The last "official" day at Sinethemba
Lara and I left one day earlier than the rest of our group to see what Grahamstown is all about. Getting there on a Saturday evening may not have been the best idea since almost everything was closed, but we eventually asked around and found the street where all of the students from Rhodes University go to have fun – New Street. We could have followed the herd of goats walking on the sidewalk, or the donkey hanging out by the stop sign, but we waited until we saw humans. We popped into the Rat & Parrot and caught the second half of the Sharks vs. Lions rugby game. The bar was filled with South African rugby fans, and we began talking with one family from the Jo’burg area. After finding out that I was from Boston, they asked me about the Red Sox and Yankee rivalry, and why that is and how it is to be from Boston. It always surprises me when people from around the world know so much about where I’m from, yet I was still questioning the rules of rugby and wondering if the Lions were Jo’burg, Durban, Cape Town..? (It’s Jo’burg, and there really aren’t that many rules.) It makes the U.S. seem like the kid in school that everyone knew everything about, but was never friends with. America needs to stop hitting up Facebook so much. The rest of the night was a lot of fun; we grabbed a delicious dinner at the Bistro and then explored some other popular student hangouts. One of them may or may not have been an 18th birthday party but we had a good time nonetheless. The next day, the entire city of Grahamstown was without electricity from 8am – 5:30pm, so we grabbed a couple avocado & haloumi cheese wraps (mmm) at our favorite Café Delizzia, and played Go Fish.
Leaving Grahamstown, we were directed by the hostel manager to take these free game drive roads. The nature reserves were built across roads through towns between Grahamstown and Hogsback, and anyone passing through was able to see some animals on the reserves as they drove along the bumpy dirt paths. Driving along these roads took a considerably longer time than going along the main road since they were not paved, but it made the trip into a free safari, so we thought “Why not!” We were able to see many zebras, baboons, a few antelope, warthogs, and my favorite, an elephant! After the game drive, we came upon the Great Fish River Reserve, where it is said that you are able to see some hippos & rhinos. The only problem with this reserve is that there is a river inside, and in order to get through the reserve, the car must pass through the river. Our hostel manager said that the passenger (me) had to get out of the car, roll up her jeans, walk into the center of the river, and if she is able to stand, then the current is calm enough for the car to pass through. Our question was, what if the current is too strong for her to stand..? Well, then you must drive along the river and pick her up where she lands. Great plan! Anyways, our 20-something year old VW Fox was not prepared for this, so we didn’t make the attempt, and turned around to get back on the main road toward Hogsback.
Since it was pretty dark, we couldn't entirely see the road we were driving on that was weaving back and forth along a cliff, but we made it there safely, even avoiding a few cows in the road. Once we got to Away with the Fairies Backpackers in Hogsback, we spent the night in this mountainous town known as the inspiration for Lord of the Rings. Tolkien used to spend holidays with his family here when he was young. It’s a beautiful place to hike, but it’s one place I know of in South Africa that gets snow! Even though it wasn’t snowing when we were there, it was practically cold enough. So after we built a fire in the dorm and poured ourselves some hot tea, Lara and I had ourselves some wintertime in Africa.
During the day, we went on a beautiful hike to one of the three notable mountaintops- the “hogs” – and although we weren’t sure if we would make it to the top before dark, we gave it a shot. It turned out to be a really beautiful hike. Many parts of the mountain are so steep and slippery since there are so many waterfalls as you climb up, but at the top, the mountain was quite dry and we were able to stop and have some lunch where the sun was the hottest.
On the way back to the bottom, we decided to take a road since the way we ascended would probably lead to us slipping and flying down a 20 meter waterfall – epic death, yet we weren’t okay with our chances. The road led us to a lake that we could see from the top of the mountain, so it was still a nice sight-seeing path. When we were on our way to where we began, we heard a car coming our way from behind. We had already been hiking for almost 6 hours, so a lift back to the car seemed like a reeeally good idea. The car slowed down and it was a policeman, and here’s how the conversation went:
Us: “Hello! How far to the parking lot?”
Police: “About 2km.
Us: “Could we maybe get a ride in the back of your truck?”
Police: “No, I don’t pick people up.”
Us: “But we’re international students. We’ve always wanted to ride the back of a police car.”
Police: “No, I don’t pick people up.”
Us: “But we’re international students. We’ve always wanted to ride the back of a police car.”
Police: “You have? Okay, get in.”
Then we piled into the back of the truck where we thought the “bad people” went and were so happy to be in South Africa, where the rules are so easily broken.
P.S. At our hostel, there was a bathtub on the edge of a cliff! I'm wondering why this wasn't in Lord of the Rings..? It's AWESOME!
