Why allure of majestic city down south remains forever

The voice of the captain booms over the plane’s public address: "Ladies and gentlemen we shall start our descent into Cape Town International Airport in 20 minutes. The weather is given as clear skies, temperature is 25 degrees Celsius. Thank you for flying with us." Seated on the window seat, I looked outside and the majestic Cape, the Southern African hemisphere view was breathtaking.

Despite my many trips, I still get excited at the sheer beauty of this place. The majestic Table Mountains rose up high just few kilometres away from the waterfront with the city well tucked in between.

Together with other guests we were driven to the five star Mandela Rhodes Hotel at the city centre — a stone throw from the waterfront.

I checked into a twin bedroom master en suite complete with a kitchen (a fridge, coffee maker, six-burner gas cooker, cutlery et al), dining table with four seats area and well furnished living room with sofa sets with all entertainment gadgets.

Mandela Rhodes Hotel, which derives its name from two of Africa greats — Cecil Rhodes and Nelson Mandela, is truly a wonderful place worth of the name. If the hotel was mind-blowing, then the tour of the city was something out of this world.

We started off at the culturally rich Malay Camp, the former quarters of Malay Indians, the forefathers of the coloured race.

The tour took us from the city centre to False Bay for a ferry ride to the Seal Island. Located about six kilometres off the northern beaches. The Island is home to the Cape Fur Seal. The waters surrounding the Island are infested with the great White Sharks, the seal’s greatest predators.

An intelligent hunter, it is said that sharks patrol the depths watching the surface for a semblance of a silhouette of a seal. Then using their speed they catch the seal almost unawares.

Not for the fainthearted

Away from False Bay, our next stop was at the Great White Shark Beach. It is said that it’s the only place in the world where you can go in a boat and provoke the Great White Shark out of the water. But this is definitely not an activity for the faint-hearted.

The False Bay coastline is generally more laid back and not as frenetic as the Atlantic coastline, although in peak season these family oriented beaches can get pretty busy.

We later drove 40kms away from Cape Town to Simon’s Town — one of the most delightful little villages in Cape Town en route to the Cape Point Nature Reserve, this quaint town is the residence of the South African navy and steeped in nautical history — its cobbled streets alive with restored cottages and homes, whilst the main road is an assortment of shops, coffee shops and restaurants.
Simon’s Town’s, St George’s Street, has 21 buildings over 150 years’ old and includes a local museum, the navy museum and a toy museum.
From Simon’s Town we drove to False Bay Coast Boulders — home to an African penguin colony also known as African jack ass, which is a wonderful swimming beach unlike most of the Cape beaches, which are too cold one can easily freeze. Here citizens get a chance to swim as they watch the penguins at the calm bay.
Thousands of white and black penguins are not all that friendly and a warning is written on the notice board that they can bite. And did you know that they lay eggs?

After spending almost an hour watching penguins we drove to Cape Point Nature Reserve — home to 1,100 indigenous plant species, some of which occur nowhere else on earth, and one of the highest sea cliffs in the world at 249m above sea level.

Exploratory tours

We finally arrived at Vasco Da Gama’s Cape of Good Hope. I bet that the Portuguese sailor was on rum because the place is rocky and can sink any ship and also boasts of the strongest winds. Perhaps a more apt name would have been Cape Of Strong Winds.

Despite its harsh reputation among early navigators as a "Cape of Storms", Cape of Good Hope is also a place of gentleness, tranquillity and alluring beauty. The Reserve is scenic for exploratory walks, and despite the many visitors the peace remains undisturbed. This gem is marked with bright flowers, perfect skies, Seas of azure and sun-soaked beaches.

However, the most southern point of Africa is to be found 150 kilometres towards the southeast. There, at Cape Agulhas, the two oceans, the Indian and the Atlantic ‘meet’. The last short stretch to the peak of Cape Point Peak one either walks or takes the rack railway. 120 steps crafted from natural stone lead to the old lighthouse on the Cape Point Peak, 250 metres above sea level.

From Cape of Good Hope we drove back to Cape Town. The next day was spent at Table Mountain, Lion Head and the Twelve Apostles Range and finally the Signal Hill. We used the cable car to traverses the Table Mountain cableway. On top of the mountain, the panoramic view of Cape Town was breathtaking despite the cold chill down the spines.

The soul reawakens as one marvels at the awesome mountain scenery, lush vineyards and long sandy beaches that make Cape Town one of the most beautiful cities in the world. On the World Environment Day in 1998, the first president of democratic South Africa Nelson Mandela declared the mountain a gift to the earth.

Ascending the mountain along the 1,200m cableway is really an experience! The cable car’s rotating floors ensures that each of the 65 passengers gets a 360-degree view of Cape Town Peninsula, Robben Island and the Table Bay.

Frightening experience

These exciting views, however, become a bit scary — more than scary — as you come so close to the mountain. The sheer drop to the cliffs below churns your stomach. It’s advisable not to fill one’s stomach with food. For a moment you think the car is not going to make it, but then in five minutes or so you just find yourself at upper cable station situated at the summit of the mountain.

From this point you can stroll along two km of well-maintained pathways while enjoying panoramic views of the neighbourhoods from over 12 viewing sites and decks. The waters of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans swirl in front of you and the white ribbon beaches of Clifton and Camps Bay spread out below. All of a sudden Cape Town’s unpredictable weather brings about a beautiful blanket of white cloud — the famed Table Cloth — tumbling over the side of the mountain like a waterfall.

Important personalities

The cableway, run by the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway Co. Ltd., opened its doors to the first visitors on October 4, 1929. The opening ceremony led by the then mayor of Cape Town attracted 200 guests. Since then over 18 million passengers have ridden the cableway to the top of the mountain. Around 800,000 visitors use the cableway to reach the top of the mountain annually.

In 1997 the cableway underwent major upgrades that saw the acquisition of new machinery and cable cars as well as the installation of restaurant facilities at the top of the mountain. The renovated circulating cableway provides spectacular views of the city and surrounding areas while ascending or descending. During high tourist season over December, the queues for tickets can get quite long but the new upgraded system has ensured minimal queuing.

Over the years the cableway has carried some of Cape Town’s most illustrious visitors including King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Andrew, Margaret Thatcher, Oprah Winfrey, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Tina Turner among many others.

To board a cable car you need to drive to the lower cable station situated at the base of the mountain. Once you reach the station you will find taxis and cars lined up as far as the eye can see. Driving past the station further along Tafelberg Road takes you into the Table Mountain National Park with even more astonishing views of the city. Driving further along the road will take you to Devilspeak (the pyramid shaped eastern corner of the mountain); the perfect spot to park your car before turning back to the station.