Cape Town, South Africa - May 2013

We have heard that Cape Town is a city quite similar to Vancouver, being hemmed in by mountains on one side and the ocean on the other.  Apart from that I’d have to say the similarity ends there.  For us, we were totally unprepared to be charmed by the city and the Western Cape, as the surrounding area/peninsula is called.  Many of the buildings date back to the 1890’s to about 1915 and have been beautifully maintained in all their colonial splendor.  We especially like all the wrought iron detailing.

What seems to be popular is to stay at one of the guesthouses as opposed to a hotel which is exactly what we did.  Included in the price is a delicious Dutch breakfast which of course, is part of the heritage in South Africa – that dating back to the 1650’s.  And our hosts, Keith and Cindy, were so warm and welcoming and provided us with all the information a tourist could ask for.

Being here at the start of winter, the weather is often cooler with rain and/or drizzle in abundance – ok, another similarity to Vancouver, albeit it is a much shorter winter season here.  We didn’t have much say as to when we would visit since we were piggy backing this trip with India.  However, we’ve been lucky.  Overall, not much precipitation and the temperature has been quite pleasant.

Our first day in town we explored the city a bit on foot and then hopped on a Big Red Bus which gave us a general overview and history of the area.  It was also a chance to recover from the overnight flight from Mumbai – we weren’t jet lagged but we were tired.

Probably the number 1 tourist sight in the city is Table Mountain.  It is now officially one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature.  There are 2 ways to the top – either hiking or by cable car.  We chose the latter, buying our tickets in advance for the cable car upon arrival in Cape Town and then waiting for a day (actually our 3^rd day here) when the clouds would finally clear to make the trip to the top worthwhile.

We found the cable car ride a bit unique as the floor rotates while you ascend to the top.  It doesn’t matter where you stand in the car, you have a changing panoramic view all the way up.  Once at the top we were greeted by strong winds but the sky was clear so we could see for miles (or should that be kilometers!)  And why the name ‘Table Mountain’ you might ask – it is actually a large, flat plateau offering hikes of up to 1 hour if you walk the perimeter. 

Besides the views, there were a few Rock Hyrax or ‘dassies’ as they are more familiarly called – just a ball of fur seeming to say ‘take me home’ – they were so cute.  Our pilgrimage done, we ‘cabled it’ back down and enjoyed a seafood lunch near the beach.

The price of seafood in the restaurants is so reasonable that it has been our first choice when considering a meal.  A fish called Kingklips is standard fare – but Gilbert’s google search found it to be quite ugly, more like a fat eel.  Ditto for the price of a glass of wine – about $4.  Given that price, we decided to have a glass with our lunch.  Little did we know it was a ½ carafe each that we were ordering.  Feeling a tad tipsy, we boarded our ‘red bus’ when we finished lunch and continued sightseeing.  Amazing that Gilbert didn’t sleep the duration but made it to the waterfront area where we strolled around enjoying the rest of the day.

Just north of Cape Town is an extensive wine region.  It is a must see as we discovered.  We hired a driver for the day’s outing, which gave Gilbert a chance to enjoy the scenery as well.  Otherwise he’d be exhausted from multitasking – keeping his eye on the road while driving on the ‘wrong side’ (yep it is backwards for us), figuring out if my ‘turn left here’ is actually supposed to be a ‘right turn’ (always popping out of my mouth wrong) and trying to find a place to stop to take a photo.

Our first stop on the wine route was Fairview Vineyards.  We tried a few wines and some of their delicious local cheese.  I am given a bit of coaching as to the behavior of a wine connoisseur that I should emulate but I’m sure I failed miserably at the task.  However, not without leaving our hostess in stitches. 

Near the entrance to the vineyard are the local goats hanging out in their goat tower enjoying the views of the valley.  We were told they climb the circular ramp to the top as a means of exercise.  Not sure on that one but I’ll presume it was their milk that made the home made cheese so tasty.

Near this vineyard is the Afrikaans Language Monument.  It opened October, 1975 and commemorates the Afrikaan language as being distinct from the Dutch language.

