South Africa - be warned, this is a long post!

This post is an amendment of an email I sent to a friend as a recap of my South Africa trip. It's very long, but I hope you enjoy it!


Let's see, we started with the longest amount of traveling I have ever experienced. We had about 23 hours of flight to get there. We arrived on Sunday afternoon, got to the hotel and showered and unpacked before heading out to walk around the city, even though I really just wanted to sleep. Becky (my coworker) has a friend (Torben) from Germany who is living in Cape Town working in a home for adults with disabilities as his year of civil service required by the German government, so we hung out with him and his other friend (Till) from Germany. Torben and Till met up with us Sunday afternoon and walked around downtown Cape Town with us, had a coffee, and then we went back to our hotel for dinner and an early bedtime! Monday was completely full of staff meetings, which were held in a conference room in the hotel. Yes, the meetings were fairly boring, but I did enjoy meeting the international staff members with whom I have been corresponding the past 3 months and had never met before. 

Tuesday we had meetings in the morning and then went on a staff group tour. We took buses out to Fish Hoek and Hout Bay where we took a boat out to Seal Island. It was pretty sweet. After Hout Bay, we drove along Chapman's Peak Drive, which is breathtakingly beautiful! After Chapman's Peak Drive we drove to a township where we visited a ministry center there that runs several homes and medical centers for AIDS patients. It was kind of strange to arrive in a tour bus, walk around their township, and simply get back on the bus. I did not really enjoy that. And every time we got on the bus, I fell asleep pretty much immediately, so I missed the vast majority of what the tour guide said. After the bus tour, we went back to the hotel for dinner and another early bedtime. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday were all meetings all day. We started at 8 am and went until 6:30 each night. We had tea breaks and lunch, but it was an incredibly tiring week.

Friday evening after the last meeting ended, Torben and Till picked me and Becky up in the car they had rented. It was a 1971 VW Beetle, with the hood painted as the South African flag and the doors were the American and Italian flags. It was both amazing and a piece of crap. I took photos, do not worry. We went with the boys and their friend, Freddie, to a soccer game at the Cape Town stadium. It was super exciting, even though it was less than a quarter full. The two teams were from Cape Town, so I would have expected more fans, but no. After the game we went to a bar downtown, but we were dead tired and had a big day planned ahead of us, so we each had a drink and then went home.

Saturday the boys picked us up and we went to Muizenberg Beach. It was gorgeous, but I quickly learned that literally everywhere in Cape Town is gorgeous. After strolling along the beach watching for sharks and finding none, we continued on to Boulder Beach and the penguin colony. The penguins were cute yet smelly. We walked around a bit there then went over to the part of the beach where you could swim. We did go swimming, and the water was unbelievably cold. Frigid. Icy. I could not believe that such beautiful water on such a lovely beach could be so cold. So Becky and I swam for a few minutes then stood on the shore while the boys took turns diving off the rocks. The water was cold, yes, but the weather was spectacular. It was about 75 degrees, and throughout the weekend it got up to the low 80s. Unbelievable! 


After having a quick picnic by the car, we headed to Cape Point/Cape of Good Hope. It was about a 45 minute drive from Boulder Beach through the national park, and it was beautiful. We saw baboons and whales and ostrich. Ridiculous! We hiked up to the lighthouse at Cape Point, took pictures alongside the loads of people there as well, then hiked down to this tiny beach between Cape Point and Cape of Good Hope. There were literally hundreds of stairs, but it was definitely worth it. The beach was very isolated, with maybe 4 other people down there while we were there. We drank wine, waded in the frigid water, and while the boys decided to go swimming (are they crazy?!), I took the best nap of my life on the beach. We hung out there for a couple of hours, then hiked back up and then up the point on Cape of Good Hope. People had told us that it was going to be unbearably windy, but it was just kind of breezy and the sun was shining the whole time. We couldn't have asked for better weather the whole day. We took our tourist photo by the Cape of Good Hope sign, then headed back towards Cape Town via Chapman's Peak drive and Fish Hoek. This time we were driving this route at sunset. It was even more beautiful than on the bus tour on Tuesday. Becky and I then had to switch from the hotel from the previous week to a guest house where we stayed that night (and to a new guest house the next morning), and once that chaos was sorted out, I met up with Jedd and Janelle Schroy who live in Johannesburg and had dinner with them and their 2-month old baby, Reagan. After dinner they dropped me off on Long Street to meet up with Becky, Torben, Till, and some of their friends for a bit of a night out. Unfortunately I was basically asleep as I was standing up, so we only stayed out until about 12:30. It was a pretty busy place and could have been fun (Torben and Till stayed out until 3:30), but Becky and I were simply too exhausted to be any fun.

