(by 5 people)
Life's Rough in Africa...
Here I am, living, working and playing in one of the most beautiful cities in the world - it doesn't get much better than that! Over the next while I'll be updating this lens with websites and other resources I think are of use to anyone visiting my home town...
Please feel free to contact me at any time if you have any comments or suggestions you'd like to share. Or leave a message in my 'guest book' if you prefer.
I also have a website called Mother City Living, which is all about living the good (green) life in Cape Town, based on my own hands-on experiences. It's regularly updated, so check it out if you're headed to the Mother City.
Cheers!
Pia
Cape Town on Sale
take advantage of our 'secret season'
Cape Town on SaleFrom 21 May to 26 September 2008, Cape Town is on sale (it's our 'secret' winter season). Get discounts on everything from accommodation to wine-tastings and other activities...
- "Take advantage of the quieter season to explore the fabulous places and activities that Cape Town and surrounds have to offer. Celebrate Cape Town´s wonderful winter season - it is all about being pampered, playing, great food, wonderful wines, nature in its full splendour and celebrating the creative world of sound, style and art"
Visit www.capetownonsale.co.za for more info.
Cape Wildflowers
useful websites giving you info on where to go and what you'll see
- West Coast National Park
- Opening hours for the West Coast National Park, one of the best places near Cape Town to see the spring wildflowers. Also provides information for the Postberg Reserve, which is only open in August and September (flower season)
- Spring Flowers in the Postberg Nature Reserve
- Visiting the Postberg Nature Reserve in 2006 - an idea of what you'll see and how you get there.
- Clanwilliam Wild Flowers and Cape Fynbos
- great resource for the Clanwilliam and Cederberg areas.
- Darling Wildflower Society
- One great place to view the flowers is the town of Darling, and the website has a fair amount of useful and current information.
- 'South Africa: Wild flowers of the Western Cape
- Detailed flower information from Travel Africa Magazine Online. Click the 'pdf' icon at top right of the article for the full info (and in an easier to read format).
- Cape flower power
- Article on iafrica.com with tips on where you can go to see the flowers, and what kind you're likely to see.
What's On
What's happening right now in the Mother City...
- Mother City Living Events Calendar
- Things to do and see in Cape Town, the Mother City.
Any upcoming events that have made it on to the Mother City Living radar - usually with an emphasis on things organic, or the great outdoors - LoveCapeTown.com
- Fairly recently launched website with emphasis on clubbing/nightlife in the Mother City.
- Cape Town Events - What's On In Cape Town
- It's the official events website for Cape Town and the Western Cape...
- Cape Town Today
- Events listings for the city. Often has competitions for ticket giveaways, so give it a try.
- ZA@Play
- M&G (Mail&Guardian) listings for the week ahead... (updated every Thursday)
- Gumtree Gig Guide
- Gumtree listings for gigs, nightlife, clubbing in Cape Town.
Top Ten To-Do's on the Tourist Trail
(we locals do them too...)
The top ten activities on the tourist trail...
- Table Mountain
If there's only one thing you do whilst you're in the Mother City, taking a ride up in the cable car to the top of Table Mountain has got to be it. The views are phenomenal (provided there's no cloud!) - Cape Point
Almost the southernmost tip of Africa (you'd have to travel a few hours to Cape Agulhas for that). Where two oceans meet... the icy Atlantic (west coast) and the less bone-chilling Indian Ocean (east coast). - The Wine Route
Sample the Cape's finest wines... Take a tour - then you won't have to drive! - Robben Island
Where Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners were held during that infamous era of apartheid in South Africa. Okay, not many locals make this trek, but it's popular with foreigners... - Signal Hill
Go up for sunset... the views over the city bowl and the ocean are breathtaking. Popular spot at full moon (you can watch one come up as the other goes down) - Whale-spotting
Whale season runs from July to December every year... some of the best places to spot the aquatic creatures are False Bay and the seaside town of Hermanus. - Camps Bay Beach
Sipping cocktails at sunset is worth the higher price tag most of the restaurants and bars place on their tasty beverages... - Hout Bay & Chapmans Peak Drive
Sheltered bay with a fishing community. Eat fish & chips at Mariner's Wharf if you're flush, or round the back at 'Snoekies' if you're looking for a (cheaper) more authentic experience. - Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens
Beautiful gardens, with winding paths, and cool streams. Plenty of fynbos. If you're there in summer, take picnic gear and catch one of their sunset concerts (go early, though, they're getting more and more popular each year) - The V&A Waterfront & Cape Town Aquarium
Browse the touristy shops, and choose from a huge variety of restaurants and take-out spots, many of them overlooking the water. Lovely view of Table Mountain, too.
Useful Sites for Visitors
- Cape Town Weather - South African Weather Service
- Latest weather forecasts for the city and for the rest of the country.
