Sunday, February 10, 2008
5-4-3-2-1...BUNGY!!!
This weekend I drove down to Port Elizabeth to do something one can only do in South Africa. Bloukrans Bridge, about 2 hours from Port Elizabeth on the Sunshine Coast of South Africa, is the site of the highest bungy jump in the world, duly certified by the Guinness Book of World Records at 216 metres (that's about 709 feet). Click to enlarge and read the text. Just above the text, at the centre of the span below the road is the launch area.
I was going to just do the "Flying Fox" which is like a zip line glide across to the bungy launching area, then was going to go over to another bridge, Gourits, and do the smaller (65 metres) bridge swing rather than bungy as I didn't think I was up for even the regular 65metre bungy.
So I got all set up with the harness and we walked over to the zip line launch area. And off I went. I had done the zip line thing, at Magaliesburg back in May last year, so it wasn't really a huge deal. it was still really really high...216 metres since it goes to the centre of the driving bridge, but it was so fast it wasn't really that scary.
It turns out that Gourits Bridge was another 3 hours away and I had been giving it some thought and decided to just go ahead and do the big bungy. I figured there had never been an injury or death so...As the shirt says, Fear is temporary...Regret is forever. And I hate that feeling of wishing I had done something two seconds after I miss the opportunity. So, as part of my transformation to not being a passenger in my own life, I decided to go ahead. And it was absolutely AMAZING!! I would totally do it again. I had bungy'd before, in Sarnia at only 125 feet, and oddly, that caused more pressure in my eyes than this one did. It was pure adrenaline and such a rush. It seemed to go really really slow as I jumped off until reaching the lowest point and springing back up. The first scariest part of it was the ten seconds standing on the edge looking down. It's seriously far down, man.
I felt a little sick at that point but then they tell you to look at the camera which is above the jumper which sort of distracts you, then they yell 5-4-3-2-1 Bungy! and sort of "help" you off.
The spring back up and down is absolutely unreal. I LOVED it and it wasn't scary at all. You can see the ground below me there. It's a bit deceiving though...I don't think I was actually that close to the ground.
The other sort of tense moments were when I was just hanging there upside down waiting for the crew guy to come down and ferry me back up to the bridge span. It's probably less than 5 minutes but it's long enough that I started thinking about the rope shredding or my leg slipping or a caribeaner slipping and me falling the rest of the way down and smashing into the rocks and water below. It was a pretty long 5 minutes and I'm sure I was jabbering like an idiot the entire way up.
But all was fine, as promised. Up we went and it was great to be back on the bridge safe and sound. I would totally recommend doing it do anyone who has the chance to do it. As the shirt says...fear is temporary, regret is forever.
I was going to just do the "Flying Fox" which is like a zip line glide across to the bungy launching area, then was going to go over to another bridge, Gourits, and do the smaller (65 metres) bridge swing rather than bungy as I didn't think I was up for even the regular 65metre bungy.
So I got all set up with the harness and we walked over to the zip line launch area. And off I went. I had done the zip line thing, at Magaliesburg back in May last year, so it wasn't really a huge deal. it was still really really high...216 metres since it goes to the centre of the driving bridge, but it was so fast it wasn't really that scary.
It turns out that Gourits Bridge was another 3 hours away and I had been giving it some thought and decided to just go ahead and do the big bungy. I figured there had never been an injury or death so...As the shirt says, Fear is temporary...Regret is forever. And I hate that feeling of wishing I had done something two seconds after I miss the opportunity. So, as part of my transformation to not being a passenger in my own life, I decided to go ahead. And it was absolutely AMAZING!! I would totally do it again. I had bungy'd before, in Sarnia at only 125 feet, and oddly, that caused more pressure in my eyes than this one did. It was pure adrenaline and such a rush. It seemed to go really really slow as I jumped off until reaching the lowest point and springing back up. The first scariest part of it was the ten seconds standing on the edge looking down. It's seriously far down, man.
