JUNGLE MONKEYYY!!!

October’s weekend off was spent in Port St. John, about a two hour drive from Mthatha. Staying in the Jungle Monkey backpackers was brilliant…again I got to meet some other travellers and found out from a wise old man whilst sitting around a fire, that my name means ‘illusion’?! Surrounded by ocean, jungle and mountains, I got a taste of it all. A bouncy boat ride out to sea in a rubber duck with a motor, gave me a glimpse of dolphins and humpback whales…many of which came right up to the boat and I was a bit wary at one point that it was going to capsize us! A slow boat trip up the river in the evening, followed by an early morning start for a trek through the jungle, guided by two men in bare feet…so glad they were there - I would NOT have been able to spot the apparently poisonous spiders which were strung across our path. A fluorescent green frog which jumped on my forehead and super glued itself there (serves me right for picking it up), along with lots of other strange looking insects! I came out with a couple more bites than I started with, but playing Tarzan on the natural woody swing across a rocky river was definitely worth it! The sundowner on the top of a mountain on Saturday evening was definitely a highlight, as was the bumpy bukka ride back to the backpackers in the dark, through the jungle where fireflies lit the trees above us and I even found a glow worm! :D South Africa is amazing.