The first leg

Travelling with Robbie is fun. We are very compatible. We can spend 100s of hours in each others company without getting on each others nerves. We enjoy going for long walks that get us lost in new towns. We enjoy dancing foolishly, eating messily and extended afternoon siestas. So you get the idea- our long-anticipated road trip has been a wonderful journey.

Robbie eventually arrived in Cape Town on the 28th on December (I think that’s when it was) in time to help me send off the last items remaining in my flat and laze about in the sun at my parents’ hotel. We got burnt and spent the rest of the holiday being very careful of the powerful African sun and using up all of Tracy’s suntan lotion.

The 31st to the 2nd was spent at the Vortex Trans party. We were part of a big crew, the Pillemers, the Zimblers, Bronwyn, Jodi, Abigail and lots of other loud and energetic cape town folk, all camped in a kraal around the shaded chill area that had already been set up by Jonx and Tracy and the Zimbler’s when we arrived. Luckily they had also saved us a camping spot too. We set up our tent and our hammock then went on a long, sweaty group walk to find the waterfall. After that Robbie and I avoided group stuff for a while. The food was good, the music was good, and most of all having Robbie with me was good- so all round high score for the trans party.

The day was probably a Monday when we departed from Grabow and headed to the Wilderness. It was about a 4 hour drive. Robbie and I arrived before Jonx and Tracy so we chose the campsite at Fairy Knowe backpackers. That night, after having dinner across the road from a restaurant that we watched almost burn down, we realized that our campsite was on a slope and we spent the night rolling into the bottom right corner of the tent. The next day was probably one of my best of the whole trip- we hired canoes and rowed 40 minutes to the spot where the canoes can’t go any further, then we got out and walked/hiked/balanced/climbed/skipped/hopped/bumped-heads to a waterfall about an hour away. There was no water falling but we were happy to arrive at the stagnant water pools anyway. The walk back was enchanting; it was that time of day where the light casts magical shapes with the trees’ leaves. Exhilarated we arrived back at our yellow canoes and settled in for what the thought would be and relaxing down hill row. It was the opposite. We had to row up-stream fighting against wind and rain. It was tough and a couple of times I shouted to Captain Rob that we should try pull over but even as we got swept to the side of the river and tangled in the reeds he kept shouting back things like ‘left, left, row left’ and ‘keeping going Te, you doing a great job’. How wonderful and supportive my man is! We made it back, in triple the amount of time it took to get there, soaking wet, with aching muscles, and ever so grateful for the steaming hot cup of coffee that greeted us on arrival.

There is so much more to tell…