This week was a short one as we were going on a "transition trip" to Istanbul. Because we are traveling each month, Remote Year sets up transition trips where you can have a sort of layover trip to different destinations. We usually get three different destinations, and Remote Year handles the flights, you handle everything else. But, you can use all of the resources that Remote Year has put together if they have a program in that city. So, Alex and I chose Istanbul - more on that in a different post.
On Monday, we attempted to try to go diving nearby. The dive site was a kelp forest off of one of the most beautiful beaches in Cape Town. In order to get there, we got picked up by our instructor, suited up for the dive, and then needed to climb down a few flights of stairs to the beach in our full gear. I'm talking tanks, floatation devices, flippers, the whole thing. So, we get to the beach, and head out into the water, which is said to be one of the coldest places to dive. Let me tell you... it is! Our 5mm suits and 3mm booties/gloves/hood were no match to the water. Once in the water, we talked about where we were going to go, then, our dive master starts speaking with another dive master who was on the shore. They were discussing visibility, which was clearly low that day, but once we got into the water, we could not even see our flippers! Alex and I weighed our options about going under for a bit just to go under, but we determined it really wasn't safe, and decided to snorkel around the kelp forest for a half hour or so.
The following day was my birthday! A few people from our group surprised me with brunch at my favorite spot near the waterfront - Tasha's. I enjoyed my coffee and breakfast, and Alex and I needed to leave early because we planned to go paragliding. Unfortunately, this was a third failed attempt from the last weekend, so we gave up on those plans and took a long walk down the promenade. That evening was our farewell event, hosted by Remote Year. We went to a down-to-earth boat club, where they had dinner (a braii) for us, and we got to enjoy one of the most incredible sunsets I've seen in my life. Obviously, the farewell event was for everyone, but in many ways, it felt like a little birthday party. We enjoyed an incredible live music band where I had my hand at the xylophone before heading home for an early night's sleep.
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