At the ocean front 
Along the canal
I LOVE CAPE TOWN! We arrived here in Cape Town on the 7 January and so far, life has been one big happy colourful blur. On the first day, we decided to go for a run to get a feel of the city. We checked a map before we left our apartment to get a general idea of where we were heading. It worked very well! We found a great 10k route. It leads along a canal across the harbour and along the ocean shore.
I love that our route includes a workout area as well. Just like in Florida, we use this place to do our strength exercises – press-ups, planks, pull-ups and all the good core stuff.
The kids joining in – this little guy was a natural 
To the lighthouse and back
Our apartment is on the ground floor. When we sit on the balcony we are eye-to-eye with people who pass by. We can wave to the tourist boats and stand-up paddlers that pass on the canal. I am a shy, introvert sort of person and this is my nightmare version of a balcony.
My husband, Kai, on the other hand, loves it. He likes to chit-chat with people passing by while I squirm and try to be invisible. People happily stop and spend a few minutes chatting. They are soooo friendly! I thought people in Florida were friendly but the South Africans take it to another level. They are genuinely happy and content and it shows in their smiles. I love it when the house maids pass by singing their African songs.
This is our apartment 
The passengers on the tourist boats always give us a friendly wave
The apartment has stand-up paddles but we haven’t tried them yet.
Other than the extrovert balcony, I absolutely LOVE this city. It is vibrant, colourful and cheerful. We are a 1k walk from the Waterfront area where they have shops, restaraunts, bars, shows and buskers, mostly playing traditional African music.
Love the meerkats! 
Nelson Mandela getting a backrub
We are expecting quite a number of visitors during our stay. The first ones to arrive will be my favourite running buddy, Reto, and his wife. Reto will join us for a guided run up the Table Mountain this week. And we have signed up for a 10k trail race in Stellenbosch next Sunday. So many things to look forward to!
At the Waterfront area
- Do you like running in new places?
- Would you enjoy chatting to people when you sit on your balcony?
I am linking up with Kookyrunner and Zenaida for Tuesday Topics.
Liebe Catrina,
wow, welche Sonnen-und Farbenbracht auf deinen Bildern!
Wunderschön. Ich möchte glattweg in den Flieger steigen und dem hier so grauen Wetter entfliehen 😆
Zu deinen Fragen:
Ja, neue Gegenden kann man prima laufend erkunden. Das ist eine sehr angenehme Art, alles kennenzulernen 🙂
Und definitiv nein! Ich denke für mich kommt so ein Balkon/Terrasse auch eher einem Alptraum gleich 😆
Aber ich denke, du gewühnst dich dran, und wenn die Menschen dort so freundlich sind, dann entpuppt es sich vielleicht sogar als Segen so einen Balkon zu haben.
Liebe Grüße und schicke doch mal etwas Sonne zu uns
Helge
Liebe Helge
Tatsaechlich, die Sonne ist sehr intensiv und die Farbenpracht hier ist umwerfend. Ich muss auf den Maerkten immer der Versuchung widerstehen, noch mehr farbiges Geschirr zu kaufen.
Hahaha! Du bist also auch eher introvertiert. Aber du hast recht, es ist eine gute Schulung fuer mich! Und bei so freundlichen Menschen ist es ja leicht, mal ein bisschen aus sich herauszukommen. 🙂
Liebe Gruesse und VIEL Sonne nach D!
Omg, what a beautiful town, dear Catrina. I actually had no real idea of Cap Town. It looks extremly nice and very modern. I envy you the beautiful weathter and the friendly people. You are right, i would like this city!
It must be very exciting to run there!
Well, would I enjoy chatting from my balcony? Yes, indeed, i would. I love it to talk to friendly people.
A run up to the table mountain must be funtastic! Enjoy your stay, but it seems you do! 😀
Ah, yes, Volker, you definitely would love it here. The weather, the people, the colours, the mountains – it is all so beautiful.
It seems that people from Oldenburg all like to chat! You and Kai could entertain the entire neighbourhood here :-))
The Table Mountain run is tonight, hopefully we will have good views.
Sending you lots of sun and hoping that Quasimodo is still there when you run past that spot next time!
