The exhilaration of being in South Africa still hasn't worn off when we wake up, it has only increased. One thing that has decreased is the temperature. Most people awoke before the 5.30am alarms because of the cold. Definitely one of the coldest, if not the coldest, morning of our trip! Breakfast is at 6.20am & we are on the bus by 7am with 400km's to cover today.
We have loved our time in Africa & these 6 weeks on the ATC tour have been amazing, unforgettable & life changing.
Jurumba has brought a farewell chocolate cake for us after lunch, as if we have room for it! Joseph loves saying "theres no shortage of food in Africa" while putting an extra spoonful on our plates. Portion sizes have gone up & stomachs have stretched while on the tour. This plus the long drives on the bus & general inactivity has left all of us feeling very fluffy on the edges. Hopefully it can be worked off fairly quickly while we explore the next country before getting on tour again.
At 3.30pm, Simon distracts me from my book & I look outside the window. Its green! Beautiful green grass has replaced the bare rocks, sand & dirt. Some of the mountains are still visible & look like giant cut-out's glued to the horizon. I expect that we will see them all the way till Cape Town.
The roads are promised to be dramatically nicer & todays travel shouldn't take too long.
Leah has mentioned that she has read about fields of wild flowers blooming at the end of August. Were hoping to see these on our way to Cederberg. Just before 9am we start to see orange flowers growing on the side of the road that gradually increase in number. The orange flowers are joined by yellow & purple ones,just before we get to the town of Springbok.
We pull over next to the highway for our last lunch on the bus. Those weird feelings that contain mixed emotions are starting to be felt. That weird happy & sad, which is felt at the completion of something.
Jurumba has brought a farewell chocolate cake for us after lunch, as if we have room for it! Joseph loves saying "theres no shortage of food in Africa" while putting an extra spoonful on our plates. Portion sizes have gone up & stomachs have stretched while on the tour. This plus the long drives on the bus & general inactivity has left all of us feeling very fluffy on the edges. Hopefully it can be worked off fairly quickly while we explore the next country before getting on tour again.
At 3.30pm, Simon distracts me from my book & I look outside the window. Its green! Beautiful green grass has replaced the bare rocks, sand & dirt. Some of the mountains are still visible & look like giant cut-out's glued to the horizon. I expect that we will see them all the way till Cape Town.
We arrive at our accommodation in Cederberg. The country side is prime land for farming, especially for growing grapes. It definitely looks like wine country.
Our last campsite is overlooking the gorgeous wineries & mountain.
I distinctly remember it from my last trip. The campsite is on lush green grass, the bathrooms & toilets are very very fancy with an open window looking out towards the mountains & the setting sun.
There is a pool & a bar. Arguably one of the best things is the 2 dogs running around and the free wine tasting
The oldest & biggest dog is a Rhodesian ridgeback, who's name has slipped my mind. There is a younger one called Jeff that is a Hungarian Visla. He is so naughty & dumb, causing lots of trouble while we are putting up our tents.
Unfortunately we don't get a lot of time to hang around the campsite or use the beautiful showers before we are needed to do the wine tasting.
I still manage to sneak away from Tom & the tent, have a quick shower & put some makeup on. It feels so strange! It's the first time I've applied foundation in 6 months.
We sample the local wine that is supplied & were feeling pretty toasty after the fact. We sample a Chenin Blanc, a Rosè, a Pinotage, a Shiraz, a bubbly & a Red wine Vermouth blend infused with roobois called African Ruby. We both really like it & it's the only one of its kind. I tried it last time as well & loved it. It's a shame they still are not exporting! Tom & I brought a bottle to send home, only to be opened for very very special occasions.
The wine tasting & dinner after is a hit with the tour group who are already on an emotional high in preparation for arriving in Cape Town tomorrow!
The most jovial apart from Tom & myself are Jill & Julian from Germany, Roz & her father Chris from Canada & Beth from Canada.
Chris, Tom & I buy a bottle of shiraz at the bar, then another & then another.
Before too long it's 10pm & we've been kicked out of the bar.
We silently (let's be honest, drunk people are never silent) make our way back to the campsite, pinch some fire wood off the truck & make a campfire.
It's here we supposedly talk too loud, sing, laugh so hard we cry & then sink into silence.
Around midnight I retire to bed. Tom never checked what time he went to bed, but according to the sober, sleep deprived & grumpy campers who lied awake listening to us, it was 1.30am. Haha, sorry guys!
- Alli
I distinctly remember it from my last trip. The campsite is on lush green grass, the bathrooms & toilets are very very fancy with an open window looking out towards the mountains & the setting sun.
There is a pool & a bar. Arguably one of the best things is the 2 dogs running around and the free wine tasting
The oldest & biggest dog is a Rhodesian ridgeback, who's name has slipped my mind. There is a younger one called Jeff that is a Hungarian Visla. He is so naughty & dumb, causing lots of trouble while we are putting up our tents.
Unfortunately we don't get a lot of time to hang around the campsite or use the beautiful showers before we are needed to do the wine tasting.
I still manage to sneak away from Tom & the tent, have a quick shower & put some makeup on. It feels so strange! It's the first time I've applied foundation in 6 months.
We sample the local wine that is supplied & were feeling pretty toasty after the fact. We sample a Chenin Blanc, a Rosè, a Pinotage, a Shiraz, a bubbly & a Red wine Vermouth blend infused with roobois called African Ruby. We both really like it & it's the only one of its kind. I tried it last time as well & loved it. It's a shame they still are not exporting! Tom & I brought a bottle to send home, only to be opened for very very special occasions.
The wine tasting & dinner after is a hit with the tour group who are already on an emotional high in preparation for arriving in Cape Town tomorrow!
The most jovial apart from Tom & myself are Jill & Julian from Germany, Roz & her father Chris from Canada & Beth from Canada.
Chris, Tom & I buy a bottle of shiraz at the bar, then another & then another.
Before too long it's 10pm & we've been kicked out of the bar.
We silently (let's be honest, drunk people are never silent) make our way back to the campsite, pinch some fire wood off the truck & make a campfire.
It's here we supposedly talk too loud, sing, laugh so hard we cry & then sink into silence.
Around midnight I retire to bed. Tom never checked what time he went to bed, but according to the sober, sleep deprived & grumpy campers who lied awake listening to us, it was 1.30am. Haha, sorry guys!
- Alli
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