seals love fried fish! (kalk bay, cape town)

We found the seal pictures! One fun moment that we didn't quite capture on camera: we were excited to see one or two seals at the far end of the dock, and started walking toward them. I stopped a couple of times to lean out over the water for a better snap, when suddenly a huge whoosh of water swept up over one of those big black tires on the side of the dock, and a seal popped up nearly at our feet! I shrieked and jumped back (of course), and the seal was frightened back into the water. Apparently they get fed quite often and get pretty friendly!

penguins (boulders, cape town)

Last weekend we continued our exploration of our new city with a trip along the coast. We've been "saving" the drive all the way to Cape Point to experience with our dear friends Adam and Lindsey, who are coming to Cape Town on their honeymoon in a couple of weeks (their wedding is in Seattle this weekend - we are so disappointed to miss it!).

So we drove part of the way to the point and stopped to see the famous African penguin colony at a beach called Boulders. It was a beautiful Sunday, and we really enjoyed the views across False Bay as the morning haze lifted and we could see along the mountains on the other side in the afternoon.

The penguins were truly fun to see. They waddle in a very satisfactory way, and aren't particularly afraid of people (understandable, judging by the crowd that was there in mid-winter). We saw quite a few juvenile birds and couples at their nests, snuggled up next to each other. And we really enjoyed watching the few who played in the surf.

The beach's namesake (boulders)

Standing on the beach looking across False Bay, toward the town of Kalk Bay.

our place! (constantia)

Ok, family. Here are the long-awaited pictures of our house! It's not fancy, and we do have a few more "settling-in" things to do, like properly pin up our Michigan flag, but it is starting to feel more home-y. We share a large house with six other people: three single teachers, and a teaching couple and their son. These pictures are just of our space; we'll take some of the yard and pool out back in a few weeks when we start using it!

We have two separate spaces at the house. This view is looking out our "bedroom" doors (in the main house) onto our little garden. We plan to put a table and chairs out here in the summer for evening happy hours.

Our chairs in the bedroom.

Our quartz tile from Istanbul! (the only souvenir we could fit!)

Our garden! The neighbors upstairs (a teaching couple and their son) don't have a key to the front gate yet, so they walk through here to leave the house. We're still working out a few things :)

evening hike up to elephant eye (constantia)

It's been rainy here in Cape Town since our return from beautiful Paternoster on Sunday. But we're through another work week, and feeling more settled! Jennifer has started working from a co-working space in Woodstock, a neighborhood just outside the central business district of Cape Town (described by a friend as Brooklyn in the early '80s - it's a little rough around the edges, but the building she's in is very nice). And Jim had parent night at school, and an entertaining middle school student council election in his 6th-grade homeroom. The new student from Spain ended up being the last vote, but his English isn't quite up to snuff to understand the speeches. So Jim had the candidates re-do their speeches in Spanish. One candidate could do so impeccably. The other could not. It ended up in a tie, with a good laugh all around.

To take us back to those sunny days we had a week or two ago, thought we'd post a few pictures from an evening hike we took on a weeknight. The hike starts in what's basically a state park about 10 minutes from our house, up a beautiful pass to a big cave called Elephant's Eye, overlooking the valley we live in.

Jim models our new car - a Volkswagon Citi (or Chico, we aren't really sure which). It's a stick-shift without power steering, and Jim doesn't quite fit in the drivers' seat (which is on the other side of the car from where he's standing), but it's still considered a pretty nice car by teacher standards!

Starting to get a view already after about a 15-minute walk from the car.

Constantia valley below us - we think our house is somewhere in the middle of this picture.

sunsets and sandy walks on the coast (paternoster, west coast)

On to Paternoster! A beautiful little town where white-washed buildings and crayfishing (sometimes illegal) abound. We enjoyed relaxing here; the town felt truly tiny, with about 5 restaurants and a gas station, and a bunch of guest houses. Mostly saw South African vacationers (it was a three-day weekend, and town was hopping), and local children selling small heart-shaped wreaths that they make by stringing shells onto wire.

What do South Africans do on vacation? Go for long walks (we walked for about three hours in the morning), drink at a late lunch, and watch the sunset. As far as we could tell. And it was very enjoyable!

wildflowers (west coast national park)

This past weekend, we drove an hour up the coast to a town called Paternoster. We'll share pictures of the beach soon, but on the way we stopped at the West Coast National Park to see the wildflowers bloom. It was a gorgeous day, and despite getting a little stressed out by the driving culture (move to the shoulder to let people pass you on the two-lane highway) in our little Volkswagon, we had a great time. Also enjoyed seeing our first hooved animals in Africa!

Lunch in front of a homestead-turned-restaurant. Behind Jennifer a lagoon stretches for about 10-15 miles up to a big industrial bay.

don't underestimate the mountain (table mountain, cape town)

Last weekend, we went on a hike with our roommate Patrick up to the top of Table Mountain. We had planned to hike up via a route called Skeleton Gorge, and thought after a steep scramble uphill we'd have a leisurely walk to the cable car, which we'd take down again. We got to the top of the climb and saw a sign (conveniently posted at the peak) explaining that the cable car would be closed for maintenance for a month. In the end, we hiked up Skeleton Gorge and two hours across the backside of Table Mountain to the cable car station for a view over Cape Town, then all the way back to the gorge to hike down - a solid 6 hour excursion. Unexpectedly difficult (especially when we ran out of water in hour 4), but completely worth it. The views were fantastic!

Ready to start the hike! The peak above our heads is the first stop, then we headed further west to overlook the city of Cape Town.

Up the kloof...

A nice view over the Southern Suburbs at the top of Skeleton Gorge.

the local vineyard (constantia)

The highlight of our new home, by far, is the vineyard across the street. It is a rolling-hilled, sweeping-viewed, green and peaceful and majestic place with friendly dogs and neighbors walking through and a winery at the far end. It's really incredible. We've already enjoyed walks and runs in it most evenings, and can't wait for the days to get longer (yes, it's really winter here - gets dark around 6pm!) so we can enjoy it even more.

We had our first wine tasting at the Groot Constantia estate (the winery at the far end) last night, and for R30 apiece (around $3) enjoyed five tastings of their delicious wines (we agreed the Sauvignon Blanc was the winner). Visitors, plan to spend some quality time here.

The road up to the vineyard - it's about 100m away from our front door.

exploring en route (istanbul)

We had decided on a stop-over in Istanbul on our way to Cape Town. Visa delays shortened the stop to just two nights, but we still managed to see a lot of the sights. Jim had studied Byzantine-era Constantinople, and was excited to see the Hagia Sophia, the ancient city walls, and Byzantine mosiacs. Friends had also recommended touring Topkapi Palace and taking a Bosphorus ride, and Jennifer was excited to see the city from the top of Galata Tower. Highlights here!
 

View from the rooftop of our hotel, Neorion, in Sultanahmet.

Hagia Sofia, exterior.

An interior courtyard of the Hagia Sophia.

Interior Nave, Hagia Sophia. Notice how the marble floor has worn over time.

honeymooners (boundary waters canoe area wilderness)

Jim and I spent a really wonderful three weeks "up north" after our wedding. We drove first to Bayfield, Wisconsin and the Apostle Islands, then to the cabin on Crooked Lake, and finally spent a week paddling in the BWCA north of Grand Marais, Minnesota.

Apostle Islands

Apostle Islands

Apostle Islands