South Africa

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Walking with Penguins:
Just outside Cape Town is a small town on the coast called Simonstown, where the humans are outnumbered by the penguins. There is a "human" beach, and a "penguin" beach. The humans can visit the penguin beach via a series of raised boardwalks - great for photographs. But the penguins can't read the signs - so while walking along the waters edge on the human beach you can be followed by a penguin or two!

I travelled to South Africa in 1999, and spent two weeks in Cape Town, and doing part of the Garden Route. In Cape Town I stayed in a great guesthouse The Blackheath Lodge - if you have the chance, stay there!

A favourite memory is that of staying at Cape Agulhas, the most southerly point on the African mainland. The weather was cold and wet, and I stayed in a house with a tin roof, and no central heating.

Luckily someone had done a bar-b-que recently, so I managed to get some charcoal, and light it in the fire grate.

Penguins on the Human beach - countrybagging.com

Penguins at Simonstown

That kept me warm, but as the charcoal started to run out I began to eye up some of the chairs in the kitchen! Despite being warm I didn't get much sleep, as the rain really started to come down on the tin roof, and room was lit up every 45 seconds by the lighthouse down the road - having said all that - it was a magical night!