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travel@pangolin.liSouth Africa 2002
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www.pangolin.li Travel South Africa 2002 1 Rocktail Bay KZN 2 Londolozi Safari 3 Cape Town 4 Winelands/Karoo 5 Garden Route Gallery |
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contact last updated: 09-Aug-2005 Text/pictures subject to copyright by pangolin.li |
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Part 3 - Cape TownGetting thereWe took a scheduled charter from Londolozi to JNB domestic Airport, and then an SA flight on to Cape Town. There we met our friends Thomas and Andrea, who joined us for the second part of the trip. We spent three nights in Cape Town.Cape Town and the Cape peninsulaIn Cape Town, we stayed in Hotel Fritz, in Faure Street near the Company Gardens. It is a very nice and quiet hotel with many personal touches - refreshingly relaxed after Londolozi. Go and visit them, it is a good base for a stay in Cape Town. The only picture I brought back is that of tomcat Fritz who lives there, but there are many pictures on their website. After the second night, I got my usual holiday fever (is it from Malarone or not?), but we still spent one day in the Cape peninsula and one day at the Waterfront and on Table Mountain. I still feel bad abouth not having seen Kirstenbosch - maybe next time... And all of this was accompanied by great food...On our second day in Cape Town, we did the tourist circle from Cape Town to Cape Town via Cape of Good Hope, clockwise. First was Constantia, where we visited a wine estate which was closed - so no wine, just views for us. Then Muizenberg with the colourful beach huts (we didn't visit them) and a supermarket which sold cooler boxes - Thomas bought the biggest and we loved him for that during the next days. Funny that you get ice cubes everywhere in South Africa or Namibia - I've never tried this in Switzerland anywhere else than in fish shops, but don't think I would succeed in a supermarket or gas station. After Muizenberg came Simon's Town and their jackass penguins - better watch them with the wind blowing from behind you... After several small towns came finally the entrance to the Cape of Good Hope Reserve. The landscape gets a bit more rugged and deserted there. The Cape of Good Hope is neither the southernmost tip of Africa nor of the Cape peninsula, this is just what the first European sailors believed. It is nevertheless a special point to be - even thouhg cold Benguela current and the warm Agulhas current split up way outside the cliffs. It was very windy and sometimes foggy, and there were many people. There is a cable car bringing you to the historical lighthouse above Cape of Good Hope, if you want. The water is extremely clear - from the top of the cliffs we could see not only cormorans diving in Diaz Bay, but also their prey. We took the path to Diaz Point above Cape Point, where the new and much stronger lighthouse stands. We had our picnic lunch not at the Cape, but more to the North at Olifants Bay, still in the Reserve and at the sea. After a while we were joined by a guest: a bontebok with his clown-like face, who also seemed to enjoy the Fynbos vegetation, but more with his muzzle than his eyes. Onwards towards Cape Town we drove through scenic landscapes with impressing views - but unfortunately Chapman's Peak Drive was closed. We only stopped in Camps Bay - just ready for an early seafood dinner.
 Cape of Good Hope Reserve
Table Mountain, on the next day, was easy to get on top - the Rotair seem to be prepared to queues, but we got on the next car - better go at noon (which is not really the best time for a walk up to Table Mountain, as Olivier told us...). We could confirm that it is the same as Garaventa built for Titlis mountain in Switzerland. The weather on top was windy, but clear - so the view was great! Andrea just didn't like looking down from the very edge very much. A lazy stroll through magnificent Fynbos concluded our stay on Table Mountain.  Restaurants we visited while in Cape TownFive Flies, Cape Town - fine dining with a modern edge - young and hip atmoshpereBlues, Camps Bay - was great for big portions of seafood and with a good view to the parade down on the street. The atmosphere is somewhat different to that of sister Blues in Stone Town, Zanzibar :-) Go to Part 4 |
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