Coastal romp

My journey continues south toward Cape Town, by this stage it is a kind of unspoken rule that the Roxi, Eva and I stick together. We check in to the Ashanti backpackers which lies at the foot of Table Mountain and try to adjust to the drop in the temperature from our last stop.

Over the past few weeks the soccer has been going on and at this stage Holland are still in the competition so we head out for the night to a Dutch bar to watch the game with 2 other Dutch people we picked up along the way, Kylie and Joris. I think I am one of the few foreigners in the bar but I blend in by wearing the colours and painting the Dutch flag on my face. This must work because people start blabbering to me in Dutch and I have to admit I am an intruder. The game does not turn out the way we had hoped but it was such a fun night. Every time they scored beers were thrown straight up in the air and I was being taught Dutch songs, dances and swear words. I would hate to see how they party if they actually won!!

The next morning we hire a car and climb table mountain, then we drive back up the coast to Hermanus and check into a hostel intent on going shark diving the next day. Unfortunately the next morning the swell is huge so diving is cancelled, instead we drive along the coast line for a couple of hrs sightseeing and go to Stellenbosch for wine tasting and cheese.

Thankfully the swell subsides the next day and Roxi and I head out early in the morning to cage dive with Great White Sharks :). It does't disappoint!! Definitely a highlight for me. The cage is attached to the side of the boat and 4 people at one time get in the cage with only goggles. The dive master attracts the sharks with a giant fish head attached to a piece of rope and once they see a shark approaching they reel the rope toward the cage and tell us to take a breath and go under the water. The sharks are magnificent, they come right up to the cage and a couple of times run into it. At one point I got hit in the face by a tail fin and came up laughing my head off with excitement! The guy next to me reached out and touched it's tail when it hit the cage.

After the shark dive we drove back down the coastal route we had taken the day earlier, it was so beautiful, stunning mountains to the right of us and beautiful coastline to the left. We did see a HUGE pod of dolphins, Im talking at least 200, making their way up the coast but we did not see a whale which is what Hermanus is known for.

It is here where I must say goodbye to Roxi and Eva :( we have had such a great time exploring and getting to know each other. We will definitely keep in touch and are already planning for them to visit me in London for the Olympics and I will come stay with them when I travel Europe.

This is what draws me to travelling, the amazing scenes, once in a lifetime opportunities, the blending of cultures and the bonds that you make along the way. Thanks girls for an amazing time, see you soon xxx

Yvette