Finally after a delayed bus and a
twelve hour bus journey the time came for Lynsey and I to meet John, Ian and
Emily, our friends from Stanmillis in Cape Town. It was great to see familiar
faces and even greater to see how our tans had progressed! We stayed in a house
20 kilometres from the city centre and we soon made good friends with an older
lady who was also staying at the house. Her phrase ‘stunning hey’ stuck with us
all through the trip.
Nowhere is the phrase ‘stunning hey’
more appropriate that the view from Table Mountain. The 1085m climb to its
famous flat peak was tough and I was relieved to see a café where I could buy
water when we got to the top! I don’t think I have drunk a bottle of water as
fast in my life! Conditions were perfect with clear birds eye views over the
entire city as far as the eye could see to one side, and a beautiful African
sunset to the other. It was a magnificent feeling to watch the lights of the
city glimmer as the sun disappeared into the horizon.
I never imagined that penguins lived in
Africa and so a drive around Devil’s Peak was a great chance to witness the
wide range of wildlife South Africa has to offer. The penguins were within
touching distance and it was amusing to see their strange waddle as they walked
and dived into the ocean. On Saturday we joined some of our international
friends for a tour around three vineyards to taste some world renowned South
African wine, cheese and chocolate. It was a nice way to spend the day and
introduce John, Ian and Emily to our new friends.
I think Lynsey and I are becoming too
accustomed to ‘African time’ as a short trip to Subway to feed Lynsey’s and
Emily’s obsession on Sunday almost caused us to miss our boat to Robin Island.
Thankfully after a quick scramble through the harbour we got on board just in
time. Robin Island is the place in which Nelson Mandela and many other
prisoners of the apartheid era spent many years behind bars and reveals a
darker side to South African history. Despite the choppy boat trip, and Ian’s
entertaining sea sickness it was difficult not to feel emotion as an ex
prisoner shared his experiences as he gave us a tour around the prison. I was
surprised to hear that many of the ex prisoners now live and work on the
island. I thought that this would have been difficult considering what had
happened to them there but our tour guide told us that they find a kind of
healing in the place. We learned how there was different food rations for
white, coloured and black prisoners and how they were forced to do hard labour
breaking stones every day. The prison cells were small and bare and
communication between prisoners was alerted by a siren. Nelson Mandela himself
spent almost 27 years in one of these cells. It is incredible to think of the
sacrifices many of these prisoners made for the freedom South Africans have
today. Today Robin Island is a place of healing, forgiveness and progression.
As the Americans (and now Lynsey)
would say, Cape Town was an ‘awesome’ trip and the five of us are looking
forward to our travels back to PE along the Garden Route!
Ready for more adventure!
Glenn
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