Blue Planet Journey

  There are a lot of places to visit on this planet, and I've thought that revisiting a site is of lower priority than exploring new ones. However, sometimes opportunities arise for traveling to a location for a second time. In this case, it was for a wedding in the Western Cape. My first visit was after a month of safaris in Zimbabwe , Zambia , and Botswana . After a month in bush camps, the civilization of South Africa's second largest city was refreshing.  That first visit, we stayed in a hotel. This time it was Airbnbs, and no safari. The daily power outages were problematic, especially if you had bought ice cream for your freezer. On the other hand, Uber was easy to use and convenient, and food was a great price. The rand (SA currency) is 18 rand to the dollar, and paying 40 rand for a latte ($2) or 100-150 rand for lunch (about $5-7) is a bargain for the traveler.  One place I frequented regularly (Bootleggers) had happy hour draft beer (Jack Black) for $1.50, and ...

African penguins at Boulders Beach, near Cape Town, South Africa. After weeks roaming the African bush for wildlife, our last week was decidedly urban.  We landed in Cape Town, had dinner with a local family, took a gondola to the top of Table Mountain, visited the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden and an active township, headed down to the Cape of Good Hope, watched nesting PENGUINS, and finally visited the Cape's wine country. Arriving in Cape Town! The drinking age is 18.  "Keep walking, South Africa." Concerns about excess plastic isn't just a US thing. We had a few hours before dinner.  Caroline and I spent it in the hotel's gym on the 15th floor.  Here, Caroline is pointing to our destination for the next day, Table Mountain.  You can climb up Table Mountain, but most people take a gondola to the structure on the edge of the mountain. There's a bit of wind at the top of Table Mountain.  The island in ...