As we drove through Zambia and Malawi, the picture of Africa we held in our heads came to life across the countryside. Small thatched mud or brick houses replaced the simple Western styled houses of Namibia and Botswana. Basic old fashioned looking towns became dirt streeted villages with a few shops and even capital cities felt like large towns with no high rises in view.
Adverts often lack the hype we've grown used to in the West. An internet provider promoted itself as "probably, the fastest internet connection in Africa" while Jaba Tea simply claimed "It's good, it's strong."
The comparative underdevelopment as we head east tends to stem from corruption and poverty. In Malawi many people live on $1 a day, which in local prices barely buys the plain necessities of life. Contrary to what we might expect, most people seem happy here. I haven't felt bad for being a rich tourist, rather I've been pleased to be able to give my business to locals. The handfuls of people who normally wave at our truck as we travel have become scores of smiling faces and children running to welcome us, which makes traveling in these areas very pleasant.
Monday, 28 February 2011
Friday, 25 February 2011
Day 94 to 97: Being refined in Livingstone - golf and high tea with "locals"
Our first four days in Zambia were spent enjoying creature comforts. Michael and I ditched our tents for a waterfront room on the Zambesi and a group of us headed out to the Livingstone Golf Club for the morning. We teamed up with Cho and Moon, who proved to be excellent first-time golfers. As a treat we hired caddies for a very reasonable price and enjoyed their expert advice and bag carrying service. After seven holes it was getting very hot and cold drinks at the clubhouse was becoming rather enticing, so we called it a day.
Comforts continued with a small group of us taking high tea at the Royal Livingstone, a very posh colonial-style hotel. Decadent amounts of delicious food were polished off, with a refreshing swim in the pristine pool and cocktails on the riverfront deck to conclude. Cheeky monkeys swooped onto our table to steal snacks and wrestle with Tanith for her cocktail. Tanith having successfully saved her cocktail, we farewelled the high life and were pleasantly surprised to encounter giraffe and zebra crossing the hotel driveway as we left.
While in Livingstone we of course visited Victoria Falls, Livingstone's star attraction. We were blown away by the power and immensity of the falls. Lax health and safety regulations let us get as close as we liked to the waters edge at the top of the falls and we watched one crazy adventurer paddle his body board scarily near the lip of the falls. The ways you could die by going over the falls were varied and gruesome, so none of us were tempted to take a dip for ourselves. The spray from the falls was pretty much torrential rain, so we emerged saturated from the viewing walk, with the exception of Cho and Moon who had their own incredibly waterproof ponchos (you could hire ponchos or wear a jacket, but the water still poured in any gap).
The adventure seekers in our group chose to bungy jump from a bridge over the Zambesi river near the falls. We enjoyed spurring them on, but I thought the jumps looked so terrifying I decided I'd be quite content to never bungy jump!
Livingstone was the departure point for most of our group, so we celebrated Bree and Cho's birthdays at a local Indian restaurant and enjoyed a laid back pizza night before saying our goodbyes. Four group members were leaving to continue their own travels, eight were joining another group heading to Johannesburg, leaving Michael, Bree, Satoshi and I continuing up to Nairobi. We had expected at least a few people, if not lots, to join the tour at Livingstone, but the only addition was a trainee called Arnold, giving us nearly as many crew as tour members. As we pulled out of Livingstone to start a new leg of the tour, the truck felt empty and a little lonely with so few of us on board. Still, we figured the next 21 days would give us time to adjust and come to appreciate the benefits of being a smaller group.
Comforts continued with a small group of us taking high tea at the Royal Livingstone, a very posh colonial-style hotel. Decadent amounts of delicious food were polished off, with a refreshing swim in the pristine pool and cocktails on the riverfront deck to conclude. Cheeky monkeys swooped onto our table to steal snacks and wrestle with Tanith for her cocktail. Tanith having successfully saved her cocktail, we farewelled the high life and were pleasantly surprised to encounter giraffe and zebra crossing the hotel driveway as we left.
While in Livingstone we of course visited Victoria Falls, Livingstone's star attraction. We were blown away by the power and immensity of the falls. Lax health and safety regulations let us get as close as we liked to the waters edge at the top of the falls and we watched one crazy adventurer paddle his body board scarily near the lip of the falls. The ways you could die by going over the falls were varied and gruesome, so none of us were tempted to take a dip for ourselves. The spray from the falls was pretty much torrential rain, so we emerged saturated from the viewing walk, with the exception of Cho and Moon who had their own incredibly waterproof ponchos (you could hire ponchos or wear a jacket, but the water still poured in any gap).
