Debra Winter is Worthless

I did not choose the title of this post.

I'm writing this post to you from my house's bbq goodbye party... sitting on the couch while the speakers blast some John Mayer and my roommates and some friends hang out and have a good time. I just had my first day of my internship today, and well.. it will probably get better... I hope? I met some of the cheetahs and some of the girls I'll be working with, and I'll just say.. I know it's hard accepting a new person into a tight clique, so maybe they'll just take some time to loosen up. One thing that I did love, however, was the gorgeous scenery around the Cheetah center... Stellenbosch is beautiful! Definitely a picture out of mommy's fantasy land. Vineyards, rolling hills, orange and purple mountains... totally perfect. Even if the people at the internship don't come around, it's still worth it to go.. just for the train ride from Cape Town to Stellenbosch and back.

Basically, my job entails cleaning and feeding in the morning (pretty basic), and then leading tours of the center and supervising people-cheetah encounters throughout the day. I have the opportunity to live at the center for two weeks since It's kind of far and I don't have a car (until another girl moves into the house two weeks from now and can carpool with me), but honestly, I'm having such an amazing time in my house here in Cape Town, I'd rather live here and commute two hours to and from work than live at the Cheetah center with people that aren't as warm... But maybe they'll come around. We'll see.

Either way, better news- I survived shark diving! Though I barely escaped with a bad sunburn... still, it was totally worth it. I had no idea that the only sharks in these waters this time of year were ummm... GREAT WHITES. So, okay.. I was a teensy bit absolutely totally scared since (anyone who knows me at all knows that) Great White sharks are basically the only animals that scare the shit out of me. But I went in the frigid water anyway, and I came face to face with one of my biggest fears. And... it wasn't so bad! The sharks were kind of small, and were really only interested in the dead fish heads being pulled around by the fishing line. So, that was that. And a sunburn. I also met some other Dutch students that are here through the same exchange program as me, and I met some Brazillian boys who are learning English at a school here in Cape Town for a few months. Naturally, I offered them private lessons.

SO, that's the update for now. Stay tuned.
Jordyn