Today was our
last full day and we as a group decided to climb Table Mountain.
It was a strenuous two-hour climb, which
required great endurance and commitment but the views of Cape Town and the
Republic of South Africa in general were worth the diligent effort.
Once I got to the top I was captivated by the
spectacular views and I felt like I had earned such a stunning reward.
The mountains themselves reflect the metaphor
Nelson Mandela made in his sentiment that once “after climbing a great hill,
one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.”
At the zenith I appreciates what he was
saying but in a differing vein.
Although
I have been fortunate to travel extensively around Western Europe, the
Philippines and study at the University of Connecticut for a year I have never
really been exposed outside of my comfort zone, i.e. everywhere I have gone I
have enjoyed Western style conditions and securities.
I have one more year until graduation and I
have for a long time aspired to work in some capacity in the United Kingdom
Foreign and Commonwealth Office within the overseas development sphere.
To say my month in South Africa was work
experience is to trivialise it but I was intrigued to see how I would live in
Africa for that time and whether or not after the excursion if I could
realistically imagine myself working on the continent one day.
I can categorically state that now I can
imagine just that.
The new ‘hills’ to
climb then are a successful graduation and master’s education to be competently
suited to work in the government.
Life
is a series of epochs and as I looked out over Cape Town and saw from atop
Chapman’s Peak, Signal Hill, Boulder’s Beech, Green Point and Rondebosch I
thought what a brilliant time I have had out here in this beautiful land.
Climbing the mountain was truly the best way
to end our adventure and round off my study abroad year.
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| Lion's Head and Signal Hill as viewed from Table Mountain |
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| Table Bay as viewed from Table Mountain |
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