5/17 - The Lion's Head

Today I woke up early to go to the Internet café, only to find that it was closed. (Yes, this is one example of why I’m always late posting!) I felt especially bad since Angelo woke up specifically to drive me there. When I got back, the Martins went over the house rules with me, which seem very reasonable and should not be a problem to follow. My talk with Mrs. Martin reminded me that my home-stay family makes a huge effort to make sure everyone’s needs are met. I am really lucky to have so many people looking out for me!
Before I left, I made plans with Christoph to climb Table Mountain, the highest mountain in the area. The picture below shows part of the mountain. Everyone warned me that the view be terrible since it was a foggy day (as you can see) and advised us to wait for another day. I remained excited about the hike anyway!


I grew less excited about the trip as it became more and more complicated to meet up with the others. Originally, Christoph was supposed to meet me at the train station by the Martin home. Jason walked to the station with me since he was headed to the movies. Since I do not have a cell phone yet, Christoph called Jason to let me know that he was running late and would meet me at the Newlands station instead. Due to an unfortunate mix up, I got off the train just as Christoph got on. As a result, I had to spend the next 1 hour and 20 minutes waiting for the next train. (They run infrequently on the weekends.) Since I didn’t have a phone, I had no idea how to get in touch with everyone…
Fortunately for me, I met Clara, a young South African woman, at the Newlands station. We spent over 30 minutes chatting about the different cities and cultures within South Africa. Since Clara had lived in and visited the others, she offered me a native’s perspective. She had also visited New York City when she was the age I am now, so we discussed international travel and the US. Clara was nice enough to let me borrow her phone to call Alinka, whose number I got from Jason. I eventually made it to Cape Town and met up with the others.
We ultimately decided to climb Lion’s Head, a nearby mountain, instead of Table.


This was wise choice since Lion’s Head wasn’t foggy at all and was a significantly shorter climb! Nevertheless, several people had trouble with the climb. This was mostly because all of us expected the hike to be a clearly defined trail and a few people carried big bags that weren’t suitable for a more rugged hike. After the first 30 minutes of hiking, we realized that our gradual hike turned into a steep slope. As we neared the top, the trail literally turned into a rock climbing experience--complete with handles, ladders and chains.




Some of the gang became scared, but everyone made it to the top! Due to choosing Lion’s Head, we finished just before it got dark and we had a clear view from the top. The hike/climb was totally worth it!!!




By the time we got back down the mountain, it was too late to go home for dinner. We had all worked up quite an appetite…for carbs!!! We went to an Italian restaurant on Kloof Street in the city. The food tasted amazing--especially after a workout! Below is the whole group (except for me…someone had to take the picture!), which includes (from left to right) Michael, Alison, Alinka, Sarah, Christoph, and Andy.


Even though I ended up sore and with cuts on my feet, I wouldn’t have traded this day for anything. And to think I almost gave up at the Newlands station and headed home!