Beach and Ocean

Long Beach Walk



After breakfast one morning the clan and I walked to the beach for our ritual sunbathing. The tide was out quite far that day and although there were no tidepools to speak of there were these low rocks that we could see down the beach a ways, and so Lindsey and I set out in search of them and anything else of interest. I think we were gone for a total of four hours or so and during that time we found lots of cool shells (as if I need any more!) and were able to experience a part of the local culture. In the little pools that form when the tide goes out there were numerous little fish that the local boys hunt with their makeshift bow and spear. To our surprise they were quite successful and tried their best to sell them to us immediately after their catch. While the boys were spearing fish, the men were fishing in a more traditional casting and reeling manner and the girls and women were gathering up muscles and other edible life among the rocks, to either sell or eat for themselves. Upon the return from our walk, we discovered that we were both quite burnt- Lindsey on her legs and the tops of her feet, and me on my back. That night neither one of us slept well…

Ocean Safari

To break up the monotonous time spent sunbathing (sigh), I decided to go on an adventure and splurge for an Ocean Safari (Splurge meaning R 250, which equals $35). I guess I must preface the safari with a little background information. At this point in time we had been in Mozambique for 5 days and because of the walk I was a little burnt. I knew that my burn + water would equal further pain and misery, so I requested to borrow a wet suit type shirt to wear over my costume (swimsuit). Knowing that laundry facilities are nonexistent in most places in Mozambique I was prepared for the garment to be a little rank, however, I could barely even touch the excuse of a shirt they handed me to wear and opted instead to get my tank top wet and constantly reapply sunscreen during the excursion.

Knowing for days beforehand that we were going to go on the safari, Lindsey and I had been long discussing the fact that we were not going to drink the night beforehand. We made our way through the first happy hour fine only to be lured to the bar during the second happy hour of the night by our flatmate and, a few tequila shots later, our promises to each other were completely forgotten.



Needless to say, although the ocean was very calm that day even the most miniscule movement in the boat made Lindsey and I give parting glances to each other as we tried to maintain our stomach contents. The good thing was, once we were in the water we were fine because of all the excitement of swimming with animal life. The most exciting part of the excursion was when we circled the boat around this group of spinner dolphins and then jumped right out in the middle of them. Some were swimming over us, some were swimming under, and we were surrounded by their calls, clear as day. It was an amazing experience and one you would for sure never get for 35 dollars in the states. The other thing we were able to see was a whale shark. They are the largest sharks in the world (as you would infer by their name) and their demeanor is much like that of a whale: lazy and slow. Most people find this the most exciting part of the trip, but it seemed kind of dull after the dolphin experience. It was a beautiful creature though, as you can see in this picture (which I stole off the internet). Beautiful as it was though, I was so ready to touch land again.

More to come about the Mozambique trip and some updates about Cape Town and my weekend in Hermanus. Stay tuned!