Interesting Reasons Why You Should Go to Cape Town

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While my travel tastes have expanded beyond England and France, I still know what kind of travel the Malaysian middle class likes, especially those in the Klang Valley. And I think (with one caveat^a), they really should consider Cape Town.

When I travelled there in 2024, I made a tongue-in-cheek Facebook post about how they’re all really sleeping on Cape Town as a holiday destination, with a list that matches the stereotypes of the Malaysian middle class traveller. Nonetheless, even the most europhile of them responded with curiosity. So I decided I should actually convert it into a full article.

Although this article will focus on Cape Town, I will actually cover the Western Cape in general. But I will maintain a Malaysian focus.

First, where is Cape Town?

Now, unless you’re into geography or geopolitics (or a genuine anglophile), Cape Town isn’t a city that readily comes to mind for a mainstream Malaysian. But it is a pretty important city of the colonial era.

Cape Town is a major city in South Africa. While it is not the capital city, it is still the legislative capital, and the second largest city. It is also the oldest city in South Africa, thus arguably the most historical. Located in the Cape Peninsula, it was initially a Dutch East India Company harbour for ships rounding the Cape of Good Hope to the Indian Ocean. It still has historical things from this period.

While initially Dutch, Cape Town was ceded to Britain in the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814 (not the same treaty where the Dutch ceded Melaka in exchange for Bengkulu; they had lots of these). So even though the primary language is Afrikaans, the Cape Town signage is in English.

Iconic things you can do from Cape Town

Right off the bat, you can already see that Cape Town is an easy sell, once you know something about it. Especially, if you’re a history-motivated traveller. Check out this article for ideas on what to do in Cape Town. Examples of popular tours below:

Now, here’s the thing. Most tourism content about the Western Cape has a western tourist in mind. I found that this was the case even for recommendations from Couchsurfing locals. So instead of recommendations within Cape Town itself, they would point you to locations away from the city like Stellenbosch, Langebaan, or Muizenberg.

These are probably great recommendations. They are all very historical, especially if you’re European. There are many tourism activities, and tours always seem to involve vineyards and wineries. They were probably “white areas” during apartheid as well, and so have always received the most upkeep. I passed through Stellenbosch; it’s really nice.

However – and this is what I want to emphasise – I think Cape Town is more interesting for non-Europeans. It has more places that reflect the whole of Cape society historically. And, as far as I can tell, you can still do the same kinds of tourism activities from Cape Town.

There are also multiple iconic experiences you can have from Cape Town which makes it even more interesting. Some of the activities are unique to the region. Below is a list of these iconic things that you must add to your Cape Town itinerary, especially for a first-time or once-in-a-lifetime visit:

1. UNESCO Site: Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden

If you’re into the great botanical gardens of the world, such as the Kew Gardens and Keukenhof, you really must go to Kirstenbosch. A surprising number of ‘garden flowers’ actually originate in South Africa. Examples include the gerbera, calla lily, and most daisies.

South Africa has one of the six floral kingdoms in the world, which are regions where plant species are distinct from one another. Called the Cape Floral Region, it is also the smallest, and the only one located wholly within a single country.

Kirstenbosch is part of this region. It is also the best place to get an overview for why the Cape Floral Region is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The UNESCO site is otherwise not easy to visit in its entirety as it actually spans eight sites across the Western and Eastern Cape regions. There are no tours that take you to all eight sites.

2. UNESCO Site: Table Mountain

Cape Town is blessed with the iconic Table Mountain in its background. The flat plateau of the mountain is instantly recognisable. Unsurprisingly, hiking to the mountain peaks is a popular activity. That said, I thought it seemed too windy and wet for going up the mountain in the winter. As far as I can tell from tour descriptions, you need a reasonable athletic ability to do these hikes.

However, the mountains actually extend all the way down the Cape Peninsula. This whole extent is Table Mountain National Park, and part of the Cape Floral Region UNESCO World Heritage Site. Unfortunately, there are no floral tours for Table Mountain.

3. Namaqualand flower tour

I chose to visit South Africa in the first place for my own eccentric reasons that I will cover in future articles. However, since I was going anyway, it doesn’t hurt that I could also tick off an item on my bucket list. I’ve always wanted to see a blooming desert, and Namaqualand fits the bill perfectly.

The name means the “land of the Nama-Khoi people”, i.e. an indigenous people of South Africa. Now, Namaqualand is not in the Western Cape at all. It is an arid region in the Northern Cape region and extending into Namibia. However, if you’re in Cape Town, you can easily take a tour to see its claim to fame.

Go sometime in August or September to see entire landscapes carpeted with orange, yellow, and white daisies. Book in advance because the bloom is famous and these tours are very popular. Note that this will be a multi-day tour, but it’s worth it.

I went with Namaqualand Flower Tours, because when in doubt, my rule of thumb is to pick the tour run by someone obsessed with the subject. Taryn did not give me reason to change this policy.

Whichever tour agency you decide to go with, try to get an itinerary that includes visiting a koekerboom forest. The species is native to this region, thank me later.

4. Go on a Big 5 safari

South Africa’s more famous safaris are not on the Cape Town side of the country. In fact, Kruger National Park is inconveniently all the way on the other side. However, that does not mean there are no options for a Big 5¹ safari near Cape Town.

I considered going to one on my Western Cape visit, but ultimately decided to go to Simonstown. If you’re looking to go on safari while in Cape Town, check out this review of Aquila Game Reserve, which was where I considered going.

