Drakensberg Mountains

On the weekend of the March 18 we decided to go to the Drakensburg mountain range in east South Africa. On a map the range is north to northeast of Lesotho, the country within South Africa. We knew that it was going to be quite a drive so we had to plan ahead of time when we could go. Thankfully we had a four-day weekend that weekend due to Human Rights day (National Holiday) on Monday March 21 so it was perfect.

On Friday morning we left at about 9 A.M. There was a group of ten of us split into two cars so we had a fairly large group going there. The drive itself was a lot of fun. We listened to music, did some homework, and a majority of it was spent just talking to get to know each other. Throughout our drive we saw some incredible views of mountains as we were making our way to one of the largest mountain chains in South Africa. We expected about 12-hour drove to our backpacker so we thought that we would get there around 9 P.M. Unfortunately due to poor directions from our backpacker, construction, and getting lost a few times along the way we didn’t get into our backpacker until 2:30 A.M. While it initially made nervous that we were driving around at night it was also a unique experience. This was the first time that most of us had driven at night, so I hope it gives us the confidence to do it in the future. Anyway once we got to our hostel we were all obviously very tired so once we had our keys we immediately fell asleep.

The next day we woke at about noon. Through our backpacker we found an area that offered some great hiking so we left at 1 P.M. to go there. The area was called Cathedral Peak hotel and it took about an hour to get there. This hotel was literally at the base of a mountain so there were plenty of hikes that we could choose from.

This One is For You Mom :)

We decided to choose a relatively short hike since we were all still tired. We decided to hike to a waterfall named Doreen Falls and it took us about an hour to get there. Once we got there we all decided to go swimming so we did that for about a half an hour. On our way back we also decided to go on another hike. This one was to a destination called Mushroom Rock. Unfortunately we did not make it all the way to the top but we did see the rock that we were supposed to hike to. It was a rock that has eroded presumably over millions of years that had a relatively thin base for a large mushroom shaped top. There were several of these rock formations around the one we went to as well.

Doreem Falls

When we got back to our back packer we were immediately served dinner. Each day we could sign up for dinner at our backpacker. The food was always very good and it was nice to have a solid meal considering our hiking each day. The backpacker that we went to was named Amphitheater Backpackers. It was probably the nicest backpacker I have been to yet in South Africa. It has a full bar, projection screen, pool tables, Internet, swimming pool it was just an enjoyable place to be when we came back each night. After dinner we went to the bar for a while to unwind from the day and soon after that we were all in bed.

The next morning we woke at about 6 A.M. We had scheduled a hike to the 2^nd largest waterfall in the world through our backpacker and our transportation left at around seven. The drive took about three hours. For the last 20 minutes of our drive we were driving up the side of the mountain, that was a novel experience. Once we got to an outpost we all got out of the kombi’s to start our hike. The hike itself was not to bad.

 The trail was gradual and zigzagged up the mountain face. It was nice to be able to leisurely take a hike while at the same time having remarkable scenery to look at. We hiked for about 2 hours and reached the top of a plateau near the waterfall. The plateau itself was 3200m(approximately 7000 ft) above sea level. While most would consider these small mountains the best was the topography surrounding it. On nearly every side of the plateau the distance that it fell away was roughly 3000ft. The views were some of the best I have ever seen in my life.

After staying there for a while we hiked about the 15 minutes to the waterfall. The waterfall itself was quite incredible. At 970m it just seemed to keep going. The water was flowing generously due to the recent rain so we got a special view of the waterfall at its best. After staying there for about an hour we started our descent. Instead of taking the same way down we took a way that consisted of scaling town chain ladders along a rock face. In total the ladders were about 40m, one was 15m and the other 25m. This took awhile considering we had to get the entire group we went with down. After we had all finished we started our hike to the outpost. The way down was a little faster than the way up so it probably took an hour and forty-five minutes.

 

Top Third of the Waterfall

   We got back to our backpacker and went to bed very early since we had decided to leave early on Monday. We left at about 5 A.M. and got back at about 7 P.M. All in all in enjoyed Drakensburg. It may have been one of the coolest things that I have ever done. Despite driving for nearly 32 hours while only doing 18 hours of activities I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Graham's Town

On March 12^th we took a one day excursion to Graham’s Town and the surrounding area. Graham’s Town is best known in South Africa for is cultural music fest during July. We left early in the morning around 8:30 or so and it took us about an hour and half to drive there. When we got there we immediately went to this music factory there. We waited a little bit until our music guide came. When he got there he introduced himself (can’t remember his name) and began presenting instruments that they made. Some we had seen already and some were new to us. He presented a couple of Xhosa (indigenous tribe in the Eastern Cape of South Africa) instruments to us. One of them was the uhadi. This instrument is a bow looking one with a hallowed our gourd attached to it.

