Cape Town, South Africa

After the adrenaline rushes of the previous ports, Cape Town proved to be the perfect place to slow down, take deep breathes and enjoy the wonders of nature in this serenely beautiful city. Cape Town sits on a strip of land between the meeting of the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, with what has to be the world's biggest flat top mountain at its back! Spectacular! Where there is soil, not boulder, they have built a modern, seemingly affluent, commercial, manufacturing, residential, and recreational paradise! We drove for several miles along the coast and up to the foot of Table Mountain; and I saw no litter, no homelessness, no rundown buildings. Just neatly landscaped, manicured parks and neighborhoods. Quite a contrast from some of the other African cities we've visited, Our guide, whose name escapes me, did say they were currently experiencing steady inflation -to the point that many people cannot afford medical insurance or private medical treatment. Our driver contradicted her and stated that he had very good medical insurance at what he considered a reasonable price. Whom to believe? Perhaps we could have sorted all this out, had we not by this point reached the parking lot for the cable car to the top of Table Mountain.

It is the beginning of winter in Cape Town and the weather can be quite unpredictable. This day was PERFECT! Sunny, bright blue sky, warm but not hot with little to no wind - not a small thing when one is about to board a cable car to be lifted thousands of feet in the air to a flat surface with no guard rails. As I said, perfect. Once we had all arrived safely atop the mountain, we were given an hour to "explore, shop, eat, take photos, enjoy the wildlife but DO NOT feed them." It seems cute little creatures in the elephant family inhabit this mountain top. They look nothing like elephants - no trunk, no tusks, no big floppy ears, not even grey, but we were assured they were the smallest creature in that family. She said there was plenty for them to eat hereon, and if we fed them junk food they would get sick and die. Something of a fatalist, that guide; but trust me, they were far too cute for any of us to risk killing them. Funny thing: once we reached the top, the mountain was anything but flat. Some places were easier to reach than others, so after awhile I found a perfect spot to sit on a rock and enjoy the view. Some time later, while perched upon that rock, I saw a climbing hook (?) fly over a nearby ledge, catch hold and glory be, a mountain climber appeared. Wow! He wasn't even out of breath! Our guide asked if this was his last climb of the day, to which he nonchalantly said "Yes." So how many times had he made that climb, I wanted to ask, but he had already gathered his gear and disappeared.

All too soon, it was time to leave this most unique landscape to board the cable car for our journey down the mountain to our buses, take a short tour of yet another upscale residential neighborhood, and finally, back to The Vista.

The Cape Town I visited has not always been so serene. For decades, all of South Africa was anything but serene. Robben Island, where Nelson Mandela and his "co-conspirators" were imprisoned for decades is now a must-see tourist destination. Upon the prisoners' release, most had no family or home to which they could return. No job skills. No money. Virtually no hope. The island has many similarities with Alcatraz. From Robben Island, there was no escape, as it is far enough out to sea that none could swim to freedom. The prisoners were behind guarded fences, worked unmercifully in totally meaningless jobs, underfed, and were the victims of needless brutality. Upon release, having nowhere to go, most continued to live on Robben. In an attempt to solve the unsolvable question as to what could/should be done with/for them, a plan was enacted. The former prisoners were trained to be tour guides for those visitors wishing to see what is for most the only home they can remember. My friends, Ron & David took that tour and are the source of this information. In the photo of me atop Table Mountain, if you look just to the right of my shoulder, there is what might be mistaken for a gray-ish cloud. That is Robben Island. Another reminder of what no one should endure. Not South Africa's finest moment, but a part of its history nonetheless.

As with many ports on this awesome voyage, our time in Cape Town was far too short. Now we head north along the western coast of Africa. Translation: pirate territory! Not to fear, Oceania has once again made a decision "in an abundance of caution" to beef up our security... First night out of Cape Town, while in The Terrace Cafe awaiting the grilling of my shrimp, this really buff thirty-something guy came up beside me to order. I took one look at him and said, "Oh, you must be one of our pirate protectors. Thank you!" His response was a somewhat shy grin, then said "Just a fellow passenger, ma'am..." NOT!

Today is Someday! Waste Not!