Cape Town, South Africa, City of Beauty and History

Information about Cape Town, South Africa - the Mother City and most beautiful city in the world.
I can just imagine the thoughts of Portuguese explorer Bartholemew Diaz, when he first discovered the Cape in 1488. Coming in from the sea to this glorious and mountainous landscape must have been wondrous! Cape Town has come a very long way from its initial stages as home to the nomadic Khoi people and later the Dutch settlers of Jan van Riebeek of the Dutch East India Company.

Now a truly international city of sprawling proportions, all the cliches that have been applied to Cape Town are completely true - the Mother City, The Most Beautiful City in the World.. All with a beautiful backdrop of the amazing Table Mountain. Arrive in Cape Town at the Cape Town International Airport, and drive through a series of dilapidated, but interesting, townships to the city itself. So many international class hotels to choose from, both in the city and Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, and also in the surrounding suburbs. Choose also from a range of quality bed & breakfasts, guest houses and self-catering villas and apartments, for the perfect holiday accommodation.

Take the famed cable car up to the top of Table Mountain - what a glorious view of the city, Signal Hill and the surrounding areas! Meet the famous 'Dassies'� or rock rabbits, that live on the summit - almost tame and very cute. Visit the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront and take a ferry to Robben Island where you can visit the jail cell occupied by Nelson Mandela for so many years, and enjoy the view of the mountain from the island.

While in the Waterfront, take a sailing cruise, harbour cruise, booze cruise or just relax in the many quality restaurants, cafes and bars. Got a bit of money so spend? Have a shopping spree in the luxurious Victoria Wharf shopping mall! In the city itself, there are many shops, restaurants and cafes to explore, plus the Castle, and also the fascinating Bo-Kaap or Malay Quarter, with its wonderfully colourful houses. Hear the noon gun boom out as it has since 1806! The gun is situated on Signal Hill, just adjacent to the city.

High Tea - here's a treat - experience high tea at one of the luxury hotels. I highly recommended the Table Bay Hotel in the Waterfront and also the historic Mount Nelson Hotel near the Company Gardens for a treat DELUXE - with sandwiches, snacks and pastries, and delicious cakes and chocolate treats plus a range of tasty teas and coffee... you can always diet when you get home again!

Having explored the city to its fullest, go further afoot and visit gorgeous Camps Bay, popular seaside town with some amazing restaurants on the golden sandy beach front. The Atlantic Seaboard and the Cape Point Route have many lovely suburbs and towns, all with endless beaches and so much to explore. Go to the famous Cape Winelands and visit the vineyards for wine tasting, delicious lunches, and beautiful views. I first drove through the wine lands soon after dawn, on a winter morning and the views were so lovely I could have cried! Frost on the hillsides, the dark reds and greens of the vines...

Take a trip down the famed Garden Route all the way along the coast to Plettenberg Bay and the nearby Tsitsikamma Forest. Along the route you will visit beautiful seaside towns, see the ostriches and Cango Caves in Oudtshoorn and experience real tranquility and beauty. Visit the Overberg Region and the Whale Route - Hermanus is a historic little town with so many attractions including whale watching - the whales are so close, you could almost touch them!

All over the Cape Peninsula, golfers will find world-class golf courses to indulge their hobby, all with mountain or sea views. All in all, Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula of South Africa are well worth the visit and you will never forget the time that you spent in this marvelous country.

Top 10 Travel Wonders of Africa

Top 10 Travel Wonders of Africa

[Click on the heading / image of each wonder to read the full article]

1. Pyramids of Egypt

Pyramids of Giza one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

Architecturally speaking pyramids are three dimensional polyhedron structures with four sides tapering upper part and broad base. In Egypt (Pyramids are found in many other countries like China, American continent, France and Sudan etc. Pyramids found in one locality differ from those of the other.

2. Serengeti Migration

Serengeti national park migration one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

This mega migration of more than two million wildbeasts, buffaloes, zebras etc; as a united force proceeding to the Northern plains (Masai Mara Conservation Area) which is located hundreds of kilometers away. They are unmindful of the national barriers. This phenomenon has always attracted the curiosity of the scientists as well as common people.

3. Ngorongoro Crater

Ngorongoro crater one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

Ngorongoro is often described as the world’s largest volcanic crater; it is in fact it the world’s largest unbroken and unflooded volcanic ‘caldera’. It was formed 3 million years back when a giant volcano of about 19,000 meters in height collapsed as the magma beneath it exploded.

4. Victoria Falls

Victoria falls one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The River Zambezi flowing quiet through the vast plains of Africa all on a sudden trips as such in to a 360 feet deep gorge making a water curtain that is 5577 feet (1700 meters) wide, the largest water curtain in the world. The local people call it ‘Mosi oa Tunya’; the thundering smoke!

5. Karnak Temple

Karnak temple one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The Karnak Temple is located on the eastern banks of River Nile near Luxor (old name Thebes) in Egypt. It was the spiritual center of the whole Egyptians from the Pharaoh Kings to common people. Ancient Egyptians called it Ipet Isut (the sacred place); a village by name El Karnak is there about 2.5 km north of Luxor; and that name came to be associated with the temple also.

6. Nile River

Nile river one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The Greeks Called at ‘neilos’ meaning valley. Ancient Africans called it ‘aur’, ‘iteru’ etc meaning black (the rich sediments made the river black). For Egyptians River Nile was their Holy ‘God Hapi’ visible to their eyes, they called the Nile valley as Black-Land and the rest of Africa as Red-Land; because the rich sediments made its basins black and fertile.