Uhadi

 One who plays this plucks the string while moving the gourd to and from the shoulder. Unlike western culture which focuses on single-ton music/singing, African music focuses on split town singing where overtones are present when one sings. The uhadi assists a solo singer in resonating the split tone aspect of African music. He presented us with a few more instruments and proceeded to give us tour of the factory itself. After giving us a tour we thanked him, loaded the bus, and were on to our next destination.

Example Painting

 We then made a quick stop at this African art store where we took a quick tour. The people there described some of the paintings in regards to what the meaning behind them was. Most told stories about the apartheid era and the relationship between the whites and blacks. The stories that these people told us about the paintings were very powerful and meaningful. We each bought some postcards/paintings and were on our way once again.

Our next destination was a Xhosa village in Hamburg about 3 hours east of PE. When we had started the trip we had each gotten a hand drum to bring with us. When we got there, the Xhosa women presented us with dances and songs they normally did. These songs involved a lot of involvement with dancing. Usually there would be singing while each singer would each person would take a turn dancing in front of the group. The songs were very repetitive and the legs were the main focal point of the dancing. It was interesting to say the least. After dancing and singing for us we had the opportunity to try some of the food they ate. We chicken with a special seasoning on it, beans, potatoes with peas, pumpkin, and some bread that they made. It all seemed very similar to what had always had in the states except for the pumpkin which was unexpectedly tasty.

What happened next was the best part of this trip. A Zulu drummer had tagged along with us and asked us to get out our drums. We all got in large circle around him. He was all dressed up in his ‘Zulu drummer’ attire.

Outfit Suits Him Well

He gave us a few beats on which the drumming was based off of. After getting down the beats as a group he added singing into the mix. Singing while beating the drum was a challenge but never the less extremely fun. After playing the drums he then taught our group a Zulu dance. The dance involved a lot of interesting moves of which I would have never taken as a dance move before that day.  It was a very amusing dance and a good end to the day excursion. We then made our 3 hour trek back to PE.

Frontier Farms

Our next excursion (weekend of March 5^th) was located by Adalaid, or what is supposed to be a nonstop 3 hour drive northeast of Port Elizabeth. We were going to Frontier Farms, farms who host students for a weekend through NMMU. We were very anxious to get there as when we left PE the water was out because of municipal problems so no showers nor water to drink. There was a lot of gravel road driving on the last part of the drive, which made the drive seem even longer than it was. We finally got there after about 4 hours. When we did we immediately were greeted by the owners of the first farm and welcomed into their home. We had an extremely late lunch: sandwiches with some dessert. We hung around the farm for a bit, looking at the views surrounding it and relaxing; very peaceful as compared to the sounds of traffic passing our flats. The owner of the farm then took us on a tour of the land he owned. We saw an cow, goats, turkeys, roosters, and last but not least an elan. It was a very interesting looking animal with long antlers and this extra flap of skin under its neck.

Elan

After he took us to where the cows were milked. We each got to milk a cow and taste the milk right out of the utter. It was very warm, but wasn’t too appetizing at all.  The owner of the farm decided that it was humorous (which it was for the most part) to spay each of us with the milk after spraying it in our mouths. With me (Luke) he decided to give me a milk shower spraying me on the head.

Direct Hit!

We then headed to this reservoir not too far away from the farm. On the way there we stopped by a tortes of which was making its way down the road. We didn’t get to see it sprawled out with all four legs and head out, but it was still fun to hold it.

Nothing Like Brothers Fighting Over a Tortes

We got to the reservoir and first went up on top of hill to take some photos. The view of the reservoir from here was breathtaking. After we headed back down and swam. The water was warm, plus it was nice to once again swim in salt-less water. Not too long after we headed back to the farm.

Repping the NMMU Rugby Jerseys

The rest of the day consisted of relaxing, drinking a few brews, eating a wonderful dinner, and heading to bed. Our group of 30 stayed in three different houses, each of which had been in the family for around five generations.

