FINALLY!! Internet is up and working. For the past 2 cities that had internet it was down. So now I have a lot to write about. Its been 9 days since the tour began and everything has been fantastic, except maybe the weather. It has been cold, not surprising since it is winter, though no where near the winters of Canada so I am coping well, but my tent buddy is from Australia and it has hit her hard!

The Cage Diving was amazing!I have all my limbs intact so I can say it couldn't have been better. We saw Great Whites within 5 minutes of lowering the anchor and they just kept getting bigger and bigger up to 10 feet, and more aggressive with the fake seal. They would swim right up to the cage and stare at you. It was scary. Some even tried to take a chunck out of the cage! We were in the (very cold) water for about 30 minutes on rotation and on the boat for about 4 hours. Up close Great Whites are very intimidating and powerful. We were told not to touch them (obviously!!!) even if they turned away because they can turn the full length of their body in a second. We also saw an island covered in seals. The next day I hiked Table Mountain with a couple on my trip. It was a spectacular view of the coast and the ocean and of the city. It had a great little cafe at the top where we had a latte and took in the view. We left Cape Town the very next day for a long drive down to the most southern tip of Africa, Cape Agulas. It is where the Atlantic and Indian Ocean meet and it is beautiful. We had lunch there and headed up to Stellenbosch. The truck is called Fanny and is monstrously big. Plenty of room for all my stuff and much more so I'm not holding back on souvenirs. There are no windows, just plastic flaps to tie down when it rains. It has an area on top called the beach, where you can sit and look forward up in the open. The seats are lined along the sides so we all face in. Its a great design as we have passed many other overland trucks that are set up like school buses and aren't really designed for talking to each other and getting about at the back. We have plenty of space to move around in. On the drive With the flaps up the wind was quite harsh so we all huddled into our sleeping bags.

In Stellenbosch we went on a wine tasting tour to 4 different vineyards. It was a great way to spend a rainy day. They all had a red wine called, Pinotage, which is a South African specialty. It is a mix between 2 types of wines, Pinot Noir and Cinsaut. My favourites were always the white wines. From Stellenbosch we went to our first Campground in Trawal, called Highlanders, where you had to watch for scorpions under your tent. For the next few days it has been early rises to cross the border into Namibia and for sunrises over Fish River Canyon, the second largest after the Grand Canyon and a sunrise drive into Soussesvlei, where we watched from the top of Dune 45. INCREDIBLE! Up until Namibia it didn't really feel like Africa. The landscape was beautiful but still very green. Besides Table Mountain, Cape Town feels like most major cities. Now that we are in Namibia you really feel like you are entering Africa. The desert landscape, high sand dunes and mountains that turn a deep red in the evening. So far we've only seen Springboks, that look like Antelopes, lizards but we met another Oasis group yesterday that promised us the whole Circle of Life to come. In Soussesvlei we went on an awesome tour of Sousses Park, where we walked up dunes and saw Dead Vlei, where the river bed had dried up and left 900 year old trees. I got a 900 year old splinter. Our guide, Boesman, was so cool. He would run off into the sand and catch a lizard that we didn't even know was there and then open a spiders hole and trick it into coming out. He picked up beetles and droppings and explain how the Bushmen used to live in the area. He was an amazing storyteller and so far definitely a highlight of the trip. We were supposed to bush camp the night before but instead we were able to stay in a camp site nearby which was a bonus!

Next we drove onto Swakopmund, where we have been for the 3 days. We stayed in a hostel again and it has been an adrenaline packed, highly addictive, intensely fun 3 days. We arrived late on the 18th and went to bed. The next day I went skydiving! A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! Thanks Amy (it was my birthday present from my sister)!! I now want to take the course. The freefall was just undescribable. I will hopefully put up the video soon. Then the next day it was Sandboarding and Quad biking. Sandboarding was like snowboarding except it didn't hurt when you fell which was great because I fell a lot, including a backflip over a jump that was caught on camera. The dunes were huge and it was hot which was a welcome change. Almost the whole group went quad biking so it was a lot of fun to do together and the dunes were the best terrain. It got your heart pumping at 70-80 km/h and the guides had no mercy! The landscape again was just amazing, all you could see was sand dipping low and snakeing around to peaks so high you just prayed you'd get over. I would do all 3 activities again in a second. Each night the group went to the local bar and I can't be more excited and happy (and relieved) about our group. Everyone is cool and everyone is just having a blast.

So now we are off the to the first bush camp for 2 nights! Wish me luck (No bathrooms!)

(Also photos are causing a bit of trouble. I'll try my best at the next stop! Sorry)

HERE!

Hey Everyone

After 2 days of flying I am here in Cape Town and the atmosphere is amazing. I'm at the Tudor Hotel in Greenmarket Square and it's singing and dancing in the streets, I can hear it from my room! I'm going to take a stroll around but I won't stay out too long as I have booked cage diving with Great Whites tomorrow morning and I have to be up early. Don't ask me why, it's my biggest fear, but I'll have to face sharks sometime, why not the biggest and baddest. Pray I don't lose a limb!

Everyone is soo friendly, already I had my flight neighbor give me her business card for any help while in Cape Town and my receptionist is awesome, he even let me borrow his converter. Things are looking bright!

No photos yet, but from the drive from the airport, I will be taking plenty tomorrow! TableTop mountain is spectacular at night all lit up, so I can't wait to see it during the day.

SO EXCITED!

Leaving on Friday!!

Hello again

After a long hiatus I am back. I promise you won't have to wait months between blogs again, I'm hoping to write a couple of times a week on the trip.

Since I last wrote a lot has happened. I graduated from Ryerson University, won the Ryerson Gold Medal, went to China with my family, visited my sister in England then took a trans-Atlantic cruise on the Norwiegan Epic back home, turned 22 and said goodbye to all my girls at home, who I will miss terribly.

I have also packed and bought all my last minute things...

Here is a list of the clothing that I am bringing:
8 tank tops
1 long sleeved shirt
2 shirts
2 shorts
2 capris
1 pants
1 legging
3 dresses
1 tunic
1 fleece sweater
1 cardigan
2 serong (to double as scarf and towel)
1 anorak
2 sandals
1 pair of flipflops
1 pair of walking/hiking shoe
1 hat
1 pair of sunglasses
1 belt
3 bathing suits
2 bras
10 undies

The rest and majority of my backpack is filled with equipment, toiletries, first aid items and the important random items like a roll of toilet paper, playing cards and a jar of marmite. Plus to make myself feel more like a girl, I threw in 2 insta-dry nail polishes.

Right now I'm in Hilton Head, with my parents and I have just had my favourite meal, my dad's carbonara, so I feel like I'm ready to go. I've said bye to my sister, who I wish could come with me so all that is left is to finish my Stieg Larsson book and say goodbye to my mum and dad.

I've thought about how to write this blog and since it takes a long time uploading photos, i will post my best few shots and then upload all the rest for your viewing pleasure on flickr. The address will be:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sophie-travels/

so wish me luck!