Since we had expected to be exhausted after our prior months traveling through East Africa (from Rwanda to Namibia, you can see those HERE)…
…we planned ahead and rented a place outside of Cape Town (South Africa) to rest, recoup, and leisurely just “live” for a good long while!
Growing up, whenever I saw pictures of this area of South Africa (usually with The Twelve Apostles mountain range or Table Mountain in the background!), I remember thinking,
“I’ll probably never see Cape Town…”
Why? South Africa seemed SO far away!
(And it is…especially from the American West Coast!)
In those days, it took 30+ hours of travel from the West Coast to eventually get to Cape Town, with several long flights, overnights, and long layovers. (Nowadays there are ways you can shorten it to as “little” as 24 hours of straight travel, but that’s two 10-12 hour flights back-to-back, and if you’ve ever had experience with those flights, you’ll know how brutal those can be! And if you’ve never done them with children in tow, then you definitely don’t know.😂)
However, suddenly we were already living in Europe and that’s when South Africa doesn’t seem quite so far away!
(It’s still a 12-hour flight from London to Cape Town – the equivalent of flying LAX-Auckland. Which is pretty much my standard for every flight now because we’ve done it so much.😅 “Is it longer or shorter than flying back and forth to New Zealand?” If it’s shorter than 12 hours, I’m like, “EASY BREEZY!”)
There is SO much to do in and around Cape Town that we’ve tried to narrow it down into our top 10 favorites only!
“But how much time do I need in Cape Town?” people will ask.
Someone recently said they stopped in Cape Town on a cruise ship-style situation, so they only had a relatively short time in Cape Town, which seemed like such a shame! You will not be able to do all these things if you’re stopping in Africa on a cruise ship. Try to actually GO there for a longer trip! It’s genuinely worth it!😄
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Favorite #12: Chapman’s Peak Drive (+ African Music Bumpin’ in the Car)!
This one should be higher on the list (because I love a gorgeous view!), but I figured let’s start with one of my favorites right out of the gate today. 🙂
Above you can see Lion’s Head in the distance! (More about hiking that to come later!)
When I was going through photos for this post, trying to narrow down thousands into a dozen, I saw that my phone accidentally took a screenshot while we were driving Chapman’s Peak…
…so you can get one tiny glimpse of what we were listening to! 😉
Ha! I love the random screenshot.
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Favorite #11: Rent a House On the Beach (& Prepare for Power Shedding)!
Even when you’re outside of the city of Cape Town like we were, and yes you’re still in Africa, it’s usually expensive to rent a house right on the beach!
But I figured since we would be living and working there for awhile, being right on the beach would be great for the kids…
…as well as for Matt and me, to have a relaxing place to go walk and take work breaks.
After 18 months, you get used to hanging your clothes outside. (Except in Scotland where we actually had dryers, but that makes sense. Not so much sun there much of their year. 🙂 )
Doing laundry, working, watching kids play in dunes…this was a typical spring day for us. (Remember, when it’s autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s spring in the Southern Hemisphere!)
It’s a long story how we were able to
1) find
then
2) finagle
…a house right on the beach for as long as we did, but the short story is: it was done! 😅
(Yes, I’m still proud of this achievement because oh man…getting a house on the sand for 1/3 of the usual cost feels like a completed challenge from which one can enjoy the glow of satisfaction for awhile.🤣)
The girls fully took advantage of being able to go right out the back door and play in the dunes, which are much-o fun-o for making play houses and forts and pretending they were on safari again, etc.
Nearly every night we enjoyed amazing sunsets from our back decks, anywhere from No-Cloud-Orange to Lots-Of-Clouds-Colors…
…and even more rainbows! (We kept a tally of rainbows we saw around the world.)
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Favorite #8: Seeing, Smelling, Feeling the Area…As Much As You Can!
This is actually my #1, but I’m putting it early here in case you’re one of those people who won’t scroll to #1 and would miss it.
I’m not sure what to call it, hence my random title, but it’s basically how to get the “feel” for the place you’re at.
Sometimes people are moving so quickly through their travel that they don’t have time to stop and truly take it in in a deeper way.
Our slow living in the Western Cape was such a gift that allowed us to do this.
I didn’t take many pictures that would best illustrate this section for you, as I didn’t think of taking pics of the grocery stores or people selling things on the sides of the road…women carrying bundles on their heads as they walked home…older girls carrying younger siblings on their backs as they walked home from school…my list would be endless of these things and it became so normal to us that I didn’t ever think to take photographs of it…of course I wish I had now, but there’s also something about not taking a photo that allows you to take it in and keep it with you still. (Maybe even better than a photo…sometimes…sometimes not…sigh…)
I did, however, think to take photos of some things, such as these eucalyptus trees on one of our last days because I didn’t want to forget this particular part of our drive home. 🙂
We weren’t literally in Cape Town but in a small beach community…not even a “town” really, although we could be in a town in 10 minutes…
…and that’s where we’d grocery shop and also shop for random life items (when you’ve been traveling for a year and a half, then you’ll know).
I also enjoyed discovering South African-made foods that you can’t find anywhere else. (I wrote about my love for food exploration in Norway.)
Speaking of which, let’s talk more specifically about food, because it does deserve its own section :)…
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Favorite #7: Eat, Drink & Be Merry!
