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We were up early this morning to all shower and get ready in the morning. Tonya came into our room to say goodbye to us, and Bonnie gave everyone hugs. We went downstairs to say goodbye to Enice and Hazel and that is when the tears started to come down. We gave hugs and Q came over to see us all off. He waited with us for our ride from Lucky Taxi and I was crying so much saying goodbye to him. Every time I looked at Q, I would start to cry, and I just couldn’t talk to him because it made me so sad. He helped us pack our things into the Kombis and he gave all of us a hug and then stood on the curb and waved us as we drove away. Ugh! It made me so sad saying goodbye to him. As we were leaving he told us, “It’s just like you girls are going away for the weekend and you will be back on Monday and I’ll see you then. It’s “see ya later” not goodbye.” He always puts things so nice and makes you feel better about things. The plan is that we will see him again because he is planning on coming to Minnesota to visit hopefully this summer before he gets tired down with things. That would be so much fun…we already started a list of things that we could do when he comes to visit.
We got to the airport in PE and had our bags saran wrapped so people couldn’t break into them, then off we went for checking our bags, I was so worried that my bags were going to be overweight…but I didn’t get an overweight tag and I didn’t have to pay extra money for the bags which was a pleasant surprise! We got through security and we sat in the airport for three hours waiting for take off. On the flight to Jo’burg, I sat with Leslie and Christy right in the middle of the two. The flight was an hour and a half and then we made it to Jo’burg and we made the confusing walk through the airport there. It’s a good thing that we got lost there when we came to South Africa because we knew exactly where we had to be going! We waited to check in with Delta and then we did our Vat tax refund and I got back almost $100 from the taxes that I spent in South Africa. After getting our money we grabbed sandwiches and I got a pepperoni sandwich and it was delicious. We were told that we couldn’t exchange our Rand at the bank in the airport so rather than worrying about it, I did a little more shopping at a few stores in the airport and I spent the exact amount of Rand that I had left! We were able to leave Jo’burg an hour earlier than scheduled. Laura, Kasy, and I sat across the aisle from each other. I sat next to a very friendly man from Juno, Alaska and we talked for quite a while on the trip, exchanging stories about our African trips (he was in the Congo and Botswana) and we talked about nursing and my clinical experience. I learned that he is a writer and his third book was published and released last Sunday and he has interviews all next week in New York. It was neat talking to him about it, and he wrote down the names of his three books for me to check out. One of them is a memoir about his travel experiences in a humorous light. The other two books are about World War II. We were lucky on this flight because we all had personal televisions on our seats! I definitely got my use out of the TV. I watched many movies on the flight to Dakar (Georgia Rule, License to Wed, Hairspray, The Office, My Name is Earl, and I played a game and listened to some music.) I managed to stay awake for the flight to Dakar, only sleeping for 45 minutes. We arrived in Dakar at 2:10am (South African time…about seven hours after leaving Jo’burg). Then we stayed on the plane to refuel and have security come through and we were back in the air an hour and a half later. I took a Tylenol PM for this flight because I wanted to get some sleep. I slept for about three hours on this flight, and ended up watching more movies (I Now Pronounce you Chuck and Larry, Harry Potter IV, Evan Almighty, and part of Surf’s Up). When I was stretching my legs in the back by the bathroom, I was asked by a random man, “Do you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior?” and for 15 minutes I was given a speech about the Bible and religion and his beliefs (he asked me if I knew what the Bible was). Finally the bathroom was my turn and I was able to escape…I was not in the mood for that conversation at 5:00am.
The plane ride was dark the entire time from leaving Jo’burg which was nice because it meant that we weren’t trying to sleep with the sun coming in, and the sun only started to rise when we were coming into Atlanta. We arrived at Atlanta at 7:35am after 9 hours and 20 minutes of flying from Dakar! We got our bags and went through Customs in Atlanta and had a three hour layover. Kasy and I went to get coffee and cinnamon rolls and it was so strange playing with things in American dollars, and seeing prices cheap and not in the Rand! We changed clothes and freshened up in the bathrooms and were on our way on the final of the four flights back to Minnesota! We were told that we are supposed to get a big snow storm tomorrow…and that there is snow at home! It blows my mind tha I am going home to that cold weather! Fortunately, when we took off in Atlanta we were able to see the trees and their colors change, so we experienced Autumn for about 30 seconds!