Sunday morning we were up and out at 8 am (crazy!) to take the cable car up Table Mountain. Our car died as we got to the cable car station, so Torben stayed to sort that out while Becky and I went up the mountain. Till, crazy kid, climbed up the mountain in just one hour, met us at the top (we had been up there for a while), and then the 3 of us hiked down. Oh. My. God. I thought I was going to die. Not just because of the intense incline and the unstable rock steps down, but because it took and hour and a half. I was not prepared for a legitimate mountain climb, and my shoes gave me blisters, but we made it down. By the time we reached the bottom, I was not sure that I could stand my knees were so wobbly. Till must have been in much better shape than I suspected, as he had climbed up AND down with seemingly little effort. It was also about 85 degrees on the side of the mountain, so all of our clothes were drenched with sweat. The drive home was absolutely disgusting. They then took me back to the guest house, and I showered for the meeting I had that afternoon with my department from work. Becky and the boys picked me up as soon as I finished and we drove to some beach that starts with a "B" to watch the sun set and view the iconic image of Table Mountain, Lion's Head, and Devil's Peak. We had loads of fun on that beach.

Monday I had meetings all day, and Becky and the boys had a tour of the winelands. I am a bit jealous, yes. They came back to the guest house that evening with pizza and we hung out there for a while. Tuesday morning I had meetings again, then Becky came back in the afternoon for the dinner our organization was hosting at this international conference (approximately 5000 delegates) that was in Cape Town that week. The dinner presentation was a large reason that I got to go to Cape Town, so it was pretty important. When we got back to the guest house, the boys came over and we looked at our pictures from the week and then watched Zombieland.

Wednesday morning the boys had to work, so Becky and I went shopping and then the boys came over to the guest house for about an hour before we had to go to the airport. And that is all! The trip home was really long, but relatively uneventful. I do not like such long flights, but I got some sleeping pills and they helped immensely.


The trip was amazing, and I am incredibly grateful to have this job that provides opportunity to travel! I will not attempt to summarize since this post is already way too long. BUT - here's a link to my photos on Picasa!

A fruitful trip to Ulta..

My new fall nail polishes! The one on the left is actually a lot darker and closer to eggplant than it may appear in this photo (OPI - Eiffel For This Color). The one on the right is definitely that gold (OPI - Glitzerland).

And in the style of lollipop26 (my favorite beauty blogger), here is Glitzerland in action! I have been searching for this gold polish for months, and I am so very pleased with my purchase! I am one step closer to being prepared for the holiday season, for sure.

And now, for the grand splurge of the fall... 

...Book of Shadows Volume III palette!

Yes, my dears, this is a glorious addition to the Urban Decay Naked palette I purchased a month or so ago. With my neutrals palette and this new color extravagance, will I ever need another eye shadow? Well, yes, probably, but not for a long while. While this Book of Shadows Vol. III palette retails for $54, I am proud to say that with my accumulated Ulta rewards points and some shrewd organization of my purchases, I got this beauty for $23!! Twenty-three! Can you believe it?! It also came with an additional travel size bottle of Eye Primer Potion, a new staple of my make-up routine. It really does prevent creasing and flaking of eyeshadow, and I highly recommend this eye primer (and eye primer in general) for those of you who wear eye shadow.

Both the Naked and Book of Shadows Vol III palettes have sold out both in stores and online, so I consider myself extremely lucky to have snatched up one of each! I am so very pleased with the quality, especially the pigmentation of the Naked eyeshadows, and I expect similar results from the Book of Shadows!

Some photo highlights from my weekend with the girls :)

Caitlin, Annie, and I standing at lovely Lake Ton-A-Wondah

Me and Leslie and Leslee

Thanks to Gracie for inviting us to her sister's wedding! What a wonderful weekend and what a wonderful family!

Annie and Me - I miss watching Friends in our apt!

Caitlin, Leslee, Annie, and Grace

Me, Caitlin, and Leslee - we were happy to see each other!

Canoeing!!

The wedding ceremony was held in front of a waterfall. It was SO beautiful.

The girls!

The girls goofing off!

What a lovely reception, until 3 glasses were broken...

Our traditional "looks like we're naked" photo

We danced the night away!!

A quick drive by Furman and a glimpse at our class' senior gift - outdoor DH seating!

I totally forgot...

...to mention Taipei!!! That is obviously where I am headed first this year! Kaylah is only there for 2 years, so I have definitely have to get there soon!

Gone to Carolina in My Mind...

...and on a plane!

