There are many options for getting to the top of Table Mountain, the mountain that towers over Cape Town. We skipped the hike and the cable car, opting for my first ever multi-pitch climb. This was one of my favorite experiences of the trip. The official route is six pitches, but our guide, Ross, adds an extra pitch in for fun. With the exception of the extra pitch, I was able to climb the pitches clean. Ross said that I had “cheeky” moves. I think that is a compliment.
Even though at times my muscles ached and I was terrified of how high up we were, I loved the constant adrenaline rush and the feeling of accomplishment after each pitch. This will not be my last multi-pitch. This experience was made all the better by the excellent company. I loved that I got to do my first multi-pitch with one of my best friends, Regina. She was a great motivator and amazing to watch climb. Ross is a local climbing legend, and he climbs like it. It was scary how run out his protection was for some of the pitches. He was just so confident, he could probably climb the route in his sleep. Alex is also a novice climber, but you would never know it. He is a natural. The two of us climbed with Ross, and there were several spots where we had to talk each other through the moves. It was very reassuring knowing that someone had your back. Regina climbed with Ule, a doctor from Norway, who joined us at the last minute. He had endless amounts of energy and had us all pushing our limits.
The view from the top was nothing short of breathtaking. We were lucky with an absolutely clear day. This was probably due to the wind, which made the last few pitches . . . interesting. It also meant that our intended ride down (on the cable car) was unavailable. Hiking down was still pretty, but I couldn’t climb stairs without wincing for four days afterwards.
By the time we made it back to the Penthouse, we had 10 minutes to get ready. We had heard about the South Africa vs. USA soccer match only after the game was sold out. This meant our only option was to somehow find scalped tickets. Most people were skeptical that this would work because scalping is not allowed in South Africa, but we were determined. Alex and I headed down to the waterfront, which is close to the stadium, with a handwritten sign asking, “Extra Tickets?” in hand. After an hour and a half with no luck, we were eventually directed to a spot close to the stadium, but not too close. I had to run to keep up with Alex’s long stride. But, alas, the sign paid off. A man approached us and he had four tickets right next to each other. The best part, he only wanted 20 rand, approximately $3.00 a ticket. They weren’t the best tickets, but we were not in a position to be choosy.
We texted Kaitlin and Karen to meet us at McDonalds, Alex’s favorite restaurant, but we ended up having to leave before we got there. The lovely countergirl, Spo, agreed to hold on to the tickets for them until they got there. The game itself was fun, but not exciting. South Africa was doing a much better job of positioning themselves with the ball, but the U.S. scored late in the second half and won the game. We were, surprisingly, not alone in cheering for the U.S. (towards the end of the game Alex cheered for whatever team had the ball. He just wanted someone to score so he could see how the crowd reacted), but still very outnumbered. I was glad that team affiliations are not as violent in South Africa as in
Argentina. Maybe it helped that it was a friendly match. After the match, we weren’t quite ready to head to bed so we all went to the Penthouse bar. Alex showed me how to play pool while Kaitlin showed the rest of the bar how to do a beer bong with a vuvuzela. :)
Even though at times my muscles ached and I was terrified of how high up we were, I loved the constant adrenaline rush and the feeling of accomplishment after each pitch. This will not be my last multi-pitch. This experience was made all the better by the excellent company. I loved that I got to do my first multi-pitch with one of my best friends, Regina. She was a great motivator and amazing to watch climb. Ross is a local climbing legend, and he climbs like it. It was scary how run out his protection was for some of the pitches. He was just so confident, he could probably climb the route in his sleep. Alex is also a novice climber, but you would never know it. He is a natural. The two of us climbed with Ross, and there were several spots where we had to talk each other through the moves. It was very reassuring knowing that someone had your back. Regina climbed with Ule, a doctor from Norway, who joined us at the last minute. He had endless amounts of energy and had us all pushing our limits. 
The view from the top was nothing short of breathtaking. We were lucky with an absolutely clear day. This was probably due to the wind, which made the last few pitches . . . interesting. It also meant that our intended ride down (on the cable car) was unavailable. Hiking down was still pretty, but I couldn’t climb stairs without wincing for four days afterwards. 
By the time we made it back to the Penthouse, we had 10 minutes to get ready. We had heard about the South Africa vs. USA soccer match only after the game was sold out. This meant our only option was to somehow find scalped tickets. Most people were skeptical that this would work because scalping is not allowed in South Africa, but we were determined. Alex and I headed down to the waterfront, which is close to the stadium, with a handwritten sign asking, “Extra Tickets?” in hand. After an hour and a half with no luck, we were eventually directed to a spot close to the stadium, but not too close. I had to run to keep up with Alex’s long stride. But, alas, the sign paid off. A man approached us and he had four tickets right next to each other. The best part, he only wanted 20 rand, approximately $3.00 a ticket. They weren’t the best tickets, but we were not in a position to be choosy. 
We texted Kaitlin and Karen to meet us at McDonalds, Alex’s favorite restaurant, but we ended up having to leave before we got there. The lovely countergirl, Spo, agreed to hold on to the tickets for them until they got there. The game itself was fun, but not exciting. South Africa was doing a much better job of positioning themselves with the ball, but the U.S. scored late in the second half and won the game. We were, surprisingly, not alone in cheering for the U.S. (towards the end of the game Alex cheered for whatever team had the ball. He just wanted someone to score so he could see how the crowd reacted), but still very outnumbered. I was glad that team affiliations are not as violent in South Africa as in Argentina. Maybe it helped that it was a friendly match. After the match, we weren’t quite ready to head to bed so we all went to the Penthouse bar. Alex showed me how to play pool while Kaitlin showed the rest of the bar how to do a beer bong with a vuvuzela. :)
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