I felt a little sick at that point but then they tell you to look at the camera which is above the jumper which sort of distracts you, then they yell 5-4-3-2-1 Bungy! and sort of "help" you off.
The spring back up and down is absolutely unreal. I LOVED it and it wasn't scary at all. You can see the ground below me there. It's a bit deceiving though...I don't think I was actually that close to the ground.
The other sort of tense moments were when I was just hanging there upside down waiting for the crew guy to come down and ferry me back up to the bridge span. It's probably less than 5 minutes but it's long enough that I started thinking about the rope shredding or my leg slipping or a caribeaner slipping and me falling the rest of the way down and smashing into the rocks and water below. It was a pretty long 5 minutes and I'm sure I was jabbering like an idiot the entire way up.
But all was fine, as promised. Up we went and it was great to be back on the bridge safe and sound. I would totally recommend doing it do anyone who has the chance to do it. As the shirt says...fear is temporary, regret is forever.
Monday, February 04, 2008
Lesotho...finally!
On Sunday, the day dawned bright and sunny and I finally got on the tour into Lesotho. Lesotho is the tiny country that is geographically surrounded by South Africa. Lesotho is the little red dot on the map below.
The majority of households survive on farming or migrant labor--many of them miners who live in South Africa most of the year and send money back. The country over 80% rural, though very very different from south western Ontario rural, lol. Being Summer now, it is very very green and lush. Corn, or more correctly, mielies, grows seemingly everywhere.
We went into the Northern part and it is very very rugged. It is a very mountainous region, and it is the only independent state in the world that lies entirely above 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) in elevation. Its lowest point is 1,400 metres (4,593 ft), and over 80% of the country lies above 1,800 metres (5,900 ft). Being so high, it is also very very cold in the winter, including snow. Back in the day, the Queen (of England) gave blankets to the country, and wearing these blankets has become tradtion, even in the heat of summer...it was odd to us...it is very hot there yet no one had shorts or short sleeves on...and many of the people had sweaters on. In the picture below, both men are wearing hats, the man on the left has a jacket over his shoulders, and the man on the right has the blanket wrapped around him. Seriously, it was probably 27 C or 85 F that day.
The roads are mostly dirt roads and are strewn with large rocks. There are almost 6000 kilometres of unpaved dirt roads. Going is very very slow and rough. We didn't see very many other motor vehicles and many people ride horses. This man also is wearing a knit hat and blanket.
Our first stop was a school. There are three buildings there--two schools and one cookhouse. One of the buildings was the first community school, built in 1976. There are other gov't schools but they are more than 2 hour walk one way. The second of the three buildings is a new school that is being paid for by the Irish. There are three classes in the one building, and four in the other, all going on simultaneously, with no walls or barriers or the like.
The second activity was a walk up the mountain to have lunch and to see the cave paintings. It was a bit arduous as it was hot and with the elevation, but absolutely beautiful.
Lesotho does not have any protection laws for the cave/wall drawings so they are fading due to weather and some have been scratched off by children who don't know the historical, cultural value of them. Here, the guide, Zim, is pointing out a painting, and there is a closeup of one.
One of our guides was a teacher at the school and the community children flocked to our group. They were very comfortable with us and were great about having their pictures taken. And they knew what to expect...groups from our BackPacker's lodge come by regularly, mostly with those folks you tend find in these kinds of things...young students or health care workers or other travelers and such, from the US, Germany, England, Australia and Canada among other places. They followed us on the hike and shared our lunch.
Fantastic trip. I learned a lot, and am really glad I was able to finally get there.
The majority of households survive on farming or migrant labor--many of them miners who live in South Africa most of the year and send money back. The country over 80% rural, though very very different from south western Ontario rural, lol. Being Summer now, it is very very green and lush. Corn, or more correctly, mielies, grows seemingly everywhere.
