Heike phoned from Germany in a panic just a few days before flying into Cape Town for one week arriving on New Years day without any travel plans. She is a business owner working long stressful hours and never found the time to research and plan her holiday. After a brief chat on the phone to determine her fitness, interests, budgets and travel preferences, I knew immediately what type of holiday would appeal to her – a relaxing 3 day Cape Peninsula cycling adventure and 3 days hiking on Table Mountain.
Heike phoned from Germany in a panic just a few days before flying into Cape Town for one week arriving on New Years day without any travel plans. She is a business owner working long stressful hours and never found the time to research and plan her holiday. After a brief chat on the phone to determine her fitness, interests, budgets and travel preferences, I knew immediately what type of holiday would appeal to her – a relaxing 3 day Cape Peninsula cycling adventure and 3 days hiking on Table Mountain.
Heike phoned from Germany in a panic just a few days before flying into Cape Town for one week arriving on New Years day without any travel plans. She is a business owner working long stressful hours and never found the time to research and plan her holiday. After a brief chat on the phone to determine her fitness, interests, budgets and travel preferences, I knew immediately what type of holiday would appeal to her – a relaxing 3 day Cape Peninsula cycling adventure and 3 days hiking on Table Mountain.
After confirming all her travel arrangements, I told her not to worry we will pick her up at the airport. As I put the phone down, I said to Lisiwe, AWOL sales consultant that I would love to guide Heike on our cycling journey around the Peninsula. Lisiwe agreed to work my week-end shifts and soon we were phoning all the guesthouses in Cape Town to find availability. The cottages at Cape Point were only available on the 3rd so we flipped the itinerary around so we could stay there and before long the jigsaw pieces fell into place.
Hein, our AWOL guide dropped us, bicycles and panniers in tow at the top of Kloof Road; soon we were coasting down into Camps Bay and along the Atlantic seaboard to Hout Bay. Heike couldn’t believe that a few days ago she was in freezing cold with no travel plans and the next minute on a cycling adventure around the Cape Peninsula coast. Before cycling over Chapman’s Peak we stopped for a cappuccino and to pour over the map. For lunch at Imhoff’s Gift farm we had the best salad Ive had for a long time – butternut, beetroot and blue cheese whilst looking back on Chapman’s Peak from where we had just cycled. That evening Lisiwe had arranged for us to stay in a gorgeous apartment minutes from Noordhoek beach – perfect for sunset walks and horse riding in the surf.
The next morning we spent in Masiphumelele township doing the cycle tour with Zwai. Heike was wary of being a tourist in a community with such abject poverty and observing people living in squalor. But as soon as we got their she relaxed and enjoyed interacting with the local children from the bicycle seat. On departure she said that it was a real eye opener and to meet the friendly faces, see the clean washing on the lines and people getting on with their daily lives as if it’s normal to see a ‘mzungu’ (white person) on an old fashioned Dutch bicycle!
Our home for the last evening was at the Cape Point Cottages, 900 ha farm at the southern tip of the Cape Peninsula. After the hustle and bustle of the city it was nice to be out in the country sitting around a cosy fire place, hearing owls hoot at night and star gazing (although it was a challenge to get Heike to walk out in the garden to observe the southern cross and Magellanic Clouds, a galaxy only visible from the southern hemisphere).
The next morning we spend some time cycling down to Cape Point and Good Hope (the south westerly like of Africa), looking out for zebra, exploring the lighthouse, avoiding snakes and imitating the chacma baboons. That evening we enjoyed a delicious seafood dinner at the Harbour House in Kalk bay harbour watching the fishing boats bob up and down and the waves crash against the rocks. After a few glasses of Durbanville hills wooded chardonnay, we were ready for bed and the next mornings start of hiking on Table Mountain. Watch this space for the news on AWOL’s 3 day Table Mountain hike.
After confirming all her travel arrangements, I told her not to worry we will pick her up at the airport. As I put the phone down, I said to Lisiwe, AWOL sales consultant that I would love to guide Heike on our cycling journey around the Peninsula. Lisiwe agreed to work my week-end shifts and soon we were phoning all the guesthouses in Cape Town to find availability. The cottages at Cape Point were only available on the 3rd so we flipped the itinerary around so we could stay there and before long the jigsaw pieces fell into place.