I told you, you would love Cape Town! I took a photo in front of that exact same Lighthouse when I visited 5 years ago! One of my favourite things to do is actually run in new places – the best way to discover a city or new town. Here’s to many more happy runs in the Cape!
Shathiso, you were SO RIGHT! This place is magical.
Ha! The same lighthouse! Then you are totally familiar with my running route. Going forward, I would like to explore new routes like you just mentioned in your post today. It is the best way to get to know a city.
Thank you – maybe one day we will make it up to Gabarone!
And worst part of my trip is I wasn’t a runner then! So I need to go back and redo everything but this time on the run! If you do make it to Gaborone, please let me know – will definitely take you for a run around the city!
Looks like an amazing place to visit! I am with you on the balcony. I wouldn’t want to talk to people or see them up close when I was trying to relax!
Haha! Exactly! I try to convince myself that this is a good way of learning to be more outgoing but I am not sure it’s working! 😊
Oh, oh, oh, liebe Catrina, ich habe schon darauf gewartet !! What a wonderful world !! Man sieht es euch schon an den strahlenden Gesichtern an, kein Wunder, da würde ich auch strahlen. Was für eine schöne Laufstrecke, was für eine wunderschöne neue Welt für euch. Toll ! Und wieder mit nackigen Armen und Beinen, während wir hier unseren Body unter geschichteten Klamotten ” verstecken “.
Einfach nur schön. Wünsche dir von ganzem ♥, dass alles so schön bleibt und vielleicht sogar noch schöner wird !! Es gibt ja noch so viel für euch zu entdecken !!
Alles Gute in der neuen Heimat und liebe Grüße aus dem kühlen Norden ……………
Liebe Margitta!
Es ist wirklich wunderschön hier. Ich bin so froh, dass wir eine gute “Heimstrecke” gefunden haben. Ich habe an dich gedacht, als wir zum ersten Mal am Meer entlangliefen. Dir würde das auch gefallen!
Wegen dem Wind merkt man die Sonne gar nicht so sehr – das erste Mal haben wir wie Anfänger keine Sonnencreme benutzt. Das haben wir dann mit roten Nasen bezahlt… jetzt cremen wir uns immer gründlich ein.
Danke dir! Ja, ich hoffe, dass es so weitergeht. Du hast recht, es gibt VIELES zu entdecken… ich fürchte, dass die 3 Monate gar nicht ausreichen. 😉
Ganz liebe Grüsse aus dem Süden – ich sende dir eine extra Portion Sonne!
What a great experience Cape Town will be for you guys! I’d like the balcony, too…but I’m kind of a chatty, get-the-conversation-started kind of person LOL ALL of those meerkats are cute (I’m also an art geek). Looks like a beautiful place!
Hahaha, Kim! I thought that you might be an outgoing person! You should join my husband on the balcony. I loved the colourful meerkats too!
I’m an introvert, too. And not one of those extroverted introverts, either.
OMG, Cape Town looks AMAZING! I have wanted to visit South Africa (and other parts of Africa) forever. And Table Mountain . . . at least I get to see it through your eyes! Have fun this weekend — I’m sure you will.
I didn’t think you were an introvert, Judy, with all the yoga teaching and YouTube videos! Well done for being so outgoing despite being an introvert 😊👍🏻
Thank you! Yes, we are having a lot of fun here! I have so many photos to share already… I’ll have to be very selective 😊
Have a great rest of the week!
Trust me, if you met me IRL I’d be very quiet until I got to know you.
My husband would tell you the way to get a reputation as a good photographer is to edit, edit, edit.
Haha! You’re just like me! Quiet until I get to know people. 😊
Thanks for the good advice on editing- I’ll definitely need to do that.
Oh my gosh, it looks amazing there! I’d be on that canal, paddling around, all the time! Looking forward to following your adventures there.
I actually thought of you when I saw the paddlers! You’d be on those boards within seconds. Let’s see if we manage to get them out next week.
Cape Town looks absolutely beautiful! I’m so glad that you’re loving the area – seems like there are tons of great places to run, and you really can’t beat that scenery!
Oh, the scenery! I am looking forward to seeing the city from a vantage point like the Table Mountain. I’ll keep you posted!
Oh, gosh! How beautiful! I am so glad you love it and you running photos are beautiful! I hope you have a lovely stay!
