A week and a half left and I’m still bordering on homesickness and serenity out here. It’s just minor things I miss, like my dogs, immaculate bathrooms and privacy. Saw the doc’s presentation last Friday. It was quite impressive. He’s certainly qualified to be a fellow. Went to the aquarium last Thursday w/ two new Norwegian girls. Nothing special. Left Friday for my trip w/ John and the two German girls. Went straight to Storms River. John jumped the bridge Sat morning. The others met up w/ Orjan & co and went for a hike while I got my first massage ever. Went w/ aromatherapy. The woman looked like a stripper, I couldn’t say no. We left for J-Bay that night. Stayed at “Island Vibe”. Went to dinner where Jocelyne told me about the polar bears that plagued Churchill in Canada. If they come into town they get tagged. “Problem bears” are taken to bear prison and not fed for 6 months. People drive in their car to walk their dogs b/c they’re afraid of being mauled by bears. Population ~700, but swells up to 15k for a special event (don’t remember if it had something to do w/ the bears.) Checked out the mediocre nightlife in the town. Apparently, we missed a “porn party” the previous night where everyone at the backpackers dressed up like a pornstar. Sun, we went surfing. Exhilarating. Supposedly, there’s a place in Montauk where you can surf and snowboard (even surf while there’s still snow on the beach). I’ll have to look into it. Went to Seaview Lion Park in the afternoon. Orjan got pulled over and charged a R500 fee b/c he didn’t have an international permit. Silly. Spent another night in J-Bay. It was a gorgeous beach. I may have to move to Hawaii after all. Mon, the others surfed again, but I was feeling too congested to try my hand so I just walked along the beach. Derren joined our car as we tried to head to Mossel Bay, but there was a traffic accident. We wound up staying in Wilderness at “the Beach House”. I woke up and saw a girl climb out of bed with a guy. It’s a hostel dorm room. I guess if I were wasted and horny enough, I’d have done the same. Finally, we made it back to the Green Ele. Random tongue twisters: say “toy boat” 10x and “I love NY; I need NY; I love, I need unique NY.”