Hein, our AWOL guide dropped us, bicycles and panniers in tow at the top of Kloof Road; soon we were coasting down into Camps Bay and along the Atlantic seaboard to Hout Bay. Heike couldn’t believe that a few days ago she was in freezing cold with no travel plans and the next minute on a cycling adventure around the Cape Peninsula coast. Before cycling over Chapman’s Peak we stopped for a cappuccino and to pour over the map. For lunch at Imhoff’s Gift farm we had the best salad Ive had for a long time – butternut, beetroot and blue cheese whilst looking back on Chapman’s Peak from where we had just cycled. That evening Lisiwe had arranged for us to stay in a gorgeous apartment minutes from Noordhoek beach – perfect for sunset walks and horse riding in the surf.
The next morning we spent in Masiphumelele township doing the cycle tour with Zwai. Heike was wary of being a tourist in a community with such abject poverty and observing people living in squalor. But as soon as we got their she relaxed and enjoyed interacting with the local children from the bicycle seat. On departure she said that it was a real eye opener and to meet the friendly faces, see the clean washing on the lines and people getting on with their daily lives as if it’s normal to see a ‘mzungu’ (white person) on an old fashioned Dutch bicycle!
Our home for the last evening was at the Cape Point Cottages, 900 ha farm at the southern tip of the Cape Peninsula. After the hustle and bustle of the city it was nice to be out in the country sitting around a cosy fire place, hearing owls hoot at night and star gazing (although it was a challenge to get Heike to walk out in the garden to observe the southern cross and Magellanic Clouds, a galaxy only visible from the southern hemisphere).
The next morning we spend some time cycling down to Cape Point and Good Hope (the south westerly like of Africa), looking out for zebra, exploring the lighthouse, avoiding snakes and imitating the chacma baboons. That evening we enjoyed a delicious seafood dinner at the Harbour House in Kalk bay harbour watching the fishing boats bob up and down and the waves crash against the rocks. After a few glasses of Durbanville hills wooded chardonnay, we were ready for bed and the next mornings start of hiking on Table Mountain. Watch this space for the news on AWOL’s 3 day Table Mountain hike.
After confirming all her travel arrangements, I told her not to worry we will pick her up at the airport. As I put the phone down, I said to Lisiwe, AWOL sales consultant that I would love to guide Heike on our cycling journey around the Peninsula. Lisiwe agreed to work my week-end shifts and soon we were phoning all the guesthouses in Cape Town to find availability. The cottages at Cape Point were only available on the 3rd so we flipped the itinerary around so we could stay there and before long the jigsaw pieces fell into place.
Hein, our AWOL guide dropped us, bicycles and panniers in tow at the top of Kloof Road; soon we were coasting down into Camps Bay and along the Atlantic seaboard to Hout Bay. Heike couldn’t believe that a few days ago she was in freezing cold with no travel plans and the next minute on a cycling adventure around the Cape Peninsula coast. Before cycling over Chapman’s Peak we stopped for a cappuccino and to pour over the map. For lunch at Imhoff’s Gift farm we had the best salad Ive had for a long time – butternut, beetroot and blue cheese whilst looking back on Chapman’s Peak from where we had just cycled. That evening Lisiwe had arranged for us to stay in a gorgeous apartment minutes from Noordhoek beach – perfect for sunset walks and horse riding in the surf.
The next morning we spent in Masiphumelele township doing the cycle tour with Zwai. Heike was wary of being a tourist in a community with such abject poverty and observing people living in squalor. But as soon as we got their she relaxed and enjoyed interacting with the local children from the bicycle seat. On departure she said that it was a real eye opener and to meet the friendly faces, see the clean washing on the lines and people getting on with their daily lives as if it’s normal to see a ‘mzungu’ (white person) on an old fashioned Dutch bicycle!
Our home for the last evening was at the Cape Point Cottages, 900 ha farm at the southern tip of the Cape Peninsula. After the hustle and bustle of the city it was nice to be out in the country sitting around a cosy fire place, hearing owls hoot at night and star gazing (although it was a challenge to get Heike to walk out in the garden to observe the southern cross and Magellanic Clouds, a galaxy only visible from the southern hemisphere).
The next morning we spend some time cycling down to Cape Point and Good Hope (the south westerly like of Africa), looking out for zebra, exploring the lighthouse, avoiding snakes and imitating the chacma baboons. That evening we enjoyed a delicious seafood dinner at the Harbour House in Kalk bay harbour watching the fishing boats bob up and down and the waves crash against the rocks. After a few glasses of Durbanville hills wooded chardonnay, we were ready for bed and the next mornings start of hiking on Table Mountain. Watch this space for the news on AWOL’s 3 day Table Mountain hike.