Days 21-23

Although I stated last weekend that it was the best weekend of my entire life, this past weekend has proven me wrong. Every weekend that I have spent here in Cape Town has been filled with different adventures, so I'll break down the days for you guys again and let you all know what happened!

The inside of the Side Show Club

Friday: While work is still going really well, Friday seemed to drag by. I was a little tired from going out the night before (our program puts on a drinks night every two weeks) and the weather was really crappy. When I got to work, the office was really dark because all of the lights upstairs were out, and as the day moved on, it got really dark (its winter here, so it gets dark around 5:30) I got a ride home from one of my co-workers and ran to the liquor store to start the weekend (the liquor stores close at 6:00pm here.) Upon returning to the apartment, I was told that nobody wanted to go out. After about thirty minutes of talking, we all changed our minds and decided to go to a club called Side Show. We piled into the cab and arrived in a small alley area that seemed a little bit sketchy. When we got to the door, we were told that the cover charge was 70Rand ($7.00) and we decided to just pay the cover and check it out. When we walked in, I felt a piece of my heart grow, for I had entered the greatest place in the world (if anyone could have seen all of our faces, we looked like little kids seeing Disney world for the first time.) The bar was HUGE and was playing crazy dance music. We got some drinks and made our way to the front of of the dance floor where the DJ was playing on a stage. On our way to the front of the room, we passed a girl dancing on stilts while wearing a giraffe mask, drunk people from all around the world, and fire breathers. We danced and had a great time the rest of the night and are already looking forward to going back this next weekend! Onto Saturday.
  

Inside the Old Biscuit Mill

Saturday: Saturday morning was a little rough, but we all pushed through and got ready to head to Simon's Town for the day. We decided to take the train since it is about an hour away and a taxi would be too much money. We walked downtown and bought our train tickets (we were told to buy first class tickets) and when we got to the "first class" train car I was a little taken back. When one thinks of first class, they usually think of something somewhat luxurious. This was not. The seats were all torn apart and every wall was covered in graffiti. We made a pit stop in Woodstock at the Old Biscuit Mill, which turned out to be a huge market with different food stands ranging from hot dogs to gourmet sandwiches. We all ate and walked around, then got back on the train to continue on to Simon's Town. The train route went right along the coastline (the track was literally about five feet from the water) and we finally arrived in Simon's Town after about a fifty minute ride. The town was absolutley beautiful. We did not have as much time as we hope because the last train home left at 4:20, so we walked around and got some drinks at a local bar. After a long train ride home (the janky train broke down for about twenty minutes) we went and got ready to go out. We ended up at Chrome (once again) and had a really good night.

View from the train to Simon's town

Sunday: Today was a really good day as well. It was the first time that all were able to sleep in, so we all woke up around 11:00. After hanging out for a little while, we went to the Green Market and bartered with a few people to get some cool souvenirs. After we got back,  Caitlyn, Nicole, Nathaniel, Sahar and I decided to go to the VA Waterfront (its my favorite place to go in Cape Town) and went shopping. After getting some cool clothes, we went and got some really good sushi at a seafood restaurant in the mall, then headed home.

The weekends keep getting better and better as my trip in Cape Town continues. This week is Kevin's birthday week, which is going to be a good time, and then we are going to our first rugby game on Saturday. I am starting to realize how fast this trip is going by and feel like I still have so much to do and see. I am excited to keep posting blogs to let you guys know whats going on in my life, and hope you are all still enjoying my adventures. Peace and love.