Idyll

Saturday was one of those rare days in Cape Town when the wind was completely absent. A slight drift of warm air from inland (known as a berg wind), ahead of an approaching cold front, made for balmy temperatures and mirror smooth seas around the normally battered Peninsula. Ideal conditions for a high-speed boat trip to blow your hair back - regrettably none were available! - or a close approach to Seal Island by the charter boats. Those of a certain age will remember the Toyota ad that featured a car perched on Vulcan Rock. Here it is at maximum visibility. Needless to say, a number of cars found their final resting place in Davy Jones' locker!

Seal Island. The bumps are seals.

This is a normal view of the sea.

Sentinel and Karbonkelberg

The lack of any swell at the foot of Chapman's Peak is ideal for crayfishing from a boat or diving, but of course we all know that it is a reserve and therefore not allowed. 

 These photos show why it is considered one of the most scenic drives in the world, yet commuters know it as one of the most irritating for that very reason. Tourists are in no rush, but busy working people who use the road as one of the only three out of the South Peninsula do not share their enthusiasm for sightseeing, nor do they appreciate the multitude of cyclists for whom there really is no room on such a narrow route. But perhaps we should be like the swifts in this photo, swooping for insects and playing on the thermals in such spectacular surroundings that we, too, pause for a while and reflect on the scene before us.