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Published: March 19th 2007
Capetown Waterfront
The waterfront is busy, safe and vibrant.South Africa: Country of Hope March 9-15, 2007
The flight from Perth to Cape Town, South Africa was long….very, very long. Eleven hours of flying time to Johannesburg, two hours to clear customs and wait, another 2.5 hours of flying combined with a 7-hour time change, made for two weary Canadians. Despite it being 9:30 at night (SA time) and our having been up for more than 24 hours, we then had to get our rental car and find our way to the Bantry Bay Guest House, our lodging for the next 3 days.
I will not even attempt to capture the sense of relief we felt upon arriving. Our inn keeper, Ed, a wonderful warm fellow recently emigrated from Holland, showed us to our room and despite our exhaustion, we couldn’t help but notice the tasteful décor and how, well, African, it all looked! Zebra print curtains, tasteful wall hangings and hand-woven straw baskets, wooden masks, ostrich egg lampshades and even animal print sheets all ‘worked’ to create a peaceful space in which we immediately fell asleep.
We set out to explore Cape Town the following day, excited to be here at last. The city is
Table Mountain Dominates
The mountain is visible from all parts of the city. stunningly beautiful, beyond our expectations, despite having heard others proclaim it. The cityscape is dominated by the World Heritage designated Table Mountain whose more than 1000 meter presence is felt from every corner of the city. We took the cable car to the top and wandered some of the more than 12 km of trails there, often above the clouds. The term ‘spectacular’ doesn’t do it justice!
The hop-on-hop-off bus tour was a great way to orient ourselves to the city and we met up with Andrea, a young Canadian gal who shared lunch with us at the bustling Victoria and Albert Waterfront. A working harbour combined with shops, restaurants, museums, markets and corners filled with young and not-so-young African musicians, singing and/or dancing make this an exciting part of the city. We also saw the amazing beaches, miles of pure white sand that rival Australia, albeit with colder water.
There are lots of warnings about safety in Cape Town, and indeed, one has to be careful. There are certainly neighbourhoods you don’t wander into and even the town business district (not the Waterfront, it is safe at all hours) is not recommended after the shops close. Having
Bantry Bay Guest House
This was a clean comfy and welcoming spot to stay. (and great value!) said that, we found there was a great attempt to make things safe, notably the presence of car guards in literally every parking area. These men and women are employed to monitor parking, assist you in finding an available space and watch your vehicle while you are gone. For a small ‘tip’ they are eager to do just that, and we have had no difficulties at all.
The second day of our stay, we discovered the city had welcomed over 30, 000 cyclists to the Argus Cycling race, apparently the largest such event in the world! What an amazing undertaking, to prepare the route for this many bicycles to pedal the 108 kilometers around the Cape of Good Hope and back to Cape Town. It was great fun to see them flying by (well, the ones in the early morning flew…by afternoon, some of them were struggling!). There were serious cyclists and others who just enjoyed the experience of being part of such an event and the satisfaction of completing it.
Because we couldn’t drive down the Cape due to all the road closures, we headed into the city to hike the Lions Head peak. Standing opposite Table
Cable Car Up the Mountain
The easy way up. Views and trails on the top were spectacular. Mountain, this knoll is over 670 meters high and is a circular trail that spirals up the mountain…and up…and up! What begins as a relatively flat open path becomes a boulder strewn trail which at several junctures requires use of steel ladders, chains and a fair bit of two handed holds to get to the top. As we circled the mountain, the 360degree views were incredible…Table Mountain on one side, the city and harbour at another vantage point, and the pounding surf of the Atlantic Ocean and beaches as yet another vista. I admit that sometimes I stopped to admire the view and other times to just catch my breath. Parts of this were hard work! The reward, as with all climbs, came as we reached the top and basked in the warm sunshine and the sense of well-being that comes with being fit enough to get there.
We both said this was the best hike of our entire trip, and believe me, we have walked more than a few miles!
Our final day in Cape Town included one of the most memorable outings, a trip to Robben Island, a place the world has come to see as a
Hec above the clouds
We really were looking down on the cloud cover!Then it would break and we could see for miles! symbol for the cruelty and oppression that was part of the apartheid era in South Africa. While it has for over 400 years been a place to which outcasts (such as those suffering from leprosy and or mental illness) and troublemakers were banished, its more recent notoriety is due to the prison for political prisoners who opposed the South African government’s laws and discriminatory practices. The most famous of these was Nelson Mandela, who was imprisoned on this small island, and sentenced to hard labour in a limestone quarry for more than 18 years. (he was also imprisoned for a further 9 years before being released!)
