And now: Africa!

We have thought long and hard about where and how our sabbatical adventure should come to an end, with which destination we want to crown our year full of sunshine. We have decided on South Africa. Despite the difficult political and social situation and the resulting social problems, this country captivated us during a holiday in 2014. The landscapes, the climate, the people, the special atmosphere of the country, and above all the breathtaking wildlife enchanted us, and we wished to return with more time.

Well, we have time now and a little money left, so nothing can stop us. And since we're already there, let's also visit Namibia. However, this time Dubs has to stay home. Shipping is not worth it for 2 months, and South Africa and Namibia are too unsafe and dangerous to roam around in a camper without worry. So we book (attention, here comes an advertisement) our flights, a rental car, and a few nights at a camp in Etosha National Park with Bernhard at 'The Travel Agency' in Neudorf, and off we go again. Just like in January, dear Tamara takes us to the train station, this time to Düsseldorf, as the track between Essen and Düsseldorf is closed due to construction work - German Rail the first. Although we have planned a big time buffer based on our experience in January, we spontaneously decide to move our seat reservation forward by another hour. Due to the ICE fire last week, there are massive delays on our route - German Rail the second. Upon arrival in Düsseldorf, we learn that we could have saved this reservation as well. The Cologne train station is completely closed indefinitely due to a hostage situation - German Rail the third and final. Tamara proves her kindness and spontaneity by inviting us and another young man, who is also stuck, into her new comfortable car and driving straight to Frankfurt and then all the way back home alone. That's real vacation rescue!!!

The flight in economy class is tiring but calm, and once again, we have a spectacular landing with excellent visibility. We pick up our rental car, familiarize ourselves briefly with the key features, and then head towards Gansbaai, our first destination. Barbara takes the first drive and takes off her left shoe and sock so as not to forget that the left foot has nothing to do in an automatic car. Exhausted, nervous, in a foreign car, in a foreign city with left-hand traffic, it can quickly happen that you want to step on the clutch as usual and instead step hard on the brakes. It works, everything is going well, and after just under an hour, we are so relaxed that we even feel hungry and stop at a farmers market with a cafe. In the store, there is fresh bread, cake, jams, fruit, vegetables, etc. Everything organic, everything delicious. In the cafe, we order our first South African meal, also organic, also delicious, and slowly the stress falls off us, and the joy of being here increases noticeably. But the day still has more positive surprises in store for us. Linda booked a whale watching tour for us today, Wednesday, weeks ago. The sea is calm, the sun is shining, and we are well equipped with binoculars and a camera. It is a small boat that takes us and about 20 other tourists on a whale watching trip. The small crew is young, committed, and full of enthusiasm for the whales and the protection of the seas, and it is interesting and entertaining to listen to them. But the whales don't seem to want to come. Twice the boat stops, and everyone rushes to the bow, but the whales sighted in the distance show no interest in us and stay at a distance. The boat does not chase whales, it only approaches and then leaves it up to the animals whether they come closer out of curiosity or not. The third stop of the day even becomes a rare experience for the crew. One of the huge Southern Right Whales, 14 meters long and weighing 23,000 kilograms, swims very close to the boat together with its offspring, as if to show its "baby" the boat. For more than half an hour, the two frolic under and beside the boat. They surface so close to us that their water spouts hit us, and we could almost touch them. Then they leisurely move on. We are completely overwhelmed by this experience, but not done yet for today. The captain spots another female whale with a very special baby, a small white whale. Only about 5% of baby whales are born white due to a genetic defect and they do not turn black like most of their counterparts do. We also get close to this special pair and have a few minutes to observe them before they move on and we return to the harbor. What a stroke of luck we have!

We spend the afternoon on our terrace and see at least 10 whales frolicking in our field of view alone. There are around 180 whales currently in the bay. Can't get more whale than that!

The next day, there is a contrast program. We drive towards Hermanus and from there to the Fernkloof Nature Reserve, a 15 square kilometer nature reserve where you can admire 1,000 different Fynbos species (special vegetation in the Cape region). We take a hike up a hill, enjoy a great view of Walker Bay, and walk through the many blooming bushes. Later, we visit the town of Hermanus and are glad that we do not live in this bustling tourist center but in the peaceful Gansbaai. Tomorrow we will continue, and we almost regret having to leave the Whale Coast so soon. But we are also looking forward to the Cederberg Mountains, where we are heading tomorrow.