South Africa

17.08.08 - Headed back on the road south again, the flowers becoming more abundant and colourful as we went, Troy described it as suddenly getting colour tv after being used to black and white it was quite an amazing site. Didn’t want to go far today as Troy wanted to top up all the leaking oils. Now we are on fast tarmac roads our running has gone a little out of the window but hopefully we will pick up on it again soon. Decided to stop at Vanrhynsdorp where Troy spent the afternoon under the Landrover while I did some more washing. Had a lovely meal in the restaurant, whilst watching our first bit of the Olympics.

18.08.08 - A short drive again today as we were heading to Darling to stay with Kevin and Philippa who we travelled with for a while. We thought we were on the road nice and early until I suddenly remembered SA is an hour ahead. Reached Darling mid afternoon to a very warm greeting from Kevin who settled us in straight away with a glass of wine and a can of beer. An hour after we got there Alan and Taryn also arrived and the party was in full swing by the time Philippa got home from work. Had a lovely evening catching up and of course drinking far too much.

19 to 21.08.08 - Kevin arranged for ours and Alan’s car to go into the garage he takes his, as Alan & Taryn are on a timescale now theirs was done first. We spent a lovely few days relaxing and watching the Olympics whilst keeping an eye on Philippa & Kevin’s two very over excitable puppies. One evening we all went out for a lovely meal in a Chinese restaurant, Troy and I however did struggle with the chopsticks and eventually had to ask for a fork or we would still be there now trying to eat our meals. Another evening we had a BBQ, it was nice to sit around a BBQ for nothing but cooking and not trying our best to keep warm, it was also nice to be back in a proper bed with room to turn over without fear of disturbing the other person. We also spent most of our time watching tv, you don’t miss it when you don’t have it, but when you do its funny how you are drawn back to sitting glued in front of it all day. Unfortunately the weather is on the change and one day was just like being at home sat looking out at the rain. We were sad to leave Kevin & Philippa's but Cape Town was beckoning.

22.08.08 - Didn’t leave Darling as early and we should have, but we finally got on the road the sun was shining and the trip into Cape Town was not long. First sight of course is Table Mountain, drove into town and headed for the waterfront where we booked into the Protea Hotel. Once the room was sorted we drove to Table Mountain, Troy thought it would be a good idea to walk up and get the cable car down, I thought we should be doing it the other way around but went along. The walk up takes a couple of hours and is tiring but really not too bad especially considering our fitness levels. Once at the top we opened our champagne and sat toasting reaching Cape Town whilst having a picnic and looking out on the city. It was an amazing feeling to be there after the long drive and I must say it felt even better having walked up rather than getting the cable car. Decided though, that we would still take the cable car down, this was nice and much quicker than walking. So it was back to the hotel to change then headed out to meet Alan & Taryn and some of their friends. Had a nice meal and then to some bars, great night.

23.08.08 - Decided to take a walk around the waterfront which was nice until it started pouring down, luckily we were right next to a large mall so were forced to look around the shops for a while until the rain eased. Later we headed to the Aquarium which was really worth the visit especially for the large tanks with sharks and a ray that spent his time entertaining the crowd. After lunch is was off to Cape Point which isn’t actually the most southern point in Africa but everyone goes there when in Cape Town. The weather here reminded us of England in April, every time you step out the car it rains. Walked up to the lighthouse and once we reached the top as on queue down came the rain. Once back at the hotel spent a couple of hours chilling, before heading out to the waterfront for a pizza, and a few drinks.

24.08.08 - The day started off bright and sunny, headed off to the waterfront again where we really got the vibe of what the place is really like with the street performers and the general bustle of the people. Wanted to go to Robben Island but being the weekend it was fully booked, so decided to head out to Hermanus for a couple of days for some whale watching instead. After the luxury of Kevin’s and the plush hotel room getting to grips with camping in the cold and rain seemed to fill our evening as we shivered to cook and contemplated our naval listening to the sound of rain beating against the tent.

25.08.08 - After a late morning (forgot to put tent clock forward) it was out to face the day and do some serious whale spotting, which turned out to be fantastic. The bay was full of mainly Southern Right Whales with a few Humpbacks thrown in, putting on an amazing display at times leaping out the water. Being English as we are the only thing to do when at the seaside is to get some fish and chips which we ate while watching the whales, just perfect! I guess you have got to put up with the cold and rain sometimes as they are only here in winter, but let’s hope as we move eastward it warms up.