The next morning we had breakfast at one of the houses: toasties with tomatoes, ham, cheese, and this amazing sauce in it…. great meal to begin a busy day. We then took a tour of the sheep shearing shed. We got to see the shearer demonstrate cutting the wool off the sheep. Then whoever wanted to take a stab at it got to try. We both tried it; it was tougher than we thought it would be. We not only didn’t want to literally stab the sheep with the scissors, but the wool itself was tougher to cut off than we had planned. Needless to say it was a fun experience trying it.

Master Sheep Shearer

Next the hosts took us up to the second tallest mountain/hill in the area. It took about an hour to drive all the way up there on the 4-wheel-drive vehicles they had, but the hour was worth the wait. The views were scenic and you could see for miles. We stayed up there for a while taking group/individual photos. After relaxing for a bit longer we made our way back down the mountain for lunch. Lunch passed and before we knew it we were back to the houses chilling. We had some drinks with the group while playing some cards. We taught a bunch of people how to play ‘O hell’ before dinner began.

The Top of the Peak

The dinner came and was fantastic to say the least. The lady who cooked all of it had worked for a catering business a couple years ago and was very good at what she did. The dinner consisted of steak with an awesome gravy, pasta salad, potatoes, salad and home-made bread. We ate dinner and by the time we were done it was 10. We each headed back to our houses and headed to bed.

Before leaving back to PE the next day we went on a hike to where this ‘secret’ waterfall. This involved swimming through gorges in order to even have a chance at seeing the waterfall. Nobody brought their camera so I (Luke) figured why not take the chance and bring the camera. When we got to the back of this gorge that we had swum through, there was no waterfall. Turns out that it hadn’t been flowing over for some time because of the drought this region had been in. Nevertheless we still got some good photos of all of us standing back in the inlet where the waterfall would have been falling. After swimming/hiking back to where our buses were we were once again on our way back to PE. The excursion was a much needed time to relax and fun experience.

Hogsback

On February 25 we decided to travel to Hogsback. Hogsback was about a 4 hour drive front Port Elizabeth to the North West. It is an area that is in the mountains and has several waterfalls so we were looking both to hiking and doing some sight seeing. We were drawn to Hogsback because J.R.R Tolkien owned property in the area and documents Hogsback as his inspiration to write the Lord of the Rings series.

On our way there we of course ran into trouble with our direction. It would not be an adventure with out losing your way I guess! We followed the GPS to a town named Seymour and entered onto a road that said “Hogsback 30km” (about 20 miles). While we were excited that we were so close we immediately recognized that something was wrong. The sign also said that the road was for 4X4 vehicles only…we were in Toyota Corolla’s definitely not 4X4 vehicles. For some reason we decided to try the road and see if we could get to Hogback. After travelling on this road for about 20 minutes we came to a point where our cars could not handle the terrain so we turned around. We eventually found a highway that took us to Hogsback but it was about an hour and a half detour. Once getting into the small town of Hogsback we found our hostel: Away with the Fairies.

The receptionist gave us a tour of the hostel area before showing us where we would be staying. We had applied for a spot in the 50 person dorm, thus we were expecting a building of some sort that could hold these 50 people. When she told us that we could drive down to the camping area and set up our tents we were taken aback. Supposedly their definition of ‘dorm’ was different than ours. We expressed that we did not have tents or sleeping bags of any sort and they took care of everything for us. We then went on a quick 2 hour hike down into the valley of the mountain. We were sure that some Orcs or trolls would be bombarding us at any time. On the hike we saw an 800 year old tree as well as a few waterfalls.

Waterfall on the First Hike

By the time we got back it was late. We had pizza for dinner and hung around the bar area for a while until it was time to go to bed. Before heading to bed though we all stopped and starred at what was the clearest/starriest night sky we had ever seen. Neither light pollution nor moon light made the night perfect for a little bit of stargazing.
The next morning we slept in and were once again back on the trail. We had signed up for abseiling at 2:30 so we wanted to get a good hike in before heading. We took a longer route to get to the waterfall we’d be abseiling at. While hiking there would occasionally be openings in the trees that would give us great views of the mountains and valleys surrounding us. After hiking for some time we reached our destination: Madonna and Child Falls, the falls/cliff in which we would be abseiling down. We had gotten there early so we rested for a bit until our guides were ready for us.

Half of Madonna and Child Falls

Once at the top of the cliff, the guides gave us a few instructions, and off we went abseiling. The cliff was 35 meters (roughly 115 feet) high, much larger than our first abseiling experience while kloofing. At first the descent down was somewhat nerve raking but once you were going and realized you had control the feeling of going down was quite liberating!

