sunday afternoon in the summer months, there is an outdoor concert at this huge grassy venue. A group of us went and brought wine, cheese, and crackers and listened to Afrikaans Rock. It was a band called Fokof Polosiekar (or f*** Off Police Car in English).

I just reread this blog and have realized that when I write down each day's adventure I am a huge klutz, and about as graceful as Will Ferrell in "Blades of Glory." I don't think I am any more clumsy here in Africa than I am at home, but because it is down on paper it seems I am quite a loser! I miss you all…check out the new pictures and please write me messages to let me know how you are all doing!