Just a Few of the Things I Did in Cape Town

Hiking Table Mountain

Table Mountain is a flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa boasting an elevation of 3,566 feet above sea level.   It is a significant tourist attraction, with many visitors using the cableway or hiking to the top. The mountain forms part of the Table Mountain National Park.

The main feature of Table Mountain is the level plateau approximately 2 miles in length from side to side, edged by impressive cliffs. The plateau, flanked by Devil's Peak to the east and by Lion's Head to the west, forms a dramatic backdrop to Cape Town. This broad sweep of mountainous heights, together with Signal Hill, forms the natural amphitheater of the City Bowl and Table Bay Harbour.  You can either hike the mountain or take the cable cars up/down.

I hiked Table Mountain using the longest route.  I went with Elisabeth, Sarah and Tom all of whom I met during my short stay at Kwantu.  We got sort of what I consider a late start, 10am.  I am used to hiking very early in Colorado to get up and down the mountain before the storms roll in.  Here you need to be careful of the heat as there is very minimal shade along the route.  It was pretty hot the day we went.  The hike had a lot of steep sections and I definitely underestimated how hard it was going to be!  We made it up in the average time of 2.5 hours although we did stop quite a bit for breaks.  Once at the top we took in the amazing views.  There is a gift shop and a restaurant up there as well as the cable car station.  In that way it reminds me of Pikes Peak in Colorado. We met Ally and Emily (also from Kwantu and my Garden Route travels) at the top.  They took the cable car up.  We all had lunch and then took the cable car back down.  Its crazy that it can take you 2.5 hours to hike up and the cable car takes you down in like 3 minutes! lol

Hiking up a not so steep section

See those switchbacks??  Yeah, we went up that!

View from the top

View from the top

View from the top

Tom, Sarah, Elisabeth and me

Hiking Devil's Peak

Devil's Peak stands 1,000 metres (3,281 ft) high.  Slightly lower than Table Mountain.  The name Devil's Peak comes from a folk-tale about a Dutch man called Jan van Hunks, a prodigious pipe smoker who lived at the foot of the mountain circa 1700. He was forced by his wife to leave the house whenever he smoked his pipe. One day, while smoking on the slopes of the peak, he met a mysterious stranger who also smoked. They each bragged of how much they smoked and so they fell into a pipe-smoking contest. The stranger turned out to be the Devil.  Van Hunks eventually won the contest, but not before the smoke that they had made had covered the mountain, forming the “tablecloth” cloud that can sometimes be seen over the peak.

I hiked this peak alone.  There weren't many people hiking that day.  Again, I got a late start.  I needed to take a cab to the trailhead and since there are so many conventions in town this week I had a hard time getting a cab. I had the cab let me off at the base of the road going up to Table Mountain so I hiked a good 4 miles before I even got to the trailhead.

Once at the trailhead I powered my way up.  It took about an hour which I have heard is about an average time.  It was really steep near the top and the wind started to pick up.  I got some amazing photos of Table Mountain, Lion's Head and Signal Hill along the way.  I was sitting at the top taking in the sights and when the clouds rolled in blocking my view.  I was enjoying a peach when a lone hiker came upon me.  We started chatting and I found out his name was Lee and he's in his late 50s.  He is a contractor in England about 30 minutes outside of London.  The winter is his off season so he takes that time to travel.  He comes to Cape Town about twice a year and stays with friends.  He knows the trails pretty well as he hikes a lot.  We decided to descend together and he took me a different way back.  We ended up down lower on the mountain in a suburb and walked down the street to a little cafe and had some coffee.  I caught a cab from there back to my hotel.  We made plans to meet for dinner a few nights later.  It's nice to meet some new people.

Cool flowers that look like Easter eggs!