If you haven’t read this before, you’re reading it now: Jessica likes finding good and/or interesting food. 🙂
Doesn’t matter if it’s a side-of-the-road stand, a restaurant, the local grocery store, or anything inbetween. If you cook/brew/prepare it, we will come. From the chicharrones in the Azores to the reindeer meat in Norway…we’ll try it all.
(See the Stellenbosch Valley in #3 below for more food.)
Our favorite coffee shop was in Kommetjie. Matt and I both had dates with the girls here separately.
Before we left, the young South African man with a shy smile at the counter told me, “Your kids…I like the way they behave.”
Just keeping up my parenting spirits😅…thank you, South Africa.
Another favorite eatery–although much bigger and busier–was in Cape Town and served amazing food as well as coffee and endless pastries.
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Favorite #8: Stroll Through (+ Have Lunch At) Kirstenbosch National Botanic Garden!
Truth:
If there is a botanic garden near her, Jessica will go to it.
(And she’ll invite you to go to. But if not, she’ll happily go alone because no one likes to drag wet blankets through a beautiful garden.) Now I need that on a t-shirt! 🤣ha
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
#7: Hike Lion’s Head!
Hiking Lion’s Head tops a lot of the tourist lists, and for good reason!
Sunrise or sunset are the best times to go because of light. It’s not a difficult climb, even kids can do it!
Speaking of things kids enjoy…
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
#6: See Penguins at Boulder’s Beach!
After seeing penguins in Antarctica and the Falkland Islands, Matt and I weren’t too fussed about this one, but even if you don’t have kids, animal lovers would enjoy this!
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
#5: Robben Island!
Robben Island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, famous because it’s where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned! It’s about 4 miles off the coast of Cape Town, so you’ll need to take a ferry from the V&A Waterfront to the island.
This is so popular (book your tickets early!) and so many other people have written about it that I won’t repeat it all here, but you can read (and see) in detail here.
If you’re in a hurry, you can do it all in about 4 hours (including ferry ride and tour) but I think you should allow a day to be comfortable if you can. There’s a good amount of walking!
Like the below, Robben Island is a popular “must-see” for many people, speaking of which…
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
#4: Table Mountain (Cablecar or Hike!)
Because we had kids AND it was a windy day, we opted for the cablecar.
Thankfully we had a reservation made because the line can get CRAZY! So book ahead, people!
It felt so good to look south and see “our” beach waaaaaaay in the distance from the top of Table Mountain! 😍
Table Mountain was pleasantly expansive up on top, with miles of trails, so we spent several hours up here (and could have spent more)!
Table Mountain was one of those “tourist list” things that is actually worth it. 🥰
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Favorite #3: Cape of Good Hope (See Where the Atlantic + Indian Oceans Meet)!
I particularly enjoyed the day we drove down to Cape Point and did this one!
You can take a short tram ride to the top of the first hill if you don’t want an extra workout, but we did the full hike.
Why?
Many hikes make quiet children. (Or is it noisier? Or tireder? Depends on the day. I’m just making up adages.😜)
Hiking down to the tip of the Cape of Good Hope…definitely in our top 3!
Seeing where the oceans join was more exciting for us adults and less exciting for the kids than running around the lighthouse and old buildings. ;)👇
Here you can see where I let them run vs “WALK!” next to the cliffs.😆
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Favorite #2: Wine Tasting In Stellenbosch Valley!
We actually did this several times while living in the Western Cape, because it’s such a beautiful drive out to Stellenbosch. (You can stay there too in the beautiful valley, but since we already had our house on the beach, there was no need.)
Why yes, that’s our 6-year-old daughter ordering herself a big juicy steak from the adult menu. 🙌
Our daughters are so confused when someone gives them kids menus. They eat (and enjoy) almost anything, so they like the more flavorful options on the “real” food menus.
When you’re going home afterwards, it’s not a big deal because you can always take it away and eat later.
Or your steak-loving mother will finish it for you. Either way, it all works out.
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Favorite #1: Pet a Cheetah WITH YOUR BARE HANDS!
I first wrote this mistakenly as “Bear Hands” and made my 10-year-old laugh. Apparently you have bears on the brain when you’re from California and just finished answering someone’s questions about Yosemite. 🙂 ha
In my post about why we did the safaris in Tanzania and Botswana for my daughters, I’ve mentioned how I’m not that “into” animals necessarily.
However, when we got to do a private session at a cheetah reserve for our family only, I actually thought, “Oooh yeah, that sounds FUN!”
I mean,
how many times in your life can you actually pet a cheetah?!?
Yes, that’s a cheetah being fed raw bloody meat.
His tail and paws closeup were WOWEE.
I could hardly take my eyes off him because I felt like it would end at every moment!
We were supposed to only have about 20 minutes but we were in there for 40 because the head trainer and I were talking so much. It was fascinating and amazing.
(Pretty sure my kids got bored after petting a live cheetah for 40 minutes but I did not. Top South African memory for sure. TOUCHING A LIVE CHEETAH, man!💃🏻 )
There’s so much more we did during our time living in this little spot in South Africa, but in the spirit of keeping it brief, I’ve kept it to these 12. 😉
Goodbye to our quiet South African life and hello to our next stop…Madagascar!
