South Africa: Cape Town to Durban to Lesotho

We finished off our stay in Cape Town with a view of Table Mountain from across the bay (it is called Table Mountain because of its flat top), then drove to the college town of Schallensburg, where 6 of the 8 dictators Africa has had graduated. We explored the town for about an hour, then headed to the airport. If you look at the pics you’ll see two pictures of a group of shacks…those are called townships (or shanty towns) where the people who live there (mostly illegal immigrants or unemployed) build a home out of anything they can find. They are all over the countryside…no sanitation, no running water, their electric lines are a mess so they can tap into whatever source that works, and these towns are bringing back diseases such as cholera, and the HIV rate has gone up to 1 in every 3 adults are HIV positive in the country. If you look at some of the pictures of these more "stable" shacks in the country side, you'll see their roofs being held down by tires, cinder blocks or rocks. It’s kinda crazy and makes me grateful for what I do have. We got some good news when we got to the airport….bags were NOT overweight! We arrived in Durban just in time for dinner. Durban’s airport was built specifically for the world cup and has only been up and running since 2010. Durban is home to the Zulu tribe and is called Shakaland after King Shaka, the great warrior Zulu king of the 1800s. Mom and I headed to the mall just across the street, found a store that had world cup paraphernalia on sale, then had dinner. We hung out with our new friends Leon and Iris Hubsmith from Detrich, Idaho.

This morning we woke up at 5am for a 6am departure for the tiny kingdom of Lesotho (pronounced lay-soo-too). We drove for almost 3 hours, loaded up in 4wd jeeps and took the dirt road along the cliff, winding up and back the switchbacks for another three hours into the country of Lesotho. It is 9400ft above sea level where, on this east side, there are mainly small sheepherding villages. If you go about 100km west, you will find a small city which is the capitol of the country. We had lunch at the chalet on top, then visited a family in one of the villages, then we headed back down the mountain. The pictures just don’t do it justice. We head to see an African Cultural Center, a small island called St. Lucia, and the game reserve called Hluelue (pronounced shoo-shoo-eee) tomorrow. We finally get to see animals!

Just a heads up, Mom and I chose our excursions at Victoria Falls. We’ll be doing a day at Chobe National Park (which is supposed to be one of the best game reserves in this part of Africa), the Lion Encounter where we go see the Lions early in the morning, and a sunset cruise along the river near Victoria Falls…and of course we are going to take an afternoon to go see the falls! This trip seems to be flying by so fast!

South Africa-Cape Town

Mom and I made it to South Africa. With an 8 hour time difference, we left our hotel in Salt Lake at 7:45am on May 3 and arrived in Cape Town at 10:30pm on May 4. Our bags were overweight, both in the U.S. and in South Africa...my guess is that half of my suitcase was full of snacks and that weighed me down a bit! Eek! The flight from Atlanta to Johannesburg ended up being 17 hours....my butt was cramping so bad, however, I slept about half the flight, which was really nice! We have been in Cape Town for two days and tomorrow we fly to Durban where we start going to the game reserves to see all the safari animals!!! I haven't tried any food that's too different, with exception of the ostrich burger I had today. :) Here's a rundown of what we have done:

1. A few scenic stops on our way to Hout Bay
2. Took a boat out to Seal Island
3. Went to see the South African Penguins
4. Lunch in Simonstown
5. Went to Cape of Good Hope (Southwestern most part of Africa) and Cape Point (Southeastern most point in Africa)
6. Table Mountain
7. Tour of Cape Town and afternoon at the Cape Town Waterfront


South African Penguins

CONCACAF Finals and Master's Degree!

On Wednesday, I got to go to watch Real Salt Lake in the CONCACAF finals at Rio Tinto stadium! It was so much fun to see a game in that stadium again! RSL lost, but it was a fun atmosphere. No one sat down for 90 minutes!



I am officially done with school! I turned in my final paper today! Graduation is next Saturday, but I will not be able to attend because I leave on Tuesday to go on an African Safari with my mom in South Africa!!!! I am so excited!!!

Nature and Easter!

Nature....I'm learning to enjoy nature more and more. In the mornings (now that it is getting warmer) and when I get home from work, I sit on my back porch and watch the birds fly and swim in the lake. Here are some shots I took this past week...I did get a couple sweet pics of the eagles!








Easter....It's amazing that four years ago, I visited the tomb of the Savior that was found empty by Mary Magdalene and the other Mary the morning of His Resurrection where the great declaration was given, "...he is not here, but is risen" (Luke 24:5-6). I am forever grateful for the Savior and His sacrifice to carry out a plan so that each one of us can one day return to our Father in Heaven. Happy Easter!