View from the top just as the clouds rolling in

Look how the petals look like feathers

Hiking Lion's Head

Lion's Head is a mountain in Cape Town, South Africa, situated between Table Mountain and Signal Hill. Lion's Head peaks at 669 metres (2,195 ft) above sea level. The peak forms part of a dramatic backdrop to the city of Cape Town and is part of the Table Mountain National Park.  In the 17th century the peak was known as Leeuwen Kop (Lion's Head) by the Dutch, and Signal Hill was known as Leeuwen Staart (Lion's Tail), as the shape resembles a crouching lion or a sphinx. Lion's Head is known for spectacular views over both the city and the Atlantic Seaboard, and the hour-long walk to the top is particularly popular during a full moon and to watch the sunset.

Elisabeth, Sarah and I did this hike together. We met one day at 5:30pm so we could hike up to watch the sunset.  It was AMAZING!  The hike was fairly easy until you got closer to the top.  There you had to do quite a bit of low-level bouldering (basically scrambling/climbing over the rocks) which was kind of fun!  This was the busiest peak we climbed. I found out later that Lion's Head is the most climbed peak in the world.  Not sure if it's true or not......

The hike took about 1.5 hours.  Once at the top we took photos and then watched the sunset.  It was incredible!  I have never seen more incredible sunsets than the ones I have seen in Africa.  Just after the sun went down we started our decent, in the dark.  We brought head lamps so that helped but we still needed to be very careful.  Especially the bouldering portions.  On the way down we were treated to some views of the full moon.  By the time we got down and got our cab it was about 9:30pm.  I was exhausted when I got back to my hotel and I crashed hard! What a great time!

Lion's Head to the left and Signal Hill (the tail) on the right

Two Oceans Aquarium

The Two Oceans Aquarium is an aquarium located at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa. The aquarium was opened on November 13, 1995 and comprises seven exhibition galleries with large viewing windows. The enchantment of this particular aquarium is its location, where the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet.  My hotel gave me a free ticket to attend and so I went because free is good :)   I thought it was a rather nice aquarium.  Here are some photos:

Twobar Clownfish

Clown Triggerfish

A column of clownfish!

Sea urchin

Honeycomb Moray Eel

Geometric Moray Eel

Starfish

Knysna Seahorse

Perlemoen (a type of abalone)

Giant Spider Crab

African Penguins

Rockhopper Penguin

Mole Snake

Wine Tasting

South African wines are grown in one of the world's most special places – with ancient soils, two oceans, soaring mountains and unparalleled natural beauty. The South African winelands are renowned for their breathtaking scenery and the wines are as full of variety as the myriad of cultures that form this Rainbow Nation.

First stop, Anura Vineyards.

http://www.anura.co.za/

The Anura wine farm is located at the base of the Simonsberg mountain range. The estate is more than just a vineyard, with a complete animal farm, restaurant and function rooms. The wine estate had previously been a very small estate, with only a couple of small vineyards lying side by side. The current owners have worked hard to ensure that the wine farm has flourished, and there are now 150 hectares of vineyard, producing around 700 tons of wine annually.

The majority of the vines planted in Anura are of red grapes, including Petit Verdot, Grenache, Malbec, Petit Noir, Mouvédre, and Sangiovese. Some of these grape plants are rather rare in South Africa.

The many grapes which are grown on the estate are harvested by hand, and selected carefully for their ripeness. The nature of the grapes are also taken into consideration, since the estate believes in producing top-quality wines, and the grapes need to be treated in certain ways in order to enhance the flavor. Once the fruits have been hand-picked, they are then placed on a machine which removes the leaves, rotten berries, and any stalk matter. They are then turned to hand sorting in order to maintain the standard of the grapes. Once the best fruits have been selected, the grapes are then crushed.

