We had a friendly bunch of servers that continually brought us food. Pretty close to endlessly, but the restaurant had to close eventually… It was a set menu, therefore we had no idea what we were going to eat! They just brought items in bowl by bowl, plate by plate to the table for us to share, explaining each dish and its origin to us. They started us off with delicious salad that had a fresh cilantro dressing. Then they brought a cheesy bread, lamb, ginger mint chicken, chicken wings, bean dip, a bunch of small round veggie-cake like things that I don’t know what they were, roasted root vegetable skewers, ah everything! And it was all superb… exceptional food.

And the cocktails were prizes in themselves! I had a papaya juice cocktail, which was fresh squeezed papaya mixed with a few other fruits like mango and orange with a splash of rum. Then I had to try to Casablanca, which was white rum, coconut milk and rosewater. It tasted so milky, coconutty, and smooth. Definitely making this for my friends at home when I return! I could easily find these ingredients where I go to university in the US. I’d really enjoy returning sometime, and checking out Mama Africa because I’ve been told that each is better than the other so I have to go see for myself! And when I do go, definitely going for the pre-set menu because you get to taste everything, it’s fun, and you don’t have to make any decisions! A perfect, easy-going night with friends.

Oh and before our food came out, they came around with a basin and pitcher, pouring fresh, warm, floral water for us to wash our hands in. I was startled when the woman came over and found the whole idea of someone else washing my hands a little off-putting but hey, they were clean! And then they came around with drums singing for us it was a pretty neat experience. Tailored towards tourists, but when it’s great food who cares!

In 2011, I studied abroad at the University of Cape Town. It was my first long-term adventure abroad, and since I did not blog about my experience then, I am going to play a quick game of catch-up on locatinglindsay! When attempting to single out my favorite moments, I had a bit of an internal struggle…mainly because South Africa, the Western Cape in particular, is so unique and devastatingly beautiful. Every place I visited is noteworthy, and everything I learned about the history, culture, and people of South Africa is deserving of discussion. But alas, I found it in myself to pick eleven moments that will stay in my memory, forever reminding me of my time in the rainbow nation.

#1 “Meatin’& Greetin’” at Mzoli’s [Gugulethu, Cape Town suburbs]: Mzoli’s is a Cape Town institution. Located in the township of  Gugulethu, this butchery is famous for it’s quality meat and secret grilling sauce. For something around 100 rand you can get a heaping bowl of the best BBQ meat in Cape Town. I know, I know…travel blogs aren’t supposed to make such lofty claims, but the food at Mzoli’s really is top notch!

How does it work? After arriving you’ll want to first make your way into the butchery to pick out your meat. Then ask the nice man/woman in the blood stained apron to braai [BBQ] your meat with Mzoli’s sauce. I recommend also ordering a side of pap, South Africa’s traditional staple food made from mielie-meal [ground maize]. This white porridge-like substance is considered the “poor-man’s food,” and makes an excellent partner to your meat.

Be forewarned, on weekends your food will take at least two hours, if not three. But don’t fear, Mzoli’s is much more than a BBQ hut! There are hundreds of people sitting around playing cards, drinking, dancing, smoking hooka, and more generally, socializing; you won’t even notice the hours ticking away, and before you realize, your food will be ready!

Not too pretty, but soooooo tasty!

Its more than just a meat market!

#2 Full Moon Hikes on Lion’s Head [Cape Town]: This 1-2 hour hike isn’t too challenging and offers stunning views of Cape Town’s city center, table mountain, and the 12 apostles on the southern half of the cape peninsula. When I lived in Cape Town, we used to climb Lion’s Head every month. Because of the brightness of the full moon, you don’t need flight lights for the hike down; this simple fact has time and again attracted Capetonians and tourists alike. My recommendation is to do the climb a couple hours before sunset, that way you can get yourself a good and comfortable spot to sit and watch the sun go down [its always super crowded on full moon nights]. Watching Cape Town light up is a magnificent experience. Make sure to bring a [plastic] bottle of wine and a few snacks to share with all the locals and backpackers you’ll meet at the top! A quick warning, if you do decide to make the hike during a full moon, know that there will be some bottle-necking on the way up and the way down, meaning…don’t make early dinner plans and bring along your patience.

