My first organised tour as a solo traveller took place today: it was half an hour late, which may not have been the best start, but it did enable me to see a homeless man search the bins for his breakfast before bidding me a good morning as I clutched my bag. Nothing like a bit of humble pie to start the day. My guide collected me from the gate of the Zebra Crossing hostel and I took my place amongst the ten other tourists in the van as we drove toward Hout Bay...

I collected my laundry this morning, my clean, freshly-washed laundry, and it was glorious! The stains on my socks may still be there, but they smelt just like they did when Mum brought them out of the dryer at home. Delicious. Neither the cable cars up to Table Mountain nor the boat to Robben Island were running so I ended up at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens. It wasn't my first choice, I'm not exactly blooming about flowers, but after seeing all the flowers, p...

After deciding to hand my clothes in at the laundrette I was forced to pull out a few items from my rucksack, it was just a shame that they were all so tightly crammed that every single item had a multitude of creases running through it. Nevertheless I pulled out my trusty boots that had been folded up at the bottom of the bag, neatly harvesting my sarong that was supposed to serve me well in Zanzibar - except for the fact that it was so nicely put away in said b...

Flying into Cape Town airport I saw my first rain in over 6 weeks, may as well have been back home! My bag was soaked when I got it off the conveyor belt, made even better by sitting on my back for the 30 minutes I waited for the other girl the taxi was picking up. Nothing like a soggy back to welcome you. I collapsed into my single room as soon as I arrived, well once I'd walked across the patio to the outdoor bathroom. It's a good job there's a canopy overhead...

By 11 o'clock this morning I'd already said goodbye to the final 7, today is the first day I'm truly on my own since that first night in Nairobi. Tears flowed after I'd read an email from Mum and Dad and sat in the lobby to wait for my lift to the airport at 12, but not until after I'd had butter beans on toast! The driver loaded me and two other women into the car, only to find out at the end of the road that the middle-aged woman was actually waiting for a tou...