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  Monday 10th of August 2015 and they woke me up at 8 o'clock. I had asked for a 8 o'clock wake-up call as I had planned to take the tour to the Table Mountain. I looked out my window and the sun was shining on the Table Mountain. I went to have breakfast and I had a new plan, I would take the afternoon half day tour to Cape Point and if I had time I would go to the Table Mountain tomorrow. Of course, everything weather permitted. I asked them to book the half day afternoon tour for me when I went for breakfast and I got it confirmed when I was back from the breakfast. Pick up between 13:30 and 13:50. And it looks like  Romø Mærsk will come alongside this evening so I might join when coming back from Cape Point. Finally some action around here.
I was just to leave for the reception for my Cape Point tour when I got e-mail from our Agent: Have just received word that vessel will not berth today Please note that Monday, 10th August 2015 is a Public Holiday in South Africa I was waiting for 10 minutes or so before they came to pick me up in a van. 9 passengers plus me  and a Guide/ Driver. I took the seat up front with our Guide/ Driver We took off towards Cape Point. We will pass through Simons Town and there is a Penguin colony.
Our Guide/ Driver told us that the stop at the Penguin colony was not part of the tour and she asked who of us who wanted to stop to look at the penguins. Everyone wanted to stop and our Guide/ Driver said that they should include to stop in the tour. After this we introduced our self and there was a couple from New York on their honeymoon. Two girls from Canada and a guy from Turkey. A girl from Denmark and one from Holland and a  French woman with her son. I asked if they were ready for adventure and excitements when I boarded the car, and yes, they were ready for fun.
We are going on the Cape Peninsula Half Day Tour with African Eagle Day Tours and it looks to be an exciting day. 1. Clifton, Camps Bay & Chapman's Peak Situated along the Atlantic Seaboard, the beaches of Clifton and Camps Bay have been awarded Blue Flag status, offering pristine white beaches and beautiful, clear waters that make these beaches highly popular with locals and visitors alike. (30min) 2. Cape Point Cape Point and the spectacular nature reserve that lies in this area is one of the most famous landmarks in Cape Town, and for good reason. Situated on the very tip of the peninsula, with the Indian Ocean on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other, the area spans across landscapes such as rugged cliffs, lush fynbos and vast open spaces – no Cape Town tour is complete without a visit to Cape Point. (30min) 3. Simon's Town & Penguin Colony Simon's Town is the seat of the SA Navy, and has a charming coastal town atmosphere and a vibrant history. Here you can find a thriving harbour, a toy museum, navy museum and plenty of other sights – nearby is also Boulders Beach, which is one of the only places in the world that you can swim alongside penguins. (30min) 4. Kalk Bay The quaint suburb of Kalk Bay runs along the Main Road, with the False Bay coastline running on one side, and the mountain on the other. Along the Main Road lies a host of veritable treasure troves, from antique shops to costume shops, bakeries, restaurants and plenty more. The area is also excellent for whale watching during whale season (June to November). (15min) 5. Muizenberg Muizenberg is world-renowned surf spot, where people from all parts of society join in communion to enjoy the wonders of the ocean. Shark spotters keep a lookout for potential danger roaming in the bay (15min) We will drive to Cape Point on the Western shores of the False Bay and we will drive back on the  west coast of the Peninsula. And the highlight, a spectacular road, known as Chapman's Peak Drive, hugs the near-vertical face of the mountain from Hout Bay to Noordhoek. So this is something we're looking forward to.
But first the Penguins in Simons Town and we stopped at a parking lot. The Penguins are some 200 meters away and we reached a ticket office. I was disappointed, a ticket office and the whole thing reminded me about a Zoo. Not what I want when I study wildlife.  Arriving to Simons Town
 Arriving to Simons Town
 Our group ready for the Penguins
 The have managed to turn the beach in to a zoo
 And of course, a Bazar is never far away
Took a long time for the visitors in front of me to pay with their cards so I turned around. I had  seen the Penguins at the Stony Point in Betty's Bay and that had been a beautiful experience.
So I was a little disappointed as there was a lot of people and I didn't wanted to wait. We only had a short stop here and I don't like the stress. And at the Stony Point at Betty’s Bay there was no Bazaar and no people singing and dancing begging for money. We just gave the guard 10 Rand and we were on the board walk. You didn't even need to  go on the catwalk as the Penguins were all over the place.
