3monthsineurope
Traveling Life
đź“Ť Bellingham, Washington
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February 13, 2023
Monday was our only true full day at Mabula. We woke up around 5, because our sunrise safari was at 5:30. Wow, that’s early! Iris and I didn’t put on make up, just some warm clothes, because it is cold out in the morning! Lisa gave me some antibiotics, which I immediately took, hoping it would help out what was ever going on with my stomach. We got in the safari vehicle, with Franz, and we were off!
The sunrise was beautiful over the game reserve! This morning, we went to the other part of the reserve, where the lions live. The lions have to be separated from most of the animals, to keep the other animals alive. But they are kept with other animals that they can kill and eat. The reserve staff will not intervene with the natural order of things. They don’t feed the animals, and only help the “Big 5” animals when they are sick. The Big 5 are animals specific to the area, and the most protected by law. The Big 5 in South Africa are: elephants, rhinos, leopards, Cape buffalo, and lion.
That morning, we saw zebra and wildebeest (they share the same territory because one eats the tall grass and one eats the low grass, and one has good hearing and one has good eyesight so they can alert each other of predators). We also saw African deer (red deer), giraffe, a millipede, wild turkeys, and a lion and lionesses and two cubs (a total of five lions). It was truly amazing to see these wild animals! I was blessed. Near the end of our morning safari, we stopped and had some drip coffee and a small snack.
After our morning safari we had buffett breakfast in the dining room. Other people (outside of our tour group) we also staying at the lodge. We had a free day at the reserve until our next and last evening safari, around 4 that evening. Iris and I relaxed a little bit, got dressed in our swimsuits to hang out in the pool, but there was a surprise rainstorm! We went to the pool and ended up hiding under the umbrellas with Dora and Irina, trying to help Irina with her phone that was having issues. We saw multiple monkeys around the area and red deer, too.
Before our evening safari Iris and I went to Victoria and Kaitlyn’s bungalow. Iris still had some of our weed from Capetown (it was in our checked bag and Belinda said it was okay to fly with it!), so we decided to smoke a little before our safari. We shared with them, and also had a little wine that we had bought from our wine tasting at the wineries outside of Capetown. They had so many monkeys around their room, it was wild!
Our evening safari was amazing! Since we had smoked a little, we were amazed by everything we saw, hahah. Our tour mates Lisa and her husband (I can’t remember his name, now) could tell we were a little stoned, which was pretty funny. That evening we saw a crocodile, wildebeest, zebra, the backs of two hippos in the water, and two cheetahs. It was a great safari! We stopped near the game lodge for a glass of wine and snacks with the other trucks in our group, and took a group photo.
After our last evening safari, we grabbed our last bottle of wine from the wineries outside of Capetown, and shared it with our friends at dinner, at the buffet. We chatted with our friends and tour mates, relaxed in our room, and packed up most of our things. The next day was going to be a verrrrry long day of an early morning safari, and the long journey home to Seattle. It was such a great day at Mabula, and thanks to our tour mate, Lisa, who gave me the antibiotics, my tummy issues were mostly resolved! :]
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February 12, 2023
Sunday morning was an earrrrly day! We were all taking an early morning flight from Capetown to Johannesburg. I woke up feeling not so great—tummy issues. I was pretty worried I was going to have a hard time flying and with the flight. Eventually I felt a bit better, thankfully. Belinda got us all on the bus around 4am. We drove about 30 minutes to the airport. We got to check a bag each for free, since we were traveling domestically—which was a nice surprise! Belinda got us all checked in and around 6:30 we were boarding our flight to Johannesburg.
Iris and I were pretty tired and tried to nap on the two hour flight. Once we arrived in Johannesburg my stomach was still pretty upset. I had to use the bathroom quite a few times because I was pretty anxious about our three hour drive to our safari and Mabula Game Reserve. Thankfully I was okay on the drive leaving the huge city of Johannesburg and going out into the country. Iris and I tried for nap and relax for the drive, too. We sat a row apart so that we could both have two seats to spread out on.
Before we knew it, we were arriving at Mabula! We got off the (very small) main road and drove into the game reserve. We even saw animals coming into the reserve: monkeys, and some type of deer or antipope! We arrived at Mabula around 1. Our rooms weren’t ready yet, but we were all able to grab lunch. It was all inclusive at Mabula, since we really were out in the middle of no where. There wasn’t a mini mart or convenience store to grab a few things at nearby. So we would be having breakfast, lunch, and dinner in the dining room, with a buffet style meal. I had some ostrich and salad for lunch the first day. We were able to sit down at bout five or six large tables, all with our own group. As a reminder, we had 29 people in our tour group, plus Belinda. We were able to order coffee and sodas, we just had to pay for them at the end of each meal (and they were cheap!).
