The Workings of a Modern Day Caveman

Sometimes there just aren’t words
  I’ve sat down to write day after day
And all that can come out,
all I can think,
all I can say,
all that repeats 
is
I am so happy
So incredibly happy
I am living a life I’ve dreamt about for years and now this dream is my reality
I wake each day feeling as if I was “home”
I look out our main bedroom window and see the ocean across the way   
I look out the side window and see an array of rooftops making up Sea Point of Cape Town, South Africa
I walk into our living room and see a massive mountainside with trees swaying in the breeze at the very top
All glistening
all dancing to this song,
my song,
this rhythm of life

I skip down the six flights of stairs, into the lobby and out the two glass doors
Cross a busy downtown street and there I am 
In the center of life
Yoga to my left
Coffee shops each way I turn
Two blocks from the beach
A skate to the waterfront
This is my reality,
the one I am blessed to wake to each day.

But today,
the topic of today,
Is the week Dan and I spent making our way up and down the coast
This week was one awe-inspiring and proud moment after another watching the workings of none other than my modern day caveman
Dan messaged me on Wednesday saying, “Let’s leave after I get out of work.”
Without a doubt, I’m in!
He came home from work and we quickly packed the car.
And that was that.
A two-door sedan packed from the boot (trunk) through the backseat and to the roof with a weeks worth of our lives
Dan drove through the night up the East Coast of South Africa, 
known as the Garden Route arriving at Cape St. Francis at about 2 in the morning

He said stay in the car while I set up.
Knowing me, I couldn’t stay in the car while he set up
I had to help, or at least think I was helping
Within minutes, Dan had our home for the next two nights set up
A lovely little tent
With an incredible “stretch” overlay
Two chairs to the right with a cooler-box in the middle
Lots of pillows and blankets within

Are you serious?
Did you really just do all that?
Within minutes.
Yes, he was serious.
Yes, he set up an incredible space for us within minutes 
And did the same in the following two locations thereafter

The first two days were spent in Cape St. Francis
Just above the top point of the Garden Route
Early morning surfs, skates throughout the neighborhood, sunset walks, skipo games, drinks on the beach
Just incredible

After two nights,
It was time to explore more
Down to a quaint backpackers in the middle of Plettenberg Bay
Center of town
Afternoon surf, handstand beach sessions, cocktails, lots more cocktails 
at a beautiful lake side, valley filled restaurant known as Emily Moon
Another day filled with handstand and surf sessions, hiking in the Robberg Peninsula Nature Reserve, homemade cooked meals and abundant laughs spread throughout

We woke early Saturday morning,
Packed the car quicker than the last, 
  Drove for an hour
All the while I was jumping around in the front seat like a five year old after their first vanilla milkshake 
(okay, chocolate if that’s your cup of tea)

Why?
You wonder?
Oh please, let me tell you.
Because when we reached our destination,
Our morning adventure,
We were at…..
The
The Knynsa Elephant Sanctuary!

Dan and I spent the morning feeding,
walking with,
touching
and communicating with the elephants.
Back to sometimes there just aren’t enough words
All I could do was laugh
All I could was smile
It was unreal
Absolutely unreal
These massive, massive creatures, beings, so just curious, so gentle, so aware
It was beyond anything I had experienced
The tram left the elephants bringing all its occupants back to the lobby,
But Dan and I,
Dan and I
Stayed.

We were far too mesmerized by these dynamic new friends of ours!
Just watching the elephants
And talking to our guide, Wilfred
An extremely inquisitive, retrospective man who has worked with elephants for 14 years
And as revealed for that matter, tourists
An understanding of the various cultures through their repetitive directions, manners, actions, words
Or lack of words
He was very skilled, very in tune with those present

Dan and I played some more,
Took a few more photos,
Each touched one of the younger elephants tongue
Talked a little more
The tram came around,
We did broad this one.

After lots of laughs, jumping around
A little bathroom break
We were back on the road
This time landing a Fairy Gnome Backpackers in a colorful little town called Wilderness
Again, within minutes we had a home for the last night of our road trip
Yes, the workings of my modern day caveman
We jumped into the car
Surf board proud and center
As we were just minutes down the road from Dan’s favorite surf spots

I spent the afternoon reading my book, taking photos of 
and being in complete awe as Dan charged these massive waves
The evening continued as we drove up the mountain going for sunset drinks at the Map of Africa.
We arrived to the top,
got out of the car,
looked over the cliff.
Not for sunset drinks
Because there was in fact no place to order drinks
But did see the base of Africa edged out in natures landscape
Of trees, a dark red river and little houses
We laughed,
Drove back down the mountain
And found ourselves sitting on the roadside at a corner Italian restaurant
Sharing a bottle of wine, playing multiple games of skipo and then eating nothing better than pizzas!

That night and so many other nights’ in-between are indescribable moments of two souls 
finally being in the same place in the world at the same time.
Two souls discovering, appreciating, respecting, admiring and developing such love for one another.
Dan and I woke Sunday morning,
He surfed as I ran and did yoga on the rocks.
We drove all the way back home,
Had a quick nap,  
And then onto another adventure of watching the incredible DJ’s Goldfish perform live that evening
Oh yes, another dream of mine
That has become, well is a reality
My reality

Below are photos from our road trip adventures!
As always, please enjoy.
Many blessings, love, gratitude and warmth.
Until next time.