Animal Ocean

Hello everyone!

I am trying my very hardest to keep up with the blogging, but I am already getting behind. There has been so much packed into the last two weeks, I could write for days and it wouldn't even cover half of it. Once I start my internship at Save Our Seas (this coming Monday, October 4th), things will probably slow down a little bit. I am so, so, SO grateful to have gotten to know Steve and to experience what he has shown me over the past few weeks. I feel like I have gotten the V.I.P. treatment and a total insider's look at Cape Town and its surroundings.. Steve has brought me to so many places that I otherwise never would have been able to venture to, and I am so lucky for that!

The last week or so has been filled with more diving, exploring the coastline, and doing projects for Steve's website, Animal Ocean (check it out, and then come to Cape Town and do some diving/exploring with him- he is awesome!). Tuesday this week was awesome.. we hiked up a trail called Silvermine and to Elephant's Eye Cave, which overlooks tons of vineyards and all of beautiful False Bay, where Seal Island is located. Steve's cousin Alison came along, and it was so much fun to hear more about life here and what it's like to be a 20-something in this part of the world. We took some incredible pictures and found a Table Mountain cockroach (yum!), various beetles (more Steve's thing than mine...), and some really cool lizards.



Elephant's Eye Cave provided amazing views of False Bay and we were able to take some great shots from within it, where the cave outline formed a kind of frame around False Bay:



Yesterday was an absolute BLAST- I took the train to Plumstead, the stop where he usually picks me up, around 9 am, and we started the day off having no plan whatsoever beyond a potential free dive at a site near Cape Point. After deciding to take a little road trip out to Cape Point and stopping to see wildlife along the way, we packed up dive gear and headed out. Little did I know we would end up seeing penguins at Boulders Beach, baboons along the side of the road, ostriches and their chicks feeding on the beach, and five or six different cow sharks during our dive. It was absolutely stunning- both the views of the coastline from the road and each animal that we saw. Here are a few of my favorite photos from the day:



Nesting penguin at Boulder Beach (literally right next to the parking lot)



One of many baboons just hanging out on the side of the road



Coastline on the way out to Cape Point



Ostriches and their chicks on the beach

There are quite a few more that I love, but since it takes so many MB and so much time to upload on here I have just picked out my favorites :) Here is one that is not so scenic, but I like it because this is basically what I have been wearing for the past two weeks and this was just before I saw my first Sevengill Cow sharks!



Hope everyone likes these! Today consisted of office stuff for Steve, including finishing up a presentation for him to use for clients on the boat before seal diving and cow shark diving. We printed those off, I printed and laminated a few pictures to put up on my (very bare) bedroom walls, and then I came home to do laundry, clean, and cook some dinner with the roomies. The next few days will most likely consist of exploring more of Cape Town with roommates, doing a few hikes, and a possible seal dive in Hout Bay again, this time bringing along other VAC interns for Steve to meet and entertain :)

Start my internship Monday- eeek! Wish me luck with all the shark experts :)

I'll leave you with this little treat, thanks to Evert, one of Steve's friends who loves to do wildlife photography and joined us last week for a dive with the seals:

Heritage Day in SA

Hello!

Today was Heritage Day here in South Africa, celebrating South Africa's history and all its people. It's also known as "braai" day here in Cape Town, which means something similar to a barbeque. It is a national holiday, and because of that most everyone was out and about rather than at work. All museums in Cape Town are free, and there are large street festivals and markets throughout the city. It was a beautiful day here (the first warm day since I've arrived!), so my roommates and I decided to take advantage of that and get out to explore.

One of my roommates teaches dance in a township near Cape Town, and for Heritage Day her students put on a performance down at the Community Gardens this afternoon. The Community Gardens are a number of green spaces and walkways near downtown that are covered with gardens, koi ponds, picnic areas and cafes. It's a really nice area to sit and enjoy a sunny day.

There were four other groups in addition to my roommate Leah's students, and all the performances were pretty amazing. I tried to upload a clip of one of the dancers, but it takes way too long with my internet connection here, so I will stick to posting some pictures of the performaces on facebook and just a select few here:



Leah's group did hip hop, which was very cute, since they are all late elementary to early middle school age. The performance lasted for about an hour, and then we headed to the nearby South African museum, which featured exhibits on different South African groups and their traditions, including the various languages spoken throughout the country, the different artifacts found in each region, and the differing rock art found in each area. There was also an enormous exhibit on marine life of South Africa, so of course this was my favorite part. There was a large shark exhibit put on by Save Our Seas, where I will be interning, so I spent the better part of two hours strolling through that. Very, very cool.

We then headed to the V&A Waterfront to do some sightseeing and a little shopping (essentials: laundry basket, sheets, etc. Almost went nuts buying trinkets and clothes for Will and Worden, but was able to resist for the time being). The waterfront area is beautiful due to its backdrop of Table Mountain and Lion's Head, and also just because of the amount of African art and hand-made items being sold on the street. We strolled through the massive mall there for about an hour, picked up a few things, and then took a taxi home (my first South African taxi ride.. quite interesting). All in all it was a very good day, and I am glad we got out to see everyone enjoying Heritage Day.

