Middlesex Recap

Well, yet again I haven’t written in a very long time. My first year at Middlesex is over and I am now 1/4 of the way through my junior year. The first year here was good, hard to get used the work load and boarding, but all in all it turned out wonderfully. I had a very busy summer full of trips including California and France. (more to come about those later.) I’m now back at school in a fabulous dorm this year with most of my friends and working my tail off. The college talk has started coming up especially with an SAT prep course that just started. With Thanksgiving break fast approaching, the teachers are really loading on the work, so we are all excited for the break to come. It’s been a long fall for all of us and the extended break to catch up on sleep will be great! (I’m also excited to go home and see my parents and brothers.) Time for bed though…..more later.

Leopard hunt

Day 6- Xigera to Kings Pool

We had an early wake up again and took a morning game drive. We saw more elepahnts, giraffe, zebras, red lechwe (antalope like), and many more birds. We were transfering to Kings Pool today and had to go back to camp to pack and get ready to leave. Before leaving we had time to eat and do some shopping. I bought a bracelet and my mom and I both got baskets woven by some of the ladies at the camp. Phet took us to the airstrip and we took off on another short flight to Kings Pool. Our guide for the next few days Gift, met us at the airstrip and we drove to camp. On the way to the camp we saw a leopard which was a real treat because usually they are hard to find. As we arrived at Kings Pool we saw that it was even more luxurious than Xigera. I didn’t think that could be possible. Once again I had my own tent although it was more like a house. I don’t think I will be living in anything of that size until I am at least in my mid 30s. The bed was enormous, there were two indoor showers, one outdoor shower, a plunge pool, lounge chairs outside, a day bed and the list goes on and on. We had about 2 hours until our game drive started, so I relaxed in my very comfortable room. At 4:00 we went out and found the leopard under the same tree. She was getting ready to go on a hunt, so we followed her. There were tons of elephants and some impala and zebra in the distance. The elephants are too big for leopards as are zebras, so she was hunting the impala. After stalking her for a while the impala moved away, so we decided it would probably be a while before she made and kill. We drove in our “Ferrari” (Gift’s name for the landrover) to a gorgeous spot and had a drink while watching the sunset. After the sun went down we did a night safari. Gift drove while he held a light shining it around looking for eyes looking at us. We didn’t find anything, so we headed back to camp and had a delicious dinner. I fell fast asleep in my cozy bed. (Did I mention that these camps put hot water bottles in your bed to keep you warm?)

A Nap Under the Trees

Day 5- motorboat ride

At 6:30 I was woken by Phet pounding on my door. We had a yummy breakfast at 7:00 and got on a motorboat at 7:30. It was pretty cold in the morning especially with the wind from the speed of the boat, so the camp provided us with flannel lined ponchos! They were very cozy. We saw so many animals, including elephants, hippos, giraffes, buffalo, and many many birds. We also stopped for brunch including chairs, a table and blankets for the siesta we took after lunch. On our way back to the camp we saw two lionesses relaxing under some bushes. Dinner was a traditional tribal dinner in a huppa which is a central gathering place of a village. The camp staff sang and danced for us. Phet was an incredible dancer! My mom and I then had to serve the men in our family before getting the food for ourselves. (I do not like that tradition, but its usually what we do anyways!) The dinner was yummy and we went to bed full and happy.   

Page 260, Bird #2

Day 4- Leave Cape Town and arrive in Xigera (Keejera)

An early wake up (4 a.m) started out our fourth day not very well. We flew from Cape Town to Joberg and then on to Maun where we were met by a Wilderness Safari representative who transfered us to an 8 passenger plane to Xigera. As we began to land on a tiny dirt air strip in the middle of nowhere, an elephant decided to park himself in the middle of the runway. After circling a few times, he moved and we were cleared to land. Once on the ground our guide for the next few days, Phet (pronounced Patch) greeted us and transfered us to the camp. Again we were met with hot towels and this time delicious sandwhiches for lunch. The living situation was not much of a downgrade from the Cape Grace. Once again, I had my own room (tent) that was complete with a queen bed and full bath. The tents were scattered around the camp, so I was staying all alone pretty far from anyone else. It was a bit scary considering the animals can go right under your tent! After settling into our rooms we met back up to go for a mokoro ride. Instead of getting off right away, an elephant decided he was hungry and was munching away at grass within a few feet of us; standing directly over the mokoros at one point. He finally got full and went away. The mokoro ride was so peaceful as we drifted down the rivers. Phet was so knowledgable about birds, it was incredible. Not only could he recognize the birds by their sight and call, but he could also tell you what page and what bird number in his book it was. We stopped to watch the sun set and have drinks on a bank of the river. When we got back to dinner we freshened up and had a delicious dinner at a long table with the rest of the guests. At dinner I was again offered wine……I guess I just look 18!  

