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Scarlet Ibis
World of Birds, Cape Town, SAPickup at 7:30. It is another glorious day of sunshine without a cloud in the sky. We drive down to Camp's Bay, the area we previously visited on the tour bus. This is one of the more exclusive addresses in town, where beautiful homes sit perched on rocky cliffs. We have breakfast at a little restaurant on the main drag near the beach from which we can watch people walking their dogs and jogging by against a backdrop of rolling surf.
Our first stop of the day is a zoo called the World of Birds. We stroll through a seemingly endless succession of outdoor cages, some open to the sky and some not, depending on the bird. The variety is incredible and the bird sounds blend into a constant cacaphonic backdrop. Some other animals are represented, too, mainly various monkeys and lemurs. I take a lot of pictures.
Our next stop, heading south, is Hout Bay. We descend in a commercial area called Mariner's Wharf, from whence we board a boat to Seal Island, just offshore. It's a short 15-minute ride. Seal Island is no more than a bunch of rounded rocks emerging from the sea. It is coved
with—ah, you guessed. These are mostly juvenile male Cape Fur Seals waiting until they reach breeding age at around 8 years. It is not a breeding colony, so no little ones. The seals pay no attention to us. They sunbathe, slide down the rocks into the water and perform aquatic acrobatics for us. It is quite a show.
Back on shore, we have a chance for some shopping along Mariner's Wharf. Most of the vendors have come from outside Cape Town and the exotic sounds of various African languages mix into the hubbub of negotiations with tourists. Violet makes some purchases that she is quite happy with.
Lunch is next, at a seafood restaurant in the market called the Wharfside Grill. We enjoy a local beer called Olde Seadog and utterly fantastic seafood. I order a squid "steak", which is a lengthwise cut of some enormous squid. Served with a garlic butter cream sauce, it is tender, flavourful and altogether wonderful.
Back in the van, we embark on Chapman's Peak Drive. This is a precarious switch-back road that winds its way up and over Chapman's Peek, the mountain overlooking Hout Bay. Apparently it follows a stratum of
Secretary Bird
World of Birds, Cape Town, SA shale around the mountain that divides the granite bottom from the sand stone top. At one point there is a half tunnel, where a path has been cut through the sheer cliff for the road but the ocean side has been left open with slanted concrete pillars supporting the overhang. Kind of scary.
On the other side of the peak lies Chapman Bay with a beach called Noordhoek, reputedly one of the loveliest sand beaches in the area. But we now head inland towards the southeast, cutting across the Cape Peninsula. When we reach the other shore we head south down the coast, passing through Simon's Town.
We stop at Boulders. The attraction here is a sizeable colony of African penguins. Visitors are restricted to a boardwalk that allows them to get close to the penguins without interfering with them. Boulders is aptly named, as huge boulders that have presumably fallen from the cliff above have stacked themselves into beautiful sculptures. And up and over the boulders and down sandy pathways scurry hundreds of penguins. As it is now fall, the chicks have grown to almost adult size but they are distinct because they still sport grey-brown feathers
instead of an adult's waterproof black-and-white tuxedo.
Another 30 minutes of driving brings us to Cape Point. Although not geographically the southernmost point of Africa, it is commonly regarded as the point where the Atlantic Ocean stops and the Indian Ocean begins. We ride a funicular up the mountain, alighting at a manicured area of paths and flowers. Above us, on the highest point, stands the old lighthouse, which was erected in 1913-1919. It turned out that the very top was actually not such a good place for a lighthouse because of cloud and fog, so a modern lighthouse was built further down towards the point.
I gamely trundle up the series of steps that lead to the old lighthouse. The view from there is absolutely phenomenal. If you look north, you can see the peninsula where we have come from fading gradually into the distance. If you look south, you can see the actual Cape Point thrusting high out of the ocean, breakers crashing rhythmically against its rocky base.
The other famous cape nearby is the Cape of Good Hope. To get there, we drive along a desolate gravel road through barren lands where mostly only
fynbos grows. We spot a baboon loping down the road up ahead of us. At the end of the road is a sign telling you that you have reached the Cape of Good Hope, the most southwesterly point of Africa. A trifle underwhelming. To brighten our day, we spot a cute little Rock Hyrax, known locally as a Dassie. This is a kind of groundhog about the size of a hamster.
Back in the van, we start the long journey home up the peninsula. When we reach Cape Town, we bypass it and keep on going around False Bay to a place named Blouberg. It is apparently a favourite beach and vacation spot. Families are playing on the grassy lawn stretching inland from the beach. Some are flying kites. The sun is just setting, although the lack of clouds means that the sun disappears matter-of-factly with no chromatic fanfare. Our destination here is the Moyo restaurant, which specializes in African cuisine. We get our faces painted by a young lady armed with tiny brushes: a floral design down Violet's cheek and a decorative flourish above the eyebrow for me. The food is really interesting. I order kebabs—beef, chicken and
Boulders at Boulders
Boulders, near Simons Town, SA ostrich. Violet has Durban lamb curry.
Hard to stay awake as we travel back to the resort in the darkness. We covered a lot of ground today.
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