3 Days in Cape Town

South Africa is home to a city that actually stands up to, if not surpasses, the hyped reviews of travel blogs and books. Cape Town, a beautiful, edgy, sprawling city with the coast on one side and a striking, flat-topped mountain right in the center of the city, easily found a spot as one of my favorite cities in the world. Its beauty (accentuated when viewed from the top of Table Mountain or Signal Hill), unique dining and culture (experienced through the array of restaurants and various museums), and never ending list of outdoor activities (3 climb-able mountains situated at the heart of the city) all allow it to cement a spot as one of the world's great cities.

The view of Cape Town from Signal Hill

Our 3 1/2 days in Cape Town were technically less then ideal as we managed to end the cities 4 year drought by bringing along some Vancouver rain that shielded Table Mountain from our view for the first 3 days. 

We began to think that Table Mountain didn't exist as we certainly couldn't see it through the clouds

We still managed to have an incredible time and take in a few highlights.  Below are a few must do experiences we had in Cape Town.

1. Climb or tram up Table Mountain.
Table Mountain looms over Cape Town. It really is the defining feature of the city and it is unerringly beautiful as it changes colour with the sun. Due to weather we didn't have time to climb up Table Mountain (a feat that is very popular but notoriously difficult). Access to the mountain is restricted in inclement weather so we would have to wait until we returned to Cape Town in a week after driving up the southeastern coast.  Fun fact, statistics show that Table Mountain is arguably more deadly then Mount Everest (Dad argued that "fun fact" and "deadly" probably shouldn't be in the same sentence). 

2. V&A Waterfront
This area has a huge array of activities.  We ended up coming here basically every night for dinner or just to walk around. There is a lit up Ferris wheel, a sprawling area filled with people selling local crafts and high end trinkets, and a very hipster food court built from a refurbished warehouse facility that is so perfectly themed and decorated you could sit there with your hemp infused kale smoothie all afternoon appreciating the intricacies of the decor. 

The V&A is also home to the impressive South African Museum of Modern Art. Made in a decommissioned 100 year-old wheat silo, the atrium carves into the closely packed concrete cylinders that make up the silo. The heavy industrial theme is carried throughout the museum. 

Weird modern art hanging in a super-cool atrium

Statues of South African Nobel Laureates on the V&A Waterfront

3. Truth Coffee Co.
This steam-punk themed coffee house is an attraction in itself. This link to their instagram page shows photos of the incredible decor, including the unique outfits worn by the staff. The menu gave you a deeper appreciation for the art of coffee by describing the distinct flavours in each coffee and different methods for brewing. Voted Best Coffee Shop in the World. Highly recommended.

As a side note, unlike North America, filtered coffee is not very common in SA. Espressos and Americanos are far more popular and often the only options.

4. Views from Signal Hill
On the night of our arrival, our Couchsurfing host took us for a drive up Signal Hill for a nighttime view of the city. Being right in the middle of town, it is an easy view point to get to anytime. A popular spot to watch the sun set over the ocean for locals and tourists.

5. Boulders Beach
South Africa has penguins!!! Boulders Beach, a 40 minute drive from Cape Town, is home to a flock of African Penguins. A fenced boardwalk runs along the beach where you can get a view for free. A nominal fee will give you access to a boardwalk that gets even closer to the birds as well.

South Africa has elephants, lions AND penguins. 

6. Chapman's Peak Drive
An incredible feat of engineering. The 5 dollar toll to drive this route is more then worth it. The road swerves along the coast line, at one point it cutting into the mountain like a tunnel but the coastal side has no wall. Essentially, there is a huge mountain ledge casting a shadow directly over where the cars are driving.  Incredible. Catch it on a sunny day as it will get shut down during high winds due to risk of rocks falling on the road.

The initial three days that we were in Cape Town we couchsurfed with a person we met online. Gill welcomed us into her home and couldn't have been more gracious or accommodating. She belonged to a hiking club and we tagged along to an evening's talk about hiking the Camino de Santiago trail in Spain. We went for a 5km walk with her walking club Sunday morning and on our final night she cooked a terrific South African dinner for us and friends which turned into a great evening. 

We left Cape Town in our rental car eager to explore the southern tip of Africa. We would return in about a week for a couple more days. Cape Town had been facing a drought and the potential of the city's dams running out of water was very real. I'm sure the locals appreciated the rain we were experiencing but we could only laugh as the deluge soaked us on the way out of town. We hoped the weather would be better when we returned (we hadn't seen Table Mountain yet!!)