Back from diving with sharks, and I'm still whole.
This weekend was the best for just relaxing and taking in the sights, alive and intangible. Friday started with dinner at Bhukara followed by about four hours of dancing at Catwalk (fog machines, upstairs sokkie, downstairs dancing, sticky neon colored circles on many patrons' faces, wait staff wearing barely anything, and the typical loud music). It was quite fun actually, though the bathroom could barely be called a bathroom. The only thing white, or barely white for that matter, was the porcelain toilet, everything else was all colors not under the rainbow. Next was Nu-bar, the more popular of bars in the area. As with most bars, this place also has elevated areas for just women to dance on (I can't really complain). The music wasn't bad, and the crowd was fun. Next bar: Springbok's. It's open 'til 5am I think, we only made it to 2am.
Apparently David Guetta had a show on Thursday night as well, which I was not able to procure tickets for.
Saturday morning, I was driven to Somerset West by Helene and bf. I vastly admire her white, hatchback BMW, since it reminds me of my Mazda3 that I miss driving so dearly. If I were to live here permanently, I would have her (my car) sent over, just so I can have one of the only left-hand drives in the area. The shuttle scooped me up from there and we headed to Gansbaai. The route was extremely beautiful, one side there are mountains, and the other is the ocean. Hermanus was one of the cities we passed through which boasts excellent amenities for tourists and is an ideal place to watch the whales. I caught a few pictures here or there and saw a whale or two.
The town of Gansbaai is small, but quaint. Upon arriving to the shark diving guest house, I was greeted by Chrissie who layed out the agenda of the afternoon, collected payment and pointed me towards the lunch spread they had in the corner. The company was mixed, a small family with their two boys, a group of study abroad students, a few 20-somethings going solo, etc. The captain of the ship pointed out a few ground rules in case we get sea-sick, do's and don'ts and the modus operandi. From there, we embarked on the vessel, about 25 of us total, and headed into 'shark alley'. Other diving operators work in the area as well, though there's really no competition among them all, it's a very symbiotic relationship. Once we've reached the desired area, one man in the back of the boat chums the water. He puts packets of tuna in a large trash can that's bolted to the boat, and it's filled with seawater to the top. The water splashes out into the ocean as he agitates the mixture and refills the can periodically. From here, we wait. There were plenty of seagulls keeping us company and a few seals here or there, but no sharks yet. At this time, I got to know the gentleman next to me, a brazilian named Ronald who works for Coca-Cola and was heading to Swaziland the next day for work, very nice guy.
Our captain spotted a shark and eight people fashioned wetsuits to enter the cage first. During this time, the crew tries to keep the shark around by enticing him/or her with larger pieces of tuna and a decoy, shaped like a seal. The decoy was black (of course) and was indented like an artwork with negative relief from shark bites. They hung out for a bit, then vacated the area. A little bit later, two more showed up and the next group went into the water (around 14C). The only exposed parts of your body area small portions of your face, and your hands. There are designated areas to place your hands and your feet while submerged in the cage. The captain then tells you which direction the shark is coming from and to grab a breath and go under. As you can imagine, they were massive, a good three meters or so coming right towards the cage, at which point you instinctively pull your hands away from the railing. The most enjoyable part was watching the sharks swim slowly next to the cage, then in an instant, swim away. If you focus on the anatomy of the shark itself and look at each part in isolation, you develop a much better appreciation for the creature.
After the dives, we boated by the nearby island to see the thousands of seals congregating on its shores, and then started to head back, but not before we spotted some african penguins in the water as well. They had dinner for us back at the guest-house and we dispersed soon thereafter.
I was dropped a few miles away at the Roundhouse B & B and was checked in by Dave, the owner. From his accent, I'm fairly confident that he was a Brit, and one of the nicest I've ever met. He was extremely accommodating and the property was gorgeous. I quickly showered and headed down the road to catch the sunset...the most beautiful one I've caught here in S.A. thus far. As the sky got darker, the water resembled liquid mercury against the extremely jagged rocks, that seemed more suited for a volcanically active location.
Afrikaans lesson #7
bru - 'male-friend'
vry - to make out (pronounced as 'fry')
After sushi and gelato with Leigh, I hit the lab and will be returning in a few hours. Next weekend is the Cheetah reserve at Spier hopefully, and dinner with my new friends.
Thursday marks the one month mark here. It's gone by so fast. I'm not ready to leave this warmer climate for home yet. The messages from back home have been more than copacetic. Until then, the folks here have opened themselves up to me and it means the world.
Miss you all,
-CK
Ah- you did it! So cool, CK! Now, please don't have any other close encounters with sharks during your trip. Especially when surfing.
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