Cape Town never gets old

After ten years in Cape Town, the city hasn’t even started to bore me. But when my family announced they’d visit me for the fifth time it got me thinking though: what to show these regular visitors? What is there to do for my sister’s daughter Iris (just a few months short of 2 years old)? They like to see something new everyday they are here and I wanted to give them just that.
Looking back at their 3 week “summer holiday in spring” the concerns proved to be unnecessary. Cape Town has so much on offer, for everyone – from young first time visitors like Iris to frequent flying family members and even residents! 
Iris felt beach sand under her tiny feet for the first time at the aptly named beach resort of Strand (which means ‘beach’ in Afrikaans and Dutch).
While we stood in awe of breaching whales, she looked up at the clear blue sky in amazement “Look. Moon! Moon!” Iris reminded us of the simple beauty of seeing both the moon and the sun on a clear sunny day. While we enjoyed the panoramic views over Table Mountain, Iris went on her knees to pick some of the brightly coloured Cape spring flowers.
Despite having been there numerous times I am glad we decided to drive to Cape Point another time. Not only did it grant us the opportunity to take a nice family photo, we witnessed a sizable zebra family crossing the road. A first for me at Cape Point.
The Cape spring flowers were nothing short of amazing this year. We decided to ‘skip’ Kirstenbosch and visit two of my favourite places in the Western Cape: the Karoo National Botanical Garden in Worcester and Harold Porter in Betty’s Bay. Both were equally impressive and offered a rich diversity. Iris enjoyed watching the penguins at Stoney Point while at Boulder’s Beach we all were too distracted by a group of breaching whales to pay attention to the feathered main attraction. Cape nature never ceases to amaze or impress, often when you least expect it…
My South African wife was most impressed with the sighting of a large group of common dolphins playing in the sunset near Simon’s Town. Can one really get enough of these experiences? 
We didn’t take the cable car up Table Mountain but instead viewed it from Blouberg Beach and the Tygerberg Nature reserve, which in my humble opinion offers the most stunning views of the iconic mountain. Best of all, the park hasn’t been spoiled by mass tourism. As a matter of fact, we were practically the only visitors on a sun-soaked weekend day in the school holidays! The panoramic view encompasses Cape Town stadium, the V&A Waterfront, Robben Island and of course the iconic Table Mountain. You can clearly see the planes approaching and landing at Cape Town International airport.
I am convinced Cape Town and surrounds has something for everyone throughout the year but after a disappointing experience at a Big 5 park which I shall not name here, I have always thought the one thing missing is a proper game viewing experience. After a visit to Buffelsfontein along the West Coast I had to correct this point of view somewhat. During the ride in an open off-road vehicle we saw countless zebras, a huge herd of eland antelope, prancing springboks and most amazingly a group of gemsbok (oryx) on the run. Unlike previously mentioned game park, everything seemed much less ‘scripted’. Entering a cage full of hungry cheetahs flanked by guides carrying raw chicken cadavers was of course a little scripted but nonetheless an experience I will not likely forget soon. 
I go back to work reassured that I live in possibly the most beautiful and naturally diverse city in the world! Even though I live here, I cannot think of a nicer place to spend my holidays than Cape Town.

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