The last few days have been quite hectic with a number of dive and snorkel trips. On Tuesday I headed over to Steve's (Animal Ocean owner) to help him with some research for his website, and around 11 am he got a call from a good friend of his who was excited about the Yellowtail near Robben Island, so we spontaneously packed up his boat and headed out to the shores off Robben Island with a few of his fisherman friends to do some spearfishing. I mostly dove in and snorkeled around, hoping no White sharks would appear, and watched the guys chase the fish. One of Steve's friends, an avid fisherman who owns his own fish shop in Constantia, told me a few stories about his White shark encounters. He and a friend were flipped out of the water by a five meter shark one time while spearfishing (the shark came up underneath at a high speed in order to breach while hunting them, like they do to seals near Seal Island). They managed to put a spear in it's eye so that it swam away. Another time he came face to face with a six meter White shark while diving in a kelp bed, and the shark tried to come close enough to bite him but ended up getting scared of the kelp and swam away. CRAZY, I tell you.

Anyway, it was a beautiful day, but the water was still pretty frigid (for me, at least)! We spent about five hours out that day, and in the end we took home six good sized Yellowtail. Watching those guys fish is amazing... they are so enthusiastic about it and so skilled. The next day we took some clients seal diving in Hout Bay, and unfortunately it turned out to be quite windy and overcast for most of the morning, so the three eleven-year-olds were not too excited about getting in the water. But, once they got in and saw the seals all around them they were pretty amped up and could ignore the cold for a few minutes. Everyone ended up having a great time (except for one dad who was seasick and throwing up off the side of the boat- not good), and they took me and Steve out to lunch after the trip. Here is a picture of a shipwreck in Hout Bay that is really beautiful (at least I think so):



This weekend Steve headed up the coast to do some spearfishing with friends at a "holiday house" (what we would call a cabin), and although he invited me to come along I decided to stay in Cape Town to celebrate Heritage Day and have a few days to spend with my roommates, since I haven't had time to get to know them very well yet. It is nice to have a few days out of the water, since I feel like my body has taken quite a beating over the last week and a half! Not sure if I'm cut out for this cold water diving every day :)

SO that's mostly what I have been up to- there are a lot of minor details that I have forgotten for the moment, but hopefully seeing pictures on facebook will fill in the blanks. Missing everyone at home, but enjoying my surroundings in Cape Town! I will try to keep this up once a week- especially once my internship starts on October 1st. Love you all!

I live in Cape Town?

Well hellooo there all you trusty followers (maybe a few more than Mom and Dad now, since I've got something a little more interesting going on these days...)! I hope everyone over there in the Americas is doing fine and dandy, and enjoying the (what I hope to be) lovely transition from summer into fall.

Well, here's the big news as of late: I am now in Cape Town! I am sure most, if not all of you, know this already, but it is still working it's way into my brain as reality. I feel like the last few days have just been a blur of plane seats, airport check-in counters and the always wonderful airline food. I left Seattle very early this past Monday morning, and after approximately 24 hours of flying and/or layover time, I made it safely and soundly to the Cape Town International Airport around 8:50 pm Tuesday. A Volunteer Abroad Corps (VACorps, the organization I am here through) staff member named Sly picked me up and we hauled my luggage into a nearby backpackers hostel located in Observatory, the neighborhood where I'll be living. Unfortunately everyone else was in the mood to party, and I was VERY much in the mood to sleep, so it was a slightly restless night, but definitely better than trying to sleep on the plane (next to a very loudly snoring couple.. very nice, but very congested :)

Wednesday morning was all about moving into my apartment and meeting my new roommates. I live in a house called Station Road, and there are 12 bedrooms and two bathrooms (well, technically three, but one doesn't have a toilet and another one has a toilet but no shower.. so I'm not sure how you classify the bathroom situation). Right now there are 11 of us living here, and everyone seems pretty nice so far. Three of the girls have been here for a few months already, so it's nice to have people to show us the ropes and teach us about how to put minutes on our phones, buy electricity at the grocery store (yes, it is true), and where the safe ATM's, streets, bars, restaurants, and running paths are. Each person in the house has a different internship; some are working at refugee centers, one is teaching dance to underprivileged schoolchildren in the area, another is working at the International Center for Transitional Justice, etc. It really varies. I am the only one doing a conservation/science-based internship, so my experience will most likely be very different than the rest.

Anyway, after moving in and getting unpacked, myself and another new girl, Gen (who is really sweet and from just outside Toronto- Gen is short for Genevieve) headed down to the Quik Spar, our trust little grocery store, to pick up some goods for the following day or so. We got home with our eggs, milk, bread, muesli, yogurt, etc. and proceeded to eat. However, we soon realized that the muesli (granola-type mix) had been opened at the grocery store and someone must have poured themselves a bowl at some point before returning it to the shelf. We didn't quite know what to do at first, but we were so hungry at that point that we decided to go for it anyway, hoping it wasn't poisoned or replaced with some odd concoction of drugs. Muesli was fine and we were both satisfied, but it was pretty funny nonetheless. Only in Africa, I guess...

