Wow! the Toilets Really Do Flush the Other Direction!

Dear World,
I am now in Africa! Though many complain that this isn’t. I am currently residing in Cape Town, South Africa. I live in a house with three others in a part of town called Observatory. It is where all the students and interns live, basically a party 24/7. Here is a picture of my house:


I live with two older dudes. One is from Iran and is studying to get his P.H.D. in mechanical engineering. (When he was describing it to me it sounded like his study had a lot of explosive parts to it) He is 29 and has a wife and 2 year old son, who fortunately live in Iran. Justus, my other roommate, is, I’d guess, 50ish years old and is from Uganda. He is a pediatrician and is expanding his knowledge on new technology to study brain wave patterns. He also has a daughter studying Law at the University near by. There is one other roommate who I hear is studying to be an architect, but none of us have seen him. So basically I live with two old farts that claim they have ‘seen it all.’ This is much different compared to all the other interns. They live in houses that hold 10-12 students/interns of similar ages. I honestly don’t know whether to consider my self lucky or what.

So I have a job here too while I am in Cape Town. I work at a local research aquarium where I will be doing various studies on sea urchins. Exciting stuff! The best part about working here is getting to work.



These are the mini buses or taxis that Jenny and I, jenny is another intern I am working with, take to work. You don’t need to worry about missing one because they come very frequently like one every second. It is uncommon not to see one. So this is how the process works. You stand on a corner and wait for one of these bus things, which are most often old VW vans. There is a driver and a caller and the caller whistles and yells out where that particular mini bus/taxi is going. All you have to do is lift a finger and it comes screeching to a halt. You are then crammed into a small vehicle with 15 other people. You start to get real comfortable sitting next to some one you don’t know.

 The caller in the back and the driver in the far right. 
Right after I got in we stopped and waited 20 minuets for the bus to fill up.
The min bus is the best way to get around, though they are very unreliable. The drivers are the most talented people I have witnessed. I was riding in one of these vans the other day when it passed in between two semi truck while driving in the middle of the two lanes. Quite freaky.


The community here is great. They want to get you involved in as much as possible. Which is great because there are lots of things to do. I am already signed up on the VAC Soccer Team and am currently studying to get my diving certification.

Here is a pictures of a southern right whale that I saw on Friday. (Total of 6 where spotted) We also saw baboons, but I didn’t get a picture.

Mountains also surround Cape Town, but I’m just too lazy to upload another picture. Until next time,

Sir Simealot.