Thursday 30th

There was misty rain as we left the hotel for the bus trip around Cape Town, starting with the well designed Adderley Avenue and surrounding parklands. By the time we reached our first stop however, the rain had stopped and Table Mountain became slowly visible with its "tablecloth" of orographic cloud slowly lifting. The old castle was interesting with its restored moat but what was very obvious was the reclamation of the original shoreline as this fort had been a defensive seaside structure but now stood in city suburbia. A walk through the botanic gardens with its abundance of squirrels was also a highlight of the day as was the beautiful weather that accompanied it.

We opted for lunch at the markets and there were enough unique culinary flavours to make it a pleasant experience. This led on to Green Square, more markets but some great genuine local craft. The waterfront and port of Victoria and Alfred (yes Alfred) seemed to be totally under reconstruction and will be impressive when finished. Less impressive was the wait for the ferry to Robben Island which was delayed due to the big South Atlantic swell. We finally arrived there 2 hours later at 5 pm but the wait was worth it although it is hard to comprehend the inhumanity that occurred there. The ultimate goal is to see the conditions Mandela survived during his incarceration but the island has history dating back to the 17th century. It would also be fair to describe this limestone outcrop as windswept and having little environmental appeal but the view back to Cape Town was stunning, along with the magnificent colony of penguins who posed for a photo opportunity. We returned to port around 7.30 through even bigger swell and opted to eat at the marina because it was getting so late. An enjoyable day in mostly beautiful clear weather.