Cape Town and North to Namibia

2017-01-12

Back at it after two full days of flying and waiting in airports. I got in late the night before so I stayed at a hotel at the airport. Johann picked me up and brought me to his house where I stayed for the week. In the afternoon we went for a ride along the coastline around Cape Town.

We also went to Boulders Beach and saw the penguin colony there.

2017-01-13

I went to a couple of garages today to get the motorcycle’s thermostat fixed. Turns out the shop in Johannesburg put wiring back wrong when they had the fuel tank off so it came loose along the way. With that fixed I headed to the Cape of Good Hope. In Simon’s Town they were fighting forest fires with buckets slung from helicopters being filled in False Bay.

Cape of Good Hope

The view from the Cape light house is pretty spectacular.

On the way back I rode by Kommetjie where some kite surfers were out.

2017-01-14

I went to the Castle of Good Hope which was built in the late 1600’s to defend the Cape after previous fortifications did not stand the test of time.

My timing was perfect as I was able to see the small canon fired and go on a guided tour.

“Dolphin” Pool

Castle of Good Hope from Table Mountain

Afterwards I went to the District Six Museum. The museum documents the forced eviction of District Six from the 1960’s to the 1980’s of Black and Coloured (mixed race) heritage from that area of Cape Town to the Cape Flats to convert the area from a multi-ethnic part of town to a whites only neighbourhood. The area was almost completely demolished save for a few churches and an apartment building. As the evictions were completed in the 1980’s redevelopment has largely not occurred other than the construction of a technical university and the area will be left undeveloped as a reminder of the apartheid era.

2017-01-15

I went to Franschoek and Stellenbosch. Franschoek was an area where the Hugenots settled after being offered asylum from the French Catholic regime as they were protestants and the Dutch regime offered asylum in the Netherlands but they ended up coming to the Cape Colony.

Fransschoek

Huguenot Memorial

2017-01-16

On Sunday I went to Robben Island and visited the waterfront in Cape Town.

Table Mountain from the Boat

Cape Town from the Boat

Political Prisoner Cells

Nelson Mandela’s Cell

2017-01-17

I was finally able to get on Table Mountain as the weather has been quite windy and the cable car has not been running. On my way to Table Mountain I saw a familiar KTM 1190 and Anna who I met near Hoedspruit last year. In the afternoon Johann and I toured some craft breweries in the region.