Travel Guide To Cape Town

 

Cape Town – the capital of the Western Cape Province- is the second largest city in South Africa , as well as being the legislative capital of South Africa. It is located in the south-west corner of the country near the Cape of Good Hope in the south-west corner of the country. In addition, Cape Town is also known as the Mother City in South Africa. It is also one of the most iconic cities in the world.

If you visit only one place in South Africa, make it Cape Town to experience exciting and glamorous destinations following below:

• Bo- Kaap

 

Just beyond the hassles and bustle, hidden in central Cape Town, you will find this little treasure which is an attraction for many tourists.

It’s a common location for film shoots, as there are some very colourful buildings, mosques views over Cape Town, quaint streets and some great food sold on the side of the street. It’s interesting to wander around and visit the Bo-Kaap Museum which is a view of a prosperous Muslim family from the 19th Centuryof Good Hope

• The Castle of Good Hope

 

 

If you are in Cape Town, don’t miss the chance to visit the Castle

It is built between 1666 and 1679 by the Dutch East India Company (VOC), the Castle of Good Hope is South Africa’s oldest surviving colonial building.

The Castle is the seat of the military in the Cape, and houses the Castle Military Museum and Iziko Museums of Cape Town (William Fehr Collection).

The Castle of Good Hope is a service orientated public entity, striving to optimize its tourism potential and accessibility to the public and to preserve and protect its cultural and military heritage. Have a brief  look some structure in the Castle:

                         Castle Military Museum

 

The original entrance to the Castle, the ‘Waterpoort’ was located in the wall between Buuren and Catzenellenbogen Bastions. But from the outset, the sea level at high or spring tides made access to the Castle impossible. Today this is the entrance to the Military Museum.

The Castle Military Museum depicts Cape Military History and has one of the most impressive sword collections in the country.

                           William Fehr Collection

The original balcony was built in 1695. The bas-relief on the pediment was created by the German sculptor, Anton Anreith.

From this balcony proclamations and announcements were made to the soldiers, slaves and civilians at the Cape. All judicial sentences were read here, and official visitors welcomed to the Castle.

This balcony leads to the famous William Fehr Collection of historical paintings and period furniture, which have a special relevance to the Cape.

                          Castle Forge

Since the early days the blacksmith was synonymous with the Castle of Good Hope. See a replica of a real Forge as it operated during the 17th and 18th century.

• Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden

 

 

 

 

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden is world renowned for the beauty and diversity of the Cape flora it displays and for the magnificence of its setting against the eastern slopes of Table Mountain. Plants from all of the regions of South Africa are on display, including rare succulents from the Richtersveld, a giant baobab tree, and interesting medicinal plants. What makes the garden so special, is that every season gives you something new to see – new flowers, different birds, etc. View the hugely diverse and beautiful plants and flowers of the Cape flora in one of the most stunning botanical gardens in the world

The Kirstenbosch Visitors’ Centre also includes an information desk and various retail outlets and a coffee shop. The Centre for Home Gardening has outlets for plants and other services to support the home garden.

• Robben Island

 

 

Robben Island is located just off the coast 12 kilometres from Cape Town. It was renowned as a place of banishment, exile, isolation and imprisonment. It was here at Robben Island that rulers sent those regarded as political troublemakers, social outcasts and the unwanted of society.  Today the island is a popular tourist destination and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1999. It is reached by ferry from the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town and is open throughout the year, weather permitting, and tours of the island and prison are led by guides who were formerly prisoners there. Robben Island Museum operates as a site or living museum. All the land on the island is owned by the State, with the exception of the island church.

• South African National Gallery

 

The South African National Gallery is the national art gallery of South Africa located in Cape Town. Its collection consists largely of Dutch, French and British works from the 17th to the 19th century. This includes lithographs, etchings and some early 20th-century British paintings. Contemporary art work is displayed in the gallery and selected from many of South Africa’s communities and the gallery houses an authoritative collection of sculpture and beadwork. It’s located in the Gardens area of Cape Town off Government Ave (about a 20 minute walk from downtown). Contains extensive displays of South African art, as well as information on the history of censorship of art during apartheid

Above information partially covers many views that you should take the visit when you travel to Cape Town for your future vacation. Have a wonderful trip!

Travel Guide To Cape Town