The adventure seekers in our group chose to bungy jump from a bridge over the Zambesi river near the falls. We enjoyed spurring them on, but I thought the jumps looked so terrifying I decided I'd be quite content to never bungy jump!
Livingstone was the departure point for most of our group, so we celebrated Bree and Cho's birthdays at a local Indian restaurant and enjoyed a laid back pizza night before saying our goodbyes. Four group members were leaving to continue their own travels, eight were joining another group heading to Johannesburg, leaving Michael, Bree, Satoshi and I continuing up to Nairobi. We had expected at least a few people, if not lots, to join the tour at Livingstone, but the only addition was a trainee called Arnold, giving us nearly as many crew as tour members. As we pulled out of Livingstone to start a new leg of the tour, the truck felt empty and a little lonely with so few of us on board. Still, we figured the next 21 days would give us time to adjust and come to appreciate the benefits of being a smaller group.
Monday, 21 February 2011
Day 92 to 93: Hungry hungry hippos
After a much anticipated punch night, featuring the cooler bin filled with a potent "fruit" punch (mostly alcohol) and punch-fuelled crazy antics, a 6am departure saw our truck populated with many subdued sleeping forms. Botswana's flat landscape was expected to be great for sleeping through, though several interruptions to see giraffes and elephants walking and drinking along the roadside were accepted.
Our destination was Chobe National Park, where the elephant population of 64,000 gave very good odds for seeing at least an elephant or two. An early morning game drive was an awesome experience. We saw hippos lumbering along the road, as well as lazing in the water. It was fascinating to see such a huge creature trot along at some speed.
A rare treat was seeing two prides of lions with cubs at very close range. The cubs were very cute and we enjoyed seeing their rough and tumble play. One pride had killed a kudu (a type of antelope) and we watched as herons edged closer and closer to the kill, until the lion leapt up and chased them off.
The park was rich in other wildlife, with impala, monkeys, elephants and warthogs crossing our path. We revisited the animals on a sunset cruise where we saw baby elephants swimming and chasing monkeys and male elephants locking horns in a fight.
Our destination was Chobe National Park, where the elephant population of 64,000 gave very good odds for seeing at least an elephant or two. An early morning game drive was an awesome experience. We saw hippos lumbering along the road, as well as lazing in the water. It was fascinating to see such a huge creature trot along at some speed.
A rare treat was seeing two prides of lions with cubs at very close range. The cubs were very cute and we enjoyed seeing their rough and tumble play. One pride had killed a kudu (a type of antelope) and we watched as herons edged closer and closer to the kill, until the lion leapt up and chased them off.
The park was rich in other wildlife, with impala, monkeys, elephants and warthogs crossing our path. We revisited the animals on a sunset cruise where we saw baby elephants swimming and chasing monkeys and male elephants locking horns in a fight.
Saturday, 19 February 2011
Day 90 to 91: Mokoro journey to the delta
Narrow canoes carried us along reed-lined waters to the world's largest delta: the Okovango Delta. After being poled along for a couple of hours on a peaceful and increasingly hot journey, we made camp in a tree-studded clearing, with Haggis enthusiastically digging us a toilet nearby.
In the hot afternoon we headed to a safe swimming spot, guided by our polers, local Botswanians who grew up in the delta area. A fun hour was spent watching people try to pole the mokoros, with often hilarious results. The soft silty sand of the delta quickly became fuel for a mud war, with the boys specialising in drying balls of sand until they formed solid ammunition. Michael landed a couple of unintentionally destructive blows, with Tanith copping it on the face and Satoshi receiving a strong shot to a tender area. We finished our delta evening with s'mores by the campfire, drinking games and the tunes of Toto's "Africa."
The following morning we weren't lucky enough to spot game on an early walk, though we met interesting insects, tiny frogs and saw plenty of evidence that animals had been active before we got there. Our mokoros brought us out of the delta and 10 of us took a scenic flight to view the delta from a different perspective. From the air we could really appreciate the size of the delta and we enjoyed seeing lots of elephants, giraffes, hippos and buffalo.
