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Welcome to Asia!
First of all, I would like to apologise for the huge amount of time between my last en this post... I will make sure it will not happen again (I hope.. ;))
My last update ended in Knysna, which seems ages ago to be honest. Luckily for you guys, you did not miss that much. Knysna is a very relaxed place, but there is not much to do. I could not go canoeing, so that made me angry.. I was planning on going canoeing for ages! Anyways, I did meet up with one of my canadian girls (it feels like I know them so well, for years and years). Ti cut a long story short, we had some fun at the beach, I bought some souvenirs and that was it.
After Knysna it got interesting! We went to Wildernis, which is a beautiful place in the mountains. But with a beach too! I finally had my canoeing trip, which was un-be-lie-va-ble! I think it was one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen! Unfortunately, I did not bring my camera - it is not waterproof, so please respect my decision. The next day we hopped on the back of some horses and did a 3 hour tour through the forest to a beautiful ...ahum... waterfall (it was a dam or something, so completely manmade..) Nevermind, it was nice to spend some time with a horse again. It has been a while for me.
And if you think this was nice... We also decided to go paragliding! BEST THING EVER! It was so beatiful/exciting/cool and so much more! Honestly, I recommend this to everybody! Even the two people who were, with emphasis on 'were' ;), afraid of heights, thought it was amazing! I just cannot stop thinking or talking about it!!! So Wildernis was packed with cool activities.
Sadly, we had some other places to visit, so back on the bus and on to Hermanus. I do have to mention: I had 2,5 months in South Africa, but decided to skip some stops. You want to get the best of the best and spend reasonable time at the good places. That is why we decided to skip some of the less interesting stops. Actually, 2,5 months is just still not enough!
Hermanus it is! This is the place to spot whales, go shark cage diving and prepare for the big city. And that is exatctly what we did! The two brave Canadians went shark cage diving and saw loads of whales there, I decided to walk the whale-spotting-trail and saw the ocean spitting some water.. But the whale spotter blew his horn, so it definately was a whale! Oh, have you ever smelled a long-dead shy shark? Well, we did in Hermanus and I cannot recommend it to anybody. Bloody hell, that smells horrible! Even the volunteer started to make sounds... Let's just say it did not smell very good. (She did not even know how long he was dead).
Having to leave the peaceful and chilled Garden Route was a shame and difficult, but whe were all excited to see Capetown too! We ended up staying there for a full week! And there is so much to do.. The first night, we were trying to figure out what te next day was going to look like. Five hours later (!) - ok, maybe that is exaggerated - we decided to do a free walking tour as an introduction to Capetown. Of course we missed the tour, otherwise it would have not matched the rest of my trip. So no walking tour, but the red hop-on hop-off bus. Also very nice, although the rain sort of ruined all of my plans.. We could not do the complete package deal of the bus ticket - no sunset on Signal Hill. And I will let you guess about the open air cinema. I do not even want to go there.. (I was soo excited!) Nevermind, we bumped into some fellow travellers from before and had a great time with them. We saw the sunrise on Lionshead - do not try his at home (wait.. we can't, because The Netherlands are flat) Anyways, it almost cost me my life. I slept for about an hour, because of those stupid/loud/annoying Indians (no prejudice here!) Lesson for everybody: never, ever climb a mountain when you are tired, especially when that mountain is Lionshead! It was totally worth it, though. Really beautiful and undescribable. You have to see the pictures to uderstand (pictures are coming!) Same day up Table Mountain, also amazing! I was very lucky, because I got to actually see something! For five minutes, then the tablecloth was draped on the table.
And that was the last of my trip in South Africa. It felt so weird leaving that place; you start to feel at home in a country. Especially when you meet so many nice people!
Since Wednesday night, I have been in Bangkok. It feels weird being back here. Good weird, though! Because i have been here before, it is not your typical tourist experience anymore. After a bit of sightseeing and a lot of walking around, the situation turned.. In Wildernis a hundred mosquitos decided to bite me, but one bite turned in a circular, red mark. I showed it to a girl I met and she said: 'Omg, that is ringwurm!' Well, that gave me the fright of my life. So clinic it was for good ol' Quinta. Thankfully, no ringwurm, just some eczema (where the hell did I get that?!). Still, that means I have to stay in Bangkok longer than planned - I have to come back for a check-up... FUN!
Having spent a couple of days in Bangkok now, some very bad habits of Asian people started to bother me again. Chinese slurp when eating, Thai spit everywhere (and they make the most horrible sound doing it!) and they also pick their noses in plain sight. Actually, Thai make that sound very, very often. In the shower, on the streets, you name and I have heard it there. Nevertheless, it is still a 'must do' for everyone!
And that is where we are now. Planning a trip to Cambodia. For the people who don't know this yet, my parents and 'little' brother are spending Christmas with me!! Meaning, that I have a month before they arrive. Looking forward to seeing them!
- comments
Saskia Jeetje zeg wat een avonturen!!! Geweldig. Ik ben benieuwd of je Azie net zo leuk gaat vinden als ZA. Het begin is niet helemaal lekker met de exzeem, maar gelukkig is het niet erger dan dat! En natuurlijk het leuke vooruitzicht met de kerst! xxx Sas
Iris Wat een verhalen zeg! Echt super leuk om zo'n lang verhaal te lezen! Hoop dat die muggenbeet niet te grote gevolgen zal hebben :/ Ben nu al weer super benieuwd naar de volgende blog! :)) x
Gina Rozema Gina. Wat een verhaal! Leuk om te lezen en je op deze manier te volgen. Alhoewel, ringworm...Gelukkig heb je dat kunnen teckellen. Ben benieuwd naar jullie Kerstvakantie samen! Alvast heel veel plezier met z'n viertjes! En gefeliciteerd met Pa, toch? xxx Gina