V & A and Kirstenbosch - Out to Africa - Cape Town 2025

On the Waterfront

We couldn't come to the Cape Town area and not take a look at the V&A Harbour Area and also the famous botanical gardens at Kirstenbosch.  

Waterfront

Seal doing a backstroke at V&A

The Silo Hotel

When you see V&A its easy to think its Victoria and Albert. The 'V' is for Victoria but the 'A' is actually for Alfred, her son. He was a Midshipman aged 16 who visited in 1860 and allegedly laid the first stone for the breakwater. The Alfred Basin was named in his honour. A later expansion was called the Victoria Basin. Hence V&A.

It's not a long drive from Somerset West but it gets a bit stressful with lots of lane changes as you approach the Waterfront. The nervous tourists had carefully researched where to park and we made straight for a multi-storey very close to the centre. We walked across the road and we were in the thick of a very smart mall area with loads of shops and restaurants. Our Lunch spot of choice, recommended by an old English hotelier from Torquay, not Basil Fawlty, was Den Anker. We made a reservation for 13:30 and wandered on. I was keen to see the Hotel Silo and we took a look inside. 

Table Top at Den Anker

I remembered watching a TV programme about its conversion from a grain silo to a Hotel. They didn't seem keen to see us though so we left pretty smartly! We also checked out the Radisson Red, a Hotel recommended to us for an overnight should we ever need one. Walking around shops is exhausting so we parked ourselves at smart French style cafe, the Paul on Victoria Wharf, and people watched. Suitably refreshed we continued our stroll until Lunch at Den Anker beckoned. We sat outside with Table Mountain for a backdrop. Very clear view again, no Table Cloth of cloud. A very pleasant lunch marred only by the return from their break of a construction crew with a pneumatic drill. 

Up above the trees at Kirstenbosch

Next stop Kirstenbosch, the botanic garden on the other side of Table Mountain. We were definitely getting our steps in today! It was a super place to visit and a big contrast to the hustle and bustle of the V&A.  Plenty of green and natural shade. We particularly liked the Tree Canopy walkway. We saw some birds but it was probably the wrong time of day for twitching. After a cafe stop we drove home. The N2 was very busy. Bit of a nightmare really. The white minibuses drivers are terrors. They are on a mission to deliver their punters dead or alive and any opportunity to change lanes is exploited. The wizz down the hard shoulder so you need to be alert. They also drop, and pick up, by the roadside so what looks like one of our Motorways becomes a chaotic mix of vehicles and people. We were relieved to be home and vowed to avoid the N2 at rush hour.