Tortoises and Snakes

Good evening from South Africa! Here's a wee blog about last week (number 47!)...

On Monday Scott got back to base after travelling with his family for a while so it was nice to catch up with him and hear all about his time away. After all the rain it was finally clear enough for me to do some washing and I was joined by a tortoise! Haven't seen one of them in months (way back when it was hot and sunny here) but this one has been around nearly every day this week.

We didn't do much Tuesday morning but after lunch Scott thought it would be a good idea to go for a swim... there was only really one way to get in the water and that was climbing onto the whaler - which has been moved into the shallows - and jumping off the end of it where the water is deep enough. Fair to say the water was EXTREMELY cold and we were out as soon as we got in! During my shower afterwards I noticed something green sitting up in the corner under the roof... a boomslang. Definitely the quickest I've gotten out the shower and hopefully the first and last time I have a snake in there with me!

The rest of the week hasn't been that busy. On Wednesday we took a walk to Wimpy for some food and WiFi, we took another jump into the water on Thursday, and on Friday I chilled and done a lot of reading.

On Saturday we took a walk to the market which was really nice as usual. We bought some fresh veg and meat from the farmers market to cook with and also took a look around the crafts side of the market. We ended up in Wimpy again for lunch and the rugby was on the TV there so we got to watch that too! Sunday was very chilled again. We cooked up a stirfry with the veg and beef we bought at the market for dinner which was amazing. Our cooking skills have definitely improved the past year!

We also got our flight details for our flight from George to Johannesburg. It's scary to think how little time I have left here in this incredible country. And although I cannot wait to see all my family and friends again I'm really really going to miss this place!

Enjoy the photos,

Rachel :)

 The view from my doorstep while it rained

And then when it turned to a blue sky moments later...

 Spotted this little bird one morning and I loved his bright blue feathers

The tortoise - he's quite friendly! (This photo makes him look much smaller than he actually is)

This guy eats a lot!

The water front and whaler we have been jumping off from

Not something you want to see in the shower

Don't worry I used the zoom on the camera to get this photo - definitely wasn't going to get close!!

The start of our fantastic stirfry 

 And another picture

And the finished product 

The First Farewells and Travelling

Good afternoon from South Africa! Here's my latest blog about the past three weeks...

Week 43 (Monday 1st July - Sunday 7th July) - First Farewells

So way back on Monday 1st, it was the day after we arrived back at base after driving back down from Potchefstroom. We spent the morning finishing unpacking all the gear we had brought back down with us. Me and Talitha also helped with prep for the DSD course starting that day so we cleaned and mopped the dining room and then safety checked the abseil gear that was going to be used for the course. We ended up getting the afternoon off since there wasn't really anything else to do (and we weren't on the DSD course). I also helped some instructors write/check over individuals (reports on the participants) from the course up in Potch.

Me and Talitha (if you're wondering where Scott is at this point in time, he's on leave as his family came over to visit him) had Tuesday off. We spent most of the morning in Sedgefield and had lunch there before walking back to base and chilling here - we actually ended up painting 'goodbye cards' for everyone. 

It was back to safety checks on Wednesday, so Talitha and I were once again in the rox store for the day. After trying to detangle and then coil the MASSIVE (and I cannot stress enough how long this rope is!!!) Robertson abseil line and failing tremendously, we decided to relax it - spreading it out to loosen up all the twists and stiffness of the rope. I wish I had a photo of the size of the rope once it's coiled, maybe I'll take one for the next blog. 

Thursday morning Talitha, Joe and me did the high ropes safety checks. I went up jacobs ladder while Talitha belayed me and then we swapped around for the trapeze. Also helped with the vehicle safety checks that day. A few staff members were also leaving to go back home for leave these days.

Looking back at my diary, we were quite busy on Friday! We started with some maintenance around base - fixing the fiberglass on the canoes with some good old sandpaper, fixing some signs, a geyser cover and the light for the toilets. I also helped some people from the local church move mattresses (if you ever need a mattress, the OBSA Pod Store is the place to go) into the back of their bakkie. Scott came to base before lunch and we had a closing circle for Talitha before trying to get her into the water (an OB tradition). The rest of the day we spent trying to work out where the air is escaping in one of the rafts, writing certificates for the course and then we also went to town where I bought some strawberries.

On Saturday morning we got a lift with Shirley to the market where we met up with Scott and his family. It was really nice to chat with them all and they even brought tea cakes!! Before lunch, Shirley took Talitha to the airport as she was leaving SA a bit earlier than me and Scott. I was definitely going to miss her crazy personality around base! On Sunday Scott and his family came to base so I spent some time with them out on the kayaks - both his brothers managed to get a kayak roll! The DSD course also ended on Sunday morning, I think the instructors were very glad to see the end of it.

Week 44 (Monday 8th July - Sunday 14th July) - Cape Town!

So on Monday morning I said my first proper goodbyes (sorry Talitha you don't count, I'll see you in August). Anyways, I said goodbye to both Emily and Zanza who I've loved working with these past 11 months. Bryce then dropped me off in Sedgefield where I got on a bus (only half an hour late - a miracle here in SA!!) and headed to Cape Town.

I spent a week in Cape Town visiting museums, the water front, Kirstenbosch botanical gardens, some city gardens, a tour of the city and also a very cool coffee shop. I also met up with some of the OB instructors who live in Cape Town which was good. The weather was also amazing which is always an added bonus!

Week 45 (Monday 15th July - Sunday 21st July) - Durban and back to base

So on Monday I traveled to Durban which is in the Kala-Zulu Natal province. Travelling took the whole day so I didn't really do anything once I got to the backpackers I was staying at. The next day I went on one the inner city tours the backpackers run. It was very interesting to learn about the history of Durban and about certain buildings and areas. Our guide (who was fantastic) also took us to a street market where they make traditional medicine. And of course for lunch we all got a bunny chow - a famous classic meal here in Durban. Wednesday I spent at the beach which is another thing Durban is famous for. The water was definitely warmer than back in Sedgefield!