In the hot afternoon we headed to a safe swimming spot, guided by our polers, local Botswanians who grew up in the delta area. A fun hour was spent watching people try to pole the mokoros, with often hilarious results. The soft silty sand of the delta quickly became fuel for a mud war, with the boys specialising in drying balls of sand until they formed solid ammunition. Michael landed a couple of unintentionally destructive blows, with Tanith copping it on the face and Satoshi receiving a strong shot to a tender area. We finished our delta evening with s'mores by the campfire, drinking games and the tunes of Toto's "Africa."
The following morning we weren't lucky enough to spot game on an early walk, though we met interesting insects, tiny frogs and saw plenty of evidence that animals had been active before we got there. Our mokoros brought us out of the delta and 10 of us took a scenic flight to view the delta from a different perspective. From the air we could really appreciate the size of the delta and we enjoyed seeing lots of elephants, giraffes, hippos and buffalo.
Thursday, 17 February 2011
Day 88 to 89: Walking with bushmen in the Kalahari Desert
A 480km drive and a border crossing brought us to Ghanzi, Botswana, where we stayed in a peaceful campsite surrounded by the Kalahari Desert. Most of us opted to upgrade from our tents to tiny straw huts for a more local experience.
The campsite supports a number of bushmen people who are expert hunters and live off the land. In Namibia bushmen used to be regarded as animals and it was legal to shoot them. Their way of life may not exist in 50 years, so it was a privilege to have a small group of bushmen lead us on a desert walk. Dressed in animal skins and carrying sticks and arrows, they demonstrated amazing knowledge of desert survival. As we walked they would start digging in the desert grasses and uproot medicinal or edible plants. We watched them build a fire from scratch and saw how they carry water in ostrich eggs to keep it fresh in the heat.
Our evening drew to a close with Michael, Leteloi, Satoshi and I relaxing around the campfire enjoying the quiet of a desert night.
The campsite supports a number of bushmen people who are expert hunters and live off the land. In Namibia bushmen used to be regarded as animals and it was legal to shoot them. Their way of life may not exist in 50 years, so it was a privilege to have a small group of bushmen lead us on a desert walk. Dressed in animal skins and carrying sticks and arrows, they demonstrated amazing knowledge of desert survival. As we walked they would start digging in the desert grasses and uproot medicinal or edible plants. We watched them build a fire from scratch and saw how they carry water in ostrich eggs to keep it fresh in the heat.
Our evening drew to a close with Michael, Leteloi, Satoshi and I relaxing around the campfire enjoying the quiet of a desert night.
Tuesday, 15 February 2011
Day 80 to 87: Green grass in the red hot Namibian desert
Plants and mountains covered in greenery aren't typical images of Namibia. Much of the country is desert where very little grows, but our visit coincided with the highest rainfall in many years. Rivers and pools had formed where the land had been parched. Even when we visited Sosussvlei (meaning Dead Lake) the lake had reformed.
The rainfall brought its challenges - over the week we encountered two other overlanding trucks who got stuck in the mud, but we were fortunate and managed to get through.
The week's adventures include:
Rising at 4:30am to climb Dune 45
With sand dunes stretching into the distance we watched the sun rise and climbed down to discover a proper fry up breakfast waiting for us, thanks to Emma and Letaloi.
Looking out for wildlife as we travel from place to place
Michael and I have spotted oryx, springbok, zebra, warthogs, jackals and even a couple of giraffe who had been imported to Namibia.
An evening's mad dash to cross a bridge before the river flooded
With party music blaring and a fantastic storm crashing around us, we raced against the rain and arrived in time to safely cross, saving ourselves an additional 600km drive the next day. Once we were out of the storm zone we found a clearing near the road and set out mattresses to camp under the stars and see a beautiful sunrise the next morning.
Quad biking on the dunes of Swakopmund
A fun couple of hours was spent speeding around the dunes, though disappointingly, there wasn't the option to do more adventurous moves as we had expected.
Watching tens of thousands of seals and their cute pups waddle and splash about
Unfortunately the seals stank - strong "wet dog" smell with a little something extra to really turn the stomach. While the hardier among us "adjusted" to the stench, Michael and I fought the gag reflex and were not ashamed to walk about with tissues stuffed in our nostrils!
Lions and giraffes in Etosha National Park
Letaloi's sharp eyes spotted a brownish object under a tree - which Michael's zoom showed in detail to be a strong male lion and his mate. We watched the male get up and walk a little, and although they weren't as close as we would have liked, we were fortunate to see them, as we spoke with a local who had never seen a lion in Etosha. We also really enjoyed seeing a number of giraffe up close, including some youngsters.
