Hello Egypt!

Our flight over to Egypt was somewhat pleasant but this was our first International flight that did not have a TV behind the seat. We didn’t watch anything but slept instead, however not before my bad luck started… I was listening to my mp3 player then decided to go to the toilet. When I returned, I tried to turn the player on and it just wouldn’t work! I think I have lost 20Gb worth of songs!!!
We arrived at Cairo International Airport at about 0630 and were greeted by one of the Karnak Tour operators. We finally had someone that held up our names when we arrived, even though they spelt our last names wrong (Deusnip and Sakdhoe). This guy did everything for us! At one point he went off with our passports while I was sorting out our visas. I shouted at Alisa not to let anyone go off with our passports! (Oh and by the way, for any South African travellers – do not bring the Rand at all, it is so hard to exchange it – no one will do it) But all was good and we were shuttled from the airport to our hotel – The Nile HILTON!!!
And for those of you that were wondering…it does flush the other way here!!! LOL
We were staying at the Hilton hotel on the Nile on the 6th floor but our view was overlooking the city and the Egyptian Museum. All we did was sleep when we first arrived and when we woke we decided to explore Cairo a bit before our tour actually starts (Sunday). Crossing the streets here are really a nightmare!! They have no real road rules and the whole road is almost a free-for-all and traffic lights seem to pretty lights that change colours! As well as this, I have to get used to them driving on the opposite side of the road. There are so many times when I look the wrong way and get ready to cross only to be stopped by Alisa. They also love using their horns here. Every driver uses their horns for anything from warning that they are overtaking to just warning a pedestrian not to cross – it makes the streets really noisy. We decided to walk over the Nile on one of the bridges that lead to one of many islands (the Nile is so wide that islands are actually formed!). While crossing the bridge Taxi’s kept slowing down and beeping at us to give us a ride. One actually stopped on the bridge and held up traffic!

Me standing by the Nile with the Cairo Tower in the background.

We made the classic mistake that tourist’s make and pulled out a map and that’s when we met Sammy. He introduced himself and spoke English and when we told him we were from NZ he started talking about how he served in the war with a soldier from Hawkes Bay (he was pretty old). We told him that we were interested in going to the Cairo Tower but he informed us that it was closed for renovation so we told him we would like a bank. He led us further away from our hotel but we trusted him. Being Friday, we were told that most shops were closed due to everyone praying and banks and such would resume service after about 1pm and so instead he led us into a papyrus and perfume store… Here we met Amed and he was the owner (“apparently” Sammy’s nephew) and he stated that they were an official Ministry of Tourism store.

Amed and Sammy.

He offered us Egyptian tea and cola as well as an Egyptian dish that had rice, noodles, pasta, lentils and sun-dried tomatoes. He continued to show us reviews of his store written by Australian and New Zealand travellers. I was a bit suss about this place because he was showing us all these things and also because many of the official documents and plaques has little spelling and grammar mistakes. Someone also told me that everybody in Egypt claims to sell you “original” papyrus paintings but its not. But we stayed on and that’s when he started his sales pitch for papyrus. We had no intention of spending any money at all but decided to see what is available. We ended up really liking a huge piece (roughly 2.5m x 1m) titled Judgement. It depicts the story of how when a person dies he is led to judgement to see if he was good or bad. His heart is then put on a balance scale opposite the feather of justice. If the heart is lighter than the feather then the person was free from sin and was good so the heart was preserved for him for his after-life. If the heart was heavier then he committed lots of sins and his heart was eaten by one of the protectors of the scales of justice. There was another smaller papyrus telling the coronation of Isis that Alisa really liked because of the colours. Amed kept making offers to us for both and because of Alisa’s indecisiveness the price kept dropping and before we knew it, we bought both pieces! But we left the place a bit wiser about how they work and operate.
We got back to the hotel and decided to play squash then take a dip in their slightly heated pool. It’s winter here but the temperature is in the 20’s and still the water is heated! Later that evening we went downstairs to the hotel café and smoked an apple flavoured shisha (hubbly-bubbly).
The next day we just lazed by the pool in the warm winter sun after enjoying a lovely buffet hotel breakfast. After lunch we decided to take a stroll through the city on the other side of the hotel before Alisa’s parents arrived. This time we were a lot wiser and wary of people trying to drag us to their shops. But we were to be taught another thing about these cunning locals. They learn a little phrase from so many different languages that if you tell them you’re from NZ they say “Kia Ora, Haere Mai” and if you say from SA then they say “Goie Dag. Hoe gaan dit?”

That night there was an Egyptian wedding at the Hotel and they had a huge celebration in the lobby so we joined in and had a bit of a squizz...



The next day (Sunday) was when our tour actually started and so did the relatively early mornings… First stop for us was the Egyptian Museum, which was right next to the hotel.