We took a ferry to the island where we were given a tour of the property (including the sun baked quarry where these educated men, whose only crime was seeking equality were forced to work under sub human conditions) by a young South African man who spoke of the ‘privilege of being born a free South African’ and the responsibility of ensuring that such atrocities as earlier generations and endured were never repeated. It was really moving to hear him speak of the hope for the future.
Even more moving was our actual tour
Nobel Peace Prize Statues
Four South African Nobel Peace Prize winners...including Nelson Mandela. of the prison itself, led by a former political prisoner, who spoke of his first hand experience as a prisoner of war. We learned of the messages written inside tennis balls and smuggled to the outside, the lessons shared on squares of toilet tissue because the prisoners were not given paper, the attempts to strip men of their dignity and their physical health, to wear them down so they would stop their fight against the government. We also saw the tiny cell where Mandela slept fro all those years and the garden of Hope he planted in the prison courtyard. The plants and blooms were intended to bring a sense of hope and beauty to the prisoners...and also served as a hiding place for Mandela’s “Road to Freedom” manuscripts.
Our guide had spent 11 years locked up at Robben Island…and yet he spoke of South Africa as belonging to both Blacks and whites now. He echoed Mandela’s message of forgiveness and reconciliation as being superior to revenge. He too spoke of hope for the future and no one who heard him doubted it. It was a profound experience.
After three days we said good-bye to Bantry Bay Guest House
Argus Cycle Race
There were over 30,000 bikers doing the 108 km route around the cape and back to Capetown. Glad it was them and not me! (after the wonderful Ed offered us free internet access and washed and hung out our laundry!!) We spent the next couple of days farther south in a small seaside town called Simons Town. What a picturesque place, and next door to the famous Boulder beach, home of a 3000 strong colony of African penguins! Unlike the fairy penguins we had seen in Tasmania, who are nocturnal, these much larger species (formerly called jackass penguins because they tend to bray like donkies!) roam freely throughout the day. It was such fun to watch them waddle to and from the water, swim fast as a dart (up to 20 km per hour) through the turquoise sea) and groom their life long mates in the sunshine. Hundreds of little happy feet!
We then drove to the most southern tip of the cape, to the Cape of Good Hope. It was quite thrilling to be at this point of land which I had studied about so many years ago in grade School. The spectacular mixing of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, the tall rugged cliffs, the uphill walk to the historic cape Light house, and the spotting of wildlife such as wild Ostrich,
Lions Head
This was an amazing hike! the eland (the largest antelope), and a roadful of curious baboons made for a perfect days outing!
Our other most interesting visit came the following day as we explored other coastal venues, notably the village of Hout Bay. While the village is serene and beautiful, we had come in search of tea bags! I had seen the beautiful products of Original T-Bag Designs, the result of a project to develop sustainable industry in this township. As a result of the years of apartheid, thousands of South Africans, particularly the Blacks, were removed from their homes and property and ‘relocated’…creating slums beyond belief. Unemployment is a huge problem. We met Jill, an English women who came to Hout Bay a number of years ago and decided to try to make a difference for at least some of the destitute women of the community. After many attempts, original t-Bag designs was born. It is a cottage craft that sees workers painstakingly cut open and dry tea bags, then hand paint designs on them. Each tea bag is then applied to a product…notecards, ornaments, candleholders, hot mats, and the product is corked and lacquered. They are beautiful and unique, and the business
Steel Ladders Helped
There were a few of these, as well as some chains...and a lot of sweaty hand holds on boulders to get to the top! now employs 15 people full time. It is amazing how painstaking the work is, how beautiful and how proud the workers are of their business. It has also raised them out of poverty and in some cases allowed them to purchase homes. It is a wonderful approach to sustainable development…and guess what some of you are getting for Christmas??
Our time in Cape Town and surrounds was far too short. It is a destination with history, culture, spectacular natural beauty and, hopefully, a future that will allow the stigma of the apartheid years to wither. There is a long way to go before true equality is even close, but if tourism dollars can help this process, I encourage anyone to put this on your must see destination list.
Tomorrow we are off to Kruger National Park, where we will see (hopefully) the Big 5 of the animal kingdom. Time is flying and we value every minute of this amazing experience.
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Brenda
non-member comment
Africa at last
I have been so waiting to see these photos, for as you know, we have not been to Africa. They are as exciting and as beautiful as I imagined and I can't wait to get the full slide show when you get home! Tomorrow is the first day of spring here and as you may recall, that means rain, mud, and limited options to enjoy the outdoors. Can you tell I'm not a fan of early spring? I'd suggest you keep travelling!! Missing you muchly, B