Sincerely, Jacob

Penguins - Boulders Beach, South Africa

In 1910, there were an estimated 1.5 million penguins in South Africa! By 1982, the population was down to two breeding pairs. Today, the population is less than 10% of its total just over one-hundred years ago.

To see the only penguins in Africa, you’ll have to head outside of Cape Town to the small seaside community of Simon’s Town. Most people opt for a tourist transport bus or private car, but if you’re well-informed on how to travel safely, you could opt for my chosen method of taking the Cape Town metro.

Once arrived, you’ll make your way to the world famous Boulders Beach - aptly named given the massive 500 million year old boulders that cover the coastline. International tourists pay $10 to walk along the elevated wooden path that leads down towards the beach where the main colony of penguins live. You will also see them scattered in the surrounding vegetation, nestled comfortably in their nooks.

Beyond the penguins, the surrounding area has a number of attractive stop-offs that could be combined to make a nice day outing - Cape Point, Muizenberg Beach, and Platboom Beach, to name a few.

Whatever you decide, remember this - do not touch the penguins. I saw them nearly take off people’s fingers.

Hectic Hostels - Darkness and Light

Maybe I was naive, but of all the things I expected in my hostel stays, one I certainly left unaccounted for was the people I would meet. Sure I’d meet travelers from all sorts of places, but I didn’t expect the dark stories that surfaced.

These ominous tales were a minority of the people that stayed at my hostel, but nonetheless made up a significant enough contingent that it had a real impact on me. I met people dealing with schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder, anorexia, antisocial personality disorder, long histories of severe verbal and physical abuse, multiple victims of extremely violent crimes, childhood pregnancies, and more.

In my direct and indirect interactions with these people, I had two major takeaways:

The first is that I should have compassion and empathy be my default over judgement and ridicule. It’s a recognizably childish trait to tease and make fun of anything strange; one that follows many of us well in to adulthood. Fortunately, I’ve made significant strides in shifting my default reaction, and have found that my travels only grow my capacity for kindness and understanding.

The second is that the bounds of my capacity for gratitude continue to expand. There is nothing quite like when you hear that your new friend was stabbed in the neck and nearly killed at seventeen for no good reason, to make you really fucking grateful for the life you’ve had. That is only scratching the surface, but I think you get the point. These aren’t made up stories from far away lands - these are real things that happen to real people, every day.

If you enjoyed that, you’re sure to enjoy following my journey through Africa (same handle on TikTok and YT… sorting out linking them here)…