The End of the Beginning

Today marks the last day of my Capetonian vacation. In other words, school starts tomorrow! I am very excited for classes to begin, not because I'm not enjoying myself now, but rather because I am looking forward to establishing some consistency in my life here. Currently, I wake up each morning without any specific plans or direction. Luckily, Cape Town lends itself to this kind of lifestyle, as it has so much to offer. For example, yesterday my roommate and I went on a search for a good place to eat lunch near our flat. We ended up at a restaurant called Fat Cactus Cafe, which is located in our small suburb of Mowbray. Eating at this restaurant may not seem like much of an adventure, but for the fact that the bar was mobbed with die-hard fans of the national rugby team, the Springboks, which was playing a match against its greatest Australian competitor, the Wallabies. The sprit in the room was indescribable. Even though I know nothing about the South African team or even the sport itself, I still felt proud to be in South Africa and lucky to be around such kind and inviting people.

My friends and I spent the latter part of the day yesterday at a soccer match between a South African local team and Manchester United, the best team in the world. The game was down the street from out house at the Newlands Stadium, which is being replaced by the Green Point Stadium in Green Point for the 2010 World Cup. It was a really great time, and a perfect way to integrate ourselves into South African culture - rugby and soccer are immensely important to South Africans! Last night was equally as fun, as I went with a local South African friend and a few other Americans to an authentic African game restaurant. I tried warthog spare ribs, and it was some of the most delicious meat I've ever had!

I am now considering what I want to do today, for my last day of freedom from academics. I may go surfing at a nearby town called Muizenberg, or watch an indie film in town and then climb a short trail up Table Mountain to the Rhodes Memorial. I've only been here for two weeks, and I've done so much. At the same time, though, I am always learning about new things that I really want to do before I leave. Living in a place for such a long period of time affords me the opportunity to leisurely experience all that I want to while I am here, which is so great. I just hope that once classes start and life gets hectic, I will still be able to find sufficient time to go exploring and to try new and exciting things.

As you can see, I attached a couple pictures of the soccer game here. Please check out some of the pictures I added to the older posts. Thanks!