Semana Santa Ver3 = Africa Trip 2.0!!
Ashley and I returned to South Africa after 13+ years ....
We have had a lot going on since last I wrote … but I’ll focus most of this on Africa, the things we did, and thoughts in my head. So yeah, for their Semana Santa (Holy Week, Easter, aka Spring Break) we took them to Africa. Ashley and I have been talking about this trip for a long time … but wanted to wait until they were ‘old enough but not too old’ - I think we timed it well. We were there 13ish years ago - what a different (and yet the same) trip it was ….
But a few quick hits:
We took an opportunty of a half day last week friday to get the kids out of Barcelona.
Ashley took Ellory to London (they both love it - Hayes and I not so much) as she had a friend there for a race and she brought her daughter (one of Ell’s old KC friends!). A great excuse for a mom/daughter trip and to see some friends from KC…
I offered Italy, Germany, or Portugal to Hayes, and he chose SPAIN - the best time of the year for white water rafting and canyoning in the Pyrenees…. so we went. CRUSHED it. THIS Kids is a mountain kid….zero doubts.
Any opportunity to get the kids exposure to things, experiences, cultures, people I’m 1000000% IN.
I hit Atlanta for a rare work conference in April (gone 13 days in Africa, back for 28 hours, fly to Atlanta for 5 days - UGH). It sucked for 10 reasons but was amazing for 3, and one of them was connecting with a few people I get to work with. It’s rare in this ‘remote work’ world we live in that I actually get face-to-face with a colleague … but when it happens, it’s great.
Delta (my favorite!) didn’t get my bag on the hour turn in Paris…I barely made it, so I wasn’t too surprised my bag failed to make it. My bag was 1.5 days late but all was ok - took the opportunity to buy new clothes in ATL and cheers to Delta for covering the tab!!!
People in Atlanta are so amazingly nice—random people at the convention center in a great mood, park workers in a great mood, traffic police in a great mood—it’s really cool to see.
South AFRICA
So Ashley and I went what feels like forever ago - no kids, both working W2 jobs, and I think we had our first iPhone ….. life is a little different now. Funny thing is we did almost the exact same trip. It’s a great route, so we did a very similar one with the kids. We flew into Cape Town, hung out for a few days, then drove the ‘Garden Route’ - basically like flying into Seattle and driving across the USA on I-90 to Boston and flying out - stopping along the way. That being said, the ‘N2’ (their I-90 (or I-70 Kansas/MO!)) is a world-renoun drive and route for vacationers. We choos this time of year because 1) kids off school 2) amazing weather 3) off season (cheaper and few people there!). Here are a few highlights of each area:
CAPE TOWN - 4 days
Every day amazing. We landed, grabbed our car, and dropped bags at AirBB, then went to meet Alon (an old friend of Ashley's from when she was working for NAA 20 years ago) on his boat. He had a friend tracking Dolphins, so we found a pod of 20+ and followed them for an hour or so - then went and grabbed his son, bbq’s on the boat, found penguins and whales on the way back to port while watching the sun go down, and called it a day. BOOM day one = amazeballs.
We then hit Table Mountain for a private hike the next day - it took us from 7a to 2p or so but stopped along the way - we did a very similar route as last time and took similar pictures…the kids enjoyed but Hayes LOVED it. Perfect day for a hike. Day two = picture-esk.
We then drove to Simons Town for the famous penguins - Ash and I (again) had been there before but it was about the kids this time … they loved it. Hundreds of penguins everywhere! We stopped at a vineyard for lunch and saw Monkeys running across the lawn (never seen that before), then went to a ‘township’ to see how some live there - I didn’t take many pictures out of respect. Ashley and I did this last time as well but I’ll tell you it felt totally different - complete opposite. Maybe because we didn’t have a guide this time, but also because our minds are just different on things and we had the kids - safety was, for the first time in years, a concern for me. Either way, we enjoyed, the kids handed out candies to the lesser fortunate kids there in the township and I bought a few rounds of beers for some of the young men. Very interesting feelings …. but day 3 was fun for sure.
Day 4 we hit vineyards in Stellenbosch all day. The kids did great as they always do, even if it’s not their thing….they kicked a soccer ball (when appropriate) in the fields and allowed Ash and I to taste and buy quite a bit of South African wine. It’s so amazing and value-priced - shipping is not …. but it’s ok for unique wines and stories you can’t get in Spain! Amazing wines, amazing properties, amazing food = baller day.
DRIVING N2
We bailed the next day and headed east. We hit ‘Sand-Boarding’ which was amazing! We were blasting down sand dunes on a modified snowboard! Ellory says she is not skiing next year, but snowboarding! The rest of the day was driving to our next apartment, checking in and grabbing a late take-away pizza dinner ….
SHARK DIVING! Now if you don’t know the SAfrica great white shark population has dwindled over the past few years - two Orcas (Starboard and Port) started killing great whites (17 in one day) and eating their liver (orcas are so amazingly smart - check out Blackfish on Netflix!) so I suppose the word gets around to the other GW sharks to ‘GTFO’ if ya catch my drift. There are still a TON of sharks, we saw 17+ (smaller different types) but not the 20 foot Great Whites Ashley and I saw cage diving last trip…again we did this for the kids - I think Ash and I could have done without it but this trip was for kids not so us (well the wine day was for Jon).
