New Topic

Maybe Food for Thought!

  • apsierra80
    July 2007
    For a lot of us..

    We get stuck, only through our own choices, slaving away in shit jobs, at the other end of the earth! What!!!!!

    Mud Island??? you heard of it! yip its this little island up really far north, many thousands of miles, waves and friendships away! its called England!!!

    Why do we come here? what is the goal? what is the attraction, coming from africa, with real live zuluish blood running thru our veins, its no where to be for a healthy lifestyle, dont you agree?

    i guess the only perk is that we get to travel to all the boyhood bodyboarding islands where mike stewart, paul roach, and kyle maligro etc. stamped their names into the reefs and made a name for themselves.

    but still.... is it worth it?

    i find it so hard to grasp the concept of men talking about what pair of jeans to wear, what type of belt looks really good, how much wax you should put in your hair, or how you are not in, if you dont where a blazer, tight shirt, brown shoes, when you go out, its fekkin ridiculous.

    its so friggin pathetic, how many bodyboarders coming to london turn into fashion boys, pretentious beings lost in their own images and there one and only true healthy habit goes into the bin.

    so the message is....

    DO NOT COME TO LONDON, IF YOUR SOUL IS TRANSFIXED ON GOOD SURF, BEING ON THE BEACH, EARLY MORNING DAWNIES, SPEARFISHING, fresh air, hot chicks, OR IF YOU HAVE BEEN SPOILT AND LIVED ON THE BEACH OR YOU LIFE! ITS NOT THE PLACE FOR YOU!

    VIVA AFRICA!

Travel 2,660 views

21 Replies

  • ChilternburtChilternburt
    July 2007
    so true in many ways... since i have been on this mud island most of my goals and aspitations have changed and what made me happy before is now completely different to 6 years ago when i was surfing North Beach every other day..
  • NicAdams
    July 2007
    Amen brutha. Been here in fancy pants London for a month working my ass off. I'll be honest, the money is oh so good, but the lifestyle has left me wanting. What I wouldn't give for a three hour float in two foot Clovelly, a good sesh at the Hoek just seems so far away...sob...tear.

    At least I stay at a rocking hostel with a bunch of aussies, saffas and kiwis, so pretty much no fasion policing going on. Haven't even met an Englishman since I been here and I think I wanna keep it that way.

    Hopefully the strength of the pound will carry me on to better things. Long live tshirt and shorts!
  • ChilternburtChilternburt
    July 2007
    nah bro thats also wrong, if you come to England you want to meet the locals, i mean whats the point of traveling 10 000km's only to hang with your fellow countryman... Embrace what London has to offer, it will make your stay far more pleasant... Oh and i dont mean becoming a bar dwelling beer guzzling football hooligan, but dont be another saffa who does nothing but moan about how shite London is, cause those kind can piss off home for all i care! There are so many things here that you couldnt ever dream of doing back home...
  • Marthinus
    July 2007
    like?
  • hugh grant
    July 2007
    Getting pissed proper, calling all yer mates bruv, having a good time wif the lads, iz a good place innit?? what more could a bloke ask fer eh??
  • Spy Dude
    July 2007
    like:
    1) actually being able to earn enough bucks to goto hawaii
    2) not to be exploited
    3) no racial predidice (how ever its spelt)
    4) cheap tickets to anywhere
    5) the canary islands is just down the road
    6) to actually have a choice in what clothes you can buy
    7) a whole range of beers and wines from everywhere
    8) SA becomes a cheap holiday destination
    9) way less crime
    10) public transport that kinda works
    11) a more stable petrol price
    12) way cooler TV channels
    13) very very cheap internet
    14) cops that actually care and do their jobs
    15) a rugby team that is picked on merit and not skin colour
    16) the ability to actually progress in a company and not be overlooked cos of your skin colour
    17) to goto a soccer game and not get mugged
    18) real close to amsterdam
    19) woman from all 4 corners of the planet who arnt stuck up bitches like SA chicks -- sorry ladies if that offends you... do a little traveling and you will see what i mean -- beleive it cos its truuuuuu.
    20) a health system that works... well kinda, the NHS is still better than groote skuur.

    thats 20 just off the top of my head.
  • scroffmeister
    July 2007
    Well I been in the UK for 7 years, yip 7 long years. I am not part of the fashion brigade and oddly enough get to surf when and as often as I want.

    France, Portugal, Spain, Morocco and the Canary Islands are not far away for excellent waves and good times. Indo is cheap to get to and Wales and Ireland have plenty uncrowded waves. Cornwall and Devon have waves that are as good as any other place on their days. Living in London makes it so much easier for me to travel the world and surf so many differant places its not even funny and it makes me really appreciate any time i get in the water.

    The issue is that most of the people come over to London and then get caught up in the London Lifestyle, maybe if you decided to actually skip the Redback and the Walkabout one weekend and went down to the coast you would score some good waves. Spring, winter and autumn have brilliant waves, summer not so good but the odd day is excellent. I lost interest in surfing back in SA, too full of loud mouthed aggro twats that snake , burn and drop in without any considertation for others yet over here in this so called "shit hole" I can surf decent spots with not so many people in the water in the peak surfing months, hell France in August/September is one of the best places in the world and its insane and yet its only a few hours on the ferry and a short drive. Ireland is full of uncrowded and perfect reefs and Wales has wedges that are just tailor made for bodyboarding.