Now, I am sitting on the plane typing away and counting down the minutes until I am home in Minnesota and able to see my family! Mom and Dane are going to be at the airport to see me and Marcus is going to meet us at home when he is done with classes. We are going to go out for Mexican at Pablos tonight for dinner because I have such a craving for Mexican food…I haven’t eaten it since the night before I left for South Africa! I can’t wait and I am so darn excited! Only an hour and a half left on this flight and I’ll be home! I am so excited right now. But is’ strange because I’m sitting in the window seat looking out at the towns below and seeing American soil, but I am listening to my South African music….you can take the girl out of South Africa, but you can’t take South Africa out of the girl I guess. I am over the sadness of leaving SA…it’s just that I am going to miss Q and all of he other people I met so much, and that is what made leaving so darn difficult! But we have internet, Facebook, and all of the other wonderful ways to communicate! That’s about all that I have for right now…Minnesota, here I come!
I woke up at 6:30 this morning and I couldn’t fall back asleep, so I read my book for an hour and finished it! I started another book (seriously I have been getting so much reading done on this trip…I love it!). The sun was shining, so I made my way down to the market to get my things from Cassius and the animals were fantastic! He is so creative and artistic! I can’t wait to show people what I got on this trip! I said goodbye to my Rasta friend Chris who I bought too many paintings from! When I got back from the market I went straight to the roof to tan and the weather was B E A U T I F U L ! ! ! I was able to lay out for two hours, then grabbed a quick lunch of yogurt and granola and then went back to tan for another hour. Warren stopped over and he invited us for a drink at Captains so we all got dressed and met him and is friends for a drink at Captains one last time. On the walk back, Christy and I went down to the beach to take pictures and walk in the sand and in the water one last time. The water was so warm! When I got back to the flat we had a manicure station set up and Laura painted everyone’s nails and gave hand massages! It was wonderful! Around 6:00, Q came over and we all hung out for a bit, he helped me make a video for when I do my presentation at St. Wence. He demonstrated the clicks and talks in Xhosa for the camera! At 7:00 the five of us girls took Q out for dinner and we went to Leonardo’s for pizza. Q had never been there and it was delicious! We all had a great time sharing four pizzas and drinking sangrias! We came home and said bye to Q on the doorstep and he promised that he will be awake to send us off in the morning. We watched a movie on TV and did our last bits of packing. It’s not time for me to go to bed on my last night in South Africa. It has been such a strange day because it doesn’t feel like I am leaving PE and SA. I am going through the same feelings that I had when I was leaving the States and coming here…I felt like it wasn’t happening until I got on the airplane, so right now, I am in denial and pretending that I am able to stay. It’s not so much the going away and leaving the country that makes me sad, but it’s the saying goodbye to Q and the other friends that we have made here. Tomorrow I am sure that I will be all tears when we say goodbye to him. Its such a strange emotion trying to explain my excitement to come home and see family, give out my presents, and find the perfect place for all of my decorations yet at the same time I want to bring home the other things that I am going to miss, like the sound of the ocean at 4:00 in the morning when there are no cars and no people out on the streets (which lasts about five minutes, but it is still worth listening for the crashing waves from the flat), the walk to Captains for Thursday Night Trivia, Q coming over just to sit around and chat, and being surrounded by my eight new best girlfriends. That is probably going to be the most difficult to give up because we won’t be living together anymore and it is going to be so strange not having them all around…not sharing rooms with, meals with, kombi rides to class, going to class and then coming home and everything in between. Ugh! It’s so bittersweet. But I am going to go to bed before I start to cry and not want to leave! I can’t wait to see everyone! Love to all and I’ll be home soon!
