Church and the Seaview Lion Park

This morning I joined Grandpa and Grandma for breakfast at their B&B. We had yogurt with fruit and granola, as well as omelettes (ham, cheese, onion and some sort of red pepper salsa with balsamic glaze around the edge of the plate), as well as coffee and orange juice. After breakfast we went to church at Oxygen Life, the church I have been attending in Walmer. The worship music is definitely top notch, and will be something I miss when I am back home in the States, as well as missing the friendly community within the church.



After church we went to the Seaview Lion Park, about 45 minutes outside of Port Elizabeth. It stormed last night (loud thunder claps!), and was gray, foggy and misty today. On our way out to the park, Grandpa and I endulged in some good ol' McDonald's, trying out the South African quarter pounder. The drive through the Seaview Lion Park was pretty rugged, winding through the woooded mountainous terrain. Thankfully our little Chevy Aveo warriored through the park well. We saw some deer like animals, Grandma thought they were called prong(?), although I kept thinking she was saying prawn, like the seafood. These were different than the kudu in the fact that had straight horns instead of the kudu's spiral horns. We also saw peacock, zebras and of course lions. The lions were enclosed in big fenced settlements. We were bummed that we had to view the lions from behind the fencing, until the worker informed us we could go into the fenced areas if we were in our car. I drove us in, and if we got any closer to two of the lions I would have ran over one of their paws! The lions were large, and had a variety of colors and manes. We saw probably at least 8 or 9 full size lions within those enclosures.



After leaving the lion enclosures, we drove on through the park and up to the top of the mountain (large hill/cliff?) where the lion cubs were housed, as well as the restrooms and a restaurant. Two of the lion cubs (5 weeks old) were being bottle fed. For being a 5 week old cat, the lion cubs were pretty big! I'd say comparable to a mid sized dog. The view from this peak point was awesome. I then understood why the park is called Seaview. We had 180 degree view of the ocean, out past the rolling green terrain. The other 180 degree view was of the winding and rugged park terrain. While the ocean was a hazy view from the fog, I still found the view to be picturesque. When we returned from Seaview, we took naps, which I know for myself was much needed!



This evening we made dinner at the B&B. We had chicken, salad, guacamole/crackers and toast. For dessert we had milk tart, a traditional African dessert. Milk tart is a pie that is similar to a custard pie in America. After dinner, Grandma and I went to the gas station to get a deck of cards so we could play cribbage. We played a 3 game series and I won 2 of the games, making me the winner of tonight's series. Tomorrow I have a full day of work, and Grandpa and Grandma are going on a township tour. I will be sure to interview them tomorrow night after their township tour, so I can report back to you their reactions. Until then, Cheers!