There's Something About Cape Town

I’m rarely taken aback with cities. I find nothing overly beautiful about a sea of high rise unnatural buildings trapped within a layer of smog. 
Cape Town is different. Caught between the mountains and the sea, Cape Town couldn’t be a better located city. It takes advantage of its stunning natural beauty, making it certainly the most picturesque city I have ever seen. It’s also a city accustom to providing for tourists and is so easy to navigate for newcomers. 
After living in Joburg it was a refreshing change to safely walk down pristine streets with breathtaking views every day. It’s another world compared to other parts of Africa. I instantly could feel right at home.

The view from Lions Head shows Cape Town glow at night

There’s so much to do in Cape Town. I could have spent weeks longer there and still had more things to do. Shark cage diving, Nelson Mandela's former prison at Robben Island and of course the iconic Table Mountain are some of the major attractions. 
Paragliding off Signal Hill shows the best of the city, sea and mountains through a clean blue sky and skydiving is also popular for thrill seekers. For those with less time constraints, Cape Town is a gateway to the Garden Route- the cluster of charming beachside towns like Kynsna and Mossel Bay, posing remarkable similarities to Australia’s Great Ocean Road. 
Not far from Cape Town lies many wine regions home to some of the best wine in the world. I spent a day in Stellenbosch and stayed overnight at a winery in the Klawer region. South Africa's premium wine can be easily enjoyed by dropping into one of the many open wineries without emptying your entire wallet. 
Cape Town is more expensive than other areas in Africa but it certainly doesn’t have to be explored on a high budget. Public beaches are plentiful, the mountains are free to hike and there’s endless entertainment around the CBD from museums, to a relaxing afternoon walk through the Botanical gardens or Waterfront markets.

Paragliding above where the city meets the sea

Cape Town is undeniably gorgeous. Unfortunately, everyone knows it. Huge crowds of tourists are something I hadn’t seen much of in Africa and it wasn’t exactly a refreshing change. I had to learn quickly how to navigate around tourists racing in circles to find the prime selfie spot at every site. This is something I find painfully frustrating, but accessibility for tourists is something that others may find more comforting when in Africa. 

Strolling through the clean and decorated streets of Cape Town, I forgot for a moment all the troubles pressing South Africa that I had studied and seen in Joburg. South Africa has a staggering 25% unemployment rate, compared to Australia’s 6%, leaving a lot of people on the streets. While the country has come a long way since apartheid collapsed in 1994, the high levels of violent crime and uncomfortable history of racism still plagues the country.
It didn’t take too long until I was remained of these things again. Like when yet another struggling homeless person followed me for blocks relentlessly begging for change. Or when I drove out of the city past kilometres of people living in the densely clustered shacks of informal settlements.

It is easy to pass through Cape Town completely oblivious to the complexities of South Africa, especially without seeing other areas of the country.  
The adventure activites and beautiful sites are fantastic, but it's worth trying to learn a little more the area. Museums like District Six, township tours and Robben Island show a clearer picture of the whole of South Africa’s social political landscape. Even just renting a car and exploring the greater Cape Town area gives a broader perspective beyond the barriers of tourism.

The high presence of barbed wire fencing shows the tight security against crime right across South Africa

When it comes to staying in Cape Town, the more time the better. Cape Town’s weather at certain times of the year can mean missing out on some of the highlights. More like Melbourne’s ‘four seasons in one day’ weather, Cape Town can go from sunny and clear one minute, to grey skies and pouring rain the next. Good timing and plenty of flexibility are important when travelling Cape Town. Windy conditions cancelled my skydiving, and paragliding was postponed twice due to poor weather. 
If I could offer one piece of advice to potential Cape Town travellers- it would be to make sure your trip up Table Mountain or Lions Head is on a clear day. It’s really not worth getting all the way to the top to see nothing but clouds. 
Weather’s too rainy? No worries. Head down to the markets, V&A Waterfront Mall or the famous Long Street. Find a quirky café, put your feet up and watch the world go by. 

There’s just something special about Cape Town. This is a place I could visit time and time again.

The Cape Wheel is one of the big attractions at the vibrant V&A Waterfront

I travelled to Cape Town twice in October/November and December via plane and an overland tour.
In Cape Town I stayed at Cape Town Backpackers, Never@Home and Ashanti Backpackers Greenpoint.
On the Garden Route I stated at Fairy Knowe Backpackers Lodge in Wilderness and I camped at Highlanders campsite in Klawer wine region.