Thank you! Yes, it is really beautiful and there is so much to discover! 😊
Oh wow I’ve never been there. Keep showing us all of your photos and enjoy your time there
Thank you! We have just been to the Cape of Good Hope – so many photos to show! 😊
Wow, looks wonderful! How amazing to be living so close to the water, and also to get so much sun in January 🙂
Hi Kathrin,
So nice to hear from you! Yes, Cape Town is an amazing city – you would love it here! And getting some sun is an added benefit. Hope all is going well!
What a beautiful location! Your apartment sounds wonderful – even interacting with al the passersby! 🙂 I do love running in new places. Cape Town sound so exotic and foreign. What an adventure!
Exotic I think aptly describes this city – the interesting mix of people makes it very vibrant and energizing. I’m slowly getting used to the interaction business at the apartment! 🙂
Liebe Catrina,
schön, dass ihr eingewöhnen könnt und auch schon eine “Hausrunde” gefunden habt! 😉
An Abwechslung wird es euch nicht mangeln, bei dem was du da alles aufzählst!
Zu deinen beiden Fragen: ja und nein! 😆
An neuen Plätzen laufe ich genauso gerne, wie ich meine Standardrunden zuhause liebe. Aber auch zuhause wechsel ich die Strecken ab und variiere. Im Urlaub, z. B. in fremden Ländern oder an anderen unbekannten Orten in Deutschland, “muss” ich auch raus, um die Gegend zu erkunden. Da habe ich in Spanien einen deutschen Bäcker, in einer Großstadt den Zoo und in den USA vor Jahren ein schönes Restaurant entdeckt! 😉
… aber vom eigenen Balkon mit Leuten quatschen, das wollte ich nicht! Dabei bin ich gar nicht so introvertiert, aber ich liebe meine Privatspäre und möchte bei mir auf der Terrasse “runter kommen” können, wann ich will und meinen Cappuccino in Ruhe trinken können, ohne dass mir jemand den Milchschaum weggucken kann, wann er will! 😛
Genießt aber weiterhin euren Aufenthalt dort!
LG Manfred
Lieber Manfred
Genau, langweilig wird es uns hier bestimmt nicht! Obwohl Florida auch schön war – hier in Cape Town ist es einfach lebendiger, spannender.
Ich muss alles zu Fuss erkundigen. Ich merke, dass ich im Vergleich mit meinem Mann einen ganz schlechten Orientierungssinn habe. Da ist eine ganz gute Uebung fuer mich, mal alleine rauszugehen und mich selber zurechtzufinden. Dabei wird mein Radius immer etwas grösser…
Ha, der Balkon. Laaaangsam gewöhne ich mich dran. Jetzt kenne ich die Leute schon ein bisschen, da geht’s jetzt etwas besser…
Wir geniessen unseren Aufenthalt in VOLLEN Zuegen…gerade heute morgen haben wir den Huegel Lion’s Head bestiegen. Ich werde darueber berichten!
Liebe Gruesse aus den Sueden!
It looks so gorgeous there! I’d be like you on that balcony: Introverted and wanting privacy. But I do love when people talk, it just takes me a bit to warm up, haha! Enjoy the 10k and all the adventures to come!
It is wonderful – you would enjoy all the different local dishes and the beautiful vineyards.
I am looking forward to the 10k! 😊
Oh, wow! Running is a great way to explore a new town, and it sounds like you have a fantastic running route! LOL on your nightmare balcony. I’d feel the same. I would try the SUP though — that looks like so much fun!
It’s a great way to get to know the neighbourhood and all the streets and hidden paths. Yes, I finally need to get the SUPs out! 😊
I am also an introvert so I know exactly how you feel. 🙂 What a beautiful place! Please continue to share pictures.
Thanks for linking up with us!
It’s so uncomfortable but I’m slowly growing into it as I am getting to know the people passing by. I have sooo many pictures to show! 😊 Have a great week!
You’re off to new adventures. It’s always fun to explore a new city… but I agree with you, I’m an introvert and wouldn’t enjoy chit-chatting with every passerbyer LOL
Right?! I don’t enjoy it at all! But I am slowly getting used to it. You would enjoy Cape Town, I’m sure.