words are inadequate

there are no words that i can use to convey how beautiful cape town is. i'd been told by people who have visited cape town that it is "the MOST beautiful place they have ever been in the world." i thought maybe this fell in the category of those things people tell you to get you excited for the trip. like when i really want someone to see a movie i say "it's the best movie i've seen in a LONG time." and then i follow it up with "i know i can exaggerate sometimes...but it REALLY is!" i've traveled to a bunch of really beautiful places before so i thought it would just be another one to add to the list but in just one day it topped the list.

now...when i speak about the beauty of cape town...i am NOT exaggerating. it is majestic. so immense, so extreme, SO stunning that even those words don't do it justice. there are some pics below to show you a little bit of this beauty but you have to see it to really appreciate it. today we took a tour of the peninsula that makes up the most southwest portion of the african continent. today's tour included: the "posh" seaside communities of seapoint, camp's bay and hout bay. the property value in these communities are in the millions. the homes are nestled into the mountain and all of them have views of the atlantic ocean. in hout bay we had some time to check out some artisan crafts and we took a boat ride to seal island. the waves were pretty intense due to the rainy weather we've had lately but we were still able to get some great views of the seals in their natural habitat and even some up close moments with a few outside of it. we headed farther south through the wine country and ended up in samstown. samstown is one of the many seaside towns on false bay. false bay is on the indian ocean and is known for the whales and great white sharks that habitate the waters. we only saw whales today...i'm saving the great whites for when i do a SHARK CAGE DIVE!!! yup. can't wait. we had lunch in samstown and went to boulders beach which is home to some very cute african penguins. we were able to get really close to them, as you'll see in the pics. the day ended at cape point and the cape of good hope. cape point is the point where the atlantic and the indian ocean meet and the cape of good hope is the most southwestern point on the continent of africa. the most southern point is cape agulhas, which i'll see sometime. by the end of the day i was overwhelmed by all of the breathtaking places we'd seen. cape point is amazing on its own but after we'd just seen everything prior i was on overload. there is nothing in the states that compares and few places outside that come close. mainly because of the enormity of everything. it was also exciting to see animals up close that i'd only seen in the aquarium. i just wanted to hug the seal...until it roared at me! :-)

tomorrow we're going on a "cultural" tour. which really means...now you're gonna see the other cape town - the cape town that isn't all stunning vistas and cute animals. the cape town that's suffering from serious social conflict and a devastating epidemic. tomorrow i'll finally see khayelitsha, the township where i'll be volunteering. i'm just itching to see this place and the people. tomorrow i'll see where most of the "black" people live. here in cape town they categorize the people into 3 categories..."white", "colored" and "black". who's "white" is obvious. "colored" includes asian, indian, anything not "black". the "blacks" don't live in the same cape town i saw today...

i'll be sure to post tomorrow after i see khayelitsha. after tomorrow night, i'll be in the township until friday morning. after that i have 3 days of and then go back into the township for another 3 days. i continue that cycle 6 times. i have to bring in everything i'll need for those days, as i can't leave the compound. i also won't have access to internet and, i assume, phone. here's my mailing address, in case anyone wants to send snail mail:

AVIVA House
attn: Bobby Hanson
8 Sussex Rd
7925
Observatory
South Africa

love.