2014 Southern Africa self adventure: Day 40 - 41 Cape Town ( slow paced days )

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Photo Album: Cape Town City
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After nearly 6 weeks on the road since leaving Johannesburg, and the last 4 weeks, mainly on dirt roads, it was time to take a couple of slack days in this beautiful city, Cape Town.

The first impression of Cape Town was one of youthful and energy, with the majestic back drop of Table Mountain and the white sand beaches at Table View, it has a lot of promises for a interesting few days.

The plan was take it easy for the first day, and do a little city tour the next.

After an early morning walk on the beach at Table View and breakfast, the decision was made to have a hair cut, well, the last one was before leaving Sydney, more than 40 days ago.

When the lady barber ask me what sissor # I wanted, I said "2, may be?!", with big dose of uncertainty, thinking that she may just give it a try for my approval. Instead, she went, right smack, a big mow from the front middle to the rear....what !! It was too late......, I just sat there and hope for the best....and here is the BEFORE & AFTER.

Well....fortunately, I won't be seeing my family for another 4 weeks at least......it'll be OK by then, I can only hope.

When I got back to the hostel, even the dog was not impressed...!

And this little hairy thing too.

What can one do !! So I tried to bury my sorrow with some shopping at the nearby shopping centre.

And the car needs a real cleaning as well...

So it was off to the car wash with a full detailing do. Luckily, they did not charge me extra, and after 2 hours, the result was impressive.

It was such a lazy day, after a short drive into the city center to the rental car office to extend the contract for another month, I had absolutely no motivation for anything else, but retreating early.

The next morning, I took the car into the city and parked near the helicopter pad, hoping to get a scenic flight to hover above Table Mountain. Unfortunately, the mist was keeping the top under cover.

Instead, I walked over to the historical wharf, the ferries for Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela spent most part of his 27 years of incarceration by the Apartheid Government. The pier's waiting room was preserved as an historical museum.

Other than seeing the rooms and facilities where prisoners were kept when transiting to and from from the Island,

the most moving exhibits are the letters written by the prisoners family, mostly their wives, seeking permissions to visit them, and the comments made by the officials responsible.

For example, one comment stated, "Only entitled to receive a visit by one person at a time."

Such is the record of a very bleak and dark part of the history of South Africa.

In my heart, Nelson Mandela has always been my number ONE hero. What I admired most, is his forgiving attitude which allowed the transition of South Africa from white minority to black majority rule without major problems, let alone blood sheds.

Of course, during the trip, I had met with many white South Africans, which are descent fellows, however, some are still uncomfortable with black majority rule, but there are no serious animosity as far as a casual visitor like me, had been able to observe.

I did not feel like going over to Robben Island however, although there are tours available. Instead, I took a Red City Bus tour, one that enabled me to get off, have a walk, and continued on later with another bus.

It offered a very flexible way to see the city without having to drive and park all the time.

And quite a market just around the fringes of CBD, after the near death mugging at Johannesburg, I was careful not to get too deep into it, however, I do find walking in the center of town, quite safe.

The Castle of Good Hope is a very good museum showing the military history of the Cape.

Fortunately, when I got to the Table Mountain Cable Car station, the mist had cleared, and what a view here. I planned to walk up to the top in the next couple of days, when the weather stablised.