Cape Town for first time visitors

First impressions

Our first venture through the city streets was a little tentative. A few extra checks over the shoulder. Maybe a little jumpy when someone jumped out asking for money. In and around the city bowl, where we were staying, we had already seen a lot of poverty. The taxi from the airport took a rather circuitous route to our Airbnb. Isn’t this taxi drivers the world over? And we had been taken down Longmarket Street, seeing the extent of the homeless refugees, camped out on the streets, in and around the church. I had just spent a glorious, luxurious, 6 days chasing animals, and chasing wines. If ever it was time to reflect on how privileged we are, that time would be now. We were about to experience Cape Town as first time visitors.

Cape Town has quite a reputation, on a number of fronts. Depending on who you talk to, you could either be in for a definite mugging, knife attack, or carjacking, or you could be in for the holiday of a lifetime, with amazing scenery, world class wines, and fine dining to rival anything you have previously had. A South African colleague of mine had primed me with every scare story he could think of it was surprising I wasn’t a nervous wreck from the moment I touched down.

The V&A waterfront

With bags dropped at our city centre apartment, we walked down to the V&A Waterfront, which took me a few days to work out mean’t the Victoria and Alfred waterfront. Attracting over 20 million visitors a year, the oldest working harbour in the southern hemisphere has been converted into a multi use leisure precinct, teeming with bars and restaurants. Only a 30 minute walk from the city bowl, where we were staying, it could have been a million miles away, and is a great example of the inequality in South Africa. Something we saw all through our 10 day trip. 

Surrounded by the majestic Table Mountain, the 2010 World Cup final football stadium, and the sea, this is an area that you should visit whilst in Cape Town. If you have a spare R20,300 (approx $2,000) you can stay in the area and have one (yes, just 1) night in one of the cheapest rooms at the Silo Hotel. Trust me, this looks better on the inside, as an old silo mill has been faithfully restored to hold a luxury hotel. We had sunset drinks on the rooftop one evening but were caught unawares by the wind, taking the shine off the experience.

Did someone say food?

One of the best experiences that South Africa has to offer, less obvious than the animals on safari, and the wineries of Franschhoek, is the world class food it serves up. Having read up on this, and having a travel partner who is on top of her Instagram game, we, or should I say she, had the foresight to book a table for dinner at the fabulous Pot Luck Club (http://thepotluckclub.co.za/). Situated on the top floor of an old silo, in the Biscuit Mill, Pot Luck Club is the sister restaurant to The Test Kitchen (https://www.thetestkitchen.co.za/home). Knowing that the Test Kitchen has been on such illustrious lists as the Best Restaurants of the year, and The World’s 50 Best Restaurants, we knew it had good pedigree. We weren’t disappointed. Oh boy, what a night.

Robben Island

The day after, in a more sombre mood, we made our way back to the waterfront to join the Robben Island tour. Robben Island, located just 7 kilometres off the coast of Cape Town, is where Nelson Mandela was incarcerated for 18 of the 27 years he spent in prison. Tours depart 4 times a day, offering a 3.5 hour round trip by boat. On the island you are joined by a former inmate who shows you around the prison buildings, including Mandela’s old cell, whilst recounting his experiences as a prisoner on the island. It is moving, frustrating and deeply maddening all at the same time to hear of the injustices of the time.

Getting out of the city

Whilst the previous day on Robben Island left us in a very reflective mood, today was about joining an organised tour and heading out of the city. We spent the day touring along the coast, driving along the breathtaking Chapmans Peak, probably the most scenic drive in the world. Over the course of a fun day, albeit rather over narrated by our enthusiastic driver, we spent time at the Cape of Good Hope (where the Atlantic and Indian oceans meet), Hout Bay, and Boulders Beach. 

Pick up a penguin

Now let me say right here, Boulders Beach was THE main reason for the day trip. It was the stop I had been told by Vik that was non negotiable. Whilst planning the trip, back in Sydney, Boulders Beach had always featured very high on the list of things to do. And when you get there, and walk amongst the thousands of African penguins, it all made sense. For some reason these African penguins settled on this sheltered beach in 1982 and it has been home to them ever since, drawing in hordes and hordes of tourists.

Time for tea, high tea

Escaping the crowds, the day after saw us celebrating what had been a great holiday. One that surpassed all my expectations. And we were going out on a high with a sparkling high tea at the venerable Cape Grace hotel. Regular readers of the blog will no doubt know of my quest to find Sydney’s best high tea and that I always like to try out new ones. And receive your recommendations. In the hushed interior of The Library in the hotel we enjoyed a glass of sparkling MCC (South Africa’s excellent champagne style bubbles) and a tower of decadent delights. Did it hit the heights of the Devonshire Arms in Yorkshire? Maybe the lack of proper clotted cream just let it down.

Table Mountain

What visit to Cape Town is complete without a trip up to the top of Table Mountain? Saying goodbye to our friendly, Manchester United supporting Uber driver, we headed over and joined the queue of people that had the foresight to pre-book tickets online. This did in fact save us quite a bit of time as the queuing system for the cable car ride up is slightly chaotic. With a rotating internal cabin that holds up to 60 people at a time, the ride itself is quite daunting.  Climbing to heights of and being unable to hold on to the sides, as they keep rotating around, the trip is quite discombobulating.

Until the next time

All good things come to an end, and alas the same was true for this amazing holiday. We had seen the best on offer in Cape Town for first time visitors. We still had one last morning to fill and where better to spend it than at another Instagram favourite of Vik’s. Jason Bakery (@jasonbakerycpt) posts pictures on Instagram that look so good you often find yourself licking your screen. I can confirm that they taste as good as they look, and are well complemented with some of the best coffee I had on the whole trip. We even snuck a couple in the bag to enjoy at the airport ahead of flying home.