26 & 27.08.08 - Left Hermanus to head back to Cape Town, first stop back to try and book for Robben Island, they were fully booked for the next couple of days so booked for Thursday and headed out to find a campsite. Visited the Hannibal factory to try and get a new flysheet for the tent as we were starting to worry about some of the tabs especially with the weather so wet and windy at the moment. By the time we got to Muizenberg it was getting late and already chilly again so after a lovely curry which we thought was the most warming food we could think of it was again to bed early to watch a film. The campsite was huge but we were the only people there as don’t think there are many people stupid enough to camp in this weather. The following day we eventually packed up to leave and headed to the west coast to another campsite. By the time we got there the weather was lovely sunny and warm we managed to get all our washing done and dried and pulled the mattress out the tent and got that all dried out. Troy confidently said it looks like the weather is finally changing and we should have a few nice days. Through the evening the wind started to pick up so we put our canopy and under tent up to sit in, Troy also came up with a novel idea of filling the dutch oven will coals which warmed us nicely. We packed everything up before we went to bed as the wind was getting stronger and Troy even moved the car to a more sheltered spot, but even that did not help with the night to come. The wind got stronger and then it started to rain, Troy and I spent most of the night awake listening to the tent getting hammered, eventually with the destruction of the fly sheet the rain managed to seep in and Troy spent the rest of the night lying on a damp mattress.

28.08.08 - That morning we got out the tent to find the fly sheet flapping around where some of the tabs had broken and one of the poles on the ground and it was still raining and howling. The original plan was to go to Robben Island today then head back to Kevin & Philippa’s as we were going camping for the weekend together; however the camping had to be cancelled due to the weather. We pulled everything out the tent again before packing it up wet and headed into to Cape Town for our Robben Island trip, as we had feared however when we got there that too had been cancelled due to the weather and they were again booked up for several days, I guess I was just not destined to go. Managed to find some waterproofing spray for the tent and some elastic to repair the fly sheet and headed back to Darling. We stopped off at one of the wine farms where we decided we liked every wine we tasted, neither of us are great connoisseurs!! Got to Kevin’s where the drying out process of the tent started all over again.

29.08.08 - Very glad to be back in a proper bed in a nice warm house, Troy had also got another cold so he really appreciated being out of the tent at the moment. Managed to sew all new tabs on the flysheet and with everything dried out put the tent back together, now fully waterproofed. In the evening Kevin was doing a talk at the local museum about their trip around Africa so we went there, we have to say the talk was excellent and brought many memories back to us about our own trip. Picked up a lovely pizza on the way back.

30.08.08 - Getting too used to the comfy bed we were up very late, the wind was howling as the full force of the storm hit the cape, so we thought it was a good idea to take up a new indoor sport, wine tasting!! After visiting a couple everyone but Troy feeling inebriated (designated driver) it was back to watch the Springboks thrash the Wallaby’s, I think everyone can take pleasure in someone beating the Aussies!! That night we had a fantastic meal and a great evening, round friends of Kevin’s, (Charles and Janet).

31.08.08 - Another sluggish start weather still not happy, arranged to go for a meal in Riebeek with Kevin’s brother and wife and you guessed it more wine but this time I was the designated driver. Finally got back late so had a quiet evening in front the tv.

01 to 03.09.08 - With the clouds parting and the sun shining we prized ourselves away from the comfort and hospitality of Kevin & Philippa’s heading east. Decided to take the long way round and drove off into the mountains towards Montagu. The drive there was really picturesque with snow capped mountains and lush green valleys. Spent the next couple of days hiking in the mountains a few beautiful trails with waterfalls and spectacular views (our legs ache!) A quick visit to the doctor as an infection in my foot wouldn’t clear up turned out to be some sort of fungus, Troy now calls me Mangy Michelle, hopefully it will clear up soon (R200 for the doctor and cream, bargain).

04.09.08 - Today we headed to Cape Agulhas which is the official southern most tip of Africa, putting one foot in the Indian Ocean and one in the Atlantic. A few pictures at the plaque and we were off again heading back into the mountains. Troy stopped at 6 tire places but still cannot find a BF Goodrich A/T, it seems the whole of South Africa is sold out, so still driving around on BF Goodrich racing slicks!! Eventually ended up at Swellendam, after a quick visit to the internet we arrived at the Swellendam Caravan Park.

