Township visits

Most visitors to Cape Town only see the townships as they arrive and depart from the airport. It isn’t very sensible to go there on your own, but it is safe and interesting to go on an organised visit. Some people are put off the idea thinking its like treating local residents as curiosities, but I think it comes down to the way the visit is organised. There are a number of operators who provide a range of tours that are run by people who live in the townships, so the money they make directly benefits the local area, which has to be a good thing. Reputable tours typically include visits to a range of community projects, a market and a bar. You can also organise evening visits which include a music venue and meal. You can even stay in a house in a township for part of your stay. Notionally you book into Vicky’s B&B, but as she only has two rooms, she may be full, so will put you in touch with a network of other people who offer a similar service. It is a world away from the Cape Town most people visit, but worth doing if you like to get a feel what it is like to live in a township. Sometimes this sort of thing can be a bit phoney, but done properly a township trip can be informative and have a real benefit for the local community you are visiting. For more information about Vicky’s B&B follow this link http://www.vickysbedandbreakfast.com/

Steenberg wine estate, Constantia Valley

The Steenberg wine estate in Constantia Valley, is just a short drive from Cape Town and not far from the slopes of Table Mountain. It is away from the main Cape Winelands tourist route, but an easy visit if you have a car or a driver/ guide. You can go there and combine a visit to Kirstenbosch Botanical gardens in half a day, leaving Cape Town after breakfast and getting back late afternoon. Everything at Steenberg is beautiful and stylish. The vineyard also has a high end hotel and spa next to it, never been there, but it rates highly on Trip Advisor. There is also a restaurant in the main vineyard. I made sure I wasn’t driving for this vineyard visit, so got to do the tasting. Previously I had only had the Sauvignon Blanc, which I love and was keen to see if the rest of the range was of the same standard. I am pleased to say that it was and particularly recommend the Merlot 2007.

Cape Winelands - Franschheok, Stellenbosch and Paarl: much more to them than wine

It isn’t hard to see why Franschheok, Stellenbosh and Paarl are the part of the Cape wine region most tourists visit. It must be one of the most beautiful wine regions in the world. You can enjoy the highlights on a day trip or do things at a more leisurely pace and base yourself in the area for part of your holiday. There are a wide range of accommodation types from hugely expensive (we are talking four figures a night) to cheap and simple. You also get plenty of fine dining opportunities, especially in the Franschheok area, which has some of the country’s best restaurants. Paarl is the largest town in the Cape Winelands and boasts a huge granite outcrop. Stellenbosch is a University town so is more vibrant and youthful, where as Franschheok is pretty and quaint. Much of the area has French connections and as its name suggests Franschheok (French corner) has strongest links with France. French Huguenots established vineyards here in the seventeenth century and they were welcomed by the Dutch who gave them land rights. When I think of this part of the Western Cape, I think of big blue skies, dramatic mountain backdrops, Cape Dutch architecture and of course wine.

Companies such as Day Trippers organise a small group trip, which means there are about eight of you in a mini-van http://www.daytrippers.co.za/ . This is good value and good fun. You have some scope to influence where you go, get a chance to share travel tales with others and sharing the trip with them cuts costs. On a couple of occasions I have been the designated driver for DIY trips, so visited vineyards but not tasted; even though I love the grape, I still enjoyed the day. If you want to visit particular vineyards and no one wants to miss out on the tasting, then hire a driver for the day. Although more expensive than the group trips, it represents good value for what you get and means you have total control over where to go. I would organise this through Randy’s a thoroughly professional outfit who specialise in airport transfers and private tours http://www.randystours.com/index.html.

My favourite vineyard visits in this area include:

Villiera http://www.villiera.com/ which isn’t as pretty as some other vineyards, but has a fabulous range of Methode Cape Classique wine (this uses Champagne technique to produce some great fizz).

Graham Beck http://www.grahambeckwines.co.za/ also does some great bubbly and the range of wine in general is consistently good.

Fairview http://www.fairview.co.za/ is a highly commercial operation and attracts lots of tourists with its gift shop, cheeses, eatery and goat herd.

Solms-Delta http://www.solms-delta.co.za/ is of interest as it has a strong community empowerment focus and interesting museum, they produce a red fizzy wine called Cape Jazz Shiraz, not a fine wine, but a fun one and a great choice to quaff at a braai (South African barbecue).