Around 3, we were able to check into our rooms. Iris and I shared little bungalow that shared a wall with only one other bungalow. We had about an hour and a half until our first safari! We were going on four safaris on our three days/two nights at Mabula. We unpacked a little and took a little rest, then we joined everyone else for the first safari!
There were three safari vehicles available for our group. Each group had around 10 of us in the safari vehicle, with one driver. Belinda loved Iris and I, so she paired us up with our favorite people: Victoria and Kaitlyn, Nicole and her husband, and Chris and Lisa. We also had an older Chinese couple with us. Franz was our driver, and he was easily the most fun of the guides! He was a lead guide of Mabula—the other guides looked to him for direction.
I had the honor of sitting in the front seat, next to Franz. I was so excited! Mabula is a large, but not huge, game reserve. We drove around one of the two areas that afternoon. One area is where almost all of the animals are, and the other is a smaller area where the five lions of the reserve live, with various prey and other animals around. During our first safari we saw wild boars, monkeys, elephants, antelope, zebra, and giraffes. Wow, that was amazing! Franz was such a great tour guide and driver—we were really lucky that Belinda chose him for our guide! When we were almost done with the safari, we stopped for the sunset over the horizon, with wine and beer, and some salty snacks. It was nice to get out of the vehicle and chat with our other tour mates.
After the first of four safaris, we all ate dinner together. I was still not feeling great, and I mentioned that to Lisa. She was a physicians assistant and brought some extra antibiotics, just in case. She said she would bring me some the next day, which was really kind of her. It had been a long day, so Iris and I went back to our room and called it a night. I slept pretty badly because of my upset stomach, which was a bummer. But, I was still very happy to be in South Africa, on safari! :]
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February 11, 2023
Saturday was an early day. Iris and I woke up around 7:30 and got ready for the day. We had breakfast in the lobby, and then we had wine tasting booked! Not everyone from the group came, as it was an optional tour. Some people went diving and were going to be lowered into the water, in a cage, to see sharks! Wow—no thanks for that for me!
Belinda picked us all up around 9, and we drove out to South Africa’s wine country. Our first winery stop was at a winery called Fairview. We spent a few hours around a large table, with a winery employee telling us about eight different wines. It was also paired with cheeses! Iris doesn’t love wine, so she would try them, and then she let me finish a few of them. We sat need Irina and Dora, and they were so funny! We saw them as older us—Irina was the planner and more in charge (like me) and Dora was the one who was along for the ride (like Iris).
Next up was quick stop to see a huge Nelson Mandela statue. We then stopped in a little town, and went through an outdoor market. It was really beautiful (but hot) out! We got some gelato and walked around a bit, exploring. Our final stop was a second winery, called Eikehof, a family winery. Belinda treated us to two charcuterie boards for the group to share, which was really nice! We tried some more wine, and I accidentally broke a glass! They were too fragile. We also had to move tables because so many acorns were falling on us! Iris and I took some photos in the winery, and got a few things in the souvenir shop.
We took the bus back into Capetown and had time to change and freshen up in the hotel. Then, it was time to go to a multi course African dinner! The dinner was 14 courses, but all really small. The dishes were from all over Africa—I really enjoyed trying so many new things! At the dinner, there was also entertainment! There was drumming, singing, dancing, and all kind of performers! There was a woman painting faces, and we were taught a simple drum routine on our own drums! Iris and I sat with Victoria and Kaitlyn, they are really fun ladies and celebrating their honeymoon!
Around 9:30 the group headed home. It was such a great day, but we had a really early morning the following day. Iris and I got back to our room, did some packing, and got ready for bed. We were heading to Johannesburg the following day! :]
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February 10, 2023
Happy 31st birthday to me!
Iris and I got up around 7:15 for the day. A lot of our group was doing a long day trip around the Cape, to see penguins and other activities, but I wanted to spend my birthday not all on a bus. Iris just wanted to do what I wanted to do, so I booked us a free walking tour! We first had breakfast in the hotel, which was yummy! We saw Irina and Dora. two older ladies on our tour. Iris and I really liked them and thought they were funny! They were best friends, one from Peru and one from Hungary.