05.09.08 - Today was about indulgences again, having tasted the wine around the Western Cape we thought it was time to go on to something a little stronger and taste the port. Never being one to go away empty handed we ended up with three different but tasty bottles, now when you drink port you need cheese the next stop was Ladismith cheese factory followed by the Parmalet factory shop, we now believe we are finally getting cultured with cheese and port after our evening meal!!

06.09.08 - After a beautiful night listening to the river and the wildlife at the Cango Mountain Resort camp, decided not to do anything but lay out in the sun, Troy making a pair of cut-offs way too short in an attempt to top up his tan. Managed to tear ourselves away from the blanket for a game of crazy golf (Troy’s rules of course!!) and to finally get down to a bit more exercise, god it hurts!

07.09.08 - Off to the Cango Caves which are a magnificent series of caves, the public being allowed into the first sequence, in it we saw absolutely fantastic limestone formations. The caverns are huge with stalactites, stalagmites and flow formations on a huge grand scale. Well worth the money and the visit. Just along from the camp there is a waterfall that drops about 80m into a beautiful crystal clear lake, swim at your peril as its freezing! So it was back to camp for a bit more sun, wine, port and cheese.

08.09.08 - Back into Oudtshoorn where we went round the Cango Wildlife Ranch where we enjoyed a cute encounter with some baby cheetah’s, also enjoying the rest of the animals, snakes and birds on display. They do a great job of reintroduction of some of the rarer animals. After we drove over Robinsons Pass down into Mossel Bay to see about cage diving with the great whites, the boat is out the water at the moment so decided to press on to George and do it on the way back. What we did see however while we were there was a humpback whale come right in to the harbour wall so close if we had reached down we could have touched him, he was scraping himself along one of the ropes we think getting an itch! Wow what a fantastic sight. By all accounts at this time of year the bay is full of all different types of whales and dolphins but they don’t normally come in this close.

09.09.08 - Spent the night in George, so it was another short drive today to Sedgefield. Found details of a paragliding school, rang and arranged to meet them the following day. That done we booked into the Lake Pleasant campsite, the owner is very pleasant and the campsite is lovely although again we are the only people camping at the moment which is probably why the owner let us have free use of the internet and gave us the key to override the washing machine so we could do our clothes for free.

10.09.08 - Met Hannes & Elize who are a lovely couple and have been teaching paragliding for a number of years, we then headed to Wilderness to some dunes, unfortunately the wind was too strong and only got stronger as the day went on so after having a chat with other paraglider's and waiting half the day we were invited back to their house for a meal. They have a beautiful house right by the edge of Lake Brenton. We had a good evening, watched a few paragliding films and it ended up very late to bed for us.

11.09.08 - Again headed out to the dunes at Wilderness, the wind was still a bit strong but because of their combined weight Hannes & Troy could go up for a tandem flight, they spent a good half an hour souring along the beach, sometimes disappearing well out of sight. By the time they came down the wind had dropped sufficiently for Hannes to take me up, I also had a beautiful flight, at times hovering just feet above Troy’s head so he could take some pictures. After landing Cyril a student of theirs with 20 flights under his belt was then sent up, he managed a good 20 minute flight but with the wind still a bit strong he ended up landing in the bushes behind us a couple of times. After Cyril finished the wind finally dropped enough for Troy to have his first solo flight, which mainly involved Troy running, gliding for a few metres then running again. After that though it was calm enough to go further up the hill and Troy had a very successful flight travelling about 200m before landing like he had been doing it for years on his feet on the beach at the bottom. Then it was my turn, I spent the first few attempts being pulled over and dragged along the dune as the wind caught the canopy. After doing my bouncing ball impression I seemed to get the hang of keeping the glider squarely above my head and went on to do a beautiful glide of about 300m reaching a height of about 50ft got down the bottom and landed on my face, jumped up and down with the excitement, with the adrenaline still pumping followed Troy back up the dune. Slowly we progressed up the hill, Troy still not quite getting the hang of being gentle on the toggles, but we managed another 4 flights before we collapsed with exhaustion after climbing up the dunes to the launch site with the weight of the glider and harness. Finally making it back to camp about 6pm, and we were in bed by 8pm.

