TravelStream™ news feed for member sarah11011 on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/sarah11011 en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 05 Apr 2009 23:52:49 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238897640/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238897640/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238897640/tpod.html Sun, 05 Apr 2009 23:52:49 -0400 A Kentucky girl takes on the world....

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Gili Trawangan, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

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Coffee Bay, Eastern Cape, South Africa

Coffee Bay is one of those places that you fall in love with. It is located in the Transkei region of South Africa. This region is the poorest area in South Africa. Almost everyone lives in a traditional mud hut. The government recently provided them with a running water tap in each village. Also, about 6 months ago the government built outhouses in the villages to prevent Cholera. This is also where Nelson Mandela lives. If he is home, there is a flag raised. The front of his house is built as a replica to the first political prison he was sent to. This was to help him remember his past in order to fight for his vision of the future. I thought this was very poignant.The people in this region were so friendly. They would hear the engine of our car and come running. They would wave, sing or shout. We very rarely passed any other vehicles because everyone walks. A common sight is women walking with huge buckets of water on their heads. I don't know how they do it. It was a great glimpse of how the real South Africa lives.I stayed at a really cool hostel called the Coffee Shack. It is really laid back and located on a beautiful beach. At night, they have free fresh mussels and oysters. One night when I was there, they hosted a traditional potje dinner which was so delicious. The Buffalo Bar, which is located on the property, is a ton of fun. They have these Buffalo Rules that help get the party started. For example, if you are holding your beverage in your left hand and someone yells BUFFALO at you then you have to chug your drink. I sat on my left hand so I wouldn't do that.I decided to do the Easi Falls hike. It was described to me as being farely easy. It was not. It was so incredibly hard. First, we went to the orphanage. The kids were so cute. They were very self sufficient and did everything themselves. Next, we hiked up and down mountains for four hours. These mountains were SOOOO steep. Imagine being stuck on a stair climber for what feels like infinity. In between the mountains, we would have to cross through rivers by trying to jump from rock to rock. Due to my height, my legs don't do well in this sort of situation. We finally made it to the vicinity of our destination. At this point, we had to swim for about 20 minutes. Everyone laughed when I packed a life jacket but they were all jealous when I was just floating along. Then we reached a point where we had to rock climb. It wasn't bad going up but it was really hard going back down. We eventually made it to the Easi Falls. It was beautiful. We had lunch there (toasted sandwiches and chocolate bars) and then had to hike back. In the end, I had blood blisters on my toes and the back of my heels had so many blisters. I kept trying to tell myself that it was worth it for the experience. I don't know if that is true though.One good thing about the walk is that I was able to speak at length with our guides, Josef and Lilangwe. We talked about everything from politics to marriages. They informed me that it was still tradition for the man to pay 10 cows for a wife. This is a person's life savings and is equivalent to $50,000 USD. Both of the boys were not married because their family didn't have any cows. Lilongwe told me that he was sent to a missionary school in Johannesburg for his education. This is very rare for anyone in his village. He said that he felt out of place in the city but then he felt out of place when he got back home because he had experienced so much. He said that he will not pay for a wife. He will hope to find someone that is open minded and more modern in their approach to marriage. The whole idea of paying for a wife is that she is then indebted to taking care of her husband's every need. She cannot divorce him as a result. If she does, then her family has to give the cows back which they won't want to do. They also told me that many people are starting to ditch the ancient marriage traditions (for example: racing cows for 30 miles before the wedding begins) and are attempting to adopt more Western practices (Ex: white wedding dress and cake). I enjoyed talking to them and learning more about their culture. They were very receptive to questions which was really cool.Overall, I wished I would have had more time at Coffee Bay.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238847060/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238847060/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238847060/tpod.html Sun, 05 Apr 2009 23:50:15 -0400 A Kentucky girl takes on the world....

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Storms River, Western Cape, South Africa

Storms River is the adrenaline town of South Africa. It boosts the world's highest bungee jump. It offers almost every adrenaline activity that you can think of. Me, Leanne and Cate decided to try the canopy tour. Basically, we were strapped into a harness and went down the zip lines through the trees. I felt like a little monkey. I'm not going to lie, I was completely terrified for most of the runs. Especially the ones where you were really high up and went really fast. I did feel good after we finished though. I was proud of myself for having done this.Our hostel, ran out of room even though we made a reservation. So they put us up in this wooden house that overlooked the mountains and had horses in the backyard. The only problem with it was that it was extremely hot. We arrived around 7PM and we tried to walk through "town" (one small street) and there was only one restaurant. It was slightly posh and we were definitely the youngest by far. We definitely looked like backpackers in comparison. Actually, there were two Europeans sitting next to us that begin to talk to us. It was a father and son and they were really friendly. We spent dinner laughing and talking. Every other table got bread except us. We think that it was backpacker discrimination.  When we were leaving, this table full of older (like late 30's - 40's) asked where the party was tonight. I think it's just funny that everyone had us pinned.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1237044360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1237044360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1237044360/tpod.html Sun, 05 Apr 2009 23:35:20 -0400 A Kentucky girl takes on the world....