Seeing dramatic mountains and rocky plateaus formed from magma in Spitzkoppe
Wandering in Windhoek
Upon arrival in Namibia's capital city, our truck was greeted by an assortment of intriguing characters - newspaper sellers, blind people with paper sheets telling their story, keyring sellers, and a young man who claimed his brother had just been hit by a car and he needed money to get to hospital. Feeling "welcomed" we strolled around central Windhoek, finding it very similar to Hamilton, our hometown in New Zealand. A similar collection of modern and dated buildings, with nice enough streets to wander and no real standout "sights."
Eating delicious game at Joe's Beerhouse, Windhoek
After much recommendation, Joe's Beerhouse delivered the goods - my zebra fillet was succulent and peppery while Michael enjoyed flavoursome oryx.
Life as an overlander
For those of you who are wondering about day to day life on our camping trip, here's a quick overview.
Campsites are generally very pleasant spots and often have pools which is very welcome in the mid to high 30's heat. We usually leave camp around 7am to avoid driving in the heat of the day, so that means tents packed in the dark and breakfast around 6am. This is rather different from our usual style, so we're still struggling to transform ourselves into lively morning people! Mornings can be very busy to meet the departure schedule and sometimes it feels like we need to leave the moment we've finished breakfast, which isn't something we particularly enjoy. Later in the day we often have blocks of time to chill out and swim, so the morning rush does balance out with downtime later.
Most of our group like drinking and partying until late, so we're a little different in our enjoyment of a few drinks before heading to bed early to cope with the early starts. It would be nice to socialise more with the group, but our "old" bodies need their beauty sleep! The atmosphere in our group is great - everyone is happy to pitch in to make camp life enjoyable and there's a real acceptance of everyone as they are.
Most days we pack up and move on, with an average drive being four hours and a few long driving days of eight hours or so. Roads are generally on the bumpy side and in Botswana they are unfenced, so we make frequent stops while horses, donkeys and cows slowly saunter off the road. Shashe (our truck) is comfortable, with padded seats, some tables, glass windows, lockers, a freezer, charging stations and an iPod jack. In early mornings or as the day gets hotter it's easy to catch up on missed sleep as the truck rocks along.
We work as a team to take care of all the practicalities of camping, with rosters for cooking, truck packing and cleaning. Emma and Letaloi are wonderful - often we'll return from a bushwalk or other activity to find they have kindly cooked dinner for us. We also learn a lot by asking them about things we see along the way. Letaloi is from the Masai Mara in Kenya and we've enjoyed chatting with him and learning about his life.
Campsites are generally very pleasant spots and often have pools which is very welcome in the mid to high 30's heat. We usually leave camp around 7am to avoid driving in the heat of the day, so that means tents packed in the dark and breakfast around 6am. This is rather different from our usual style, so we're still struggling to transform ourselves into lively morning people! Mornings can be very busy to meet the departure schedule and sometimes it feels like we need to leave the moment we've finished breakfast, which isn't something we particularly enjoy. Later in the day we often have blocks of time to chill out and swim, so the morning rush does balance out with downtime later.
Most of our group like drinking and partying until late, so we're a little different in our enjoyment of a few drinks before heading to bed early to cope with the early starts. It would be nice to socialise more with the group, but our "old" bodies need their beauty sleep! The atmosphere in our group is great - everyone is happy to pitch in to make camp life enjoyable and there's a real acceptance of everyone as they are.
Most days we pack up and move on, with an average drive being four hours and a few long driving days of eight hours or so. Roads are generally on the bumpy side and in Botswana they are unfenced, so we make frequent stops while horses, donkeys and cows slowly saunter off the road. Shashe (our truck) is comfortable, with padded seats, some tables, glass windows, lockers, a freezer, charging stations and an iPod jack. In early mornings or as the day gets hotter it's easy to catch up on missed sleep as the truck rocks along.
We work as a team to take care of all the practicalities of camping, with rosters for cooking, truck packing and cleaning. Emma and Letaloi are wonderful - often we'll return from a bushwalk or other activity to find they have kindly cooked dinner for us. We also learn a lot by asking them about things we see along the way. Letaloi is from the Masai Mara in Kenya and we've enjoyed chatting with him and learning about his life.