12.09.08 - The winds were meant to change to an easterly direction so we were told it would be an early start as the winds got stronger throughout the day. This time again in Wilderness we were going to fly from the Map of Africa, first we went down to the beach to see the landing area, once we were down there Troy was looking around to see where we would fly from when Elize noticed Troy looking she said to him ‘see those trees up there, that’s the launch site’. Troy’s reply to this was ‘holly shit’, the launch site being 530ft up and 1km away, with the N2 motorway in between. So with disbelief we jump in the cars and drive to the top. Troy was looking very nervously over the edge plucking up the courage, and then walking back asking if I wanted to toss a coin to see who went first. With pure stupidity (Troy says) not feeling nervous at all (for some strange reason) I volunteered. 10 minutes later I was off the ground on the trip of a life time heading towards the beach, what an amazing feeling the adrenaline not kicking in until I touched down on the beach, then I shook all over with a great feeling of euphoria, not believing what I had just done. Then it was Troy’s turn, he said now I have done it he has got to. As the wind was picking up a little bit he had a few false starts being dragged this way and that by the canopy and then he was off, as he is heavier Hannes got him to steer more into the updraft which sent him souring into the air, finally coming down miles along the beach, touching down for a perfect landing after shouting at a few people to get out the way. It was with an adrenaline induced euphoria we rushed to the top for another go, unfortunately the wind had picked up too much so that was it for the day. As the weather had turned Hannes & Elize invited us to go out on their boat across Lake Brenton to the Knysna waterfront for a bite to eat. All in all, a fantastic day.

13.09.08 - After being so busy for the last few days we finally got some chores done, lots of washing etc, then met up late with Hannes & Elize to try and get a flight in. But again the weather was not with us, no wind and when it did blow it was coming from the north, the day was however absolutely gorgeous being hot and sunny, so went down to the beach for some ground handling practice. It was hard work trying to raise the canopy ourselves as sometimes there was no wind which meant it was very hard to pull up and other times a gust would come and lift us off our feet. Again it was back to the campsite just as the sun was going down.

14.09.08 - Today we were going to leave as the winds were going to be wrong for the next week, arranging hopefully to do a few flights on our way back. But after feeling bruised and battered from all the yanking around in the harness and Troy suffering from too much wine syndrome we decided just to have a day chilling out and sunbathing at the campsite.

15.09.08 - Still feeling a bit stiff we finally left, taking our time and a few dirt roads to remind us of what we were missing, arriving at Cape St Francis mid afternoon. Later went for a meal in the camp restaurant, a couple of drinks in the bar and for once a slightly later night, think we may have made it past 9pm!

16.09.08 - Left Cape St Francis, heading for Port Elizabeth on the way we stopped at Jeffreys Bay where we saw a few dolphins. Just before Port Elizabeth we stopped at Seaview Game and Lion Park where we decided to camp the night surrounded by lions and tigers, luckily as they are only 20m away with a fence in between! Went up to the restaurant area where I had a chance to go in and cuddle some 4 month old cubs who were doing their best impression of Queen Elizabeth’s tree climbing lions, fantastic to finally be able to touch one without risk of being eaten. As we made camp the head ranger asked us if we were interested in walking with the young lions as we had mentioned it earlier. To our great delight an hour later we were walking with some very reluctant cubs at one time walking right up to Troy and rubbing themselves around his feet in an attempt to get Troy to pick her up and carry her the rest of the way. Back down to the campsite as night was closing in with a terrific wind and the roars of the lions all around.

17.09.08 - This morning we woke up very early with a start, unwittingly we had parked under the tree that the peacocks roost in, so it was their twilight squawks and clambering back down that woke us. Decided to catch 40 more winks as it was so early when the whole tent starting vibrating with the roars of the big male lion not 10m away. This then set off at least another 20 lions answering his calls. So with that decided to give in and get up. Drove on into Port Elizabeth, stopping at Sardinia Bay for the famous scones and cream, at the Sacramento Restaurant. Had a walk along the Summerstrand, doing the beach thing, eating ice cream and watching the dolphins swimming in the bay. Headed off up to Addo ready for the park in the morning.