Today we spent some time on the roof when the sun finally came out. It was crummy and windy in the morning, so the market was closed and I needed to go there to pick things up from a guy who was making a special order for me of bead animals. Hopefully it will be nice tomorrow and I can get it then! We tanned on the roof until the sun disappeared behind the clouds and it started to rain. Leslie and I went to Captains for lunch and we were the only people there! It was strange seeing the place empty! Lunch was great and we will have leftovers for dinner! I packed my suitcases today and everything fit which was a huge surprise! I couldn’t believe that all of my clothes and gifts could fit into my suitcases! We watched movies before going to bed as a group…and Leslie and I made an ice cream run one last time!
It was raining today…bummer! Actually the weather was really wacky today because it would be overcast, then sunny and hot, then the wind would pick up, and then it would pour down. This weather cycled continuously throughout the day today. Leslie and I went down to the market but it was too windy so our bead guy wasn’t there to give us the statues that he made for us. Bummer! I hope that he is back tomorrow. Laura and I walked to the boardwalk to use the internet and of course the CSB site didn’t work. So that was a waste of money! Oh well, we took a Kombi back because it was raining (our last ride of the trip). We all sat in the flat today and watched movies, worked on videos, and just hung out. Q came over and spent the afternoon with us just talking. We went out to dinner at Mediterranean with Tonya and her family (Bill and Bonnie)! It was very yummy (as usual). We had a fun dinner and the conversations were funny! Overall, it was a good night. When we got back from dinner, Q came over again and had a beer with us as we sat in the living room watching a really bad movie with no plot and we talked. We tried convincing him that he should come to Minnesota to visit us next summer!
This morning was absolutely gorgeous! We put on the swimsuits and tank tops and hit the market! I was only going to buy a few more things, but I bought two more paintings, a beaded bowl, earrings and a finger piano. Oh well, that will be the last time that I get to go there and I wanted to make sure that I had everything that I wanted and needed! When we got back to Langerry, we hit the roof for 2 ½ hours and we got very tan (and a tad burnt). This was pretty much the extent of our day and night…just being lazy because we are on vacation!
This morning I was up and ready for another lazy day. I spent the morning working on my video and reading my book. The car people came and picked up the car and I had a few things to tell them about their services in regards to miscommunication and their lack of explaining things to their clients. But it was all sorted out, and even better the sun came out! Leslie and I went up to the roof and the other three came up to join us. We spent two hours soaking in the sun, reading, and sleeping while tanning. The five of us got all dressed up for dinner at Blue Waters. I actually ordered something different than the chicken stir fry…I had the venison stroganoff and it was delicious! We came back to the flat to put our leftovers in the refrigerator and we hung out for a bit until Q came over and said that he would come out with us for a bit! Today in PE in the bay was a big music festival and there are people all over the streets jamming to music in their parked cars, and crowding the streets to get into the bars and clubs. We went to Virtual Sports and sure enough Kyle and Mava were there. We danced with Kyle and Q for quite a bit and then we saw our German friend there too (I still have yet to learn and remember his name!). We danced for a few hours and shared too many laughs about one girl who just hopped from guy to guy dancing! Warren was also out, so we had to take a bunch of pictures as a group since it might be the last time all of us are together. When we were out on the outdoor patio, Q and I were talking and he put his arm around me and said, “Lady Leah, when you get back home to Minnesota, you are going to find the most perfect guy and you are going to fall in love. And he is going to be so nice and treat you so well and when you find him, you will think of me and what I’m saying right now. You have such a great personality and you are so beautiful and you will be so happy. I know that it’s hard for you to be around all of the girls when they talk about their boyfriends and get to see them when you get home, but it will happen for you.” Seriously, I am going to miss him so much…Tusie is such a lucky girl! By 1:30, Christy Laura and I were tired and we walked back home. I called Dad to tell him about the Durban trip and Q cam back with the girls and we all talked for a bit. It’s now 2:30am and I am calling it a night! I am very excited for tomorrow because it is the last market day! I hope that the weather is nice!
