Mossel Bay to Cape Town - August 20th

August 20th, 2008:

Short: Morning tour of Mossel Bay, Relaxing drive to Cape Town, Back to Deetje's House!, Run in Lionshead park, Finally - Dinner at Nelson's Eye, Clubbin

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Long: This morning we walked the short distance from the guest house to coast. We like Mossel Bay. Our impression is that the city is laid back, with some nice beachside cafes, and a combination of upscale homes, parks with campers, and backpackers. We took a few minutes just standing on the rocks taking pictures of the surf.

The drive back to Cape Town was beautiful, but uneventful. You are consistently reminded, though, that you are in South Africa. Segregation, a remnant of apartheid, is almost always visible. As we drove we would pass a beautiful coastal town, and then a few minutes later pass a “township,” the area where many of the black workers still live. When we would stop at a restaurant, or a petrol station, the workers were almost always black, and the managers white. It is clear that it will take a very long time to reverse the effects that segregation has had on this society. We drove into Cape Town in the early afternoon and met Deetje at her house. For those that do not remember, Deetje is a friend of Nikolai’s that lives in Cape Town, her parents and her own a beautiful home overlooking the coastline just outside of downtown Cape Town. All of us have spent a lot of time sitting in the car the past few days, and we were excited when Deetje and Jan, a friend of hers, asked if we wanted to join them for a run in Lionshead park. Dressed in clothes that would have made seasoned runners laugh, we all followed Deetja and Yan up the trail behind her home and into the park. We ran the dirt path for about thirty minutes and then stopped to take in the view. We had climbed above the clouds. Table Mountain, glowing in the sun, towered above us, while below us the coastline was now a puffy sea of white clouds. It was awesome and probably one of the better pictures of the trip. Unfortunately, we had no camera. After taking in the sights, we ran back down the mountain and showered up. When the trip began, Deetja had taken us to an outstanding steakhouse called Nelson’s Eye, and we had been discussing going back ever since. After months of discussion and cravings, we headed back and enjoyed a wonderful dinner. Last time we ate at Nelson’s Eye, the waiter refused to allow me to order my steak well-done. This time, wisely, or so I thought, I ordered my steak medium-well. The answer was again “no,” medium was the best I could do. Fair enough – the dinner was, once again, outstanding. After dinner we headed to a club that Jan had recommended. As a mass of hooched-out teenagers danced in the background, we all toasted to the end of our trip.


In just over seventy days we had driven through thirteen countries (South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, DR Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, and Lesotho). While we have always viewed the trip as an adventurous vacation/holiday, increasingly we have begun seeing it as an investment. It was an investment in education. In our opinion, it was money well spent. We both feel that we have gained a better understanding of, and appreciation for, African history, culture, and its people. Importantly, we feel we have an appreciation for how complex the political, social, and economic environment can be in African countries; an understanding of how difficult development can be. Further, when it comes to Africa, stereotypes abound. In our opinion, some are true, but most are false. In general, we have found that with a little patience and common sense, Southern and Eastern Africa is a safe and wonderful place to travel. As business school graduates, we might as well also mention that, with continued stability, many of the countries are likely to be a wonderful investment opportunity!

For those interested, we might put together a FAQ pertaining to questions we have been asked along the way. Till then…Take care!