Cape Town, South Africa

April 12 -14, 2008

For as long as I can remember I have heard people exclaim about what an exciting and beautiful place Cape Town South Africa is! After spending a day or so at sea even the crew and staff were excited....”We are headed to Cape Town” could be heard all over! Cape Town...Cape Town...Cape Town. The anticipation made this mysterious place even more special...and made getting up before dawn for the “sail in” easy.

Just as the sun was rising, I made my way all the way up to the uppermost deck...deck 13. I wanted the best spot to see this supposed special arrival. Well, that venture didn’t last long. The 25-40 knot winds and the resulting churning sea made it almost impossible to stand on the deck. So I promptly made my way down a flight to the Crow’s Nest....a panoramic lounge on the 12th deck....to sip coffee and nibble on a sweet roll as we slowly made our way into this historic city. And it didn’t take long to begin to understand what all the flutter was about....soon...there it was...the famed Table Mountain that serves as a dramatic backdrop to this special city.

Table Mountain is apparently one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world....so old that it is not cragged or rounded...but flat....worn down by the millions of years of existence. So, there it stood in all its glory....and Yes! It was draped in the famed “table cloth”....a cloud formation that hovers at the peak and spills downward like a cloth draping over the edges. How this cloud stayed in place with such winds is beyond me...but hover it did....like a welcome mat of sorts.

The ship was astir! Cameras were clicking, disembarking crew members were dressed in street clothes, and there was almost a carnival atmosphere about the whole ship....we were in Cape Town.

I don’t know what I expected, but what I saw was not it. I assumed that the city would appear very large...it is home to some 3 million people...but here was this smallish looking city resting quietly at the base of this magnificent mountain. Where were the high-rises of a big city? Where were the millions of people? Of course, as I would soon see, all this and more was here....scattered all around and even “hidden” on the other side of the mountain. For indeed, Cape Town is a big and bustling city, one that appears at first to be a quaint and moderately sized village...which, to me, only added to its charm.

We moved slowly....too slowly. Why so slow, everyone murmured ...what’s going on? Here we are, the sun is shining...it is a crisp fall day with temperatures of around 75°....a beautiful day...so why aren’t we proceeding to the dock. We are scheduled to dock around 8 AM. People are cluttering to the Queen’s Lounge to get their stickers for the day’s excursions. Disembarking passengers and crew are getting anxious...and we are almost motionless...bobbing in the windy harbor as if we are anchored. And then the announcement comes....the harbor has been temporarily closed due to the high winds! We will be delayed until the winds subside and we can make our way into the narrow opening of this special place. So we gather at the railing on the promenade deck to take in the full scope of this beautiful city hovering at the base of the cloud-draped mountain. Just a spectacular view!

We wait...we circle...we bob...we wait...we circle. Another announcement....the harbor continues to be closed...the winds are too high; it is too dangerous for us to even attempt to enter the harbor. Finally, the captain comes on and tells us that we will move to a more sheltered spot to anchor and wait out the wind. Once there, the seas calm and we sit....waiting! As each minute ticked away, it didn’t take long for me to realize that my planned excursion to venture to the Cape of Good Hope (a full day’s excursion) was slowing vanishing. As half hours became hours, it was soon clear that we were spending our first day in Cape Town observing Cape Town from the ship.

My friend Louise was equally anxious. She had long-since planned to meet her daughter, Cynthia, for a few days ashore. Cynthia lives in Amsterdam and had flown to Cape Town the night before to be at the dock early in the morning and then take her Mom to visit friends in Simon Town. But no! the weather gods said NO! We sat, we pined and finally we decided to break out the mahjong set and enjoy our waiting game.

Around 1:30 in the afternoon, the Captain finally announced that the harbor had been opened and that we would pull up the anchor and make our way in. The stir started again...and we played on. As Louise properly determined, it would take us quiet a while to actually get there....and sure enough it was 3:00PM before the ship finally made its way into this special harbor with it tiny “mouth” and to our berth in the Table Bay Harbor.