- Cape Talk Radio
- Cape Town-based talk radio station. The best place for news, weather, traffic reports and so on. They're on 567 MW.
My Cape Town Photos
photos i've taken in and around Cape Town
birdseye view of cap...
birdseye view of cap...
birdseye view of cap...
birdseye view of cap...
birdseye view of cap...
birdseye view of cap...
birdseye view of cap...
birdseye view of cap...
birdseye view of cap...
Getting Around
planes trains and automobiles
There are many ways of getting around Cape Town (and out of it)... I've listed the ones I think are most useful.
- Metro Trans Info Centre
- Transport info for the Cape Metro Area. Up-to-date information on Bus-Schedules, Routes, Trains, Taxi and special transport services.
- 1time Airlines
- Domestic airline with some of the lowest fares around.
- Kulula.com
- Budget domestic airline.
- Mango Air
- Budget airline offering low-priced airfare on selected routes.
- BazBus
- "South Africa's Convenient Hop-On Hop-Off Door-to-Door Backpacker Bus Service". Geared towards independent travellers.
- Greyhound Bus
- Intercity coach service.
- Intercape Mainliner
- Intercity bus service. Easier on the budget than Greyhound. Daily specials online.
Places to Stay
Accommodation options abound in Cape Town. From the super-luxurious to the no-frills hostels.
- Cyber Cape Town
- Book your hotel, tour or safari package online.
- Cape Town Backpackers Hostels
- If you're on a tight budget, booking a hostel online can be a great option.
- CapeStay
- CapeStay Accommodation Guide... online booking for a variety of establishments.
- BookCapeTown.com
- Online Cape Town Booking for Hotels, Cars, Flights, Tours, Safari's & more
Local chatter
direct from the horse's mouth
Blogs and similar sites written and updated by Cape Town locals...
- Mother City Living: A Cape Town Blog
- My Cape Town blog - news and musings from the Mother City.
- Rude Awakenings
- What gets you up in the morning? Blog about all things active in the Mother City.
- Urban Sprout
- A green blog with a great eco-directory.
Cape Town Stuff on Amazon
Time Out Cape Town: Winelands and the Garden Route (Time Out Guides)
Amazon Price: $13.57 (as of 10/08/2008)
The Rough Guide to Cape Town and the Garden Route 2 (Rough Guide Travel Guides)
Amazon Price: $13.59 (as of 10/08/2008)
Transforming Cape Town (California Series in Public Anthropology)
Amazon Price: $24.95 (as of 10/08/2008)
Books Set in Cape Town
my recommendations
Garden of the Plagues - by Russel Brownlee
Set in the Dutch settlement at the Cape in 1685, the time of Simon van der Stel, and peopled by a fascinating array of characters, the story focuses on Adam Wijk, the rather reclusive gardener and botanist caring for the Company's gardens.
Despite his reserved outward appearance there is something enigmatic about Wijk, and as the mystery slowly unfolds it is revealed that he was a physician during the Black Death in London, and there is a reason for his 'exile' - he treated a smallpox case by experimenting with an antidote and was then stripped of his licence.
A stranger enters Wijk's lonely life, a mute woman from a seemingly plague-ridden Dutch ship lying at anchor in Table Bay. As he tends the sick woman he finds that she reawakens in him feelings long dead and their relationship develops into a poignant love story rich in atmosphere and detail.
* On the Sunday Times Fiction Award Shortlist! *
More Info
Set in the Dutch settlement at the Cape in 1685, the time of Simon van der Stel, and peopled by a fascinating array of characters, the story focuses on Adam Wijk, the rather reclusive gardener and botanist caring for the Company's gardens.Despite his reserved outward appearance there is something enigmatic about Wijk, and as the mystery slowly unfolds it is revealed that he was a physician during the Black Death in London, and there is a reason for his 'exile' - he treated a smallpox case by experimenting with an antidote and was then stripped of his licence.
A stranger enters Wijk's lonely life, a mute woman from a seemingly plague-ridden Dutch ship lying at anchor in Table Bay. As he tends the sick woman he finds that she reawakens in him feelings long dead and their relationship develops into a poignant love story rich in atmosphere and detail.
* On the Sunday Times Fiction Award Shortlist! *
More Info
SouthAfricaLogue
A South Africa travel guide and news site written by Ben Williams, a 10 year resident.
This site is updated from 2-8 times per day. There are daily photos, thousands of travel tips, and much more.
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Let me know what you think of this lens! Please feel free to leave your comments here - any suggestions for additional content, your view of my current content.
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Ms_Appleseed
How lucky you are to live in such a beautiful spot! Very fun lens. Thanks for the work of sharing. Posted August 29, 2007 |
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mazoommzee
Whoops, forgot to log in... Posted May 25, 2007 |
Tessa
Howzit, Kaapie! Great lens about The Best Place On Earth. I'm now mournfully homesick.
Posted May 25, 2007
