George

Hi!  We had three nights in George, SA at the most gorgeous cliff-side house - the view was amazing and the roar of the waves crashing against the cliff was loud!


One of my "top-5" was to star gaze and this was the place for it with no light to interfere!  We had a couple of cloudless nights and the stars were abundant!  So cool!

One of the funny things about this house was the road to get to it.  I took a video but you really cannot appreciate how crazy it was ... one-lane (remember, left-side driving), switchbacks and, in a couple of spots, the switchbacks were straight UP!  Here you can kind of see the road on the other side of the canyon we had to cross.  It was crazy!  Carsten did a great job driving ... as always!

We did decide to spend some time enjoying the house but there were many things to do in the area.

The first day we went in the direction of Oudtshoorn for the Ostrich Safari. We got up close to many - including a one-day old baby!

This is what my feet look like if I skip my pedicure! Ugh!


Falk got some great pictures!  A bit later he got a "bite" on his finger when he came a little too close.  Ostrich don't have teeth - he said it felt like a hard pinch!


This momma spent quite some time getting her eggs situated so that when she sat down they were all covered, snuggly and warm.


They all look mildly pissed off - but if I had a brain the size of a golf ball, I would be too! LOL
Now, when we do something dumb or see someone do something crazy we call them "ostrich brain"! 


Headed back to George after a nice lunch in Oudtshoorn.

The next morning (what day is it anyway ...?) Falk walked into the living room saying "Good morning, there are dolphin!"  A great start to the day - watching dolphin playing in the Indian Ocean off our porch.  The day before we had spotted whale!  So fun!  We readied ourselves for the drive down the mountain and set off for a hike in the Garden Route National Forest.

They are looking at a large (about 3 inch long) grasshopper. 

We had to cross the stream 10 times on this hike.  Most crossings were more complicated than this manicured one.



Of course, the waterfall at the end!


This is Protea - the national flower of South Africa.  It comes in pink as well.  


Lunch at Salinas on the beach. We walked over the dune to have short walk along the shore.  Falk and I (Sheri) got splashed by a rouge wave.  You know how it happens - we were in ankle-deep water having our picture taken and WHAM! a big wave comes and soaks your butt!  It was funny!



Monday morning we packed up and headed down for the last time.  Sad to leave this beautiful place but excited to explore more of this amazing coast!

We took the road less traveled - 7 Passes Road (built in 1880-1890) instead of the N2 (freeway).  It was a beautiful drive with some baboon crossings!  A whole family of baboons with their little ones crossed right in front of our car!







The end of the road in Knynsa.  We grabbed lunch at 34 Degrees South (the latitude down here) - it was delicious.  The food here has been outstanding and very affordable.

This is a view of Knysna Head - the headwaters where the Indian Ocean meets the Knysna River.  We spotted some whales off the coast while exploring!




Leaving Knysna for Plettenberg Bay - our destination for the next two days.

We found our little apartment and wandered out for gelato - is it a coincidence that our apartment was mere 100 yards from the ice cream store?  Hmmmm...

A quick downhill walk to the beach before we call it a day!

It was lovely - but if you go downhill in a town with no Uber - guess what? Uphill is surely coming! LOL

Today we will go explore more of the Garden Route National Park.  The Tsitsikamma / Storms River section.

Final blog will be Thursday night.  We head home on Friday.

See you soon!
Sheri & Carsten


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