Thursday was devoted to orientation and a bus tour of the city. Now, one would think that coming to South Africa during the middle of their springtime would be hot. Not exactly the case yesterday. The four of us who were doing the tour sat on top of the bus, bundled in jeans, hoodies and fleece jackets and still freezing our tushes off. The sun peeked through the clouds a few times so we could get some great shots of Camps Bay and Table Mountain, but boy was it chilly. Apparently their summer doesn't really kick in for another month or so. Definitely should have brought a few more warm clothes! But back to the tour... the bus took us around the entire city centre and up Table Mountain, which is gorgeous. The view of the coastline is incredible, and the beaches and waterfront area is amazing. I can't wait to hike Table Mountain and see the vegetation and wildlife up close (as close as they'll let us get to them, at least). Just driving by we spotted grazing zebra and wildebeest.. pretty awesome. I will be posting most of the tour pictures on facebook, as well as pictures I have taken since then. I will work on finding time to post some pictures on future blogs as well, but for now it's easiest to upload them to one site only.

After the tour we had about three hours of orientation with Jon Wilson, the head of VA Corps, which included a lengthy safety overview, tips on budgeting and food, things to get involved with and the guidelines for being involved with the internships. He said that for the most part, our VACorps coordinators will stay involved with us for the next two to three weeks, but after that we are mainly involved with our internship supervisors and the VACorps staff is just around if we need any guidance at any time. They do organize weekly activities on Fridays, such as hikes and winery tours, but everything is optional. It sounds like most of the interns get involved with this stuff if they can get Fridays off, so we will see how my schedule turns out.

Last night was a meet and greet at a Reggae bar here in Observatory (known as "Obz" to the residents and locals here), but by the time we had one drink I was absolutely exhausted so we all headed home for a quick dinner and bed. I finally got a full night's sleep last night so I am feeling much more energized than yesterday.

Yesterday and today were very interesting and exciting.. I learned how to spearfish and free dive! How cool. The guy who runs Animal Ocean, the tourism diving company that I will spend the next few weeks helping out (his name is Steve Benjamin), is a Dive Instructor, free diver and lover of spearfishing, so he volunteered to meet with me yesterday and talk about what we'll be doing for the next few weeks. He is 27 and has done SO much for his age.. he studied zoology and icthyology in school (obtained his Honors, which is the fourth, or "extra" year after a three-year degree) and has worked as an underwater photographer, videographer, research and conservation scientist, body double for diving movies, Dive Instructor, etc. etc. The list goes on and on. He now owns a 14-passenger boat which he uses to take clients out on day trips doing various diving and adventure activities, such as Pelagic Shark diving, Cape Fur Seal diving, wildlife photography expeditions, Cow shark diving, and several others. His skill set is truly amazing and inspiring; I suppose growing up in Cape Town doing these things as a child will help you out a little bit in that department :) Anyway, I will basically be tagging along with Steve and his friends/clients/crew for the next two weeks doing whatever it is that they do- today was free diving and spearfishing at Dassen Island, which is about 9 km off the West Coast here, and is inhabited by a small penguin population. It is the same size as Robben Island but much less known and visited, as not many people beyond fisherman know about it. Today was amazing.. within five minutes of taking off from the boat launch, we spotted a Southern Right whale to our left about 50 yards away, maybe not even quite that far. We stopped the boat as it breathed, spouted and then showed us its tail fluke as it dove back down. The rest of the morning and afternoon was filled with chasing after frantic, circling groups of terns who were feeding on small fish chased upward by the Yellowtail. When the fish feed below the surface, the birds get excited and form feeding groups that are easily noticed above water, indicating to fisherman where the shoal (group of fish swimming together) is located. The men I was with were unsuccessful at spearing Yellowtail today, but they did end up getting about ten good-sized Hottentots (which they called "Hottie" or something to that effect for short). After about five hours on the water, chasing around birds and diving in kelp, we headed back to the shore. On the way we spotted a small pod of Heaviside dolphins, which is a small species of dolphin found off the coast of Namibia and off of the Western coast near Cape Town. They left pretty quickly but we were soon greeted by a curious seal that jumped in and out of the water several times while passing our boat. It was adorable. I am now home, showered and full, and absolutely exhausted. Tomorrow is another early wake up and it's off to dive with Cape Fur Seals! How did I get so lucky?

Well, that was slightly more detailed than I had been planning on, but hopefully that's a good rundown of my first couple of days here. I probably won't have time to be extremely detailed in the coming weeks/months, but I am hoping to update weekly about what's going on with Animal Ocean and then starting in October what types of research I'll be helping out with at Save Our Seas Shark Centre (SOSSC).

Hope this entry finds you all happy and healthy, and know that I am missing family and friends back home like crazy! Would love to hear from all of you!

Love, Amanda