My friends Rudi and George, who sailed here before, warned me that our docking would be memorable...and indeed it was. We sailed right toward the famous Table Bay Hotel...a beautiful five-star hotel that sits right at the end of the dock. We sailed toward the hotel....and toward it...and toward it....literally almost touching it. I swear that if the people on the 10th floor had opened their window they would have been able to touch the ship, we were that close!

As Louise and I stood on the promenade deck she spotted Cynthia dockside patiently awaiting our arrival. It was nice to see her even if their planned day to see Cynthia’s friends had to be changed. (As it turned out, the friends came to Cape Town and showed them around there!) Once the ship was cleared by authorities, I helped Louise to the dock, met Cynthia, and sent them on their merry way. What fun!

My afternoon was spent exploring the busy and colorful harbor. A huge mall that has every store imaginable lies just at harbor side. There are side-walk cafes, open markets, boat tours, helicopter rides...even a flying trapeze ride....everything! It was fun to simply people watch...and slightly regret that my day at the Cape had been cancelled.

The next day was a schedule Virtuoso day...one of the “perks” that came with booking my trip with my great travel agent, Judy Brannon. Each of these special days is better than the next...and our day in South Africa was certainly no exception.

We spent the day outside Cape Town in the wine district of Stellenbosch. What a charming place. Tree-lined streets with tons of open air cafes and shops....white-washed buildings with “Dutch-styled” facades provided a delightful background for families as they strolled through the town on this crisp fall Sunday afternoon. What a pleasant experience.

The ride to and around Stellenbosch underscored the beauty of South Africa. I had no idea that it was so mountainous and so green and so lush and inviting...very beautiful. We eventually made our way to a wonderful old (1685!) winery outside Stellenbosch called Boschendal. Here we toured the facility learning about the colorful history of the place, how they plant, tend, and harvest the various grapes, and then how they process them into a wide variety of award-winning wines. Our young guide was so excited about his work...about “his” vineyard...and about our visit. It was great to share in his enthusiasm.

We eventually found our way to a most delightful setting under a very majestic and stately old...very old...oak tree. This tree was so “perfect” in its shape and leaf cover that it looked too good to be true...and it served as a most delightful place for us to taste some of the product of the vine. They offered us five different wines: three whites and two reds.

Since I don’t normally drink, I decided that only a sip of each would be enough as I didn’t want to embarrass myself and get drunk at our first stop of the day. I found a 2007 Chardonnay to be very nice! And apparently many of my travel mates did as well; for as we left there was more than one dolly carrying more than one case of wine to the bus....do I need to say that “a good time was had by all!”

We rode through the beautiful valley around Boschendal seeing various wineries. South African wine has indeed become big business and each vineyard is doing its best to present a proper front....very nice indeed.

We made our way past Stellenbosch and wound our way up to the Franschhoek pass. Again, more spectacular scenery...just indescribably beautiful! It was in the valley around Franschhoek that we visited another winery for more tasting and lunch. Here the wines were presented by a very young and very handsome man...only 26!...who is the wine master of the vineyard. It seems that he has been working in vineyards since he was 11...has two degrees...and is well respected as one of the best up-and-coming wine masters. Our drinking crowd seemed to agree as they all raved about the various wines that was served with our delicious lunch. What a special day we had!

I returned to the ship to have dinner with Louise and Cynthia aboard the ship. April and May are birthdays for the three of us and Louise had arranged for a “birthday” dinner for us in the Pinnacle, the specialty restaurant aboard the ship. We had a delightful evening together, sharing in our mutual birthdays and enjoying the delicious experience of the Pinnacle. Afterwards, I said good night to the two of them sending them off for a few days of touring around Cape Town.

Since we sailed at noon on the next day, I spent my last morning doing some personal shopping, having a side-walk coffee, and just enjoying the harbor. And as seals “escorted” us out to sea again, I couldn’t help but think about when I would be able to return to Cape Town and enjoy this special city. Yes, all the hype about Cape Town is true...it IS a special place, one that I will visit again!