Last Day at SHAWCO!

My 4th grade class

I'm Worthless on Sundays

Hello. It's Sunday evening, Day 2 of 2010's March. As you can see below, I had a great bungee jumping experience last weekend. It was part of a four day trip along the 'Garden Route'--which is basically highway N2 along the southern coast. The route is accompanied by beautiful views of the ocean (Atlantic, then Indian) outside the right window, and amazing, mountainous landscapes outside the left. We rented two cars, Mazurka (whom we were fortunate to have for the second weekend in a row) and Desert Rose. Travelling inside Mazurka and Desert Rose were seven fine friends--Ani, Ben, Eli, Alex, Alex, Daisy, & Kristine--whose names probably don't mean that much to most of you. We stayed in different backpacker lodges each night, hiked and explored Wilderness National Park and Tsitsikama National Park, ate good food, and toured the coolest cave in which I've ever been. Overall, it was another exciting and expensive road trip. Eli, Ben, and I stayed an extra night and traveled home on route 62, which is an alternatively scenic road that parallels the N2 and winds through the rocky mountains. On our way home, we pulled off the road to catch the sunset and enjoy a Columbus cigar. I'd have to say it was the best sunset of the semester thus far, and I've seen some mighty-fine sunsets.

In other news, I had a very nice Saturday yesterday. In honor of Mifflin (in Madison) one of the international houses threw a party during the day. We drank out of solo cups and played beer pong--two things I haven't done since leaving the states. Then, in the evening, Ben, Eli & I went on a 'jazz safari,' which is something we'd been talking about doing since arriving in Cape Town. It's set-up by a company that drives people around to local jazz musicians' houses in the townships. It was awesome! We first went to Mac Mackenzie's house--an internationally-recognized guitarist. He and his fiance made and ate dinner with us. The meal included fried snoek, baked potatoes, salad and beer. It was a great time...we talked for a while and then he got out his guitar and performed for us. The next stop was another house in the township...home of an amazing jazz female vocalist named Tsitsi. Her friends and family were there to chat with us and listen to her sing. She blew all of us away with her voice. Tsitsi's blind uncle was quite the character. He sang along with Tsitsi and danced when he felt inspired. He seemed to be particularly fond of me. By the end, he was talking my ear off, the whole time patting my leg to make sure he maintained my attention. Fun, fun night with amazing musical talent. I'm really glad we finally did it...definitely worth the 700 rand. At midnight, the tour ended and we went off to Stones (a bar in Observatory) to meet up with everyone else. As the study abroad time is winding down, everyone seems to be making a point to have fun and not miss opportunities to hang out with friends we've made here. Everyone was out, and it was really fun. Didn't get a cab ride home until almost four in the moanin'.

Time to write 2 papers that I must finish before another road trip begins on Wednesday. This time we're going up to Namibia to explore the second-largest canyons in the world, sand dunes, and Windhoeck (the capital city). I hope Mifflin was enjoyed by all who partook. I really like using the passive voice; however, it's not enjoyed by academics who grade my papers. Anyways, peace and love. I'll be home in no time.