South Af08

After Swaziland, we flew to Cape Town, South Africa to visit our niece and her boyfriend who are working there for nonprofit organizations that help
youth and mothers affected by HIV/AIDS. We spent the weekend with them visiting wine country. When they returned for work, we drove
along the southern coast on the famous "Garden Route". The views were so much like California's coasts and valleys that it sometimes
felt surreal that we were actually in Africa! On our 2nd to last day we returned to Cape Town, went out to dinner with the kids, then left our
hotel at 4:00 a.m. to begin our 44 hour trip back to California--door-to-door including layovers and delays. See my blog for more details.



(Above Far L) We could view the legendary Table Mountain out the window of our Inn with a View in Cape Town. Though we'd driven to Winelands near Cape Town a year earlier, we took a different route (Above L) with Becca and Pete through Franschoek (Above C to R) where we stopped for lunch at a winery then walked around this charming village.


(Above Far L to Center) The four of us then stopped by the Huguenot Memorial which commemorates the French Protestants who came to southern Africa to escape religious persecution. We then drove through Villiersdorp (Villiers' cliff) and Robertson to Montagu where we dropped by a famous corner where local egrets roost in 2 bird-covered trees (Above R) Not every egret is nicely coiffed (Far R).


Most of Montagu's shops were closed when we arrived late Saturday though we did walk around a bit (Above Far L & L). We drove further the next day to the crest overlooking the Little Karoo (Above Center) which is more arid than the Winelands. (Above R & Far R) We left Becca and Pete to return to Cape Town, then we carried along the "Garden Route" through Oudtshoorn just inland from the southern-most coast of South Africa.


On Sunday evening we spent the night at (Above L) De Opstal Bed & Breakfast, also a farm (Above Center) with a few vestiges of the formerly predominant "crop" in the area, ostriches (Above R). This region is from where most of the world's ostrich feathers came in the 1800s.			Breathtaking ocean views along picturesque rocky shores (Above) became "standard" for the next few days, but never boring.


After a quick stop by a waterfall (Above Far L), we headed to Betty's Bay. We were to look very hard for tiny signs to a large African Penguin colony (Above L). Though the penguins do look similar, many have unique--yes, projected--personalities: depressed, lazy, and motherly (Above L to R)


We spent 2 days around Plettenberg Bay near Storms River (Above Far L) where many an old sailing ship sank against its rocks. Along the road back to Cape Town, we sighted some wild life including (Above L) a rock hyrax (elephant is its closest relative); (Center) a bright Cardinal; and several whales (Above R) not far from shore. About mid-way through our 44-hour trip back to the Bay Area, Rick (Above Far R) looked as tired as Wendy felt as we hung out in Heathrow for several hours.