I am ready to finish the America Continent, but it is not easy. Airline doesn’t give me the ticket to Africa which I already paid, because I might be kicked out in airport of South Africa. What can I do?
It was sad to say good bye to Korean family who hosted me in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Now I am ready to leave the America continent, but there is the big problem. Airline doesn’t give me the ticket, because I only have Colombia Certification of Yellow Fever, not the international Certification. They say they can’t give me the ticket which I already paid. I am so panicked. When I researched information of visa many times, I’ve never heard about it. I ask them many times ‘please give me the ticket. I already got vaccine of Yellow Fever’. Then they let me go to their office in airport. I run to the office and hear scary thing from their boss.
I can be kicked out in South Africa, but if I am so lucky, it won’t happen. He has seen that some people had no problem without international certification of Yellow Fever, but some people were kicked out and wasted their ticket.
He asks me again that I will go to the South Africa now.
I believe myself that it won’t be problem. I say to him “Please, give me the ticket to South Africa.”
Actually my mind starts being complicated.
But I have to change to think only good things.
I didn’t ride a bike much in Brazil. But I thought that it was the good plan not to stay longer in Brazil, because people were nervous to stranger like me on the road. It is time to leave Brazil and go to the New Continent.
I believe that I will be not kicked out. But it is a bit sad that if there is no problem such an International Certification, I must have enjoyed my 1270$ flight so much!
It was really sad when I had farewell with Korean family host in Brazil. But I can’t cry that my mind is complicating. Anyway time is running. It is time to eat.
This is the New Year in Airplane. Actually I don’t know what the standard time is for New Year. I have moved many times since I left Korea and I realize that actually time is just number. But you know human being. We like putting special mean to nothing. I am also human being that I enjoy the New Year with them.
I read the book and drinking delicious wine that now I feel really relax and I can imagine that I will be soon in AFRICA.
My next seat is empty that I can sleep a bit comfortable. The morning is coming.
Is this South Africa? It looks there is nothing.
It is my delicious breakfast on the sky of South Africa
It is really scary that I will cycle on there.
I can hear that pilot says we will arrive in AFRICA soon. I have to transfer from Johannesburg to Cape Town in one hour. But the first thing I have to do is to pass immigration and the next thing is to get my luggage and the last thing is to send it to the next my flight. I have to do done those in one hour. There must be not any mistake to transfer in one hour. My heart is beating fast with nervous, but I try porker face. An immigrant worker asks me my passport and questions a few things.
Oh goodness. She doesn’t ask me about the International Certification of Yellow Fever and gives me the stamp!!!!!!!!!!!!!
YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I AM IN AFRICA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My luggage comes at the last so that I run to the reception with luggage. It seems that everything is perfect.
I feel awesome now. Yeah! It will take two hours from Johannesburg to Cape Town, but they feed me again.
My first city of Africa and South Africa is Cape Town. But I can’t get my luggage. What is wrong? I go to the office and they say my luggage is in other plane. It seems that South Africa airline doesn’t feel sorry about it. They say they will send it in the late afternoon at the place where I stay. Actually it is not my first to have this kind of experience. It happened when I went from Canada to the U.S. Anyway thank to my host, I can come to host home safely.
In the late afternoon I got my luggage. I am worried about that there is something broken.
I put four bags in the two boxes and I put two boxes together with a tape.
This is the way how I put my lucky. Actually peope doesn’t need disassemble rear wheel, but I have the rack so that I had to do. I am not good at this kind of things like disassemble and install that inside is really messy. But when I install, it seems that everything is so fine. Oh!! Lucky is lucky
Ah! I have some secret to share with you. People always ask me the weight. I always answer I don’t know because I don’t know. For flight from Brazil to South Africa, the rule of luggage was 23kg two bags so I tried my luggage was not over 46kg.
My bicycle box was 23 kg. (Included all of bike gear such as racks, extra tubes, pump, lock and so on). The other box in which is four bags is 24.5kg (There was no overcharge for 1.5kg.). But I have another bag, Camera and laptop. It is almost over 13 kg.
