Cape Town - The start of an adventue in the most beautiful of cities...

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November 2004 saw me bidding an emotional farewell to friends and family and heading off my my post-graduate travels. The initial trip that I had mooted with my uni friends Steve and Chris had fallen through - I would now be meeting the Norfolk boys in Singapore for a month long blitz through South East Asia. In their absence, I had decided to forge my own path, which eased me into the traveling way via the English speaking South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, before heading up through South East Asia with Steve and Chris, and then culminating the trip in India and Nepal.

So first up was South Africa, and I landed in Cape Town without any problems - although I was brought down to earth rudely before I even arrived at the hostel. Townships lined both sides of the main highway into the city and they stretched as far as the eye could see. The houses which filled them were nothing more than shacks, made of pieces of wood, corrugated iron and perhaps some plastic. It was quite an eye opener and meant that I would definitely be looking to do a township tour during my time in South Africa, in order to try find out what life is really like for the majority of its people. (2.1 million out of population of 3.9 in Cape Town live in the townships for example).

Initial impressions are that this traveling lark is fantastic, its easy to meet people and have a great laugh but at the same time your free to do your own thing and wander the city at will. The hostel I had booked myself into was the funkily named Cat & Moose, at one end of Long Street - Cape Town's main street for bars, cafes and nightlife. At the hostel I've met a great mix of people from all over the world, and it was with 3 girls from Liverpool, Alison, Ruth and Claire, that I took on Table Mountain and climbed to its summit. It was 2 and a half hours of puffing, panting and general steam train impressions, but it was definitely worth it as I gained immense satisfaction as I got to the top and was able to look out over possibly the most beautiful city in the world.

The girls were booked on an adventure tour along the Garden route (a section of the coast extending east from Cape Town), and so I handed over the necessary cash, hopped on board and was soon leaping off the world's highest commercial bungy jump!! The Bloukrans bridge is 216m above the ground and you freefall for between 160 and 180 metres - though with my hefty frame it was felt more like 190. It was probably the greatest rush I've ever had in my life - I'd recommend it to anyone and have the video to bore you with when I get home!!

For the lads its not been a bad time to be an Englishman in South Africa - 32-16 - what more can I say. Because I was on the tour of the Garden Route, me and the rest of the lads were going to miss the rugby, so our tour guide managed to somehow blag us a lift in the back of a pick up truck with a couple who were staying at the same place we were. Because we were running late the guy was driving like a nutter, and we were bouncing around in the back trying our best not to die. Arriving, (just), we watched the game trying not to gloat too heartily at the beating that our countrymen were dishing out to the boks - (we were guests after all). The inevitable post (and during) game drinks led to a lively discussion, which turned to apartheid and the role of blacks and coloureds. As the great philosopher Eric Cartman (of South Park fame) once said "there's a lot of black people in Africa". Apparently only 4 million of the forty million South Africans are white, and the racial issues simmering even in the apparently placid part of the country in which we were staying were incredible. The post match interview with Jason Robinson led to looks of disbelief that a coloured was the captain of our national team! Things are very different over here and I've been having a ton of fun finding out.

Other highlights of our tour have included watching some ostrich racing, going in an enclosure with a Cheetah and being able to pet it as if it was a house cat, and a big game drive seeing elephants, lions, rhinos, zebras and giraffes, and best of all the food.

The South African diet fits in very well with my tastes - 3 vital elements go into the traditional meal. Meat, bread, beer. Job done i say. The traditional way of cooking things here is called a Braai. Big pots of food are brought out and cooked over an open fire. I went to a Braai when I stayed at a game lodge on the Garden Route tour and was introduced to the delights of ostrich meat - and lots of it. Its a bit like beef but with more flavour and apparently its a lot leaner as well. I'd recommend it heartily if you can find it anywhere.

One of the things I'm looking forward to most during my time in South Africa is the safari in the Kruger National Park that I'm hoping to book towards the end of my time in the country. However, so far my attempts at wildlife viewing have been slightly hampered. I went to one of the world's largest penguin colonies - oh you've turned up in the three week period they happen to be moulting so all they do is stand still and wait for the wind to blow their feathers out!!! Never mind - a spot of whale watching perhaps - no you've just missed them too! Shark-cage diving - thats the answer - they're about all year round - apparently not in the force 10 gale that sprang up the moment I wandered into town which meant that all I got to see from the boat was pools of other peoples vomit!

Even when the attraction isn't natural, nature still seems somehow to get in the way! I went to ride on South Africa's oldest steam train - which apparently plods sedately through some of the most beautiful landscapes in the country, only to be told that the weather has been so hot the last few days they can't risk burning the coal in case the forest catches fire, and the diesel back up they use instead - oh that's busted so they'll be no train today! Not really an issue for me, but the bunch of British trainspotters that had traveled 6,000 miles to ride the train, had the t-shirts printed and everything, and had saved this "highlight" until the last day of their holiday - slightly more pissed off!

Anyway, enough demented ramblings about nature's conspiracies and onto something you can always rely on - beer. Have met some great people on my travels, and have shared at least a couple of lager shandies with them. "Windhoek" is the lager of choice here, and the beer was flowing like wine at the reunion meal of my Garden Route adventure tour. Cape Town is a fantastic place to party, lots of cool bars on the waterfront, some live music and late opening hours.

Before leaving Cape Town, I went on my township tour. I'd been recommended a walking township tour by some of the Cat and Moose residents, and wandering around the Township on foot meant that I got a real feel for life in the township at ground level, rather than going round it in a bus and never getting off. Surprisingly, even though the houses are only shacks, they all have TV's, microwaves, fridges, freezers... apparently a lot of the people work as cleaners in rich households and so rather than the employer throwing away their goods they hand them down to the cleaners which is great to know.

I also hired a car with Alison, Ruth and Claire and the four of us drove down to the Cape of Good Hope (they say nothing handles like a hire car - and "they" could be right). The Cape of Good Hope is the South Western most point of the African continent and is part of a beautiful national park. It was hugely enjoyable to tour around such a beautiful area under our own steam - stopping off at little beaches and bays and enjoying the views and wildlife.

The plan is now to continue heading east along the Garden Route and then north up to Johannesburg by which time I'll have hopefully sorted out the aforementioned Safari.

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Photos

Table Mountain
The famous natural landmark which forms the backdrop for this city.

Petting a Cheetah.
One of the many incredible experiences of my Garden Route tour - petting a group of Cheetahs.

Don't look down....
The world's highest commercial bungee jump. The 216 metre high Bloukrans Bridge.

Bokbus guys
Our trusty van and the rest of the guys who I shared my adventure along the Garden Route with.

Cape of Good Hope
The south-western most point of the African continent. A beautiful National Park.

Fishoek Township
The houses I came across on my Township tour.

Fishoek kids
The lively and bright eyed kids of the township.