Day 23: July 16, The last sunset

Another long day today, but fabulous, as we were fully immersed in the culture of Cape Town. We started in wine country, with a wonderful tour of a winery called New Beginnings in Nelson's Creek Estate. Our guide, Victor, took us through the entire process of harvesting, aging, and ... yes ... tasting! Victor is one of the "Cape Colored", who was given land ownership from his previous employer after apartheid ended. The dogs of the winery were wonderful puppies...
Good example of the thatched-roof, white-walled Cape Dutch architecture at the winery: We then took a quick tour of the Ikhwezi Community Center, where unemployed people can find jobs, youth provide peer counseling, and kids get daycare, all from impoverished nearby townships. The kids were wonderful, as usual, and once again loved having their photos taken (and muss my hair.)
Lunch was an adventure into the local township, where Victor (our guide from the winery) took us to one of his favorite local haunts called "Chippas" in the Bekweni township. Basically, the restaurant was a butcher shop (where you order your meat cuts) next to a family-style pub-like place with open grills (where you take your chosen cuts to be grilled while you wait.) There was a small restaurant next door, if you want more "formal" service, and we had some amazing soup, fresh sausages and steak which were absolutely succulent. The entire meal was devastatingly cheap - soup, fresh bread, a soda, and sausage was 25 Rand including tip (about $3.50). The food here is scary cheap.

But the real value was the atmosphere, and really venturing into some uncharted (and non-touristed) areas, where the people approached us with warm smiles and much curiosity. I am constantly blown away by how friendly everyone is here.

We then took a stroll through a small little town called Franschhoek, which reminded me of the quaint little New England towns in Massachusetts.... lots of little boutique stores and arts and antiques. I bought some chocolates there - whew! Been craving that! Also saw a great sign:

We then went to another, larger, winery, and then off to the town of Stellenbosch. It was fine, but I'm tired of craft markets. The architecture here is amazing, though.

Next stop, the cheetah reserve. (Since we hadn't seen them in the wild, we thought we'd catch a glimpse here.) So Bob and I - the only ones with a hankering to pet large, dangerous cats - decided to pay the extra 3 bucks to pet another large animal that could kill us... Meet "Johnathan", the cheetah:
Turns out it's OK that they are wild, cuz I'm apparently allergic to cheetahs. How's that for a useful piece of information?

Our luck held on the drive home, and we caught a glimpse of the Cape Zebras and a rare winter appearance of the "tablecloth" on Table Mountain. Both went by too quickly for me to get photos, though. Bummer.

I took a stroll along the boardwalk before sunset, and caught this girl tossing the seagulls some bread. I don't know why but the moment really touched me:Last sunset in Africa: