Cape Town, you have cast a spell on me!

Day 1: 24 hours on the bus and my arrival in Cape Town

On Wednesday at 3 pm, I was picked up to be taken to the bus station. As much as I was excited for my upcoming trip, I also felt a bit of nervousness and melancholy. I was excited because I would be wandering around alone in a not entirely safe city for the next few days, and melancholic because I had already said goodbye to Julie and most of the others will fly home only 10 days after my trip. The end of this chapter is becoming increasingly clear. But now, my last trip is ahead.

I arrived in the city center at 3:15 pm, right on time, and the bus arrived a few minutes later. In Germany, you have to be there 15-30 minutes before the scheduled departure time. In Namibia, it's at least 60 minutes - and they really needed that time, as everything takes a little longer here. After weighing and "checking in" our luggage, we were assigned a seat. In the queue, I was hoping to be seated near the three German girls who were standing in front of me. Luckily, that's exactly what happened, which made the 22-hour journey much more bearable. In the end, the journey took 23.5 hours, which annoyed me quite a bit because my time here in Cape Town is already very limited with only 2.5 days. Well, there's no point in getting upset, so I had to change my plans. At least Cape Town welcomed us with brilliant sunshine. After getting off the bus, we found out that the public buses were on strike. However, I was too stingy to take a taxi, so I decided to walk the 2km to my hostel, hoping not to get mugged. Luckily, everything went well and I arrived safely. My original plan was to climb Lion's Head and watch the sunset from there. However, there wasn't enough time, so I walked to the Waterfront instead, took a walk along the promenade, enjoyed the scent of the sea air, listened to the sound of the waves, and basked in the sun ☀️ From there, I also watched the sunset, which now happens shortly after 6 pm. - I'm so looking forward to the long summer evenings in Germany - but that also limits my time here, as it becomes even more dangerous in the dark. So I just strolled through the shopping center, went shopping, and then walked back to the hostel. After delicious pasta with pesto from a jar and a warm shower, I fell asleep at 8:30 pm.

Day 2: Day trip to the Cape Peninsula

For Friday, I had already booked a day trip in advance to visit the Cape Peninsula. I was picked up at 8:30 am from my hostel, and off we went with a colorful group of 20 people from different nationalities, ranging from Israel to Korea, Japan, the Netherlands, France, and Brazil. To give you a detailed account of the entire day would require more time, but I will tell you about the highlights. The biggest highlight of all was the amazing weather, which couldn't have been better and is not at all guaranteed during the current rainy season. Our first stop in the morning was "Hout Bay," where we took a small boat tour and visited a colony of seals amidst fascinating light and mist displays. Then, with a spectacular view, we had muffins, yogurt, and drinks. Next, we went to Boulders Beach in Simon's Town to see the African penguins, who currently have many fluffy babies. Afterwards, we went on a 40-minute bike tour through the nature reserve of the Cape Peninsula. It was so much fun to ride a bike again, and I wish it could have been even longer. After a delicious lunch, we visited Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope, the southwesternmost point of Africa.

Day 3 - Spectacular views and tired legs

My alarm went off at 5:15 am today because I had planned to climb Lion's Head for the sunrise. Contrary to my expectations, it was no problem to walk alone in the darkness, as I was obviously not the only one with these plans. During the ascent, I was treated to unique views of Cape Town at night. By the time I reached the top, I knew that waking up early and making the effort had been worth it. The view over Cape Town is indescribable - simply breathtaking. At the top, while taking pictures of each other, I met three nice girls with whom I descended after the sunrise. My next stop was a food market, which was perfect because I hadn't had breakfast yet and it had a huge selection of delicious treats. Due to the ongoing bus strike, I bought a ticket for the well-known red Citysightseeing hop on-hop off buses to give my legs a break. Even though it's usually too touristy for me, it was a good opportunity to see a lot of Cape Town in a short amount of time. At 3 pm, it was time for my legs to rest: I had arranged to meet a German girl on Facebook to climb Table Mountain together. That was on our agenda. Due to the lack of time on my part, we decided on a shorter but very steep route. It took us about 1:45 hours until we both proudly reached the top of Table Mountain with tired and very heavy legs. Once again, there was a great (though very similar) view over Cape Town. However, the atmosphere in the morning was by far more impressive. Originally, we wanted to enjoy the sunset from Table Mountain, but on the one hand, it was way too windy up there and the cold was unbearable, and on the other hand, the last cable car descent was before sunset, and we definitely didn't want to descend in the dark.

And so, 2.5 impressive days in Cape Town came to an end with a hot shower in the evening, and one thing is clear: I will come back, no question! 😊