Road trippin’, Part 1

Last week I went on a road trip with some buddies along the South African coast towards Port Elizabeth. Lekker times were had. The fun was so intense that it can’t be contained in one post.

Me with the guys who helped me bungee!

Friday: We headed eastbound on the 7+ hour/360 mile journey from Cape Town to Stormsrivier, where the backpackers we booked was located. The route we drove is commonly referred to as the Garden Route because of all the diverse vegetation that grows along it. It has the second mildest climate in the world (Hawaii is first). Since it was my car and I was the only one allowed to drive it under the contract, I had the pleasure of driving all 7+ hours… It wasn’t too bad, and we made it through the night and rainy weather.

Our journey east on the N2, one of 2 major highways out of Cape Town

Sunset on the Garden Route

Saturday: I went BUNGEE JUMPING with some guys I met at the backpackers. It was hectic! The Bloukran Bridge is the world’s tallest bungee jump at 216 meters above the Bloukran River, not too bad for my first bungee ever (go big or go home, right?). I was terrified and made the mistake of looking down before I jumped. They had to pry my hands off the guys helping to the ledge. The free fall lasted about 7 seconds, but I really don’t remember much immediately after I jumped. I do, however, remember the 2-3 minutes of hanging upside down, which felt like eternity. As I was hanging there I was praying for the knot around my feet to hold. I probably had nothing to worry about, but when I was hanging by a thread off a bridge hundred of meters up in the air all I could think about was the worst possible scenarios at the time. Once I got back onto the bridge, I could feel the adrenalin coursing through my body. Would I do it again? I'm not sure, but I probably could be convinced if with the right company….

Jumper #37

The harness and straps that kept me from plunging to my death.

"I believe I can fly."

I'd like to go back to solid ground, please. ASAP.

Back on the bridge. I know I'm back on ground, but that doesn't keep me from clinging onto the grate just as an extra precaution.

Later that day we went on a beautiful hike in Tsitsikamma National Park, right on the Indian Ocean:

Looks like a scene from Lost

Start of the path.

Bridge over troubled water.

Coastline.

On the rocks. 

Paradise found.

The waves were pretty rough.

I’ll post Part 2 soon with pics of me trying to surf and lion cubs. You won’t want to miss it.

Thank you to everyone who donated to Grassroot Soccer this past week: Jason H. and the Roselles! I am less than $40 to $1000! Help me reach my goal!

Until next time,

John

Workin’ for the weekend

I know, I know…I’m really bad at updating. OK, I promise to do more than 1 update this week. And I’ll tell you more about the awesome road trip I recently took. But first…

Thank you! Together we’ve raised $883 so far, almost a third of the way to my goal of $3000. I want to get to $1000 by Sunday night, so please consider throwing a few bucks my way :) . I want to give a big shout out to everyone who has made donations to Grassroot Soccer so far: TVT, Debbie S., Allison K., Tory C., Becca F., Jackie K., Badrul R., my cousin Nickie, Sayrebrook Veterinary Hospital (thanks, mom and dad!), uncle Tony, and Michelle V. If you want to be in the company of these upstanding people, donate today!

Kids playing soccer in the street.

Why am I in Cape Town in the first place? All of this has been made possible through the wonderful people at the HIV Vaccine Trials Network, who have been generous enough to support my research project in South Africa. I am primarily based out of the Emavundlani HIV Prevention Centre located in Crossroads, a neighborhood in Cape Town:

Map of Cape Town.

Emavundleni Prevention Centre

One of the dogs that hangs out outside the center.

For my project, I am conducting a survey in the townships around Cape Town. Specifically, I go around to various taverns (known locally as shebeens) and ask customers about HIV, vaccines, and clinical trials. It’s been really great talking to the people in the community and they have been pretty welcoming. The taverns range from a small 10’x20’ shack with no electricity to larger places with pool tables and flat screen TVs.

Inside one of the shebeens.

The shebeens are where people in the community come together, drink, and socialize, which is why we think it is a good place to educate the community about HIV as well as recruit for clinical trials. And hopefully my project well shed some light on the issue. Pretty cool that I get to go to bars all day, huh? Except there’s no drinking on my part…

Castle: the official beer of everything in South Africa.

Next post:

-I’ll tell you about the most epic road trip ever. Bungee jumping, surfing, lion cubs, and a 16 hours on the road down the beautiful Garden Route along South Africa’s coast.

Future posts:

-I moved to the coast and it’s beautiful

-Shark cage diving and I do not agree on much, mainly on if I should keep my lunch.

-Bastille Day in SA!
-And much, much more...

Until next time,
John