Cape Town, the V&A Waterfront,
for a complete contrast. En
route pass Heritage Square and
Riebeeck Square, etched in eons
of history. Nearby, Greenmarket
Square was once a slave market,
vegetable market and now a flea
market run by Congolese and
Zimbabwean traders. Upscale
restaurants, bars and boutiques
line this burgeoning harbour
that’s a magnetic draw for food,
shopping and luxury. The waterfront oozes charisma and is the
place to be seen slurping oysters
and drinking champagne on any
day of the week. Food markets
and warehouse stalls revolve
around a historical clock tower.
Robben Island
From the waterfront, Robben
Island is visible in the ocean
and a short boat-ride away. The
island became synonymous with
the former lead er of the free
and democratic South Africa,
Nelson Mandela, as the maximum
security prison in which he was
held for 18-years. Robben Island
is now a beacon of freedom
from oppression and the end of
apartheid, a deeply etched part
of South African history. It makes
an enlightening visit and is a crux
to understanding revolution in
South Africa.
Camps Bay
Camps Bay is to Cape Town
what South Beach is to Miami.
Glamorous and glorified by coffee
shops and oyster bars to one side,
with a large white-sand beach
to the other, it is the place to be
seen. Spend an afternoon in your
400
designer bikini and sundress,
sunbathing, soaking up the ambiance, shopping along the seafront
and drinking into dusk.
Champman’s Peak
Drive; the drive of a
lifetime
A highlight of South Africa is the
ample opportunity to self-drive.
Chapman’s Peak Drive takes in
the entire rugged Cape Peninsula,
voted one of the world’s most
scenic driving routes and often
compared to Australia’s Great
Ocean Road. The 70km stretch
is easily done in a day, including
all the stops recommended here.
Keep the camera fully loaded as
every snarl in the coastal route
extends unbelievable views seemingly designed for photographers.
Boulder’s Beach penguins
Wiggling their bottoms as they
emerge from surfing shallow
waves, waddling on the sand and
sunning themselves on gigantic
black boulders strewn along the
shore, the penguins are adorable.
The wild colony lives on Boulder’s
Beach in a dreamy setting. Their
black and white markings contrast
handsomely against the emerald
sea, sugary sand beach and cobalt
sky. Endearing and comical, time
flies watching them in their natural
habitat. The visit is well-planned,
with raised boardwalks ensuring
minimal human disturbance.
Scarborough Beach
Appearing like a painting, too
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