Escape to Cape Town, South Africa 2015

I was very much looking forward to the weekend when I'll be spending it in Cape Town. For that few days, we stayed in the Victoria and Alfred hotel. It is a nice little hotel by the pier and I just love their breakfast spread. It serves made to order hot meals and a buffet bar. To top it up, it also serves wonderful fresh strawberry juice! You might be back tired from a day of work but you will find yourself looking forward to the next day's breakfast.

It has a spacious room (I just have to add: Stylish too!) and I must say very good hospitality as well. The hotel staffs were very courteous with the exception of the front office tour officer. That would really depends on who you speak with. We have decided to do the hop on/off bus on the first day and take a tour on the next day. 

So, we checked with the tour officer to see if he can help us arrange for something at a more reasonable price but he was not so helpful in the arrangement. On the other hand, another tour officer went through the hassle to help us check with the taxi driver to see if he is able to fetch us to several destinations of our choice at a better price. We have a total of 5 and we were also lucky to have a tourist couple who also wanted to do the same trip to share the transportation cost with us. So in view that we have a good number, the taxi driver finally agree to take us (on a return trip) to Cape of Good Hope, and Boulder's Beach for R250 per person. I supposed it can be quite difficult to haggle price in South of Africa when it comes to transportation but, anyhow, it is a worthy cost.   

Honestly, South Africa has an extremely beautiful skyline and I love taking sky shoots here. Needless to say, I did exactly that during my sight-seeing trip.

On Saturday, my colleagues and I did a hop on/off sightseeing bus tour and at R170 (day pass, Blue Mini Peninsular tour which also connects to the Purple tour where you can visit the winery). Due to the windy weather, we didn't manage to visit the Tabletop mountain but it is alright because we make the best out of the bus tour by first dropping by Kirstenbosch, followed by Groot Constantia and Mariner's Wharf in Hout's Bay.

We passed by this mural during the bus trip. My first impression? Pretty freaky at first sight but looking back at it, my second thought is that it's a pretty great mural art

The entrance fees at Kirstenbosch costs R50 and it is a great visit for family with young kids. I love the trails and the garden which allow your senses to explore different type of plants. I never know that some leafs would leave you with such sweet scents at just one touch. Really lovely scents and I was so tempted to hide a branch under my jacket (possibly 'import' them back to KL)...

Anyways, I supposed that's what ancient people used as a natural fragrance <3 font="">

No preservatives added, no alcohol and all naturale *thumbs up*

 

The musketeers...what queer synchronized march scouting for food

I love street photography and candid shots. I understand that I would have violated the privacy of some individuals and so, if you have came across this photo and would like it to be removed, please do let me know

That little toadstool

Yes, we should all take care of our own garbage

I did my first wine tour and cellar tasting at Groot Constantia for R25 (that's for cellar tasting of 3 type of wines of your choice; I'm sorry, I don't remember the cost for the tour but it's a good activity for first timers and wine amateurs). I wish I could describe my wines with a little more depth but to be entirely honest, I forgot everything shared by the person who gave us the tour...

Maybe it was because I was too soaked after Kirstenbosch? We were caught in a morning shower. I blamed myself for not wearing a wind jacket-- my cotton jacket was wet and water went into my shoes. The morning weather is pretty chilling and the wind can already freeze me to my bones. Therefore, the wines definitely help and perhaps due to that reason, I would happily forget about the details and let the wines took charge of my mind. 

After our visit to Groot Constantia, I'm a warmed lady. 

This little bug...so pretty! and definitely looks deadly..but of course, usually anything that looks ferocious might not be venomous

On the way to Hout's Bay

At the beach, I took some time alone to take in the view and collect some shells while my colleagues have their lunch. I had an interesting time watching life gets busy.

I must have looked vunerable. They came to ask for some money after I took their picture. I supposed I should give them something in return since I did take their photo without asking them first. So, that's what I did.

I just love this shot

And triple love this shot

The next best thing during the tour was to watch sunset on the bus.

The tour took us back to the Waterfront and by the time we reached, it was already dark. I was cold and hungry -- and I'm glad I made a good decision to have dinner at Mugg and Bean. NOT TO BE MISSED - for their hot chocolate and soup. I knew, if I have another chance to go to South Africa, I'll definitely return for its roasted tomato and basil soup.

Of course, a good meal is to be coupled with a good night's sleep to prepare ourselves for the next day to visit Boulder's Beach and Cape of Good Hope. It is pricey to do a car hire for the three of us and we were glad to have shared the coach with two other tourists. They are on a honeymoon and also wish to visit the same place. So, that sealed the deal - R250 for each person.

Again, another 'secret' that I discovered: the existance of South Africa penguins.
I always have my mind set that penguins only live on the poles where there are icebergs and snow.  Damn, I am so shallow.

The entrance fee to the park is R60

This lovely penguin is within arm's reach but no one in their right mind will try to disturb him

Ain't this cute? A penguin shaped rock!

Then, we ended our journey with Cape of Good Hope. The sights were amazing and there is really something here that if you widen your mind, you can find a lot of funny looking rocks:

The entrance fee is R110 per person and if you hired a car, you'd have to pay for him too. Well, there's no way that we can travel around without a driver, so that's a necessity and it is too bad anyhow since we are sharing the cost.

Another one; if you toss in some imaginations, you'd se a dinosour head peeping on you. A brachiosaurus?

I was told that if you are in luck, you could see border where two oceans meet and that borderline can be seen from the colors reflected from the sea. I wasn't that lucky though. All I see was grey and white...and blue.

We left in the evening and I felt a little heavy hearted. There are so many places that I have yet to roam, such as the intriguing alley/street and the jew's museum. Well, I guess it is always that little something that's left unfilled which makes you want to come back for more:)  I would considered myself to be lucky in this sense because it happened that I am able to spend my weekend in Cape Town, enjoying myself and explored the place a little.