It was an early morning on Thursday as I was flying back to George. Bryce kindly picked me up at the airport and brought me back to base. There was meant to be a course happening on Friday but it got cancelled and although I was really looking forward to doing one more course I think it was for the best that it didn't happen - it was heavy rain all day.

The rain never stopped and lasted all of Saturday too. Thankfully there was patches of drizzle while I walked to the market. That didn't last long though and the heavy rain came back so I took shelter in wimpy and sat with a coffee waiting to see if it cleared up. The sun made an appearance on Sunday which I was super happy about as I could do my washing and let it dry.

Sunday also marked the three weeks left point. It's super scary to think that I have less than a month left here!

Enjoy the photos,

Rachel :)

The goodbye cards we made :)

 The view from my room in Cape Town... table mountain during the sunrise 

 Kirstenbosch 

 A waterfall somewhere in Kirstenbosch 

The V&A Waterfront in Cape Town

Couldn't resist getting a photo here!

 Durban's south Beach

 A rooftop of the city center 

A rooftop garden project we visited

Sharks, Maintenance and My Last Course.

Good evening from a windy winters evening in South Africa! This blog will finally, finally bring you all up to date with what I've been doing here. I fear this may turn into a whole book with the amount of things I need to cover....

Week 40 (Monday 10th June - Sunday 16th June) - Sharks!!

So on Monday we all started with the monthly safety checks. We manged to get a good amount done so we were able to finish it all off on Tuesday. On Wednesday our main job was rechecking some ropes that are dated July 2019 to see if we could extend their lives a bit longer. That night Scott, Talitha and I hosted a ceilidh!! It was great fun and everyone absolutely loved it.

Thursday was the start of our few days leave so we hired a car and went to the beach and spent some time there. Friday we headed along to Mossel Bay where we went shark cage diving!!!! This was insanely incredible! Mossel Bay has the highest concentration of great white sharks anywhere in the world and it was so cool to see so many of them in one place. I think there was definitely more than six different sharks spotted and we got VERY close to a few of them! On our drive back we stopped off at Dolphins Point (a very nice look out point between Wilderness and George) and amazingly we saw two pods of dolphins! Very lucky!!

After the market on Saturday we headed to another beach and spent the whole afternoon there. Finally on Sunday we braved the cold water temperature and went for a VERY quick swim down in the veil.

Week 41 (Monday 17th June - Sunday 23rd June) - Maintenance and Potchefstroom

So on Monday we were tidying up around base which led to Scott, Talitha and I taking a canoe out and paddling along to 'shack' - a wooded area that OB uses for overnight solo. Our task that day was to clear back vegetation and put numbers up at good solo spots so participants can easily find areas to build their shelter. Tuesday and Wednesday were spent doing small odd jobs around base such as cleaning windows, creating a car parking area and moving bark chips. In between all that we were regularly playing some football or volleyball. A DSD course also started on Tuesday that Scott was going to be supporting.

After cleaning the gutters on Thursday morning, we packed a bakkie and the gear trailer with everything we would need for the course that would be happening up in Potchefstroom. Early on Friday, the six of us who were travelling to Potch tumbled out our beds and straight into a bakkie for the 13+ hour trip.

We split into groups on Saturday - Talitha and the three instructors heading to the abseil to create path opening (so many people got lost last time trying to find the way in) while me and Nthabi went into town to buy all the food we'd need for the next week. Once we were all back at the base and the food unpacked, we all sat down for the course brief.

Sunday was the start of the course.  However the group didn't arrive till after lunch so we spent the morning putting up a spiders web and patching the raft. The group was a primary school from Malawi and the kids were between the ages of 10 - 12. After the opening circle it was very chaotic with everyone running around trying to get the very excitable kids sorted. I did the float test with Joes group in the pool which was definitely freezing!! While we chatted to the teachers we found out that one of them was a volunteer with Project Trust in 2004/5! She had volunteered in Malawi, worked for Project Trust and has since moved back out to Malawi to teach. 

Week 42 (Monday 24th June - Sunday 30th June) - The Last Course

I spent Monday morning taking pictures of all the activities the groups were doing. After lunch I headed out with Sicelo's group on the raft which was nice. Tuesday morning was VERY cold. All the outdoor water pipes were frozen so we had to go round with hot water from the kitchen to unfreeze them. I spent Tuesday and Wednesday at the abseil and rock climbing site helping all the groups. Thursday was a clean up and solo day for the groups before I hosted a concert in the evening. Even us instructors performed!

Friday I was up and in the kitchen by 3am helping make the packed breakfast for the group as they left just after 4am. We all headed back to bed for an extra few hours of well needed sleep! The rest of Friday we spent packing up everything, debriefing, did a last minute campsite rubbish check before all heading into town to buy stuff for our braai that night.

Saturday and Sunday we drove back down to Sedgefield but we stayed over on Saturday night, breaking up the long drive back.

This was the last course I'd be working on in my year away. I've absolutely fallen in love with this job and couldn't have imagined a better year away. Now it's time to see a bit more of South Africa and enjoy the remaining days I have here at OBSA. 

Enjoy the pictures,

Rachel :)

 A very cold day at the beach.

 Testing the ropes in a z-drag formation.

 Getting very close with this great white!

A view from the boat before we got in the cage.

 Our fantastic bark chip laying skills.  

Our lovely car park sign we made.

Doing the rock climb set up for the last time.

 Talitha doing the abseil set up.

My clothes were frozen solid after putting them out to hang for only 30 minutes!