Cederberge & Sevilla Trail

Our last days of our trip, we spent in Citrusdal close to the Cederberg Mountains. So of course we made a day trip to the mountains. It's a beautiful range of big red rugged mountains and we also made a stop at the Sevilla Rock Art Trail. The entrance fee is R30 per person which is definately worth for that trail. It is about 4 km (2km there and 2km back) and you can see very well preserved rock art of the San. Also the trail itself was a lot of fun. You walk over a little river, through rugged stones and you can see lizards and maybe even dassies. 

Short version of the last two months of work

I just wrote a short post for the blog of my university in Germany and thought "well, let's put it also in this blog". And here we go:

...only 2 weeks left in Cape Town, but until then a big event is around the corner - the Indaba in Durban, one of the biggest trade shows in Africa. There I'm going to present SAYTC together with my two colleagues.

What is SAYTC?

SAYTC stands for South African Youth Travel Confederation and is a non-profit organistation that is financed by membership fees. The main aim of this company is to market South Africa internationally as a preferred Youth Travel Destination.

Over 200 members are part of the confederation which can be divided into 4 sectors:

-Backpacking SA (accommodation)

-Education SA (language schools)

-Tours & Transport SA (tour operators)

-Volunteering SA (VolunTourism)

My work in Cape Town!

Safari at the Garden Route Game Lodge

South Africa without Safari? Not for us!

We booked a safari at the Garden Route Game Lodge which is near Albertinia. The 2 hours game drive was very nice altough the pronunciation of our guide wasn't that easy to understand. We saw bonteboks and zebras, elephants, antilopes, buffalos, giraffes and cheetas. Unfortunately there was no time left for the rhinos as we had to drive quite a while to find the cheetas. But it was still a great trip, especially for that price. Because if you do a game drive on a Sunday, you are just paying half the price (which is then R175).

De Hoop Nature Reserve & Malagas

On our way from Cape Agulhas to Mosselbay, we drove through De Hoop Nature Reserve, which is definately worth a visit. We saw bonteboks and zebras in free nature and walked over widely strechted white sand dunes to see a beautiful coast.

But you should know that you need to drive gravel road to get to and to go through the reserve.

Another great experience on that way was the river ferry in Malagas. This ferry is pulled over the Breede River by the power of three men. But don't be too late: At 6pm they will finish work!

Backpackers South Africa

After having the days off between Easter and 1st of May, we're back from our trip. This time we did the Garden Route again and went up north to the Cederberg mountains. So in this post, I will write a bit about the Backpackers/Hostels we stayed at. Of course, they were mainly members of SAYTC where we could get Moola Magic discounts...

Cape Agulhas Backpackers

This accommodation is the closest of SAYTC's backpackers to the most Southern tip of SA - Cape Agulhas. But it's not located there, it's in Struisbaai (not even a 10 minutes drive to the Cape). Our room at the Backpacker was very nice. We booked an ensuite double room and had an own little private patio. Price: good! Room & Hostel: nice!

Mosselbay Park House Lodge

We had a very nice stay in the Park House Lodge, but it was also the most expensive one. We had a again an ensuite double room, which was nice & clean. But the best is the garden. Many flowers and a big lawn where you can enjoy your breakfast in the sun.

Albergo in Plett

And again a few nights in Albergo for Backpackers - enjoying the fireplace in the evening (braai time). See my other blog post for this accommodation-> http://exploringcapetown.blogspot.com/2011/03/garden-route-part-i.html

Backpackers Paradise in Oudtshoorn

Also a pretty nice hostel. Our room was not very special, but it was big & clean. What more do you need...some showers are an extension of the building, so it can become a bit cold. But there are also some inside. Also a nice fireplace to sit around in the evening.

Citrus Creek Chalets & Camping - Citrusdal (no SAYTC member)

To stay near the Cederberg mountains, we booked a chalet at Citrus Creek. Our little apartment was quite nice, but unfortunately we just had a bathtub without shower head. So if you want to take a shower you need to use the showers of the camping site. Great playground for children - Bennet especially enjoyed the old tractor.

What I don't like...

...about Cape Town:

• the barbed wires & high walls that are still around houses and buildings
• the beggars & their poverty
• the ham
• the Pampers
• that the sea is too cold to go swimming
• ...

But despite those facts, I'm really enjoying this city!

What I like...

...about Cape Town & its surroundings:

• the mostly friendly & happy people
• the mountains
• the beaches
• the sunshine
• the way of job creation
• the flowers
• the Crunchy Nut Cookies of Ticklemouse
• the township art & things made of pearls
• ...

As soon as anything else comes to my mind, this list will be continued.