Springtime at the Tip of Africa

Sunday 12th September a few of us, some from my office and some teaching volunteers made a trip to the tip of Africa (well almost, the most South Westerly point, but who cares about a few degree, right?).

It was a beautiful spring day. The sun was shining brightly as we set off on our car journey along the coast, it almost looked as if the sky and sea were merging in together. We drove on a beautiful coastal road looking down at one of the trendy areas, Clifton, where Adonises complete with RayBan's were sun worshipping the amber orb visible in the expanse of cloud free skies above. The rocky ragged hills rose up as a backdrop to the foaming seas below.

We headed into the Cape Peninsula National Park where groups of baboons were picking at berries opulent among the clumps of bushes which clung to the rocky hillsides. After having my sandwich stolen by a baboon, I'm not exactly a fan though. It was a good job that we could admire the baboons from the safety of our vechile! All I could see for miles around was blue. The blue of the sky, the blue of the sea. Even the fauna had a bluish hue.

We were dropped off on the cliff path and walked through the alpine-like plants past ostriches and seagulls watching crumbs of sand on the beach below being enveloped by the surge of the frothy seas. We walked up and up climbing up to the top where the beaches were spread out below. It was like walking into an oil painting. A more beautiful place than I could ever have imagined. We took photos and marvelled at the view before descending.

At the bottom we posed before the Cape of Good Hope sign. We took in the awesome feeling of being at the tip of such a beautiful place. And the end of the continent.

On the drive back with the sun blazing down we stopped off at boulders beach and went penguin watching. We walked to the beach on a path where huge geraniums (I never knew that my window box favourite could grow so big!) hung over  groups of penguins. We sat at the beach and contemplated the big blocks of stone that rose out of the icy Atlantic waters. It looked how I imagine paradise to look with blooming tree branches hanging down over our heads. Bliss!

Then it was back in the car and home to the host family after a beautiful spring day.