The Last Days

After arriving back from shark diving, we took the opportunity to take a nap (much needed). After waking up, we ventured out and got one of the most amazing burgers ever just down the street from our hostel. After, we headed out on the back patio and drinking some of our Reyneke wine in cheap glasses from the communal kitchen. Early the next morning, we decided to take a drive down to Camp's Bay which we had heard from multiple sources was an amazing beach. Read More...

We rented some chairs, applied some sunscreen, and opened up the kindles. 

We were soon to learn that my 45 SPF was not cutting it. Probably after about an hour, I was fried to a crisp. I can safely say that, months later, you can still see an exact outline of what my bathing suit looked like that day.

I took a walk up and down the beach to at least even out my sunburn (not a good choice).

It was quite windy so I think it is safe to say that many people did not get their deposits back on their umbrellas as I saw multiple fly away into the ocean.

After heading back to the hostel, we decided to check out Lion's Head. I had been reassured that this hike would be much easier than Table Mountain (Inshallah).

We had some pretty fabulous views of Table Mountain from this hike, which made it much easier to appreciate the hike I was currently on.

Cape Town is one of the most beautiful cities I've been to. The mountains are spectacular and I can imagine that it would be quite romantic. After taking pictures of Cheryl and Chase at the overlook, I also insisted on getting my solo shot.

~~~~ just a single lady enjoying the view~~~~

I was not about to climb on that rock.

One thing that I love is Twitter. It is great for quick shoutouts and funny one-liners. It is also great for insider information. I checked it often while we were in Cape Town to see whether the Table Mountain cable car was open and it even led us to one of the most magical places ever. The Lion's Head Mountain twitter account tweeted about a secret cave that, if you were brave enough to go past the barbed wire, had some really amazing views.

Directions: At the first set of ladders, go left past the barbed wires. Keep walking until you find the cave.

Of course, we went for it.

Cheryl led us through some dubious paths, and after some wrong turns while the sun was quickly setting, we finally stumbled upon the cave.

And as promised- there were some amazing views.

Some people had obviously found the cave before us and had left behind some treasures including their empty beer cans.

Where's Waldo?

After finding our way back to the main path, we quickly headed to the top using what little light was left.

We did have to head back down in the pitch black, but as usual, the way back down seemed much faster than the climb up.

The next morning, on our last day in South Africa, we decided that a trip back to the penguins was in order.

This time, the sun was shining and the penguins looked much happier.

"Do not stick fingers past the fence. The penguins will bite."

Chase is a very dedicated photographer.

On the Cape Peninsula, there are two major points to visit: the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point (they are not the most southern on the continent; that's Cape Agulhas). When we went on our rainy Christmas adventure, we only visited the Cape of Good Hope. Today, we decided to make our way to Cape Point.

There is a large lighthouse that stands at the top. It was so windy that I would not have been surprised if I blew off the top into the ocean below.

I brought my family with me to Cape Point!

As it was such a beautiful day, we made our way back to the Cape of Good Hope to see what it looked like when it was not a torrential downpour.

The dassie made a reappearance, looking a little more friendly.

While Chase stalked the ostriches, Cheryl and I decided it was time for the Hyundai i10 to make its debut. As you can see, Cheryl is about as tall as our car was long. I was not sad to take it back the next day.

We slowly made our way back up the coast to our hostel as we began to mourn the end of our trip to South Africa. It was our last night before heading back to Qatar, and we were sure it was going to be a good one.

It was New Years! 

We made some friends with a group of Brazilians that were more than willing to share their sustenance. 

And that is the last picture taken on our trip to South Africa. You can imagine what happened next.

It was a sad trip to the airport the next day as we boarded our cheap flight to Joberg for our connection back to Doha. It was hard to say goodbye to the mountains, greenery, and wildlife, but I can honestly say it was one of the best trips of my life. South Africa is absolutely beautiful and I can't wait to go back! 

Would it have been so terrible if we had missed our flight?