Monday, 7 February 2011
Day 77 to 79: Rooibus and braais
A hot afternoon's drive from the Cape area brought us to a peaceful campsite with beautiful views of the Cederberg mountain range and rooibus fields. We relaxed with a wine tasting which included a flavoursome rooibus-infused vermouth and tucked into a delicious braai (BBQ) cooked by the camp owners.
The next morning we set off on a ~550km drive to the Namibian border, where we cleared customs in the scorching heat. Crossing the Orange River brought us into Namibia. Heavy rainfall had swollen the river so much that our planned campsite was several metres underwater, so our "change of plan" campsite was a few minutes away on higher ground. Some waterfront bungalows were flooded, but our tenting area was fine and Leteloi had kindly pitched our tents for us. The afternoon was spent relaxing by the huge pool, which was an interesting shade of green (probably due to all the rain) and had some friendly bugs in the murky depths. Still, it made a welcome relief from the mid 30's heat which was wilting us all. Another tasty braai (cooked by us now that we had our truck and proper equipment) and birthday cake were a fitting end to my 28th birthday.
Our next destination was the Fish River Canyon, the world's second largest canyon (after the Grand Canyon). The absence of health and safety regulations let us get as close as we liked to the edge. We dined canyonside and enjoyed seeing a large black and orange scorpion beside the truck.
The next morning we set off on a ~550km drive to the Namibian border, where we cleared customs in the scorching heat. Crossing the Orange River brought us into Namibia. Heavy rainfall had swollen the river so much that our planned campsite was several metres underwater, so our "change of plan" campsite was a few minutes away on higher ground. Some waterfront bungalows were flooded, but our tenting area was fine and Leteloi had kindly pitched our tents for us. The afternoon was spent relaxing by the huge pool, which was an interesting shade of green (probably due to all the rain) and had some friendly bugs in the murky depths. Still, it made a welcome relief from the mid 30's heat which was wilting us all. Another tasty braai (cooked by us now that we had our truck and proper equipment) and birthday cake were a fitting end to my 28th birthday.
Our next destination was the Fish River Canyon, the world's second largest canyon (after the Grand Canyon). The absence of health and safety regulations let us get as close as we liked to the edge. We dined canyonside and enjoyed seeing a large black and orange scorpion beside the truck.
Saturday, 5 February 2011
Day 77: District Six and the townships
In Cape Town our truck tour group visited District Six, where the apartheid system saw black and coloured people cleared from their homes and forced into designated areas, called townships. All the buildings in District Six had been razed except the religious institutions which were spared in a tactical move by the apartheid government. A mall area of new flats were slowly being built for those who wanted to return to their old neighbourhood, but most people were reluctant to leave the communities that had formed in the townships. Looking around us it was understandable, as District Six was still largely empty, despite its proximity to the city.
We were given guided tours of two townships in the Cape area, where we were greeted with friendliness and visited a local beer making business. We sampled sourdough beer in the traditional manner - fresh beer was poured into a steel bucket which we passed around the group. Definitely an acquired taste!
The townships mostly had very small houses built wall to wall, with some hostel buildings and the occasional shipping container acting as a shop. Living conditions had much improved from the apartheid era and we saw the extent of these changes when we visited a hostel. Standing in the lounge/dining area of a six bedroom hostel "house" we learned that the houses had been designed to accommodate 18 men, with three beds per room and a single toilet and shower. At one point the men's families had joined, making for about 96 people per house. Considering that the 14 of us felt cramped and a little invasive as we squashed into the lounge, conditions must have been horrendous for the families who had to live here. In response, some families built shelters beside the township boundaries, where many people still live with no running water or electricity. Directly beside these shacks the apartheid government built spacious brick houses in view of the main highway, to give foreign visitors a good impression of the townships.
When we visited the shacks a group of children welcomed us with amazing trust and enthusiasm. A small hand slipped into mine and Michael and I walked with a beaming child between us. Children were being piggy backed and flipped into the air by our other group members. Apparently young children struggle to recognise white people as individuals, so it's likely they thought we were their friends returning from an earlier visit. This probably explains their exuberance, but it was still a special experience.
We were given guided tours of two townships in the Cape area, where we were greeted with friendliness and visited a local beer making business. We sampled sourdough beer in the traditional manner - fresh beer was poured into a steel bucket which we passed around the group. Definitely an acquired taste!
