End of the truck trip

Crossed over our last border together into South Africa. Camped on the banks of the Orange River that seperates Namibia from SA. Had a nice, leisurely float down the river on a raft. We partied pretty hard in the bar that night, knowing that the trip was ending soon. Luckily not a long drive the next day, so got to sleep in until 7! Our last night of camping was on a lake in Clanwilliam. Pretty area, quiet night. Taking our tent down for the last time felt strange. It's become home. The drive to Cape Town was beautiful. Very green rolling hills and lots of wildflowers. Driving into the city was a bit of a culture shock. Good thing we'd been in some towns in Namibia lately or would have been worse. Cape Town is a gorgeous city, with the majestic Table Mountain as a backdrop. We had our last dinner together as a group at a place called Cantina Tequila. And yes, the tequila was flowing....in big fishbowls that we shared with straws. At first anyway, then we ended up sticking our heads in. Crazy tourists.

The next day said good bye to our crew as they headed out with a new group. The wind was blowing fierce in the morning, so we were limited on what we could do. Natalie and I spent the afternoon at the Kirstenbosch botanical gardens, one of the most beautiful in the world. Spectacular sculpture garden, flowers and view.

On Monday a small group of us took a wine tour. Very interesting, beautiful vineyards and by the end of the day we were fairly drunk. The next day I ran into one of the women I met on the tour and ended up spending the day with her and another women from the tour. It was a beautiful, sunny day. Took a tour bus around town and signal hill, then got off and walked up to the cable car to go up Table Mountain. The views from the mountain were outstanding - all 360 degrees of them. Got back on the bus for some close up views of the beach areas before heading back to our hostel. Met up with my old buddies again for dinner at Mama Africas. They had a great local band.

The next day our small group rented a car to drive down the cape. Saw lots of African penquins at Bolder's Beach and whales along the coast. At the end of the cape, walked up to the lighthouse for more incredible views and to the cape point. It's billed as the most southern tip of Africa and where the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet, but it really isn't, that's a less picturese cape. Oh well, we pretended, like everyone else. That night got together for our very last night. Some people had already left and most of the rest were leaving the next day. Had a blast drumming at the Drum Cafe. Strange saying final good-byes, especially to Natalie, my last tent mate. She had also been on the trip since the beginning.

So now I'm on my own. Left Cape Town yesterday on the Baz Bus. A hop-on, hop-off bus that I'm taking to Jo'burg. Feels strange, but also nice to make my own decisions about where I'm going and what to do. First stop is Plettenberg Bay, a beautiful little town. My backbackers had a nice little campfire where I sat and chatted with other travelers last night. This morning I did some ocean kayaking. It's called the Dolphin Kayak, but instead of seeing any dolphins we saw southern right whales. One breached 4 times right in front of us! Incedible sight. Spent the afternoon on the beach. Life is tough....

Tomorrow I continue to make my way up the coast. Next stop is Port Elizabeth.

Until then...