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| Table Mountain - Official World Wonder of Nature |
Thursday morning dawned bright and sunny. and after gawking at the view from our balcony while drinking our morning coffee we decided what to do with our day. The attractions of Cape Town were already making a deep impression on us, and we decided to have a more careful look at the coastal regions, firstly a bit North at Big Bay and Melkbosstrand.
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| Big Bay grandstand. |
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| Camps Bay Beachfront - red sign says LIVE ON |
We got on the Harley and rode slowly up the coast to Big Bay, where we stopped at the beach where we saw a grandstand on the edge of the sand. We gathered that this is one of the beaches where World Championship Kite Surfing contests are held. There is a parking area for visitors to the beach surrounded by small modern blocks of flats, restaurants and a small shopping centre. We availed ourselves of the opportunity to have a bacon and eggs breakfast with a beautiful view, before proceeding along the road to Melkbosstrand. Part of the roadside is not yet built up, giving one a view of the renowned "fynbos" growing there. After passing a new Golf Course development one arrives at the village of Melkbosstrand, which is reminiscent of Hermanus, which we saw a couple of days ago. From the beachfront a view of the Koeberg Power station can be seen. Deciding that South was a more attractive option, we did an about turn, and backtracked to Bloubergstrand, then going on to the City, getting used to the traffic and the roads now. Riding through Sea Point one can't help but notice the modernisation of old buildings that are now apparently worth millions of Dollars (Rands are slowly becoming a less acceptable way of measuring worth in property terms). The road to Camps Bay is noticably not a new one (it winds through an area that has been built up for hundreds of years), but the slow ride is not a problem, as one has so much to look at.
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| Robben Island in the distance |
Arriving at Camps Bay, one once again notices beaches on the one side of the road, and restaurants or coffee shops on the other. We immediately took a liking to Camps Bay, as it sported special motorcycle parking areas on the main road. The restaurants were not as busy as they usually are, due to Eishkom inflicting it's inefficiencies on the public while we walked around. Further South is Hout Bay and we rode along the coastal road for about 5 km's until we came to a road block, stopping traffic for 20 minutes at a time in each direction to allow road works to be done. Deciding our time would be better used travelling around, we ended up back at the V & A Waterfront for lunch. The "Bunny Chow" I ordered, was a mistake. The Cape Town chefs prepared a bland curry that no Durbanite would believe has any comparison to our spicy speciality.
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| Sunset on Bloubergstarnd |
We returned to our "home-from-home" to reflect on our days exploring after visiting Uncle Andre' at work. There is certainly a lot to see and do in this vibrant City, and it was apparent that our five days here would not be enough to see even a third of it all.
Reflecting on our time in the City so far, we were quickly coming to the conclusion that this was a place where we felt comfortable; where we didn't walk around with one eye on "grab and run" candidates; where the drivers in the traffic don't give one the impression of being "aggressive". They stop for pedestrians, they allow motorbikes to pass between the lanes on the white lines, they stop at red lights. Not what we are used to in Durban.
We were being seduced by the peace of this City, the views, the people, the facilities, and the sunsets.
More tomorrow
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