Travels in South Africa - 2017

May 10 -11

We left home at 5:00pm and caught 2 flights to take us to Johannesburg via Singapore.  

Singapore Airlines treated us very well and nobody was dragged off the plane. The South Africans at the airport were very helpful in finding our ride to the hotel. 

Once checked in and acquainted with the hotel and immediate surroundings we took the free shuttle to the train station to get our tickets sorted for our trip to East London following our safari and visit in Johannesburg. That evening we went with the airport shuttle driver to pick up Marleen and Larry.

May 12

After a super breakfast we went for a walk to get SIM cards so that we could use our phones. The hotel staff told us where we could walk and where to not walk. The shop to buy the SIM cards was only one block from the hotel but we we're told earlier it was not safe to go that far. But today there were security men watching the street and one of them walked with us to ensure our safety. 

After we got our cards we went for a walk in the safe areas.

Later we took the shuttle to the Mapungbeng area for a walk about and lunch. Again the streets had security personnel for our safety. 

May 13

We were picked up by our safari guide who would be with us for the next five days. It was a cold and rainy day so it was a good day to spend in the van for our trip to Kruger National Park. Immediately after entering the park we saw animals, with a giraffe being the first. After we settled into our camp huts we boarded an open-air truck to go on a 3-hour sunset safari.  We were cold and wet but still managed to see a number of animals including 2 hyenas. We then had a tasty dinner and then headed straight to bed, knowing we had an early start the next day.

May 14

Our day started at 0600 and we drove the roads and trails looking for animals until 5:00 pm. We saw a large variety of animals and birds and one tortoise crossing the road. That evening we had one of the most tender beef filets we ever tasted.

May 15

We repeated our safari same as yesterday but stayed at a different camp. We saw a large herd of elephants (about 50 to 100) and 13 lions devouring a zebra that they killed.

May 16

Today we left Kruger Park at 0600 and continued the safari until 1100 when we left the park and went on our scenic mountain tour. It was a wonderful trip and reminded us of the Highlands in Scotland but much warmer. We stopped at the Blade River lookout, a waterfall and then God's Window. 

At the end of the day we arrived at our hotel which backed onto the Kruger Park. We could sit on our deck and watch the hippos playing in the river.

Tomorrow we head back to Johannesburg where we will stay for 4 days and tour the city as well as Soweto and the Apartheid Museum.

May 17

After eating breakfast while watching the hippos in the river, we headed off for Johannesburg. Not much to see but it took us a while to not keep an eye out for rhinos and leopards. We did see a couple of signs worth noting. One stated do not stop for your own safety, and the other advising truck drivers that if they stop there their wheels may be stolen. 

After checking into our hotel we walked to a nearby liquor store to buy some wine. A hotel staff member accompanied us for our safety.

May 18

Today we booked a 5-hour tour to visit Soweto, the June 16 Memorial, Mandela's house and the Apartheid Museum. Soweto, renowned as a black-only community, was where the migrant miners lived. It has seen a lot of improvements over the years but still has a way to go. One section has no water or toilets and is basically rundown shacks. The memorial and museum were very informative but we did not have enough time to do it justice. We may go back tomorrow.

May 19

We followed tradition and introduced Marleen and Larry to the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus. It did not let us down. We completed the round trip (two routes) in just over two hours and then hopped off at the Apartheid Museum to continue where we left off yesterday.  We still did not have enough time.  That is a museum that you could easily spend 5 hours in. The three different theaters took 80 minutes. 

After dinner we had our usual game of Wizard and a glass or two of wine.

May 20

Today was a more relaxing day. We had late breakfast from 0900 to 1000 and then we took the hotel shuttle to the “Neighbourgoods Market”. It was an upscale market with hand-crafted products including leather footwork, jewelry, clothing and watches made of wood. It also included a very large variety of food and beverage items which we managed to sample - burp!

We finished our day with a few games and then watched a movie before heading to bed. 

May 21

This is our last day in Johannesburg. We packed our bags and then checked out of our rooms. We had 5 hours to kill before catching our overnight train to East London so we went to a nearby mall and watched King Arthur in 3D. We found Johannesburg more interesting and safer than we expected. Most of the locals are very friendly and helpful. You just have to be cautious and street smart. At 5:30 pm we caught the overnight Train (20 hours) to East London where we will meet up with Kevin and then start our Garden Route Tour.

May 22

Our train arrived into East London about 2 hours late. Kevin was waiting for us at the train station with the rented Fortuner gassed up and ready to go. We drove from East London arriving in Port Elizabeth around 7:00 pm after seeing a beautiful sunset enroute. Kevin had already driven this highway from Cape Town to East London so he was full of suggestions on what to see over the next 4 days.

When we arrived at our Bed and Breakfast accommodation we were informed they had relocated us to a 4-star Bed and Breakfast nearby. By the time we ate dinner and found the new accommodation the only stars we saw were in our dreams.

May 23

It is kind of neat doing this log. By doing it I actually know what day and month it is by looking at the previous posting. (Added later - I found out that today was the 23rd and not the 24th as originally written. So I corrected the dates but now I have to retract my opening statement).

After a super breakfast we headed west towards Knysna with stops in the Tsitsikamma National Park. We stopped at Storms River Mouth and did a short hike to a swinging bridge. Our next stop was at the Bloukrans Bridge where Kevin bungee jumped last week. It is the world's highest bungee jump at 216m (720 feet).