The Egyptian Museum.

We weren’t allowed cameras into the museum, which sucked, but it really was amazing inside. (The following photos are therefore complimentary from the web!)

One of the many vast halls in the Museum.

The Scribe. One of the most interesting statues due to the fact his arms weren't stiff by his side (like most of the others) and the eyes were made from clear stones which were quite real looking.

When they found Tut Ankh Amon tomb there were 3 gold plated wooden boxes inside each other before you finally get to his body. The largest box was about 3m high by 4m long and 3m wide. Above shows a seperate box containing the Alabaster jars containing his organs.

Tut Ankh Amon's body was also found within 3 sarcophagi, each more elaborate. The one above was the outside one made of gold and weighing about 2 tonnes!

The Alabaster jars that held his organs.

We were, however, rushed through the museum due to our tight schedule but managed to do all the important things. If we had to stop for one minute in front of each exhibit it would take more than nine months to see everything so we got the highlight tour. All the exhibits weren't displayed, there are still thousands stored away. We saw all of Tut Ankh Amons treasures and different statues and such. We also realised pretty quickly that all these tourist destinations also have an extra part that you pay for if you want to go and see it and in the museum, it was paying to go and see the royal mummies. We ended up paying and saw Ramses II and some of his descendents as well as many others.

The mummy of Ramses I.

From the museum we drove to Giza to see the world famous Giza Pyramids. We made a little detour though before getting there and went to a papyrus factory to see how papyrus is actually made. We were taught how to spot a fake and Alisa and I started to wonder about our and whether we were ripped off. This guy also scared us by saying that they charge tax at the airport for fakes and then later on he said they confiscate it. This made us doubt his credibility as he was also selling papyrus paintings and so just wanted us to buy from him. The guide is also in on this as he gets commission for anything we buy from the place because he brought us there.

An amazing sight on the horizon.

We finally get to the Pyramids and I am just amazed at how close it is to civilization. I thought it was out in the middle of the dessert because that is how it is always depicted but they are just in the backyard of the city. I was in complete awe at these wonderful structures – to actually see one of the wonders of the world (not all pyramids are on the list of wonders of the world. Its only Cheops Pyramid at Giza due to its sheer size and elaborate chambers and tunnels).

Shailen's expression pretty much sums it up! This is Cheops, the biggest one.

Alisa and her family were a bit disappointed as it wasn’t what they had envisioned – it was a lot smaller than they thought and also because the pyramids were just outside of a town, whereas they thought they would have to drive for miles through desert to get to them.
The Giza Pyramids consist of 3 main Pyramids. The first and largest pyramid (here and all of Egypt) was Khufu’s, otherwise known as Cheops by the Greeks. The second was Khufu’s son, Khafra, aka Khephren by the Greeks. The third and smallest pyramid belongs to the grandson of Khufu, Menkaura, aka Mykerinos by the Greeks. There are 6 much smaller pyramids – 3 next to Cheops’ and another 3 next to Mykerinos. They were used for their partners.
The reason that pyramids were built and the Ancients revered the shape was because the sun always illuminated all sides from above, and they worshipped the sun! The sun (God name: Amun Ra) was seen as a life cycle as such - in the morning, it is born and then makes its journey to pass as sets.

Cheops used to be 10m taller but bits were stolen and used in building other monuments by later conquerors of Egypt.

You can see the outer white limestone still visible on the top. Cheops pyramid also had the same outer cover thus they used to be smooth with paintings and hieroglyphics. It is also thought that the tips were covered with gold.
Notice Shailen sporting his new belt with the spinner!

Once again we found that there was an extra price to pay to go and see something and that was to go into the pyramid. As the entrance into Cheops was closed due to it being full, Alisa and I went into Khephren’s (her parents didn’t want to go). If you are claustrophobic you do not want to go down!!! The walkway leading down is only about 700cm across and 1.4m tall and as soon as you got away from the opening you can feel the heat and it was really stuffy. After walking downhill for about 8m and then uphill for 10m you suddenly come out into this great big cathedral like room. On the wall was graffiti from the Italian discoverer of the tomb entrance, Giovanni Belzoni, stating his name and the date, 3rd March 1882.
When we came out of the pyramid we also decided to take a camel ride as we were told that they would take us to a nice spot to get a panoramic shot of all nine pyramids. Our guide told us that it’s too far to walk there so we barter with the owner of the camel and agree on a price and off we go. We get to the viewing place and waiting there is this guy that has bottles of soft drinks and he just opens them and hands them to us. Later on we find out that he wants us to pay for it but we didn’t have any money so we didn’t – but that’s what they do. We were really disappointed as the vantage point was an easy walking distance away and our guide knew it but instead left us to pay and ride. But we were glad that we had a camel ride in Egypt.