At this winery we had a wine and cheese pairing.  It was incredible!  My favorite wine here was the Anura Malbec 2013 Limited Reserve.  So good! They also make their own cheese and deli type items (ie: chutney, balsamic reductions, salad dressings, relishes, etc).  I loved, and subsequently purchased, the Froggit Habanero Jelly.  I sure hope I can get this back home!

http://froggit.co.za/index.php


FairView Wine & Cheese

http://www.fairview.co.za/wine/

Fairview’s wine and cheese tasting room has become one of the most popular Cape winelands destinations, building on a reputation that stretches back to the 1970′s.  The tasting room comprises a number of tasting pods. This unique pod concept was implemented in 2009 and is aimed at creating a more welcoming and less rigid environment. The pods offer a tasting selection of 6 different wines  with dedicated hosts to guide and assist guests. There is a wide range of wines available to choose from, including a selection from the single vineyard range. Your tasting also includes a selection of 6 to 8 of Fairview’s Jersey milk and goat’s milk cheeses. These are tasted at our deli, allowing guests to enjoy their wine and then move across to the cheese section as they seek out interesting pairings and their particular favourites.

Once again, this place was amazing!  My favorite wines:  Fairview Viognier, Fairview Petite Sirah, and the La Capra Pinot Grigio.  We didn't taste any of their Goats do Roam brand wines but they do sell those in the US and they are readily available.

Spier Wine Farm

http://www.spier.co.za/wine

Spier Wine Farm is situated in the Stellenbosch region approximately 50 km from Cape Town, South Africa. The farm has enjoyed a long history which dates back to 1692. As one of the oldest farms in the region, it has long been noted for its cultural and historical significance particularly of its architecture.  Wine production and sales as well as leisure activities are the core business activities on the farm today and the farm has become well known for its sustainability initiatives.

We had a wine and chocolate tasting here.  It was outstanding!  Just incredible!  My favorite wines:  Spier Signature Pinotage and the Spier Creative Block 2.

There were MANY more wineries to visit but of course, we didn't have time to do them all.  What I learned is that South African wines are amazing.  If you haven't tired South African wine you need to!

"Wine is bottled poetry." ~ Robert Louis Stevenson

Stuck in Swaziland - Part 2

So, I was stuck in Swaziland.  What now?  The tour guide did one good thing for me.  He went to the owner of the Mountain Inn, Marc, and asked him if I could stay at the hotel at a reduced rate during my time there.  Marc said that would be fine and he told Shaun he would also make sure I got to the airport for my flight home.  So with that information I went to bed.  I woke the next morning and had breakfast with my tourmates and said my goodbyes.  I wished them all a fairwell and hoped that had an amazing rest of the trip.  They were all so nice and felt horrible leaving me there.  It was a sad morning and I won't lie.....I shed some tears as they drove away.  I was pretty scared and unsure as to what the following days would hold for me.  Marc came and found me and asked if I wanted to go to a game reserve that day to pass the time.  I said "Of course" and got ready to go.  

Mlilwane Game Reserve

So, that first day I went to the Mlilwane Game Reserve.  Mlilwane is Swaziland’s pioneer conservation area.  It is a beautiful, secluded sanctuary situated in Swaziland’s "Valley of Heaven", (the Ezulwini Valley) in between Mbabane and Manzini.  It is Swaziland's oldest protected area, owned and managed by a non-profit trust.  

The sanctuary serves as a headquarters for the Big Game Parks including Mlilwane's sister reserves Hlane Royal National Park and Mkhaya Game Reserve. The Sanctuary covers 4,560 hectares. Formerly a farming and tin mining area, the area has been rehabilitated and is now Swaziland's most frequently visited reserve. Abundant wildlife grace the plains. The southern section is predominately open grassland plains with middleveld vegetation, stretching up onto Nyonyane Mountain. The northern section includes one of the highest points in the area at Luphohlo.  Mlilwane means Little Fire, a reference to the many fires started by lightning strikes on Mlilwane Hill.

I rented a mountain bike and spent a couple hours biking through the reserve. The reserve is NOT home to any predators (obviously or they would not allow you to mountain bike through there) but I was able to get up close and personal with many of the other animals.   It was a truly beautiful place.  The photos don't do it justice.

I got REALLY close to the zebra; even a foal that was maybe just a few weeks old. It was really cool to be that close to them!

I had a family of warthogs cross my path. They are very skittish! They are funny too as they run with their tails up in the air! 

