Cape Town

Ted. Whenever we told someone that we were going to South Africa, they invariably asked; “Are you going to Cape Town?” It has a reputation as one of the great cities of the world so we decided to spend a full week there.

We rented an apartment from Heather and Niel via Airbnb and the location, amenities and their hospitality were great. Located up one side of the “city bowl,” we had a great view of nearby Table Mountain and could look down on the city below.  

We walked to many shops cafes and restaurants but Uber took us everywhere else where we wanted to go. 

Cape Town is an amazing mix of ethnic groups and cultures with immigrants and expats from all over the world. One day we joined a free walking tour of the Bo-Kaap neighborhood where we learned about the Muslim roots of many locals. 

On Easter Sunday, we worshipped at St George's Anglican Cathedral where Desmond Tutu once served as archbishop. Judy was pleased to see that there is a large labyrinth on the grounds so we were able to take a meditative walk. And naturally, we rode the cableway to the top of Table Mountain to enjoy the incredible views.

Juanita, a Servas day host of Afrikaner heritage gave us further insights into the town and its history. She devoted one full day to driving us around the many neighborhoods and beaches and took us to the wonderful botanical garden called Kirstenbosch. On another day, she drove us around the beautiful wine country surrounding the communities of Stellenbosch and Franschhoek. 

On another day, Judy and I took the ferry out to Robben Island to visit the infamous former prison and had an unforgetable tour. At one point, our guide was a man who had been incarcerated there for five years. He recounted some of his experiences and then took us to the cell that Nelson Mandela inhabited for 18 of his 27 years as a prisoner.

I could write many pages about the wonders of the city but Lonely Planet and other websites do that so much better. Suffice it to say that Cape Town was one of the highlights of our trip so far and we are determined to return one day.