Holiday in Hermanus

One of my classmates told me that Cape Town was “just like Pittsburgh!” Now, I love my adopted hometown, but this was not encouraging. I had hoped to travel halfway around the world to find something different for a few months. We do share championship sports teams and lots of hills, as well as an alarming love of mayonnaise and French fries. However, my friend was referring only to the weather. Every day there is a chance of rain, and more days than not there is some precipitation.

Today the forecast was again cool and rainy, but I woke up to a beautiful sunny day. It’s Youth Day, a national holiday commemorating protests by schoolchildren seeking equal education during apartheid. As far as I can tell, it means no one works and big box stores have huge sales. Fortunately, I had other plans.

E., my site mentor took Camilla and me to Hermanus, a coastal village east of Cape Town that promotes itself as the best place in the world to whale watch from land. We saw zero whales but two baboons and several dassies. They look like rabbits but are most closely related to elephants, and they enjoy "sunning themselves," as my Rough Guide informs me.

We ate lunch overlooking the water and walked around for an hour or so afterwards. It was a beautiful day, and a treat to see a different part of the Western Cape. As it turns out, actually, I’ll be doing some exploring for the project as well. E. and I decided that I should travel to the hospices to interview people, instead of using the phone. This is great on so many levels: I won’t be in an office all day on the phone; I’ll be driving around the countryside; and I’ll get to actually see what’s happening “on the ground.” My first interview is scheduled for next week.

More pictures from Hermanus are below.