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Wilderness, Western Cape, South Africa

Leanne and I took the Baz bus to a two street beach town called Wilderness. We stayed at the Beach House and we were not disappointed. This hostel offered the most incredible views of the ocean. Our bedroom had a massive porch with hammocks that overlooked the beach. Even the kitchen had a million dollar view. On the bus, we met this cool Aussie girl Cate. She was such a sweetheart and fit along with us perfectly.Every night, the owner cooks an incredible meal out of the deck in a wood fire oven. We had a veggie pizza that was so delicious! There's nothing like good food and a pretty sunset. Another night, we went out to eat at a small restaurant. I ordered these shrimps (or prawns) that had a peri-peri sauce (spicy) and they were so good! That night, we had a few drinks with the other fellow travelers around the fire. We spent our days walking along the beach or relaxing in the sand. It's a great place to re-charge your batteries.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1237044240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1237044240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1237044240/tpod.html Sun, 05 Apr 2009 23:29:37 -0400 A Kentucky girl takes on the world....

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Capetown, Western Cape, South Africa

Capetown is one of those cities that has it all: mountains, the sea, vibrant nightlife, fabulous restaurants, plenty of history and lots of outdoor activities. Our hostel, Ashanti Lodge, was located in the area known as City Bowl. The lodge itself had a leafy courtyard and a swimming pool. The only downside was that it was quite noisy until the early morning.The night we arrived, we had our going away dinner at a game restaurant. They served kudu, ostrich, impala, warthog, etc. Needless to say, I had a baked potato. I didn't want to eat the animals that I came all of this way to see. After dinner, we all went out to Dubliner's Irish pub on Long Street. We danced the night away. It also is a club that is very progressive. Some of the clubs on that street unofficially don't allow black people in. We didn't give them any of our business. I loved that fact that Dubliner's had a great balance. We always started our nights out there because they had good live music and a great atmosphere. Plus, they don't charge cover.Another great thing about Capetown is the delicious food! I had cheap tons of cheap seafood and some great desserts. My favorite fish that I tried was the Angel fish. It was white and tasty. I also enjoyed the South African wine which complimented my meals perfectly. One day, Leanne and I took the sightseeing bus all around town. We were able to see a lot of different areas and could hop off whenever we wanted to. Some of the beaches were stunning and the real estate that was nearby was insane. We also spent some time down by the waterfront. It was so lovely! The buildings were really cool and of course, the harbor only increased their beauty. We had a fabulous lunch where I had the best calamari I have ever had. I seriously was tempted to order another helping.Another day, Leanne and I took the cable car up to the top of Table mountain. It offered beautiful panoramic views. This city has it all- mountains, beautiful beaches and of course, the sea. The views from this vantage point truly were breathtaking. ..
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238898600/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238898600/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238898600/tpod.html Sun, 05 Apr 2009 00:36:45 -0400 A Kentucky girl takes on the world....

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Gili Air, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

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]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238899740/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238899740/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1238899740/tpod.html Sun, 05 Apr 2009 00:29:35 -0400 A Kentucky girl takes on the world....

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Ubud, Bali, Indonesia

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]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1236096600/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1236096600/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1236096600/tpod.html Sat, 14 Mar 2009 11:24:45 -0400 A Kentucky girl takes on the world....

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Sesriem, Namibia

We stopped by the sand dunes and did a bush walk. Our guide was so knowledgeable. I'm not going to lie. If someone had asked me to describe the desert to them, I would just say that it's a lot of sand. After this walk, I know it is so much more. We were able to see lizards, beetles and all of the other creatures that are hidden among the sand. We also were able to hike to the Sossusvlei, which is an area that has old trees in it. It was so very beautiful. We also saw some incredible vegetation. For example, when you pour water on this dried up plant, the dead buds open up and sprinkle seeds before your eyes. It was so cool. There was also another plant that if you squeezed it's leaves it would give you water.We also learned a lot about the bushmen. Up until 1929, people could get a license to hunt them because they weren't considered civilized humans. Our guide said that people used to capture the children of the bushmen and treat them like pets. Our guides grandparents did that. How horrible! These people literally lived off of the desert. If they didn't have enough food, they would just leave their kids behind. If they found food within a few days, they would go back to see if the child was still alive. After our guided walk, we hiked up Dune 45 which is probably the most famous dune. It is 170 meters tall and is made up of sand that is over 5 million years old. It offered a wonderful view of sunset. It was neat to see the sand change colors as the sun went down. This was another highlight for me.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1236097680/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1236097680/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1236097680/tpod.html Sat, 14 Mar 2009 11:14:22 -0400 A Kentucky girl takes on the world....

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Fish River Canyon, Namibia

 We had a really long driving day so I was glad when we actually arrived to our destination. Fish River Canyon is the second largest canyon in the world. However, after seeing the Grand Canyon, I am a bit spoiled. We hiked around the rim of the canyon and then settled down at the viewing area for sunset. Once again, we  ran into the other ATC truck.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1236096240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1236096240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sarah11011/sarah-rtw/1236096240/tpod.html Sat, 14 Mar 2009 11:11:27 -0400 A Kentucky girl takes on the world....

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Swakopmund, Namibia

Swakopmund is a resort town in Namibia that is located near the sea and also the desert. It is known as the adventure capital of Namibia. The thing I was most excited about was sleeping in an actual bed. Most people in our group participated in all kinds of adventure activities (skydiving, sand boarding, quad biking, etc). I decided to relax and enjoy civilization. I used the Internet, ate great meals, went shopping and slept in.  We also had a big night out on Friday night at the bar in Swakop Lodge. We danced the night away. We also ate all of our dinners at the Napolitana restaurant. The food was simply fabulous! Over the 3 nights, I had Carbonara pasta, pizza and a wonderful fish dish. I also went to a movie (it cost around $2.50) to see that newish Jim Carey movie. It was nice to sit in the air conditioned theatre.
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