2023-08-10: Table Mountain & Kirstenbosch

We woke up at 6:30am this morning. We got cleaned up and grabbed breakfast in the hotel restaurant again this morning. Zain met us at the hotel at 8:00am. Our first stop was Robben Island this morning. Due to the windy weather, the tours to Robben Island had been suspended the last few days but we were hopeful it would run today. Zain had stopped by the ticket office on his way to the hotel but they still didn’t know if the tours would run. It was only a few blocks away so we walked over to the ticket office to hang out until our tour at 9:00am. Zain had to grab a few things from his vehicle in the mall parkade so told us to meet him at the Robben Island tour office. We knew where it was so that wasn’t a problem.

We walked to the tour office but the rotating bridge takes you across the canal to the office. It was just opening to allow a catamaran to pass. We watched the catamaran float by and then crossed over. Zain hadn’t caught up yet so we paid a visit to the Cape Fur Seals hanging out next door for a few minutes. We also took a look at a display showing the footprint of the cell Nelson Mandela was imprisoned in on Robben Island out front when Zain finally caught up to us. He said he received a message from his office that the tour had been cancelled. He wanted to double-check so we went into the tour office. They hadn’t been informed of a cancellation so we wen through the security checkpoint to enter the building. As soon as we did, they announced the tour had been cancelled due to the taxi strike. The next tour would be offered on Sunday, August 13th. That made us quite sad as Robben Island was one of the things we were really looking forward to seeing. There was nothing we could do about it though.

Zain decided we should go to Table Mountain next. He grabbed his van and picked us up near the Robben Island office. Then we were on our way to the Table Mountain Cable Car. We arrived at about 9:00am. The cars were lined up along the hill to the entrance already. Zain dropped us off at the entrance and gave us our tickets. He told us he’d join us at the top once he found a place to park. We got in line for the cable car. The line wasn’t too long despite the long line of cars along the road. We moved through the line pretty quickly and were soon on the cable car up the mountain. The cable cars hold 65 people each and the floor rotates as you ascend so you get a 360 degree view. Before we knew it, we were on top of the mountain. Table Mountain is known to be draped in clouds fairly often. We were lucky today as it was a beautiful, clear day aside from a bit of haze hanging over the city. Zain sent Darrell a message informing us the entrance line had grown and he was just going to wait for us at the bottom. We wandered the pathways on top of the mountain for an hour and a half or so taking in the views before taking the cable car back down the mountain. We met Zain again at the bottom and continued to our next destination.

We headed to Signal Hill next. It’s a hill that overlooks the waterfront. It got it’s name from colonial times. They used to have a lookout on the hill that would keep an eye out for incoming ships that stopped here to resupply. They would signal the local residents that the ship was arriving so the various trades could come to the port to try to sell their goods. We enjoyed the views from the hill. They also use the hill as a launching platform for paragliding. We watched a few people launch off the hill. There was a steady stream of parasailers taking off.

After enjoying the views we moved along. Zain took us to the Malays Houses. The story is that the land was purchased by a slave owner with the intent of building rental homes for the slaves. Eventually, the slaves were freed and the government moved them into these houses. They were boring white and cream colours at the time. Once the freed slaves owned them, they wanted to add their own flair to them as one of the perks of their new freedom. They painted them vibrant colours and they’ve stayed that way since. They have become a bit of a tourist attraction. We snapped a few photos and continued on.

The Castle of Good Hope was next. It’s an old fort that was originally built by the Dutch and was eventually taken over by the British. We explored the fort for a while. They have put several mini museums of sorts within the fort. There was a section for African pottery, another on the military history of the area during colonial times.

Once we had finished exploring the fort, we headed to Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. It’s a huge botanical garden. Once of the pathways alone takes 3.5 hours to walk according to the map. We obviously didn’t spend that much time there. We started by grabbing some lunch at the Tea House restaurant in the gardens. Zain wanted to take us to a different restaurant on site, but they were closed for a private function. The Tea House only had 3 of the 20 kitchen staff working due to the taxi strike so it was a very limited menu. They were only offering sandwiches off their menu. We all ordered milkshakes and sandwiches and enjoyed our lunch while visiting with Zain. Well, Patrick didn’t enjoy his sandwich. The Dijon mustard on his roast beef sandwich didn’t agree with his taste buds.

We finished lunch and started to explore the gardens. It is winter in South Africa so it wasn’t as pretty as it would be during the summer months. We enjoyed viewing the plants anyway. Especially Amanda. South Africa has it’s own Floral Kingdom so has plants that can only be found here. We spent a couple of hours exploring and then headed back to the hotel. Zain was supposed to drive us to the airport in the morning, but he got a call while we were at the gardens asking him to work with another group for the next few days. Once we arrived at the hotel, we had to say our goodbyes and thank yous to Zain.

We returned to our rooms and started to pack up our gear. Michael started to get hungry around 6:30pm. Amanda and Patrick were still full from lunch, so Darrell to Michael to get some food. They ended up at a restaurant called Gibson’s. It was a burger place and had a menu just for the milkshakes they serve. Michael was very happy.

After dinner, they returned to the hotel. We finished our packing and got ourselves ready for bed. It will be an early morning to head to the airport.