African Adventures Part 4

When people think of South African travel, they often think of the traditional safari: looking for big game and staying in a safari camp. While South Africa offers some of the best safari experiences (stay tuned for future blog post), it also offers some of the most amazing food, wine, art, fashion and culture that would rival (or even surpass) what one might find in Europe.

For our culture and foodie fix, we headed to the Cape Peninsula in Camp’s Bay and Franschhoek in the Winelands of South Africa.

After our Rovos Rail journey ended in Capetown, we rented a car and drove to our Camps Bay accommodation: The Marley. Camp’s Bay is located just south of Cape Town just adjacent to Signal hill and offers beautiful views and access to the Atlantic Coast.

After we were settled in, we walked around the corner from our hotel to The Codfather, at the suggestion of a friend we had made on the Rovos Rail. We were delighted with our meal, as The Codfather is a seafood and sushi restaurant, meets fish market…where you personally select your seafood of choice and how you would like it prepared and then it is brought to your table beautifully presented and delectably paired with one of the Wineland’s finest.

The next day we took the Cable car up to Table Mountain National Park for a bird’s eye view of Capetown and Camp’s Bay, as well as a butterfly’s view of some of the most unique vegetation found on our planet. (The Cape Floral Kingdom is one of the World’s Biodiverse hotspots with 2,200 species of flowering plants, of which 90 are found only on Table Mountain!)

We followed our day at Table Mountain with a trip down to the Victoria and Albert Waterfront in Cape Town to seek out South African Fashion and design at the Watershed, a market space, featuring all local designers and merchants. I was like a kid at Christmas in a toy store!

The next day we had a full day in Hermanus, hoping to spot some whales….but alas all we saw were a bunch of penguins, rock dassies and some of the most beautiful views of the Southern Coast! (P.S. don’t let the photo below of a photogenic rock dassie fool you, this cute little creatures’ closest relative is the elephant!)

That night we had a lovely meal at La Colombe in Constantia to celebrate our anniversary. Beautiful presentation and wine pairings were just the icing on the top of this most amazing meal!

Speaking of South African food and wine….we also paid a visit to South Africa’s oldest winery, Groot Constantia, founded in 1685, for a very satisfying meal by a cozy fire just after a cold windy day at Cape Point. The Bobotie, was delightful and brought back my South African food nostalgia, while Gilbert had the roast lamb and claimed “It was the best lamb (he’s) had in (his) life!

Our wine and food tour continued with a visit to Franschhoek, in South Africa’s Winelands. Franschhoek is one of the oldest towns in South Africa and was known for the Elephants that once roamed its valleys (in fact it was first named Oliphants hoek by the Afrikaaner settlers for that reason).

Sadly, those elephants are now gone due to the lack of a corridor for them to roam and graze freely, but the city and valley itself are still quite a treasure. We stayed at the lovely Franschhoek Country House and Villas and enjoyed the stunning views, amazing food, beautiful art and delectable wines.

There is so much to do and inspire when visiting South Africa beyond your typical safari experience. This will hopefully showcase a bit more than what can be seen and experienced beyond Safari.

I really do enjoy tailoring each trip to meet the travel style of my clients, so that they can have the experience that suits them…as well as one that might pleasantly surprise them!

Now if it is a safari you want….stay tuned for my NEXT blog post where I highlight some Safari experiences that go above “& Beyond” all expectations!