When we left the day was good but as we progressed the weather worsened. We were stopped en route by a police check who gave Chris grief because he didn’t have an International Driving Licence but eventually decided to let him go with a warning. First time we had heard that it was a requisite - or perhaps yer man was flexing his muscles! As we continued on our way it started to rain quite heavily and in the midst of all this Chris informed me he had booked us in and paid for us to go ziplining!!!
At my age!! The provenance of this was that last year in Argentina we had been booked to do this somewhere in the foothills of the Andes but when we got to the place we found it had been substituted with horse riding! He hadn’t told me as he knew I would refuse. Anyhow, we arrived at the site only to find that we were the only ones there, everyone else having cancelled because of the weather. Wusses! We did it and at least we didn’t have to wait while six others harnessed up to zip from tree to tree and I enjoyed it! From Knysna we headed off to Mossel Bay and somewhere en route managed to get some Glade fabric freshener to douse the suitcase and for the first time in days felt that the smell of cat pee was diminishing. By the time we got to Mossel Bay the weather had worsened considerably. The wind howled incessantly and the rain lashed down making it impossible to go anywhere.
Our next port of call was to be Stellenbosch and we left early the next day since we wanted to make a detour to Cape Agulhas, the southernmost point on the African continent. There had been no let up to the weather - in fact, if anything it was worse and our visibility for driving was really poor, especially if we got stuck behind a lorry throwing up spray. At one stage it was getting quite scary and it came as no surprise to us when we encountered floods. They were passable, but only just! We did consider jettisoning the trip to Cape Agulhas but then decided that the likelihood of us being in the area again was slight to non-existent and so we carried on. The rain did seem to ease a tad but when we got to the Cape we realised we had no rain gear with us and we had to walk the last 150 metres - which we did!
As we neared Stellenbosch, the weather began to clear so that by the time we were checking in to our hotel, it had eased to a light rain and things were looking positive for the next day. It was. The day dawned bright and clear and, after sampling (and purchasing) some of the wines on offer, we headed to Cape Town and looking forward to the next few days to be spent there.
Our hotel had stunning views both of Table Mountain and the Waterfront and it was there that we feasted our eyes at breakfast the next morning. Because the mountain was clear and the weather seemed calm, I suggested that we head there to be certain of getting up there. We did so and it seemed that half the population of Cape Town had had the same idea so the queues for tickets were humungous. We waited over an hour but there was a lot of friendly chat and banter while we waited.
It had been our intention to go from there to the Cape of Good Hope but when we got to Hout Bay we found that the road through Chapman’s Peak was closed because of landslides following the heavy rains of the previous days. We abandoned our plans and instead located a laundry as we were rapidly running out of clean clothes and then relaxed in our hotel before heading off to the Waterfront for dinner with my grand-niece who that day had finished her formal education and was in celebratory mood. It was great fun and we talked and laughed so much that we forgot to take any photos. The only blight was that Springbok was off the menu. I so wanted to eat Bambi!
I ate Oswald the Ostrich instead! 
Our decision to go to Table Mountain was the right one as the next day it was well and truly wearing the Tablecloth. We however, had booked to go to Robben Island and so headed off to the Waterfront. Since my last trip some 12 years ago they had built a super-dooper Gateway building from where the catamarans left and I was proud to see that the back wall was covered with pictures and reportage of Nelson Mandela’s visit to Dublin. The visit to the island covers more than just the prison as it was also a leper colony in the past and there was a place called Irishtown, founded by Irish missionaries. I felt that my first trip had been more comprehensive. The guide on our bus spent a lot of time talking about himself to the extent that by the time we got to the prison we were whisked through so that by the time we got to Mandela’s cell, the boat was sounding the siren for us to return.
From Robben Island, we headed to the Cape of Good Hope using a different route. When we reached the entrance we found that the funicula to Cape Point was not working. Well there was no way I was walking up there so we contented ourselves with visiting the sign for the Cape and photographing the ostriches on the side of the road.
That essentially was the end of our whistle-stop tour of Cape Town. We spent the rest of our time shopping for souvenirs and had a farewell dinner since we would be parting in the morning, me to return to Durban and Chris to go on to Namibia.
Ever since kulula was formed as an airline I had longed to try them as they seemed a fun airline but alas the times or routes never seemed to suit. However when looking for flights to get back to Durban, I was delighted to see that they did offer a flight. They appear to be in some form of partnership with BA but the time, and more importantly, the price suited me beautifully. Yesssss!
Chris dropped me off at the airport and I checked in with ease at the kulula check-in. I had packed the wines bought in Stellenbosch but later found I could have brought them through as hand luggage. The check-in agent offered to allow me to unpack them but they had been well padded with my underwear and I had no intention of exposing my frillies to the South African travelling public and so I declined and headed off to security. The line looked exceedingly long, at least four deep, but it was managed superbly by staff opening and closing tensa barriers depending on the numbers in the screening area. As a result I was through in less than ten minutes and headed to my gate. As I arrived there, a BA flight was being called for a flight to JNB and the load was exceedingly light. Not so. when it came to the kulula flight. We lined up as if for a Ryanair flight along two sided of the boarding area but that’s where the similarity ended. Staff then patrolled the line and pulled out families with young children and the elderly and escorted them on to the aircraft. None of this invitation to board followed by a scrum as everybody and his dog decides they fall into that category. While this was happening, staff patrolled the two lines checking ID ready for a swift boarding. Kulula allows seat selection at the point of booking and I had selected 3A. We headed towards the jetbridge but just before we reached it, there were staff who were directing passengers at the back of the plane to a door which led outside to a staircase down to the tarmac and across to the back stairs.
I had hoped to fly the first plane in this sequence but at least I got the second one
Once everyone was on board they started the safety demo which began, “Ladies and gentlemen, to fasten your seat belt, please close the buckle as shown and then pull it tightly over your gorgeous hips!” I listened for more of the same but that was the only offering. I was kind of relieved. After all one wouldn’t want the message of safety to be lost in a gimmicky presentation. After that the flight was straightforward and reminiscent of an Aer Lingus one with snacks and beverages for sale. The only difference was that I did not have a G&T!
The flight lasted about an hour and a half and soon we were flying over the Indian Ocean before turning in towards King Shaka airport. As we taxied to the gate the crew asked us to “check seat pockets for personal items such as glasses, iPods, iPads, laptops and so on, but if you happen to be rich, single and a sugar cane farmer, please feel free to leave your business cards for the crew and especially for Megan”
Poor Megan was as red as a beetroot!We were quickly disembarked but the luggage took a bit of time to come through. My niece was there to meet me and bring me to her home ready for our last few days together and my trip home.
Read on, dear friends, read on. There's more to come!
