Africa - A Whole New World

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We were so excited to finally get to South Africa -- host to the 2010 World Cup! And there could not have been a better introduction to South Africa than our first stop -- Capetown, the "Mother City" and the oldest European settlement in the country. It is an absolutely stunning coastal city of 3.5 million. While in Capetown, we stayed in a hotel right on the waterfront and were lulled to sleep by the waves of the Atlantic Ocean. We had a couple of days before our tour started and we made the most of it by shopping, golfing and taking a boat ride out to Robben Island. Robben Island is the location of the prison where Nelson Mandela and many other South African political prisoners were kept for some or all of their imprisonment starting in the 1960's and continuing until their release in 1990. It is no longer used as a prison and is now maintained as a museum. It was a fascinating place to visit, especially because we had an ex-political prisoner as our guide of the facility.
Once our tour started and we met our 10 tour mates, we went up to the top of the famous Table Mountain and were treated to amazing views of Capetown and its bays. After touring Capetown, we drove through Hout Bay to the Cape of Good Hope and then to Cape Point, where we were treated to even more amazing views of the cape. We continued on to the Cape Winelands including Stellenbosch and Franschhoek. The countryside with its rolling green hills filled with vineyards was a sight to behold. We had a wine tasting at the Haute Cabriere Wine Estate and a chocolate tasting and demonstration at Huguenot Fine Chocolates -- is there any better combination??
After a couple of days in the wine country, we drove back to Capetown to take our flight to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe. I hope the pictures we post here of Vic Falls gives you some idea of the magnificence of the falls because words are hopelessly inadequate to describe it. It was definitely a highlight of our visit to southern Africa and one which we will never forget, especially Tyler, who felt right at home in the spray and mist of Danger Point.
Next we drove to Botswana to start our 6 days of game drives. We have decided to dedicate a separate blog entry to our time in Botswana and the photos we took of the wildlife there. We hope you enjoy them!
After Botswana, we returned to South Africa and the mining city of Johannesburg. While there we toured Soweto, where 3.5 million of Joburg’s 8 million residents live and which was the breeding ground for many of South Africa’s freedom fighters and opponents of apartheid like Nelson and Winnie Mandela. It was also the site of the violent 1976 student demonstrations that many of you will remember. While conditions for South Africa’s blacks and coloureds have improved some since apartheid ended in 1994, it appears there is still a long way to go. We don’t feel qualified to comment at length on the issue. Suffice it to say we are hopeful that South Africans can forgive each other and continue to work toward a country of racial and economic equality. They all deserve that.
I'm writing this journal entry from Zanzibar, a beautiful tropical island off the eastern coast of Africa, where we have been relaxing for a few days. In 1964, Zanzibar united with mainland Tanganyika to create the present United Republic of Tanzania. We are staying in Stone Town, the cultural and historical heart of Zanzibar, and most infamously known as a center for the African slave trade and the site of Africa's last slave market which was closed in1873 under pressure by the British. We leave tomorrow for Egypt and the Great Pyramids!

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Photos

Capetown
View of the city from Table Mountain

Victoria Falls
The falls as seen from a helicopter(yes, Jill actually took the helicopter ride!)

Zanzibar
Locals enjoying a sunset swim.

Capetown Waterfront
The harbour near our hotel and a view of Table Mountain

Robben Island
The island as seen from Table Mountain

Robben Island Prison
Nelson Mandela and other prisoners were kept in cells in these barracks.

Mandela Cell
This is one of the actual cells Nelson Mandela was kept in with the original furnishings.

Robben Island Prison
Our guide of Robben Island Prison was a political prisoner from the 1976 student riots in Soweto. He served 5 years at Robben Island.

Capetown
"Lionshead" Mountain as viewed from Table Mountain

Camps Bay
A range of hills known as the Tweleve Apostles in Camps Bay.

African Penguins
An African penguin colony on Boulder's Beach in Simon's Town.

Cape Point
Breathtaking view from Cape Point.

Franschhoek
The beautiful countryside of the Cape Winelands

Victoria Falls
Ted says this picture looks fake, but that really is the four of us standing in front of the falls.

Victoria Falls
Tyler enjoying the spray of Danger Point.

Victoria Falls
Griff doing the same.

Zambezi River
The Zambezi River which feeds the falls.

Victoria Falls
I hope you can see the rainbow caught in this photo.

Stone Town, Zanzibar
A building in decay -- indicative of most of Stone Town's structures.

Stone Town
A street in Stone Town showing a Catholic church on the left and the tower of a Muslim mosque behind it from where daily prayers are broadcast.

Slaves' Quarters
An underground room used in the slave trade to hold 70 men waiting to be auctioned off. They could spend anywhere from a few days to a few months in this tiny room.

Slave Sculpture
A sculpture outside the Anglican Cathedral depicting how the slaves were chained.

Comments

[hal blanchette]

Shock and Awe
Really enjoy your travel log. As an ex-history teacher I can only dream of getting the type of total immersion that you've all experienced...and in such a short time. What are you going to do with the rest of your lives? Safe travels.

[Missy Nelson]

picture
That cape pt picture of the four of you is great! Definitely xmas card picture potential ;)

[Carla]

OMG
This is a place I definately want to visit!!!! It looks AMAZING!!! Miss ya!!