Pinot, Bretzels, and Cathedrals

From the deck of the Coves cottage, we can sit and watch whales playing in the distant water. Spumes of water forced into the air, followed by a breaching shadow and then a splash as she or he crashes back into the blue waters.

Either Southern Right or Humpback Whales, we learn that in our childhood the population of these whales were close to extinction; a reason why we may never have observed them at the Cove as kids. Now, with more environmentally aware institutions and associations in this era, there has been a remarkable increase in the populations that migrate up the South African Indian Ocean. Following the July Sardine run, they are observed in the Indian Ocean moving from the Antarctic up to warmer waters of Madagascar from June and July until September or later.

I’ve spent years working in the bush, with lions and elephants and all the rest, but when it comes to marine wildlife I have little experience to speak of. I know what a privilege it is to experience wildlife, and the opportunity to see whales alongside a boat, a little more up close, was temptation enough to do Google search for a tour.

Which is where we found ourselves on a Wednesday morning: sitting in rush hour traffic at the break of dawn, heading to the Durban Marina to board a boat to go out to see if we could spot some whales up close.

The weather was somewhat circumspect. A wind had been blowing the day before so we were expecting it again. Nonetheless we climbed aboard, received safety instructions and slowly exited the harbour.

As we reached the open seas, the skipper opened the throttle (is that the right word for a boat?) and the waves that weren’t there in the harbour suddenly appeared.

The front of the boat rises up into an approaching wave, summits, and then drops over onto the other side, (thank you for the advice of the motion sickness pills we all swallowed in the hour before) only to do the same again. And again. And again.

Very soon I find my hands clenching the rail with such force that my knuckles are white, and on the occasion that the skipper mistimes his approach to a wave, the front stern smashes into the wave and a spray of seawater splashes over us.

And so we roll, up and down, up and down, the waves feel as if they’re approaching us like a wall only ever seen in movies or written about in books. They’re black under the now grey skies and the wind whips around us, little white horses dancing on the surface of the waves around us and any opportunity to slide my phone from my pocket to take some photos is long since forgotten as all I can think about holding on for my life, and wondering if this place will become my watery grave.

I may love water for everything that it brings us, but I remain a land footed sapien.

Finally after an hour, we glimpse a small pod of 3 whales to our right and we turn to their space, only for them to sink away into the waters. The skipper stops the motor and we rest on the bobbing water waiting to see if they will resurface.

Sadly, the choppy seas and blustery wind doesn’t encourage them to stick around to play, so after 15 minutes of bobbing around, scanning the seas around us, with the onset of nausea beginning to flutter in my stomach, we head back to the harbour.

And as disappointed as we were, we reminded our girls that those magnificent majestic mammals of the ocean were not out there to entertain us, that in fact simply being able to be out there on the ocean looking for them is a privilege, and it’s our responsibility to take care of them in any way we can.

Post Script:

Every time we holiday for a period of time, I try to blog about our travels afterwards, all my observations, my thoughts on the cultures we find ourselves immersed into, but the reality is, I get fully carried away and end up saving a long draft for my own reflection later I guess.

We’ve been in South Africa for just over 3 weeks this time. Catching up with family and friends has been momentously special, and I am so grateful to have everyone turn up, you guys mean the world to me and I am blessed. Thank you.

As for the rest, we have really done a little tourist holidaying this time, and I have tried to photograph all the beauty that this country has to offer. I’ve shared some travel pics, and the truth is, I have long forgotten just how beautiful South Africa is. Her history is not pretty and this is not the place for that commentary, but I have been reminded just how inspiring the country really is. If you’re European, American, or whoever, you should really consider a trip. Today I’ve written words to capture one little experience, but if you allow me, I’ll share a little more later in the week.