Hayes and I got back from diving and wanted MORE - so we showered changed and hit a cave we read about … one of the first for homosapiens. As human history has it, or as some say/think/believe, when hominids migrated south in Africa to the ocean they found shelter in caves and started eating fish and BOOM - the brains evolve bigger to process more complex thought. So….if you aren’t eating fish 3-4+ times a week, it’s still good for you all these years later (and your brain too!). Hayes loved reading about the cave, going off trail, and enjoying quiet time in mother nature.
We left Gansbaii and drove to George, a detour Alon recommended. We spent a few days at a nice house on the golf course, kids relaxed in the pool w Ash, I ran errands, and we had dinner at Alon’s summer house….grilling FRESH fish caught that morning by his son. I bet there was 6 KG of fresh fish on the table (three different types) - salads etc. We ate like kings and queens for sure!
Next day based in George we hit the caves up north and an ostrich farm - can’t ride them anymore (damn it!) but you can still visit the farms. Since we couldn’t ride again I was meh on this Ostrich time but the kids had a blast (and ok so did I).
The next few days were the Elephant's sanctuary, more amazing meals, and monkey land, and then we ended up at Shamwari - our Safari destination for the remainder of the trip. Again, same place Ash and I did safari last time but we were in the lux tents and this time (they are adults only) we were in a different lodge for kids - it was AMAZING. The play area, rooms, and custom treatment for the kids (backpacks and treats on arrival, kids club with pizza class, etc) were perfect for me relaxing or reading my paper (or a little computer work, too).
But before we hit Shamwari I jumped off the Bloukrans bridge again (my 4th-time bungee!), and Hayes hung off the 220-meter bridge (they don’t let under 14 years old jump). Truth be told I really didn’t want to jump off a 220 meter bridge with a rubber band attached to my ankles. But when your kid looks at you like superman you have to keep them fooleld I guess….back 13 years ago I didnt have what I have now - the kids, the company, and the frame of mind I have. I had a hot wife and little bit of health, but so much has changed in my life since then. I had a few ‘shit what if I die, what about X and Y and Z?’ thoughts as I signed up and walked over. However, It was amazing, Hayes had fun, still thinks I am brave, bold, and superman… and I learned a lot about myself repeating this particular activity and processing how life has changed.
SAFARI
We invested the last few days at Shamwari. Morning wake up at 5am, snacks and coffee at 520 and morning drive at 545am. We drove for a few hours, tracking lions, elephants, leapords, rhinos, and the famed water buffalo (the Big 5). We ran across countless zebras, kudu, warthogs, elk, giraffs, springbok, and more. We would stop around 730/8 and have coffee and a little snack, then return around 9/930a for brekky. Relax around the property for a few hours - tapa-style lunch around 2p and then afternoon tea/happy hour at 330p to leave for the evening drive around 4ish. The Land Rover would stop to watch the sun go down and serve beers/wine/etc with a snack before night tracking and back to the lodge around 8 for dinner and bed - WHEW…..we spent the entire last ride tracking the cheetahs for Ellory as she was NEEDING to see them …. of cousre my princess got what she wanted…. we left Shamwari and drove to Port Elizabeth to fly back home mid-day ….
A few quick hits on Africa specifically:
the ostrich eye is the same size as their brain. An Ostrich egg is worth 24 chicken eggs. Yes, you can order an omlet there but you have to use a drill to get into the eggs!
We were weird there eating at Spanish times - they eat more ‘normal hours’, 1130-1230 lunch, 530-7p dinner…we were kicked out of a few places for being too long and late!
Kids never order off the kids menu anymore - ostrich neck, kudu carpaccio, lake fish, beef cheek - they order like the adults!
Cape Town (and all of S Africa) still has power grid issues. They have ‘load shedding’ where they shut power down at both random and scheduled times…. no aircon, no electricity, no lights. It's really nbd, but not ideal either for a restaurant, hotel, etc.
The poor/rich divide seems so heavy there.
I missed my daily paper.
I took probably 600 pictures and 100 videos - but, I’ll post only a few pics below…
Overall South Africa was amazing 13 years ago and is amazing today - highly recommended to travel if it’s on your list - get there!!! (its a big time change from USA, only one hour for us!). A very different trip and emotional for me at times….a lot to ponder for me, but I know you will as well if you look back at something you did 13 years ago and how you, your relationships, your life, your finances, your happiness and fulfillment, and the world are different. I think everyone should think about this stuff…reflect, be grateful, plan tomorrow, but be great today. I often hear people won’t come to Barcelona because ‘I was there 22 years ago’ - well, guess what - the cities change but more interesting (and importantly) YOU change. Repeat that trip you did forever ago … I promise it won’t be the same.
Quotes I’m ‘noodling’ on (as Ash would say):
- Why would anyone be angry at the world, as if it would notice*
- A man never steps in the same river twice**
*I read this as “just be happy with what the day throws at you, cause being pissed won’t get you anywhere”
**I read that both you will be different AND the river. Things change. You change. Embrace and learn from them.
Looks like an amazing trip! And we were so happy to see Ashley and Ellory in London, even for a short time!!
Hi Jon and family. I am so glad you had such a wonderful time in Africa. I enjoyed reading all about it and your other travels as well. I had always hoped to go see all the animals there. Thanks for sharing with us.
Mary Jane and Karl Pfuetze