*** During the daytime you can paraglide off Lion’s Head with Cape Town Tandem Paragliding.

#3 Getting Up-Close And Personal With Great Whites [Gansbaai]: About two house outside of Cape Town lies the sleepy little fishing village of Gansbaai. Since 1995 or so, Gansbaai has been the most popular location for shark-cage diving in the Western Cape. Why? Because of Dyer Island and Geyser Rock. Dyer Island, situated five miles off the coast of Gansbaai, is home and breeding ground to the African penguin, while Geyser Island homes approximates 50 or 60,000 cape fur seals. Between these two islands is “Shark Alley.” It is in this shallow channel that brave souls can willingly enter the “cage of doom” for a more intimate encounter with one of the most feared and awed creatures of the sea, and more cautious individuals can remain dry and watch from the boat deck where shark sightings remain quite impressive. I can’t say that I didn’t have second thoughts, but in the end I woman-ed up, and lowered myself into the icy cold Atlantic. The worst part was by far the water temperature. It was so cold that my body quite literally went into shock, and it took me a couple seconds to get my breathing back under control.

Nevertheless, its a thrilling moment the first time a crew member shouts “down down” or “to the left,” and its quite indescribable when you witness the first Great White swimming directly towards the chuck of fish in front of your face.

If you are staying in Cape Town, most diving companies will send a car to your hotel for pick up. We used White Shark Diving Company. Although prices are relatively standardized across the board, the staff of this company was on-time, friendly, and reassuring. They provided round-trip transportation, a light snack before the dive, a safety demonstration/ pre-dive Q & A session, and lunch upon return. Divers can also rent underwater cameras and get photos put on a CD for an additional cost.

Yours truly after personally contributing to the chum being thrown over the side of the boat. Better take some Dramamine a few hours before the dive cause that boat is merciless!

#4 Kalk Bay: Kalkbaai is a charming bohemian fishing town on the coast of False Bay, just south of Cape Town proper. The cobble streets are lined with bookstores, cafes, antique stores, and  art galleries, and its the perfect place to shop, relax, eat, and watch the fisherman bring in their daily catch. Looking for a quick bite? Check out Lucky Fish or Kalky’s; both are modest harbor shacks that serve a mean old-fashioned battered Hake and fried calamari. Neither have a website so you’ll just have to trust me on this one! After lunch grab a book and make haste to one of the many charming coffee shops for an afternoon of divine pastries and people watching. Make sure to stop by Oh So Boho, a funky jewelry store with a beautiful [and relatively inexpensive] selection of rings, bangles, and leather goods.

My favorite afternoon spot? Kalk Bay Books, a fun two story bookstore /cafe that serves a wide variety of breakfast options such as eggs & kippers, or an egg & bacon sandwich on ciabatta bread. Prices for breakfast average out at around 40 RAND [$5 USD].

Still hungry? [I promise this will be my last restaurant rant] Try the trendy Olympia Cafe & Deli located on the main road. From its exterior and slightly erratic service you wouldn’t expect much, but the food is excellent.

*** If you’re looking for a specific restaurant or cuisine, check out “Eat Out,” South Africa’s up-to-date restaurant guide.

You might be needing some light exercise after all that eatin’, and about 15 minutes outside of Kalk Bay you’ll find Boomslang Cave, an interesting place to explore and hike away all that seafood you just devoured!

#5 Exploring one of the New Natural World Wonders [Cape Town Center]: Whether you climb it, walk it, crawl it, or just look at it, Table Mountain, Cape Town’s distinguishing landmark, is not something to miss. Most intriguing is the “Table Cloth” of clouds that form as the wind blowing in from the coast quickly rises as it reaches the mountain’s base; when this occurs, the face looks eerily blanketed by a thick slow moving mist. The V&A waterfront is my favorite place to view the hypnotizing phenomenon while enjoying a good book and a glass of champagne.

Hiking Table Mountain: There are two popular starting points, the first begins right next to the aerial cable way and Table Mountain car park. This trail ascends quite rapidly, but is the shortest of the two. The second trail-head is located in the beautiful Kirstenbosch National Botanic Garden. This route takes you over the back side of the mountain and then across the face to the cable way; although this option takes much longer, it is quite scenic and less physically demanding.