This is my fourth post during my 5-month stay in Southern Africa. I have also written about hiking Drakensburg, power outages and a weekend in Lesotho.

Follow me as I try to convince you to pack your bags and get on a plane to Africa, before I make my way to South East Asia (for a third time) in 2016.

When I'm not writing, photographing, exploring and studying overseas, I keep myself busy posting about Melbourne life @ ditchedinmelbourne  

Lost in the Mountains of Drakensberg

If dramatic landscapes and mountain hikes are your thing, then Drakensberg is for you. Just a few hours out of Joburg and next to Lesotho, get ready for stunning mountain ranges, vibrant green valleys and epic travel options for adventure junkies. 
This however is not so much a story about endless views and gorgeous countryside. This is about making the most of a travel experience that isn’t quite like the guide book looked. 

The first thing my hiking guide told me was ‘there’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing’. After my much anticipated Amphitheatre hike, I can now verify that both are in fact very real. Call it bad timing, poor planning or unlucky- I went for my hike on the very first rain of the season. And boy did it rain. I am forever grateful to my housemate who threw me her rain jacket just as I was leaving. If I hadn’t have had that, this would have been a different story all together- probably involving a 20 year old girl getting hypothermia on top of a mountain in the middle of Africa. 

 

The rain and the cold made the hike considerably more difficult. You can imagine my disappointment to walk all the way to the highest peak over 3000m above sea level only to see a ‘view’ of thick clouds covering everything more than a metre ahead. 

I’m a photographer at heart. I’d love to show off the amazing lush green landscape photos I was hoping to get, but the most I saw was a 20-second break in the clouds when I snapped one photo while descending down a slippery 25metre ladder in pelting hail.

Apparently there was an amazing waterfall rushing down the peak of the mountain. Couldn’t verify that though. I definitely could hear it. Does that count? 

The brief view over the edge of a rock face

 

While I missed out on the sites, there was something so mystical about walking into the unknown of the eerie clouds. The challenging weather made the day that little more adventurous and so much of an achievement at the end. There’s nothing better than that warm feeling you get after a hot shower and dry clothes following a long cold day.

I would definitely recommend the walk itself. Achievable for beginners but not to be sneered at by more experienced hikers. The rock faces and steep inclines are a rock-climbers playground.

Even though I’m sure it doesn’t sound like it, the Drakensberg region is facing a long-term drought. I guess this means the relentless rain was actually a good thing. You could see the countryside struggling. The pictures of lush green mountains I had previously seen were replaced with a dry rusty yellow nearly everywhere I looked. The water supply in the dam was only holding 15% of its total capacity and the ‘river’ at my lodge was almost completely dry. The landscape was still undeniably beautiful, but you can just imagine the frustration for the local farmers and the tourism industry.

A once flowing river lies barren

The accommodation at Drakensberg was one of my favourite places I’ve stayed. A gorgeous homely lodge with everything I needed from walking trails, a bar, pool and spa and even a quiet study area conveniently set up for my 3000 word over-due law essay. I spent a lot of time exploring the huge property. I’d head off to the paddocks and hills in the distance accompanied by my new favourite travel companions- two playful local dogs. A rural landscape is one of the environments I feel most comfortable behind my camera lens. So while I can’t show off glamourous green views from the top of the Amphitheatre peak, here’s a few of my favourite snaps from the lodge.

Travel is all about timing. Had I gone a few days earlier you’d probably be reading about one of the best views in South Africa. 

That’s half the adventure. 

I’ll take this as a reminder to always expect the unexpected and never to base my expectations on exactly what I see online and in guidebooks. There are never any guarantees. Also, it’s probably not a bad idea to try and check the weather forecast before a big outdoor trip. 

Despite the poor timing, I was still overwhelmed with the areas of Drakensberg that I saw : homely towns sprawled through the valleys, fresh country air and a gorgeous rusty terrain.

It’s no wonder I submitted my assignment late.

I went to Northern Drakensberg in October, travelling solo with the BazBus. I stayed at, and booked my hike, with Amphitheatre Lodge.

This is my third post during my 5-month stay in Southern Africa. I have also written about power outages and a weekend in Lesotho.

Follow me as I try to convince you to pack your bags and get on a plane to Africa, before I make my way to South East Asia (for a third time) in 2016.

When I'm not writing, photographing, exploring and studying overseas, I keep myself busy posting about Melbourne life @ ditchedinmelbourne