PENGUINS!

May 5

This was probably my favorite day of the semester, or at least in the top three. In the morning we headed to Cape Point, which is a part of Table Mountain National Park. There, we got to visit both the Cape of Good Hope (the southwestern-most point in Africa), along with the more imposing Cape Point. Some say this is where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet, and it is a beautiful and stormy spit of land. Everything there was so beautiful! We hiked along Cape Point to the lighthouse, and spent some time clambering around on the rocks. Everything was so green and lush, even though it was a windy and grey morning. It felt so much like Washington! Big waves crashing against the rocks, green covering the rocks, and a lighthouse on the point. After hiking up countless stairs, I headed down to the beach, where I got to put my feet in the water. It was so cold! Cape Town was heading into winter when we were there (the seasons are opposite in the Southern Hemisphere, remember?), and the water was even colder than the Puget Sound. I love the beach and the ocean so much, and I really appreciated the chance to spend some time by the water. I would have loved to have spent more time there, but we had to head into Simon’s Town for a picnic lunch.

we saw a family of ostriches on the drive to Cape Point

view of the park

over there is the Cape of Good Hope

Cape Point was so much more impressive

the water was so blue!

these cities were so far away! the next land out was Antarctica

our furry little friend!

Katelyn and I on the beach

After our picnic lunch, we headed to the penguin colony! The African penguin only lives in and around Cape Town. We had glimpsed a couple on Robben Island, but hundreds of them live in Simon’s Town. Visitors have to stay on the boardwalks, but I didn’t really care because I was just so excited to see PENGUINS!!! It was just really cool, so here are some pictures.

the penguins lived on the beach!

a happy penguin :)

penguin friends

so many penguins! and the babies looked really fuzzy

isn't this beach just beautiful?

they also nested in the dirt

After our visit to the penguins we went to meet with Trevor Knowlden, founder of the Freewheelers bicycle club. Trevor founded this bike club to help keep the kids of Cape Town off the streets. Unfortunately, we did not get a chance to meet any of the Freewheeler members because we were running late, but Trevor let us bike around his township for a little while. That night was also our final group dinner, because Claire was leaving the next morning. Group dinners are always a bonding experience, and that dinner was so fun because we knew it was the last time all 23 of us would be together. Even though it was hard, knowing that Claire was leaving us and that we would all be leaving soon, it was fun to hang out with everyone.