A typical view

Huguenot memorial at Franschhoek

Offerings from Graham Beck

Resident goats at Fairview

                                      

Sunset from Signal Hill

When I did the Table Mountain and Signal Hill post the other day I could not find a picture that I particulalry wanted to include. I am glad to say that I have come across it. It was taken a few years ago after a drive to Cape Point. What a lovely way to end a day out sightseeing and what a great spot to watch the sun go down.

Table Mountain and Signal Hill - why you should visit them both

How time flies. A few months since my last post and since I returned from wonderful Cape Town. My plan to do posts every day didn’t quite work out.  Back to retrospectives and it is logical to pick up where I left off.


Almost every set of pictures you see of Cape Town in a brochure will include one of Table Mountain and it is certainly high up on any list of must visit sites. A less obvious site, but one where you can get some of the best pictures of the mountain from is Signal Hill. It is just a short drive (less than ten minutes) from Table Mountain and a good option to do on the same day.

Table Mountain is just a short drive or taxi ride from the main tourist hotspots of the city. The best advice is go up on the first clear day. Even on a nice sunny day the mountain is often covered in cloud or as it is sometimes referred to, ‘the table cloth’. The vast majority of people go up and down on the cable car. Queues can be quite long, so you need to be patient or be lucky; there are times when there isn’t much of a crowd, it isn’t a precise science though. The cable car revolves so be sure to get to the edge and enjoy the 360 degree panorama. The more energetic can walk up and it takes a couple of hours. Stick to the advice in guide books and stay on well established paths. An alternative for walkers is to tackle the walk from the Kirstenbosh Botanical Gardens side, this means a thirty minute drive out of the city, but the gardens are wonderful and I will cover them in a future post. Some friends did this walk a few years ago and rate it highly, particularly good as you are in the shade much of the time.

Once on top of the mountain you may find the weather is drastically different from what it was like at the bottom. I have been up on days when it has been cold and extremely windy on top and glorious sun bathing weather at the bottom. This isn’t always the case though and the weather up on top of the mountain can be just as good as below. Up on top you can walk an easy loop among guided paths and clouds permitting get city and seascape views. There is of course a gift shop and cafe. A few years ago there was a bar up next to the cable car station, which could be reached up some steps. It has floor to ceiling windows and balcony so the views are amazing. Inexplicably it is now closed. What are they thinking of? Unless you want to do some serious exploring an hour is plenty to take in the views.

The big mistake many people make is not to include a trip to Signal Hill after or before the visit Table Mountain. This is such a shame as from the Signal Hill viewing area you get a lovely perspective of Table Mountain and also views of the sea, the city and the new football stadium at Green Point. The one time when the area gets busy is sunset, it is great to get there early with a picnic and enjoy the views.


Table Mountain fom Signal Hill

Lion's Head

Camps Bay from Table Mountain

Seascape view from Table Mountain

Cape Town to Cape Point - a perfect day out

A visit to Cape Point and Boulders Beach is a fabulous day out combining spectacular scenery and opportunities to see wildlife. You can do an organised trip, but the best option by far is to hire a car and do it at your own pace. You leave Cape Town by Camps Bay on a road which hugs the mountains and gives you amazing views. After this it gets even better as you drive along Chapman’s Peak. It really is a drive which has to been seen and experienced to be fully appreciated. There are various stop off points where you can take your pictures and will just stare in wonder. Chapman’s Peak is all too short a drive, but there are plenty more attractions when it has finished. There are numerous small coastal towns where you can stop for lunch. Simons Town, with its naval base is one option, but I prefer the livelier Kalk Bay. If you want to rub shoulders with local people and enjoy some tasty fish and chips, then go to Kalkys. Next stop is Boulders Beach where you can see a penguin colony up close. It is likely to be very windy, but you will see lots of penguins from the viewing platforms. If you avoid weekends and the middle of the day you may be able to stand near the penguins on the beach or the rocks, watch out though they peck. The final stop is Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope; both are close to each other and offer walking opportunities as well as a chance to see ostriches, baboons and other wildlife. We were lucky to see a couple of families of baboons and I got some pictures of them. We also saw a wild ostrich by the road gazing into the ocean, what a great picture that would have been. Never mind at least I got a picture of the ostrich. This is a rewarding and memorable day out as anyone could wish to do and an easy drive from Cae Town.


