Apartment at Blouberstrand / Hermanus viewpoint
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South Africa's Capetown & Garden Route 15-days 6-20 Aug 2005
Day 1 Sat: The group of 8 ladies and 2 men assembled at KLIA for the midnight flight to South Africa.
Day 2 Sun Stellenbosch: We arrived at 9am and after the formalities of vehicle hire, we proceeded to Stellenbosch, with a stop at a farm stall. As it was a Sunday, many of the shops were closed and we spent the time visiting the Braak or Old Town Square and the Village Musuem with its collection of 18th century houses.
Day 3 Montagu: After breakfast we paid a visit to the Simonsberg Cheese Factory for a free sampling of the many varieties of cheeses. Our next stop was Bergkelder Winery that has the biggest cellar in Stellenbosch. We also has a session of wine tasting. We left Stellenbosch and on our way to Swellendam we visited a strawberry farm. The main draw in Swellendam is the Drostdy Museum, one of the finest museum complex in South Africa. We finished the day in Montagu, a popular weekend retreat with its hot mineral pools.
Day 4 Calitzdorp & Oudtshoorn: The group went for a morning stroll in the surrounding hills while I organise a tour in Montagu's coloured township. Our escort Philip showed us life in the township including visits to a few houses. It was also a public holiday and we were treated to a song and dance display in the community hall. We then got on the picturesque Route 62 on the Little Karoo (mountain range) to Oudtshoorn, with a stop at Calitzdorp, a little town famous for its port wines.
Day 5 Ostrich, Cheetah & Caving: Our first stop was the Cango Ostrich Farm that included ostrich rides for the group. This was followed by a 1.5 hours adventure caving trip at the Cango Caves, reputed to be the best cave complex in South Africa. Some of the group members finished the day at the Cango Wildlife Park, famed for its cheetah breeding program, while others opted to walkabout the town.
Buffalo Hills Game Drive / Outdshoorn Guesthouse
Day 6 Knysna & Game Drive: The Outinequa Cho-Tjoe steam train was not running today and so, we opted for a game drive at Buffalo Hills after a lunch stop at Knysna, which is reputed to have the best oysters. Its also is a popular little seaside tourist town. The game drive in Buffalo Hills was a 3 hours ride in a private game reserve and we saw many of Africa's animals. We then drove on to our night stop at Mossel Bay.
Day 7 Mossel Bay: Diaz Museum is the main attraction in Mossel Bay that has a replica of the caravel ship that brought Portugese explorers to the East. The springs that these sailors collected water are still there near the beach front. In the afternoon most of us went on a whale watching cruise and lo and behold, a whale swam under the boat and emerged not more than 10 meters from me. It was a grand thrill for the group. Later we shopped at a craft center before adjorning to our cozy chalets beside the sea.
Day 8 Sat Cape Agulhas: At Albertina we stopped at a Aleo Ferox factory where the ladies shopped for cosmetics. At Bredasdorp we stopped at Kapula Candles factory and shopped for hand-painted candles. Our last stop was Cape Agulhas, the southern-most part of South Africa, also known as the Foot of Africa.
Day 9 Sun Arniston & Hermanus: Pretty De Mond Nature Reserve was our first stop. We took a short walk to the beach along the brackish river leading to the sea. Arniston our next stop, is a local heritage area with its centuries old fisherman houses that are still in use today. These pretty cottages can only be owned by coloured fishermen, which assured that there are not developed for tourist purposes. We also spent some time on the sand dunes of Struisbaai beach before driving to Hermanus.
Canola fields / Trekking Table Mountain
Day 10 Hermanus: This town is reputed to be the best on-shore whale-watching site in the world. We drove along the bay looking for whales and spotted a few whales in Walker's Bay. This is where the whales mate and give birth before returning to the South Pole. We also walked the Fernkloof Reserve, famed for its display of wildflowers.
Day 11 Cape Town: We went on the coastal road to Cape Town and we were rewarded by a few sightings of whales. They were probably on their way to Hermanus and other nurseries along the coast. We lunched at Somerset Mall, one of the most popular shopping malls with locals because of its reasonable prices. After settling down in our seaside apartment in Blouberstrand, we drove to the scenic Chapman's Peak and Hout Bay, where we had dinner at a local favourite called the Fish on the Rocks.
Day 12 Cape Peninsular: Our apartment in Blouberstrand is at the much-visited viewpoint of the Table Mountain and some 20 mins drive to the town centre. We went on to the Cape of Good Hope with a stop at Muizenberg to look at their colourful bath-houses. We dropped into Mineral World factory that produces semi-precious stones and also saw the jackass penguins of Boulder Beach. We arrived at the Cape of Good Hope in windy and rainy conditions. The group opted to finish early and we finished the day, sheltered at the Victoria and Albert Waterfront. Some visited the Two Oceans Aquarium and the Waterfront Craftmarket.
Day 13 more Cape Town: The weather was good and we took the cable car up the Table Mountain. There was a free guided walk at 10am after which we opted to trek down via the Platterklip Gorge. This scenic trip took most of us about 2 hours. After a short stop at the colourful Bo-Kaap or Malay quarter and the Green Market Flea Market, we spent some time in the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. We finished the day having "big" meals at Spars Grill and shopping at the Victoria & Albert Waterfront.
Day 14 & 15 Airport: We left for the airport early for VAT refund formalities and our early morning flight home. We arrived in KLIA at 6am on day 15.
Fernkloof Reserve / Southern Right Whale
Email: yongleemin@pd.jaring.my or yongleekeng@yahoo.com
Phone: Lee Min: 016-220 9033 or 603-4023 8210
Phone: Lee Keng: 012-315 8353 or 603-6137 9937
Address: No 2 Lrg Air Bersih Satu, Air Panas, 53200 Kuala Lumpur