Great Whites

4pm, Daddy Long Legs Hotel, Capetown South Africa

So...I've fullfilled one of the tasks on the life's list of to-dos. I was in the water with great white sharks today. It was fantastic. We headed to a little town further south from Capetown (umm...Gansberg? Pronounced Hansberg?) at about 5am...there was a group of 20 of us from all over the world, of course mostly men. I don't get why women don't want to dive with sharks! There were a few random new wifes and mothers, but generally it was men in their 20's and 30's. Anywho, we headed out after a serious briefing about keeping our hands and feet inside the cage. The water was crazy rough - about 10 foot swells to start, growing to 15 foot swells. We suited up amongst jumping whales and seals and waited for the sharks to come.

We ended up seeing only a few sharks. Three of us, out of the 20, were in the water with said sharks. That said, it was enough for me. I got to see jaws, and tails, and bodies, and bloody bait. I was underwater when the skipper was pulling the bait toward us - and got to watch as a mature female (15+ feet long) swam directly for me, bumped the cage, and veered off at the last possible moment.

We had to pull the plug early, unfortunately. If it'd been perfect weather, I would have spent much more time freezing my ass off and diving with the beasts. Unfortunately, a few minutes is all I got - but that just may be enough for a lifetime!

Tomorrow I'm heading to the wine country to stock up on presents to bring back for my Seattle family. Tuesday I'll spend in Joburg. And Wednesday...well, we all know what Wednesday brings!

Hope you're all well. Can't wait to see you soon!

Cheers!
G