I slept in until 10:00 this morning! It was absolutely fabulous! It was a bummer that it was raining though and we couldn’t sit out on the beach…I was hoping for sunshine the rest of the trip to get as tan as I possibly can before coming home. Rather than going out we stayed in and were really lazy. At 12:30 Christy and I drove the other three girls to go and get their hair done, and while they were getting beautified, we went grocery shopping and to the internet café…which as so slow, I waited 15 minutes and my email couldn’t even open up. We bought some food and ingredients for spaghetti casserole and salads. We also stopped at the bakery and we bought cake for the Langerry staff to enjoy as a thank you from all of us for all of their help during our stay here. At 3:00 Christy and I went back and picked the girls up and they looked so darn cute! All of their hairstyles were different than when we dropped them off and they looked so pretty! It made me really excited to go and get mine done when I get home…I can’t wait! The rest of the afternoon was spent catching up on my journals and watching movies with Christy. We watched Rent, Pretty Woman, and one with Denzel Washington. I made dinner for everyone and we had a “family” dinner together! I was able to call home and talk to mom and tell her about my trip to Durban and now I am going to go to bed because I am exhausted!
Happy Thanksgiving!
I was sad when I woke up this morning and I wasn’t able to be going to Grandmas for dinner to eat my favorite holiday meal! We started on the road at 8:30 to go to Coffee Bay and sadly said goodbye to Durban! We started on the road and it was rainy and crummy. I read in the backseat during the drive and got pretty far in my book! We arrived at the turn off of the N2 to get to Coffee Bay, and the road was absolutely crappy. It was covered in potholes, and driving down the road was like playing a video game by swerving to avoid the enormous potholes. I was so scared that we were going to get a flat tire. If driving and trying to avoid potholes wasn’t bad enough we also had to watch out for animals and people. There were little children that would line the road begging for money, some would try to barricade us by playing chicken with the car and standing in the road to make us stop and then try to take our money. I’m glad that Leslie was driving because she just kept driving to make them run out of the way because it is too dangerous to slow down and stop. We finally got to Coffee Bay after an hour of driving on the road and it was a crap hole! We went to the backpackers and we were told that we would be sharing a room with two other people in a dorm…well we actually were sharing it with seven other people and it was a thatched roof and the mattresses were pieces of foam on the ground. It had rained that afternoon and the mud surrounding the backpackers was so gross and there were chickens running around. We couldn’t even get to the beach because it was high tide. The bathrooms also were a sad story and right then and there we made an executive decision and decided to turn back around and go back to PE. We drove the scary road back, and I have never been so scared for my life. I just wanted to get off of the road and away from the people. No wonder that crime is such an issue in this country because these people have nothing else to do, so they line the roads and congregate there and try to scare the motorists. It was such a relief to finally be back on the N2. We drove for quite a bit and then at 8:00 we stopped in King William’s Town and filled up on gas, and called Enice at Langerry to see if she had a room for us, if not we had a few back up plans to where we could stay at other hotels, the backpackers in PE, or worst case scenario we would stay at Q’s place for the night. Enice said that she would have a room for us! We drove another 3 ½ hours through rain, storm clouds, and winding roads. When we saw the lights of PE we all cheered and were so happy to be home! When we called Gert (our security guard) to let us into the building, he came to see us and said “Welcome Home!” We were so darn happy to come home to Langerry and even better news is that we were in Flat 13! My old room! I crawled onto my bed and was so happy to be back here! That was the best decision that we made on the entire trip! Leslie and I went to McDonalds to get dinner and we circled the parking lot three times until we finally concluded that it was closed…but Steers was open 24 hours so we went there for a burger and fries…my Thanksgiving meal (well that and the trail mix that I had to snack on in the car on the drive home)! After I ate dinner, I called Grandma and Papa’s and was able to talk to quite a few people and wish the Happy Thanksgiving! It was nice talking to everyone and I can’t wait to see everyone when I am home next week!