The reserve is also home to many different type of antelope:

Blesbuck

Baby Kudu

Roan Antelope

Waterbuck

Beautiful birds:

Southern Red Bishop

Weaver nests

Weaver nests

White Fronted Bee Eater

African Ground Hornbill

and blue wildebeest:

There was also a big lake called “Hippo Lake”. I went down to the shore taking note of all the “beware of croc signs”.

There I saw three different crocs on the shore and in the water. Super cool!

Some miscellaneous creatures I saw:

 

Dung beetle

I did not see any hippos here. Bummer!

All in all, it was great day. I highly recommend that you visit this reserve if you ever happen to find yourself “stuck in Swaziland”.  Mountain biking is a great way to see the animals!

Marula Festival

Celebrating one of Southern Africa’s botanical treasures, the Marula Festival is one of

Swaziland’s most spectacular cultural events. A tribute to the riches of Mother Nature, the

Marula festival is an annual royal celebration. Every year festivities are initiated by King Mswati

III and Her Majesty the ‘Indlovukazi’ the Queen Mother, who travel all over the kingdom leading

the nation’s celebrations.

The Marula festival, known locally as ‘Emaganwini’, begins in February when the fruit is

harvested by women and children and continues until March. The unripe green fruit falls from

the tree and is stored until it ripens to a creamy yellow colour, it is then soaked with water and

sugar to ferment and make Marula beer, the traditional toast of the festival. The largest single

celebration is held at the royal residence of Ebuhleni, where the royal family join the nation in

traditional song and dance.

The Marula tree (sclerocarya birrea) is indigenous to Southern Africa, and has been a central

part of the Southern African way of life for thousands of years. In Swaziland, about 2 million

Marula trees grow in forests and bush, grazing lands, fields and homesteads and are protected

from felling by traditional laws which are enforced by local chiefs. The fruit is eaten by

elephants, rhino, warthog, kudu, baboons, vervet monkeys, zebra, porcupine and even

millipedes. Their leaves are also eaten by a range of browsers, including domestic cattle.

Not just used for beer, Swazi people use every part of the Marula tree for a wide variety of

domestic needs. Marula contains four times more vitamin C than oranges, and is rich in

minerals and anti-oxidants. The bark of the tree has a range of medicinal uses, however it is the

oil from the seed kernels that has real commercial potential due to its moisturizing and

conditioning properties. As a result there have been many skin care products developed using

the oil as a base.

I met a really neat girl at the hotel. Her name is Nadia and she is from Paris although she was

born and grew up in Morocco. She had been in Swaziland for about 9 months working on a

project for Swaziland Electric Company (SEC). She is a software programmer. She was

only supposed to be there 4 weeks. Does this tell you anything about the mentality of the

people and their work ethic? I’m afraid it’s not just Swaziland. I found that to be true all over

Africa. Sad.   Anyway, a girl named Sophie that Nadia was working with at SEC invited her to

the Marula Festival. SEC had a group signing/dancing for the King. I saw Nadia that morning

at the hotel so she invited me to tag along. I had to wear a dress or skirt that went below the

knees and my shoulders had to be covered. Those are the rules if you are going to see the King. I never actually saw the King but I guess you can be arrested for improper dress and I didn’t

need anymore problems so I followed the rules :)

Nadia and me

It was about an hour and a half drive to Ebuhleni. We arrived at the festival around 11am.

Nadia was told that it started at that time but guess what?? She didn’t factor in Africa time so in

reality it didn’t start til about 4:30pm. It ended up being a very interesting day. We met all the

others from SEC (about 25-30 women) at a huge tent and we sat around there for about 5 hours

while they all got ready for their performance. I cannot tell you how hot it was. OMG. Think

about the hottest you have ever been and multiply that by 100. It was HOT!   While we were sitting there a man came around with a bucket of the marula beer he made and offered for us to taste it. Even though I don’t like beer I didn’t want to be rude so I tasted it. It was actually pretty good!

I saw more boobs than I have ever cared to see and let me tell you, they were not pretty……just

sayin’. I saw things that day that I cannot unsee.  It was nice to see them in their traditional dress, once they actually got dressed.  The singing and dancing was cool.

