Cape Town, August 8th, 2016

Monday, August 8th

No one had to rock any of us to sleep last night. We all crashed when we got back from dinner and slept great. Sunday morning we all took a Nuvagil (which is used for shift workers to stay awake when they have to work night shifts). It “wakes” you up without you having the feeling of being “revved” up. I’m convinced it’s what made yesterday possible!

Today we took a boat to Robbens Island, which is most known for being where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 of the 27 years he was in prison. The island had been a slave colony, a prison, a leper colony and animal quarantine site since the 1600s. The prison was finally completely closed in the mid 1990s. It is now home to about 200 people and is a world UNESCO site. The boat ride was about 30 minutes from the Cape Town waterfront and fortunately the seas were pretty calm. We were told to get scopolamine patches because it can be pretty rough in the winter.   

View of the city from boat to Robbens Island.  

That huge mountain behind the city is called Table Mountain.  It is one of New 7 Wonders of Nature rising 3000′.  We are hoping to catch the gondola to the top but it has been close for two weeks prior to our arrival and the lines are a 2 hour wait.

Robben Island was a pretty moving tour. One of he people giving the tour had been a political prisoner there during the 1980s and his stories of the mistreatment and inequity of treatment between the different races was so sad.  

Prison entrance

Robbens Island

We slowed down this afternoon and came back to the hotel about 3pm. Carol and I sat in the lounge and had tea and relaxed while the guys napped.  

Avis brought our rental car to us at the hotel this afternoon and after checking it out, we realized it might be a tight fit on the ride to Stellenbosch.  I have to say I get no joy from, nor take any pride from being able to pack for a 2 week trip in one suitcase. So I didn’t!  But I will have anything we need and more.   I feel like Mary Poppins. I keep pulling things out of my bag.  Like the 3 pair of binoculars that we brought along with a few other essentials. Carol and Tom got the gist of why we brought 3 bags between us!  We had dinner at The Pot Luck Club in the Woodstock district tonight. We were so lucky to get a reservation as it only takes them one month out and they fill up immediately as the date opens up. It is on the 6th floor of an old biscuit factory and the huge windows throughout the dining room have views of the ocean, Table Mountain, and the city. The concept of the restaurant was inspired by the idea of communal potluck dinners. So diners order a variety of small plates of global modern cuisine, from a menu that’s divided into distinct taste profiles (salty, sweet, sour, bitter and umami). Also, it has an open kitchen so we could watch the chefs.  

Well we had a fantastic dinner and experience and are back in the hotel, full, happy and sleepy!
We’re off tomorrow to drive the Cape Peninsula.   Looks like the weather is going to be the same tomorrow as it was today, so it should be a beautiful drive.