7. Egyptian Museum

Egyptian museum one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The Egyptian Museum was established in 1835 by the initiative of Ismail Pasha; the architect of modern Cairo. At first it was opened with the collections received from Augusto Mariette a French archaeologist engaged by Ismail Pasha. Its first location was at Azbakia Gardens at the Center of Cairo. It was then moved to Bulaq a nearby place in 1858.

8.Valley of the Kings

Valley of the kings one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The Valley of Kings was exclusive for the Pharaoh Kings and the tombs were made by digging the side of hill beneath the Al Qurn; building a good entrance and cutting long stairways that lead to the crypt where the body is placed. The Al Qurn Peak which oversees both of the valleys is shaped like a pyramid; reason for selecting it as the site, it isolated position offered better safety to the tombs. The location was carefully selected by checking the condition of the soil.

9. Abu Simbel Temple

Abu simbel temple one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The twin rock temple is also famous for historical relocation from its former position between two rock cliffs and the river (under threat of submergence); to the present site which involved tremendous efforts, technology and resources, a relocation of such a massive structure was so far unheard of in history.

10. Sahara Desert

Sahara desert one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The largest desert in the world that occupies half the area of the Great African Continent, in area it equals the US and larger than continent of Australia. In fact size is not the only thing that makes Sahara a great place in the world. Its richness in history and culture defeats any other places on earth whether fertile or desert. Numerous cultures and ancient cities flourished in these desert areas. It had been the cradle where human beings got evolved from humanoids to hunters and gatherers before becoming farmers.

Top 10 Travel Wonders of Africa

Top 10 Travel Wonders of Africa

[Click on the heading / image of each wonder to read the full article]

1. Pyramids of Egypt

Pyramids of Giza one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

Architecturally speaking pyramids are three dimensional polyhedron structures with four sides tapering upper part and broad base. In Egypt (Pyramids are found in many other countries like China, American continent, France and Sudan etc. Pyramids found in one locality differ from those of the other.

2. Serengeti Migration

Serengeti national park migration one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

This mega migration of more than two million wildbeasts, buffaloes, zebras etc; as a united force proceeding to the Northern plains (Masai Mara Conservation Area) which is located hundreds of kilometers away. They are unmindful of the national barriers. This phenomenon has always attracted the curiosity of the scientists as well as common people.

3. Ngorongoro Crater

Ngorongoro crater one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

Ngorongoro is often described as the world’s largest volcanic crater; it is in fact it the world’s largest unbroken and unflooded volcanic ‘caldera’. It was formed 3 million years back when a giant volcano of about 19,000 meters in height collapsed as the magma beneath it exploded.

4. Victoria Falls

Victoria falls one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The River Zambezi flowing quiet through the vast plains of Africa all on a sudden trips as such in to a 360 feet deep gorge making a water curtain that is 5577 feet (1700 meters) wide, the largest water curtain in the world. The local people call it ‘Mosi oa Tunya’; the thundering smoke!

5. Karnak Temple

Karnak temple one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The Karnak Temple is located on the eastern banks of River Nile near Luxor (old name Thebes) in Egypt. It was the spiritual center of the whole Egyptians from the Pharaoh Kings to common people. Ancient Egyptians called it Ipet Isut (the sacred place); a village by name El Karnak is there about 2.5 km north of Luxor; and that name came to be associated with the temple also.

6. Nile River

Nile river one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The Greeks Called at ‘neilos’ meaning valley. Ancient Africans called it ‘aur’, ‘iteru’ etc meaning black (the rich sediments made the river black). For Egyptians River Nile was their Holy ‘God Hapi’ visible to their eyes, they called the Nile valley as Black-Land and the rest of Africa as Red-Land; because the rich sediments made its basins black and fertile.

7. Egyptian Museum

Egyptian museum one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The Egyptian Museum was established in 1835 by the initiative of Ismail Pasha; the architect of modern Cairo. At first it was opened with the collections received from Augusto Mariette a French archaeologist engaged by Ismail Pasha. Its first location was at Azbakia Gardens at the Center of Cairo. It was then moved to Bulaq a nearby place in 1858.

8.Valley of the Kings

Valley of the kings one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The Valley of Kings was exclusive for the Pharaoh Kings and the tombs were made by digging the side of hill beneath the Al Qurn; building a good entrance and cutting long stairways that lead to the crypt where the body is placed. The Al Qurn Peak which oversees both of the valleys is shaped like a pyramid; reason for selecting it as the site, it isolated position offered better safety to the tombs. The location was carefully selected by checking the condition of the soil.

9. Abu Simbel Temple

Abu simbel temple one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The twin rock temple is also famous for historical relocation from its former position between two rock cliffs and the river (under threat of submergence); to the present site which involved tremendous efforts, technology and resources, a relocation of such a massive structure was so far unheard of in history.

10. Sahara Desert

Sahara desert one of the top ten travel wonders of Africa

The largest desert in the world that occupies half the area of the Great African Continent, in area it equals the US and larger than continent of Australia. In fact size is not the only thing that makes Sahara a great place in the world. Its richness in history and culture defeats any other places on earth whether fertile or desert. Numerous cultures and ancient cities flourished in these desert areas. It had been the cradle where human beings got evolved from humanoids to hunters and gatherers before becoming farmers.