Cape Town: The Mother City of South Africa (Part Two)

This post is part two of a series about our visit to Cape Town, South Africa. Be sure to read part one!

Day Two - Boulders, Beaches, and Mountains

The plans for this day were full. It included a visit to Table Mountain via cable car, a quick walk through Bo-Kaap, a drive out to Simon's Town, and a hike up Lion's Head in time for sunset. It seemed like a stretch, but we were ready to put in the effort!

We started off by having another large breakfast. This time, we ordered dishes in addition to the buffet. We had eggs Benedict and toasted waffles.

After breakfast, we took a cab to the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway just as it opened. Already, there were plenty of tour buses parked in the drop-off area and lots of people standing in line. It's not the worst crowd I've seen, but we waited about an hour to get a ride up to the top.

The view while we waited in line wasn't too shabby.

While standing in line, we noticed signs telling us to purchase our tickets on our phones. So, we did! It was quick and convenient, and we had our tickets ready to show when we approached the cable cars!

The cable car ascends 3500 feet in five minutes to the upper cable station. Along the way, the platform rotates 360 degrees, offering all the guests a full panoramic view of the surrounding landscape.

On our way up, we noticed there were lots of clouds at the top. The weather really determines whether guests get a good view or not. Unfortunately for us, we got no sweeping views of the city.

We managed to see a close relative of the elephant, the dassie (or rock hyrax). It looks like a chubby hamster.

Occasionally, the clouds would break, but never long enough to get a full view of the city below.

There's a little cafe at the very top, offering everything from full-on meals to tea and coffee. It was a nice little break from the cold and wind, but we didn't stay very long.

Ironically, the clouds broke up more as we made our way back down the mountain.

When we got to the bottom,we grabbed an Uber to take us to Avis to get our rental car. We purposely chose a pick-up location closest to the neighborhood of Bo-Kaap. After we picked up the car, we explored the neighborhood.

While walking around, we stumbled upon a small store named Monkeybiz. This popular chain specializes in selling  contemporary African bead-work. Beaded artwork is a spiritual African tradition, rooted in deep in its history.

We ended up buying a couple of beaded coasters to take home!

Bo-Kaap is Afrikaans meaning "upper cape". It's known for its brightly-colored, low-roofed houses built along cobbled streets. It's a historic place, used as a garrison for the military in the 18th century, then settled by emancipated slaves after the 1830s.

The neighborhood is one of the most photographed places in Cape Town. It's easy to see why!

Since we were pressed for time, we snapped a couple of photos of the colorful houses and started off for Simon's Town.

The drive from Cape Town to Simon's Town is just about an hour. The highway climbs up the steep mountains of the Silver Mine Nature Reserve, treating drivers to sweeping views of the suburbs down below. There's a small lookout point near the top where we pulled over to safely enjoy the view.

When we finally arrived in Simon's Town, we went straight to Boulders Beach to see its infamous penguins! We parked the car in an open space near the main entrance. The car guard let us know that he would watch our car while we were away.

The main entrance was filled with souvenir vendors. They line the roadway down to the ticket gate.

Once at the main gate, we paid for our entry and made our way to the main beach on the boardwalk.

There were a few penguins scattered here and there, but we were blown away when we arrived at the main beach.

There were tons of penguins in the sand!

We were so enamored by them, it was easy to forget to admire the beauty of the sandy beach itself.

After watching the penguins swim, waddle, and trip over in the sand, we made our way back to our car and paid the guard. Then, we drove back into the middle of Simon's Town to look for lunch.

Simon's Town started as a small, informal Dutch settlement until it was established as a main anchorage for the Dutch East India Company in 1743. It once operated as a naval base for the British Royal Navy up until the 1950s. Currently, it operates as the largest naval base for the South African Navy.

Although it was a bit windy and cold, we decided to have lunch on the balcony of the Harbour View Restaurant, a seafood place right on the water.

We sipped some Windhoek, a generic African lager, and enjoyed a hefty platter of fish, calamari, and chips. Though the servings were generous, some of the slices of fish were overly greasy.

  

Before making the hour-long drive back to Cape Town, we stopped in for some coffee at a small restaurant named Lighthouse Cafe. The brightly-colored, French-inspired decor was pleasant to look at. And the coffee was a much needed pick-me-up!

After the hour-long drive, we made it to the Lion's Head trail head. It's not very far from the city core, so there are plenty of people who like to hike it.

I really like to give any hikes a more detailed report, so I've written one especially for Lion's Head here!

Once we finished our hike, we drove back to the hotel. Siya was there to greet us! We went up to our rooms and freshened up for our last evening in Cape Town. We tried our best to go out with a bang, but we were too exhausted from our busy day. Our last night, we had food and drinks at the Leopard Bar.

Shortly after, we went back to our rooms and fell right asleep.

Final Thoughts

I've visited many cities over the years, but none quite like Cape Town. There's a little bit of something for everyone, from sandy beaches to high mountain peaks. It was bold to try and explore as much as we could in two days, we didn't even scratch the surface. However, from what we were able to see, it left us longing to return.

Special thanks to my good friend, John Ocampo, for sharing his photos with us!