The townships mostly had very small houses built wall to wall, with some hostel buildings and the occasional shipping container acting as a shop. Living conditions had much improved from the apartheid era and we saw the extent of these changes when we visited a hostel. Standing in the lounge/dining area of a six bedroom hostel "house" we learned that the houses had been designed to accommodate 18 men, with three beds per room and a single toilet and shower. At one point the men's families had joined, making for about 96 people per house. Considering that the 14 of us felt cramped and a little invasive as we squashed into the lounge, conditions must have been horrendous for the families who had to live here. In response, some families built shelters beside the township boundaries, where many people still live with no running water or electricity. Directly beside these shacks the apartheid government built spacious brick houses in view of the main highway, to give foreign visitors a good impression of the townships.
When we visited the shacks a group of children welcomed us with amazing trust and enthusiasm. A small hand slipped into mine and Michael and I walked with a beaming child between us. Children were being piggy backed and flipped into the air by our other group members. Apparently young children struggle to recognise white people as individuals, so it's likely they thought we were their friends returning from an earlier visit. This probably explains their exuberance, but it was still a special experience.
Day 76 to 77: All aboard!
From Cape Town we joined a 41 day truck tour, led by Emma and Leteloi, who will take us on a seven country journey of 13,800km, finishing up in Nairobi, Kenya. Our tour group seemed a good bunch, with the 14 of us hailing mostly from the UK, and one girl from Australia, a guy from Japan, and three South Koreans. Only four of us were heading all the way to Nairobi, with most leaving the tour at Livingstone, Zambia, where we'd pick up new members. Michael and I were looking forward to seeing the different landscapes and learning about African cultures, but after a month of enjoying comfortable mid-range hotels in India, we felt a bit soft and weren't overly enthused at the prospect of living out of a tent for the next 6 weeks. We were pleased to hear there were opportunities to upgrade to rooms at various points on the trip and decided we'd take the easier route where we could!
Africa often requires a change of plan and our journey began with such a change. South African authorities had recently decided to no longer allow foreign-registered vehicles with passengers to cross to Namibia, so instead of climbing aboard Shashe, the truck that would be our home for the next 41 days, we had a temporary truck until Namibia, where Leteloi and Shashe were waiting for us.
Africa often requires a change of plan and our journey began with such a change. South African authorities had recently decided to no longer allow foreign-registered vehicles with passengers to cross to Namibia, so instead of climbing aboard Shashe, the truck that would be our home for the next 41 days, we had a temporary truck until Namibia, where Leteloi and Shashe were waiting for us.
Friday, 4 February 2011
Day 72 to 76: The tablecloth on the mountain
We arrived in Cape Town in time to see the rushing cloud known as "the tablecloth" covering the top of Table Mountain. I initially thought a big storm was on its way into the city, but soon saw that although the cloud looked like it was about to spill over and flood the city, some weather phenomenon kept it from spreading.
Highlights of our time in Cape Town include:
Visiting beautiful wine regions
We took a day tour around Stellenbosch, Franschhoek and Paarl, with the stunning Cederberg mountain range in the backdrop. Pleasantly we were the only people on the tour, along with a friend of the tour leader, so we enjoyed a more personal tour than usual. The first winery of the day had a delicious fortified port-style wine for only £4.75, so we decided it would be a good evening tipple for our upcoming truck tour. At the last (and most expensive) winery of the tour we found the first Pinotage that we really liked, along with other delicious wines, but we kept our wallets closed.
Exploring the Cape area
A half-day tour took us around the beautiful beaches along the coast, to Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope, the southwestern-most point of Africa.
Wandering in the city and seeing colonial-era architecture
We found Cape Town to be a very pleasant city and we enjoyed strolling around the city and the waterfront and savouring delicious food at cafes and restaurants.
Highlights of our time in Cape Town include:
Visiting beautiful wine regions
We took a day tour around Stellenbosch, Franschhoek and Paarl, with the stunning Cederberg mountain range in the backdrop. Pleasantly we were the only people on the tour, along with a friend of the tour leader, so we enjoyed a more personal tour than usual. The first winery of the day had a delicious fortified port-style wine for only £4.75, so we decided it would be a good evening tipple for our upcoming truck tour. At the last (and most expensive) winery of the tour we found the first Pinotage that we really liked, along with other delicious wines, but we kept our wallets closed.
Exploring the Cape area
A half-day tour took us around the beautiful beaches along the coast, to Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope, the southwestern-most point of Africa.
Wandering in the city and seeing colonial-era architecture
We found Cape Town to be a very pleasant city and we enjoyed strolling around the city and the waterfront and savouring delicious food at cafes and restaurants.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)