Cape of Good Hope

Friday, August 12th was our first rainy day in South Africa. We started the day playing Twister and ended the day with Twister! In between, we drove all over the Cape Town area looking for South African soccer (which they call "football") shirts for the kids. This was no easy task as it's rugby season right now - just weeks away from the Rugby World Cup - and the stores are filled with team gear from the South African national rugby union team, the Springboks. Rugby is serious business in South Africa as they are the current holders of the Rugby World Cup - who knew!

Early Saturday morning we drove Eric to Westlake to join up with a local cycling group for an organized ride. By all accounts, he had an amazing ride and impressed the locals with his hill climbing abilities. He later conceded (humbly) that it was winter season for them and summer season for him. They may have been off their top form...

Later on Saturday we drove to Cape Point which is billed as the most "south-westerly" point in Africa - not true. Also not true is that it's the place where the Atlantic meets the Indian Ocean. Nevertheless it is far more spectacular and a lot more accessible than the actual tip at Cape Agulhas. It's also one of the most visited spots in Cape Town. Sir Frances Drake, the first explorer to complete a voyage aound the world, described it as "the fairest cape we saw in the whole circumference of the earth". Enormous sea cliffs tower above the ocean, whipped by fierce winds. On the west side the shore is littered with shipwrecks, testimony to the notoriously treacherous waters. There's so much to see and do, the beaches are fabulous and we could have easily spend the whole day here.

Twister World Cup





Cottages in Fish Hoek

The fishing fleet in Fish Hoek

The children were so excited to see this!



The Gateway to The Cape of Good Hope



The Cape Light House

Spectacular...

The signs were right...

Baboons & Babies!

African Chacma Baboon mother & baby

On the drive home we passed some shacks.
Families were preparing their evening meal on an open fire. 

This is how the majority of the South African people live



It is humbling to see these slums that go on for miles & miles.



More Fun in Cape Town

On Wednesday we traveled north about 30 minutes to the town of Philadelphia for an afternoon trail ride at Mountain View Horse Trails. The riding is in open country surrounded by wine lands, wheat and canola fields. We started off riding through the West Coast Ostrich Farm, located just next door, continued across open fields, and then climbed up into the vineyards with row after row of grape vines. We saw only herds of sheep, cows, and the occasional farm labourer. We rode for well over 2 hours with a single guide at the front of our group. Riding back to the farm, we had in front of us the entire Table Bay with Cape Town and Table Mountain as backdrop.

On the way back to Constantia, we stopped at the John O Connor bike shop in Cape Town and rented a bike for Eric.

On Thursday morning Eric went for his first bike ride in Cape Town - up and back over Chapmans Peak and had a glorious time. The (winter) weather continued to be mild with temps in the high 60's/low 70's.

We drove into Cape Town and visited the V&A Waterfront where Dorian & Sadie had their hair braided. Later in the day we took a cable car to the top of Table Mountain for some spectacular views of Cape Town and the Atlantic Ocean.

This is the country that we rode through.
The yellow patches in the background are canola fields.

That's Table Mountain in the background

The ostrich farm had a playground...

Our trail ride took us over to and up the side of the hill in the background

Grape vines in the distance

This dog's nickname was "blubber gut"

John O Connor bike shop

The view of Table Mountain from the highway

The V&A Waterfront

A statue made from Coca-Cola crates

The old Clock Tower



Shopping for souvenirs

At the Hair Salon



South Africa's 4 Nobel Prize Winners

The Cable Car up Table Mountain 

At the Top!

Sunset at Signal Hill