Unfortunately, because it started so late we ended up leaving before the King arrived and before things got too rowdy. It was a long drive back to the hotel and Nadia wasn’t comfortable driving in the dark on these desolate roads with no street lights. Not to mention the locals like to walk right on the side of the road. Not the shoulder, the actual side of the tar road.  She was afraid of hitting someone and I don’t blame her. It’s scary!!

One more thing......of course I needed a bathroom while we were there at the festival. Let me tell you, I have NEVER been in a Port A Pottie more disgusting and smelly.  Get your visual/mental image. Think of the nastiest Port A Pottie you have ever been in and multiply it by 1,000,000,000. It was nastier than that.  If there hadn’t been so many people around I would have used a tree but it was impossible to have any privacy in that scenario.  It's probably against the law and there were drunkards all around so probably not safe.

All in all, a VERY interesting day.  I'll leave it at that!

Me, Nadia & Sophie

Veterinary Day and Rotary Club Meeting

I spent one morning at the local vet’s office. His name was Dr. Brian (Barry) Spencer. He graduated vet school in 1973 from Onderstepoort Veterinary College in Pretoria, South Africa. Originally from Swaziland he went back to practice in Mbabane after graduation. He has a nice, small practice attached to his house.  His wife Pru runs a bed and breakfast (Kent Rock B&B) from the house as well.  Dr. Barry used to do mixed animal practice but now only works on small animals.  He’s close to retiring and didn’t want the fuss of working on horses and cattle anymore. He does some spay/neuter charity work on the side too.  We chatted about similarities and differences between practicing in the States versus Swaziland. We exchanged practice tips and notes. It was a really interesting visit.  A super nice man.  I was glad to meet him :)

When I arrived back at the Mountain Inn, Marc, the owner, introduced me to an expat named

Daran Rehmeyer. Daran is originally from Lousiana but had been living in Swaziland for 9 years now with his wife and kids. His wife was an oncologist back home and has been trying to set up oncology

practice in Swaziland as it is just not available there. Most people (if they can afford care) go to

South Africa for oncology related visits. What Daran and his wife are actually doing in Swaziland is running a mobile AIDS treatment clinic. They travel around to different villages each day and give antiviral treatment (among other things) to AIDS patients. Most of these villagers are very poor (earning less than a dollar a day) and they have no access to transportation to get medical care.

Daran is a very nice guy and extremely interesting. His background is actually in engineering. He was at the hotel that day for the weekly rotary club meeting and he offered to have me attend as his

guest so I could get a free lunch and see how things are done there. The lunch was good and

the meeting was quite interesting. Needless to say, it was just another experience to put in the

books :)

The Last Day

On my last day there I just stayed in. I was supposed to go whitewater rafting but the weather

spoiled my plans. I just packed my bags, read my books and had room service. It was going to

be an early to bed day as I needed to leave the hotel by 4:45am the next morning to catch my

bus to the airport. The airport was about 2 hours from my hotel and the bus had to make

multiple stops. My flight was to leave Swaziland at 8:05am arriving in Johannesburg at 9:10am.

My only was stress was wondering what was going to happen to me when I got to the

Johannesburg airport the next day being that I was deemed “undesirable” and technically not

allowed to enter the country. Only time would tell. 

I have to give a HUGE thanks to Marc, the owner, at the Mountain Inn in Mbabane, Swaziland.

Without his kindness my days in Swaziland could have been more like hell instead of a

wonderful experience like it was. I enjoyed having dinner with him and learning about the

country. We had many laughs and discussions about life. I enjoyed meeting him and his wife

so much. If you are EVER in Swaziland you must stay at the Mountain Inn and reap all the

benefits of his kind nature.

Swaziland wasn’t such a bad place to be “stuck” after all.

Next blog.......traveling home!

"You travel with the hope that something unexpected will happen. It has to do with enjoying being lost and figuring it out and the satisfaction. I always get a little disappointed when I know too well where I'm going, or when I've lived in a place so long that there's no chance I could possibly get lost."  ~Andrew Bird