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Exploring the Cape Peninsula
by Barbara Ulmi
 What
better way to celebrate the arrival of winter in the southern hemisphere
than by touring the beautifully diverse Cape Peninsula, during the mild
month of June. To start your journey head for the colourful display of
ruby, golden and bright orange canopies in the leafy suburbs of Newlands
and Bishopscourt. From Cape Town, follow the M3 south, take the Kirstenbosch
Botanical Garden exit and follow the winding road past lush residences,
to the main entrance of this oldest indigenous botanical garden in the
world (founded 1913). Here you can admire winter beauties such as the Transvaal
Hard Pear and Mandela's Gold; visit Colonel Bird's Bath for a contemplative
moment, and replenish yourself with a cup of Earl Grey and a muffin at
one of the restaurants in the garden.
Leave this botanical paradise
through the verdant forest stretching toward Constantia Nek, exit the circle
on your left and head straight to the Constantia Wine Route, home to the
stately Groot Constantia - the oldest wine estate in the Cape, granted
to the first governor of the Cape Colony, Simon van der Stel, in 1652.
Van der Stel being a man of great political stature and a dashing womanizer
with an immense amount of charm (possibly acquired on his travels to the
Bourgogne and Bordeaux regions in France?), it seems fitting that he named
this grand estate after the apple of his eye - the daughter of one of the
Dutch East India Company's Heeren XVII whom he had acquainted on his passage
to the Cape in 1679. Legend has it that Groot Constantia's red wine was
even savoured by Napoleon Bonaparte while in exile on the island of St.
Helena.
 Turning
your back on the world-acclaimed wine of Groot Constantia, head in the
direction of Tokai (echoeing a Hungarian wine region by the same name)
with its haunted houses deep in the forest (urban legend has it that at
midnight, one of the former Cape freeburger's son rides through the forest
on a white stallion). At the end of Tokai Road, follow the signboards to
Muizenberg and Fish Hoek. Take panoramic Boyes' Drive and witness the renaissance
of the preferred holiday destination of the Victorian times, Muizenberg
- today a year-round beach popular with surfers and Great White shark's
alike! The drive will merge with the main road running through Kalk Bay,
a traditional fishing village founded by shipwrecked Philippine sailors.
This quaint town is alive with art and culture - stroll down the main road
and visit the many bric-a-brac and trading stores, art galleries and retro
cafés.
 Cruise
through Fish Hoek, the former halfway stopover en route from Simon's Town
to Cape Town and a Calvinistic teetotal town until the mid 1980's, when
the mayor of the time - of Scottish origin - decided to introduce a nightcap
to pubs and restaurants (liquor stores however, are still non-existent.)
The neighbouring harbour town and South African naval station, Simon's
Town, prides itself on having had the only Great Dane with a naval rank
in recorded history - Just Nuisance, as his mates used to call him, is
remembered in form of a statue on Jubilee Square, which provides beautiful
views across South Africa's major naval station. Not only well-known for
its uniformed seals, but also penguins, Simon's Town attracts many visitors
with its penguin colony at Boulders beach. Watch the newly hatched African
Penguins - commonly referred to as Jackass penguins - as they wobble their
way through the Camphor bushes and over slippery boulders lining the coast
here. Male and female are easily distinguishable - male penguins are black
and white, female ones white and black.
A short journey later, passing
through Chacma Baboon country (keep those yummy sandwiches to yourself)
enter the Cape of Good Hope area of Table Mountain National Park. Here
you'll find the only baboons in Africa to have taken to shellfish, and
clever enough to scrape Kaolin from the soil whenever their tummies get
sore from fuzzy drinks and sweets grabbed from tourists (next time you
visit, they might just be sporting hook, line and sinker...)
 On
your way to the Cape of Good Hope (the most south-westerly point of Africa,
where the two Oceans almost meet) stop over at the Information Centre and
commemorate the Portuguese's navigational accomplishments by visiting one
of the two monuments in the Park - the Da Gama and the Bartholomeu Diaz
crosses. Once at the bottom of the Cape of Good Hope, take that compulsory
snapshot of the signboard indicating the geographical hotspot, and double-check
its accuracy with your GPRS. If you're less technically inclined head for
the lookout point at Cape Point - a 40 minutes' walk from Cape of Good
Hope, or a quick funicular ride or short walk from the parking lot just
below the old lighthouse. To avoid the bus loads of international tourists
on pilgrimage here during summer, opt for a visit during the colder winter
months.
 Take
a leisurely drive out of the park, passing the Cape Point Ostrich Farm
and Zimbabwean curios at Red Hill, until you get to the quaint village
of Scarborough, home to rig-workers, artists, painting doctors, and organic
food growers. The adjacent surfer mekka, Misty Cliffs, is adorned by the
whitest beach in the Cape - Witsand - and is en route to Kommetjie, a seaside
playground for grommets and veterans alike.
Drive past Imhoff Farm on
your left, with its cheese factory and Waldorf school, and continue through
Sunvalley to Noordhoek - the starting point of world-renowned Chapman's
Peak Drive. Built during the First World War (and contradictory to popular
belief, not by Italian war prisoners), this panoramic route provides sweeping
views of the Atlantic ocean and Hout Bay.
Visit Hout Bay harbour where
the mainly crayfish and tuna harvesting South African Sea Products are
based and take a boat trip to Duiker Island to view a thriving Cape Fur
Seal colony.
The lively town of Hout Bay
- declared a 'Republic' as part of a charity fundraiser - is worth a trip
all by itself, but after a long and adventurous tour of the peninsula,
it is highly recommended to complete the last stretch of your trip in time
for sundowners in one of the many swishy cocktail bars or restaurants in
trendy Camps Bay and watch the sun set over the Atlantic Ocean.
About the Author
To plan a hassle free trip
to Cape Town, use CityGuideSA
- a comprehensive online travel resource with up-to-date information on
where to Eat, Stay and Play in Cape Town, Johannesburg, Durban and the
Garden Route.
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