One of the many spectacular views along Capman's Peak drive

Boulders Beach

Baboon family close to Cape Point

Ostrich close to the Cape of Good Hope

Dining on Kloof Street

Kloof Street brings you from the edge of the centre of Cape Town up a steep hill onto the slopes of Table Mountain. The hilly nature of the street and some of the architecture makes it feel a bit like the sort of street you find in San Francisco. It has a good choice of places to eat, testified by how many locals eat there and is a great alternative to the more touristy places like Camps Bay and The Waterfront. So where should you dine? At the top of Kloof Street is Baccinis, a cheap and reliable Italian restaurant which does great Pizza and serves draft Perioni. Shelly’s, is a nice place to go for lunch as it offers a good range of gourmet sandwiches and light lunch options. Inside is stylish and outside is a good spot for people watching and starring at Table Mountain. Right next door is Tonis, where you can get tasty and reasonably priced Portuguese – Mozambique food, which is quite spicy. A little further down on the corner of Kloof and Camp Street, Saigon serves the best Vietnamese food in Cape Town.

The Bo-Kaap, Cape Town

The Bo-Kaap is one of the oldest neighbourhoods in Cape Town. The colourful houses really stand out against the backdrop of Table Mountain and the high rise cityscape. The area has a high Muslim population and there are a few mosques in the neighbourhood. Unlike nearby District Six, the Bo-Kaap survived apartheid legislation which saw many communities forcibly displaced. The Bo-Kaap has an interesting museum on Wale Street, which is close to the city centre. Even if the museum isn’t open, it is still worth visiting and walking around the area soaking up the atmosphere and taking some pictures.

A few days in Cape Town

Even just a few days in Cape Town revives the spirits. The trip got off to a good start and we had many glasses of fizz in the Virgin Clubhouse. The nice lady just kept topping us up. Sunday was lovely and sunny and saw us having lunch at Blues (food not as good as it used to be) followed by time on the beach, lounging around the wonderful 2Inn1 (see last post) and dinner at Beluga (expensive and a little disappointing). A long walk on Monday from the Waterfront to Camps Bay after having a nice lunch a Rootis, which does wonderful Cape Malay food. After sundowners at the hotel we walked a short distance to Kloof Street followed by dinner at Tonis, a Portuguese Mozambique restaurant.


Today we are off to Zambia to see the mighty Victoria Falls and explore Livingstone.

The 2Inn1 is second to none

I am delighted to be staying at the fabulous 2Inn1 Kensington, Cape Town in few days time. The hotel has earned top spot on Trip Advisor and it isn't hard to see why. It is in a great spot on the slopes of Table Mountain, close to everything but in a quiet residential location. If you don't fancy going too far in the evening, it is safe enough to wander the short distance to numerous restaurants on trendy Kloof Street. The hotel is stylish, comfortable and tasteful. The rooms are large with lovely showers, big comfy beds and all you need, some have views of Table Mountain and Lion's Head. Cape Town has many attractions, but it is just great to spend time chilling by the pool. The ownwers and staff really go the extra mile to make guests happy. The other day I emailed them with a query about a restaurant. Not only did they make a provisional booking, but included about dozen recommendations of other places to eat with brief details. I am delighted to be going back and can't imagine staying anywhere else in Cape Town.

Wish we were there at the same time!

I returned home the other night to a message from a friend saying she and her husband were going to book flights to Cape Town for a winter holiday and that she'd love to meet up while I am there with another friend. Great idea. I rang back, but it is a case of bad timing. They fly back the night we fly out, so we'll be on planes that pass in the night. In the air at the same time, but unfortuantely unable to meet up in Camps Bay and have a sundowner together.

In praise of Kyle Shepherd

Kyle Shepherd is a young South African jazz pianist from Cape Town. I love his brand of South African Jazz and I think he is hugely talented.

http://www.kyleshepherd.co.za/

He produced his first CD, ‘fineART’ (not a typo) at the beginning of 2009 and the more I listen to it the more I like it. I took the CD round to some friends recently when they cooked me dinner. One of them is a real music buff (some would say music snob) and he was really impressed, which is high praise indeed.

Most of Kyle Shepherd’s concerts have been in South Africa, but he has done a few in Europe as well. I notice he is due to play in Ghent and Amsterdam later this month. Pity he isn’t doing the UK as well.

The good news is that a new album ‘A Portrait of Home’ is due at the end of the year.

Check him out on his web site