Table Mountain: was in der Nähe ist, wie man hinkommt und wann man fährt · 2026

АМАнгелина Мардоянmardoyanal · 24.02.2024Lesen

A bit of history. Cape Town was discovered thanks to the search for a new trade route from Europe to India in the 15th century. The name Cape Town translates to "cape-city," located at the edge of the Cape of Good Hope. Today, more than 4 million people live in Cape Town. It is a port city in the southwest of the Republic of South Africa, situated on the Cape Peninsula, washed by the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Table Mountain towers over the city, with a cable car leading to its flat summit. From there, you get a stunning view of the city, the harbor where yachts dock, and Robben Island, famous for its museum in the building of the infamous prison where Nelson Mandela was once incarcerated. My favorite activity was going to the shopping mall; you can have a delicious meal there, exchange money safely, and, of course, go shopping. There are 2 large malls in Cape Town: Victoria Wharf Shopping Centre and Canal Walk. I recommend visiting both, and the first one is located by the port, offering a gorgeous view of the ocean. Once, we were lucky enough to catch a Maroon 5 concert at the Cape Town Stadium (the very stadium where the 2010 FIFA World Cup took place)! Also, during my stay there, I managed to visit The Cape of Good Hope, Boulders Beach (a beach where penguins have lived since 1982), and Bo-Kaap (a neighborhood of colorful houses in Cape Town).

ККсенияTrix33311 · 24.08.2012Lesen

And so, we reached the summit... I don't know why I love mountains. Maybe because I grew up in a mountain town. Maybe because of the feeling of flight when you look at the clouds from above. Or maybe because of the pride you feel when you overcome all the difficulties on the way up. Table Mountain is worth the climb. The view of the city is fabulous. All of Cape Town is in the palm of your hand! And the air is so clean... and no sounds. Complete unity with nature. In such moments, you feel that life is beautiful. And polluting the air with laughter, silly jokes, and other human things is sacrilege. That's the downside of popular tourist spots) Table Mountain is beautiful. You can see the ocean for miles around. You can even distinguish the currents by their color in the distance! The sun warms and illuminates the city. An amazing combination of skyscrapers and old houses, ocean and mountains. Nature inspires, calms the restless soul, makes you believe in yourself and love life. It's good that I didn't have to destroy my "ring", that is, my camera. Only thanks to it can I share with you all the beauty that I saw myself! I'll be quiet now. The photos will say it better than I can)

ООльгаSouthAfrica · 07.11.2011Lesen

I'm in Cape Town! I still haven't fully processed it! Can you imagine, it's 'spring' here, but what a spring... my cheeks and shoulders got sunburned in just two days! We arrived in Cape Town at 8 AM, and I'm definitely not ready to spend another 19 hours on a plane! This will probably be a messy post because I'm overflowing with emotions! Cape Town is impossible to describe, you have to see it; it combines the incompatible! Last night I was just jumping around the Waterfront and couldn't believe it was all real! Yesterday, the only South African icebreaker was at the pier; at first, I thought it was a house!!! When we arrived, everything at the airport went very quickly, we barely even waited for our luggage! We were met by a very nice Black man – Leonardo (I think), and while he was driving us to the hostel, I think we talked his ears off: What is it? Is that Table Mountain? We started looking for Table Mountain from the plane! I didn't expect it to be so huge, and at night it's even illuminated! We drove past the stadium, it's also gigantic! The next emotion, of course, was the hostel... I even had a little meltdown, but I can't help it! But most likely it was just from exhaustion... In the hostel, we took a shower, dropped our bags, and went to the ocean. I even touched the water with my feet - it's cold( but the ocean... there were such huge waves that the spray reached us! Unfortunately, I can't post photos because the internet in the hostel is terrible, but I think I'll be able to fix that soon! We walked along the embankment to the Waterfront, went into a huge shopping center there; in general, prices in the stores are the same as in Moscow, maybe just a little bit cheaper. But in the cafes, it's very cheap compared to Moscow, you can stuff yourself for 300 rubles! In the evening, despite the preceding insomnia and the 19-hour flight, I went out!!! I was in three cafes and two clubs... overall, we had a pretty good time, and after a two-hour sleep, I went to the CIEE orientation seminar. They took us around the city and told us everything. The center is very beautiful, but there are a lot of strange Black people there... You could probably call them freaks! I noticed that they love to sing... they walk around singing and singing) overall, fun guys). It's so beautiful here... I saw a WHITE squirrel today!!! There are a lot of squirrels in the park and they are tame... basically, just like the ducks!!! They come up to you and eat from your hands.. it's so cool... I don't know what else to tell you... I've only been here for two days, but I've seen so much that it feels like I've been here for a long, long time... This is a very bright and unusual country and I love it=) Tomorrow I'm leaving for a three-day excursion and will finally see the penguins! And yes.. even though geographically this is Africa, I'm sure it could be anything, but not Africa...

