Johannesburg

Johannesburg is called by locals "Jberg". Most people hear and know about Joburg for its crimes before anything else. The notion is well explained by the electric fences, security guards in sights and the unusual quietness on the streets after dusk. However, there's "something else" going for the city. It's beautiful. It's culturally rich.It's visibly a blend of rich and poor, white and black, quiet neighborhoods behind high walls and hustle and bustle of townships. It says more of South Africa than elsewhere. The last long weekend in Joburg was nothing but a wonderful experience. A brand new experience, for me, of a Pasach dinner on Friday night at Lance's aunt's was interesting and delicious. Over the weekend, we met friends at the Garden World of Consiniga, where I experienced a divine vegan meal at Leafy Green, visited more friends at their homes, paid a visit to Roasebank for craft shopping and unexpected lively music and ambiance, had a little tour, guided by Lance's aunt, to a hospital in Soweto and a nearby taxi terminal and townships in the real African name, and finally a South African style family Braan for Lance's birthday.
At the end of the weekend, I found myself an advocate for Johannesburg, apart from all-time Cape Town worshipers. I appreciate the beauty and characters of both cities and don't think they can be ever replaced by anywhere in the world.
I confidently told Lance that I would come up with a little summary about South Africa at the end of the trip. When it came to the time, I found myself stumble on the task. This is really a daunting task. I managed to write down my 2 weeks and half travel experience in this country. That's the best I could do at this moment. I reserve such a summary to a future trip and a deeper understanding of the country and people. It won't be little though.

The Garden Route

In the next several days, we were on the famous "Garden Route". En route, we stayed at Hermanus for the first night, Plettenberg Bay for 3 nights, Port Elizabeth for 2 nights and East London for 2 nights. It was rainy along the way to and at Hermanus. Pletternber Bay is a up-market seaside resorts with ragged coast lines and golden beaches. We had breakfast at the bay front Beacon Island Hotel, an architect awkwardly standing alone at the beach front. A short visit to Knysna includes a stroll at the lookout point for a magnificent view of Knysna Lagoon and the Heads, a little shopping experience at the roadside African artisan market, a walk around the waterfront and lunch at Spur. On the third day at the Plettenberg Bay, we took a hike at Robberg Nature Reserve. This wonderful hike, voted by both Lance and me, is the highlight of Garden Route. I literally felt I was immersed in a paradise of nature that presents dramatic windswept cliffs, blue seas, small sandy doves, a colony of seals and many many interesting beach birds and schools of dolphins passing by in the distance. There was no place like Robberg Nature Reserve.
En route to PE (Port Elizabeth), we stopped at the Storms River Suspension Bridge at Tsitsikamma for walks and views. We carried on and detoured to the famous beach town- Jeffrey's Bay and only found the world's most perfect waves weren't that perfect that day. The detour served a nostalgia opportunity for Lance. We stayed at Summer Sandy Beach resort in PE. The flat where we stayed lies directly on the beach with a big balcony for swimmers and surfers watching. We spent a few lazy beach days at PE before heading north to East London. East London is new to both of us. Unlike what the tour book describes, East London city areas appear to be quite run-down and the sought after Latimer's Landing was finally found at a warehouse looking backdrop of the harbor and closed. We were a bit too afraid to get out of car and check. We stayed at Gonubie, a wild beach town situated on rocky and windy coasts. It was cloudy and misty on the beach. Waves pounding rocks shoot into the air fantastic waterfalls. It is wild and surreal. There's a pancake house on the beach that makes mediocre pancakes and attracts a lot of local Afrikaner customers. That's probably the only little hustle and bustle in the town.

Cape Town and Peninsula

It was breezy and sunny when we arrived at Cape Town airport. We stayed at a flat at Sea Point with a distanced ocean view and a church standing between. Cape Town is undoubtedly beautiful and characterful. Besides its commonly recognized striking landscape, Cape Town is appealing to me for its wind (sometimes it can be pretty crazy), roaring seagulls, seaweed smells from the seas and the natural looking and feels. You feel natural and refreshed here. We stayed at Cape Town for about 5 days. During our stay, we visited families and friends, attending some family gatherings, hiked the Lion's Head and Table Mountain and took a long drive along the Cape Peninsula. We stopped and strolled on beaches, we saw sunsets on a few beaches, we embraced the striking beauty that the local mountains offer, we indulged ourselves with delicious seafood at nice restaurants and we enjoyed our time with families and friends. The most important component, for Lance, of the trip is the nostalgia moments on the beaches, on the top of mountains and at the corners of the town and his reunion with his long time friends and families. He was energetic and glowing. The places we visited in Cape Town and Cape Peninsula area include Sea Point, Bantry Bay, Clifton, Camps Bay, Llandudno beach, Hout Bay, Constantia, Misty Cliffs, Scarborough, Simon's Town, Kalk Bay, St James, Muizenberg, Table Mountain and Lion's Head. The trip was delightful and yet somewhat of a rush. We felt we didn't give it enough time to enjoy a relaxing afternoon on the beaches. Lance found himself struggle to justify his moving out of the town years ago. I see Cape Town's charm and understand its power to make every expats wonder if they made a right choice. It's a tough call, indeed.