Blogs from Oudtshoorn, Western Cape, South Africa, Africa - page 4

Ok time to catch up! With our Argentinian friend in tow, Nico, we headed out on the N2 and passed the Cape Flats which is all the shanty town of Cape Town. Beautiful in its own way. Most of the houses are built from sheet metal in a variety of colors. It was funny to see that some of the houses had satellite TV... We decided to do the drive along the scenic route 62. It's an area of magnificent landscapes and towering cliffs, crystal clear streams and an abundance of trees and indigenous flora - all contribute to make Paarl, Wellington, the Breede River Valley, Klein Karoo and Langkloof some of South Africa's most diverse regions. Majestic mountains, scenic passes, rivers, vineyards and orchards, as well as the multitude of attractions, provided us with an ... read more

Sat 10 Oct This morning I went with Maggie and her friend to a local tourism award ceremony at a really nice lodge with a long bar, comfortable sofas and warm open log fires at each end of the room. They served champagne and excellent canapes and gave two Golden Tusk awards to outstanding local businesses. From there we went to the Addo Rose Festival to see local craft stalls and food vans as well as several tents displaying roses of all types. The event was quite small - about the size of a large village fete - but was interesting We had calamari and chip sticks, which is a thinly sliced potato on a long stick that is deep fried - it tastes a cross between fries and crisps. Sadly there was no beer tent ... read more

Hey guys, Well after spending some time on the coast we decided to head in land and into the hills to the town of Oudtshoorn. Oudtshoorn is known for two things - the Cango Caves National park and Ostrich Farms! This area in the Swartberg Mountains is super nice and again has almost a Canadian Rockies feel to it with the mountains and tree'ed areas although the Baboons on the roads are a constant reminder of where you really are! In the morning we decided to take a drive to some waterfalls in the hills and then up to the Caves. The waterfalls were really beautiful and we had them all to ourselves which is always nice. After the falls we were off to the caves. Now when we had originally planned to stop in Oudtshoorn ... read more

30/01/09 (cont.) - After the last Addo safari we began our trek back to Cape Town via a different route. We had lunch at a very small town called Steytlerville and stayed the night at a lovely guesthouse in Willowmore. 31/01/09 - The next day we headed off towards the mountains via a quaint little town called De Rust. After lunch we drove to the Cango Caves via Outdshoorn. They were fascinating and reminded us of Jenolan Caves. We stayed at a town called Calitzdorp that night.... read more

It's been sometime since I've had the opportunity to write little something to you on the travel blog. I've had some connectivity issues and just plain busy having a great time. Let's see since we've last talk, I've moved onto to the Garden Route which includes Outshorne which is famous for Ostrich farming; Knysna which is a beautiful seaside community, a quick stop in Port Elizabeth and then I just flew into Johanesburg, where I will settle into this hotel before transferring onto my last leg of this fabulous vacation tomorrow am, which is the Mala Mala Safari. Can't wait. Attached are a few shots from places I've been ( Knysna, for a hike in the Featherbed's Nature Reserve, the pix's that have the real blue waters) and to Cango Wildlife Reserve in Outshorne, where I ... read more