- Table Mountain
- Boyes Drive
- Live Bait at Kalk Bay
- Boulders Penguin Colony
- Cape of Good Hope
We woke up on a sunny day with no cloud in the sky, the perfect weather to visit Table Mountain. We wore the warmest clothes we brought for this trip, packed our gloves, hats, and windbreakers before leaving the hotel. After a short 15 minutes drive, we parked our car on the side of the Talfelberg road, and walked for another 5 minutes to the Lower Cable Station. There were tour buses, and lines of people waiting to get tickets when we arrived around 9:30 AM.
Before the trip, I was contemplating hiking up the table mountain. However, I discovered that I had this borderline irrational fear of cliffs after our Iceland trip. Last year, I turned back midway hiking in Scottsdale, Arizona because the fear was getting the best of me. After reading my Lonely Planet guidebook that "More people have died on Table Mountain than on Mt. Everest", I went on the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway website and purchased the round trip cableway tickets beforehand. Being paralyzed by fear and stuck in midway hiking up the Table Mountain was not my idea of fun, but for those who are interested in hiking up Table Mountains, please do not let me discourage you. There are many hiking routes that you can choose from. Make sure to read the safety guidelines first.
Table Mountain is one of the new 7 wonders of nature. It is so impressive no matter from which angle you look at it. It was very windy and much colder on top of the Table Mountain. We were lucky with the weather that there were barely any clouds in the sky, and the view of the mountain descending into to the city and eventually submerging into the ocean was breathtakingly beautiful.
With all the amazing geographic surroundings, Cape Town is truly one of the most beautiful city in the world in terms of its landscape.
After 2 hours on top of the Table Mountain, we took the cable car down and were on our way to the Southern Peninsula. We took the Boyes Drive and stopped in Kalk Bay for lunch. Live Bait is a charming seafood restaurant sitting by the harbor looking out into the ocean. We ordered a seafood platter for two that came with shrimps, calamari, mussels, crayfish (looks like a mini lobster), kingklip (a very common white fish in South Africa). Everything was so fresh and tasty and the whole meal costed us less than US$40 including tips. We also stopped by a few antique shops on the Main Road in Kalk Bay before heading out.
Next stop Boulders is famous for the South African Penguins. To be honest, it felt like a tourist trap to me. We paid 45 Rand per person to walk through a boardwalk by the white sand beach, took pictures of penguins, and left within 3o minutes. But we also easily spotted the penguins for free.
From Boulders beach to Cape of Good Hope is another 35 minutes drive. On the way there, we spotted a group of baboons on the roadside.
Once inside the Cape of Good Hope, it was another 10 minutes drive to get to Cape Point. I had the same feeling driving to Cape Point as when we drove to the sharkfarm in west Iceland. There was an outworldly energy in both places that made me feel like that I was at the end of the world. It was quite amazing to be at the point where the Atlantic ocean and Indian ocean meet.
Cape Point closed by sunset. We headed back to the city, had a simple dinner at the V & A Waterfront food court, and spent the rest of the night at the hotel swimming pool & sauna again.
Before the trip, I was contemplating hiking up the table mountain. However, I discovered that I had this borderline irrational fear of cliffs after our Iceland trip. Last year, I turned back midway hiking in Scottsdale, Arizona because the fear was getting the best of me. After reading my Lonely Planet guidebook that "More people have died on Table Mountain than on Mt. Everest", I went on the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway website and purchased the round trip cableway tickets beforehand. Being paralyzed by fear and stuck in midway hiking up the Table Mountain was not my idea of fun, but for those who are interested in hiking up Table Mountains, please do not let me discourage you. There are many hiking routes that you can choose from. Make sure to read the safety guidelines first.
Table Mountain is one of the new 7 wonders of nature. It is so impressive no matter from which angle you look at it. It was very windy and much colder on top of the Table Mountain. We were lucky with the weather that there were barely any clouds in the sky, and the view of the mountain descending into to the city and eventually submerging into the ocean was breathtakingly beautiful.
With all the amazing geographic surroundings, Cape Town is truly one of the most beautiful city in the world in terms of its landscape.
After 2 hours on top of the Table Mountain, we took the cable car down and were on our way to the Southern Peninsula. We took the Boyes Drive and stopped in Kalk Bay for lunch. Live Bait is a charming seafood restaurant sitting by the harbor looking out into the ocean. We ordered a seafood platter for two that came with shrimps, calamari, mussels, crayfish (looks like a mini lobster), kingklip (a very common white fish in South Africa). Everything was so fresh and tasty and the whole meal costed us less than US$40 including tips. We also stopped by a few antique shops on the Main Road in Kalk Bay before heading out. Next stop Boulders is famous for the South African Penguins. To be honest, it felt like a tourist trap to me. We paid 45 Rand per person to walk through a boardwalk by the white sand beach, took pictures of penguins, and left within 3o minutes. But we also easily spotted the penguins for free.
From Boulders beach to Cape of Good Hope is another 35 minutes drive. On the way there, we spotted a group of baboons on the roadside.
Once inside the Cape of Good Hope, it was another 10 minutes drive to get to Cape Point. I had the same feeling driving to Cape Point as when we drove to the sharkfarm in west Iceland. There was an outworldly energy in both places that made me feel like that I was at the end of the world. It was quite amazing to be at the point where the Atlantic ocean and Indian ocean meet.
Cape Point closed by sunset. We headed back to the city, had a simple dinner at the V & A Waterfront food court, and spent the rest of the night at the hotel swimming pool & sauna again.
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