This past weekend I flew to Greenville, SC and spent a day and a night with some friends who still live oh so close to Furman. I arrived Thursday afternoon, rented a car for the first time, spent some time wandering around Furman by myself, then met Merianna (my roommate from junior year) for coffee, and then finally met up with Kristin for dinner at Brixx, a lovely pizzeria on Woodruff Road. We spent that evening reminiscing and gossiping way too late for a 4th grade teacher who had to leave for school at 6am. But I am grateful she took the time to catch up while I was in town!

Friday morning I went to Furman to visit some professors from my college days, then met my dear friend, Cullen, for lunch at an adorable little restaurant in downtown Greenville for lunch. Coming from CO, I had nearly forgotten the heat and humidity of September in the Southeast, but as Cullen and I strolled through Greenville and the sweat rolled down my back, I very quickly remembered. It was, however, a very pleasant afternoon.

Caitlin picked me up that evening, and we met up with Annie and Leslee driving up from Atlanta for our caravan to Hendersonville, NC. We were off to Emma Gerald's wedding! Emma is the sister of our friend, Grace, and we all spent the weekend at Camp Ton-A-Wondah celebrating the marriage of Emma and Gary. We had an absolutely wonderful time, and I can't say how refreshing it was to be with the girls again. Annie, Leslie, Leslee, Lisa, Caitlin, Grace, and I are all over the map, and it was so good to have a wedding to reunite us, even for just a weekend. And don't you worry, when I get the pictures from the weekend, I will be sure to post some of the highlights.

I flew back to Colorado late Sunday night, and back to the grindstone on Monday morning. I am going to Greeley this weekend to see Deborah, then a weekend with no definitive plans other than to plan for my next trip, and then off to South Africa! This has turned out to be quite a busy month!

I am grateful for friends, family, and a good job that allows me to travel and visit these wonderful people. :)

Travel goals for this year: Sweden and Australia. Let's see if we can get a staff conference in Stockholm or Sydney next year!

BIG NEWS

I'm going to South Africa!! This October I will be going with DAI to Cape Town, South Africa for 2 weeks for our international staff meeting.

I am SO excited, obviously.

Just to encourage you all to be happy for me, I have included a picture of this glorious city.

In other news, I have no other news. Oh, wait, yes I do. I am going back east for a wedding and a girls' reunion this weekend. Super excited! I also got a invite to a wedding in March for a friend from Furman, and it sounds like it's going to be a great event. All in all, this week has been pretty good. 

I finished Season 1 of Dexter, and I must admit that it was a bit of a challenge. It's quite gory, and I have to watch an episode of Family Guy or SNL after it before bed so I don't get too scared. However, it's a gripping show, and I plan to continue watching it. Netflix is awesome. :)

Other big news - the new Sara Bareilles album came out this week! It's sooooo good. Seriously. If I could have anyone else's singing voice, it might be hers. Or Whitney Houston's, sans the cocaine. Or Idina Menzel's. Ok, so this is not something I have completely decided, but the album is still superb. I highly recommend it. I will even provide a link so you can preview (and buy) the album. 

The time has come.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The time for which we have all been eagerly waiting has arrived. As you may recall from one of my previous posts, I have been in the market for a bag to replace the perfect bag I bought at New York & Company last summer. It has taken me this long, but I have finally found it! And I will venture to say that it may be better than the one I already have.

Mom and I went to Kohl's this past weekend simply planning to browse, but since autumn is just around the corner here in Colorado, all the summer merchandise was anywhere from 60%-90% off. Outrageous! Anyways, Mom found this bag. It was $150, but with all our discounts, I paid $25. For a Simply Vera leather bag! And it's gray! And it's gorgeous! This photo really doesn't do it justice, but it's the best I can do for now.

This bag represents to me the transition from my identity as a student to that of a young professional. This bag still has all the qualities I want, but somehow it seems more grown up. I will not be hauling notebooks or computers in this bag. It will hold beautiful things like my silver wallet, my fabulous sunglasses, and my perfectly tinted lip gloss.

Needless to say, I am thrilled. I mean, I haven't posted on here since April, but this was worth the extra effort to take the photo and write a blog entry. I am also pleased that my quilt inadvertently showed up in this picture.

New favorite song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QV4rQXa4Ud4

Courtesy of the Amazon Kindle commercial. And I was able to download it for free on Amazon.com!

Spring Break!