    Coming to the UK and not leaving London is like moving to JHB and not ever visiting the coast again.
  • ChilternburtChilternburt
    July 2007
    like... jees bro u really need to get out more...
    i consider myself a bodyboard, been bodyboarding since i was like 14, the beach was my life, i worked in the industry for 5 long years managing a well known surf store...BUT i have other hobbies and sports i play and so coming to London has given me a chance to experience these more, ie going to watch live Premiership football, starring in TV ads, flying to Ireland to watch Pastrana and the best FMX crew, racing a Lambo around Silverstone, taking pictures for mags back home off the World D1 Champs and other big modified events...and still getting waves at Croyde with mates..

    If exploring any of these things that cant be done in SA make me any less of a bodyboarder well then tough!
  • Chinnychinchin
    July 2007
    I was in London for 2 years and it was absolutely horrible......but.....If I had have know a bit more it could have been very different.

    I must say most of the traume was self inflicted, cause we didn't move around and travel nearly enough. If you get stuck in a rutt, then change flat, change job and change area. If you stay too long in one place it gets lank depressing. But if you go there you gotta go with the right attitude, you gotta have a plan, it will make ALL the difference!! Like, I'm going to surf in Portugal/Mexico/Morroco or where ever and then stick to the plan, work for it, then bail. If you want a career then stick to that plan, but don't expect to live for both (unless you are a ledgend!) cause if you try as hard for both a career and the sponge dream at the same time, you'll always be dissapointed by the lack of one or the other.

    Have a plan and stick to it.

    I lived in E17 and I bought a board thru a co in Brighton, it wasn't right so I took the train to Brighton, board in hand....the poms at the bus stop thought I was mad, "are you going surfing in the Thames....stupid wan*ers! When I got to Brighton I went to the surf store and swaped the board and the guy says are you gonna try it out? I'm like ya right bru where??! So he points me to a spot that had 3 foot of wind swell. It was my first surf in 5months, it was crappy but it was still my best surf ever!!!!
    So plan weekends up and down the cost, cause you might find a little shorey somewhere, check out the internet for the swell report, stay fit by running in the rain, doing your push/sit ups and don't eat and drink yourself fat like a porker (like we all do!!) and you know what?! you might actually enjoy being a foreigner in an extremely hospitable, foreign land with loads of opportunity ot work and travel.

    So have a plan and never live with regrets. Enjoy ilife cause it's a one-time deal.

    Peace.
  • scroffmeister
    July 2007
    nothing better than slaving away at work for a week and just knowing that come the weekend you will be out of london and down at the coast surfing. it makes everything bearable and I really wouldnt swap the last 7 years I have spent in the UK for 7 years back in SA.

    But it is not for everyone I guess, those of you over here in the UK, get out of London and go and see the rest of the UK, you may just be surprised.
  • wade harrison
    July 2007
    Spy Dude wrote:
    like:
    1) actually being able to earn enough bucks to goto hawaii(after like 5yrs)
    2) not to be exploited(i was raped!)
    3) no racial predidice (how ever its spelt)(i think its prejudice)
    4) cheap tickets to anywhere(yeah kinda)
    5) the canary islands is just down the road(got skunked)
    6) to actually have a choice in what clothes you can buy(bahaa, thats it, i'm going back, coz my cupboard is just not cool enough)
    7) a whole range of beers and wines from everywhere(fuck that!they dont have crackling AND they dont have black label!)
    8) SA becomes a cheap holiday destination(huh?)
    9) way less crime(ja, chav's are so much better)
    10) public transport that kinda works(transporting the lemmings to the cliff)
    11) a more stable petrol price(they paying like R13.50 a litre)
    12) way cooler TV channels(coz thats all there is to do)
    13) very very cheap internet(hu-frikkin-ray)
    14) cops that actually care and do their jobs(pssssh)
    15) a rugby team that is picked on merit and not skin colour(whats rugby?)
    16) the ability to actually progress in a company and not be overlooked cos of your skin colour(whats with all this 'skin colour' talk???)
    17) to goto a soccer game and not get mugged(do u know where soccer hooligans come from?)
    18) real close to amsterdam (fair enough.good point!)
    19) woman from all 4 corners of the planet who arnt stuck up bitches like SA chicks -- sorry ladies if that offends you... do a little traveling and you will see what i mean -- beleive it cos its truuuuuu.(true!us africans are "exotic" over them seas)
    20) a health system that works... well kinda, the NHS is still better than groote skuur.(get a plaster)

    thats 20 just off the top of my head.


    dude london is the biggest shithole ever!
    i've slept in disgusting whore houses in indo but london mingland is still worse, at least u get waves the next day at the whore house but in that dump the only tube u gonna get is on the f*$%ing picadilly line.
    epic.
    i'd rather be under the frikking thing.