Today was or day at Ushaka Marine World. We arrived at 10:00 and ended up staying until 3:30! They had a Sea World and a waterpark that we went to. We started in Sea World and we walked through the aquariums and saw the sea lion and dolphin shows. After we went to the water park where we went on the lazy river a few times around and enjoyed the sunshine. After the lazy river, Kasy, Christy, and I went on the waterslide! We raced down some of the inner tube slides, we went on a slide that took your bottoms and tops down when you went underwater at the end, and the family tube ride! After we were tired of the water we sat at the bar and had a birthday drink with Leslie! Christy and I ordered a Mermaid’s Heaven and it was a very fruity and yummy drink! After the water park we went back to the backpackers and got ready for a night out to celebrate! I wore my new fun shirt and we went back to Suncoast to Mimmos for Italian! I had baked macaroni pasta and it was delicious! Our waiter and everyone else knew that it was our last night in Durban and they kept coming over to us and asking us how we were doing! After dinner, we went to the casino to have a drink (after not being allowed into the martini bar because we didn’t have closed toed shoes). After a drink at the casino, we went to the Globe (the bar on the roof of the backpackers) and we bought a few more drink for Leslie. But I went to bed after a while because I was tired and we have an early day tomorrow morning!
This morning we woke up and it was a crummy day. It was sprinkling and overcast outside so the plan for the day included going to Umhalanga, an area North of Durban. There were beaches and rock formations that we were supposed to see but we couldn’t find where we were going, and when we asked for directions no one knew what we were talking about. Since it was overcast and rainy, we went to the big mall to spend some money! I bought a cute shirt for Leslie’s birthday and a new tank top and swimming suit top. I also bought a new duffel bag for my carry on to bring my souvenirs home in, and the best thing about it is that it is pink! We went walking by an Imax movie theater and saw that Beauty and the Beast was showing, so we went to see it! We watched the movie and ate our sandwiches that we packed with us! After the movie we shopped a bit more and I bought two new books for the airplane ride home! I’m really excited to read them because they look like good chick-lit! After our day of shopping we came back to the Happy Hippo and read our books, checked some emails, and got ready for dinner. We went to Suncoast (again) and had dinner at a sea food restaurant, I ordered a grilled chicken and avo salad with garlic bread). Then after dinner went to see another movie! It was cheap movie Tuesdays and we saw The Kingdom for R12. I absolutely hated the movie and was so uncomfortable watching it, particularly in a foreign country. I was happy when it was over at midnight and we drove back home and went to bed!
This morning we were up and ready to go to the beach at 10:00. After yogurt and granola for breakfast we piled into Big Red and headed back to Suncoast. We found chairs right away at by 10:30 we were bathing beauties all in a row! I finished the Nora Roberts book that I was reading and I started the other book that I just bought at the market last weekend. The sun was much hotter today because it wasn’t quite as windy as it was yesterday. Christy, Leslie, and I made our way through the burning sand down to the ocean. The water was warm compared to PE and we cooled down and went back to our spots in the sun. We stayed out until 2:30 and went in to buy ice cream (caramel crunch and chocolate walnut). We decided to search for the market on Florida Street, but we had no such luck. We did take a nice detour through the city and saw a pretty side to Durban with beautiful big houses and landscaping. We drove by the botanical gardens and decided to have a walk around. The gardens were beautiful and I got great pictures of some really beautiful pink and yellow flowers! There also was an orchid house that we stopped in to take pictures too. As we were walking we saw four monkeys and we tried to get close to take pictures. Christy got a little too close to one of the monkeys and they all started chasing her! Laura and I bolted and were so busy laughing at the whole situation because as she was running she kicked a flip flop at one of the monkeys and a security came and helped her get her shoe. Luckily no one got hurt or bit by the monkeys. After the gardens we came back to the Happy Hippo and I took the best shower of my life! After my shower I went out on the covered balcony to journal and read my book. I sat out on the balcony and I watched a storm come into Durban, there was so much lighting and thunder and the rain came pouring down. I don’t ever remember thunderstorms in PE, just rain, so this was my first South African storm! We met a couple from Virginia at the backpackers (the state, not the town in Minnesota) and they were both really nice. We made dinner again at the backpackers and Lee and Sarah (the people from Virginia) came back and we talked with them about their travels for quite a bit. We read our books a little bit more and got ready for bed
