Day 13
We had breakfast at the Clover Cafe in Global Village which served really good breakfast, especially their omelette. Next to the Cover Cafe, there is a souvenir shop which sells many interesting local products. We bought quite a few souvenirs!
Nice weather for outdoor dining.
One of the many things I like from the shop. But I do not have my own house to hang 😦
Clover Cafe
Address: Plettenberg Bay, 6600, South AfricaPhone: +27 44 533 6172
After breakfast, we headed to Tenikwa Wildlife Awareness Centre because we need to see leopardy before leaving Africa!
Sleepy leopard, we will come back for you again 🙂
Serval, which has like a domestic cat face on a leopard body.
We walked next to the cheetahs as the guide says these cheetahs grew up in the sanctuary since young. So it was “safe”. As extra safety precaution, another guide walked behind us to protect our back.
These cheetahs are so beautiful with their tears that reflect sunlight when they are chasing their preys. This is to help them to see better.
A rare white lion!
White lion with female lion. According to the guide, lions are territorial animals. And if we were to encounter lions in the wild, we should not squat but roar loud and stand tall. Squatting makes us look small and weak in which the animals will definitely attack.
Mercat. Always standing up tall to look far for preys and predators.
Finally, leopard!
Our guide says that one has higher chance of survival when meeting a cheetah than leopard as leopard shows no mercy by biting its prey at its neck!
Tenikwa Wildlife Awareness Centre
Address: Forest Hall Road, The Crags, Plettenberg Bay, 6602, South Africa Hours: 9am–4:30pm Phone: +27 44 534 8170 Website: http://tenikwa.com/
These sanctuaries rescue injured animals and provide them with medication until they are ready to be released back to the wild.
And off to the second last stop of our trip, Tsitsikamma 😦
We stayed in this family lodge in the Tsitsikamma town called At the Woods Guest House Storms River Tsitsikamma. This town is even smaller than Oudtshoorn!
Our room was very big and just like the name suggests, the furniture is very woody!
We were very hungry and the town closes early so we just hopped over to the eatery next to the lodge to have a pizza.
At the Woods Guest House Storms River Tsitsikamma
Address: 43 Formosa St, Stormsrivier, 6308, South Africa Phone: +27 42 281 1446
Day 14
We don’t know why but all the breakfast provided by the guest houses were splendid! South Africans have a thing for breakfast!
After breakfast, we went to the Tsitsikamma canopy tour as I wanted to try ziplining!
The initial fear was quickly overcome as it wasn’t that fast since you can control your own speed.
It can get quite warm in the forest and the wait was long. We had to wait patiently for each other to be secured and zipline. There can only be one person at a time so the wait can be pretty long. Thankfully the family we went with was very friendly and we had a good chat.
After the tour, we were provided with a simple lunch.
So creative!
The friendly South African family 🙂
Tsitsikamma Canopy Tours
Address: 101 Darnell St, Storms River, 6308, South Africa Hours: 8am–5pm Phone: +27 42 281 1836
Before we move on, we decided we have some time for the Tsitsikamma National Park. We walked to the river mouth where there is this scenic suspension bridge.
On the way to our final stop (Port E.), we stopped by the Brooklyn Bridge to see bungee jumping! As much as I am tempted to try, I know I can never do this with my weak heart.
And then we drove all the way to Port Elizabeth, where we reached pretty late.
Our lodge, Sir Roys at the Sea was fabulous. I love how the lodges in South Africa have so much walking space and most of bath tubs!
So relaxing in the bath tub.
Sir Roys at the Sea
Address: 13 Newcon St, Port Elizabeth, 6001, South Africa Phone: +27 41 582 2377 Website: www.sirroys.co.za
We had dinner at this place, Port Captains House which has horrendous service. The food took so long to come (close to an hour) and the pasta sauce was basically just ketchup sauce. The bill took close to half an hour to arrive and we were so fed up we did not leave any tips for the first time.
Since its service and food were terrible, I shall not leave their information here.
Day 15
Just driving around Port E as I couldn’t bear to say goodbye.
Having some elections soon.
Flying back to Johannesburg.
Day 16
We took an uber from the airport to our hotel Holiday Inn Express Sandton- Woodmead which is in an industrial area with security guards. We also saw double metal fence around the hotel so we felt safe staying there.
We did not flag taxi at the airport as I read many reviews and concluded that uber is the safest mode of transportation in Johannesburg. This is also confirmed by the hotel staff, that one should not walk, flag a cab nor take public transport in Johannesburg. Even she as a local drives. Her eyes almost popped out when I asked if I could walk out to eat.
We booked a private car provided by the taxi to a nearby mall, Mall of Africa for dinner. The moment we alighted from the Mercedes, all eyes were on us and we hurried into the mall for safety.
We had no intention to shop at the mall as we told our driver to meet us 1.5 hour later at the same place where we dropped off.
The mall was very huge, and has many international brands. We even found our Charles & Keith! There were not a lot of restaurants though, and we settled for Casa Bella. I had some spring chicken which was much better than yesterday’s pasta but the portion was too huge for me to finish.
The next morning after breakfast, we booked an uber to the airport for our flight back to Singapore. We decided to use uber as it is cheaper than the hotel’s private car.
And so we concluded 16 days of South Africa trip with so much sweet memories to keep. Thank you W for all the hard work in planning and driving! This South Africa trip was definitely one of the best trips ever!~
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