South Africa: Deel Vier, Die Laaste Hoofstuk

Part Four, The Final Chapter

Day 9: Township Tour & Beach
Well, in contrast to days seven and eight, we spent day nine of our vacation touring a shanty town.  South Africa is a developing country in the fact that they have extreme wealth and extreme poverty.  Millions of black and colored people live in African Townships.  I don't know exactly how to describe a township to you, so take a look at this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Township_(South_Africa).  Basically, a shanty is a very rough structure made up of scraps of metal, wood or whatever else the family could find for free.  The townships have electricity, water (one tap for hundreds of people), and port-a-potties --- all provided by the government.  So essentially, the people who live in townships, live there for free.  It's a difficult situation for the country to be in, split between the 'haves' and the 'have-not's'.  The people we met in the township were very friendly and seemed to be quite happy.  There is an extremely high level of unemployment in townships and a large number of little kids.  The tour that we went on benefits the townships by providing some jobs as well as money for the families who live there.  It's interesting that as bad as the outside structures look, some of them were actually quite nice inside -- equipped with TVs.

Sheep heads. The smell almost made me vomit.

Bathrooms

These kids were so sweet and sang songs to us.
I do wish I could have helped the little kids
to grow up in a better environment.

After the township tour, we went back to the 'have' part of South Africa and went to the beach.  It was unsettling to see both sides of the coin.  We enjoyed the rest of our afternoon lounging around and walking along the beautiful beach.

There were lots of kids surfing and this naked little boy!
The water was freezing, he's crazy!

One thing that everyone who lives in South Africa has in common, whether rich or poor, is they all get to enjoy the natural beauty of the country...and there's a lot to savor.

Day 10: Market, Museums and Airport
The last day of our trip we left 'unplanned' and ended up spending time walking around downtown to the market, visited a castle, and also went to a few museums.  It was a nice and relaxing way to spend the last day there.  We headed to the airport late afternoon for our long trip home.  I'll spare you the details of the return trip, but to give you an idea of the general theme of our traverse home, imagine two crazed and sweaty Americans with big backpacks running through the airport yelling and pushing people out of the way.  That pretty much sums it up.  Through no fault of our own, we missed a flight, well two technically, because our first flight was so delayed.  Once we finally made it to our first connection in London, wiped ourselves off with baby wipes, took a sleeping pill and had a drink in hand, all was well.  When my friend, Gwen, picked me up at the DFW airport (with home-made 'Melanie Eidson' sign) I don't think I could have looked any more jet-lagged or smelled any worse.  She was so sweet and had prepared me a delicious meal, all recipes by my fav Ina G.  Thank you again, Gwen --- you are wonderful!

*I am sure that I have left out some of the details of our trip but hopefully you were able to get a nice snapshot of Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula.  If you are interested in knowing more about our travels or seeing additional photos, please leave a comment below.

Castle of Good Hope

Inside the castle - nice backdrop.

From on top of the castle wall. 
 Downtown Cape Town in the background.

African dancers at the market.

Me in giant whale bones.
*Side note - I had this outfit on for almost three days
and ran about three miles in it.

Sign from my 'driver' -- Gwen!

Christmas Flurry

We had a flurry of activities this Christmas weekend in Seattle.  On Saturday, we hiked Mount Si.  It was pretty warm during the hike and had spectacular views from the top.  We were able to see the Seattle skyline with the Olympic Mountains as the backdrop and the base of Mt. Rainier to the south.  It was about an 8 mile round-trip hike, with a very steep elevation gain.  If you do this hike, be sure to bring plenty of water and be ready for a good cardio workout.
*Hikers Note: We used microspikes for about the last quarter mile, it got a bit icy near the very top.  They are not necessary for a majority of the hike.

Seattle skyline and the Olympic Mountains

On Sunday, after we opened presents, we went downhill skiing at Summit Central at Snoqualmie.  We were blessed with about two inches of fresh snow, making it a nice day to be out on the slopes.  The best part about it was that after we were done, we drove about an hour back home and it was sunny and 50 degrees.  I love that we can enjoy the pow ('powder') and then go home to nice weather.

Enjoying lunch and hot tea by the fire pit.

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

Cross-Country Ski Anyone?

Well, we ventured out into the mountains again this past weekend.  Surprised, I know.  But this time we mixed it up and took a cross-country ski lesson, then hit the trails.  It's definitely a great cardio work out and I used muscles (particularly in my inner hip area) that I hadn't used in a while.  Will and I met another couple in the class who had just recently moved to Seattle, Valerie and Wade, who were out for the first time doing cross-country as well.  As it turns out, Will and I were not the only ones who were sore the next day.  I also learned that I need some major brush-up on my technique and 'stopping' skills --- bruised knees will verify ;)

Below are few photos from our Saturday snow outing at the Snoqualmie Summit Nordic Center.

That's Will coming down the pass
and Wade trying not to fall down.

Photo courtesy of Wade.

Photo courtesy of Wade.