forks the road

South Africans call Cape Town the Mother City with good reason. Its history is deep, multi-layered and poignant. The first Europeans to discover it were the Portuguese in 1488, followed by the Dutch in 1652 and shortly after the first wave of Asian immigrants. Various museums in the city explore significant episodes in its past. The Iziko Slave Lodge museum depicts the era of the slave trade, the District 6 Museum traces the 1970s forced clearance of 60,000 residents and demolition of homes under apartheid and the Robben Island Museum offers guided tours of the island’s prison, including Nelson Mandela’s cell. The city’s beauty is in sheer contrast to the ugliness of bygone times. Its setting is breathtaking, framed by the iconic Table Mountain (the only new seventh wonder of nature found in a city) and the sea. From our first hotel, Table Bay, in the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, we had spectacular views of Table Mountain, the Atlantic Ocean and the working harbour. The V&A Waterfront is a vibrant area, packed with great shopping, dining, entertainment and top accommodation. It has its own security force so walking around any time of day or night is safe. This made selecting where to dine easy as we could check out atmosphere and menus before sitting down. Our favourite was the quayside Den Anker with great Belgian beers on tap and generous pots of local mussels served with crisp frites and house made mayonnaise. Baia Seafood Restaurant had the best views, fresh seafood platters of local delicacies and an extensive wine list of great South African wines. We stayed at the Taj Cape Town in the historic city centre on our return from safari to best visit heritage buildings and enjoy fine Indian cuisine at the hotel’s elegant Bombay Brasserie. capetown.travel