After breakfast Iris and I took a Lyft to the city center, where our walking tour was starting. You know I love a walking tour! We met at a coffee shop and met our tour guide, Bongz. (Yes, he said like what you smoke weed out of! Hahah.) Iris and I were with a group of two older couples. Bongz took us on a tour around the Islamic quarter of the city. It’s known as Bo-Kaap. It a pretty hip area with restaurants and bars, but also a lot of people live there. We took some really cute photos and checked out a spice shop. Bongz told us about some history about the area, and then the tour was over.
Iris and I took a Lyft (there are so cheap! Like $3 to go 10-15 minutes), back towards our area, Sea Point. We went to another of the restaurants that we went to the day before. We each had Vietnamese coffees again and for my birthday lunch I had burger and Iris had a crepe! We walked around our area and eventually we made it to a weed store (sorry everyone! But it was legal!). The weed store was pretty different than the ones at home. You had to be a member to buy weed, so Iris signed up for a membership ($5) and then she went into the store and got us a few joints.
After stopping at the hotel to change into our swimsuits, we took a Lyft the to beach! We went farther than the day before when we were walking the boardwalk. We cooled off in the water, took photos, and explored the area. The water felt so good because it really was hot out! Next up, we took a Lyft further out of town, to meet up with Olivia! Olivia is someone I met in a hostel in Nice, in 2016! She’s from South Africa and she was working as an au pair in France. I had kept in casual contact with her since, and had let her know I was going to be in Capetown!
So, we were meeting Olivia at his beach that she suggested. Iris and I got dropped off and used my offline Google maps to get to where she wanted to meet us. There were so many people driving and going to the beach! Olivia was late, but thankfully, Olivia drove by and swooped us up into her small SUV. We both recognized each other, woo! She eventually found somewhere to park, and we all walked down to the beach. She had a blanket for us, and the three of us got to know each other (more, in her and I’s case), and watched the sunset on the beach! It was truly beautiful.
After the sunset, we all got back in Olivia’s car and she drove us back towards Sea Point for dinner. We found a restaurant (after trying a few—it was a Friday after all!), and sat down. I had a really yummy fish and chip dinner, and Iris and I each a mojito. It was really nice to talk to Olivia about South Africa and her life there. We got pretty honest and deep. I bought Olivia’s meal for her as a “thank you” for showing us around. She even drove us back to the hotel. I’m just really glad that she was able to meet up with us and be such a lovely host! Thank you, Olivia!
Back at the hotel, Iris and I smoked some weed on our balcony—which was nice! We relaxed and got ready for bed. It was a long and lovely day! I couldn’t have asked for a better day to turn 31! :]
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February 9, 2023
Thursday was our first real day in South Africa! Wow, I felt so lucky to be there! Iris and I woke up around 6, after getting to our room around 11:30 the night before. We were tired but that was okay! We had complementary breakfast at the hotel, where we had coffee and a nice breakfast. We we saw a few people who we recognized from out late night drop off, meaning they had arrived at the same time as us.
At 7:30, we found the conference room and met our tour guide/manager, Belinda! She was amazing! She was full of energy. There were a lot of older people in our tour group of 29 people, which was pretty surprising. Belinda had to answered a lot of questions, which was frustrating for her, and the few of us who were younger on the group. Iris and I grabbed a few things from our room and used the bathroom, then we were off for the day!
All 29 of us got on the Gate 1 tour bus, with Belinda and our driver, Charles. We were heading to Table Mountain, one of Capetown’s most known tourist spots. Iris and I made friends with some of the younger people: Victoria and Kaitlyn, two wives from Denver, and Nicole and her husband, from Baltimore. Belinda went and bought all our Table Mountain gondola tickets (for some reason it wasn’t included in our tour), and then we all headed for the gondola to the top of Table Mountain! The gondola was pretty cool, it turned on the floor, so eventually you had a 360 degree view (like the floor of the Space Needle!). Belinda told us a little about Table Mountain, and then set the group loose for about an hour. The view was incredible! Iris and I walked around and saw beautiful views from all angles! We took photos and bought sunscreen from the gift shop—it was really hot out! It was summer in South Africa.