We allowed ourselves to sleep in a bit this morning and time to relax and read in bed. Around 10:00 we got Big Red from the garage and went grocery shopping to buy food for two at home dinners and lunches. We came back to the Happy Hippo and made lunch. After lunch we changed and found the beach! We went to the North Beaches at Suncoast (a hotel, mall, movie theater, and restaurant complex with a private beach). We paid R5 to park in their gated and secured parking lot and then R5 to use their private beach. The area where we laid our towels to tan was on finely cut grass with umbrellas and beach chairs available. This was the secured part, and then there were stairs that led down to the ocean and the sandy beach. We found a nice area and hung out in the sun soaking in the rays and reading our books. As I was sitting there I looked around and couldn’t help but feel like I was in Florida, and not South Africa. The buildings, landscaping, palm trees, and live music brought me back to Florida when Alison and I went there this last March. We stayed at the beach for three hours and decided to go back to the backpackers for dinner and a shower. We made pizzas and got dressed to go back to Suncoast for a movie. We paid R20 for our ticket and Kasy and I shared a popcorn and a pop for R16…so for a night at the movie with treats came to a grand total of R36 (which is about $5.25…less than what it costs for just a ticket at home!). We saw Heartbreak Kid with Ben Stiller and it was a little disappointing! After the movie we came back to the Happy Hippo and called it a night!
I woke up at 4:45 am to say goodbye to the Nomad group (Carrie, Katherine, Brenna, Ashley, and Alex). They were scheduled to be picked up by taxi at 5:00, so we all got together to say our goodbye and wave goodbye on the curb. It was sad saying goodbye to my three roommates, and I was definitely crying when I had to say goodbye to Carrie…this is the longest that we will have gone without talking to each other! After their taxi was out around the corner and out of sight, I went back to an empty apartment to sleep for another two hours. I had a hard time sleeping because the sun was up and shining in my bedroom at 5:00am but I managed to get another hour of sleep in before having to get ready for out trip. At 7:15 I crawled out of bed and gathered my things for the Durban trip. By 8:00 our car arrived and we were all ready to go. Our car is a Palio Go! and she is smaller than a Geo Metro. We decided that it is about the size of a twin mattress. We named her “Big Red” and we managed to squeeze five girls and all of our duffel bags into the trunk. It was quite a tight squeeze! Leslie and Christy took turns driving, while Laura, Kasy, and I cuddled in the back! Tonya saw us off and we were out on the open road to find a map (we were told that we were going to get a map in the car, but didn’t…just like we were told that we would be getting a four door car, but got the delightful surprise of a two door). We found a map and headed to the N2 at 9:15 am. We drove until 10:45 and had a quick bathroom stop and were back cruising the N2. We drove until 4:00 and we stopped in Mthata for gas and a lunch/dinner at the grocery store. We ate on the road and we drove the rest of the way to Durban without making any stops. During the second half of our drive we ran into really crummy weather. Leslie did a great job navigating us through clouds on the hilly and curvy mountain roads. All five of us had our eyes glued to the road too look for animals that wander and camp out in the street (cattle, goats, dogs, donkeys, and horses all line the ditches and roadways and don’t move out of the way when they see oncoming traffic). We also learned that people are equally as easy to hit along the road at dark (we didn’t hit anyone fortunately) because many hitchhike home from work and they stand on or in the road to flag motorists down for rides. Other than those few worries, we had a fun drive with great music! Thank goodness for the music because it would have been a miserable ride in the backseat where if you wanted to move, everyone had to move on the count of three! We all would sing along, belting out the words, and every now and then we would break out the dance moves! When we were driving through particularly unsafe towns we