Day 7
We always like free walking tours when we travel to learn a little more about the country’s history and culture. For Cape Town, we joined this free walking tour on the apartheid history. The starting point is the green market square and we took the 11am Historic City Tour.

You need to bargain if you want to buy something from this market.

 The high court where the apartheid started. According to our guide, one of the rules to determine if one is white or non-white, is to put a pencil in between the hair. If the pencil falls, the person is deemed to be white.

During the apartheid period, benches, staircases, districts were all classified.

Slave lodge where they packed thousands of slaves in a confined space.

The City Hall where Nelson Mandela gave his freedom speech.

Cape Town Free Walking Tours
Address: Green Market Square, Shortmarket St & Burg St, Cape Town City Centre, Cape Town, 8000, South AfricaPhone: +27 76 636 9007Hours: Check the website for tour timingWebsite: http://www.nielsentours.co.za/

After the walking tour in the morning, we went to the Table Mountain in the afternoon as the weather looks pretty good now. No more rain after I bought the coat.
There were plenty of car park attendants wearing yellow vests which I believe are not official attendants. But we still gave 5 to 20 Rand to each attendant because we hope that they will help to look after our car, and we hope that having a little income will deter them from committing crimes.
This car park attendant at the Table Mountain was kind to inform me to bring my jacket up as it will be cold at the peak. So thankful for his suggestion as it was indeed very chilly!

 At the peak. We took the cablecar up instead of climbing because we did not have luxury of time. Besides we read that there could be muggers 😦

Breath-taking view from the top. We spent some time walking around the table top, until loads of tourists come up. Despite the crowd, Table Mountain is still a must visit because it is one of the most beautiful peaks we’ve been to. Table Mountain is now one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature.

On our last night in Cape Town, we decided to go back to V&A waterfront as I really love the shopping and to stroll along the waterfront. So romantic 🙂

We had a pasta dinner which wasn’t fantastic but was very cheap as they were having some 1 for 1 promotion.

Day 8
On the last day in Cape Town, we decided to go up the Signal Hill since we are living in Signal Hill Lodge haha.

View from Signal Hill was amazing! We get to see the Table Mountain! Just yesterday we were up there! We also saw many tourists doing paraglidingin Signal Hill. I was so tempted to try but it wasn’t cheap.

The hotel staff told us that there is cannon firing at 12 noon everyday which is why we saw the Signal Hill Noon Gun signboard near our lodge. Since it was already 1140am after watching people paraglide, we decided to pop by before leaving Cape Town.

What a sight! It was my first time being so near to the cannon and it was so loud! The friendly uncle also explained the history of the noon gun and how it works very well.

Time to head to Betty’s Bay where W promised me with penguins 🙂

 We stopped by at The Whaling Station Greek Mediterranean for a late lunch and we were the only patrons there.
I really love my prawns and fries! The prawns were fresh and succulent, the sauce was a little spicy but I like its savory taste, and the fries has rich potato taste in it. The salad has very refreshing mix of different vegetables and this is definitely one of the best meals so far!
W ordered the catch of the day which was equally amazing. The owner was also super friendly, telling us about his Singaporean friend and how his son studied Chinese in China. The owners are from Greece.

The Whaling Station Greek Mediterranean

Address: 2662 Clarence Dr, Betty’s Bay, 7141, South Africa Phone: +27 28 272 9238 Hours: 8am–9:30pm

The restaurant owner told us we had to hurry to see the penguins! What a pleasant surprise to find that the penguins at Betty’s Bay are so many more than in Boulders Beach. In addition, the entrance fee (R20 for adult) at Betty’s was much cheaper.

 Even before entering the Stony Point Nature Reserve, we were greeted by these penguins. So lovely!

 Walking into the Nature Reserve, we saw even more penguins.

It was estimated to be over 2000 penguins according to the guide.

Look at all the black dots, they are penguins 🙂

Would really love to buy one of the houses here so that I can see the penguins everyday 🙂

Stony Point Nature ReserveAddress: 7141, 2411 Wallers Rd, Betty’s Bay, 7141, South AfricaHours: 8AM–4:30PMPhone: +27 28 272 9829Website: http://www.capenature.co.za/reserves/stony-point-nature-reserve/

We drove on to Hermanus where we stayed in this Hermanus Backpackers hostel just because they do a shark cage tour. Unfortunately when we arrived, we were told that due to adverse weather condition, they will not be doing any shark cage tour for the next few days.
What a disappointment as the shark cage tour is something W and I looked forward to! 
To add to our disappointment, our room was in a poor condition. The curtain fell off and we constantly worry if people might look into our room. The bathroom door was faulty and cannot be closed properly. There wasn’t any air-conditioning, heater nor fan which means we have to open the window for ventilation despite the cold. We also have to risk people climbing in as the window was really low and we were on the first floor. The bathroom did not look clean and it was difficult to change my contact lens as there wasn’t any space to put my solution or lens case.
The whole room was just badly maintained! We couldn’t wait to check out the next day! :(Our consolation for this backpackers was that the staff were all friendly and nice.

Hermanus BackpackersAddress: 26 Flower St, Hermanus, 7200, South AfricaPhone: +27 28 312 4293

For dinner, we dine at Fabio’s Italian Restaurant which was pretty OK but not fantastic (hence we did not take any photo). Guess our appetite was affected by the shark cage disappointment.

Fabio’s RistoranteAddress: 60 St Peters Lane, Hermanus, 7200, South AfricaPhone: +27 28 313 0532Hours: 11am–10pmWebsite: www.fabios.co.za/

Day 9

Happy to leave the backpackers! And since there wasn’t any shark cage diving to do today, we decided to check out the local Hermanus Country Market since it happens to be a Saturday! 
It seems to be a blessing in disguise because the country market turns out to be fabulous! We totally enjoyed chilling with our food and local music, watching the kids play at the sandy playground. We also supported the locals by purchasing some really pretty handicrafts (some birthday cards, fridge magnet, room spray, baby shoes).

Hermanus Country MarketAddress: Fairways Ave & Jose Burman Dr, Hermanus, 7200, South AfricaPhone: +27 72 883 3894Hours: Saturdays 9am to 1pmWebsite: http://hermanuscountrymarket.co.za/

After lunch at the country market, we drove a long distance from Hermanus to Mossel Bay.

 Stopped by a vineyard and saw this wolf dog.

When we reached Mossel Bay it was night time.

Finally tried an authentic outdoor braai (African BBQ). However we still prefer our meals at Millers Thumb and The Whaling Station. The ambience was good for large groups.

Kaai 4 Braai RestaurantAddress: Quay 4, Mossel Bay Harbour, Mossel Bay, 6500, South AfricaPhone:+27 79 980 3981

Yeah to a decent lodge again!

Bar-t-nique

Address: 82 Rodger St, Mossel Bay, 6500, South Africa Phone: +27 44 690 4554 Website: www.bar-t-nique.co.za/