Our cunning plan for a relaxed transition seemed to have worked perfectly (for a change!) We got up to a reasonbly timed alarm (6.30) to shower and dress for the completion of the outward bound travel. The hotel breakfast was a delight (and so cheap!) then we walked back to the terminal to check in for our domestic flight. This was a completely separate ticket from Joburg to Cape Town on one of the many domestic airlines. I’ve seen bus routes that are less well covered! There is an A330 flying from JBN to CPT every 20-30 minutes – and that’s just on FlySafair! There are other similar airlines!
We arrived at the requested 90 minutes prior to take off, had nothing to check, spent 5 minutes in the security line (no liquids need to be removed?) then had WAY to much time to wait. The flight boarded on time, took off with little issue, and landed just a few minutes late. Yes, it was a budget airline that charged us for the fizzy water we asked for but whatever. When it was time to deplane, the most amazing thing happened: there was NO mass chaos to get bags out of the bins when the seat belt sign went off. Instead, everyone sat calmly and waited for the flight attendant to dismiss their row – like we were in grade school. It was amazing!
We had prebooked a ride from the airport and a lovely man with our name on a sign was waiting in the main area of the airport. And 30 minutes later, we pulled up in front of our AirBnB apartment in the Seapoint area of Cape Town. The art deco building was similar to other architecure in the area (reminded me a bit of South Beach actually) and our flat is just lovely with lots of space and a view of the ocean.
But first we needed some food. So off we went to explore the neighborhood. We had lunch at a French tapas bistro (?) because nothing says “Welcome to South Africa” like a French style wine bar serving Spanish small plates! But the food was lovely and the prices unbelievable – £3 for a glass of good rosé! Then our favourite vacation activity: the local supermarket! Because we have an apartment, we can have breakfast at home so we needed some supplies (and wine. We always need wine!). It turns out that GF bread isn’t much of a thing here but we managed to find muesli and crackers to go with the fruit, yogurt and cheese.
Back to the flat for a quick meeting (some vacation!) and then a wander along the coast. We thought we would take a nice long walk along the beach to get to the V&A waterfront to find a nice place for dinner. About 2 miles into the walk, we noticed that street parking was becoming a challenge – random guys were “helping” people to find parking, for a fee of course – and stumbled upon the Oranjezicht City Night Market – a gourmet farmer’s market with crafts, food, booze, and loads of people and fun. We couldn’t have found a more perfect way to spend our first night in Cape Town! I was hoping for some fresh sea food and got swordfish with hand cut chips. Frank had a hand carved roast beef sandwich and chips. Throw in some local beer and cider, some music and craft stalls and the evening was complete. We started our Christmas shopping (shh! don’t tell our kids!) and then wandered back to the apartment. Another small bit of work (dissertation grades submitted!) and it was time for our first day to end. Tomorrow is our first excursion so we need our beauty sleep!
Data for today:
- Steps: 21,171 or 10.1 miles
- Number of flights between Johannesburg and Cape Town every day: 51
- Rough exchange rate: 25 ZAR to 1 GBP (terrible mental math!)
- Cost of a very nice bottle of South African Rosé: 64 ZAR (yes, that’s correct. My liver is already sad.)
The Cannon Family's travel blog 