From pristine beaches to mighty mountains, from vast expanse of green to captivating wildlife, from its infamous history to the present day rainbow nation, South Africa is truly a land of abundance and has so much to offer. Visiting this gorgeous country was always on our bucket list and we finally made it happen this September.
This article is dedicated to our 3 nights 4 days stay at Cape town. We landed in Cape Town on 7th September, 2019. Ours was an Air Seychelles flight from Mumbai-Johannesburg via Seychelles. We had booked a separate flight to Cape town the same day to save time.
The next day morning, as planned, we took the city siteseeing bus to explore the beauty of Cape Town at our own pace. It was a beautiful day, bright and sunny, perfect for a visit to the Table Mountain. Hence, the Table Mountain had to be our first stop.
Our next stop was Camps bay. It’s a posh suburb of Capetown that boasts of a beachfront (after its name) with crystal white sand, a full of life promenade, sea facing restaurants & pubs and an affluent neighborhood. It’s an excellent location for clicking some of the best photographs as the 12 apostles form the backdrop of the beach behind the long stretch of white sands and ocean.
Post lunch, we headed to the V&A Waterfront. Victoria & Alfred Waterfront is a commercial harbour situated at the foot of signal hill in the heart of Cape Town. Needless to say, it’s always abuzz with tourists and offers a plethora of activities to relish. It’s a place where one can eat, drink, shop, socialize, dance, fly and cruise.
For the next day, we had pre-booked a private tour. Our guide “Gavin” made the first stop at a beautiful paragliding spot somewhere near the signal hill. It was an excellent photo opportunity though we didn’t venture out for the actual sport.
Our next halt was at Maiden’s cove, it’s a quiet and serene lookout point located close to Camps bay, minus Camps bay’s hustle and bustle. The gigantic boulders on this beach serve as the main attraction for passer-by’s.
Our next stop was Seal Island for which we proceeded to Hout Bay where the tickets to the island are to be purchased. By the time we reached Hout Bay, the early morning haze had faded and the soft morning sun was shining bright, therefore the cruise journey to the island was pretty enjoyable.
The penguin island is a fifteen minute walk from the Boulder’s beach where visitors need to buy tickets to enter the island. Playful penguins can be spotted behind the fences alongside the walkway throughout the stretch of land to the island. Once we reached the famous penguin island, we were overwhelmed to see at least a few hundreds of carefree penguins swimming, strolling, sleeping, playing and eating in their natural habitat.
By late afternoon, we headed towards Cape Point which is often called the extreme south western tip of Africa. We were already running short of time, hence we took the Flying Dutchman funicular to reach to the summit for some spectacular views of the False Bay from the lighthouse. Cape of Good Hope had to be our next stop. We spotted ostriches and baboons on the way to the cape.
We took the aerial cable car to reach to the top of this historic mountain. The journey to the top via the cable way offers breath-taking panoramic views of the city and the flora & fauna around the Table Mountain. The cable car keeps rotating to make sure every rider enjoys a 360 degree view of the terrain. It took us 10-15 minutes to reach to the top of the mountain. Once we landed at the summit, we were thrilled to discover the natural habitat atop the mountain.
The biodiversity of the mountain top consists of 2200 heterogeneous plant species along with numerous other species of birds, animals and reptiles. Protea, the national flower of South Africa is in abundance along with other species of cape Fybnos that give a unique grey green colour to the terrain. Looking closely, one can easily spot the playful “Dassie” (an indigenous animal of this region) between the shrubs adding more life to the ecosystem atop. Stroll to the edge of the mountain and oh boy, one can be in complete awe of the view infront.
It was a clear day and the bird’s eye view of the mother city subtly guarded by the 12 Apostles mountain range and the endless stretch of the Atlantic Ocean was surreal! We could also spot the V&A waterfront, Mitchell’s Plain, Cape Town stadium and the Robben island from the top.
We took a little break from the sun here and enjoyed a relaxing meal by the sea at The Raj Indian Restaurant.
We leisurely explored some of the local crafts shops, quayside cafes, the cape wheel and finally took the “tigress” evening cruise for experiencing the ocean up close. The cruise gets a bit bumpy on its way to the deep waters and does give you some adrenaline rush of shaking in the middle of the ocean. We spotted some seals and also a shark in the waters and experienced an amazing Atlantic sunset while on the cruise. We took the last city siteseeing bus at 6:30 pm to head back to our hotel.
We tried to click as many photographs as possible while on the cruise and did meet a seal or two sleeping or hunting fish here and there in the waters alongside our boat. When we finally reached the seal island, we couldn’t believe our eyes to see thousands of cape fur seals nestled on boulders in the middle of the ocean. We were amazed!
Later we drove through Chapman’s peak, one of the most beautiful drives I've been on. Had to take a quick photo stop at a lookout point here:
We reached Simon’s Town by afternoon for lunch. After a scrumptious sea food meal at a cafe suggested by Gavin, it was time for the jackass penguins.
It was such an extraordinarily beautiful sight that one can only experience and cannot put into words (I still tried ). A must visit spot when in Capetown!
The terrain of the cape is extremely rocky and the current in the sea is very high. Soon the skyline started turning orange and the large ball of fire gradually sunk into the horizon behind the ocean. It was a picturesque landscape. Having said that, one shouldn’t miss a picture with the iconic ”Cape of Good Hope” board here.
Our last stop for the day was Muizenberg. However, by the time we reached there, it was getting dark and our guide Gavin suggested not to hang around here for long as the area is infamous for notorious activities. Hence we quickly clicked a few pictures of the colourful huts by the ocean and headed back to our hotel.
The next day morning, we checked out from our hotel and headed to the airport for our next destination “George”. To be continued….
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