The second stop on the Favreau family experience was Cape Town. This is a must see spot as part of anyone's South African tour although it is a bit of a wildcard in June -- the weather can be unpredictable and potentially terrible, much the same as San Francisco.
We traveled from the bush and landed in Cape Town on Tuesday evening. The six of us rolled up to the overly nice
Westin in our rental (non-USA sized SUV) packed to the absolute brim with suitcases and people (un-showered and travel worn). Probably not what the General Manager was expecting for the platinum level Favreau party. Nonetheless, they rolled out the red-carpet for the best welcome I've ever received. The General Manager handed "Mr. Favreau" (all four of them) business cards, gave a tour of the property, threw in evening drinks, free breakfast, and upgraded one of the rooms to a suite (where a four-tiered dessert tray, bottle of wine, and personal card were waiting). This is the first time I
almost felt ashamed of the amount of nights I have spent in Starwood properties; everyone else sat back and watched in amusement.
We awoke on our first day to overcast skies and cold weather. I don't think there is an original way to explore Cape Town, so we set out on the classic tourist loop. Signal Hill, Camps Bay, Hout Bay Harbour, Chapman's Peak Road (stop for picture...CHEESE), Kommetjie Lighthouse (skip it), barter at the curio shop (buy obligatory African mask you'll never find a spot for), Cape Point (actually scratch that, we're too frugal to pay the park fees), penguins at Boulder Beach (who doesn't love penguins??), capped off with a seaside lunch at
Brass Bell in Kalk Bay (where the waves crash "into" the restaurant).
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| Hout Bay Harbour |
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| Penguins at Boulder Beach |
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| Penguin at Boulder Beach |
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| CP and I at Boulder Beach |
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| Lunch at Brass Bell |
Tired after another day of running from site to site, we caught the African sunset from the hotel hot tub and headed to the V&A Waterfront for an easy meal (another tourist trap; similar to Pier 39 for you San Franciscans).
The second full day started bright and early for Dad, Brad, and I as we set out on our Great White Shark adventure. Diving with the Great Whites is unique to Cape Town, and therefore, made my must-do list. The best place to spot sharks is in Gansbaai (a two hour drive down the coast from Cape Town) where all the iconic Great White breaching and feeding footage has been captured. We arrived a sunrise and set out to sea among the rolling swells toward an island - home to some 50,000 cape fur seals - a few miles off the coast.
The plan: Crush up a bucket of smelly fish guts and pour the oily discharge all around the boat. Meanwhile, put on a black wet suit and try to look as much like a seal as possible. Then, jump in the water and hope a Great White comes close. Brilliant.
All things went according to plan, and thankfully, the cage proved to be a worthy barrier and excellent viewing window. We saw six Great Whites in total and the biggest of them was a massive 6 meters long (or was it 8?... no, definitely 9 meters!).
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| Sunrise in Gansbaai |
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| Waiting for Great Whites |
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| Dad and Brad on the boat |
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| Great White |
While we were shark diving, CP, Mom, and Pepere enjoyed a sunny day in Cape Town and were able to explore the top of Table Mountain and tour the city. We rendezvoused at the hotel in the afternoon, both parties wide-eyed and eager to share the day's activities.
Next stop: Franschoek
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