18.09.08 - Drove around the park, where we saw a variety of animals and strangely enough lots of elephants, but still no rhino, they certainly must be an endangered species as all this time in Africa and all the parks we had been in we have still not seen one. After seeing the Dolphins in the bay decided we would like to see the show, so left the park in plenty of time to get back to Port Elizabeth to see the dolphins at the Oceanarium. The show was very funny and thoroughly entertaining.

19 to 29.09.08 - Back to Lake Pleasant to wait for the wind to sort itself out, so we could hopefully get some more flights in before heading back to Cape Town. Thought this time we would actually make use of some of the facilities the camp had to offer, we played some tennis, used the gym and hired a boat out on the lake where Troy did some fishing which wasn’t exactly successful but he enjoyed himself. Out of shear laziness we did not use the car the whole time as couldn’t be bothered with putting the tent up and down, our excuse for this was that it gave us some exercise by having to walk to the beach and the shops, we are not sure in the end where we were actually making things harder for ourselves struggling back with the shopping, never the less it was good exercise. A few cold nights although with our central heating sussed now we were ok, although one night it did drive us into the bar for some warmth and a few drinks which resulted in me falling off the ladder when getting out of the tent in the night for the toilet. Mostly the days were nice so we also enjoyed more sunbathing. Very relaxing time, although we still didn’t manage any flying.

30.09.08 - Our last day in Sedgefield, we met Hannes & Elize and went out onto Lake Brenton on their boat for a bit of fishing, unfortunately they had a tandem flight booked for early afternoon so we had to come back in and drive to Sedgefield to meet the Italian guy they were taking up. A couple of hours later we were back on the Lake this time all four of us were fishing, unfortunately again even with four rods out we went back empty handed just as it was staring to get dark. With the boat out of the water we headed to a restaurant for a meal, and then back to theirs for coffee. Finally said our goodbyes and headed back to camp very late indeed. We had a lovely day and will miss Hannes & Elize although hope to be back flying with them again in the near future.

01.10.08 - Woke to a gorgeous day so the plan was to go to Mossel Bay and book to do the cage diving the following day. On the way we stopped off at George to collect our new flysheet they had ordered in for us. Reached Mossel Bay early afternoon, the weather was still hot, booked for the following day, went and got some fish and chips which you have to have when near the beach and went to our campsite which is right on the sea front. Went for a walk as it was starting to get dusk, and watched the seals and the crazy surfers catching the waves seemingly unfazed by all the sharks in the area.

02.10.08 - Had to be at the harbour for 8.30am for breakfast before the boat left at 9am, the weather was not as nice as yesterday but I had high hopes that it would improve. Troy had decided as he had done this before he didn’t want to do it again and as it is the same price to just go out on the boat as to dive he decided to stay behind. We got out on the boat, I was with a South African woman and an American couple so was quite a small group. The journey out to seal island only takes about 10 mins; we dropped anchor and started baiting for sharks. The weather was getting steadily worse getting colder and the wind picked up until they finally had to move the boat closer to the island as we were being rocked around too much. Finally the sharks started to appear so it was on with the wetsuits which were still wet for the day before so made me instantly cold. When there were a few sharks it was time to climb over the side of the boat and into the cage, the American woman had decided she didn’t actually want to go in after all so it was just the three of us. The water was absolutely freezing and it took me a minute or two before I was able to relax and breathe properly as the cold had taken my breath away. You are not given anything to breath with under water so you stay in the cage with your head out until they tell you the sharks are near then you have to hold your breath and go under, I didn’t seem to be able to stay under as long as the others and I was the only one with a camera that I had to come up to wind on every time I took a picture so I was up and down far more than the others. We ended up seeing four different sharks which swam very close to the cage; one even crashed the whole of its body into the cage which really makes you aware of the power of them. We stayed down about 30 mins until the cold finally made us get out of the water, I cannot even begin to tell you how cold it was and for those who know me will know that I don’t cope with the cold well. Back on the boat we got back into our dry warm clothes. We still had a couple of hours we could have stayed out on the boat but as the weather was getting colder and windier and rain looked immanent we all voted to go back early. Luckily Troy had only gone for breakfast and came back so he was waiting for me at the dock, had a nice warm cup of coffee before heading off towards Cape Town. The experience was absolutely fantastic, the water could have been a bit warmer but it is definitely something I will remember forever. Unfortunately due to the cold I ended up with a migraine type headache which meant I had to lie in the back of the car with a blanket over my head all the way to the campsite. Finally by the evening and several tablets later it had eased a bit, had what could be our last campfire, Troy cooked roast lamb, gorgeous.