We continued on to Knysna where we had ice cream and spent the night.

May 24

After spending a night in our best accommodation so far on this trip we headed off to East Head for breakfast with a million dollar view. Unfortunately the restaurant was closed but the view was open.

We ended up in the quayside area of Knysna to eat breakfast and then some shopping for gifts.

Our accommodation in Mossel Bay was a large 3-bedroom house overlooking the ocean. We were all quite comfortable and it had a large dining table to play cards.

May 25

Kevin did his big white shark dive today. He said it was awesome and he captured some great photos and videos. I thought about joining him but it was just too cold (pluck pluck burr!).

While Kevin was living on the edge we had a leisurely breakfast.

We left Mossel Bay around noon for a 3-hour drive to Cape Agulhas which is the southernmost tip of Africa. This is the location that Loretta and I knew we would have to time our passage carefully in CanKata (if we had continued our circumnavigation) to avoid waves which could reach 100 feet in height. It is where the Indian and Atlantic Ocean meet and is the graveyard for many a ship.

May 26

We left Cape Agulhas after breakfast and took the scenic route to Cape Town.  We stopped in Hermanus which is renowned for sightings of the southern right whale. We didn't see any whales so we changed our focus for an ice cream stand. 

From there we headed to Betty's Bay to see the African penguins. This was our first time to see penguins in the wild since we bypassed the Galapagos during our crossing of the Pacific Ocean.

We continued on the scenic route, with numerous stops for breathtaking views, heading up the east side of False Bay and seeing the Cape of Good Hope off in the distance. Wow! SA has exceeded our expectations in all respects. 

Just as we were leaving the whale sighting area Marleen spotted a blow. We made our 67th stop to watch the whale swimming south.

Our last stop before going to our hotel was Chapman's Peak. Absolutely outstanding.

Things we didn't buy.

May 27

Today we split ways. Kevin went scuba diving with the seals, Marleen and Larry stayed home to rest and try to figure out how to use the combined washing machine/dryer to do our laundry, and Loretta and I were picked up by two sailing friends (Double Dutch) who we met along the East coast of Australia. We went to the wine district and had a great day visiting various sites.

May 28

Today we regrouped and met up with two other sailor friends (Ketoro) who we met in Thailand. We drove in two vehicles and toured the peninsula and cape.  We had a number of stops throughout the day including; Kalks Bay, Boulders Bay, Cape Point, Cape of Good Hope, and Simon's Town. Again we saw a number of stunning sites.

Our friends live in a marina.

May 29

Today Loretta and I had one activity plus one meal and that consumed our entire day.

We went to the base of Table Mountain and took the aerial cableway up to the top, more than 1000 meters above sea level. Once at the top we took the various trails and covered about half of the top giving us a 360-degree view of Cape Town and the peninsula.  WOW! Even though Loretta is a bit nervous of heights she managed to look over the unprotected edge at various points along the way.

Friends of ours who sailed here last year told us we had to go to Mzoli's for a true African braai. A braai is basically a barbecue but mostly meat. In Africa they say meat is meat and chicken is vegetables. We told our other friends that we intended to go to Mzoli's and they both said it would give us a true feel for Africa. They also said to not be there after dark. We arrived there around 4:00pm and paid a guy to watch our vehicle while we were inside. When we entered the restaurant it was more like entering a butcher shop. A local woman who was eating there guided us on how to order. We then started pointing at pieces of pork, ox, sausage, and lamb while the lady on the other side of the counter weighed our meat and wrote the prices down on a piece of paper. We also added pap (a porridge made from softly grounded maize). We then paid a guy who was in a cage, i.e. protected by bars. Then we were walked to a room that was located in the back of the shop where four men were shoveling meat around on an open fire. From there we were escorted to a building on the other side of the neighbouring shop where tables were set up. We ordered a drink and waited for our food to arrive. There were about 15 people in the restaurant, all local. The food was delivered in a large metal pot along with a sharp butchering knife. No other cutlery came. We looked at another table and noticed they also had no cutlery and were cutting off pieces of meat and eating with their fingers. When in Rome …. The meat was finger licking good, literally. We ate all we could but had to ask for a take-away container for the meat and pap we couldn’t finish.

When we left, we found our vehicle where we left it and all wheels intact. Actually everyone was very nice and helpful and we did not feel threatened in any way. We would recommend this place to anyone, but only during daylight since it is a rough area.

The grounds of our accommodations were beautiful.

A mall nearby ensured we were well fed.

May 30

We have been quite busy in Cape Town and were not sure whether we would be able to fit in our traditional Big Bus tour. Since we had a vehicle at our disposal we have already seen much of the city and area covered by the Big Bus. But today we had nothing planned so thought we would take the opportunity to sit and relax while touring the city and listening to the informative narrative that accompanies the tour.

As it turned out, we had a very full day. The Big Bus offers 4 different tour routes of which we took 3. We started just after 10:00 am and got back to our starting point at half past 3. And that was with only two hop offs, one at the National Botanical Gardens and the other at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront. We did not do the wine tour route but made up for it when we got back to our accommodation. 

It was the perfect to way end our adventure in South Africa.

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