So it begins

Did someone say penguins?

Published Date : February 23, 2005

The theme for the rest of my time in South Africa is Baz Bus.  Offering scheduled door-to-door transport for backpackers it’s an easy and safe way to see the country.

Greeted with another day of gorgeous clear skies for our last day in Cape Town, Greg and I joined a Baz Bus day trip out to Cape Point.  With 5 other people, we drove through scenic Camp’s Bay and Hout Bay.  The “Republic” of Hout Bay is a quaint seaside suburb of Cape Town.  Back in the 80s some local businesses created novelty passports for the Republic of Hout Bay as part of a charity fundraising drive.  Since then, the title of Republic has stuck as a long-standing joke.

Boulders Beach, Cape Peninsula

We stopped for a break at Boulders Beach.  A sandy cove, sheltered by large boulders, the beach is home to a colony of African Penguins.  Not only were there plenty of them around, they were also nesting!  Being able to see wild penguins with eggs = awesome!!  The penguins seemed quite uninterested in the people around them, just going about their business as if we weren’t even there.

Watching the awkward birds was a surreal moment for me.  It was another little reminder of where I was and what I was doing.  It’s easy to become jaded after so much time on the road.  It’s moments like these that help ground me and remind me why I’m out here.  I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to explore this world.

Continuing on our journey, we made our way in Table Mountain National Park Marine Protected Area.   We had lunch at the visitor centre at Cape of Good Hope and watched a brief video about the Table Mountain National Park.

Cape Point, Table Mountain National Park Marine Protected Area

After lunch we carried on to Cape Point, the most South-Easterly point of the Cape Peninsula.  There, we were offered mountain bikes and set off on our own to explore and make our way back to Cape of Good Hope.  Along the way we stopped at the scenic lighthouse and climbed to the highest point of the peninsula for some more stunning views.

Meeting up with our group again, we began the journey back to Cape Town.  Back in the city, we were dropped at the waterfront and made our way to Kauai again for our dinner.  It’s becoming our go-to place for food here!

The rest of the night was all about socializing.  My friend, Sian, whom I had met in London, was back in South Africa.  She invited us out for a night of drinking and performance art at the Cool Runnings bar in Observatory.  Good company, good entertainment (can you ever go wrong with fire poi?), good drinks.  It was a perfect way to end our time in Cape Town!

More to come

Published Date : February 25, 2005

5 March 2014 – I’m still working on typing up the rest of my journals from South Africa and Swaziland.  Check back soon…

Moving on

Published Date : March 21, 2005

My last day in South Africa was a long day of nothing.  I enjoyed another great breakfast at the hostel, then spent some time chatting to a group of girls who were just starting an overland trip.  It turns out their driver is the guy I spent a long drunken night talking to at the bar in Ngepi a couple of weeks ago.  Small world.

The afternoon was spent playing pool with a couple of Canadian guys, catching up on my emails and watching a movie in the lounge.  At long last, it was time to head for the airport.

I had hoped to have a late dinner while I waited for my flight, but everything was closed.  No dinner for me.

Paradise Found

Published Date : March 22, 2005

The flight with Air Mauritius was pleasant.  The highlight being the fruity rum punch they served just before landing.  I arrived at Sir Seewoosar Ramgoolam International Airport (say that one three times fast!) at 0530 to be greeted with 27C and 90% humidity.  Welcome to the tropics.  I went through a bit of a grilling at immigration, but made it through in the end.  At the luggage carousel I felt decidedly out of place with my worn old backpack in the presence of $1000 suitcase sets.

When I was booking my flights for this trip, Mauritius had been suggested as an add-on by the computer software.  I had no knowledge or expectations before arriving here, but I was still a bit surprised to discover it was considered somewhat of a luxury tourist destination.  I was too tired to care though.

After digging through my pack I finally came up with the photocopy out of the Mauritius Lonely Planet guide
and called the first guesthouse on the list – Nice Place Guesthouse.  Not only did they have a private room for me – 350 Rupees (about $12) – they also collected me at the airport even after I dragged them out of bed at 6am.

We pulled up to the guesthouse in Mahébourg about 15 minutes later after driving through endless fields of sugar cane.  The wife was there to greet us and checked me in with a warm welcome in a mixture of Urdu, Creole and English.  My room was bright and clean and I happily threw myself into bed for a nap.

I woke up at about noon to a cloudy, rainy day and took a wander around town.  Almost everyone I passed on the street greeted me with a friendly “Bonjour.” I was also chatted up by a not-completely-sober guy named Jean-Michel.  I walked the 6km to Blue Bay – a sheltered lagoon perfect for swimming and being harassed by local craft sellers.  Actually, the touts weren’t bad at all.  They were very friendly and more than willing to take no for an answer.  I actually ended up buying a necklace, then hitched a lift back into town with the guy who sold it to me.  I’m really enjoying this island   It’s the best possible mix of Indian, French, Chinese, Arabic and British cultures.  Especially the food!  Yum!

I ended the day with a quick visit to the local supermarket to pick up some breakfast supplies, then called it an early night.