You are currently browsing the monthly archive for September 2008.
Oh dear, where do I begin… Not all German beer is the same people!
If you would like to learn more about the joys of BAVARIAN beer, you will find me here.
To round it all off, a few days in Cape Town – museums, shopping, sightseeing (no, I do not know why there is a sculpture with Bart Simpson heads coming out of it in the city centre)…
…and just like that, my month in Africa was over. I had a superb time, really really enjoyed spending quality time with the different sides of my German/Irish family that have somehow ended up in the same part of world. I saw so much, met some great people and fully realise that I have only taken a little, superficial peek at a tiny corner of a huge continent, so forgive me if my ramblings have been less than concise. Hopefully, I can go back and see some more of Namibia, South Africa or even travel a little farther afield.
In the meantime, summer in Munich will have to suffice.
There’s so much to do and see in and around Cape Town and I missed out on loads of stuff. The Robben Island tour, because I hadn’t anticipated having to book a week in advance just to catch the ferry out there (huh?) and the gay-couples’-all-u-can-drink-… uh, I mean, connoisseur gourmet wine tasting tour, which I am quite sad to have missed.
Instead, I did a full-day tour of the Cape Peninsula. Starting in Hout Bay, I skipped the optional boat trip to Seal Island, because I’m not falling into that trap again (they smell, okay). Anyhow, a resourceful local had already figured out that bringing the seals into the harbour would attract tourists. Guess how this monstrous, now tame seal is lured ashore? Fifty meals a day, by the look of it…
On to Kirstenbosch botanical garden.
Absolutely beautiful, if you’re into that kind of thing.
Penguin colony in Simon’s Town. The waddling monochromes were slightly less entertaining than my fave tuxedo-sporting animals, the Fairy Penguins of Philip Island, (the name really is an unfair advantage), but still very cool, especially how unperturbed they are by people coming to stare at them while they go about their business.
The Cape of Good Hope is apparently a big deal with Japanese tourists and they all pose like this for their picture with the sign. This does not explain why our tour guide insisted we all do the same for our pics and now I look like an idiot and Japanese people will laugh at me when they see this. But hey, I was there.
The finer distinctions between Cape Point and Cape of Good Hope are a bit blurry (in my mind at least), but they are right next to each other. This is Cape Point, the Baboons that steal your lunch if you don’t watch it and the amazing views.
Cape Town is photogenic to such an extent, if it were a human, it would be George Clooney (analogy – fail?) The city curves and sprawls along the ocean, up the mountainside and awards amazing views from all angles, so with every step you take in and around Cape Town, you get a peek of Table mountain, a flash of the ocean or some other dramatic backdrop, so you end up taking gazillion pictures that all look like they might have been taken in ten different countries. Normally my sentiment about living by the ocean is – you can keep your beaches, I’d rather live near the mountains, thanks – but Cape Town has both!
These views from Lion’s Head at night are a case in point. You can see Table Mountain, Robben Island, the unfinished football stadium (for the world cup 2010) and the Waterfront. Oh, also; sunset and full moon.
These are from halfway up Table Mountain the following day. The cable car wasn’t running and apparently walking up by yourself is akin to saying „Yes, do help yourself to my wallet and why don’t you have my phone and camera while you’re at it, too“, so I made do with the halfway view. Pan-o-rama!
More picture perfect views of Cape Town from Table Mountain (watch out for the snakes, though!) and some beach shots:
These are my favourite „does my liveability look big in this?“ beauty shots:
The football stadium building site again. Can’t wait to see how South Africa hosting an event of this size will work out (spoiler alert: I don’t think it will be as organised as 2006!) The lighthouse is right across the road and looks pretty.
Hermanus is pretty in its own right
but mainly known for whale watching, which we did – as you can clearly see in this picture:
I know you can’t tell from the picture, but I swear it was doing this:
Well, yes, in fact we did remember the wine. And drink it, too!
Also: pies and the last muffin in the shop.
Knysna is one of many places on the coast that inevitably comes with a price tag. A drive along the Garden Route is pure, shameless property porn. „This house would have gone for so many million five years ago, now it would be impossible to buy a doorknob for that amount… etc“ Understandable, considering this:
I have a certain fear of heights, but the queasy feeling you get – perched on a wooden platform that doesn’t inspire a huge amount of trust when it’s the only thing separating you from the rocks many metres below – is kinda worth it for the views from the Knysna heads.
