Headed out to South Africa a few years ago...

So really we were in South Africa a few months ago, but I really like that Indigo Girls song. Forty-eight hours of travelling doesn't get the Mendenhalls down. Check us out. We look really good, minus the dark circles under my eyes. The most I remember about this first night is everything seemed wavy. Nothing was holding still in my mind's dizzy eye. I briefly remember Matt's panicked voice when he first drove on the left hand side, and I think I have my hallucinations to thank for keeping a cool head. I felt like I was in heaven, just hearing my South African soulmate's voice in real life for the first time in over a year...Sigh, I miss Tam. Her wedding was amazing! The scenery reminded me of Jurassic Park and my only disappointment was the absence of a tricertops. Those were always my favorite dinosaurs growing up.

This little guy was my first friend. I don't think this penguin was the macho one that bit Matt's finger and then chased him down, but he's still noteworthy because I was soooo close to him! The penguins were nesting and adorably cute, but protective and apparently vicious as Matt found out. They looked like little black bullets in the water, so did AJ now that I think of it. They didn't mind swimming with us at all. The next friend we met was Daniel, a local kid who knew just about everything. Swimming in the Indian side of the ocean had its dangers, but Daniel assured us that a shark net kept the great whites out of the area.

The elusive Table Mountain...beautiful, cloudy, windy. We never got to on the cable car to the top due to the wind that almost blew Devin off the mountain side. If only we had more time...maybe we should just move there then we could have all the time we need to explore Table Mountain. What a tease...

Our night out on the town on the Waterfront. While Devo chowed some ostrich, AJ and I enjoyed the fruits of someone's labor on a cornballer machine. After dinner, we found some great gelati (sp?) and pushed Devin around in an abandoned shopping cart. Someone in this picture didn't use enough sunscreen, can you decide who it was? (its Devo)

And the reason I travelled half way across the world...(not that I needed much persuasion!) Tammy and Jamie make a beautiful couple, but none of you will ever know because I am posting a picture of me, Tam and AJ. It was fun being a bridesmaid. I got to start the wedding procession down a huge mountain path to Bono singing 'All I Want Is You' (he wasn't there in person, but I like to think he was in spirit after all Tammy and I did to get front row tickets at U2's Dublin concert).

Muzenberg Beach held many adventures for us. Some funny, some painful, some both. Our greeting from a local when we first got there was some profanity and obscene gestures. We didn't let that deter us. We set up camp and I intended to take a nice long nap. Those plans were soon interupted by the cutest kids I've ever seen, Jody and Marshell. They were friends that lived in a near by village, 30 minutes walk they said. They brought us a jelly fish the size of a boogie board and it took all the strength in their little bodies to carry it. The next thing I knew, AJ and the boys were in a full blown jelly fish fight hucking chunks of the jelly fish like crazy. Joy is found in simple things, even the welts AJ had afterwards were worth it. The gang headed into the ocean and I decided to attempt my nap again. Within minutes, I heard Matt's voice full of fear saying, "I've been hit, I've been hit!" My husband was the victim of a blue bottle (mini jelly fish) attack. Sounds worse than it is. According to Marshell, the pain goes away in 30 minutes. The kid should be a doctor, he was dead on.