Rravik18.06.2009Lesen

I WILL WAIT A LITTLE LONGER, AND THEN I WILL PREPARE TO SET OFF! "The sun goes to the West And those who do not know That everything in this life Has a source Run after it. The sun goes to the West But to be born again, It rushes to the East, To the East!" I.V. Talkov Since circumstances have turned out such that I do not have the technical ability to finish this piece on the day of my return to Chelyabinsk, as I had envisioned in October, I am faced with a certain task: what will the ending be if my six-month journey to South Africa is not yet over? The answer was found quickly, and it turned out to be extremely simple! And even pleasant. Do you know what I came up with?! I decided this: I will just dream! I have good intuition. I will imagine for myself what and how things will be for me here, and everything will come true! I will spend the last month of my short, six-month life in South Africa in a similar way to the previous five. I will try to live a full life. If circumstances form a favorable chain, and I find a travel companion from old friends or new ones, we will still go to Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe. I would like to, of course! Maybe I'll buy myself a new camera. I will quit my job. There is not much left—I will live perfectly well without it. On Sundays, I will go for walks in the city, and I want to go to the University at least two more times. I will definitely sunbathe on the beach and take more than one walk along the mountains and the edge of the ocean waters. I will try to spend more time with friends. Once every week or two, as usual, I will go to the cinema. I will climb Table Mountain one more time when the clouds are not covering its peak. I will still have the opportunity to choose gifts for my family and buy the ones I like. What else will I fill my free time with if there is any left? Anything! THIS IS CAPE TOWN—A CITY OF CELEBRATION! I will say goodbye to it by visiting the places I want to. On March 20, 2009, I will board a flight from Cape Town to Dubai. It will soar into the sky, rising above the city. Above the Cape that I have come to love, with its center, the Waterfront, Sea Point and Clifton, mountains upon mountains, rivers, ponds, and the ocean. With cute road forks and the sandy yellowness of the earth. We will soar high, but the visibility will still be excellent. I will say goodbye. How to name the main feeling that I will have there, in the plane taking off over Cape Town? It will be STRANGE for me to leave this earthly paradise. But I will clearly understand: staying would have been even stranger for me. I will wave goodbye. And a tear will roll down my cheek. It will decide to stay here, like a piece of me. After all, I lived here. Loved. And felt many other things! And now, with all of this: with the friends left behind and the various people I interacted with; with specific places and the sensations they evoked in me—I am saying goodbye to all of this at once. I said goodbye, I felt longing—and FORWARD! I will turn my head and continue to look only in the direction of our heavenly liner's flight, all the way to Dubai. I will enjoy the view of the deserts from the porthole windows and the luxury of the city of stay again. A few hours at the airport—and back into the sky. Now heading towards our capital, the most beautiful in the world, on the Dubai-Moscow flight! We will be met by the always welcoming Domodedovo airport, and the faces of my countrymen will bring me joy (after Africa, any Russian is a countryman, regardless of whether you are from Kaliningrad or Sakhalin). A cozy bus will take me to the metro. And from there—to Zhenya and Yulka, my friends. I will stay with them for three or four days. And then home—to Chelyabinsk! During these first days of returning to Russia, I will certainly meet a conductor, or a salesperson, or... a customs officer who will definitely yell at me, growl menacingly, or scold me for no reason, which will finally sober me up and remind me that I am

