Garden Route adventures....

Yesterday we took a drive out past Knysna to the Tsitsikamma National Park~ a beautiful nature reserve of rainforest, mountains, and incredible ocean views. We became totally transfixed by the waves exploding on this rock, it was an awesome sight, photos can't quite capture just how huge the explosions were, but it was absolutely gorgeous.We also went to an Elephant Sanctuary to check out some African elephants... very cool! Below are a few of the ladies who have been saved by this sanctuary...

If you could see what was inside the mouth of this guy you'd gag...it's quite gross, but somehow incredibly intriguing! Believe it or not, his breath didn't stink!!
I'm trying to feed the baby-girl elephant (who was insanely cute) and the big one kept trying to steal it! Check out Becky with the double-elephant-feeding techniques...
Okay... come on, you don't see this everyday! Becky and I hanging out with an 8 year old elephant! We got quite intimate with this guy... checked out the inside of his mouth (bizarre!), felt the bottom of his foot, fed him, pet him... he was adorable!! (albeit a little bit stinky.)
Today was a great day of exploring the little shops along the way from Knysna to Plett, visting Graeme's flower farm, checking out amazing ocean views, walking on the beach, and hanging out with Sarah Jane. Here we are! The wind-blown look is in style here... chilling on the beach!
Ate lunch at a wonderful Italian restaurant at the top of this staircase... needless to say, the view was priceless! It was a great place to talk and relax~ looking out over the Indian Ocean at the waves crashing on the rocks.

This view is in Plettenberg Bay~ a gorgeous little beachy town on the Garden Route. We pulled in just as the sun was starting to go down and saw a whale (maybe 2?) frolicking in the bay!! What a great treat...


And, last but not least... our amazing hosts for the past few days, our friends Sarah Jane and Graeme. Such great people who have opened their home to us, fed us, engrossed us in deep and interesting conversation and definitely made us feel right at home. Ubuntu has been alive and well during our visit with them...These are friends for life (and we hope to see them again before we leave...)Tomorrow we head back to Cape Town to get back to work!! Vacation is over...
Love to all of you!!

Sidenote:
If you have not yet read "The Power of One" by Bruce Courtenay you need to run out to the bookstore right now and get it... Sarah Jane recommended it to me back in 2003 when we first met and it became my favorite book~ it's a wonderful story, set in South Africa~ all about ubuntu~ and the amazing ways people influence each other to become better people...