Helicopter Fun

Day 3- Helicopter ride and walk around Cape Point

A hotel driver drove us to the helicopter launch pad at 8:30 after we had a delicious breakfast in our room for the second day in a row. My mom and I flew in a helicopter and Chip, Johnny and my dad flew in the other one. I had never been in a helicopter before, it was so much fun! My mom let me sit up front with the pilot; I got the most amazing views because the front window goes almost all the way to the floor. Steve, our guide from yesterday, met us at the end of our helicopter ride so we could take a 3-4 hour walk around Cape Point. The weather was perfect, the sky was crystal clear with the sun shining brightly and the wind whipping around our faces. At the end of our hike we drove to the Cape of Good Hope the south-western most tip of Africa. On our way back to the Cape Grace we stopped at Boulder Beach to see the penguins. We had an earlier dinner than the night before because we had to wake up at four a.m. the next morning. The dinner was delicious again, this time at a asian cusine restaurant named “Haiku”. 

“None for me please”

Day 2- the winelands

Our first morning in Cape Town was a little foggy and wet. Our plan for the day was to take a helicopter ride to Cape Point and then maybe climb Table Mountain. But the helicopter ride got cancelled, so we decided to take the winelands tour today (that was our plan for the next day, but instead we swapped our first and second day.) Our guide for Cape Town, Steve, met us at 9:30 and drove us to Stelenbosh, a section of the winelands. My brothers, Chip and Johnny, 20 and 19 years old were really looking forward to this day, considering they were legal and in the US they would not be allowed to go to wine tastings. At 15, I assumed I would maybe try some of my mom’s wine, but I never expected to be offered the wine. I didn’t try at the first place, but I had plenty of time to make up for missing that one, as we visited six winelands in total. My brothers and dad loved every minute, but my mom and I near the end were getting a little tired. I would have been fine just visiting four vinyards considering the fact that I could never really taste the difference between the wines. In the long run, I am happy that we did the winelands the first day because that was my least favorite day. Dinner, however, was excellent. We went to a restaurant called the “Showroom.” The food was delicious, but the most outstanding thing was the presentation of the food. They say people eat with their eyes and if that is true everybody should go to this restaurant. We got back to our hotel late and crashed into the comfortable beds again.   

31 Hours

Day 1- Plane ride and arrival in Cape Town

If you know anything about traveling overseas, you know that it is compicated at times. Especially when your not just taking a short 6 hour flight to Europe. If you have ever been to Asia or Australia you know what I am talking about. But what about Africa? One would think that it could not possibly take you 31 hours to get to South Africa, but it does. There were a few options of how to get to Africa- we could have driven to New York and then flown to Joberg with a refueling in Dakar. But who, on the return trip, wants to get off the plane and then have a 2 1/2 hour car ride before you get home- no thank you! There were also some options of flying to London or Paris and then down to Joberg. The problem with those flights is you have almost 12 hours to spend in the London or Paris airport, not what we wanted to do. So, instead we flew from Hartford to Atlanta and then Atlanta to Joberg with a refueling stop in Dakar. That flight from Atlanta to Joberg is about 20 hours long. and once we got to Joberg we still had a three hour flight to Cape Town. Now, on most international flights even if it’s just a 6 hour flight, you have your own t.v., even in economy class. Well, apparently Delta does not do this for 20 hour flights. Did I mention they also showed only TWO movies that whole entire time. That leaves about 16 hours to do well nothing. Good thing I brought some books. Needless to say, we arrived in Cape Town a little tired and ready for a nice comfortable bed. And boy, did we get just what we needed. As we arrived to the Cape Grace, our hotel for the next three nights, our jaws dropped open. We were met with a warm welcome, along with some hot washcloths. As we stumbled to our three bedroom apartment, a hotel staffer explained how breakfast the next morning could be delivered to our room for no extra charge. She opened the door to our rooms and we walked in. If you have ever been into a penthouse on 5th avenue in NYC this is how I imagined one to be. The apartment was complete with a kitchen, dinning room, living rooms 3 bedrooms and 3 1/2 baths. For the first time in my life, I was not sleeping on a cot in my brothers room, instead I had a queen bed complete with an elegant bathroom. I was in about as close to heaven as I could be. As we explored the apartment more, we noticed the outdoor terrace with a dinning table, a few sunbeds and a view of the harbor. There was no need to go anywhere else on this vacation, I thought, I am quite happy here. We ordered some wine and cheese (and a smoothie for me) as we all sat in our terrycloth bathrobes slowly falling asleep. When I finally made it to bed, around 11:30 pm, I sank into bed and fell fast asleep.     

Catching Up

Well, it’s been a LONG time since I last wrote. My last two days in Seattle were fabulous. Jess and I continued to cook up and storm and also got a chance to visit Pike Place Market. But unfortunatly after five short days in Seattle, I had to leave.

