Cape Town

Aaron and I loved Cape Town.  Many people have asked me about it and it could be any bustling American city - with gorgeous beaches and mountains!  The people were so nice and we felt totally safe there.  This is my first time out of the country and I felt totally at ease.

We spent the first 2 nights in a beach neighborhood called Camp's Bay which was stunning.  We spent the next 3 nights in central Cape Town, no complaints with the next place at all, but if we did it again we'd stay in Camp's Bay the whole time as it was a 10 minute drive to city center and the view in Camp's Bay is to die for!

The houses built up the hill reminded me of Italy and Greece.  We stayed at the Bay Atlantic Guest House.

Beach selfie!  The weather was in the 70s-low 80s during our stay but the water was too cold to swim.

They say Camp's Bay is like South Beach - not quite as busy, but I definitely get the comparison.  At our guest house there were 4 other guests and we were all around the same age, late 20s.  We became fast friend's which lead to an awesome night on the town.

I love these awesome ladies - from Ireland and London!  I honestly have no clue what time we got home that Friday night/Saturday morning.  The bar closed on us.  Some crazy energetic guy - "Zimbabwe!"- who was buying bottles made sure everyone had shots until the bottles were empty. :-) We all stumbled back to the guest house and thank goodness we nixed the idea of an after party in the living room because little did we know another couple had arrived that evening and was fast asleep.

Camp's Bay strip, to the right is Cafe Caprice where our impromptu night out was held

We also went to Table Mountain on a clear day and it was amazing.

We enjoyed lunch at the VA Waterfront & took the ferry to Robben's Island for a tour

At Robben Island...

The house where Robert Sobukwe, a political dissident who challenged apartheid, spent 6 years in solitary confinement.

Nelson Mandela's cell where he spent 18 of his 26 years in prison.

It was so touching.  It's been 20 years since the end of apartheid and South Africa definitely has a long way to go (don't get me wrong - the United States still has room for much improvement).  We came a few weeks before elections and about a month after reports of ANC/African National Congresss, the party of people such as Sobukwe and Mandela, was found to be misappropriating funds - 230 million rands/23 million US dollars to be exact.   So there was so much talk about the upcoming election and should the ANC stay in power or was it time for someone new like the DA.  Elections are over now and ANC won by a landslide despite the scandal.  I do worry about uneducated people simply voting for a black face.  But who can trust a white face given the history and with the average white making 6x more than a black in South Africa?  For all these reasons and more, Aaron turned every cab ride into an intense political discussion with the cabbies!

Sunset on ride back from Robben Island

Our second bed & breakfast, Parker Cottage, home of the most amazing breakfast in Cape Town - 3 courses!

Enjoying course #1 in the garden.  The strawberry juice tasted as if it had been just muddled, it was decadent and amazing really!

Central Cape Town

This post was so long but I didn't want to drag out recapping the trip!  Next I'll show you Cape Point and then the Winelands and then we'll be done! :-)