Christmas in Cape Town - Part I.

Because the Christmas break here is also the summer end-of-the-school-year break, it is about 6 weeks long. Even in the extreme heat we were all getting cabin fever. Plus, without family or the other familiar surroundings of Christmas time, we decided it would be best to just get away. So, we spent 9 days in Cape Town, South Africa over the week of Christmas. Before we left a Muslim colleague of mine said that if a person didn't believe in God before visiting Cape Town, they certainly would after visiting Cape Town, because nothing as beautiful as Cape Town could have been created by accident.


It was beautiful, very beautiful. The contrast between Gaborone and Cape Town could not be greater. The coast, the mountains, the weather, the dense population (there are almost twice as many people in Cape Town as in the whole country of Botswana), the wide variety of activities... It was hands down the best vacation we have ever taken. Below is a sample of some of our favorite things.

1. The Victoria & Alfred Waterfront - a working shipping harbor that is also full of shopping, restaurants, and tourist attractions. Our hotel was very close, and we went several times. Below is Hope from the top of a ferris wheel, with the harbor in the background.


More activities at the Waterfront: Giant hamster-like balls that you get in and try to navigate through a large wading pool. Eden is in the middle one.

2. Cape Point. The very tip of the Western Cape, where the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet. This was a very beautiful and amazing place to visit. We took a cable car-type thing to the top of the cliff. The view is to the south, where the next land is Antartica. The drive down the peninsula to the point was quite interesting. As it got narrower and narrower, we could see the two oceans on either side of us. Check out the video below for Ted's demonstration of this effect.

There were signs all over the peninsula warning about the Chacma baboons. The signs said the baboons had become very skilled at stealing food from people, from parked cars, and from cars with the people in them (they could open car doors). We did see several of them. The baboon below is is sitting on top of one of the signs with a warning about the baboons. He did not steal our food.

The picture below just makes us laugh - for obvious reasons. (Look closely - Trey's mouth is covered in some unidentified food substance.)
3. The Beach at Simon's Town (Indian Ocean). Simon's Town is a port/base for the South African navy. It was a neat little town, sort of felt like we were on Cape Cod or something. The kids had a lot of fun exploring the rocky beach there - they found live starfish and sea anemones and such. There was also a groovy little Tibetan Tea House that overlooked the water, but I was not successful in convincing everyone else that it was worth some time away from the beach to check it out.

The other highlight of Simon's Town was the wild penguin colony. They are African Penguins, also known as black-footed penguins or jack-ass penguins. They are only found on the southwest coast of Africa. They created their own colony on the beach here in the 1980s. Since then, the town has dedicated some space to them and built some wooden walkways and staircases to allow people to get very close to them. They appear to be a very popular attraction.

The one below had strayed a bit far from the colony. It appears to be having fun playing hide-and-seek with Eden.

5. Kirstenbosch Gardens. This is a huge botanical gardens that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. At the risk of repeating myself, this was an absolutely beautiful and amazing place. It had two outdoor restaurants and shops, along with lots of open spaces for picnicking, birthday parties, etc. It sits on the side of Table Mountain, making the views just stunning everywhere you looked.

Within the gardens there were several different gardens dedicated to different types of plants. My favorite was the "useful garden" where all the plants were useful as medicines and treatments or for other purposes. The bush below was in the "endangered and extinct species" garden - the concept is self-explanatory. The sign says this particular bush is extinct in the wild.

In the picture above, Trey is sitting on a fossilized Dadoxylon tree section. You could clearly make out the growth rings - they seemed much wider than modern trees. The nearby sign indicated the tree fossil was 200 - 300 million years old. Trey did not damage the specimin during our visit.

We had so much fun on this trip that my husband suggested we try to extend our stay by a few days. For any of you who know how hard my husband works, you will understand what a big deal it was for HIM to suggest we extend our vacation. Unfortunately, the travel agent was also on vacation, so we were not successful in extending our stay. But, it has quickly become one of our very favorite places - somehow we will have to arrange to come back some day.

There was actually much more to our trip than this - Christmas in Cape Town Part II is coming soon...