Easter Vacation

May is here and the weather is cold. What a difference it is from the states! Normally my birthday month is full of sunshine and fresh flowers. Here in Lesotho it's marked with frost and the end of tank tops. I thought I was excited to break out the winter hats, gloves, and scarves, but that excitement ended when I remembered I'd also have to watch movies from the comfort of my sleeping bag, and bake cookies just to heat up the hut. Ahhhhh.....African winter. I'm going to purchase a small gas tank just for my heater so I can at least attempt to stay nice and warm.
The transition into winter was made even more difficult since I spent my Easter holiday on the beaches of the Eastern Coast of South Africa. Karolina, Parker, Chris Jones and I spent about a week in the small town of Cintsa. Our hostel was beautiful, right on the water, and every night they offered a free wine activity! Vacation doesn't get much better than that! Chris Jones and I met Parker up at his site in Mokhotlong and we traveled down to SA via Sani Pass. I knew Sani was in the mountains, but I had NO IDEA how terrifying the trip down would be! The three of us were stuffed in the back seat of a combi (public taxi) driving STRAIGHT DOWN the face of a mountain. The switch backs seemed to be never ending. At one point we stopped for an overheated radiator, and then again for a blown out tire. There were about 5 b0-ntate (men) working as conductors for just this one taxi! I was convinced that something would go wrong and we would plummet to our deaths. I'm normally pretty afraid of heights, but I've experienced some bad roads in Lesotho. I thought I was beginning to overcome my fears. Nope! My leg was shaking and had I had the Sesotho skills to speak to the driver I would have explained that I'd walk down and they could pick me up at the bottom. Instead I rode it out. The boys found my fear pretty amusing, but were supportive still. Once we were safely on flat ground I was relieved and ready for a cold beer. I will NEVER drive over Sani pass again, but I'm happy to have had the experience. I just wish I wouldn't have been so scared so that I could've taken some photos of the road.
In total we took 2 and 1/2 days to reach the town of Cintsa. We were traveling on a public holiday using public transportation. No matter how early you wake up you can only get so far! Plus, we went up through Mokhotlong and over Sani which took extra time, but I'd promised Parker I'd visit his site again. On the return trip we smartened up and came through the south of Lesotho. I've now been t0 9 of the 10 districts in Lesotho. YAY!
My amazing grandfather sent me a new camera so I've got LOTS of pictures to post. I'm now going to attempt to put up some pics from our Easter vaca. However, I always struggle with this part of the blog process. Here's hoping.......................................Didn't work :( I'll keep trying.