My next trip of the summer started on July 8th when I left for my two week hiking trip in Colorado. Last year, I had done a three week biking trip in Nova Scotia, with the same program, Overland, and lets just say I did not have the best time. This trip, however, was fantastic. We had beautiful weather(except for a few showers, it even hailed one time!!), hiked on some gorgeous trails and most importantly the people were great. On the trip we also had the chance to white water raft which was great fun. But Colorado ended soon. On July 20, I flew home, back to start my next adventure.

A short while after I returned from CO, I started field hockey camp at Holy Cross College in MA. Compared to my other trips so far this summer, the field hockey camp was nothing big, except for the fact that I got my first taste of dorm life and what boarding this fall is going to be like. The camp was only four days and it flew by quickly. It was run on a turf field, which is very important since Middlesex has just built two new turf fields. After three days in the blistering heat (turf also makes it feel 10 degrees hotter), on the fourth morning as we were leaving it started to downpour. Where had the rain been all this time when it was so hot and we had to play? My mom and I drove home and began to pack for the big family trip- Africa!     

A Happy Father’s Day

Day 3 in Seattle

We woke up today and decided to finish the batter from the pancake mix. As we opened the fridge, we saw that because of the starter (starter is a living thing and it grows- we forgot that last night!) in the batter, the batter had grown and had exploded all over the fridge. The top of the container was totally inverted. After eating up the rest of the yummy pancakes, Jess and I tackeled another farmer’s market. We came home for lunch and I learned how to make a shaken omelet. It seems so simple, but let me tell you, you need lots of wrist action in order to get the flip. Anyways, the omelets turned out delicious. After lunch and a few minutes of chilling out, Jimmy and I headed out on a hike around Discovery Park. Joining us were Bromley and Scout (the neighbor’s dog). The three mile hike took us in a big loop around the beautiful park. Although it wasn’t a clear day, we could still see the water and the ferries and boats. When we finished the hike, we drove down to the Locks. Included in the fascinating Locks was a ladder for the salmon to jump over. Jimmy and I were lucky enough to see a few fish make the struggling leap over each step of the ladder. Returning home, Jess was there waiting for us and we went to give a new yoga studio a try. For those of you who have done yoga, think of the hardest series you do (usually near the end of class) and try to do it for an hour and a half. Did I mention you don’t get to warm up. Needless to say, the class was not a sucess and Jess and I were disappointed. Excited to get home and cook a salmon dinner, we discovered that the salmon was still frozen. I was about to pass out with hunger and Jess and Jim did not want to wait another hour (maybe more) for the fish to thaw. With some split second decision making we got in the car and drove three blocks. We were planning on going to the Santa Fe Cafe, but it was closed. As we turned the car around we were debating to go to pizza or hambugers. In the flash of a second, Jess whipped a hard left and drove to the hambuger place. Meanwhile she instructed Jimmy to place our order by phone, so we wouldn’t have to wait as long. Somehow I think that our yoga instructer would not have been pleased that we went out for hambugers after class. After a delightful dinner, we all stumbled full to the car. Jess and I wanted to rent a chick flick, so we picked a classic, Sleepless in Seattle. Jimmy wanted no part of the movie, so Jess and I snuggled up on Bromley’s bed to watch it. Wiped from the long day, we went to bed right after the movie finished. Tomorrow on the agenda- Pike Place Market!

Biking Adventure

Day 2 in Seattle

After sleeping in today, we made sourdough pancakes topped with strawberries fresh from yesterday’s farmer’s market. Jess and I were forced into getting our nails done with Jess’s friend Katie and afterwards, Jess and I walked around town and got a hot chocolate. This hot chocolate was like no other, it felt as though a bar of chocolate was placed on my tongue and sat there to melt. The thickness and richness made this hot chocolate a delight. Unable to finish the small 8 oz cup, Jimmy helped us out when we got home. For lunch we made a corn salad with parsley, feta cheese and pine nuts along with some tasty paninis. Dave and Kelly came over again and we all got out on bikes to take a tour of some of Seattle. We biked to Fremont, another town in Seattle which was having a whacky fair. The streets were packed with all sorts of funky vendors selling clothing and jewelry. In the midst of the craziness was Theo, a chocolate store that is the only organic cocoa bean roaster in the US. We then continued our bike ride to the town of Ballard and walked around looking in any cute boutiques that popped out to us. Tomorrow two blocks of this street will be filled with local farmers at another huge market. For dinner we roasted a chicken, (my first time doing so- its not very hard) baked zuccini and had chard. We also cooked a starch called quinoa. Jimmy took Dave and Kelly to the airport while Jess and I wrote and took Bromley out for a walk. With a long day ahead of us tomorrow, we finally got to bed.