13 things to love about Cape Town

6198

It’s no secret that I loved Cape Town. Out of all the places I visited in South Africa, Cape Town was the only place that I immediately felt home. It was colorful and vibrant, sunny and warm, full of friendly people and awesome restaurants and interesting design stores. It’s full of shops and gardens and cafes, and bordered by beaches, hiking, rolling hills of vineyards. In short, there were just so many things to love! I don’t think I stopped smiling for the entire four days we were there. Here are a few of my favorite things:

The colorful houses of Bo-Kaap

Bo-Kaap is the traditionally Malay neighborhood that has been transformed into one of the most colorful collection of streets in the world.

The views from Table Mountain

Table Mountain is one of the new wonders of the world, and the views are absolutely wonderful. And if you’re interested in learning more about the history and formation of Table Mountain, my friend Jodi wrote a post all about how Table Mountain was formed.

The beautiful and fruitful Stellenbosch wine region

I was jokingly nicknamed the “wine influencer” on this trip–aka I got to order and taste the wines in every restaurant we visited (surprise surprise, I always chose a crisp local sauvignon blanc)–so I was absolutely stoked when we arrived in the rolling hills of the Stellenbosch wine region. It was even more beautiful than I imagined! And the wines, of course, were delicious.

Great coffee and cuter coffee shops

Truth Coffee is not only the best coffee in the world (really!), but it’s a super funky and eclectic space. Other ones worth checking out: Yours Truly, Tambours Winkel, Bean There.

All of the things at Neighbourgoods Market!

Gosh, I love neighborhood markets like this: so many different types of food to choose from. It reminded me so much of Smorgasborg, but maybe better because there was live music, a bunch of places to buy a glass of wine or beer, design stores and plenty of sunny steps to relax on. I opted for Fresch Bowls: so delicious and light after so much good, rich food! You could even bring the biodegradable bamboo bowl back for them to recycle!

Native blooms at the flower market

ALL OF THE PROTEAS.

Penguins on Robben Island!

No words except penguins! And blue skies! And views of Table Mountain!

Walking along the waterfront

It’s super touristy, but it’s gorgeous. It reminded me so much of the Wellington waterfront! Side note: Africa Trading Port is a huge souvenir shop with surprisingly very good prices on a lot of design-y things. They also sell stamps! Malls that don’t look at all like malls