After an 18-hr flight to the states, which included a surprise stop in Dakar, Senegal, a 6 hr layover, and an awful 50 minute flight through a thunderstorm........I returned home to Vermont. I'm afraid, though, that I left my heart in South Africa.
There is no comprehensive way to reflect on such a wonderful trip. No words can do the country justice, or the people I met, or my time that I had with the sharks. South Africa has the beauty of New Zealand, the way you can imagine land "used" to look, before the malls, suburbs, and highways took over. The ocean is so wild, and such a part of the lives of South Africans....they worship the sea through surfing, kayaking, cage-diving, whale-watching, sailing, and with such an innocence that is lost in the states. Africa is still wild, and I loved living with snow-capped mountains on the horizon, a bay of wild sharks right off the beaches, and green pastures filled with ostriches, springboks, and dossies. I felt spoiled being able to spend my week out on the water with white sharks, humpback dolphins, and right whales, and then to be able to drive a few hours away to spend my weekend with lions, cheetahs, warthogs, and the variable "big 5."
I am so thankful for the wonderful people that I met, both at the lab, and around Mossel Bay. Oceans Research is run by two wonderful people, Enrico and Ryan. They have put their heart and soul (and money) into this lab, and they live for 106-hr tracking sessions and sharing their love for the white sharks of the bay. The supporting cast at the lab is just as amazing; Rob, Dylan, Kim, Adam, Lezanne, Edith and Ed. They are all contagiously excited about their work and selfless in helping others learn about the lab and the aquarium. I also shared my experience with some amazing interns, who all helped to make chumming in the rain, 106 hrs of tracking, 8 hrs in the car to Cape town, and all-night seal surveys, enjoyable.
Lastly, I miss those white sharks. They have captured my mind and my heart, and to work with them in person does not even begin to compare to the "Air Jaws" and "Big Bites" shark shows. They are strong, agile, curious, personable, and while some are frisky, others are skittish, the exact opposite of their misunderstood persona. I truly hope to be able to spend the rest of my life working with these remarkable species, unearthing more of their secret lives, and changing their perception to the rest of the world. I will work towards returning to South Africa and their sharks in the future, and until then, will have my wonderful memories to live with.
