Calli's Crossing: Lion's Head Mountain and Cape Town

After an incredible first day in South Africa visiting Cape of Good Hope, we spent our next day touring around Cape Town. Our first stop was Lion's Head Mountain, one of the four mountains surrounding the city (Devil's Peak, Table Mountain, Signal Hill, and Lion's Head).

Lion's Head Mountain

Reading online, it seemed there were two options for our climb. An easy route suitable for beginners or a more challenging route recommended for experienced climbers. The difficult route included ladders and chains, whereas the easier route was wide paths and great views. Which one do you think we did?

Trick question! We thought we were doing the easy path but more than halfway up realized that was not the case. Funny story. Right after we decided we were not going to climb up the ladder to the next part of the mountain we watched a university rowing crew come by carrying an entire rowing machine! They were climbing the difficult path with all of their equipment to raise money for their team. It was a little deflating, but I'm proud of how far up we went. And the views were definitely worth it!

Climbing a ladder with a rower

Views from Lion's Head Mountain

After our climb we went into the city to explore the V&A waterfront. We listened to an audio tour of the area that was produced by the city. It was really interesting to learn the history of the area and explore some of its secrets. I loved watching the professional buskers, seeing all the seals, and looking out at Table Mountain.

After the audio tour we took a stroll down to Bo-Kaap, a neighborhood most known for its colorful houses. We took another audio tour here and learned the history of how during Apartheid the majority Muslim neighborhood was deeply impacted with many forced from their homes and the formerly colorful neighborhood painted white. Once Apartheid ended, residents re-painted the vibrant colors to signify their freedom.

We finished our day with an incredible meal at the Test Kitchen Fledglings. Not only was the food fantastic, but the mission of this restaurant is amazing. Underprivileged people with an interest in entering the culinary world are given employment, training, and mentorship.