Shailen on Michael Jackson......

And me on Mosses.

That white blip near the bottom is actually Alisa. Guess they are pretty big huh?

Upon returning to the pyramids, the kid that took us blatantly asked for a tip. This was our first introduction into the tipping culture in Egypt. Everything that they do, you are almost expected to tip. We have to tip each guide that takes us, each driver and everyone that does anything for us.

The sphinx was a short walk down from the pyramids and once again the Dewsnip’s were slightly disappointed as they thought it was larger than it actually was.

The Dewsnip Trio at the Sphinx.

Me and Shailen and of course the Sphinx.

This brought an end to our packed day so we decided to relax at a nice authentic Egyptian restaurant. Alisa’s Dad and I went to the toilet at the restaurant before eating and there is a guy minding the toilets waiting for a tip outside. Then after our meals, we got our bill and it says that a 12% service charge has been added as well as a 10% sales tax (beverage and food were charged separately), so we didn’t leave a tip thinking that that was the service charge. The waiter looked disgusted that we left no tip and was about to say something as we walked off but decided against it.

That was our last night in Cairo as we left for Luxor the next morning (we will be back to Cairo though)

Summary of South Africa

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I just want to give a brief summary and also a review on South Africa after being here for 2 months.

For those of you that were wondering (or not – it doesn’t matter :p), my eyes are doing just fine. I have no problems seeing things and it’s so great not having to worry about fiddling around with contacts or glasses.
It was great seeing all my family again but boy do I have a lot! Two months is definitely not long enough to see everyone and spend time with them!
South Africa as a country has a long way to go in terms of becoming a First World Country. Their electricity supplier, Eskom, carries out load shedding at various times. This is when they cut the power to a whole area during peak times. The amount of revenue being lost by stores is huge! They have to close because of no power, but as well as this, traffic lights are down so there’s chaos on the roads. There is not enough electricity for everyone, let alone the demand. Eskom blames the apartheid government but they just didn’t plan well enough.
Another thing is that this is a country that is set to host the 2010 Soccer World Cup so the power outages are not a good sign. Hosting the World Cup brings a lot of tourists and tourist will want to do touristy things and if places like Robben Island needs to be booked up to 2/3 weeks prior then it shows they can't cope.
They are also building new stadiums for the World Cup and the workers are too sharp! They were striking several times demanding more money to complete the stadiums as well as getting a bonus when it’s completed. The authorities have to give in because they need the stadiums built!

But the things that I did like in South Africa varied from city to city.

Johannesburg did not have much going for it. It’s just a over-populated flat land-locked city with no distinguishable features EXCEPT for it wonderful electric storms! The storms there are so powerful and electric they light up the whole sky. The storms in New Zealand don’t even compare to these storms! I used to live in JHB and this is one of the things I really miss.

Durban was a beautiful coastal city but the weather has changed since I last lived in SA. Durban used to be really hot and humid with rain mainly in winter but now there were four seasons in one day. I promised Alisa she could get a tan on the lovely beaches of Durban but the weather let me down.

Cape Town, in both of our opinion, is one of the best cities in the world!!! It’s so picturesque and stunning that words don’t do it justice. You have the glorious Table Mountain behind you and in front of you is the stunning blue water beaches (albeit it’s a bit cold, but still). We definitely could live here! We also felt really safe here compared to the rest of SA, and almost forgot that we were in SA!


There was a great ad on SA TV for coke. I put the link here to go to youtube to check it out. The best seen is when the Indian guy tries to do it!!
Brrrrr - click here to see the video

Goodbye South Africa (sniff)

That Friday we met up with my Aunt, Jean and spent some time with her. This day also marked an important date on Alisa’s calendar – No she wasn’t proposed to, neither was she pregnant! – rather she had a haircut that resulted in her having a different hairstyle than that she has been sporting since 1997!!! She also tried to get some artificial intelligence but even that escaped her lol. No, she had some streaks added in and a cut.
After getting her hair done we caught a taxi to the mall for lunch. Normally there is a driver and another guy collecting the money for the trip, but this ride only had a driver. Somehow, I ended up being the guy that collected the money from everyone! I did not choose this but was rather just given the money by the other commuters – I didn’t even know what the prices were!!! But I managed to do the job, so if any of my career options fail; I know I got a knack for collecting money on South African taxis. Lol! I was thinking that this being South Africa and if there is no collector then that means no-one will pay but I was definitely mistaken. It must only be the kiwis that do this :p

On Saturday, we were suppose to get up early and leave for Cape Point – the south-western most tip of South Africa – but we only hit the road at about 1 or 2pm! It was Alisa, my Dad, Aloma, Tristan, my Aunt Jean and her kids (Sunitha, Rickesh and Kaylesh) and myself so it did take a while to round up the troops. The coastline on the drive over was spectacular! Crisp blue water and sharp cliffs laced the roads.

