namibia and south africa 2003
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After two weeks of camping in Namibia we were both looking forward to relaxing in Capetown. The only problem with this is that we only had three days and there's so much to see and do. The day we arrived, we checked into our B&B in Hout Bay (very nice) and rushed back to Capetown, taking the cable car up table mountain (below right), whilst it was cloud free. Lucky we did so it was shrouded in clouds for the next three days. Great views from the top!
south africa weeks 3 and 4
African (Jackass) Penguin, Boulders beach near Capetown, Meercat and African Black Oystercatcher, both at World of Birds
I'd strongly recommend staying in Hout Bay or any any of the towns on the west coast, south of Capetown. This gets you out of the hussle and bussle of the city, lets you relax a bit and you're closer to the Cape Pensinsula National Park, which we visited the next day. Following a stop at Boulders Beach to see the African Penguin colony we spotted a couple of Southern Right Whales on the way to Cape Point (see top). Similar wildlife spotting would take a couple of days driving in New Zealand. The next day we visited the excellent World of Birds just down the road from our B&B in Hout Bay - well worth a visit, it's not often you can get this close to birds (foreign and african) in the wild.
We then left Capetown, heading inland to Montegu, a peaceful village in the Overburg. Staying in another excellent B&B (on the mainstreet), we took a short walk through a gorge out of town, to what we thought were some natural springs. Only to find that there was a massive spa resort hidden just outside town - we enjoyed a dip in their thermal pools, before walking back to town, past the local township. This is one thing that's a bit disconcerting about travelling in South Africa - picturesque areas, jammed right up against areas of severe poverty. Appartently things are improving, but this just highlights how unequal things must have been in the past. The next day we went for a 40km cycle right through the country (above), before going to a local restaurant for another great meal - food and drink is relatively cheap. The next day we set off for Swellendam, which to be honest we were slightly disappointed with, after Montegu. More touristy and lacking the relaxed atmosphere of Montegu. But it did have one redeaming feature, Bontebok National Park just outside town. Bonteboks (an easy target as you can see below) have recovered from a perilous 17 animals to hundreds, thanks to parks like this one. Like many less popular parks, you can wander or drive around without the feeling that you're just another tourist. In fact be only drove past one other car all day! We then travelled to the coast to Hermanus, whale watching capital of Africa. We arrived during their annual whale festival so the place was absolute bedlem. But this didn't seem to put the whales off and at one point you could spot up to 20 southern right whales in the bay, many within 30-40 metres of the coast. Following a wet last day, driving around the coast, we returned to Capetown, the end of fantastic holiday in Southern Africa.
Left: Meeting the Bonteboks for lunch.
Above: South Africa's national bird, the massive Blue Crane.
Our vineyard - Newton Johnson! Angela spotted a bottle of wine in a restaurant and the vineyard was only 2 miles out of town, so we took visit and bought the place (okay I made that last bit up).
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