EAGLES!

These two were flying together! They fly so fast, but it was so cool! I got a pic of each!!!

Birthday!

My birthday was pretty cool. After practice, I ran out to my car to drive it up to the stadium to grab the soccer equipment and the first thing I saw was balloons....then I saw the banners across the hood....then the streamers, and the window paint. Leave it to my boss to surprise me that way. It was pretty cool...no one has ever done anything like that for me before. Waiting for me inside my car was a little birthday bag with the movie Tangled, a car wash to get the window paint off, and a card from my boss, and a card from my best dog friend, Motley. :)



After practice, I met up with my friend, Ruth, and we went to the car wash to wash off the window paint...I know, it didn't last very long. Then we went to Texas Roadhouse for my birthday dinner. Ruth gave me a beautiful picture of Jesus....I can't even begin to describe how beautiful the painting is...see the pic below. When I got home, my roommate and I watched Tangled. I got a call from everyone in my family, and a text from a few friends....and of course, TONS of birthday wishes on facebook! So thank you to everyone for a great day!

WAC Ring!

So our WAC rings arrived last week and us coaches gave them to the girls on Friday at our banquet! It is pretty cool, I'm not gonna lie. It's hard not to want to wear it around so the world sees it! :)

FROZEN LAKE!

Hyrum Dam is frozen over! I woke up the morning I got back to find that there were a TON of people ice fishing! I mentioned to my roommate how I had never been on a frozen lake before, so we hiked down to the lake with or cameras (through the mud) and took pictures. Because there was a layer of water on top (it was warm that day) there was a reflection of the sky and the mountains on the lake...SO GORGEOUS. Check out the pics!

Finishing the Month Long Adventure!!!

WOW...what a journey I've had the last month! The last time I blogged, I was in Orlando and had just finished a trip out to the Kennedy Space Center. I finished off that week recruiting at the Disney Soccer Showcase at Disneyworld, then drove down to Ft. Lauderdale for a week long coaching course. I met other coaches from all over the country, mostly back east and the midwest. The coaching course was a blast. I learned so much, gained confidence in the things I already know, and met people who have confidence in my ability. My group was awesome....we named ourselves "Peter's Pandas" after our instructor, Peter Broadley, who was so helpful, so honest....he helped all of us become better coaches, but he also let us know the things we did well and the things we needed to work on. Our group worked hard for each other and we enjoyed each other's company! It was great! I made other friends from other groups as well and excited to continue those friendships. Tony Dicicco was there...he coached the women's National team and I grew up going to his goalkeeper camps! That was pretty cool to be able to meet him...but I was SO nervous around him!
From Ft. Lauderdale, I flew to DC where I stayed with my friend, Beth Bauer, who I played club soccer with back in 1993-1995. It was so good to see her! She also had a little foster dog who I would've taken home with me in a heartbeat if I had a place for him! I got to walk around DC a little and I went to the International Spy Museum....I took on the identity of Greta Schmidt from Germany...but I forgot my mission and who I was supposed to meet with and why, so I was captured by customs officers at the end of my tour through the museum! It was a lot of fun.




From Ft. Lauderdale, it was a small trek to Baltimore via Annapolis, Maryland where I walked around downtown and the U.S. Naval Academy! It was a cute place with beautiful scenery of the Chesapeake Bay!






I arrived in Baltimore Wednesday evening and immediately immersed myself into the annual NSCAA Convention. The best part of the week was being able to spend time with my good friend and colleague, Josh Walters. Josh left Utah State to join the staff and Florida State last summer. Even though I am really excited for this move, it has been hard not working with him anymore. He is one of those people who has always believed in me and mentored me...and he is a good friend. The sessions at the convention were awesome. I got something out of each one. I also met a lot of people, experienced the world of networking at a professional level and in a purely "social" environment. I saw quite a few people from my course in Ft. Lauderdale, so it was fun to see them again and strengthen those friendships. I also had the opportunity to meet Briana Scurry, former national team goalkeeper. I watched her and the U.S. Women's National team win the World Cup in 1999 at the Rose Bowl!









I am really grateful for the last month. Many prayers answered, I grew in confidence, and I got to meet good people and spend time with good friends. I would've never been able to come on this trip without the help and support of my boss. I'm grateful to work for someone who believes in constant growth as a professional and that she always helps us find the resources so I am able to take part in activities and events to help me get better at what I do. It is time to keep moving forward taking with me everything I've learned on this trip. :) So here's to the next adventure!!!!