Arrived in Capetown and took Uber for an $11 ride downtown to our hotel. The hotel was nice but a little unnerving in that both the Uber driver and the hotel clerk warned us not to walk about downtown when it is near dark. We walked a mile or so before dark down to the Waterfront area which is really nice. Many shops and restaurants, some outdoor music, and multiple interconnecting walkways over water to explore. We bought some cloths and then searched for something for dinner. We actually had a little bit of a hard time. Some restaurants were closing or closed at 7pm and some saying they had no room and there is no waitlist as they smiled at us! Curious. We eventually found a place to eat but discovered South African time in that service in restaurants is very slow. We Ubered home for a couple bucks. An Uber ride to the base of Table Mountain led us on a 2 hour hike up. Pretty strenuous, especially after being driven around for 3 weeks and being fed 5 meals a day. Glorious views over Capetown. We took the gondola down ending up at Green Market where we ate and picked up a medium sized piece of luggage for $15. Our plan is to ship or pack some South African wine as we go along. We explored the city a little bit the following day but I got to admit I was on edge the whole time. After leaving the hotel, walking down a major street, some guy lunges out at me and hits me on the shoulder. I scooted away quick as I only saw him in my periphery and I thought he had a black box in his outstretched hand like a Taser. To add some more spice, 5 minutes later we are looking to cross the street and a young man in fatigues, a flac jacket, and carrying an automatic pistol on his chest stops me. Asks me where I’m going. I said across the street. He says don’t do that, those guys over there will rob you. Like right on the other side of the street. I’m thinking, why don’t you go over there with your flac jacket and automatic pistol, but he just says, Hey, I’m not joking. We went another block then crossed. Visited a nice Nelson Mandela exhibit at City Hall but never made it to Robbens Island where he was imprisoned for 20 years. That night we had dinner with Katie’s brother Don and his husband Frank who so happened to be on a South Africa tour! Terrific meal at the waterfront and so good to be understood when we talk. English is English but then there is American. The following day brought some more walking, a visit to a brewpub because you have to, then dinner at Fyn’s a highly rated Japanese style restaurant. We chose the 8 course dinner with some of the courses having 3 or 4 items included in each of them. For just a modest seafood lover like myself, most everything was very, very good. Katie would say Fabulous!
Yes, there probably is an easier way
The following day we rented a car at the airport and headed for wine country. Driving on the left was a work in progress. Luckily with Katie’s firm but meaningful leg squeezes and light traffic out in the countryside, nobody including the car got hurt. We stopped at Reyete vineyard which was quiet with good wines. We were the only people there. They said it was a typical days after Covid but would pick up on the weekend. We bought some wine and drove on to Stellenbosch. The apartment I rented through booking.com was on one street but I was texted a different address on the day of our arrival. Always worrisome but things turned out fine. Nice apartment with parking. It just didn’t have a balcony which we were kinda looking forward to. We drove out to Kanonkop which made the Pinotage we really liked at Fyn’s. We had an appointment but there were plenty of openings. Got carried away purchasing wine as it is so cheap. I mean $10-20 bottles of good wine. We realized we were buying to much to pack so we checked in Stellenbosch about the cost of shipping 6 bottles to California. $500! We are going to drink some of what we have, share some with friends along the way, and carry the remainder home. Keermont is a very small winery almost the the end of a long single lane road. Baboons were on the road along the way and we arrived as the only guests so far that day. Lovely ‘natural’ wines in that they don’t use fertilizers and pesticides and the wine is minimally messed with during the fermentation and bottling. No additives. The winemaker came out and talked to us for quite a while then the local snake catcher who had just got a Puff Adder. No holding that snake as it is pretty venomous. He was going to release him in one of the rodent holes on the property to let him do his work. We heard there was a good lunch at Rust en Vrede vineyards but we really had no idea how lucky we were. On Fridays this restaurant offers steak or salmon with chips. Katie and I each chose the $15 Pepper-Crusted Fillet and Katie swears it is the best beef she has ever had! Top of my list too and the Chips or fries were also fantastic. Mix that with a gorgeous day on an outdoor patio at a winery and it is heaven. We barely had energy to tour the nearby Dylan Studio Sculpture Garden but that was spectacular. Several acres of gardens and ponds with sculptures big and small throughout. Later, we had dinner at a restaurant in town. As I mentioned before, serving a meal in South Africa can take a very long time. Sometimes you think they forgot about you. Katie and I weren’t terribly hungry after our delicious steak lunch but it was 8 when we arrived and were seated. At 9:30 we hadn’t had dinner yet and asked for the check. Oh well, I’ve got plenty to live off of at this point.
In the am we drove out the same single lane road as the day before. Past Keermont to de Trafford Vineyards, a highly regarded old school wine, again we were the only people there and it was a Saturday. We spoke with and were served by Fred the assistant winemaker. He had apprenticed at Alpha-Omega in Napa some years ago. Learned much again. Bought wines again and drove off to our next abode in Franschhoek. Our cottage wasn’t quite ready so we visited a local craft fair. The cottage turned out to be stunning having recently been built by the owners who lived on the property. We visited Anthonij Rupert Wine that afternoon which was a beautiful property surrounded by sawtooth mountains. We ended our wine tour with a glass of wine at Ernie Els Vineyard. Again big views of the valley and he had a chipping tee box with some clubs to entertain you. Dinner was at Babel which is a restaurant at Babylonstoren Gardens. Acres of tended gardens with ample fruit, vegetables and herbs. Wonderful dinner included our first taste ever of Mulberries.
We spent our last full day in Africa driving along the Eastern coast of the Cape, stopping at Boulder Beach to see African Penguins. Probably a hundred or so on the beach and rocks. Some were going in and out of the water there. Others were feeding their young. They have a system for parking in South Africa. Sometimes a fellow in a colored vest will point you at an open spot. Sometimes there is no one around and you pull into the open spot. Either way the people in vests would like a tip. Nothing aggressive though we have heard vest people fighting over an area to work. We drove on to Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point hiking out to the end of the latter. Farthest South I have been for sure. Katie noticed an info sign showing some Ostriches on a beach up North in the park. We drove to it and sure enough, there on the beach were Ostriches. There were also many Antelopes that looked related to Topi or Tsessebe. Stood just yards from them. We stopped in Noordhoek at a very local brewpub. Older longhaired crowd with initially a guy on bagpipes out in the parking lot. He later moved inside and played the guitar and harmonica. We could use him in the Better with Beer band. We found a guest house in Hout Bay not far away and went to look at the room. We were the only guests. Our room had a large balcony with views over the bay. Katie and I had cheese, crackers, olives, and wine watching the sun go down toasting our time in Africa. Today we drove back and forth along Chapman’s Peak Road, a toll road somewhat reminiscent of Big Sur. A walk along the beach at Hout Bay leads us to our seat here in the Premier Lounge at Capetown International Airport. Next stop Johannesburg, then change planes for the long trip to Berlin arriving sometime tomorrow.
