You all didn't really miss out on much Saturday and Sunday. We ran, rested, and rode around Capetown. We did go up on Table Mountain. They asked us to vote for it as another world wonder, but I'm not so sure. On neat thing is that when the fog surrounds the top of the mountain, they call it the tablecloth. Pretty nifty. Afterward, we stopped by Simonstown and looked at penguins. It was right by the beach, so we walked along the boardwalk. While we were walking back to the van, I saw two penguins outside near the small market. Now, I'll let you know that we all have a bet going. Minus the bad connotation. The "bet" is that whoever can grab a bird first wins Lauren's patience throughout the trip. If you know Lauren, you understand just how incredibly splendid that would be. So I lunged at the penguin and lightly touched the back of its neck before it went off into the bush. And guess what happened? Lauren - conveniently - didn't believe me. But it did happen: I promise.
Okay, so we left wine country yesterday morning. When I say morning, I mean 3:45. AM. Because "lunch in the bush" is worth waking our fannies up before it hits 30 degrees outside. Our flight was at 6am, and we all barely made it. May I say, Kulula airlines is pretty hilarious. All the flight attendants wear obnoxiously large collars, the manuals are riddled with snarky comments, and the planes are bright green. It's actually pretty fun.
We arrived in time for lunch (as planned), and were awed by the sheer African-ness of everything. On the bus trip in, we got our first look at some giraffes (or, as some would say, horses with 10-foot necks). Our lodgings are impossibly intricate, and the staff is incredibly eager to please. Each time we come back from a safari, they are out front to greet us with hot towels and drinks. They are wonderful!
So last night, we had all moved in to our respective lodges and were ready to go safariing. If that's a word. (Just to let you know, safaris are a bi-daily event. We head out at 6:30 in the morning and 4:00 in the afternoons, and each tour lasts three hours.) We met our guide, Marc, and headed out. Can I just say: Marc is amazing. As a matter of fact, I found out today that he is the head guide here, and that doesn't surprise me one bit. Last night, for our first safari, the very first thing he showed us was a pride of lions. Now, Marc is a pretty reserved guy, but after we saw the lions, he was really excited. We also saw a sivet, a herd of impala, and a few elephants. On this morning's safari...well, I need to get off the computer now, but hopefully I'll let you know what happened next. It was pretty intense, so you'll want to find out. :)
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