03.10.08 - The rest of the drive into Cape Town was quick and we reached there around lunchtime. After something to eat we stopped off at the shipping company to check on the arrangements for the car, and then stopped at a few shops before heading out to Darling. As usual when we arrive at Kevin & Philippa’s the drink starts flowing, had a BBQ then the plan was to go for the first night of Rocking the Daisies which is South Africa’s answer to Glastonbury. Didn’t actual make it in the end as the queues to get in were horrendous, a friend of theirs went and was giving us updates on the queues which in the end took her about 4 hours to get in, so it was a nice night in the warm with a couple more drinks.

04.10.08 - Troy and I were meant to go to the festival all day today but he woke with a hangover again even though he didn’t actual deserve one as had drunk very little. After a lazy morning, Kevin’s sister and family and some friends came over for a BBQ. In the evening we went to a house party of a couple of friends of theirs who are emigrating to Australia.

05.10.08 - We all set off to the festival for its last day, the weather was great and the bands were excellent, they were all South African artists so we had not heard of any of them but they were very good. Had a brilliant time although came back a little red from the sun, this is only the third year of the festival but with how much the numbers have increased each year we expect it to grow to Glastonbury proportions in a few years.

06 to 08.10.08 - Last few days until we have to say goodbye to the Landrover, went round a few camping shops to buy a few things we had seen previously, then to the wineries to stock up on wine to ship back in the car. All through the trip Troy has become more and more obsessive with not using the gas as a couple of times we found it hard getting the bottles refilled, this has annoyed me no end when all you want is a coffee in the morning but you have to wait for half and hour while Troy tries getting the fire from the previous night going again to boil the kettle when we have a perfectly good cooker sat there not being used. We were told our gas bottles have to be empty to ship them so we ended up having both rings and the grill burning for hours to empty Troy’s sacred gas that he has been saving for the last few months.

09.10.08 - A sad day, we had to be at the container port at 10am, it was utter chaos we were told someone would be there to meet us but they were late so Troy was wondering around looking for someone to help, finally we were directed around the back and shown to our container. Troy had only taken the jerry cans off the roof as was hoping the rest would be ok but we soon realised one of the boxes would also not fit in so that also had to come off, Troy was however adamant he was not going to take the tent off, instead he let the tires down as far as we could and got 4 men to stand on the back of the Landrover as it was driven into the container so it just about fitted through the door with only millimetres to spare (hopefully we will find some big guys at the other end to do the same otherwise the Landrover is in there for good). It was a very strange feeling watching it being closed in and having to leave without it. We hired a car for the remainder of our stay so we were given a lift into town to pick it up. We had originally tried booking a Corsa however they did not have any available so we paid extra and upgraded to a Golf which would have been fine except when we arrived to pick it up it turned out to be a Citi Golf which is the same design as our Golf’s in the early 80’s, how they could class this as an upgrade we could not figure out, however we took the car and left. After a few stops we were on our way back to Darling, driving along the coast road when the fan belt snapped. We pulled over and rang the emergency number, they said they would arrange for another car to be sent to us and would let us know it would arrive, this was just before 6pm. Half an hour or so later we were told someone would be with us in about half an hour, so still we waited. This came and went, so we rang Kevin who came out to wait with us as it was now dark. Eventually they rang back again to ask the quickest way to get to us, so we realised they had still not even left yet, we asked if it was ok to leave the car and go back with Kevin and for them to deliver the new car to the house, they agreed so we left. 10pm they finally arrived with the replacement car, we had hoped they would upgrade us to something better for our troubles, instead they brought the same car but a lesser speck with hardly any brakes. Too late to do anything now we took the keys and went to bed.

10.10.08 - Straight on the phone in the morning to complain about the replacement car, to be told they would try and sort another one out. Finally we were contacted and told a better car was on its way, an hour or so later they arrived with a Ford Focus. Finally happy with the car we drove to the beach, it was an absolutely beautiful day and we had a lovely walk. Later we were meeting Kevin & Philippa’s friends for a meal at a Sushi restaurant, Troy and I had never had sushi so were a little worried we would go hungry but both had to admit it was gorgeous. After the meal went to a bar, where Troy as usual ended up leaving rather the worst for wear.