March 25, 2025
Very early this morning we must have arrived in Capetown. When I opened the curtains at 6AM we were all docked and tied up downtown. The weather was overcast, which prevented us from seeing the top of Table Mountain. This is our second time visiting here.
For today we had a tour of the wine country of Stellenbosch and Fransch Hoek. After getting on our bus, we entered the Highway getting us away from Capetown. It took us 45 minutes to arrive at our first winery called Rhebokskloof. Here we were welcomed and offered to sample 4 different wines, 2 whites and 2 reds. They were all remarkably tasty. We had an option to purchase wine here. I was surprised by the price of the wines , they were all between 6-7 $US per bottle. That’s a hell of a lot cheaper than what we pay at home for good wine. After our wine tasting , we made a quick stop in a town called Frans Hoek, named after the French Huguenots who emigrated here in the 17th century. We were given 30 minutes to stroll around in this small town. After our stop we were off to our next winery called Boschendal. At this winery we were served a picnic lunch served in a nice wooden box filled with meats, bread and cheeses. of course they served wine with our lunch. Soon after we finished our lunches , more wine bottles were brought out to start the wine tasting. These wines were all excellent. We were allowed to bring one bottle each back to the ship for consumption. For any additional bottles you would be charged a $20 corkage fee per bottle. Our next item on the program was a one hour stop in the town of Stellenbosch. Stellenbosch is a university town. The streets are lined with many artsy stores and small boutique restaurants and coffee shops. We decided to stop for a small coffee at one of the cafes, to wash away some of the wine we consumed. After this stop it was time to find our way back to Capetown. On our ride back to the City we passed by many tin sheds villages where many of the less fortunate are living. Despite the living conditions, the kids seemed happy being busy playing their game of soccer near the highway. After being stuck in rush hour traffic we eventually arrived back at the port around 6:00 PM.
Cheers
Cor and Carol
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