Let's take a walk through a brand new day.
Part 5: African Adventure 2022
Cape Point, Kirstenbosch Gardens and Boulder Beach
Our South African Guide, Gillian Schroeder, picked us up bright and early for a rainy day drive to Cape Point. On the way, she pointed out her favorite place to get fish: Fish On The Rocks. Love the name. Our drive began on a very scenic and winding road that was a bit harrowing at times with the hairpin curves. The road, Chapman’s Peak Drive, skirts the ocean along Hout Bay towards Cape Point. We got tickled as we passed a sign saying, “Baboons are Dangerous WILD animals. Keep doors locked and windows closed”. That’s not a sign one sees in the USA! This led to a discussion with Gillian about the problems baboons cause in Cape Town. She lives there and says that if they get in your house, which they will at some point, and you don’t notice…..you come home to a MESS! When they get excited and realize they are trapped, they poop all over the house and in the meantime, eat everything in sight. YIKES!
Our next stop was at the Cape of Good Hope which is at the southern tip of Africa. It is also the focus of many shipwrecks. David and I took the Funicular to the top of the mountain to get a better view of Cape Point. The lighthouse is still there and there is a climb to the top to access it.The views were fantastic even in the rain. As we made our way down the Funicular, there were several tour buses. Those buses were signals to the baboons to come out of hiding. It was explained to us that they hide behind tires or rocks and when the last person comes off the bus, they try to jump on. They have learned that buses have backpacks on seats and backpacks hold snacks! Those little buggers are smart! Needless to say, there is a man with a long stick that tries to deter them from getting close to the bus but they are persistent!.
Funiculur 
Steps to lighthouse 
Lighthouse 
Cape Point 
Baboon waiting by the bus!
Safe from the baboons, we made our way down the mountain to the Cape of Good Hope. The Cape was originally known as the Cape of Storms by Portuguese explorer Bartholomew Dias in 1488. So many shipwrecks happened at this point. It was later renamed, by King John II of Portugal, the Cape of Good Hope because of the new optimism caused by the opening of a sea route to India and the East. When I was in school, I was taught that the Cape of Good Hope was the most southern part of Africa. That is not true. It is the most southwestern but the most southern is actually Cape Agulhas, which is about 90 miles southeast of the Cape of Good Hope. This area is where the Indian Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean meet. The things you learn when you travel!
We’re here and it’s windy!
As we made our way down the mountain toward Boulders Beach, it was quite fun to just come upon an ostrich on the side of the road. Sometimes they looked up to check us out and other times, they kept their head down and continued to eat.
Boulders Beach in South Africa is famous for the large population of African Penguins and are absolutely adorable. It was fun to watch them waddle into the water and especially fun to see the babies and mamas. Be sure to watch the video as the penguin couple make their way to the ocean.
Enroute to Kirstenbosch Gardens, Gillian stopped at Jubilee Square to tell us the saga of the dog, Just Nuisance. Just Nuisance was the only dog ever to be officially enlisted in the Royal Navy. He was a Great Dane who served at HMS Afrikander, in Simon’s Town, South Africa between 1933-1944. He died at the age of seven and was buried with full military honors. Just Nuisance was disobedient at times as his “Conduct Sheet” shows. He was guilty of traveling on the train without his free pass, sleeping on a bed in the Petty Officer’s dormitory, going AWOL, losing his collar and resisting eviction from pubs at closing time. His statue stands in the harbor in his memory
We were sad that the rain continued as we visited Kirstenbosch Gardens but we made the best of it. We could tell by the many buds on the plants that the colors would be bursting in about 2 more weeks. The gardens are huge and would take days to see it all. Concerts are regularly held in the gardens and locals enjoy the gardens on a regular basis. I could easily see why. Even our pictures in the rain show how beautiful it is.
After leaving the gardens, we made our way to Signal Hill to see where the hang gliders take off. It was too foggy to get much of a view, but we did see a good panorama of Cape Town on the way back down. Then we drove to the area where the Muslims first made their home in South Africa and is the site of the first mosque. It is called the Bo-Kapp Area. Every house in Bo-Kaap was painted with a different color to represent a specific talent or trade in the family. The house with magenta walls had great chefs, while the orange house represented a tailor and his family, and so on. Unfortunately those brightly colored houses bring tourists like us to see them and it causes a bit of a traffic jam.
We also saw the old buildings of the city center and the South African Parliament complex. One of the sights that I loved was that they erected a statue of Nelson Mandela on the exact spot at the Parliament House where he gave his first speech after being released. The statue is perfect and shows him sharing the news with the people. We had a day of learning today which I cherish.
Parliament House where Mandela spoke to the people after being freed. 
Finally, just before sunset, we drove back up toward Table Mountain. Unfortunately the cable cars were being serviced so we couldn’t ride to the top. It was also too foggy to get the Instagram picture with Table Mountain in the background. But we drove to the lower viewpoint and had a fabulous view of the city. We learned at the top of the mountain that Table Mountain is one of the NEW 7 wonders of the world. The New 7 wonders include 4 that I have visited and 3 that I have not. I have visited the Amazon in South America, Iguazu Falls in Argentina, Table Mountain in South Africa and Halong Bay in Vietnam. I have not been to Komodo in Indonesia, Puerto Princesa Underground River in the Philippines and Jeju Island in South Korea. Those are new ideas for the Travel Bucket List.
Karen