Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula
Cape Town is a cosmopolitan and modern city at the southern tip
of the African continent. The central city is somewhat small by
world standards, being confined as it is between mountain and
sea, but the wider metropolitan area is enormous with a journey
from Simon's Town in the south to Table View in the north involving
a journey of almost 100 kms, (60miles).
The city is at the northern end of a 54 km long
peninsula which culminates in the dramatic headland at Cape Point,
often mistakenly referred to as the southernmost tip of Africa.
That distinction belongs to Cape Agulhas, a few hundred kms to
the east.
There is a dramatic difference in the ocean
on either side of the peninsula. The western, or Atlantic side
is influenced by the cold Benguela current and experiences near
freezing temperatures, even in summer. The eastern, or Indian
Ocean side however experiences temperatures several degrees warmer
making for pleasant bathing.
Beaches
The Cape Peninsula has arguably some of the
best beaches in the world where the locals are found sunning on
hot summer days.
The Atlantic coast beaches of Clifton, Camps
Bay and Llandudno are popular venues overlooked by multimillion
Rand mansions and apartments. On the Indian Ocean side are the
warm water beaches of Muizenberg, Fish Hoek and Boulders Beach
in Simon's Town where sun worshippers share the beach with the
only land based penguin breeding colony in Africa.
Scenic Africa
There is none of the classical Africa here,
no wild animals circling your tented safari camp at night, no
dusty veld stretching to the distant horizon and no steaming mangrove
swamps.
The countryside has been settled for too long
for that and the city is too old. This is rather a land of gentle
green vines, towering mountains, snow capped in winter and trout
filled streams. The area known as the Western Cape has been settled
since the 17th century and the land which once teemed with game
such as elephant, lion, rhino, hippo and vast herds of antelope,
has been subdued and put to the farmers plough.
Although leopards are said to still roam the
most inaccessible mountain peaks, the wild game has long since
been hunted to extinction.