Happy Troopers at Cape Point.

Cape Point is the peninsula around where the two great oceans meet, the Indian and the Atlantic Ocean and upon arriving at the peninsula we were a little disappointed not to see a distinct division between the two – now before you snicker at this, there are times when you can see a distinct colour difference in the Oceans due to the different temperature as well as the collisions of the different currents. But overall it was a awesome sight to behold.

The new lighthouse at the tip of the Peninsula.

We even got to see some of South African animals out there. We first encountered a baby snake on the path leading to the bottom point of the peninsula. Now for those of you that don’t know, Alisa in PETRIFIED of snakes!!! She freaks out at even a picture of a snake, so luckily some Japanese tourists pointed out the reptile before she actually saw it. You know, I don’t think I ever saw Alisa run that fast before! Lol. On our way back, we saw several Rock Dassie’s, which look like overgrown rats but with no tails.
Before leaving the National Park, we decided to stop at a tidal pool for a swim. A tidal pool is like a big rock pool on the rocky shore that fills up during high tide and retains the water during low tide. Sometimes you get natural occurring pools otherwise they are man-made. The water was surprisingly warm so we stayed for a while and saw an awesome African sunset. It was a really fun day and enjoyed by all of us.

Shailen's Dad, Aloma and Tristan.

The next day we went on a mini wine tour to Stellenbosch – which is just one of the wine regions in the Cape area. Now you can’t come to the Cape and not experience their World Famous Wines. We went to a wine estate called Eikendal first and tried a few wines but nothing really stood out so we left to go to another winery but instead ended up picking strawberries. There is this strawberry field in amongst the vineyards and the owners have got a brilliant idea. They basically let you in to the field and tell you that you can pick your own strawberry and then we’ll charge you per Kg for what you have. Alisa loves strawberries and can seriously go mental and pick a whole boxful but she behaved. The other great thing for us is that you can eat as you pick – “one for me, one in the box, FIVE for me, one for …”. It was a simple activity but an experience none-the-less.




After picking strawberries we decided it was time for more wine, only, I was the only one thinking this. We went to another estate called Zevenwagth, which also had cheese tasting. Everyone tried the cheeses but only I was trying the wines. There were some really great white wines that they had…and I am not a big fan of white wines! We also managed to go on a wine tour of their facilities. We just learnt the history of the wine farm and a little bit of their wine-making techniques.

Picturesque Zevenwaght vineyard.

On our way back home we decided to go to Gordon’s Bay for dinner. We went to a nice little Pizza place on the beach and saw the sunset over the bay.

That week we didn’t really do much except some Christmas shopping. On Tuesday night we met up with Alisa’s South African friend (Charlet) that she met while she was in USA and her husband. It was great for them catching up and it was really nice meeting them.

Charlet and her Husband Jaycee.

On Saturday Jean Mamie, Alisa and I went to play squash. It was Alisa’s first time playing and I haven’t played in a long time. We met up with someone that was allowing us to use the courts for free and he also played with us. I managed to beat him several times but got my butt whipped by Jean Mamie on many occasions! That night Dad and Aloma organised a farewell braai (BBQ) for us. Jean Mamie and her kids and Aloma’s mum also came for it. There was plenty to eat and plenty of stories to go around!

On Sunday we had booked in for a trip to Robben Island. It is known as the South African Alcatraz and it is where Nelson Mandela spent 18 years of his life locked up. Now, excuse us if this starts taking a political and historical nature but that is what Robben Island is all about.
Now before even getting on the ferry to go to Robben Island we saw quite disappointed with the whole experience already. Not only did we have to wait 2 weeks to actually go to the Island, but also they were running behind schedule on the ferries. Not a good impression of tourism in South Africa. We made our way over eventually and turned back to see that Cape Town is engulfed in a thick cloud when it was sunny when we left.

On the way to Robben Island with Table Mountain in the background and the South African flag.

Once on the Island, you step onto buses that drive you around with a guide pointing out points of interests.


Did we choose the right day and bus to get on!!! We were in a bus full of Australian teenage boys on school holiday. We were making little jokes between ourselves because we knew they were Aussies but they didn’t know we were kiwis until our guide asked us where we were from. Then the jeering started – but it really was great fun. The guide we had restored my faith back in this trip as he was witty, funny and also related and personalised his stories about the Island to us on the bus. He took the dig out of the Aussies and us but all in good humour. The guide was also an ex-prisoner of the Island. Several, if not all, of the people that work on the island have been, or have had family members, that were ex-prisoners. They are not criminal prisoners but rather political prisoners and they were at the forefront of bringing down the apartheid regime. Apartheid was an era in which blacks were suppressed and not given many or any rights at all compared to whites.