Eventually, we met back up with Belinda and the group, and took the gondola back to the base of Table Mountain. We all loaded back up on the bus and left the area. Belinda and our bus driver drove us back into Capetown and showed us some important buildings and sights. There were some demonstrations going on in the city, so we didn’t get to take the normal route Belinda likes to show, but what can you do about that? It was nice to hear some history and get our bearings in such a new place.
We all got off the bus in the waterfront area. Belinda took us to a diamond store where we had a short tour and demonstration. It was definitely something between the diamond store and our tour guide had partnered up for. Iris and I took our free glasses of wine, and a few snacks, then we were the first of the group to ask to leave, haha. We had a free rest of the day! Iris and I explored the waterfront area, found a Starbucks cup for Mom, took a ton of photos, checked out a ton of gift shops, and had a really yummy lunch! We each had a Vietnamese coffee (mine classic and Iris’s blended), and I had a really tasty croissant sandwich. The owner even stopped by and chatted with us! Turns out there are a few of these restaurants in Capetown.
After exploring the area, we took a Lyft back to our hotel, in the Sea Point area. The Lyft’s in Capetown were so cheap! Each ride we took was under $5, which is unheard of in Bellingham! We freshened up in our room and then decided to check out the beach near us! Our hotel was only about two blocks off the beach! We strolled the area for a while—it was beautiful and pretty busy with people. People were running, biking, swimming, rollerblading, and skateboarding on the boardwalk that we were walking on. There was a pretty cool pool near the beach, which was busy, too.
We walked back to our hotel, then realized we should have some dinner. We decided to walk a short walk to a huge food hall that Belinda suggested to us. We were told to be alert while walking around as petty crimes weren’t uncommon, and not to be out alone after dark, but Iris and I felt safe walking around in the later afternoon. Iris ended up getting a flatbread and bubble tea drink, whereas I got some Chinese dumplings and a beer. We ate our food while looking out to the beach, listening to a live band, and enjoying the food and hanging out.
We walked back to our place around 7, we were tired! I hurt my foot somehow, so when we got back I showered and put some Neosporin on a small puncture on the the bottom of my foot. I had bandaids and supplies because the week before we left, I cut my fingertip pretty badly at work. I was a mess at this point, haha. Iris and I went to bed early—we needed the rest! I was excited for my birthday the next day! :]
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A few more from February 6, 7, and 8, 2023, and our hotel in Capetown, South Africa.
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February 6, 7, and 8, 2023
Iris and I were heading to South Africa! I was so excited, Africa was my sixth continent to visit! Iris and I had booked an 8 day Groupon trip to Capetown and Mabula Game Reserve! Our tripped was booked from New York City. So we had booked a red eye flight from Seattle to NYC on Monday. That day I spent packing and getting ready for our trip. I said goodbye to Ingvar, and then went to pick up Iris. We drove down to Camano Island. Mom was taking us to the airport. I love when Mom takes me to the airport! I rarely feel anxious when Mom is taking me. Iris and I’s flight was around 10:30pm. We easily made it through security with just our carry on bags and personal items. We hung out in the lounge for a bit and had some snacks, and then took for for New York City.
Our flight was uneventful to the Big Apple. Iris and I tried to sleep, but it’s always hard to sleep on a plane. Once we arrived in NYC, we checked into a random lounge in our terminal. We had about five hours until our next flight. The lounge didn’t have much, but we had some breakfast and coffee. We charged our phones and watched the Bachelor on Hulu, on my phone. Our next flight was to Atlanta. The flight was about two and a half hours. We tried to sleep, watched TV/movies, and listened to music. Over this whole journey, I blogged on and off, trying to catch up on my recent trips.
We landed in Atlanta around 2:30pm. We had another five-ish hour layover. We went this time to a Delta lounge. We were flying the rest of the trip with Delta. Iris and I even got to take showers in the lounge—it was so luxurious! We had food, chilled, and watched the Bachelor on our layover.
Our next flight was the longest on the docket. Our flight from Atlanta to Johannesburg is the longest route that Delta has. We left Atlanta around 7:30pm, about an hour and a half delayed. The flight to Johannesburg was just over 15 hours. We slept, ate multiple meals, and kept busy on the trans-Atlantic flight.
We landed in Johannesburg on Wednesday, the 8th, around 6pm. We had to deplane, because some of the passengers were ending their journey in Johannesburg. Our plane refueled while we hung out and had a snack in the airport. Our final flight was from Johannesburg to Capetown, South Africa. After the two hour layover, we flew about two hours to Capetown, about two hours behind schedule. But, since we were with a tour via Groupon, all our transportation was handled for us, so I wasn’t worried.
