Going through the photos on my computer, I found it difficult to choose one destination over another to blog about this week. I finally settled on what has to be my all-time favorite vacation: my trip to South Africa. Part one of this blog is going to be focused primarily on our time in Cape Town.
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Hout Bay, one of the bays known for its exceptional harbor,
as well as for multiple neighborhoods of different economic levels, all encompassed within a very small region. |
As always, I’m going to begin by discussing the history of Cape Town – a city that, in my opinion felt like a cross between Sydney, Australia and San Francisco. The area was not mentioned in written history until about 1488 when it was mentioned by the Portuguese explorer Bartholomeu Dias. Another famous explorer, Vasco de Gama briefly mentioned it as well, when searching for a route from Europe to Asia. The area was previously occupied by indigenous people, but was settled by Dutch settlers in 1652. It stayed under Dutch control until the British invaded the territory in the late 1700s and from that point onward, the territory shifted between British and Dutch control until South Africa’s independence. During South Africa’s infamous apartheid era, large portions of the city were deemed to be “white-only territories”, with a large portion of the black African population being forced to move north into more under-developed territories.
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| The plaque at the Cape of Good Hope, marking the Southernmost point of the African Continent |
What really sets Cape Town apart, especially as a popular destination for tourists it’s impressive array of natural attractions. The city is surrounded by a variety of bays and, my favorite attraction, picturesque red sandstone cliffs meeting deep blue water. My family and I made our way to the Cape of Good Hope – the southern-most point on the African continent –, took a boat ride out to Duiker Island to enjoy watching the seals inhabiting the island, and made our way to the Twelve Apostles – conveniently named due to the fact that there were twelve sandstone cliffs lined up along the coast.
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Biltong - or cow's tongue -one
of South Africa's delicacies, the tongue
is dried, salted, sliced, and served as an
appetizer
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| The seals of Duiker Island |
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| One of South Africa's many bays |
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| The View from Our Hotel window out over Cape Town |
I always think of Reinhardt from RAM when I hear South Africa (that's where he's from). Like always, you kept the post concise and interesting. I love your pictures!!! and I've had biltong before, so I appreciated your mention of it.
ReplyDeleteI wonder now how your perspective of everyone's favorite book, "Country of My Skull", was different since you've actually BEEN THERE (and everywhere else, it seems). How on earth do you get around the world so much? I am really waiting for part 2!
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