Chinsta Bay – Buccaneer’s Hostel
Tuesday 22nd Oct
– Early morning surf at Chinsta Beach. 2-3 foot, offshore and sunny skies. Best conditions in Chinsta so far. Dayno caught a couple of cracking rights. So did Sam and Ryan. Everyone is progressing so well. Klee and Nikita are ripping (as usual)!
– Afternoon surf at Chinsta Beach. Conditions similar to the morning. Sam is ripping on the rights. I caught a couple of really fun lefts (what are rights?). I’m working on tighter, deeper bottom turns and hitting it off the top.
– Afternoon volleyball and table tennis. Fun with the whole crew! We saw a mole burrowing in the ground and a monkey stealing the wine box.
– Dinner was an unreal Indian buffet. So much beautiful food. I ate a lot of ice cream for dessert!
Wednesday 23rd Oct
– Early morning surf at Chinsta Beach. 2 foot, offshore and sunny skies. Still beautiful conditions and everyone was catching great waves.
– Lunch at Nina’s Café in East London. Beautiful food and great value.
– East London Surfing Museum. Nikita’s name is printed on the wall as one of the local break’s internationally renowned surfers. The museum provided a great insight into the history of surfing in East London.
– Afternoon surf at Nahoon Corner Beach. 1 foot, clean and offshore. Fun small conditions.
Thursday 24th Oct
– 400 meter timed swim in 50 m pool in East London. Everyone pushed so hard. Josh smashed his personal best by over a minute.
– Lunch at Spurs. After the swim, everyone was starving. Massive lunches for all. Well deserved!
– Buying Halloween costumes for the Halloween Party at Coffee Bay. Sarah was in her element – so excited!
– Lion Park outside of East London. We saw and interacted with lions, cheetahs, wild dogs, meerkats and more. Everyone loves animals in the group. Toby is a walking animal encyclopedia.
Friday 25th Oct
– Drive to Coffee Bay from Chinsta. The drive took approximately 5 hours. Driving from a major city to a remote area. The scenery was beautiful.
– Arrived at Coffee Shack Hostel, Coffee Bay. Klee and Nikita showed us around the local area, including the surf beaches. I’m so excited to surf here.
– Dinner at a local Xhosa village. We walked to the village with a guide, who, once we arrived, explained to us the Xhosa people’s beliefs and rights and rituals. Some of the local women then performed some Xhosa dances for us. They looked so joyous and danced amazingly. Dinner was then served. It consisted of a maize paste as the first course and pap for the second course. Pap tasted like couscous with cabbage, and a tomato and onion sauce. The food was delicious and so filling. We also drank a local beer made from fermented wheat. It tasted…interesting. It started to rain as we were walking back. It was a great laugh.
– On returning to the Coffee Shack we had a great first night dancing and playing pool.
Saturday 26th Oct
– Morning surf and swim at Chinsta Beach. 2-3 foot, onshore and overcast. Conditions were challenging, but there was the odd fun wave. After the surf the whole crew bodysurfed the shore break. So much fun!
– Afternoon surf/beach hangout/ napping. Nikki and Klee went for a surf, while the rest of the crew either hung at the beach or had an afternoon nap.
– Dinner and Stormers V.S. Sharks Currie Cup Final. We walked to the local pizza restaurant to eat and watch the final. The pizzas were delicious and the game unreal. The Sharks dominated. Klee and Nikita were stoked and Dayno was bummed.
– Another fun night of dancing and playing pool at the Coffee Shack Bar.
Sunday 27th Oct
– Rainy and windy day. We spent it watching movies, playing games and napping. A proper surfing ‘lay day’.
Monday 28th Oct
– Some of the crew (including me) felt a bit under the weather. So while we slept and tried to get better, the others went for a walk to explore the area further. They said it was beautiful and that they saw many dolphins and whales near the shore.
– Everyone is amped to start surfing again. Waiting for the conditions to improve.
– Manu and Sarah spent the night with a local Xhosa family. They learnt about the culture and how a typical Xhosa family lives, eats and sleeps on a daily basis. Sarah said it was an unforgettable experience.
Tuesday 29th Oct
– Walked to ‘Hole in the Wall’, a natural rock formation in the ocean. It was a 3-hour, 9km walk across mountainous terrain. We passed by waterfalls, local villages and ‘Baby Hole in the Wall’ to get to our destination. It was a beautiful and challenging walk. Once there, we had lunch, while Sarah and Toby went for a swim out near the Hole in the Wall.
– ‘P-Party’ at Coffee Shack. We spent the afternoon making costumes. Sarah went as a
pineapple, Nikki a
puppy, Manu as
Pippy Long stockings, Dane as a
pirate, Klee as
Popeye and Nikita as a
panda. I went a
policeman. Klee won best dressed, while the rest of the Ticket to Ride group were runners-up. It was a great night of dancing and pool.
Cheers
Chris