Cape Town Arrival

Day 5 – Southern Africa

Though we learned a great deal in the Johannesburg area, we were looking forward to Cape Town for a completely different experience. Before we departed, we enjoyed an unhurried breakfast. Never one to adhere to rules around what to eat at breakfast vs. what to eat for lunch or dinner, I could not resist adding oysters to my fruit plate! Looking back on this photograph now, this does seem a little weird.

Oysters with hot sauce with an olive and fruit accompaniment

After bidding the Melrose Arch goodbye, we were swept away to the airport for our two-hour flight to Cape Town. On the way, we were treated to a dose political discussion on all things related to our upcoming presidential election here in the US, the strike at the platinum mine in South Africa, and possible changes ahead in the South African political landscape. Just about everywhere we went, South Africans were very, very interested to hear about what’s going on outside their world. I found them to be incredibly knowledgable about our current events, far more so than we are about theirs. Equally impressive, and similar to Europeans, most South Africans speak multiple languages. Almost everyone we met, granted many of them work in the travel industry where this is encouraged, spoke a minimum of nine languages. Anyway, I won’t get into a political discussion here, but I will say that many South Africans have a deeper understanding of what’s happening in the US than folks who live here. However, I was surprised that some of our new friends did not realize that reality shows are not “real,” and our tv court shows like Judge Judy, The People’s Court, and Judge Alex are all scripted. People really form their opinion of us based on what they see on tv; too bad so much of it is far from the truth.

When we touched down in Cape Town, the skies were cloudy and rain was in the forecast for the remainder of the day. Bearing in mind that South Africa’s seasons are opposite ours, we were experiencing winter at its finest at the southernmost edge of Africa. Not so bad really…a little rain and clouds, and temperatures in the low 60’s. Eventually the clouds and rain gave way to glorious sunshine! We couldn’t have been more delighted. So after checking into the One&Only, we relaxed for the remainder of the day and enjoyed the hotel and all that it has to offer.