I walked back towards the parking and I went in to the coffee shop. I asked for a pot of Rooibos tea and a grilled cheese, ham and tomato sandwich. I got a toast with cheese and tomato, not a grilled sandwich. Yes, there is a difference between toast with cheese and a grilled cheese sandwich. But I just love the Rooibos tea and I asked if they had tea to sell. They were out of the tea for sale and I  made a mental note to go buy tea before joining Romø Mærsk.
I found something that looked interesting in the fridge, Mississippi  mud cake or something like that I made an inquiry and he had whipped cream. I asked for one of the Mississippi mud cake with whipped cream. And as no surprise, I was soon to find out that it was spray can cream.
But it was good and I was about to ask for two more, one for me and one for our Guide/ Travel. But she left and I skipped the idea to have another cake. Would have been embarrassing to have a second cake. But if I could have treated our Guide with a cake then I could have had another one. We left and we were soon back at the van and I asked to pay for my ticket. Turned out that  no one had paid and we took the opportunity to pay our tickets at the parking place. She had a card machine and it took quite some time before we had paid our tickets.
We took our seats and we left Simons Town behind, next stop Cape of Good Hope. Just for a quick stop before we would continue to Cape Point. Cape Point is a nature reserve within the Table Mountain National Park. I asked what kind of wild life we could encounter and our Guide/ Driver told me that we could see Zebras, Springboks, Elland and Ostrich. And of course, baboons. We were going to pass an Ostrich farm and I asked if she meant wild Ostriches. And yes, she meant wild Ostriches in the nature reserve. This will be exciting!   Warning for Baboons
 Gate to Cape Point - Where our Bosun and I was 10 to 15 years ago
 Gate to Cape Point - Where our Bosun and I was 10 to 15 years ago
When we arrived it was closed and I had to eat our pick nick basket when I was back at the hotel
I check my notes and it is almost exactly 11 years ago we were in Cape Town with Prospero
 We have passed the entrance
   Cape of Good Hope
      Approaching Cape Point
 Approaching Cape Point
We stopped at Cape of Good Hope and we had a few pictures. Darn, it was cold and it was nice to
Our Guide told me that they had a funicular that would take us up, almost all the way up to the light house. The last bit we had to walk. She told us that we ad to walk back down again as the funicular would not go down again. We drove towards Cape Point and it was a beautiful landscape. We got out of the van in front of the funicular station and ticket office. I discovered that they were going both up and down with passengers. I bought a two way ticket and I was soon on my way up to the light house.
We left the nature reserve and we turned left and we passed an Ostrich farm and we made a stop for a few pictures. There were Baboons, several of them at the farm. The Baboons are going in to the houses if you forget to close windows and doors. And they know that the humans keep the food in the fridge. We drove towards Chapman's Peak Drive and we passed a place called the Misty Rocks and the Camel Rock. Camel Rock, a rock that was supposed to look like a Camel. Well, I don't know. A little later we passed real Camels. We were soon on the beautiful Chapman's Peak Drive and it was really beautiful. We drove here back in 2004 but I don't remember how it was.        We pass a place called the Misty Rocks on the way to Chapman's Peak Drive
 We pass a place called the Misty Rocks on the way to Chapman's Peak Drive
       The mountain is orange in the sunset
                  We reach the end of Chapman's Peak Drive
       It had been a lovely afternoon. We stopped to drop the two girls from Canada at Sea point and next stop was Protea Hotel Breakwater Lodge, my hotel. I checked my e-mail and now I learned that Romø Mærsk had come alongside. Obviously they had changed their mind. The Agent would send a driver to pick me up tomorrow morning. There was also a shopping list. I left my room and I went to take care of the shopping list. I also bought a MicroSD card for my phone. 128 GB 2500 Rand and I asked why it was so expensive. I  had bought one for half the price in Johannesburg last November. Well, I had to buy the card as I need to transfer music to my phone.
I bought the last items on the shopping list from the boat and I found the MicroSD for 1400 Rand. I went back to the first place to get my money back and I went back to buy the 1400 Rand Micro SD card. Then I had planned for dinner at Balducci, third time since I came to Cape Town. Today everything went wrong, no caviar in the smoked salmon and avocado salad, no extra whipped cream on my dessert and they had added so much stuff to my bill I had to send back my bill. But it was  OK, the food and the staff was friendly. A last visit to Pick n Pay and I bought 6 pack of the Rooibos tea before taking a taxi back to my room.
Wake up at 7 tomorrow morning and then I'm off to join Romø Mærsk and if you click HERE you will find yourself in the middle of that adventure
    
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To www.aladdin.st since December 2005
Visitors from different countries since 26th of September 2011
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