by Adam Goot, International Studies major, IU Peer Coach, Cox Scholar

Jeffrey’s bay is a little town known for its big waves on the edge of South Africa – about eight hours east of Cape Town. It’s considered one of the best surfing spots in the world and every year J-Bay hosts a world class surf competition.

We arrived late Friday night. Keanu, who started surfing in New York, spent the next day shredding decent sized waves while I filmed. Today I threw on a wet suit and decided to get in the water.

I was never good in the ocean. Being from a landlocked state I like pools and the occasional bubble bath. I lifeguarded in high school but I’m pretty sure I cheated on the 300 meter certification test.

Anyway, today I also learned that I will never attempt to surf again. I think my star sign is a bull, which makes sense because bulls don’t belong in the water. Give me land and I’ll happily take a bath or take pictures of things in the water. Put me in the water and I’ll damn near drown. Much respect to people like Keanu who can use 6 foot pieces of fiberglass to do tricks on massive waves. I’ll be on the sideline for the rest of my time in J-Bay.

Adam Goot studied abroad in South Africa during the spring 2018 semester. He is not shown in the above video, but he recorded and edited it. Enjoy the surf!