Clifton and Stellenbosch

Hi everyone,

On Friday evening the 2Nd all the exchanges went to Clifton beach for a nice picnic while watching the sunset. It was such a lovely place to have a wonderful evening. The weather was perfect and it was very warm even at 19.00. Everyone brought delicious snacks and drinks and we all just relaxed and enjoyed the sun and beautiful view. Bronwin, Kristina, Georgie and Carla came as well, and then Bronwin decided she wanted to have a swim in the ice(!)cold water. Kath, Nienke and Kirsten joined her and it was very fun to watch them. At around 21.00, Debbie took Lily and me to Stellenbosch because we were staying with Cleo for the weekend.
Stellenbosch is very well known for its wine, and it's an Afrikaans town. Cleo goes to the university of Stellenbosch which is Afrikaans as well. She stays at the academia and has her own small room there. I'd say the campus was huge, and it's very different from the Dutch student life. We went this weekend because on Saturday there was a rag for the first years. They all built floats and dressed up. You could feel the vibe even on that Friday evening before. Almost everyone was outside, some just sitting on their balcony with friends, others walking around and partying. However, this evening, we didn't go anywhere and just stayed in Cleo's room. When we were ready to go to bed, two friends of Cleo were in a jolly mood and decided to stop by. I had such a laugh because one of the guys wanted to show off his 'brilliance' by demonstrating his spelling skills. We had to say a word, any word, preferably a long one and he would then say within 2 seconds how many letters that word had. It was so amazing to see him actually getting it right every time. After that we went to bed, I slept on a matres in the 'living room' and Lily and Cleo slept in her bed.
The next morning we woke up very early, at 6.30, and at 8.00 we were already having breakfast at a cafe. After that, we went back home and I met some of Cleo's friends. We sat outside, and although it was only 10.00, it was boiling! It's always hotter in Stellenbosch, it can get up to 40 degrees when it's 35 in Constantia.
Then, at 11.00 we went to see the rag, it was so nice and the floats were so well made. I think the students did their very best to make the prettiest floats. The whole day was very hectic and we had so much fun. I met a lot of new people, also a lot of Cleo's friends, and even some that don't go to Stellenbosch University were present that day!

The next day, lunchtime, Cleo, Me, Lily, Debbie and Peter went out for lunch in Groot Constantia. It's such a pretty place, the weather was lovely and I really enjoyed the view. Groot Constantia is a wine estate that was founded in 1685. It has some examples of Cape Dutch architecture and furniture. Nowadays you can also buy art there, or visit the museum. I really liked the bohemian vibe and it was just so nice.