AFRICA

This was definitely the trip of a Lifetime. Words can't really express how cool it was, so I will try with some pictures and captions.

There were so many beautiful sunsets and sunrises, and we were awake pretty much everyday for all of them.

Cape Town was absolutely a beautiful place with a bustling city life, great mountain and beach scenery, and amazing people. We had a great mother- daughter trip!

We went to a township where these girls performed some dances for us as part of an after school program to get kids involved. They tried to teach us but quickly learned we were not naturals.

The African wildlife is second to none. We saw all of the Big 5: leopards (and cubs), lions (and cubs), elephants (and babies), rhinos, and buffaloes. We also saw lots of other cool animals like hippos, owls, vultures, eagles, giraffes, lots of antelopes of all kinds, monkeys, and baboons just to name a few.

We went up to Zambia to see Victoria Falls- one of the 7 wonders of the world. It was totally worth the trip. It is incredible to be standing on the bridge across from the falls and getting soaked from the mist that comes off of the falling water.

This is what started it all... we went to the Holland vs. Denmark World Cup game. Not only was the game amazing with the roar of vuvuzelas and the sea of orange reminding me of Clemson, but it was so fun to be a part of the soccer fever that took over all of Africa.

We did an awesome wine tour to Stellenbosch, Franchoek, and Paarl. We were feeling pretty good by 10am after our first trip. We loved the sweet ones and the Pinotage that was started at Graham Beck. We also got to see the assembly line and help the guy catch the bottles that fell.

Some African Lingo we learned:

- Thank You in Afrikaans = "buy a donkey"

- Traffic Lights = Robots

- Hello in Xhosa = Molo

Clearly, we had an amazing time. It was realling interesting seeing the culture firsthand and learning about the history and the current state of the country from different perspectives on the ground. This place has some amazing people but also some incredible hurdles that they are facing. Some of my favorite people we met were the people in Kruger National Park who owned the luxurious lodge and came to chat worldly issues and politics with us at every meal. I think my favorite part of the trip was seeing the wildlife. I have seen pictures of all of these animals, but there is really nothing like being an arms length away from a female lion sitting next to her cubs who are sleeping on eachother or a herd of elephants surrounding the baby to protect it. My next favorite thing was definitely the soccer. This was so cool to watch an entire country come together to back their team while being surrounded by people from all over the world with a common passion in sport. It was so fun to go through this experience with my mom! We had a lot of laughs, a lot of photo shoots, and some great memories. This is one trip that will stay with me for a lifetime.

PS. Sorry this formatting on this program sucks.