Welcome to Africa

So had I done a little more research before I planned this trip, I may have gone to India when it was cooler and Cape Town when it was warmer. But what can you do?

I had a mini-case of culture shock leaving India. Even being in the London airport felt strange. But once I arrived in Cape Town, I felt at ease. It was a beautiful sunny day and the city looked gorgeous. I stayed at a lovely backpackers (Cape Town Backpackers) with helpful staff and friendly travelers. Cape Town was so lovely I stayed 2 weeks before starting to work on my purpose in Africa.

I came to Africa with the intention of volunteering with kids and sports. However, given that I came up with that plan a year ago, it's changed a little. I still want to volunteer but I've broadened the scope to also working with marine life. I've always loved dolphins (as some of you know since I forced you to watch the video of me swimming with the dolphins in Mexico) and when I was little I wanted to be a marine biologist when I grew up. So I thought I'd give it a try.

Since the weather was cold and cloudy in Cape Town, I flew to Mozambique. I met a guy in the airport heading to Barra, so I decided to tag along. I spent the first week there, which may be the prettiest beach I've ever seen. Big palm trees, soft sand, a wide beach and crystal clear water. There I did my PADI advanced open water diver certification so I could dive deeper (to 100 feet). It was amazing. I saw a white tipped reef shark, huge manta rays, devil rays, long eels, nemos, and tons of colorful fish. It was magical.

I met great people diving as well. It's so refreshing to hang out with people who are living their dreams as SCUBA instructors. I also met some great travelers. Marcus, Sean and Natasha are on their way around they world. Now they're touring southern Africa in their decked out 4X4. It was awesome. I hitched a ride with them to Maputo and got to sleep in the tent on their roof! There was even a fridge in the back of the truck and their GPS knows all the dirt roads in the tiniest of villages.