 Each of us took about 15 minutes to go so a little more than 2 hours all together with 9 people. Everyone had their own way at going down the cliff; some took their time, some rushed down it, some even fell. We were all glad we did it and thought it was really fun. After we were done our guides gave us a ride back to hogsback where we had a quick beer with them before heading to out next hostel.

After sitting around until the sunset we were headed to our next hostel. Because we had not realized that the 50 person dorm was a camping area, Away with the Fairies could not accommodate us for two nights, so they set us up with this other hostel: Terra Khaya. After about 10 minutes of driving and once again not being able to find our way around we arrived at Terra Khaya. We expected this hostel to be like any other, cabins for people to stay with a reception house somewhere nearby. This had nothing of the sort. There were two buildings, the kitchen area and a 12 person dorm hut. When we first got there this man by the name of Jeff greeted us and gave us a tour of the place. While on the tour he explained of how Terra Khaya was a completely self-sustaining and eco-friendly hostel; they grew their own vegetables, the fertilizer they used was stored poop that had sat in the outhouse for quite some time, they used eco-friendly soap and shampoo, and their electricity was all solar powered. The ways this place ran was intriguing to say the least. Some of us took a shower at the outdoor shower while others chilled before dinner.

The Shower Area

Dinner came around and it was great. The owner of the hostel used to be a caterer in Cape Town so he cooked us up a great meal: kudu casserole with a garden salad and bread. After dinner we all headed to bed early, the next morning we would be heading out early.
The next morning we woke up quite early from the sunrise shining into our dorm. Some of us took a shower (Luke took two because of it being outdoor with an awesome view of the mountains) and then we all went to eat breakfast. We took a few pictures, said our goodbyes, and were on our way back to PE. Staying at Terra Khaya was a great experience and wouldn’t have happened had we not made the mistake of misunderstanding what dorm met to Away with the Fairies. Another great weekend.

Owner of Terra Khaya

Addo Elephant National Park and Schotia Game Reserve

Saturday the 19^th of February was the first flown blown safari that we experienced. We were on our way around 8:30. Our plan was to go to two locations: Addo Elephant National Park and Schotia Game Reserve. We first arrived at Addo Park around 10ish. We got out, stretched, and took a few pictures at the park entrance while our tour guide got the vehicle permit.

 After our guide got the permit we stopped for a quick restroom break, walked through the info center, and were on our way into the park. It only took about 5 minutes before we saw our first elephant roaming towards a water hole. Amazing to say the least!

Our guide gave us some information about the elephants and what the Addo Park did for them.  Addo has a population of about 450 elephants, we saw about 100 going through the park. We had a fantastic lunch at a picnic area in Addo provided by our guide and were then on our way to Schotia.

 It was about a half an hour before we got to Schotia. We immediately went on a safari drive on bakkies when we got there. A little information on Schotia: it covers about 1500 acres but still houses giraffe, zebras, hippopotamus, different kinds of antelope, rhino, wildebeest, and last but certainly not least lions.  We went on a 2 hour safari drive before dinner and saw all of these animals.

It was towards the end of the drive that we saw giraffe. They were up on top of this large hill all day in which no paths could lead us there. By then end of the day drive they had made their way down the hill and were within reach.

The zebras were one of the first animals we saw and we were already a half an hour into the drive. They were in a group of three: a male and two females. A male will usually have multiple females at his disposal signifying dominance among other males.

We were about to take a tea break when one of our friends spotted a rhino not to far away. We drove over there and joined another bakkie to watch these amazing animals. The male wasn't too keen on us watching him and his mate as it charged the other bakkie and stopped before hitting. It was alarming but at the same time so exciting!

After a quick ten minute tea break we were back out on the reserve roaming the land once again searching for animals we hadn't seen yet. We then saw Mufasa's killers... the wildebeest. It wasn't nearly as fun to see these as it was rhino or giraffe so we carried on quickly.

Lions were by far the most exhilirating animals to see. We were lucky enough to be there during the lion’s mating season. Lions mate only four days out of a year so those four days are pretty vigorous. During these four days they mate every 15 minutes of the day. It certainly was quite an educational experience for us. The female in this setting is the dominant figure. The male is trying to establish himself as dominant figure by following her wherever she goes to the point of annoyance. The only way they could mate was if the female was ready.