Rravik15.06.2009Lesen

It is time to say and tell something specific about the city. I do not engage in plagiarism, and therefore I will quote excerpts from Ivan Zgersky's guidebook, the most interesting and important ones, in my opinion. "The oldest city in South Africa is located at the top of the Cape Peninsula, ending at the Cape of Good Hope. The name came from there, at first just Kaap (in Dutch — cape), then Kaapstad, and it turned into the English Cape Town. City-cape, cape-city. The Dutch arrived here in April 1652, three hundred sailors led by a commander named Jan van Riebeeck. The sailors were armed, but were not military as such. They were employees of the Dutch East India Company (VOC), with a 25-year contract. They were tasked with creating a transshipment point to supply the company's ships with food and fresh water. The place was chosen near the slope of a huge flat mountain, christened Table Mountain. It protected from the wind and provided fresh water necessary for the settlement. Its slopes were covered with centuries-old hardwood trees. Construction of a wooden fortress for temporary protection against predators began immediately. In 1666, a new stone fortress (Castle of Good Hope) was laid, which stands to this day as a museum and provincial ministry of defense. This is the oldest surviving European building in South Africa. It's wild to imagine, but they tried to demolish it three times, and even managed to partially destroy it. In the end, they had to declare the fortress a historical monument to save it from disappearing under the pressure of another shopping center. Visitors are immediately struck by many things in Cape Town. The impressive view of the city, spread along the Table Bay of the Atlantic Ocean, under the Table Mountain soaring into the sky. It is also the whitest (by the skin color of its inhabitants) of all the large cities in South Africa. The city is modern, but compact; the entire business center can be walked in an hour. It is divided by Strand Street, along which the beach used to run. In the 1960s, massive construction began, when whole hectares were reclaimed from the ocean, erecting high-rise buildings where there used to be water. The street separates two cities – the old one, built under the British, starting from 1806, and the modern one, after the 60s of the last century. It is intersected perpendicularly by the central street. Once it was a canal, but with the growth of the population, it began to be used for sewage disposal, and on summer days a stench hung over the city. The canal was walled up, and the water now flows through pipes into the ocean. The central street is divided by Strand Street into two halves — Adderley Street and Heerenchracht. Its upper half runs through the old part, and after Strand it becomes Heerenchracht — the Gentlemen's Promenade. It is better to start moving along it from the bottom, from the ocean. Stand with your back to the port. Ahead is the central street. It begins with a monument to the first Portuguese navigator who set foot on the cape, which later became the Cape of Good Hope. Bartolomeu Dias named it the Cape of Storms in 1488 and told the whole world about it. Nearby are two more monuments — to Jan van Riebeeck, the founder of the city, and his wife, Maria. The founder brought his wife and a small child with him to the first settlement. Having successfully founded the city, van Riebeeck received the post of governor of the island of Java, where he died. To your left is the railway station — trains depart from it to the whole country and beyond. Here also stands the famous Blue Train and the Rovos Rail — two luxury hotels on wheels that carry tourists around Africa. Then the street intersects with Strand and becomes Adderley. This is the old part of the city. Look at the famous flower market, which works all days and around the clock. Here you can see rare Protea, growing only in the Cape Province. You will see the central cathedral of the Dutch Reformed Ch