And then on to our 2^nd stop for wine tasting.  This one was the Vrede En Lust Vineyard in the Franschhoek Wine Valley.  This vineyard was first established in 1688 by the French Huguenot, Jacques de Savoye, and the rest they say is history.  The wine was fine but it was now 10:30 in the morning and we were already feeling ‘bombed’.  So we decided it was time for lunch.

The chosen restaurant was at the Boschendal Vineyard/Complex. 

We enjoyed a cheese and deli meat platter (maybe a bit of a Spanish influence - the prosciutto was delicious) minus any more wine – lushes we are not!  Our seating was in a room that was originally a kitchen but has been converted to part of the restaurant– the roaring fire was a nice and needed touch.  Afterwards we checked out the Boschendal Manor House, built in 1812.  Although the house is appealing in all its colonial décor, we remind ourselves it is lacking in modern day conveniences such as heating, plumbing and, oh yes, WiFi.

Having had our fill of wine tasting for the day, we asked to see the towns of Franschhoek and Stellenbosch as it had been recommended to us to do so.

Franschhoek has a long history, the area being settled by French Huguenot refugees in 1688.  The name of the area is derived from a Dutch word meaning ‘Elephants Corner’ as there had been vast herds of elephants in the area.  Unfortunately, none remain today.  However, the town has retained its Cape Dutch architecture and although it is small (mostly a main street town), it is still has a lovely character.

Stellenbosch was first founded in 1679 and named after the Governor of the Cape Colony, Simon van der Stel.  The French Huguenots also left their mark here, planting grapes in the fertile valley and establishing the area as the centre of the South African wine industry.  Today, the city is known for Stellenbosch University and has a wonderful, youthful energy amongst its colonial buildings.

Just so you know, there must be about 250 vineyards in the surrounding Franschhoek and Stellenbosch wine valleys.  So no, we didn’t quite do justice to wine tasting in the region (as I alluded to), and yes, I do hope to visit again one day to explore the area further.

Our last sightseeing was the scenic drive down the coastline to the Cape of Good Hope.  We once again hired a driver and I’m not sure what we enjoyed more, the scenery or our driver, Tania.  Tania is so knowledgeable about the area and great fun to boot.

The drive took us through Hout Bay on the Atlantic Ocean.  We then cut across the peninsula to False Bay on the east side, so named for the early merchant ships that thought they had reached the cape and were heading north on the Atlantic only to discover they hadn’t crossed the point yet.  Heading south we stopped for a traditional fish and chips lunch in Simon’s Town

 Just south of there is The Boulders, home to an African penguin

colony.  The babies have hatched so we had a chance to see them in their brown coats of fuzz as well as the adults – all weathering the onset of winter

 

Continuing south is beautiful rugged coastline scenery and then on into Table Mountain National Park.  We had no idea we might be seeing wildlife here so were pleasantly surprised to see

Bontebok, Eland,

Baboon, Ostrich (even running along the beach) Sugarbird and Hadeda and Sacred Ibis.  The landscape is also interesting and scenic in all its low lying scruffiness tinged with colour of a few plants in bloom.  We were so enamoured with the animals that the Cape of Good Hope was anticlimactic – a been there, done that – we’ve been to the southern-most point of West Africa.  The Cape of Good Hope is where the 2 water currents meet (cold Benguela current from the west and warm Agulhas current from the east) but not the official meeting of the Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean, as some people mistakenly believe.

 

With the sun beginning to wane, we headed back to Cape Town via the Atlantic Ocean on the west coast side.  We reached Chapman’s Peak Drive, a stunning piece of coastline to drive, just in time for a spectacular sunset. 

Apparently the sun rises and sets faster in this part of the world given the tilt of the earth.  But not so fast that we couldn’t capture it on film – oops, digital.

Our time is up for Cape Town and I can only hope to one day visit the area again and explore parts of it in greater detail.  There is change happening in South Africa and who knows what the future holds for this country.

Our next stop on our journey is a flight to Johannesburg where we will pick up a flight to our safari camp in South Africa where we hope to meet the Big 5.