Spectacular South Africa

April 7-9, 2013 Capetown, South Africa

We have spent 3 wonderful days in Capetown.  Our first day found us on a ship’s tour to the Cape of Good Hope.  This is the south western most point of Africa.  We actually passed the southernmost point the evening before we sailed into Capetown. 

view of False Bay

The tour included a drive along the coast through some fancy suburbs of Capetown.  We then drove on the Chapman’s Peak Drive.  It is much like the Big Sur coastline in California and is a tollroad like the 17 Mile Drive in Monterey area.  It was beautiful and lead us past some very interesting and scary granite cliffs. 

Cape Point funicular

Chapmans Peak drive

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We toured the Cape Point Nature area, looking out for wildlife along the way.  We didn’t see anything, not even the baboons they warned were everywhere.  At the Cape Point, we took a funicular up to the viewing area and then “C”, dad and I climbed up to the old lighthouse.  The views of the point and the ocean were beautiful.  We could even see the shallow reef area where several ships have perished in the past, including the passenger vessel the Lusitania. 

scene of shipwrecks

This is the area where the Atlantic and Indian Ocean currents meet.  The interesting part is the Atlantic is where the kelp beds grow, but no in the Indian.  The currents from the Indian Ocean bring warm water into the area, making this the more pleasurable swimming area.  I don’t think I will take advantage of the warm water no matter, given the high frequency of Great White sightings there are in South Africa. 

baby African penguins

Our next stop was to visit the Boulder Bay area.  This is where there are numerous African penguins that come ashore for nesting.  There were adult as well as baby penguins here.  We even saw a penguin sitting on an egg.  There were several taking swims as well.  Apparently, in the warmer weather people can even swim with the penguins.

Mom & "C"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After this visit we had a wonderful lunch in the Seaforth restaurant.  They served a wonderful fresh salad along with a plate of fresh Hake and calamari.  The calamari was so fresh and tender.  This is the 2^nd time we had wonderful fresh calamari on this trip.  The other was on the beach in the Philippines.  “C” even devoured his portion.   We adults also had a wonderful draft beer or a glass of house wine.  Turns out the house wine is literally the wine the restaurant actually bottles.  The lunch was wonderful.

African nesting grounds

After lunch a bit of shopping was available.  We bought “C” a beautifully painted mrimba and I got a mask to use in the powder room at home.  Our bus tour continued around the cape and we headed back up the eastern side of the cape.  We passed Hout Bay as well as False Bay during our drive.  We saw one of the oldest townships in Capetown as well. There are some newer houses built there along with the shacks that are often there.

"C" and the cheetah statue

Our final stop of the day was to the Kirshenboch Botanical Gardens.  These wonderful gardens were established on lands donated by Rhodes,  the founder of De Beers diamond company.  He had no heirs so he left many things to the people of Capetown when he died.  We had a wonderful wander through there before heading back to the ship. On the way, we passed by the hospital where the first human heart transplant was performed. 

Capetown Township

The second day we headed out on an adventure we set up before leaving home.  “C” and I had seen a program with Jack Hanna on TV.  He had visited a Cheetah Outreach program in Capetown.  We immediately looked them up on the internet and contacted them via email.  They responded and provided a company whom they used for transportation.  They immediately responded and set up a transfer for the 4 of us.  The company sent Tony as our driver.  He was a wonderful guide and told us all about Capetown and the areas we passed.  The drive took us past some huge townships.

He explained to us that any open land within the townships could be used to put a shed/building on for no charge.  This is where the people displaced by apartheid originally were sent to live.  Today, it is the location of the poor and unemployed in South Africa.  The refugees that come from other war torn areas of Africa often end up here as well.  Many do not even have water, plumbing or electricity. This was the biggest example of poverty we have seen on our trip. The magnitude of these townships was unbelievable. 

Cheetah cub during our encounter

The destination we were seeking was far more cheerful than some of the areas of the drive.  The Cheetah Outreach program was started to educate people about Cheetahs and to help preserve the species.   The program helps in a breeding program. They receive cubs when they are 4 weeks old who then work with trainers they grow to trust.  The trainers let the cheetahs take the lead and do not force them to do anything.  You are instructed on how to pet them on their backs and sides.  You must get up if they get up and you are not to get down in front of them, they will think you are trying to engage them in play. 

Cheetah with King gene

“C” and I participated in a cub encounter.  We went with 2 trainers and another guest in to meet two  9 month old cubs. They are only a few weeks apart.  The one female actually has the King gene, which is no longer found in the wild.  This gene makes them have more black on their fur.  This causes them to heat up faster and can lead to them overheating in the wild.  It turns out while cheetahs are very fast, they have to stop after a short time because they overheat and this can cause them to have a heart attack if they don’t stop and cool down.  Hence, the extra black coloring is a risk to their survival. 

Neither cat was very cooperative that day.  It seems the cool rainy weather made them more active than usual, normally they lay about lazily in the middle of the day. Thus, we really didn’t have much time to pet the one cub who did lie down.  The trainers tried unsuccessfully to get her to pose on the platform for pictures so we have an over the shoulder shot of “C” that they took and our shots from our cameras.  It was still a wonderful experience.

serval

jackal

We toured around the rest of the facility and looked at the other animals there.  They have servals, another cat, and jackals.  They also have bat eared foxes.  They were busy digging dens and appeared to be searching out some other animal that was burrowed underground.  They also had some meerkats there as well. 

Anatolian shepherd

 

 

The other major piece of the outreach is the Anatolian Shepherds.  The program uses the proceeds from the visitors to help breed these shepherds.  It turns out the major threat to wild cheetahs are farmers who are protecting their herds.  These shepherds will stand up to cheetahs in the wild and as such can help farmers protect their herds.  The outreach breeds these dogs to provide to farmers in an effort to protect the cheetah population.  Hopefully this will help in the long run as they truly are majestic cats.

Adele, the ship hostess, also told us her father is using another means of protection for his animals on his farm in addition to the dogs.  He is now using a baboon to protect the herd.  The baboon is very protective of the animals and will stand up to anything it perceives is a threat to them.  It appears it is a very reliable worker who never calls in sick and requires minimal pay- a basket of fruit.  Hopefully this is another safe approach to finding a balance with wildlife in this beautiful country.

 

 

anemones

In the afternoon after we returned to the ship, we headed to the Two Oceans Aquarium at the Victoria and Alfred Wharf.   They had many fascinating species found in the area.  They even  had a great white in their predator tank.  They also had rockhopper penguins.  We have certainly seen a large number of penguin varieties on this trip.  

"C" at Victoria & Alfred waterfront

We rounded out the day and the 3^rd day with some shopping at the waterfront.  We found some wonderful souvenirs in the craft sheds there in the V&A waterfront.  “C” also found a great magic set which he is rapidly mastering in his spare time.  



Table Mountain towering over Capetown

All in all Capetown was another wonderful stop on our journey.  We look forward to our day at sea before arriving in Namibia.

Capetown sailaway at sunset