One of the mass cells they had. The bunks used to fill the room leaving them with little space. Prior to these bunks they slept on the floor so there were no complaints.

About the Island: -

• It was not always an island. It was connected to the main land thousands of years ago but rising water levels has cut the island off.
• Ever since SA was settled, the island was a place of banishment and exhile.
• Its called Robben Island after the Dutch word ‘robben’ for ‘seal’.
• In 1842 the island was used as solitary confinement and quarantine for Leprosy sufferers. There is a separate graveyard for all the Leprosy sufferers on the Island. After several years, they stopped sending people to the island and as a precautionary step, the island was set ablaze to kill all the germs.
• The island as well as Cape Town was seen as a strong base and changed hands many time from the Portugeuse, to the Dutch, to the British, to the French... Before the Suez Canal in Egypt, the only passage East was around the Cape.
• During the Second World War the island was used as a military defence post for protection against invasion from the Germans or the Japs. On the island there are 2 massive cannons that were built for the war – but the funny part is that they were completed in 1947! 2 years after the war ended! They never fired once, and the tour guide jokingly added, “don’t tell Bush we have Weapons of Mass Destruction!” Lol.
• Robert Sobokwe who was an instrumental person in starting the movement was also imprisoned here. He was kept in a separate house, away from all the other prisoners and was not allowed to communicate with anyone. He was the leader of the PAC (Pan-African Congress) and told all blacks to march to their local police station without their ID books (they were compulsory for all blacks and if found without it, you were jailed) with your hands ready to be cuffed. On March 21st 1962 they all peacefully marched to their local stations but in Sharpeville, Soweto, police opened fire on the blacks, killing and injuring many. Sobokwe was later arrested.
• Anyone that was seen as a threat to the Apartheid government was imprisoned and banished to Robben Island. As such, many organisations operated underground and in secret.
• The vegetation on the Island is largely due to the Aussies. The British planted Australian willow trees on the island. These trees have devastating effect on the environment as one tree ‘drinks’ 30 Litres of water a DAY!!! And they can’t exactly chop it down because it shelters an abundance of bird species…and also because Greenpeace say you can’t.
• The temperature on the island varies quite drastically. There can be really cold nights (especially in winter) and scorching days. Prisoners were also forced to work on the limestone rocks often just moving rocks from one end to another
• Blacks were even discriminated on the island! Coloureds and Indians were given slightly more food than the blacks.
  
  
  
  
• Nelson Mandela was prisoner 466/64 – he was the 466th person to be jailed in 1964.

The famous Nelson Mandela's 2x2 cell, freshly painted and all!

• Mandela’s autobiography A Long Walk To Freedom was smuggled out of the island and sent to a publisher in Britain and the rest is history – the book becomes a hit seller and the outside world first get a glimpse of life on Robben Island. There was a part 2 written that was buried under a tree in the courtyard that was found many years later.
• The Island is now a World Heritage site as of 1996. The last prisoners left in 1994. Mandela has visited the island five times after his release, but didn’t have to stay in his 2x2 cell anymore. Instead, the guards houses are now used as accomodation. Apparently, they host conferences on the island and use the guard houses as accomodation. At least you know everyone will turn up because they have no where to run. LOL.

Shailen terrified at the prospect of being locked up with me for too long!

The island is now synonomous with the struggle for freedom. It also reminds us of our capacity to forgive as Nelson Mandela (and many others) forgave the apartheid government after being imprisoned on Robben Island for 18 years of his life. The last of his 26 year sentence was served in Pollsmoor Correctional Facility in Cape Town. Here he was advising F.W. de Klerk (the then President of South Africa) on a way to integrate the black community into society as equals. de Klerk knew that apartheid was ending and so seeked Mandela’s advice in private. Mandela’s colleagues knew that they were conversing but did not know what about and many of them thought that Mandela cracked in prison and has joined the white Government.

On our ferry ride back we were sitting with the Aussies and they started telling Kiwi jokes and for the first time my mind went blank and I couldn’t remember any Aussie jokes!!! Quite embarrassing, but they were making fools of themselves so it was ok. Everything was in good fun and we enjoyed their company – it made the trip a bit more interesting. I loved one of the jokes they said: “Why are the All Black Rugby Team like sports bras?…….because theres all support but no cup!!!” LOL