We landed in Capetown around 10:30pm, on Wednesday. We traveled about 36 hours from Seattle! Once arriving in Capetown, we went through customs and got our passports stamped. We found some Gate 1 representatives waiting for us, along with other passengers. I took some South African Rand out of the ATM (I always like to have the local currency on me), and then it was time to get in the large taxi. Some of the Gate 1 travelers had different hotels, so, eventually Iris and I were dropped off at the Protea Hotel by Marriott, in the Sea Point area. We couldn’t see much around us as it was so late and dark, but we were very happy to check into our hotel! We found a note from our Gate 1 tour guide, Belinda, who we had yet to meet, about our plans for the following day. We needed to be in the conference room, breakfast eaten, at 7:30. We were gonna be tired! We got into our room and hardly unpacked, we just got ready for bed and went to bed, happy to be in South Africa. :]
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December 19, 2022
Monday was a very early morning. Ingvar and I woke up around 2:30, to meet Gabby in the hotel lobby around 3, for our transport to Queretaro’s airport. All three of us were pretty tired, but happy to be together and start the journey home. There were still some Covid 19 restrictions in Mexico, but luckily we had researched them and knew what to do. At the airport, Gabby split up from Ingvar and I, to go to a different terminal. Gabby is such a great human, I was really glad to get to know her more over this trip.
Ingvar and I easily made it through security. We waited in the area for all gates in our terminal, waiting for the only lounge to open at 5am. Once the lounge opened, we sat upstairs and left our luggage downstairs. It was a very small lounge, but with really lovely workers/waitresses. We each had coffee, and there were some small breakfast cookies and pastries for us. I really wanted to get Mom a Starbucks mug from Queretaro, but the Starbucks wasn’t open before our flight. It was a bummer, because I could see the mug I wanted to buy for her!
Our flight was on time, leaving Queretaro before 6:30. The flight was two and a half hours to Houston. Ingvar and I mostly slept the whole way—it was a very uneventful flight. Our layover was just over four hours in Dallas, and in that time we had to go through customs. That was plenty of time, especially since I used the custom app on my phone. We easily made it through customs, then went through security for our last time of the trip. We had enough time to find a lounge in Dallas, where we had breakfast. I just can’t talk enough about how I love the lounge perks of my American Express Platinum Card! Dallas is a huge airport. We had to leave enough time to move terminals, between the lounge and our gate. But that was no problem, with more than four hours in Dallas.
We made it to our gate as it was time to board. We were both tired and a little cranky, but happy to be on our way home to Seattle. I got a notification that our flight from Seattle to Bellingham was delayed, so that got me a little worried. I ended up buying wifi on our flight from Dallas to Seattle, just so I could monitor our last of three flights home. The flight was just delayed about an hour or so, but I knew it was supposed to snow in Washington. Ingvar and I slept, listened to music, and I blogged a bit. I kept an eye on our flight, and then, about four and a half hours later, we landed in Seattle.
Our final flight was all good to go. We got on the waitlist for the American Express lounge, and then I got the text that our flight from Seattle to Bellingham was cancelled. Ugh! I was pretty frustrated. Because if our flight had be canceled/delayed at any time on our previous flight, I could have asked Mom to come get us at SeaTac. What ended up happening was, Ingvar and I left SeaTac (while it was starting to snow!) via Light Rail. Mom had reached out to Malik, who was home earlier than Haley, for Christmas. Malik suggested we take the Light Rail from SeaTac to Northgate. Mom started the drive down south from Camano Island. Ingvar and I were feeling pretty tired and defeated, but happy that Mom and Malik could help us get home. After about a 40 minute Light Rail ride, we got off the train at Northgate. It was slowing! Malik picked us up, drove us a few exits up the freeway, and then Mom picked us up. Mom did a great job driving and getting us all the way to Bellingham. I was nervous, because I didn’t want the roads to get worse, and worry about her getting home to Camano Island. Mom went through the Taco Time drive thru for us in Bellingham, and dropped us off at our apartment. She drove back to Camano, and I watched her location on my phone for most of the time, because I was worried about the road conditions. Ingvar and I were happy to be home, and I felt great relief when I saw Mom made it home, too. It was a stressful ending to a great trip! Ingvar and I each ended up getting a $250 credit with the airline, since the just canceled our flight, with no alternative options, so that was great! :]
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