Cape Town
Hey all, it's been two days in Cape Town now and it really is beautiful here!
Sunday morning we went to Stu's brother's church, Sunnyside Church of the Nazarene. It had some funky worship with and Pastor Quinton on the sax. After church we drove to Port Hout for some fish and chips. It's about 45 mins from Cape Town. While we were eating we watched guys wading out to the Atlantic Ocean and throw some nets in the surf and pull out a net full of fish! Then they dumped them into containers and hauled them up to the piers. Now that's fresh seafood!
We wandered the little markets for a while and then went for a drive along the coast. We ended up in a liitle place called Simon's Town, a navy town. There is a little board walk to wander that leads you past a penguin sanctuary. We didn't see any penguins down by the boulders and beach, but we did see a whole bunch hiding in the bushes along the boardwalk! There were some vendors along the walk as well.
As the sun was setting, we made our way to where the Schwartz's were staying and had a little pizza party! Then Peter and Sybil drove me back to their place. Little Reese was staying up to say good night!
I gave a call home for a quick hello since I don't have an Internet connection, and found out that Annika had had a bit of an accident. She should be okay, but Curtis has been pretty sick and has been having a rough time at home. I actually tried to change my ticket when we flew in to Cape Town so I could get home earlier, but I couldn't do it without actually repurchasing new tickets so I guess we will just have to wait for Friday.
We were up and going for 8 Monday morning. Stu and I stopped by his old high school for a stroll down his memory lane. There were 3 teachers he remembered that were still working there. That's pretty impressive for it being 20 years later!
We went by Quinton's place and picked up Gary, Jeff and Quinton and we were off to meet the Scwartz's at the Waterfront. There were lots more markets here and lots of haggling and interesting things to look at. We grabbed a quick bite and headed over for our Robben Island tour.
Robin Island is where Nelson Mandella was imprisoned. It was an interesting tour, but unfortunately our tour guide was tough to understand and we were quite rushed through. Although I learned some new history I would have liked to have spent more time in some areas. The ferry rides there and back were a little choppy for some of our little group! We had decided earlier that if the weather was at all favorable, we would head up Table Mountain. Well this afternoon was the time. We got to the bottom of the Gondola at around 5. It turned out perfectly! The ride up was quick, lots of ear popping. The Gondola cars are round and have room for 65 people. The floors in the Gondolas actually spin slowly so that you get a full 720 degree view as you go up. The views from the top were indescribable. Table Mountain has just been named one of the world's new 7 natural wonders of the world for good reason.
The horizon out over the ocean looked like we were looking out from outer space. The clouds, ocean and sky all converged at the horizon and it was stunning! Then on the other side of the peak, you can see all of Cape Town and the surrounding communities. While we were up there, the clouds started to build up on the one side of the mountain range and spill over the edge, looking like a waterfall of clouds over the top of the mountain. The effect is called the table cloth, very fitting. On top of watching that, we caught the sunset over the ocean. What a beautiful day!
We made it back to Peter and Celeste's place for 8 where all of the family friends came over for some curry and a visit with Stu. It was a great gathering. And it confirmed my low tolerance to spice since the mildest curry made me suck back a lot of cucumber slices to save my burning mouth!
Peter and Sybil drove me home early and we left Stu at the party. I'm not sure what we are doing tomorrow, but I'm sure it will be stunning.
Until next time!
Shalina
No comments:
Post a Comment