On Monday 10th we had to bid adieu to Cape Town but it seemed Cape Town wanted to keep me there a lot longer! Alisa and I booked out flights to Johanesburg on different airlines but leaving at roughly the same time. I was suppose to leave at 1500 and Alisa at 1535 and when I checked I was told that there is a delay of 2 hours due to bad weather in JHB. But when Alisa checked in she was told that theres only 20 minutes delay on hers!? But once again, poor Alisa had another bad airport experience. On her boarding pass they wrote down the boarding time as 1550 but when she went to the gate the plane was taxiing on the runway already!!! Of course we were in resteraunt so we couldn’t hear the announcements. Luckily there were several people also standing there, with the same dilema complaining so they rushed all of them on the runway to the plane. Meanwhile my flight was still saying delayed at 1700 and saying that it will be leaving at 1745. The next flight leaving CT for JHB with the same airline took off before us! It wasn’t until about 1815 that I left, a whole 3 hours later than scheduled, but it was good because I got to spend that extra time with my Dad. Now of course, Alisa and my cousin that was picking me up in JHB were all waiting for me at the other end. I get there in the end but then when leaving, they couldn’t remember where they parked! We spent about 15/20 minutes looking for the car – but on the wrong level! LOL. It was good to finaly get to their place and sleep!
We were planning on going to Kruger National Park for a safari drive but decided not to go as it was another 5 hours drive away from JHB. We instead spent the time relaxing with my cousin, Shereen, and her Husband, Vis and their little bubba Aamani. My Aunt, Dolly Mosie, was also up there so while Shereen and Vis were at work we were looking after Aamani. She is only 1 but is so well behaved! She stayed with us with no problems and was actually hanging on me. She wouldn’t stay away from me – I had to be near her all the time, she didn’t want anyone else! I enjoyed looking after her – I can't wait to have one of my own! LOL!

On the 13th, we headed for the airport again to finally say good-bye to South Africa which was our home for just over 2 months. It was a teary farewell to my cousin and aunt as they dropped us off a little early as they had a function to attend. We checked in early and then went through to claim back on our taxes. We were asked (once she already printed the cheque and signed it) whether we would like to get a cheque or deposit the money straight into our credit card. As it was only a small amount of money (R140 or $25) we took the cheque and went next door to cash it in. Just before giving us the money we were informed that they charge a tax of R40 so all we got back was R100!!! I had to ask her whether we can claim the tax back on the tax that she charged us LOL. We did a bit of duty free shopping. I bought a small Springboks rugby ball, a wooden girrafe for Alisa, some HOT chilli sauce, biltong and a I got a belt with a spinner!!! LOL Alisa calls me silly but oh well :D

Cape Town

Our first day after arriving in Cape Town was just a relaxing day. The next day (Friday) we decided to take a taxi into the city. Now the taxis are not like the ones in NZ. These are basically vans that go around with the guy yelling where they are going to. They pack so many people into them and all for only R6. It was our first taxi experience in SA and it was fun.

At this point I am just going to go on a bit of a tangent and talk more about the country for a second. For us in SA everything is so cheap. To get from the SA Rand to the Australian $ you divide everything by 6 (5.5 for the Kiwi). To take the 30mins taxi into town it cost us R6 each or $1. Another example is food. For us to have a nice meal would be about $10 for the both of us! (This is our excuse for eating too much and putting on weight!) I can imagine it would be pretty good have the pound here because then you divide everything by about 14!!!

The other thing about SA is that because there are so many people, the labour is really cheap and therefore they have people doing the jobs that in NZ we have machines to do. For example car washes are all done by hand and about 5 people would work on one car. Another example is that at the petrol stations they have pump attendants so you just sit in your car. And of course a lot of people have maids because it is quite cheap. This is so different from what we are used to.

Another thing you have to get used to here is the squatter camps everywhere. Huge areas of "houses" made from sheets of corrugated iron. I will put a picture in so you can get some idea.

Squatter camps (although you could pay a lot for that view!)

Anyway back to what I was talking about. We took the taxi into town and made our way to the tourist center to get information on what to do etc. When walking out of the center we see a city sightseeing bus just ahead of us. It is one of those open top, hop-on hop-off buses where you pay a certain amount and can get off wherever you want and get on another one later on. So we decided to jump on that to get a general overlook of the city. It took us through the center of town, up to where the cable cars leave for table mountain and all around the coast back into town. It was a beautiful day and I have to tell you that Cape Town is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen!! You have these huge amazing mountains in the background and the water right there. We jumped off along the coast at a place called Camps Bay (also a topless beach) and had lunch there and then headed back into town. Camps Bay reminded us of Mission Bay in Auckland. Another thing to note about Cape Town in how windy it can get. Its mainly when the South-Easter blows and this is known as the Cape Doctor. Its called this because it basically clears the pollutants and smog away from the city. Windy Wellington almost compares to the gale force winds experienced here. The wind comes down off the mountains and Shailen's dad was telling us that when it gets really windy they have ropes across the street to help you cross. People on Motor bikes get blown off their bikes crossing the street!!!

