12th October 2009 Today we are going whale watching. Our guide picked us up early and we travelled to the seaside resort of Hermanus in Walker Bay in search of the Southern Right Whales. We were not disappointed, there were whales everywhere. Some were breaching and showing off their tales, others were just floating out to sea. We saw baboons everywhere and watched fisherman trying their luck in the strong seas. After lunch we began our journey back via a lovely...

11th October 2009 Up early and got a taxi to Victoria Harbour where our tour of Robben Island begins. Our ferry departed at 9am from Nelson Mandela Gateway, at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town. The tour included a return trip across Table Bay, a visit to the Maximum Security Prison, and a bus tour of the Island. Since the end of the 17th century, Robben Island has been used for the isolation of mainly political prisoners. Nobel Laureate and former Presi...

10th October 2009 At 8am Jenny, Betty and I were picked up by our guide and began a scenic drive along the Atlantic coast, passing through the cosmopolitan suburb of Sea Point and Camps Bay with its glorious views of the Twelve Apostles, part of the Table Mountain range. We continue to the fishing village of Hout Bay and take a short boat trip to Duiker Island to view the Cape Fur Seals, which inhabit the island. There were local markets and lots of street en...

9th October 2009 Had an incident overnight where Jenny had to be taken to hospital. She was the girl that fell off the elephant at Antelope Park. She definely had some deep seeded issues. Ruth, our tour guide, escorted her to Cape Town where she was treated at a clinic. We travelled through the rich fruit growing are of Citrusdal before crossing the Piketberg Pass to the Cape's wine growing regions. We had our first sight of Table Mountain across Table Bay....

8th October 2009 We had an early morning start and continued to travel south through the Richtersveld before reaching a region known as Namaqualand known for its' wildflowers that occur each spring. We set up camp at a local farm winery. Had tea at the winery and sampled some of the nectar of the gods. Very relaxing.