Rravik15.06.2009Lesen

Ira left for Egypt almost a week ago to relax and meet up with her mom. Stas and Kirill were working, so the four of us—Nick, Katya, Kristina, and I—were planning to climb the mountain. But Kristina was out partying with friends until late last night and didn't get home until 5:30 AM. And Katya got moody, saying the summit was covered in clouds and visibility would be poor. In the end, Nick and I set off to conquer it on our own. It's interesting, I write "summit in the clouds"... What can one understand from that phrase? After all, summits veiled in clouds over different mountains in different parts of the world look different. For example, on the Perya or Kruglytsa mountains in Taganay, Zlatoust—our Ural mountains, which are not inferior in height to many local ones—I have never seen such a "summit in the clouds" as I often observe on Table Mountain, Devil’s Peak, and the Twelve Apostles mountains (in the photo on the right). Ours are... somehow different. Not better, not worse, but in their own way. And how is it here? Every time I manage to see this miracle, I associate it with a giant paw made of clouds. This paw is often below the summit. The cloud drifts, crashes into the mountain, rises, rounds it, sliding down a bit with a light but viscous mass—to the altitude from which it drifted—and, as if nothing happened, continues to move on. An incredible sight! Today I conquered the third summit in the city, after the 350-meter Signal Hill and the 670-meter Lion’s Head. We climbed the multi-peaked one, and to the highest of its peaks, Devil’s Peak. A kilometer into the sky! To tell the truth, I expected less from this mountain. People don't climb here as often as they do on Lion’s Head and, especially, on Table Mountain—the highest, most beautiful, popular, and, finally, the most civilized mountain in these parts. They say there is even a restaurant at its summit. And to get to the top—the only one among local mountains—you can go up, and then come down, by funicular, in a cable car. I think that's exciting! Why haven't I been there yet? you might ask. I'm savoring the pleasure! I'm saving the sweetest for "later"! I plan to go up there with Vitka when he arrives in January, if everything works out with his visa. My invitation reached him, he bought his plane tickets, now all that's left is to send the documents to Moscow, to the embassy, and wait for the visa. Back to Devil’s Peak: the road was tiring and long. Even after driving to the very foot of it, we spent seven hours on the ascent and descent!!! My muscles still ache, my legs and even my shoulders (I carried a backpack with water and food on them) are sore! In order: Nick picked us up with Katya in Sea Point, we bypassed the center and left the car in the parking lot at the Cecil Rhodes memorial. The memorial is beautiful. Who is Cecil Rhodes? I surely mentioned him while describing Kirill's story about Kimberley. This man made his living searching for diamonds, and the mining in the Big Hole was already completely finished under his leadership. Cecil Rhodes owned many lands in the country, including in Cape Town. The university and surrounding areas belonged to him. After his death, Rhodes bequeathed his wealth and lands to the state. He would certainly have become a national hero here if he had black skin. But as it is... well, everyone knows and remembers him anyway. At the memorial, Katya and I parted ways. She said she wouldn't go up the mountain, called James, and asked him to pick her up. And Nick and I set off on our journey. There was almost no mood for it until we reached the summit. Climbing was hard and not very interesting. As it turned out, the interesting part was waiting for us at the top. We didn't even take any photos until we climbed up. What surprised me was that from the highest point we even saw the "Cape of Good Hope"! I never thought you could see it from the center of Cape Town, from one of the mountains! Nick even declared that, in his taste,

Rravik15.06.2009Lesen

CHAPTER ONE. BEFORE I KNEW… "Do not pity the dead. Pity the living, and above all, those who live without love." J.K. Rowling. September 22, 2008. Hello, everyone! Glad to see those who are glad to see me! "So THAT'S IT: It doesn't get to me! It never gets to me, if ANYTHING," as the song goes. I would never advise my friend Uncle Tyoma to come to South Africa — to Cape Town. He would die here. From delight. Because the mountains here are just... wow!!! "Lion’s Head" (670 meters), the mountain on the left with the peak. To the right of Lion’s Head is Signal Hill (350 meters), which got its name from the cannon standing at its foot, firing from Monday to Friday at noon. Table Mountain (1086 meters), from the center to the right — a dozen mountain peaks called the "Twelve Apostles." Their height is about a kilometer. It is 18:30 local time now. That means it's 8:30 PM in Moscow and 10:30 PM in Chelyabinsk. The day is hot, the night is very cold — such is, apparently, the South African spring. They say it's the height of summer here in December and January. Today we had a walking tour of Cape Town and a meeting with the program organizers. Everything went interestingly. The only thing that was a bit stressful: my head was spinning because I had to force it to work wildly all the time, trying to understand what was being said. Sometimes I succeeded. No, of course, I understand — the guides talk a bit too much, and the SASTC people (organizers) too, but still — when will I finally start speaking English normally?! A personal thank you to Mr. Dragunkin — a mega-guy, whose audio course helped me master at least some grammar. Thanks to him, I understand a little and even speak. If I happen (actually) to understand what is being said to me, or what I am being asked, and manage to answer myself, even if relatively primitively, BUT I succeed — it's pleasant. People! If you are planning to go to Africa or any other English-speaking country in the near future — don't be as lazy as I am. Learn English! Well, and how did I get here, and in general? I'm walking around today and thinking, "What was I waiting for so long? Why didn't I come here sooner? It's stunning here!" If anyone doesn't know — Cape Town was founded about 350 years ago. The first settlements, it's not hard to guess — were built by Europeans. The Dutch, the British, and maybe someone else (too lazy to look at the guidebook again, I read it about a month and a half ago and didn't even finish it). It must be precisely why it looks a bit like a modern English city (especially with its churches and left-hand traffic). It reminds me a bit of Europe, with its good roads. Also, South Africa is very similar to Russia (strangely enough). Especially to "seaside" Russia. And another feeling... as if you are at home. And this is tens of thousands of kilometers from Chelyabinsk! And South Africa is similar to Russia in prices — well, exactly the same as ours. This is especially pleasant for me — having seen that prices in Europe and the USA are very different from ours, they are even significantly more expensive than Moscow ones, let alone Chelyabinsk. The city of Cape Town is located at the foot of the 1086-meter ↑ "Table Mountain". I flew with Emirates airlines with a layover in Dubai. I liked the flight. These airlines are, of course, not British, but very, very decent. On the display, I read: flight time — five hours to Dubai; and another ten — to Cape Town. The distance, if you add up both flights, judging by the display, came to about 50,000 kilometers. The altitude was about 11,400 meters, and we reached speeds of up to 930 km/h. For those who don't know much about this — that's a lot, high, and fast. However, large Boeings always fly with such indicators. I spent the night at Dubai airport (in my opinion, it's not as luxurious as in Moscow or London, but still "up to standard"). And you can get enough sleep on the soft benches, especially considering that I only had carry-on lugga