Table Mountain itself is just so beautiful that photos don't do it justice! The clouds come and settle on the mountain and when this happens they refer to the clouds as the "table cloth". There is also the legend of a Dutch sailor, Van Huck, who challenged the Devil to a pipe smoking competition. They say the 'cloud' is due to the smoke produced from this ongoing battle.

The next day was Saturday and Shailen's dad had to work until 1pm so we went with him to his work which is near a big mall (N1 city) and had breakfast there and walked around. We didn't do much for the rest of the day but that night we were introduced to our first Gatsby's. A Gatsby is a huge sub with pretty much everything you can imagine on it. For example a Chicken Gatsby would have chicken, chips and salad. Other ones have egg and all sorts of other things. Now when we say big it would be about from the tip of your fingers to your elbow!! They have them everywhere in Cape Town so we had to try it at least once.

Alisa with only HALF of her Gatsby!

We had a pretty quiet weekend and then spent the next couple of days updating the last posts on our blog.

On the Wednesday we were going to go into town and look at some of the museums. When we got there we realised we left our student cards and so there was no point going as we would get it a lot cheaper with them. We met up with Shailen's Uncle (Ravesh Mama) and walked around the city. We did manage to see some ruins left over from the early Dutch settlers from the 17 Century! It was a canal that brings down water from the mountains to refresh sailors that are docked at the port and also for soldiers and the Mayor in the Castle. It was an awful day raining and really windy so we didn't end up doing much more. That night we went out to The Grand West where there is this big casino, hotel, restaurants, movies, ice-skating rink etc and had dinner there which was nice.

Ruins left of the canal at Golden Acre.

The next day (Thursday) after making sure we had our student cards we headed back into the city. The first place we went to was the Castle of Good Hope which is more of a fort really. It was built by the first Dutch Settlers and changed hands many times between Dutch, British and French. It was started in 1652 and completed in 1663. At the time that it was built it was right on the water but since a lot of land has been reclaimed and it is more inland. They also had the entrance to the Castle on the waterfront but it later moved due to the water coming in during high seas. We arrived just in time for a guided tour and so went along with that. It was quite interesting learning about it all. The place is huge and was 3 museums within it. It would take you all day to go through everything! We were there for the key ceremony which happens at 12 o'clock. They also fire this tiny little cannon which is so cute (& they coincide it with the firing of the noon gun - read on to find out about this)!!! We were able to walk around the top of the castle and look at the view around which was nice.

Cape Town's Town Hall.

The flags showing the era's of The Castle. From left to right: Dutch, British, Batavia, British again, Old South Africa and finally New South Africa.

The Key Ceremony.

Lighting of the little cannon at noon.

Shailen shackled in one of the torturing chambers in The Castle. Prisoners were tortured to confess their crimes and only then can they be punished by death. First was whipping them, then if they didnt confess they were hung by their arms from the ceiling for 24hours and then dropped onto a concrete floor! And if you still survived all this and didn't confess, you were put into an adjoining room in confinement with 20 other prisoners for 3 days with no food or water. And if your will was still strong after this, you were still killed!

This is one of the two Sun-Dials at The Castle. They have a summer one and a winter one.

From the Castle we headed to the South African museum. We were actually really disappointed with it. A lot of the cabinets were empty and maintenance was taking place. They did have an interesting exhibit on dinosaurs and so on but apart from that it was quite average. After the SA Museum we went to Long Street which if you didn't guess by the name is the longest street in Cape Town. Had a relaxing drink and wedges with pesto and mushroon sauce (YUM!!) and headed back home.

That Saturday we were going to go for a drive out to Cape Point. We didn't leave until about 4pm because Aloma (Shailen's Dad's partner) had work. We went along the coast and stopped at a place called Simon's town which is famous for its Boulders penguin colonies. So we stopped off and saw the penguins which are very cute. There was one right near us so we got some good photos. From there we went to Cape Point arriving at the gates at about 5.45 only to find out that you have to pay R55 per person to get in and the gates shut at 6!!!!! This is a National Park of South Africa and they are charging these prices to basically see nature! We decided it wasn't worth it and headed down to Hout Bay where we were told we had to experience their world famous fish and chips. After getting lost a couple of times we made it there. We went to the famous place and the takeaway place was closed but their restaurant upstairs was open so we decided to go there. We went in and sat down opened the menus and nearly had a heart attack at the prices! LOL Our waiter Craig came, dropped off some complimentary bread and introduced himself and told us the specials etc and then after he left we all got up and left!!! I have never been so embarassed! We all ran and hid in the car it was so funny! We then went to another place and got it nice and cheap so we still managed to have fish and chips in Hout Bay.

This is the prison where Nelson Mandela was moved to after his exile on Robben Island.

The glorious Hout Bay at sun-set. It is basically a fishing village.

