Today was a very slow start
With a glorious sleep in & Tom making breakfast again.
We finally got our butts into gear, booked our tickets online & walked down Long street to the red hop on & hop off bus start point.
At 12pm we hear a very loud explosion while walking down Long street. Nobody else looks alarmed or even appears to have heard it which is puzzling. Later on the bus we learn that every day except Sunday a Canon on Signal hill is fired, following a long standing tradition.
At 12.28pm we started our red bus journey along Long St, back the way we walked on the red route.
Cape town is a merging of East & west. This is obvious in the languages, architecture, art, culture, economy, diverse heritage & religions.
During the tour we learn about Nelson Mandela & what he stood for. Cape Town demoralises this man & celebrates his life all at the same time. We have a lot of respect for Nelson Mandela, the first democratic prime minister of South Africa, who had a huge job trying to unite & integrate 2 extremely Fragmented societies who are scared of each other & scarred by each other
There is so much history & emotion in this town.
One thing we instantly notice is that Cape Town driver's are eager to use their horn, they are definitely not as frivolous or persistent as the people in India.
But if you do not instantly start accelerating in anticipation of a green light, you will get a beep. Whilst travelling in the red bus, we noticed the beeps from what we are assuming are locals, urging the bus to merge, accelerate or negotiate a turn faster.
We saw many near accidents from people forsaking safety for speed.
The red route takes us up table mountain & behind it along the beach area of Camps Bay. While driving along the main road through Camp Bay, I spot a whale out at see blowing water & slapping the surface. Tom has also seen it & can confirm it. Whale sightings are very common along here at this time of year. There's talk of coming back to the beach tomorrow if the weather's good. So much to see & do, so little time!
After Camp Bay We then head into the VA Waterfront. It's a gorgeous day from this side of the mountain, but still cloudy around the top of Table Mountain. I don't think we are likely to see those famous 360 degree views while here.
We get out at the VA waterfront. We take photos of the harbour & admire the boats before ordering a coffee & sitting in the sun.
We spend a fair bit of time walking, talking & admiring this part of the city.
We stop at a brewery called Mitchell's Irish brewery & sample the local beer on tap.
As the evening approaches, we make plans at a restaurant near our accommodation & get back on the red bus which has a stop 15 minutes away from where we are staying.
After we got back to the accommodation we could hear & see multiple fire trucks & ambulances going past. I cringe, thinking about their destinations & hoping it's not all the way out at the townships.
We would shortly after hear on the radio that there was an explosion at an ammunition factory.
A reservation is made at a place called Arnold's & we agree on trying game meat 1 more time before leaving the country & ordering a bottle of their top shelf pinotage.
The location, service, price & food was excellent. Tom enjoyed it more than me & ate most of the meat. We had Kudu, warthog ribs, crocodile curry, ostrich & springbok.
Once we got home it was time for showers & bed! What a good day. Cape Town has won back it's charm today
- Alli
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