decided that country music wasn’t the most appropriate genre of music to be listening to, so we would play Soweto Gospel Choir or Lestie’s songs. When we were pulling into Durban we were so excited to see the city…the problem tough was that we didn’t have a map of Durban. All we knew was that we had to take the exits and follow the signs for Ushaka Marine World because the Happy Hippo backpackers was right next to it. We also knew that the backpackers was on Mahatma Gandhi road and we had to cross over Bell Street to get there. We took the last possible exit after seeing no signs for Ushaka and we ended up in central Durban. We made a few guesses with turns and roads to take and just when we came to a T in the road and we were going to go back to the N4, I screamed, “There’s Bell!” We looked at Ushaka was right in front of us! We were so close, we went left and circled the block back around and went right and we found Gandhi. We took a left and saw an Engen (our other landmark that we were told about) and there was the Happy Hippo right in front of us! We unfolded out of Big Red a 9:00pm after 12 hours of driving! There was a bit of confusion when we arrived, apparently there was a mix up about our booking. 1.) They only had us booked until Tuesday—we are supposed to stay until Thursday morning, 2.) Our first night we would have to split up into two double rooms and a dorm room, 3.) Our price was quoted differently. Lets just say that we weren’t very happy, but we will sort it out with the owner tomorrow rather than dealing with it at 9:00 after driving the entire day. We made it work though, because w brought the mattress from the dorm room into the double room on the floor and we were all comfy and cozy. I slept on the floor mattress with Christy and Leslie and Laura and Kasy slept in a double room next door. We talked for a bit, then read, journaled, and we were sleeping at 10:30!
Today is our last day together as a group. I woke up at 7:00am to check my emails quickly before the internet was cut off (we were told that it would be cut off sometime during the day, but we didn’t know when). Thanks for all of the emails and messages from people! All of the farewells and safe travels were appreciated and made my morning start out great! I have to say that my favorite email came from Jeff Storelee (Personal note to Jeff…I was in the middle of writing an email back to you and the internet cut out! Thank you so much for the email, it meant a ton!) At 8:30, Denise came pounding on the door for the internet router and all outlet converters. That put a damper on the morning because she never told us that she was going to come that early (and my roommates were all sleeping and were woken up). Needless to say we had many frustrated people. Everyone was crabby, so to intervene on my bad mood, Alex, Ashley, and I went to Pick ‘n Pay to buy a converter. It was quite the power walk because we made it there and back in an hour. The afternoon was spent packing the final items that needed to be in my suitcase, watching the movie Stick It, and cleaning up the flat. Alex, Carrie, and I met Q, Kyle, and Andrea for lunch at Captains as a farewell lunch and drinks. Then at 6:30 we all went out to Gondwanas for drinks with Q and Tusie. When we got back to Langerry after our night together I called Mom and I had a mini meltdown on the phone about me being nervous for traveling to Durban, wanting to be home, missing family and Thanksgiving, and saying goodbye to the Nomad group. I cried a lot but I got it out of my system. I went to bed feeling nervous for tomorrow and the next week of traveling.
We were up early this morning to all shower and get ready in the morning. Tonya came into our room to say goodbye to us, and Bonnie gave everyone hugs. We went downstairs to say goodbye to Enice and Hazel and that is when the tears started to come down. We gave hugs and Q came over to see us all off. He waited with us for our ride from Lucky Taxi and I was crying so much saying goodbye to him. Every time I looked at Q, I would start to cry, and I just couldn’t talk to him because it made me so sad. He helped us pack our things into the Kombis and he gave all of us a hug and then stood on the curb and waved us as we drove away. Ugh! It made me so sad saying goodbye to him. As we were leaving he told us, “It’s just like you girls are going away for the weekend and you will be back on Monday and I’ll see you then. It’s “see ya later” not goodbye.” He always puts things so nice and makes you feel better about things. The plan is that we will see him again because he is planning on coming to Minnesota to visit hopefully this summer before he gets tired down with things. That would be so much fun…we already started a list of things that we could do when he comes to visit.