    SA has its problems but we still have natural beauty and real ppl(and ummmm waves).the best thing you gonna see in london is a miff pale english whale stuffing herself full of fish'n'chips in hyde park when the rain stops init geeza

    *vomit all over myself*
  • ChilternburtChilternburt
    July 2007
    Easy big guy... not all of us live in shitty houses and date mingers...
    I live on the river in Richmond, which even compared to my parents house in Westville is pretty wicked, although i am missing my pool and maid,

    Job wise in Dbn i was doing the same job, Mac consultant and well lets just say what i earned in a month in SA, i earn in 2.5 days here...

    Livestyle, well i cant pop down to North for a quick surf or to Midmar for a wakeboard, but i can fly pretty much anywhere i want to surf...

    I do hear what you saying, BUT London isnt for everyone, it makes some people, it breaks others...

    oh and only the foolish get the tube, i ride an air conditioned train everyday, or i walk...

    About SA's problems, well lets just say this, im 30, finished school in 1994, since then i have buried 18 mates due to VIOLENT CRIME!
    The latest being Marc Joubert, a guy i have been mates with since Std 1, who was shot in Dbn, St Tropez resturant a month ago..
    this doesnt include car accident and drunk drivers... to which London has Night Buses...
    Not arguing with you, just my reasons for leaving...

    My Local
    river1.jpg
    river2.jpg

    Closest Beach, be it a "short" train ride...
    waves.jpg

    Other fun things....
    drift.jpg
    football.jpg

    Local Minger :P
    girl1.jpg
  • ch4os_
    July 2007
    dam, anymore mingers ? :P
  • ChilternburtChilternburt
    July 2007
    bro i have about 5000 shots like of shoots i have done while here in the UK..

    some from a recent shoot...

    mpl1.jpg

    mpl2.jpg

    mpl3.jpg

    Me Pimping!
    mpl4.jpg

    mpl5.jpg

    mpl6.jpg

    sagirl.jpg
  • Chinnychinchin
    July 2007
    Easy now guys, lets keep it tidy........I'm at work here, the last thing I need is for the group of regional directors from Head Office in Germany to cruize past my desk and check out the booty call.....how will I explain it's a "BodyBoarding" wesite......ha ha ha
  • ChilternburtChilternburt
    July 2007
    lol sorry brah, was just helping the man out... and showing that not all UK girls are pasty pie eating porkers...
    oh and the doll in the yellow lambo is a local lass from Jhb..
  • JmoJmo
    July 2007
    Holy crap, no wonder you're having a jol in the UK!

    Admittedly I have often considered doing a few years in the UK to try get ahead financially and do a bit of travelling on the side.

    Any advice from the okes over there for the best way to work in UK and stay sane at the same time?

    And then again, I did score Kalk Bay the other day:
    9327.jpg
  • ChilternburtChilternburt
    July 2007
    ah sweet shot bro...
    nah well i never came here to gain financially, to this day i have not saved £1 after being here 5 years, and no i havent bought property here or in SA, i came to live differently, was bored of Durban... Man i enjoy going to see live bands, live football, the F1 which cant be done at home..but i do miss NB!
  • apsierra80
    July 2007
    thanks for all your interesting contributions.

    i would still say that through all of what you have said, there aint no place like home. its in the bloodm and even through all of the pain our own country mightve caused us, we will always have a connection with SA.

    I have travelled to indo twice in the last year, surfed malaysia, zanzibar north, done thailand, been back to cape town, durban ,west coast, namibia and done amsteradam, all in this one year, its been great, but STILL AINT GONNA CHANGE THE WAY I FEEL ABOUT SURF IN SA.

    YOU EITHER HAVE A PASSION FOR IT OR NOT, AND MY PASSION IS TO BE IN THE SEA, SURFIN, SPEARING, FISHING. you can travel as much as you like but home will be home.

    FOK THE BOOZE, FOK THE PRETETIOUSNESS OF THE WORLD,

    AND GIVE ME A 5 TO 6FOOT BARREL OR SHOULDER ANYTIME!

    COMMENTS
  • ChilternburtChilternburt
    July 2007
    hey never once did i say i wasnt going home, i just feel that now while i am young and free enough to travel and do things people with familys cant do, i couldnt ever raise a family here, i see these chavy children and shudder, but i think for now at least London is my "home" but i will always be SOUTH AFRICAN!
  • scroffmeister
    July 2007
    Well I suppose that if I didnt have to worry about providing for my wife and child and if I could just sit around all day , surfing, sitting on the beach, talking kak with my friends then hell I would be back in SA in no time. I love Cape Town and it will always be where I am from, I miss Kalk Bay and I even miss Long Beach but that was a life lived a long time ago now. My wife and I are both from SA, she is from Tweni and I am from the Cape, we both miss and love where we are from but at the moment we are enjoying our lifestyle over here in the UK. In fact nothing much has changed, we spend our weekend on the beach, I mountain bike and skate on a daily basis and we get to travel and surf, perfect.

    Yes SA will always be home, I will always support the Boks and even my little child will learn to speak the Taal.
  • Post a Reply

    You must be logged in to reply to this topic.

Copyright © 2024 Sixty40 Bodyboarding. All rights reserved.