Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
We awoke early from a long nights sleep feeling very refreshed and looking forward to the day ahead. We showered and went to make breakfast in the main house where we made boiled eggs and toast washed down with a nice cup o'char! We cleaned up our mess and set off on our adventure to Knysna and all before many people would be up for work!
We headed off down the Outinequa Pass we had travelled along the prvious day and stopped at a picnic site to admire the view and take pikkies! We managed to tune the radio in Karen to KFM which played all the up to date chart music as we ventured on our journey. We travelled through George centre and followed a traffic diversion with a little intrepidation until we hit the N2 and headed towards our destination. En route we passed through a beautiful town called Wilderness and we found a place to stop and admire the cliffs down to the beach. The hotel we had stopped at had had a fire and so there were lots of firemen milling around...but none were anything to write home about! We walked to the cliffs and posed for photo's before deciding to climb down the steps to the beach to dip our toes in the water. The climb down was steep and involved what seemed like a million steps but finally we reached the sand and enjoyed a paddle in the Indian Ocean. Clare decided to wander a little to far in the water and was shocked to be almost swept off her feet by a huge wave which wet her through! After we had refreshed ourselves, we tackled the journey back up the cliffs and we very relieved to reach the top and have a rest! We clambered back into Karen and headed towards our destination!
We arrived at knysna and headed towards the lagoon. We drove down to Thiesen Island and found it to be deserted and so drove back along to the Quays. Here we found an abundance of shops and cafes along the waterfront and we managed to find a boat trip to take us out on the lagoon. We had time to nip for a quick spot of lunch before we walked back to the boat. As we walked round the quays we decided to buy an ice cream and found that we were then not allowed on the boat until we had finished eating it! Troffing the ice cream down we boarded the boat, went upstairs and found a perch at the front of the boat along with an Indian family of 30 who were travelling with their own personal chef and had hired a coach for travelling around the cape! The boat trip was relaxing and showed the beautiful side of the lagoon along with much information about the wildlife and nature reserve which surrounds it.
The boat came back into the quays and we left the boat and headed back to karen. We got back onto the main road and drove out of Knysna to the Elephant Park. Here we had booked on an elephant riding tour and purchased a bucket of food to feed to the ellies after our ride. We boarded a tractor with trailors on it and were driven past a feeding area and an area reserved for the mother and young ellies. We then reached 2 buildings and hopped off the vehicle. We were taken inside the building and we amazed to find a chapel which hosts weddings for anyone wishing to marry there. The service was described to us and then the guide asked Clare if she wished to marry! Unfortunatly, Clare isn't one to settle down and so she politely declined! We left the chapel and we taken to the other building where the ellies were waiting for us. We were told to climb up onto a platform and to then climb onto the seat which was on the elephants back...however, ours did't have the straps to help us on like the others did and so we managed to clamber on with very little dignity in tact!
We set off on our journey with the handler, he told us lots of information about the elephants and their lives and was very good at answering our questions. We had a rather stubborn elephant who would refuse to follow the tracks and keep up the pace but we enjoyed rambling along watching the wildlife and seeing the scenery! We came to the end of our tour and had to travel downhill on the ellies, this was a little daunting and Clare gave a little squeal as we both clung on to the guide! We arrived back at the platform and again had a very undignified dismount to our steed which was, of course, all filmed on camera! Dankie!!!
We fed the ellies our buckets of fruit and veg and then relaxed on the decking with snacks and a drink before heading back to the centre. En route we stopped off where the ellies were playing in the water and bush and spent time stroking them and taking pikkies. Clare was on top form, bringing the attention to the elephants male organs with much delight! Then it was back in the tractor to go watch our show! The video was played to the group and the photo CD was viewed before we decided as a group to buy one CD and split the cost and email the pikkies to each other! We had a wash and then set off in Karen to find somewhere to eat for tea!
We headed back to Knysna and walked down towards the Quays again, we asked the security guy if he knew of anywhere nice ot eat and he directed us to a little tavern down the road. We found a pew and ordered our meals...Emily had pork while Clare had fish. Whilst we were waiting for food, we were approached by a drunkard who was struggling to get his jacket on over his head even though it was open! He offered to join us after we had eaten but we were both relieved that he decided to call it a night before we had finished and he staggered off into the night! We finished our food and headed to Checkers for a few bits as Clare was a little chesty and Emily wanted Salticraks! We purchased some items from the bakery and headed off to pay for them. Whilst at the til Clare suddenly began sniggering.....this was followed by a distinct smell....to which she admitted to having a little wind! Both in hysterics, we were viewed with a little aprehension by the rest of the shoppers and we paid up and headed off back to the car. We then headed off back to Oudtshoorn and the cottage.
We arrived back at the cottage well after 9pm and upon entering the cottage, CLare spotted a cockroach in the bathroom. She sprayed it with something but it refused to die and so she caught it and threw it in the swimming pool! We settled back to getting ready for bed when Emily opened a cupbaoird door and another roach was crawling inside! Clare came to the rescue again and this one went swimming also! Eventually, we settled down to bed and fell fast asleep!
- comments