Hello, all!
This week's been a perfect time for me to sit down, reflect on the past few weeks, and - of course! - continue and finish up my (very) long list of African take-aways. Hope yall enjoy :)
Learnings from Shungwe:
47. You know the fish is fresh if it throws itself off the plate.
48. All-night parties in the African bush are immeasurably crazier than frat parties, no questions asked.
49. Be prepared to answer questions about the rape of Dinah, whether divorce is biblical, and the end of the world...they might just sneak up on you.
50. Kapinta (the world's tiniest and most odor-ific fish) has one of those smells that you don't just "get used to" over time...even after a 15-hour bus ride.
...and from Livingstone:
51. Make friends with hotel gardeners. One may just turn out to be a gamekeeper who goes by "Dr. Doolittle" - and if you're lucky, he'll lead you to giraffes and zebras.
52. When your camera breaks in a foreign country, just make friends with people who look like they have a good eye for pictures. You'll end up with some pretty amazing shots!
53. An "African tan" means you look Jamaican on your arms, chest, and shins but Irish everywhere else. (Sigh.)54. Giving random plastic trinkets to guys who won't leave you alone is an awesome way to come home with legit African keepsakes.
55. Always be prepared to catch your boyfriend should he almost fall off Victoria Falls.
56. Jumping off a bridge attached to another person is at least twice as complicated as jumping solo.
...and even South Africa:
57. You can make fudge anywhere in the world...3 countries, 5 cities, and counting!
58. You know you've crashed guy's night when you've got 3 kinds of meat on the table, Hangover 2 playing in the background, water and beer as your only sources for hydration, and four guys hanging out by the grill.
59. Close your windows while going greenlaning - the sand'll getcha.
60. Go to Pringle Bay.
61. Baboons are pests on steroids. Incriminating evidence: When you're away for the day in South Africa, it's highly advised that you close and lock all your windows. Why, you ask? Because baboons will toss their babies into windows left ajar, the babies will raid your kitchen and pass the goodies back out to mom and dad, and you'll return to a nicely ransacked house. Beautiful.
62. "Borrowing" a King Protea is only okay if you're with a licensed South African tour guide.
63. It is standard in South Africa to deny women visas to the US (but if you're male, you're good to go). That's why, in South Africa, women outnumber men 8 to 1.
64. South African wine is worth the price of a plane ticket.65. Clothes dryers, shaving cream, and paper towels are highly underrated.
66. "It all comes together with a Castle."
67. Good can, indeed, come from 8-hour layovers in Joburg.
So if you ever go to Africa, make sure to keep those in mind! Love yall so much :)
Stephanie
No comments:
Post a Comment