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CAPE
TOWN - SOUTH AFRICA Cape Town,
one of South Africa's three capital cities (the others are Pretoria and
Bloemfontein), and capital of the Western Cape Province, is most famous for
its mountain, aptly named Table Mountain because of its flat top. The
agglomeration is estimated to have a population of about 2.9 million (estimate
from 2001 census).
History
It was founded by the Dutch East India Company to be used as a replenishing
station for ships sailing on the trade route to Indonesia. The location was
chosen for its sheltered bay which formed a natural harbour and protected
ships from the strong prevailing wind, the South-Easter. The first European
settlement was led by Jan van Riebeek, who arrived on 6 April 1652.
The seas around Cape Town are notorious and
it was referred to as the "Cape of Storms". However the Dutch displaced the
Khoi and San who were the native inhabitants. The Dutch imported slaves from
Asia. The descendants of these slaves (known as the "Cape Malays"), along
with the mixed race-offspring of natives and white settlers, eventually
became the ethnic group called the "Coloureds". Later the English conquered
the Dutch to gain control of this strategic port.
Nelson Mandela was imprisoned on an island near Cape Town, Robben Island
until his transfer to another prison.
Tourism
Today, Cape Town is a popular tourist destination, offering the visitor a
wide variety of activities such as water sports (including diving, surfing
and sailing), angling, wine-tasting, shopping, scenic drives, mountaineering,
hiking, kite-flying, hang-gliding and parasailing, and bird- and whale-watching.
The most popular time for visitors is the summer from October to March,
though some visitors from more temperate climates might find the height of
summer (December and January) uncomfortably hot. The city also becomes very
crowded then as the local holidaymakers descend on the city for their summer
school holidays. The most popular tourist attractions are, in order of
popularity: The Victoria & Alfred waterfront, a popular shopping venue with
thousands of shops, a fine hotel, a world-class marina and an aquarium;
Table Mountain, which can be accessed either by walking or a cable car; Cape
Point; and Boulders Beach, home to a colony of penguins.
Boat trips can be undertaken from the Victoria & Alfred marina to visit
Robben Island. It is a well known spot for windsurfers/kitesurfering, mainly
in the summer seasons (September to February).
Local wineries offer tastings and informative tours are available. August
and September are the best time to visit the west coast, because the desert
comes to life after the winter rains and the wild flowers bloom in profusion.
A cable car system takes visitors to the top of Table Mountain, though it
only operates in good weather as gale-force winds can make it dangerous or
clouds can obscure the view from the summit. The operating status (open or
closed) of the cable car is posted on a signboard at Kloof Nek.
General information
The area is also famous for its unique plant life: Fynbos (an Afrikaans word
meaning "fine bush"), a shrubby vegetation type similar to other winter
rainfall shrublands, in which Proteas are prominent and characteristic and
which occurs nowhere else but the Cape coastal belt, the adjacent mountains
and some isolated inland mountain tops. Fire is a necessary stage in the
lives of almost all fynbos plants. In readiness for fire, most proteas
retain their seeds on the bush for at least one year, a habit known as
serotiny. They do this in structures which resemble the original flowerheads.
In some species these structures are strikingly beautiful and long-lasting,
which accounts for their use in dried floral arrangements.
The airport in Cape Town is Cape Town International Airport, code CPT.
Sports teams
Cape Town boasts three soccer teams in the Premier League, Santos (based in
Athlone), Ajax Cape Town (based in Newlands) and Hellenic Football Club.
The Cape Town suburb of Newlands, besides being the home of Ajax Cape Town,
is also the home of the Western Province rugby team, one of the powerhouses
in South African rugby, as well as Western Province cricket. Newlands is
also home to one of South Africa's four Super 12 rugby franchises, the
Stormers.
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