I was told that when you come to South Africa, you have to go to Cape Town, also known as the Mother City. So, a few weeks back, I decided to go there. One of the other volunteers and I took the bus on a Friday evening to start off our big adventure.
We arrived very early Saturday morning and took an Uber to V&A Waterfront. (probably the most touristic place in Cape Town). We ate our breakfast and then went to our Hostel in Greenpoint to drop off our stuff. The weather wasn’t very nice, but they told us it would most likely clear up, so we decided that it was a good idea to do Table Mountain that day. So, we put on our hiking shoes and off we went. The climb to Table Mountain was hard and a bit overwhelming in a way, but it was very nice. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t clear up and we didn’t really get to see anything from the top but that was okay. We made it to the top of Table Mountain, by foot, and we were very proud of that!
We did decide though in the end, to take the cable cart down, because we were afraid, we wouldn’t make it down before sunset, and it was very foggy, so that made it a bit scary as well. Luckily, the clouds did go away for a while, whilst we were going down, so we did get to see some amazing views over the city.
Table mountain off the bucket list, we took an Uber to Bo-Kaap and wandered around there for a bit. We both loved the colorful neighborhood and wanted to learn more about it, so we visited the Bo-Kaap Museum. Turns out, there is absolutely no reason for these houses to be so colorful, they just are! We spend our night at a little restaurant eating pizza, and afterwards we took a shower and went to bed early.
Day two of our adventure, we did a trip to the Cape Peninsula a.k.a. Cape Point, Cape of Good Hope and Boulders Beach. We decided to do it with a guided tour, because we thought that would make it less stressful for us and we could also learn something. And learn we did: our guide literally never stopped talking, NEVER!
We first went to Cape Point to walk up to the original lighthouse and take some pictures there. At the lighthouse you have a good view of the peninsula and all its nature. (the whole peninsula is a wonderful nature reserve. It is the prettiest ever). We then walked from there to Cape of Good Hope, together with our guide and enjoyed some more views of the oceans. It’s a short walk of which you get to see Cape Point from another perspective.
Cape of Good Hope itself is nothing too special. Basically, it is a parking lot with the famous sign next to it, but you just have to go there when in Cape Town. It is a must do! We took our mandatory tourist photo, walked around for a bit and then stepped back onto the bus, on our way to Boulders Beach.
We did decide though in the end, to take the cable cart down, because we were afraid, we wouldn’t make it down before sunset, and it was very foggy, so that made it a bit scary as well. Luckily, the clouds did go away for a while, whilst we were going down, so we did get to see some amazing views over the city.
Table mountain off the bucket list, we took an Uber to Bo-Kaap and wandered around there for a bit. We both loved the colorful neighborhood and wanted to learn more about it, so we visited the Bo-Kaap Museum. Turns out, there is absolutely no reason for these houses to be so colorful, they just are! We spend our night at a little restaurant eating pizza, and afterwards we took a shower and went to bed early.
Day two of our adventure, we did a trip to the Cape Peninsula a.k.a. Cape Point, Cape of Good Hope and Boulders Beach. We decided to do it with a guided tour, because we thought that would make it less stressful for us and we could also learn something. And learn we did: our guide literally never stopped talking, NEVER!
We first went to Cape Point to walk up to the original lighthouse and take some pictures there. At the lighthouse you have a good view of the peninsula and all its nature. (the whole peninsula is a wonderful nature reserve. It is the prettiest ever). We then walked from there to Cape of Good Hope, together with our guide and enjoyed some more views of the oceans. It’s a short walk of which you get to see Cape Point from another perspective.
Cape of Good Hope itself is nothing too special. Basically, it is a parking lot with the famous sign next to it, but you just have to go there when in Cape Town. It is a must do! We took our mandatory tourist photo, walked around for a bit and then stepped back onto the bus, on our way to Boulders Beach.
Boulders Beach is a beach in Simon’s Town, where penguins live. It is possible to visit the beach and walk around on it (on path of course, you can’t leave the paths!). This way you can come very close to the African Penguins. Once back in Cape Town, we wandered around a little market for a while and then took the bus back to the hostel, where we cooked ourselves dinner and then went to bed early again.
Day three of our trip, was unfortunately our last day together. We left the hostel quite early in the morning, so we could hike up Lion’s Head. (not sure why it’s called that, because I really don’t see a lion’s head there…) The hike started really easy, and we weren’t too scared of it, but then everything changed. All of a sudden, the paths got smaller, steeper, rockier and more dangerous. At the end you literally kind of have to look for a road, because it is not very clear anymore where the path actually is. It was true adventure, and for a while we both weren’t sure how we were going to get down again.
Luckily for us, it all went well, and we enjoyed that hike a lot. The sun was out, so we did in the end get to enjoy the view we actually wanted to have on Table Mountain. A very sunny overview of the city, the peninsula and all the surroundings.
After our hike on Lion’s head, it was unfortunately for me, almost time to leave. We went back to Greenpoint, where we enjoyed our lunch at Greenpoint Park. After that we went to the hostel to pick up my luggage and then I left the hostel, the beautiful city and my amazing travel companion behind.
It was a great weekend, that I won’t easily forget. So, remember; when you come to South Africa, don’t skip Cape Town!
