On the Road Again

My last night before hitting the Garden Route in Cape Town was spent celebrating Oktoberfest at a beer garden on the V&A Waterfront. (Think Rathskeller with a much better view). The place was completely packed and they had a polka band that we all danced to. The food was good, the people were great, and the music was…lively! Wanting to be up by 6 AM to hit the road, I wrapped up the evening pretty early, and made Ina, Corne, Shaun and friends promise to save next Friday night as it will be my last night in Cape Town before heading back to the US. The evening went too fast, as all good evenings tend to do.
This morning driving out of the city on the wrong side of the road with a bunch of road-raged South Africans was insanity. It certainly did not help that there were hundreds of tourists on the road that, like myself, have never driven on the ‘wrong side’ of the road, and only needed a passport and valid US drivers license to do so. By some miracle, I made it to Oudtshoorn safely, albeit not without a very scenic route. For about two hours I was on a dirt road-no joke, that somehow turned out to ‘T’ right into the road I wanted to be on all along. I do not consider myself the nervous type, but I also do not consider myself a wilderness extraordinaire (eating zoo animals aside).  About ten minutes before I found R62, and by “I found,” I mean I stopped and asked the only person I had seen in about an hour and a half, I started thinking about how the heck I was going to get out of this pickle: low on gas, no cell phone reception, a GPS that did not work, and slightly less athleticism than Armstrong (Ha!). Fortunately, and just in the nick of time, R62 and the sign for Oudtshoorn (and pavement!) turned up.
Oudtshoorn is another quaint little town, complete with ostrich shops, ostrich eggs, and ostrich rides. The vibe here is much different from the hustle and bustle of Cape Town. Here, things seem to move much slower. It is much more dry and the temperature is considerably warmer than it was in the city. The town is small, but is spotted with fast food, bistros, churches, and bed and breakfasts, and let’s not forget, plenty of ostriches. Most importantly, Oudtshoorn is home to Cango Caves and the Cango Wildlife Ranch. Both operate on the same time schedule, and having arrived shortly after 1 PM, it was not feasible to do both today.
Upon my arrival to Oudtshoorn, I checked in at Backpackers Paradise. Everything here seems casual, and they were out of dorm rooms, so I actually have a private room. The privacy is quite nice, but certainly leaves enough quiet for me to think about all of my obligations back home once this fairy-tale trip is complete. After chucking my suitcase in the room and running for some fast-food, Wimpy (aka Steak ‘n Shake with more grease), I took the 2 km up the hill to the Cango Wildlife Ranch.
The timing was perfect, and I was able to see all of the animals, and even pet cheetah cubs, young tigers, and dive with a crocodile. For $80 USD, I got a tour of the whole facility, and one-on-one visits with the cubs, tigers, and of course the crocodile. It also included a professional photo of each excursion, and unlimited photos on my camera that they were nice enough to take.
For dinner, I tried a small Italian restaurant across the street. I had escargot/snail (for the first time) and salmon and ostrich in linguine pasta. Snail was actually very good and tasted similar to muscles (in my opinion). It was served on bread with garlic and olive oil over top. And the best part of the meal was my coke, which I requested come with a full glass of ice. Exquisite.
The day was certainly a success and has left me exhausted. Tomorrow, depending on how much I can fit in, will include Cango Caves in the morning (uncertain I will be able to get to these due to their hours) and a three hour drive to Tsitsikamma where I will stay two nights and activities will include: a canopy tour, black water tubing, and best of all the highest bungee jumping bridge in the world!
Time continues to fly here in South Africa.
"A large volume of adventures may be grasped within this little span of life by him who interests his heart in everything." Sterne





Cheers,
Stacey

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