Before heading to dinner we had the pleasure of watching a lioness with her cubs. The mother would sit there while the energy-filled cubs would attack her playfully. We could have seen only this and been satisfied. We then headed to a nice complex on the rerserve and had a delicious dinner in the park; kudu stew with rice, chicken, potatoes, and bread.  We took a night drive, didn't see too much, and were on our way back to PE. A fast and fun-fulfilled 12 hour day. We hope to do this a couple more times before we leave.

Bush Camp

As part of our orientation for the international students to get to know each other we went to a camp called Bush Camp. Essentially we went into the ‘Bush’ for the weekend away from electricity and the technological luxuries that we are used to. We left around 11 A.M. on Friday (February 4) morning and the drive was about an hour long to get to Umlambo (where Bush camp was located).

On the drive there though we stopped at a Reptile farm so we had knowledge of what snakes we may run into while at Bush camp. The reptile farm was very fun. We walked through a small zoo like exhibit which housed several incredibly poisonous snakes all of which are indigenous to South Africa. Soon after the exhibit was over the head of the reptile farm had us all sit down in a communal area so he could brings reptiles and snakes to show us.

Head of Reptile Farm

He brought out a few snakes and reptiles that were relatively harmless but then he brought out the two most dangerous snakes in South Africa! The two snakes he brought out were the Black Mamba and the Cape Cobra with both responsible for the highest number of deaths to humans. Probably the most incredible part of that experience is that he brought them out at the same time!! He would tease them and get them to settle down but it was still insane that he was simultaneously restraining the two most dangerous snakes in South Africa. Anyways after explaining some of the reasons what made these snakes so dangerous he brought out a Burmese python for us to hold. The one we held was about 40 pounds but we were told that they grow much larger.

Burmese Python - Luke's New Favorite Animal!

Finally to round out the reptile farm we were able to pet a crocodile. All in all it was a once in a lifetime experience that I now I will never forget

Soon after that we traveled the remaining miles to Bush camp. The camp consisted of a main shelter overlooking a river. Further back there were tents and wooden cabins where we stayed. In addition there was an obstacle in the woods and a climbing wall. Anyway soon after that we played some ‘get to know’ each other games for a while and then went to bed early. Initially the plan was for all of us to run the obstacle course all day and do some other activities outside. Unfortunately it rained literally all weekend! We were told that the area had been experiencing for two years so we just got dumped on. While we didn’t run the obstacle it was still an enjoyable weekend. As I mentioned earlier the camp overlooked a river. We spent much of our time when it wasn’t raining there. Hanging over the river though hung a zipline that you could ‘zip’ down and jump into the river with. That was a pretty exhilarating experience to be so far above the river and then just let go. Another highlight of the weekend was doing a portion of the obstacle when it was raining. We all were getting sick of being inside so we decided to all go to the obstacle course. We went through several obstacles of which the highlight was crawling through a mud pit.

For dinner that night we had what they called a 'Wild Beast Feast.' We didn't have any silverware so we ate everything with our hands. We tasted different kinds of South African food while being brought back to our childhood days of eating. After we had to put these skits on. The only rules we were given was that we came from a different universe, all of us had different languages (symbolizing South Africa the rainbow nation), and had to create a language, uniform, and origin story of our own. The stories were extremely imaginative and funny.  We then ended the night with a slide show our leaders put together from all the happened during the weekend.

Tim's Skit Group

Even though everything didn’t go as planned at Bush camp I still had a lot of fun. I got to know some people that are from elsewhere that are attending NMMU and I also got to know many of the members of our group much better so that was beneficial.

The Bush Camp Group

Pretoria

We then were on our way to Pretoria. Pretoria, if you aren’t familiar, is the capital city of South Africa. It is also a major tourist city and we took advantage of it. After going to bed and sleeping for 16 hours we made our way to downtown Pretoria. We ate at a local restaurant and went through a mall area to see what the shops were like. Stores have a much shorter schedule here as they are only open from 9-5:30. After realizing that stores weren’t open so late we headed to the last and most exciting part of the Pretoria tour: the capital building. Considering that we hadn’t seen any national capital building in our lives this was a pretty big deal. The courtyard in front of the capital was almost as magnificent as the building itself. We would stay there for about a half an hour taking it all in and then headed back to our hostel.




The Capital Building



That night we acquainted ourselves with the other guests at the hostel. There were maybe three of them—the three who ran the hostel—who were from South Africa. Other than that they were from all different parts of the world; some were from Norway, Ireland, Australia, Slovakia, the U.S., Turkey, England, and many more. We drank African beer and wine while chatting with all the guests. It was great.  Pretoria was quite the experience and the one place in the Gauteng province that we would go back to.