February 2009: A much-anticipated trip to Capetown, South Africa! I had during past travels  found myself at the southernmost tip of the South American continent. Now it was time to gaze upon the southernmost tip of the African continent! In the past, I usually have traveled with a tour company such as the phenomenal Gate1Travel. For this vacation I wanted to cut costs by traveling on my own. I did some web research a few months prior to my departure. This helped me locate a hostel in which I got my own large room and private bathroom for $35/night. I also arranged days tours with local Capetown tour operators. Vegan travel to this city was going to be my tastebuds’ happiest moments!

My hostel was situated on Long Street, known in the past for heavy crime. However with tourist visits on the rise it has become a very safe location over the past five years. There are vested police officers every few hundred yards along the street. This gave me a sense of security as I walked alone in the evening to restaurants for dinner. This location was also a good choice based on the multiple ethnic cuisine restaurants closeby. Within walking distance on this street or nearby vicinity there were African, Ethiopian, Turkish, Indian, and typical Western restaurants: all great choices for vegans. I was very impressed at the wide selection of vegan dining options in Capetown!

During my first evening in town, I ventured down to The V & A Waterfront . This is known as the prettiest port in the world. The area is dotted with many restaurants and colorful gift shops at the water’s edge. Street performers sing & dance every evening in traditional African song and drumming acts.

My dinner was so mouthwateringly scrumptious at the Cape Malay restaurant “Rooti“, the ethnic cuisine of the former slave population from India, Africa & Asia. The food is similar to Indian cuisine but with a different combination of spices. I dined on a veggie curry with rice and roti bread. My beverage was a mango juice. I HIGHLY recommend this restaurant.

The next morning rise and shine and onto the tour bus towards Table Mountain. The cable car jaunt to the top provided a gorgeous view of the city and nearby vicinity. At the peak, we enjoyed the local flora, fauna and an occasional rabbit.

I also joined a tour to Robben’s Island where Nelson Mandela was held prisoner for many years. Very touching experience! I was choked up and almost in tears thinking of the tough sentence in the prison quarries and again thinking about the fact that Mandela and others educated themselves to go onto a fulfilling life upon release from here.

In the morning, my tour group ventured to the shantytowns nearby. We visited a cultural center where locals could better themselves with music lessons and art. In the evening, we were guests in the home of a local jazz musician. We also made a stop at local jam band practicing in their garage studio followed by an evening performance at a jazz club.

The following day, my tour group headed to the Cape Of Good Hope. This famous landmark was represented by a sign at the edge of the water. The National Park is known for its wildlife. We saw ostriches and baboons roaming about.

On my own the next morning, the Castle Of Good Hope military base was my stop. The various branches of the military marched in colorful uniform to a well-synched marching band. We even toured the dark and damp dungeons where prisoners had been held.

The next day, it was back on the tour bus. My tour group made a stop at the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. There we noticed every gorgeous shade imaginable in the flower varieties represented on their grounds. Birds, geese, & other small creatures roamed the grounds also. In the gift shop, I purchased lavender and rooibos skincare products.

On from there, we drove for hours through the beautiful wine country. Our stops in Stellenbosch and Frankenbosch were just lovely.

Each winery was quite unique. One had old-fashioned equipment and buildings that remind one of the past, while another winery had a more modern architecture. The landscape was picturesque. There were acres of various grape varieties, little ponds, statues, and decorative memorabilia from past eras. Though I do not drink alcohol, it was interesting to learn the wine-making process and to see the fields of grapes.

We stopped for lunch in town where there was a cafe which served healthy, vegan sandwiches. I was thrilled!! A gift shop in town sold olive products from the local crops. I tried the olive spread samples and purchased olive hand cream. Along the way, the fields and countryside were dotted with various flowers, plants, and African trees, as well as animals such as zebra, springbok, and lots of baboons!

We also stopped for a boat cruise to Seal Island to see the seal colony. Traditional African performers dressed in costume sang as we departed and arrived from our boat journey.