We went into the Northern part and it is very very rugged. It is a very mountainous region, and it is the only independent state in the world that lies entirely above 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) in elevation. Its lowest point is 1,400 metres (4,593 ft), and over 80% of the country lies above 1,800 metres (5,900 ft). Being so high, it is also very very cold in the winter, including snow. Back in the day, the Queen (of England) gave blankets to the country, and wearing these blankets has become tradtion, even in the heat of summer...it was odd to us...it is very hot there yet no one had shorts or short sleeves on...and many of the people had sweaters on. In the picture below, both men are wearing hats, the man on the left has a jacket over his shoulders, and the man on the right has the blanket wrapped around him. Seriously, it was probably 27 C or 85 F that day.
The roads are mostly dirt roads and are strewn with large rocks. There are almost 6000 kilometres of unpaved dirt roads. Going is very very slow and rough. We didn't see very many other motor vehicles and many people ride horses. This man also is wearing a knit hat and blanket.
Our first stop was a school. There are three buildings there--two schools and one cookhouse. One of the buildings was the first community school, built in 1976. There are other gov't schools but they are more than 2 hour walk one way. The second of the three buildings is a new school that is being paid for by the Irish. There are three classes in the one building, and four in the other, all going on simultaneously, with no walls or barriers or the like.
The second activity was a walk up the mountain to have lunch and to see the cave paintings. It was a bit arduous as it was hot and with the elevation, but absolutely beautiful.
Lesotho does not have any protection laws for the cave/wall drawings so they are fading due to weather and some have been scratched off by children who don't know the historical, cultural value of them. Here, the guide, Zim, is pointing out a painting, and there is a closeup of one.
From there, we went to see a sangoma. Sangomas are the traditional healers in many tribes in southern Africa. They perform a holistic and symbolic form of healing, embedded in the beliefs of their culture that ancestors in the afterlife guide and protect the living. Sangomas are called to heal (using herbs primarily), and through them ancestors from the spirit world can give instruction and advice to heal illness, social disharmony and spiritual difficulties. Sangomas have many different social and political roles in the community: herbal healing, divination, rituals, finding lost cattle, protecting warriors, and narrating the history, cosmology, and myths of their tradition. They are highly revered and respected in their society, where illness is thought to be caused by witchcraft, pollution (contact with impure objects or occurrences) or by the ancestors themselves, either malevolently, or through neglect if they are not respected, or to show an individual her calling to be a Sangoma.
One of our guides was a teacher at the school and the community children flocked to our group. They were very comfortable with us and were great about having their pictures taken. And they knew what to expect...groups from our BackPacker's lodge come by regularly, mostly with those folks you tend find in these kinds of things...young students or health care workers or other travelers and such, from the US, Germany, England, Australia and Canada among other places. They followed us on the hike and shared our lunch.
Fantastic trip. I learned a lot, and am really glad I was able to finally get there.
Back to Drakensberg
So this past weekend I went to Drakensberg again, which is a mountain region about 4 hours south of Johannesburg, on the border of Lesotho. Lesotho is the tiny little country in the east of South Africa...it's entirely surrounded by South Africa. Jackie and I went a few weeks ago to try to go on a tour into Lesotho but it rained and we couldn't go. So I decided to go again to see if I could get better weather and get to see Lesotho. I arrived Friday planning to go on the tour on Saturday. Unfortunately there was a bit of a scheduling problem so I decided to go on a bit of a photography tour around the area on Saturday and then Lesotho on Sunday.
On Saturday I went on a hike at Cathkin Peak park and went over to Sterkspruit Falls. It isn't a really big waterfall but it was off in the middle of nowhere and I was the only one there. (click to enlarge photo)
Then I went back on a drive up to Cathedral Peak. The neat thing about that drive is that it gets very very "authentic" as you go. It is a bit rural and it is very very interesting to see how folks live in this area. The houses are in "kraals" which are groupings of housing buildings, for usually extended family, and most if not all have the traditional round huts for cooking and or traditional activities.
