Woke up early today all excited and met Gavin in the morning for the drive down to the Cango caves. Gavin helped us with getting the tickets and we had some time to spare before entering the park. Visitors enter the park in tour groups and with a tour leader who explains about the formations inside and while waiting, I decided to grab a quick bite at the restaurant just by the waiting area. We had chosen the adventure tour and this meant that there would be sections of the caves where we would be required to crawl and move through narrow spaces. It was very clearly explained with even cutouts showing the actual size of the openings. I had a good breakfast overlooking the road which we had driven up and was mistaken for a guide by the lady serving breakfast ! Many of the locals would mistake me for a local from Durban a number of times and as time went by I began to get used to this. 
The tour started at 0930 am as stated and it was truly remarkable to see formations so many thousand years old beautifully preserved and taken care of for many generations to view. The lighting were well done as well so that parts of the caves could be highlighted as we walked on, bringing focus to the beautiful formations. |
| Charmaine squeezing through a section of the caves |
The guide was very friendly and answered our questions patiently and for most of the time flashes from cameras dominated the walk. It was however interesting that compared to the cave system I had visited in Korea, the manjanggul lava cave system, the cave floor here was dry. It was also interesting to know that many years ago, the caves had been used as a location for concerts. Amidst explaining about the stunning formations, the guide would wait for us to take pictures and the pace of the tour was just perfect. The beginning of the adventure tour is the end of the usual tour and we were asked to leave our bags at a spot before proceeding.
Just as shown and explained, the adventure tour involved lots of time spent squatting as well as movement through narrow spaces and corners. For most of us, it was just time consuming at times rather then difficult and everyone made it through safely. It was definitely exciting to take pictures amidst such small spaces and we had plenty of laughs along the way. I met the one and only Singaporean traveller here and it was nice to meet someone from where I had come from. Charmaine was with her mom and visiting South Africa for a week and we took turns to take pictures through the entire adventure tour. |
| Entrance to the adventure tour |
Moving through the caves gave me an idea of the processes that would have shaped such beautiful structures and after crawling, sliding and climbing thorough the adventure tour, it was time to head back to the entrance. It was an awesome tour and a must try for anyone who does not have a severe claustrophobia. Besides a few bruises and scratches, all of us were good and due to the smooth surface of the caves, it's definitely a good idea to wear shoes that can grip rather then flip flops.
The next part of our day was to the Cango ostrich farm and after a quick freshening up, we were good to go with Gavin. The ostrich farm is midway between the Cango caves and the backpackers and we were there shortly. 
We again signed up for a tour through the farm and it started off with an introduction to ostrich products as well as the history of the farms. I learnt that the semi-desert climate was perfect for ostrich rearing and ostrich leather was expensive amongst other things. There was also a wall art made up of the things that had been found in the stomachs of ostriches and it could be seen that they eat up pretty much anything lying around. The tour went on to explain on how ostrich eggs were incubated and we got a chance to carry an actual ostrich egg albeit an unfertilised one. Our tour guide asked me if I wanted a kiss from an ostrich and I agreed with some hesitation after watching the force at which the ostriches pecked off pellets from her hand. Some of us got 'hugs', some got a massage and I got the kiss, perfectly captured by Mariam with a hand held camera. This was a moment to remember. 
Next up was the part where some of us could go for an ostrich ride and it sure did seem like a tedious process, with 2 ostrich handlers catching the bird and bringing it to a station where the rider could mount. The ride was very short and involved the bird running for a few minutes before the rider would fall and be caught by the handlers. I did not try this but Jurgen did and it was truly amusing to watch. The tour ended with a showcase of the strength of ostrich eggs and we got to stand on a clutch of eggs without them cracking. The 3 of us were hungry by now and decided to have a meal at the Cango Ostrich farm restaurant. The highlight was of course ostrich fillet and it was truly delicious and apparently healthier then other red meats due to the low fat content and lean nature.
The ride back to the backpackers was short and we got to relax and unwind before setting off for dinner at the restaurant just opposite the backpackers. Dinner was again something exotic, wilderbeest. It was perfect that Miriam and me had the same taste when it came to ordering food and we shared a bottle of wine as well. It was pretty amazing for me to see the wide variety of meat available on most menus and this was exciting for me, coming from a country that has variety in food but not much in terms of meat.
A good meal and conversation followed and before we knew it, it was time to head back to the backpackers. Visiting the bar at the backpackers, we had a few more drinks before calling it a night.
I had signed up for a ride down the Swartberg pass the next day and it was time to get some rest.
Time to sleep !
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