Cape Peninsula

Sunday 17th Frbruary
The Cape Peninsula beckoned today so we drove out to Cape Point and Cape of Good Hope. Situated at the junction of two contrasting water masses - the warm Agulhas current on the east coast and the cold Benguela current on the west coast, the Cape of Good Hope is popularly perceived as the meeting point of the Atlantic and Indian oceans. However, geographically, the Atlantic Ocean joins the Indian Ocean at Cape Agulhas. Cape Point does boast of being the most south westerly point of Africa, while Cape Agulhas is the most southerly point.
The cliffs at the southern point, towering more than 200 m above sea level  consist of three clearly defined promontories namely Cape of Good Hope, Cape Maclear and Cape Point.
The tour buses seemed to overwhelm Cape Point so we retired to Buffels Bay where the coaches could not go. It was here that we watched an opportunist baboon snatch a packet of something (it looked like salad) from an unsuspecting picnic group and when it was chased away, it sneaked up, undaunted, on another group.
I didn't know it at the time, but the Chacma Baboon troops on the cape peninsula are afforded special protection, but we did chuckle when we saw a game ranger armed with a catapult.

Chapmans Peak  Drive

Chapmans Peak Drive

We took the scenic Chapmans Peak road back to Cape Town, this road had been closed for 5 years for maintenance and when it was opened again, it was a toll road. The toll charges were well worth it as the drive was spectacular and although we had done that drive before, it's magnificent views are still not to be missed.








From Chapmans peak, we continued on the coast road past Camps Bay and Clifton, enjoying the scenic drive. When we came to Sea Point we realised that it was nearing dinner time so we looked for a place to eat. Le Perla, an Italian restaurant, looked like a nice place overlooking the sea. We couldn't have chosen better and because we were there fairly early in the evening we managed to find a table quite easily. As we sat and watched people, the restaurant filled up quickly. We understood why. The food was good and the service attentive. It was at Le Perla that we found crayfish so as it was our last meal in Cape Town, we indulged ourselves.