On Saturday I went on a hike at Cathkin Peak park and went over to Sterkspruit Falls. It isn't a really big waterfall but it was off in the middle of nowhere and I was the only one there. (click to enlarge photo)
Then I went back on a drive up to Cathedral Peak. The neat thing about that drive is that it gets very very "authentic" as you go. It is a bit rural and it is very very interesting to see how folks live in this area. The houses are in "kraals" which are groupings of housing buildings, for usually extended family, and most if not all have the traditional round huts for cooking and or traditional activities.
Silver Art Clay Jewelry
Okay, so I always feel like I could make many of the crafts in various stores or shows or whatever. I usually never get around to actually trying to make the thing, and I imagine that it would never ever be as good or easy as I think it is. Well, I'm now all about seizing opportunities of late, and grabbing life with both hands so...Anyway, since I've been here, I have a new interest in beading, so Jac and I went to a bead trade show in September and saw something else that piqued our craft imagination...chain maille jewelry and clay art silver. Chain maille is what you think it is...like the stuff the knights or whoever wore...except one uses the patterns to make necklaces, bracelets and the like (though some people do make bras (!?) and club clothes out of it.) Jac grabbed a flyer for lessons and we finally got around to going in mid January. I took a class in chain maille and jac took a class in making a clay art silver pendant. I loved the jewelry I saw so we went back a week later and made rings. I have to say...I AM HOOKED!!! I didn't realize it would actually be so easy and turn out so well.
Clay art silver is basically like working with regular clay..it's gray/brown and handles like that. The difference is that it is actually reclaimed silver and it is mixed with an organic material like ground rice or whatever to make it like clay. It looks like regular clay and one would have no idea it's going to be silver. One makes the item, dry it, fire it, then brush the organic material off with a wire brush and voila, and get a beautiful piece made of 100% silver. Amazing.
Here it is in progress...
Clay art silver is basically like working with regular clay..it's gray/brown and handles like that. The difference is that it is actually reclaimed silver and it is mixed with an organic material like ground rice or whatever to make it like clay. It looks like regular clay and one would have no idea it's going to be silver. One makes the item, dry it, fire it, then brush the organic material off with a wire brush and voila, and get a beautiful piece made of 100% silver. Amazing.
Here it is in progress...
Crawling...
Okay...this is just a quick detour from my travel stories. Sahara has become very mobile of late. She was rolling around like a mad thing to get places but has now started crawling and sitting herself up. It all sort of happened in the space of a week or two. She ends up in the funniest places...here we looked down and she had managed to push herself backward half under the chair. She's so cute, if I do say so. I don't know where she thought she was going.
Birthday!
My birthday is December 30th and I came back from Zanzibar in so I could spend it with my sister and my niece Sahara. Because everyone had been busy traveling (me from Zanzibar, Jac and Sahara from Cape Town) or meeting Girlie's daddy's family, we vegged a little bit in the morning. (Really I just wanted to show off the baby.) (Click to enlarge)
Of course it's summer in South Africa and the day was stunning. Hot! (seriously HOT!) and sunny. We spent part of the day hitting golf balls at World of Golf, since I'm all about the golfing of late. Here is my sister lining one up on the chipping range:
And here we are having a little break...again, really just showing off the baby (click to enlarge):
And finally, we went to one of our favourite restaurants, Gabianno's, in Nelson Mandela Square, Sandton Centre. It was great to be able to spend my birthday with Jac and my girlie, Sahara. OMG, I can't believe how cute she is!!!!
Of course it's summer in South Africa and the day was stunning. Hot! (seriously HOT!) and sunny. We spent part of the day hitting golf balls at World of Golf, since I'm all about the golfing of late. Here is my sister lining one up on the chipping range:
And here we are having a little break...again, really just showing off the baby (click to enlarge):
And finally, we went to one of our favourite restaurants, Gabianno's, in Nelson Mandela Square, Sandton Centre. It was great to be able to spend my birthday with Jac and my girlie, Sahara. OMG, I can't believe how cute she is!!!!
Subscribe to Posts [Atom]