ККсенияTrix33311 · 24.07.2012Lesen

So much has happened to me today that I don't even know where to start. Cape Town! An amazing city. With right-hand traffic and funny traffic lights that locals for some reason call robots. The first thing that struck me was the politeness. Everyone around says hello, smiles, and tries to help. After our gloomy Russia, this seems somewhat unnatural. When I was looking for the office of my sponsoring company (SATS), strangers approached me several times to offer help just like that. And they helped as much as they could! One kind young man even called the SATS office to find out the way! Yeah, take note, people. The second thing is, of course, the view of Table Mountain. Its peak was covered in clouds, but even in that state, it seemed surprisingly beautiful to me. I lived in Zlatoust for most of my life, it is surrounded by mountains. And it seems I should have gotten used to them, but... Table Mountain is a miracle. Throughout the day, I dreamed of seeing the ocean. And for some reason, I just couldn't get to it. And then, almost at six in the evening local time, fate led me to the embankment. It was fate, because I couldn't have timed it for the sunset, but I arrived exactly for it. Here I run out of words... because I don't know how to describe this beauty. The bright, vibrant sun slowly sinks into the blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean. The moment I saw this, I suddenly realized clearly: this is the reason why Ksyusha Doroeeva came to the other end of the world. To see THIS. The sky on the other side turned gently purple. And the mountains around darkened and stood out even more. It is incredibly beautiful. It's worth living for this. So what is the irony of fate, you ask? It lies in the fact that I met some Russian guys today. And they turned out to be not just Russians, they are my fellow countrymen! The Chelyabinsk region is conquering South Africa. Why are we drawn there?) Guys from Chelyabinsk, Magnitogorsk, Ust-Katav, and me, a girl from Zlatoust) It's quite funny. Cape Town attracts the Urals) And now some background information about my stay in Africa. I live in the safest area of South Africa, it's touristy, located on the coast. The ocean is a 20-minute walk from my hostel. The Atlantic, naturally. The hostel is a small hotel, the name translates to Russian as "Big Blue Backpack". There are no Russians here, except for me. It seems! I know there are Africans, French, English, Chinese, and Poles. Surely there are representatives of other countries too, but I don't know for sure yet. The atmosphere is quite cheerful and friendly. Everyone helps me all the time) And again - everyone always says hello! And asks how I'm doing) Half an hour's walk away live the Russian guys. From the Chelyabinsk region) In the other direction is the center. It's better not to walk there in the evening, but during the day... mmm! Interesting) Small streets, people everywhere, life is boiling) Today in the center, we accidentally heard Russian speech behind us. I was very happy) Our tourists! I will look for work in hostels and hotels. Our guys have already explained to me how everything works and why. I got fired up with the idea of buying a bicycle and riding it to work and around the city! I think it's very convenient. The streets here are suitable. Besides, a used one doesn't cost that much. I'll come back from South Africa with a bicycle) In the store today, I didn't find curd snacks! I'll check for dumplings tomorrow)) Oh yes, they also have three-hole sockets here. This is important information, I know)