This break has been dedicated to 1) sleeping, 2) job searching, 3) reading a novel, and 4) running errands around Knoxville. I have split my time amongst those activities, and I feel this time has been very productive. I hate searching for a job, but I do not feel alone in my loathing of this character-building exercise. I have also spent some time looking for a new spring handbag, but have had as much success with that endeavor as I have on the job front, which is to say, none. However, hope remains! Any advice on both of those fronts will be most welcome. :)

Another Saturday in Sunny Nashville

Another Saturday in February, and a surprisingly productive day for me. After eleven, yes, eleven, hours of sleep, I roused at approximately 10:30 am, when Michael Buble and I brewed a pot of sumatra coffee and made orange-nutmeg french toast. It was delicious and the apartment smelled lovely. After a leisurely breakfast together, Michael and I turned our attention to more scholarly pursuits. Today I had to write my first paper of the semester, which seems unusually late as we have just completed our seventh week of class. Nevertheless, I rallied the few brains cells I have left committed to my education, and I read three essays by Max Weber on charismatic leadership (not the denomination but general divinely given power or talent). I then cranked out five pages of reflection in an hour, just in time to meet my friend Sarah from the bookstore for an afternoon dedicated to Target, vintage clothes shopping, and fruit popsicles. Well, I had a pistachio popsicle, which is actually a nut, not a fruit. I thoroughly enjoyed my sunny afternoon with Sarah. We have been talking about spending time together, especially at Target, for quite some time now, but today was the first time we actually made the effort. I had a lovely time and am very grateful to have been introduced to The Hip Zipper, an adorable vintage store in East Nashville. It sounds quite pretentious of me to say that, but I am sincere in my adoration. I had almost convinced myself that I needed not only one but two pairs of white gloves for all the outings I make with Joan Holloway and Betty Draper, but a quick glance in the mirror at my All-Star lace-ups and my black North Face TKA 100 fleece was the jolt back to reality that saved me at least $25. That being said, I plan on incorporating The Hip Zipper into my shopping repertoire. (On a side note, I tried on every chic hat they had in the store and not one fit over this mop of hair on my head. How am I supposed to look like Joan Holloway when I can't even get a hat on my head!)

A Belated Look at 2009

I recently realized that I failed to complete my annual end-of-the year quiz. Sure, it may be the end of February, but I can still reflect on last year.

1. What did you do in 2009 that you'd never done before? Visited New York City!

2. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I don't think I made any New Year's resolutions.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? In a way - my aunt and uncle adopted a baby, so that counts, right?

4. Did anyone close to you die? No

5. What countries did you visit? I stayed here in the USA.

6. What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009? 
A career plan.

7. What dates from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory? 
the month of June when my new cousin and the family came to visit :)


8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? 
Committing to and executing a trip to NYC!

9. What was your biggest failure? Not figuring out what I want to do after graduation.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? 
No

11. What was the best thing you bought? 
My NYC trip.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Mara, David, my sisters

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? I never answer this question.

14. Where did most of your money go? It now goes to rent and groceries. And books and clothes.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? 
NYC, if you hadn't already guessed that...

16. What song/album will always remind you of 2009? ABBA (still), Lady Antebellum, Brad Paisley's "American Saturday Night"

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:


i) Happier or Sadder? Happier

ii) Older or Wiser? Both
iii) Thinner or Fatter? 
Same
iv) Richer or Poorer? Poorer

18. What do you wish you'd done more of? 
Reading for pleasure, walking outside, socializing

19. What do you wish you'd done less of? School.

20. How will you be spending Christmas of 2010? Hopefully with my family.

22. Did you fall in love in 2009? No

23. How did you start 2009? I honestly have no recollection. It must not have been that memorable. Probably just sitting at home with the family, struggling to stay up until midnight.

24. What was your favorite TV program? Brothers and Sisters, Sex and the City, House, Frasier

25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year? 
No

26. What was the best book you read? I only read books for school, but I listened to "Team of Rivals" on CD.

27. What was your greatest musical discovery? 
 Lady Antebellum

28. What did you want and get? A trip to New York while David and Piper still live there.

29. What did you want and not get? I wanted Mara to stay in the US, but I do acknowledge that her life in Sweden is wonderful. As is her Swede.

30. What was your favorite film of this year? 
I mostly watched TV shows, and I was obsessed with Frasier over the summer.

31. What did you do on your birthday? 
I got to go home, so I went out to dinner with my family. :)

32. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Living closer to my family.

33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009? 
Same as always, though I have had to work in more business casual.

34. What kept you sane? 
The people I love.

35. Which celebrity/public figure did you like the most? 
My crush on Brad Paisley is undiminished.

36. What political issue stirred you the most? The economic crisis was tragic.

37. Who did you miss? My family and friends all over the world. And, of course, Mara.

38. Who was the best new person you met? I may have met Dr. Patout Burns in 2008, but it wasn't until 2009 that I realized how awesome he is. Without him and his advice and encouragement, I think I might have fallen into despair and confusion many times.

39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009. Fit the things you want to do into your budget and just do them. Living alone is awesome. It's possible to keep in touch when friends move out of the country.

40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
"And I know some day that it’ll all turn out
You'll make me work so we can work to work it out
And I promise you kid that I give so much more than I get
I just haven't met you yet"