Upon arrival back in Capetown, I headed to The V&A Waterfront for dinner and to watch the local street performers. They sang and performed African drumming acts.

Early the next morning, I took a private tour to the San Cultural Village. This was a representation of San tribal life in a previous era. We saw how they made clothing, vases, huts, and dinner from local materials. The guide even taught us a little bit of their local click sound language. Then we drove around the park in a van watching for springbok, zebra, and other wildlife. The San history museum was also on site.

Back in town, I decided to visit several museums to really get a good sense of the region’s history and culture. The Gold Museum housed many past instruments of gold such as ancient jewelry and kings’ crowns. The District Six Museum and Slave Lodge are also must-see stops to understand the history of slavery here.

Finally, the Cape Malay neighborhood gives you a sense of how and where the slave immigrants lived. Once slavery was abolished, the homes here were painted bright, vibrant colors to symbolize joy and freedom.

I headed back to The V&A Waterfront in the evening to eat dinner at Emily’s, another restaurant which serves Cape Malay and Indian cuisine and do some more souvenir shopping in the fabulous craft shops there.

Another morning…another day and this time a tour to Cape Agulhas. Many people do not realize it, but Cape Agulhas is actually the southernmost tip of the African continent! The journey is usually lengthy a few hours from Capetown, in windy weather. However, I was fortunate. The weather was perfect and the ride was smooth. I am so glad I went on this tour! Cape Agulhas is where the Indian Ocean and Atlantic ocean meet. There is a plaque to commemorate this. The water is a gorgeous aquamarine color. There is a lighthouse perched upon a hill. I ate lunch in the lighthouse’s cafe.

Another stop we made was a visit to the Simontown Boulder’s Beach Penguin colony. Hundreds of penguins were wandering around the beach as tourists gazed behind the wooden fences. It was a great photo opp!! A couple of penguins had just given birth and we saw the babies sheltered under their mother’s fur. Very adorable!!

The next day, I embarked on a private tour on The Garden Route. This was a 5 or 6 hour drive up the east coast from Capetown. This region was the Klein Karoo. Baboons were everywhere along the highway, sitting on guard rails, and crossing the roads! Great photo opps! I was fortunate enough to view families of baboons and babies!

I stayed at a quaint, little B&B along the way. My tour guide made a couple of wonderful stops during our journey. She brought em to a shop which sold lots and lots of various types of candy. We purchases some for eating during the rest of the ride.

We stopped next at the little village port of Knysna for scenic boat ride around Mossel Bay.

A famous landmark referred to as the Post Office Tree was actually a boot-shaped mailbox inside a tree where sailors would mail their letters.

We visited a couple of museums such as Dias Museum nearby also. There were replicas of large vessels which carried passengers to Africa in centuries past.

The Knysna waterfront had many restaurants but not many vegan options. We found one of the larger, fancier restaurants there was able to prepare a vegan meal for me.

On the way back to Capetown, my guide made a stop which I requested to the Aloe Ferox factory in the town of Albertina. The aloe ferox plant is similar to aloe vera, but with a much greater potency for healing properties!! At the gift shop there, I purchased quite a few aloe ferox products, including moisturizer, eye cream, scar/burn gel, and even juice to drink!! After 3 days on the Garden Route, we were back in Capetown.

During my stay in Capetown, I dined at quite a few fabulous vegan-friendly restaurants. Mountainview Cafe and Lola’s had amazing vegan breakfast such as tofu scramble and aloe ferox juice.

Mama Afrika prepared a delicious vegan African stew while musicians were performing catchy tunes.

The African Cafe prepared a scrumptious meal of appetizers and main course representing several African countries.

Finally, Addis On Cape served a wonderful Ethiopian meal of various veggies with injera bread.

One evening, I dined at a Turkish/MidEastern restaurant called Mesopotamia where I sat on the cushioned floor during my visit. The veggies and rice dish was delicious.

What a glorious trip and memories of animals, culture, history, museums, landscapes, and vegan dining! I highly recommend this holiday!