On Sunday we decided to go up Table Mountain. We decided to walk up it through the Platteklip Gorge. It seemed like a good idea setting off.............. It took us about 2.5 hours in the boiling sun walking straight up the side of the mountain!! Man it was hard work! There were many stops during the way but with extremely sore legs later we made it to the top. We climbed up 1086m and travelled 3.5Km to reach the top! The view is stunning from the top you can see all around in all directions. We went and sat and took our shoes off and recovered. We then went and had some lunch at the cafe there and then just went found a spot with an amazing view and lay down for a while. Everywhere you look at the top of the Mountain there are lizards and at one point one even came and touched my foot! It was so beautiful from the top that you could just sit there for hours and look at everything. We were going to take the Cable car down, but for some reason we decided to walk back down.

Shailen - "Just before hiking down, Alisa needed to go to the toilet and there wasn't a toilet nearby, so she watered some plants on the Table Mountain!!! She is definitely contributing to the Flora of South Africa!!! (mind you, I did too!! but Shhhhh.) "

It only took us 1.5 hours to go back down and it was definitely easier but I still arrived at the bottom with very wobbly legs! We had defeated the mountain!!!!

At the start of our hike. Notice, we are still smiling at this point!

Where we are heading..

..still smiling. We still near the bottom!

Almost there..

We made it!!! (Notice Shailen wearing less clothes as he goes up? LOL)

On our way down we turn to see that the 'table cloth' is starting to come over.

We reach the bottom in time to see the table set for dinner LOL.

Lower Cable Station with Table Mountain in the back.

The next couple of days we just let our legs recover and apart from going to an outlet mall didn't really do much.

On the Wednesday we planned to go to Ratanga Junction which is a theme park. Aloma dropped us off before she went to work at about 9.30. We saw that it didn't open until 10am so sat down to wait, we were then told that it was closed until Friday! So we caught a taxi into town in the hope of hearing the Noon Gun. On one of the hills called Signal Point they fire off a canon everyday except Sunday at 12am. We made it up the hill in time and was told about the cannons. They have fired at this time for 200 years. There are two cannons and they fire them alternatively although both are loaded, one as a backup. 1.5kg of gun powder is put into each cannon and although they are manually loaded it is mechanically set off at 12 from a signal it receives from The Observatory and it is transfered through a Telecom line which sets off the primer. I can tell you that when it goes off it is loud!!!!!!! Shailen took a video of it so we will try and put it on.

The Noon Guns (but really, cannons).

A new stadium being built for the 2010 Soccer World Cup.

From there we went to the V & A waterfront named after QueenVictoria and her son Albert. We wanted to book tickets to Robben Island which is where Nelson Mandela was keep prisoner for 18 years. We arrived at the booking office to find that they are completely booked up until the 9th December which was the day before we leave. Once again this is ridiculous because it is a top tourist attraction, and yet they can't cater for the masses! Especially since there is going to be a tourist boom in 2010 because SA is hosting the Fifa SoccerWorld Cup. So we booked the tickets but are not sure whether we will go or not also we don't know what the weather will be like on that day. It was annoying that they are so booked because people coming for just a week or a few days won't have a chance to go. Anyway after buying the tickets we had a look around the water front. There is so much to do there. Malls, restaurants, craft shops, markets, cruises, helicopter rides etc After looking around we decided to book a sunset cruise on a Catamaran. It wasn't until 7pm so we spent the rest of the time looking around. When 7pm came we jumped on to the boat and took a place on the Trampoline type front with everyone else. We head out to the open sea and it suddenly became quite windy and rough and everyone is getting splashed with waves coming up from underneath and over the sides. We moved and sat in a place where we didn't get wet at all so we were lucky. People slowly started going inside until we were the only ones left out the front. With the sunset cruise we also got free champagne so there we are on our romantic sunset cruise trying to keep our glasses steady and hanging on for life. My hand was shaking so much that I was spilling my drink! I don't know if it was the cold or fear or both! It was good fun and we couldn't stop laughing!! After a while we turned around and headed for calm water and a beautiful sunset. It wasn't quite what we signed up for but we enjoyed ourselves so it turned out OK.

Auckland is only 14227Kms away in that direction!!

The famous Waterfront Clock-Tower.

The Nobel Peace prize winners. Spot the odd one out!. From left to right: Albert Luthuli, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, F.W. de Clerk and Nelson R. Mandela.

A bomb bag in a shopping mall!!!!

Did someone say "Titanic?"

Another lazy day yesterday and then we went out to Shailen's restaurant. The whole time we have been here Shailen has been going on about how he has to go to this steak restaurant called Spur. So last night we finally made it. Shailen got his ribs and I was happy with my vegetarian fajitas. :)

So that brings us to today where obviously we are writing our blog. We only have about another week in Cape Town and then heading back to Joburg for 3 days before we fly to Egypt on the 13th December. So stay turned for more....