The most awesomest weekend since forever

You all must have experienced one of THOSE weekends...one that is so desperately overdue and just sneaks up and becomes the most epic weekend of the year. This last weekend was exactly that - an adventuresome getaway with an awesome couple to one of the most beautiful places in South Africa - a reminder of how amazingly blessed we are to live in such a diverse country.

 

For those of you who have visited Sodwana Bay before, you will know that the park consists of a very large campsite (over 200 stands), and as die-hard camping fanatics, we usually book one of these and set up camp for the weekend. However, as we had friends joining us from Cape Town, it wasn't going to be very practical for them to fly up with camping gear. So we opted to stay in Coral Divers - a diving school that is situated within the campsite itself and offers a variety of accommodation from rustic permanent tents to luxurious en-suite cabins. What a pleasure.

 

We arrived late on Friday night,  armed with a pack of lamb chops and a bottle of GOOD red wine. The fires in their lapa area were already on the go (you can self cater or book meals with them) which led to a hassle free, relaxed dinner with heaps of catching up - and Hendrik and Lindie welcoming a beautiful new nephew into the world! Then it was off to our tented camp for a good nights rest in anticipation of diving our nuts off the next day... even the camper in me was a little relieved that we didn't have to put up a tent! Their permanent canvas tents are pitched under a roof and have two single beds that are super comfortable. Everything the dive fanatic needs really - a place to put your head at the end of the day!

 

Saturday's 5am wake up call came in the form of several tractors rumbling off to load up the dive gear and head to the beach. There is absolutely no chance of a sleep in, but when you're there to dive, that's the point is it not? Armed with our new GoPro (fancy b'day prezzy from the hubby), we headed off to the beach, where Dale was promptly allocated GoPro duty as I was sure that I would drop it into the sea and never see it again!

 

You will not believe the clarity of the photos and videos you can get on a GoPro - we were both blown away. It's so exciting to finally have something that we can use to show people how amazing the underwater world is... After a fun dive, we headed back to camp to smash some breakfast into our faces. All you can eat, full breakfast buffet, for ninety bucks! Win! And after that, wallowed around like beached whales on the sundeck whilst the boys went off for a kite surf and introduced the GoPro to another adventure sport. Tough life I tell you...

 

 

To cut a long story short, the rest of the weekend included:

 

* Sharks beating Province in the Currie Cup (woop woop!!)

* The most epic dive ever - Raggie shark, Loggerhead and Green Turtles, schools of king fish, and a DM who had to wear a froggie mask because his team lost the rugby :) - all on GoPro!

* Magnum ice-creams to avoid becoming Hangry - so hungry that you get angry.

* Pygmy kingfisher, herds of Rhino, a bull elephant in musth, and a Kamakazi bird that has the most insane call ever, all in Hluhluwe Game Reserve.

 

 

Who would have thought you could cram so much into 2 days???

 

Now I really can't wait until Monday next week....a whole week of sun, sea and sand! Zanzibar, here we come!!

 

 

 

The big three-OH

Thirty. Dertig. Dreißig.

In 'The Myth of Sisyphus' the French existentialist Albert Camus comments that the age of thirty is a crucial period in the life of a man (or woman, in this instance) for at that age he (or she) gains a new awareness of the meaning of time.

Time.

Turning thirty means that I have lived on this earth for 10957.3 days. It also means that, if I make it to 80, then I only have 18262.1 days left to do everything that I want to do in my life, and that I have 3652.4 days left until I reach middle age...so my mid-life crisis is not as far away as I thought!10957.3 days is a long time. Which got me thinking about what I have learnt over all those years. If I could travel back in time, what would I choon my 18 year old self? Probably something along the lines of "where on earth did you get your dress sense" or "it must be so nice being so carefree" - who do I sound like right now?!?! Some crazy grown up person...

I came up with a few things that I have learnt in my life so far. Inconvenient truths according to leechipip. Personally, I think many of them are pretty damn profound, whilst others are just a bit silly. Anyhoo, 30 years is a long time to accumulate all this wisdom, so I hope that some of it rings true to you. Happy birthday to me xxx

* Happiness comes from loving yourself and having respect for others, which in return will lead to success. The happier you are, the more successful you'll become - and never measure your success against someone else's. Your successes in life are unique - comparing yourself to other people is just stupid.

* True friends are those who have seen you at your worst and still love you for who you are. They never expect you to conform and will always be around when you need them the most.

* There is no place in life for rude people. You can achieve anything you wish to without having to resort to rudeness. That also goes for bitchiness, snobbiness, and being condescending.

* No matter how old you get, your parents are, and always will be, right about everything. Trust me.

* TV/Playstation/Computer Games are the biggest waste of time on this planet. Go outside and enjoy life the good old-fashioned way, like you used to as a kid. That evil little box is stealing your precious time. No-one ever lay on their death bed and said "oh, how I wish I had watched more TV..."

* Don't waste your time trying to consume copious amounts of revolting spirit liquor in an attempt to get completely knackered so that you can socialise with other completely knackered people. Rather spend your energy and time on tasting and appreciating wine. It really is glorious, and will serve you well later on in life when you become all sophisticated and have to attend dinner parties and fancy weddings and stuff...plus, its actually good for your heart - win!

* Look after your body - you only get one and you cannot trade it in for a new one when you get old and buggered. A little bit of exercise never killed anyone...

* Do not rely on other people as much as you rely on yourself. It doesn't hurt as badly when you disappoint yourself, but it feels horrible when you put your trust in someone else and they let you down. Be true to yourself.

* Friends can be fickle, but family is forever. Be good to your family - they are always there, through good and bad.

* Toast will ALWAYS fall onto the buttered/jammed side if you drop it.

 

* Hangovers get harder to deal with the older you get.

 

* If people don't like you or what you stand for, that's their problem, not yours. Not everyone has to like you and you don't have to please everyone all the time. Saying no every once in a while is allowed.

 

* Enjoy the irresponsibility and poverty of youth - once you have a job and enough money to jol, you have zero time and way too many commitments. Growing up is seriously overrated.

 

* Save. Save. Save. The earlier you start, the better! Plus, poor old people are really depressing. Its also motivation for that day when you can piss off into the world, leaving your well educated and successful children behind, and travel to all those cool places with all the money you get back when your RA pays out.

 

* Have an opinion - and stick to it. If you like the Blue Bulls, then like the Blue Bulls - even though the rest of the world thinks they're a bunch of twats...good for you.

 

* Never stop learning. Do something new that excites and inspires you every day.

 

* Puppies, kittens, babies, etc. all grow up. If you're not prepared to look after them when they're all grown up, eating you out of house and home, and requiring daily exercise/entertainment/schooling - don't get/have one.

 

* Drunk driving is dumb. Your life is worth more than one good party.

 

* If you're going to shoot an animal for sport, you should be prepared to eat it.

 

*Sun-cream. Nuff said.

 

* Weddings are the coolest parties EVER.

 

* Don't take life too seriously. Laugh at yourself. I do all the time...

 

-the end-

 

 

 

 

“To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.”
― Oscar Wilde