I've been a bit slack in updating this blog with all the going ons in Cape Town (it was a seriously full on 10 days), as well as many assignments. I had two major essays and a presentation due the week I got back from Cape Town, so my last few days were spent studying and being stressed about work. However, that's all done now and all I have to worry about are exams!
We left Johannesburg on a 5:55am flight from Lanseria International Airport, arriving in Cape Town at around 8:30am. The sun was out, the day was young and we were ready to explore this city. The first stop was obviously breakfast. Having lived in Melbourne I've become accustomed to going out for brunch (smashed avo on toast with a soy chai?!?!), but that has sadly been lacking in my life since arriving in South Africa, there just isn't anywhere decent close by. There had a been a vegan restaurant I'd been eyeing off since I looked up vegan restaurants, and that was out first stop of the trip ...
PLANT CAFE
Vegan omelette?? How??
Tofu and couscous breakfast burrito ...
We went to plant a total of 5 times, twice for breakfast, once for lunch and twice for dinner. It helped that they had good quality wifi (of which our backpackers did not) and that there food was pretty tasty and quite cheap when compared to similar Australian meals. A favourite was the french toast, of which I've tried to vegan-ize several times but to no avail. The staff was friendly and the atmosphere was good and my non-vegan friends enjoyed the food so that was a massive plus. Was I actually in South Africa???
With a full belly the next part of our trip was to begin exploring. We were staying on Long Street, a busy street filled with restaurants, bars and shops. A little stroll through the streets of Cape Town found us at ...
V&A WATERFRONT
I don't really know who V or A is, or why the whole waterfront is named after them, but its basically a restaurant and shopping zone. Theres also a cute little food market and a craft market as well. It's very trendy and very touristic, but a nice place to spend a sunny afternoon.
Strolling around Cape Town the European influences can clearly be seen. At one point I decided it looked almost like Ballarat, a city in Victoria with similar architecture and few high rise buildings. It also feels a lot safer than Johannesburg. Walking around Joburg in some parts (ie. the CBD, not that I've done it much), you begin to feel tense and concerned that anything could happen, but in Cape Town I felt just about as safe as I would in Melbourne. Granted, this was during the day. There are a lot of beggers in Cape Town however, people who will follow you on the street asking for money. The only way to lose their attention is to completely ignore them, even if you say 'no' they will continue to follow you.
V&A Waterfront was definitly not a swimming area, but there are some really nice views of the ocean and of Robben Island in the distance. We decided to watch the sunset here, which was a lovely pink, before we headed off for dinner that night. Having been awake since 3:30am in the morning, the first day in Cape Town (and the subsequent ones) was full on from start to finish.
Coming soon, Red Bus City Sightseeing Tour and Table Mountain??