The view from the top!

Don’t feel like hiking? The Table Mountain Aerial Cableway, first launched in 1929, is a quick and pain-less means of reaching the top. But don’t wait till the last minute as the cableway is closed on windy, rainy, bad weather days, and Cape Town is known for producing all four seasons over the course of an afternoon. Click here for prices.

Feeling daring? Check out Abseil Africa and rappel your way down 1000 meters of “vertical space.”

Other great sites in the Table Mountain National Park include Cape Point [the meeting point for the Atlantic and Indian Ocean currents, this mixing is said to be responsible for Cape Town's fascinating micro-climate], and The Cape of Good Hope [the most South Western point of the African continent]. In the park you can hike, or drive, to take in the impressive landscape and the area’s amazingly diverse flora and fauna, but you better watch out for the Baboons!

Cape Point

#6 Sampling the “Rainbow Cuisine:” The history of South Africa, while controversial to say the least, has produced a fascinating multicultural cuisine; the food has been influenced by indigenous Africans, the Dutch and the British, India, Indonesia, and Malaysia, and is comprised of some of the most interesting and delicious dishes I’ve ever tasted.

My favorite South African meal is Cape Malay Shrimp Curry. “Cape Malay” was the name given to slaves brought over from modern-day Indonesia by the Dutch East India Company in the early and mid-1600s when Cape Town was used as a resupply station for ships traveling from Europe to Asia for trade.

Cape Malay cooking combines traditional spices from South East Asia with Cape Town’s local produce, and is now a trending fad within the Cape Town tourism industry.

Try visiting the Bo-Kaap neighborhood for culinary tours, cooking classes, and one of the most well known and highly praised Cape Malay restaurants, Biesmiellah.

Colorful Bo-Kaap

Fancy some game instead? TryNelson’s Eye Steakhouse. This place was recommended to my by an unrelenting tourist couple my mother and I met when she was visiting. Their conviction was convincing enough, thank goodness! Even ordering was fun! To begin, you pick out your favorite cut of the Eye’s aged quality grade meat, then a sauce accompaniment, and finally, a side if you have room. The owner and the staff welcome visitors at the grill, and are enthusiastic about giving tours of the restaurant’s back of the house.

• What I ordered:  230 gram Filet cooked medium-rare with a creamy Madagascan peppercorn sauce and garlic pan fried mushrooms…and of course creme brulee.

This was one of the best filets I’ve ever had, second only to my mother’s home cooked bacon wrapped filet!

If you have a free afternoon, take some time to appreciate England’s contribution to the Cape Town culinary melting pot by enjoying morning or afternoon tea at the Mount Nelson Hotel. Tables covered with beautifully presented cakes and pastries, glass tea pots, and a large tea selection…my mother and I truly enjoyed our relaxing break before heading back out on the tourist trail. Make sure to book a reservation if you intend on afternoon tea as the courtyard and banquet hall fill up quickly.

Last but not least, Cape Town eatin’ isn’t complete until you’ve visited Africa Cafe. This restaurant serves plates from all over Africa, and provides a fun and entertaining, yet intimate atmosphere for birthdays or large groups, complete with a live band and traditional African face painting. The menu is set and comprised of about 12-14 small courses from Ethiopia to Morocco to Mozambique, and visitors are able to order more of whichever dishes they prefer…for free! An all you can eat restaurant sans the pre-cooked food or buffet set-up.

Stay tuned for Part II…

It’s right in town, and frequented by tour buses, but don’t let that stop you from enjoying African food, very nice service, and a lovely atmosphere at Africa Cafe.

“CAPE Town is South Africa’s Los Angeles to Johannesburg’s New York — the glitzy, gorgeous, self-obsessed foil to its grittier, more serious and more powerful big sister. Which is not to say that it lacks a serious side. Cape Town holds its own with Johannesburg as a locus of South Africa’s liberation struggle, and no other African city combines heart-stopping beauty and historical gravitas so effortlessly.”

Para ler o resto do mini-guia publicado hoje no NYT acedam a:
36 Hours in Cape Town – New York Times