Lions & Leopards & Wine… Oh My!
We spent two full weeks in South Africa visiting our animal friends 🦁🐘🦒🦓🐆 in the Timbivati reserve, living the city life in Cape Town, sipping wine 🍷 in Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, and spotting underwater friends 🐳 in Hermanus. We loved every second of our stay! The people were friendly, the food was delicious, and the nature was incredible… and we’re not just talking about the baby rhino!
We arrived in Johannesburg where we had less than 24 hours to explore before heading on safari. After getting settled at our hotel, we headed to none other than Nando’s Peri Peri because we were told that it was significantly better in South Africa. We can now confirm this is true! Nando’s was founded in South Africa, and the menu is a bit different than in the US. Not to mention that the prices are significantly cheaper!
After lunch, we spent the rest of the day visiting the Apartheid Museum learning about South Africa’s gruesome and, sadly, not so distant past. The museum was very well done. We spent a few hours going through the various exhibits and ultimately lost track of time. At exactly 5pm when the museum closed, all of the lights turned off and we (and other guests) were escorted out by security who used flashlights because it was so dark with the lights off. If only we could get our future coworkers in the US to follow this model… “It’s 5pm, lights off, everyone go home!”
After a quick stop in Jo’Berg, we were back off to the airport to head on safari! We flew to Hoedspruit and then were driven to the Timbivati Reserve, a private game reserve that borders Kruger National Park. We stayed at King’s Camp and we were made to feel like a part of their family as soon as we arrived on property. The general run of show for our safari days was as follows — 5:30am wake up call, 3 hour game drive, 9:00am breakfast, relax, 1:30pm lunch, 3 hour game drive, cocktail hour, 7:30pm dinner, sleep. Needless to say, we were living the good life. Although the mornings were early, watching the sun rise while searching for a giraffe’s silhouette across the horizon was magical and definitely worth the early wake-up calls.
Throughout our six game drives, we saw all of the Big 5 animals (elephant, rhino, lion, African buffalo, and leopard), two packs of wild dogs, hyenas, ostrich, kudu, hippo, zebra, warthog, and many beautiful birds. It felt as if we had actually transported into the Lion King!
The whole experience of being on safari truly made us feel as though we are tiny parts of this massive planet. This feeling was intensified when we were only a few feet away from a lion as he and his two lion brothers roared while the sun went down. As we sat and watched, we could literally feel their roars reverberating in our bones. We were astounded by how guttural their roar is and how much effort it takes them to produce it.
Our guide told us that this is how lions mark their territory. They spread apart and set a perimeter around their territory and then roar in succession all night long to warn other animals and lion prides not to get too close. It was their way of reminding the rest of the animal kingdom that they were the kings of the jungle. Going on a safari was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and we soaked up every moment!
Next up, we headed to Cape Town! Upon arriving, we were greeted by our driver, Steve, who would be our driver and guide during our time in the Cape. Steve was a 65-year-old, semi-retired guide who really loved and cared about South Africa. He knew EVERYTHING about South Africa and his stories about growing up during Apartheid were fascinating. Steve was a wonderful person and made us feel just as we felt upon arriving at King’s Camp - a part of his family. This seemed to be a recurring theme in ZA.
Although the weather held us back a couple days, we were still able to make the most of our time. We explored different neighborhoods, such as Bo Kaap with rows of brightly colored buildings and enjoyed the surprising selection of international cuisine. One of the days when we had good weather, we took a day trip to the Cape of Good Hope to visit the “Southernmost Point of Africa” — this is what we were all taught in school, right? Come to find out, the actual southernmost point is a few hundred kilometers away, and Good Hope is more of a historical landmark. Oh well! It was incredibly beautiful and the drive along the coast was one of the most scenic drives we’ve ever done. The mountains, cliffs, and ocean landscape were breathtaking.
After making it back to Cape Town, we decided to hike Lion’s Head for sunset. Lion’s Head is a popular trail right in Cape Town which provides beautiful 360 degree views of the city, and it is an awesome spot to catch the sunset over the ocean. It is a little bit easier than the other popular trail in Cape Town, Table Mountain, but it was still a moderately challenging hike that required some scrambling, climbing ladders, and using chains to assist. We’re glad we decided to squeeze in the hike that day because the remainder of our time in Cape Town was pretty rainy!
During our time in South Africa, we also learned about and experienced ‘Load Shedding’, a practice of regulating energy consumption in order to… shed the load… from the power grid. Throughout the day, the government shuts off electricity on a rolling basis across the country for multiple hours at a time, multiple times per day. There is an app that people use to view the outage schedule and plan their days accordingly. Many buildings have back up generators, but even when they do, the generators only power a few things, such as outlets and A/C. That said, we regularly found ourselves sitting in a dark room at 9pm. Load Shedding was interesting to experience, and while it was a bit of a nuisance, it was very much a part of life for locals. Everyone is used to it and has learned to live with it.
From Cape Town, Steve took us to Stellenbosch and Franschhoek to visit wine country for a few days. Stellenbosch was a small university town with a few restaurants, galleries, and shops. Franschhoek was even smaller than Stellenbosch, and it was built around wine. There is an entire network of trams and buses that will take visitors from the center of town to the different wineries in the area.
And this leads us to the wineries… or as they are better known in South Africa… wine farms! And rightfully so. The wineries in South Africa are more than just vineyards and tastings rooms. Many are are fully functioning farms with livestock, agriculture, butcher shops, delicatessens, and restaurants. Some even have art galleries, ice cream parlors, and coffee shops. And these are all in addition to beautiful tasting rooms and incredible wine!
Visiting a wine farm was a full-day activity as opposed to just a short visit with a one-hour wine tasting as we are accustomed to from traditional wineries. Of all the farms we visited, our two favorites were Babylonstoren and Boschendal. They were so well organized and full of activities for all ages. The wine farms were definitely a highlight of our time in South Africa!
After drinking way too much wine, we headed to Hermanus for some whale watching! Whale mating and calving season was just beginning, and we spent hours along the coast spotting whale tails fly into the air and then flop onto the water. The town was built around whale watching, and was filled with boutiques, antique shops, and seafood restaurants. Of all the places we visited in South Africa, Hermanus definitely felt the most touristy, but we really enjoyed the laid back atmosphere. It was a nice way to end our two week adventure.
Through and through, South Africa had it all! Culture, nature, coastline, and of course, wine. Ever since we left, we have been dreaming of our safari wishing we could go back. In its place, we have been watching the TV channel, Wild Earth, which is a live feed of the animals at the different private game reserves and even features a live safari a few times a day! We highly recommend checking it out on YouTube if you’re interested!
