After our stopover at Betty’s Bay, we continued along the scenic R44 on our way to Cape Town. We were undecided on how to best use the few hours we had before we had to head back to the airport – we wanted to visit some friends we hadn’t seen in a while, but since Gareth had never been up Table Mountain or seen the beautiful Cape Point Nature Reserve, I really wanted to try and get both sights in. We were still undecided when we reached Cape Town, and ended up driving aimlessly through the streets for a while before settling on Table Mountain.
Once we reached the base of the mountain, we found out that the cable car was still closed for maintenance, although it was supposed to have been finished the day before. I was disappointed, but the relief on Gareth’s face was almost comical – he is notoriously scared of heights and didn’t relish the idea of being one of the first people to go up in the cable car right after its annual maintenance. So we settled for taking in the view over one of the most iconic cities of the world. It was spectacular! I’m beginning to realise why Capetonians love their city so much.
We headed back down and went to visit our friends. They encouraged us to try and get Cape Point in as well, so we set off in a hurry, but it was not to be. We took the road winding along the coast, going through picturesque little towns like Simon’s Town and Fish Hoek, but the traffic and an encounter with baboons next to the road ensured that we would not have the time to appreciate the nature reserve to its full extent. Reluctantly, we turned around to make our way to the airport.
As we came up to one of the many lookout points dotted along the coast, we could see several cars parked and people pointing excitedly towards the ocean. I saw the telltale blast of air, veered of the road and almost jumped out of the car before it had properly stopped. There, not 50 meters from us, a whale was playing in the water! How unbelievably lucky were we? And what a perfect ending to a perfect weekend!
Labels: Africa, Cape Point, Cape Town, South Africa, Table Mountain, whale watching