So, total weight I carry is 60 kg. Except bike, luggage is 37.5kg. But if I put water and food, it would be around 45kg. So it will total over 68 kg.
From now if people ask me how much weight I carry, I will still answer like this “I don’t know”. I don’t want to recognize how much I carry things during cycling.
I am going to the downtown with host. There is something strange thing in the subway. There are two different tickets which are the first seat and the normal seat. The first seat is more expensive around 50 cents. I’ve seen this kind of thing in Airplane, but I’ve never seen it in the subway in the world. Actually there is very complicated history in South Africa.
Around 15c European came to Cape Town. Around 17c many Dutch farmer and also other European came to South Africa. After 18c Cape Town became important place for the ship to stop and take something before going to India. Cape Town was growing as the busy city. In 19c England started conquering Cape Town. Until 19c most of immigrant was farmer. But in 1867 people found diamond in Hopetown and in 1886 people found gold in Johhanesburg so that many people came to be rich.
Around 20c Dutch and English had the war for who will control South Africa. From war, England won and started conquering South Africa. Since 1948 they had made weird law which was called Apartheid. The black people were separated from the white people that they cannot get married with white people and cannot go to the same school and more terrible things.
There was the first black president, Nelson Mandela, in 1994. Since 1994, Apartheid had been abolished. In my opinion this two different tickets are from that age although that law was abolished.
We take the subway at the late morning. My host says there are not many people at this moment that we should take first class. But I see that there is no different from two tickets that the seats are nothing different between them.
Anyway South Africa is really developed. Is it only in Cape Town?
My host family
She says downtown is very dangerous. I’ve also read on internet that many people were stolen their credit card during taking money in front of ATM in Cape Town.
I need International Certification of Yellow Fever for getting Visa of other country that I go to the hospital to change my Colombia Certification to it. But a doctor says she can’t change it although she knows I already had it 8 months ago. Yellow Fever vaccine is very strong that I got sick when I had it. It works for 10 years, but she says I have to get it again. It doesn’t make sense to me, but I don’t have choice. I paid it for almost 60$.
There is very strange thing. She gives me Cholera certification for free which I didn’t get and ask. She says Immigration can bother me if I don’t have it. She didn’t give me the Certification which I already got, but she gave me the Certification which I didn’t get and even I didn’t ask for it. Ridiculous!
The place is called Waterfront. She says here is very safe that even I can take the picture with my big Camera at any time.
People are playing.
It is really surprising that I’ve never thought that I will see this kind of well-developed thing in Africa. I think even this one is more developed than other Latin America where I had cycled.
It is host’s daughter in the second picture.
There are the four figures that got the Novel prize
This is the big stuff of Coca-cola’s advertisement. I think their ad is always creative and smart.
The next day I take the train to see penguin, but I see strange advertisement. In the center there is Penis Enlargement and then around it there are many abortion ad. The strange word is ‘quick, same day, 30 min Results and so on. You know if you be careful, then you might not need it.
I’ve heard that although South Africa is well developed country, there are two big problems. The first thing is poverty and the next thing is HIV/AIDS. The population of South Africa is over 50 million, but the people who suffer with HIV/AIDS are around 5 million. It is really big number in the world.
The scenery is so beautiful.
The penguins are standing at the front. What? A penguin lives in the Africa?
This is the penguin which lives in the South Pole.
And this is African Penguin! I’ve seen Elephant seal in the U.S, but it is my first time to see Penguin beside the sea.
The size is not much big as Emperor Penguin. It is interesting that African Penguin has pink makeup around the eyes.
It looks penguin is thinking.
Seagull
Penguins
Penguins to the next beach
Isn’t it cute?
The color of ocean is so beautiful.
The next beach is also pretty.
I will ride a bike from the next day. How will the South Africa be? I am curious and a bit nervous. Am I not scared?… Let’s believe everything will be all right.
p.s South African Immigration doesn’t ask International Certification of Yellow Fever all the time. It depends where people are coming from. For example, if people’s departure is Korea, then it doesn’t need. But if people’s departure is Brazil, then it needs.
