Part I: South Africa

The Start

After an endless journey, we finally arrive in Cape Town on September 22nd in the early morning. Quick coffee, then into the car, driving on the left, highway, loud honking, angry glances... luckily I'm driving an automatic. After the windshield has been wiped for the fifteenth time (even the wipers are unfortunately on the left), we finally arrive at our hostel for the next two nights. 'Oh, you're arriving really early' - a sentence that will accompany us for the next three weeks.

Cape Town will probably never be my favorite city, the contrast between the shiny Victoria & Alfred Waterfront and the townships a few kilometers away is just too striking for my eyes. With its fascinating Table Mountain, charming wineries in the surrounding area, and magnificent food, 'the food capital of the world' could still delight us.

Next stop: Westcoast National Park, because... it's flower season! Even our accommodation made us inwardly rejoice with excitement, as we were staying in an ancient farmhouse and each of our cozy rooms was equipped with its own cast-iron fireplace. After a stormy night under creaking beams, a cloudy day awaited us in the national park. But this dreary gray sky emphasized the brightly yellow flower meadows, in the midst of which zebras and ostriches peacefully grazed side by side, particularly impressively. Filled with the natural spectacle and somewhat recovered from the urban hustle and bustle, we then set off for the Garden Route.

The Garden Route

Waving whales, a hundred dolphins synchronizing their swimming, and funny ostriches galore were the next part of our journey. Some hours were frosty and some days too stormy for animal observations, but any lingering grudges could usually be extinguished by excellent food and wonderful wine. And there was never a shortage of both in South Africa.

After a few cooler days and invigorating hikes along the vast beach of Wilderness and the rugged coast of Tsitsikamma National Park, we embarked on a 20-kilometer dirt road to the next incomparable refuge, Oyster Bay Lodge. A gigantic private estate with heath-like hills intersected by a swampy area, behind which large sand dunes rise in front of the endless ocean. The entire landscape is only accessible through hiking, horse riding, and mountain biking trails. After an initial hike including a sandstorm and an unplanned river crossing with ticks, I hopped on a horse. We leisurely crossed the heath at a walking pace and then it was off: my guide and I galloped for kilometers on the deserted beach. Perfection on horseback.

We encountered curious giraffes, warthogs with the same hairstyle as Professor Doktor (he didn't find it quite as funny), boks with heart-shaped noses, and of course countless obligatory ostriches. The most important realization: almost every animal responds to a friendly 'hello', but the ostrich is particularly interested when you tell it through a funnel formed with your hands.

Our last stop in South Africa before flying from Port Elizabeth to Namibia was Addo Elephant National Park. The insights into the flora and fauna of the original South Africa that we gained there were breathtaking. Watching elephants go about their natural family life, always striving to protect and touch the smallest member in their midst, melted our hearts and completely relaxed our minds.