Would Timon and Pumba be friends in real life? (SOUTH AFRICA)

Believe it or not, one of my friends actually asked our safari guide this question – I hope you all know the answer. South Africa was absolutely amazing…this trip just keeps getting better and better as we go along. We had six full days in the beautiful port of Cape Town, and just about every minute of every day (and every night) was accounted for. The only thing missing – sleep! But who would rather sleep than do all of this?!

What we did

I awoke very early on Saturday morning to watch the sunrise as we approached the shore of Cape Town. Table Mountain prominently stood out from a distance, and serves as a breathtaking background to the entire city. We were lucky to arrive on a clear morning, when Table Mountain was not shrouded by a “tablecloth” of clouds, as it was on other mornings during our stay. The waterfront area at which we were docked is highly developed…many restaurants, gift shops and live bands could be found just a few steps from the ship. It was a nice change of pace from having to rely on shuttle buses to get out of the industrial ports of Casablanca and Tema!

On our first day in Cape Town, I visited two wine estates as part of a business class that I am taking on the ship. There are several vineyards just about an hour outside of the city, as the climate in South Africa lends itself well to wine production, especially red wines. We toured the vineyards, learned about the different production processes, and heard about the various marketing techniques and sustainability initiatives that are occurring in the wine industry today. The landscapes were absolutely stunning, and we luckily arrived in Cape Town on the first nice day they had seen in months (since South Africa is in the southern hemisphere, it is early spring there). Part of our tours included a wine tasting, where we got to taste Pinotage, a type of red wine produced only in South Africa.

The next morning, a friend and I visited Green Point Market, a craft fair open every Sunday in Cape Town. They had some really interesting paintings, wood carvings, beadwork, etc. I loved the unique products sold here, especially compared to the mass produced souvenirs sold in the waterfront gift shops. Later that day, we met a friend of mine, Landon, from Penn who is studying abroad in Cape Town this semester. He climbed Table Mountain with us, which took a little over 2 hours. We felt VERY accomplished when we finally reached the top, as it was a pretty rigorous hike! Unfortunately the view from the top was not great due to cloud cover, but we were able to see our ship from the revolving cable car that we took down the mountain! We also paid a visit to the local grocery store to stock up on snacks! I always like visiting grocery stores in other countries to see what different types of products they sell. I spent some time in the candy aisle – I just HAD to taste the South African specialties!

The following day, we visited Robben Island, the spot where political prisoners were sent during the Apartheid. To reach the island, you have to take a 30-minute ferry from the waterfront in Cape Town. On our way to the island, we caught a nice glimpse of the stadium that is currently undergoing renovations for the World Cup next summer. Upon arriving on Robben Island, we boarded buses for a tour of the island. We saw the quarries in which prisoners spent their days working, homes and schools used by the wardens and their families, and quite a bit of wildlife including an ostrich, penguins and many birds. Then, we reached the maximum-security prison, where our guide, Parks, greeted us. He, like all of the other guides on the island, was a former prisoner – he served seven and a half years on Robben Island for charges of political terrorism. He told us about the horrible conditions that the prisoners were forced to endure, and he explained that the wardens kept a very close eye and ear on their conversations and actions to prevent any uprisings. We saw Nelson Mandela’s prison cell, where he spent 18 out of his 27 years of imprisonment. Also, in the courtyard, we saw where Mandela hid his book, Long Walk to Freedom, while he was writing it. What fascinated me most about the tour was how our guide explained that several ex-prisoners live on the island to this day, and give tours as he does. I cannot imagine choosing to live on the same island, with the same view of Cape Town just across the harbor, as I was forced to in captivity for any length of time. Parks even told us that he is now friendly with several of the wardens by whom he used to be beaten and chastised. It was really neat to leave the island by boat, just as the prisoners did when they were released in 1991.

Five of my friends and I spent the next two days on a safari! We flew up to Port Elizabeth, on the Eastern Cape, about an hour flight. Unlike my hour flight between Philadelphia and Boston, we received a full meal and complimentary coffee on South African Express Airways! From the airport, it was about another hour’s drive to NDuNA Lodge, where we spent the night. The staff was incredibly friendly and accommodating; they picked us up at the airport and from that moment until we went through security to fly back to Cape Town, they were absolutely attentive to us. The lodge and property itself were spectacular – NDuNA has only been open since the beginning of 2009, and we were one of very few groups of people from the US to visit. We spent the entire afternoon riding quad bikes along the trails and spotting animals! NDuNA so far only has herbivores, which is why guests are allowed to ride around on their own. We spotted giraffe, ostrich, springbuck, zebra, and all sorts of others! That evening, we were surprised by a group of six local South African teens, who put on a traditional dance show for us before dinner. We were the only guests at the lodge that night, so we really had the place to ourselves! We all slept very comfortably that night, for the first time since arriving in Cape Town. When I woke up the next morning, I sat on the porch outside of room and admired the most gorgeous view…I can see why they have hosted several weddings there!

They took us to another game reserve nearby the next day so that we could see the bigger animals that NDuNA has not yet brought in (although they plan to do so in the future as they expand). We went for a four-hour game drive, and spotted so many animals! Our guide got us so close to the animals – I couldn’t believe it! We saw tons of warthogs, springbuck and impala. We saw giraffe, zebra, elephants, too! The coolest part of the day was how close we got to the lions…we could see the remains of their last meal, so our guide said it was safe to be in close proximity to them. They had a very rare white lion there too, which was absolutely beautiful! After this experience, going to a zoo will never ever be the same again. I had to remind myself several times that I wasn’t watching the Discovery Channel, but rather actually seeing these beautiful animals up close! We flew back to Cape Town late that night in time to enjoy our last night in South Africa!

What we ate

The better question here should really be what DIDN’T we eat. I’ve had some of the best meals I’ve ever eaten here in South Africa. Both the waterfront and downtown areas have some delicious restaurants, and then of course there were the incredibly decadent meals we were so graciously served on our safari. For exotic foods, I tried an ostrich fillet, warthog, kudu, springbuck, octopus, a kudu burger…and of course enjoyed the fresh meat and seafood that can be found nearly everywhere here.

At NDuNA, we had an unforgettable dinner (breakfast and lunch were not too shabby, either!). The chef there prepared our meal and heated it up in the fireplace right in front of us. The hospitality at NDuNA was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before! Similarly, we paused during our game drive on the second day for lunch – which we expected to be a pre-made sandwich or something – and to our surprise, we were fed a three course lunch! I could get used to that…

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South Africa, as a legacy of Apartheid, is an extremely divided and unequal society. As a tourist you likely would not notice this, because on the outside, the infrastructure and the cities seem to be very built up. However, if you venture just beyond the beautiful veneer of the waterfront area or of downtown Cape Town, you will easily find that the majority of the nation is living in extreme poverty. People in South Africa are hopeful that as time goes on, the two separate and unequal economies will continue to mesh and become one strong economic power. Although Apartheid legally ended more than a decade ago, there remain many obstacles for South Africa to overcome. These stark contrasts made South Africa a very interesting place to visit. So far, it was my favorite port – but there are so many more to come! More from Mauritius…