5. Go on a Marine Big 5 cruise

Although you can go on a Big 5 safari from Cape Town, arguably the Marine Big 5 is more iconic to the Cape Peninsula. These are the great white shark, southern right whale, bottlenose dolphin, the Cape fur seal, and the African penguin. They hang out along the coastline between Cape Point (the famous one) and Cape Agulhas (the actual southernmost cape).

There are Marine Big 5 cruise tours from most coastal towns along this coastline. The tour providers would actually be based in these towns, but you can find tours with a Cape Town pick-up.

If you do want to depart from a coastal town, Hermanus and Gansbaai are the most typical bases for these marine tours. However, you don’t have to move that far. You can also go to Simon’s Town down the Cape Peninsula and go with Cape RADD to search for the Marine Big 5 and support marine research. Simon’s Town itself is super cute and has an amazing history.

6. UNESCO Site: Robben Island

Finally, how can you go to Cape Town and not go to Robben Island? Nelson Mandela and his legacy is evident through all the city. After all, apartheid only ended in 1994. 30 years on is that transitional period when one generation has grown up never knowing apartheid directly, yet raised by people who did know it, thus constantly within its shadows and legacies^b.

While, you can book a visit on tour portals, you can also book directly on the Robben Island website.

Additionally, you can make a booking in person at the Victoria & Albert Waterfront, at the pier where the ferries would depart. However, this is a very popular tour, at least in the peak season. It’s best to book your slot in advance, ideally before you even leave for South Africa.

A visit to Robben Island gives a sobering overview of apartheid and the crushing struggle to get rid of it. Or at least, as a government policy. When you arrive to the former prison, you will be assigned to buses that take you around the island. Each bus comes with a tour guide who will provide the explanation. The Robben Island tour takes about half a day.

There is a site on Robben Island that Malaysians and Indonesians may find interesting. I will elaborate more below.

Five reasons why Cape Town is a good alternative to Europe

OK, this is the part of the article that came about from my Facebook post! This section is meant for my fellow Malaysians, and it’s half-teasing, half-serious. So if you’re not a Malaysian, don’t worry if you don’t get it!

Like many former British colonies, we have a thing about going to Europe – especially London. (Not so much the rest of the UK, mind you. Just London specifically.) This is especially the case for generations older than mine, as well as the Klang Valley population. I will not elaborate, #iykyk.

However, these days Europe is getting more expensive. Not only that, it’s… going through some issues. It might be a problem to be there ‘while Asian’. Of course, it’s nothing a seasoned traveller can’t take in stride. But if you’re not, and you’re travelling for reasons that aren’t specific to particular European countries either, you might opt for other temperate countries with stronger people ties with us, like Japan, or New Zealand.

Or – and hear me out on this – you could look towards Africa, and consider Cape Town.

1. Cape Town looks European

Cape Town is a city founded by the Dutch. Sure, the labour that built it was mostly not Dutch, but it was designed as an 18th century European city, the era when colonial empires flourished. So, just like Valparaíso in Chile, it looks very like the grand European cities that we like to see as tourists. It even has a castle you can visit, the Castle of Good Hope.

In fact, this is true for nearby towns and cities as well. I went south, and the seaside towns reminded me a lot of British ones. On the way north to Namaqualand, the Western Cape shore landscape somehow has a strong resemblance to the Netherlands. Inland, you can visit vineyards similar to those in Europe.

Sure, it’s not the same. However, while there are people who consciously go to Europe for sites and sights that are specifically meaningful to them, there are other people who just want a holiday with the vibes. And Cape Town has the vibes, plus its own iconic experiences.

2. Cape Town has a (mild) winter season

Thanks to decades of, shall we say, “typical” media coverage, when most of us hear ‘Africa’, we associate it with vast, arid, empty grasslands. But Africa is a large continent that touches the Mediterranean sea on one end, and has penguins on the other. It does not have just one climate, nor one landscape.

Cape Town is located at the penguin end. This part of the African continent has a temperate climate, just like Europe. It is roughly the same latitude as Melbourne in Australia, and Auckland in New Zealand. This means it has four seasons. And yes, this means it has a winter cold enough to be just as good an excuse to wear winter coats, which as we all know is the primary reason we travel (kidding not kidding).

Even better, the winter is not too cold either. Like, skiing cold, or Russia cold. Which means you could actually go out sightseeing in your winter coats even if you came during actual winter, and it would be fun. On the other hand, you could time the visit to springtime. This way, you get to see the famous flowers (see above section), you get more daylight, and it’s still cold enough to need the winter coats!

3. Malaysians look (kind of) local in Cape Town

This is more applicable to Malaysians of Malay (and other Austronesians like the Borneo and Orang Asli ethnics) or Indian ethnicity. (Then again, maybe with greater BRICS co-operation, Chinese may become a common sight too.)

Now, I’m not saying we look native. Most people in Cape Town are black Africans. It will definitely feel like you’ve gone abroad. However, due to South Africa’s colonial history, there is a substantial number of people descended from enslaved or exiled people originally from Dutch colonies in Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean. They generally fell under the “coloured” category under the apartheid era’s surprisingly complicated race classification.

In fact, a specific category is literally called ‘Cape Malay’. It was originally a term for people from the entire Malay archipelago, because Malay was the common language they spoke to one another, regardless of where in the archipelago they were exiled from. Later, it came to also include people who were both “coloured” and Muslim.

Because of this history, and because Cape Malays contributed a lot to South African language and culture, people in Cape Town are generally well-disposed towards us. In addition, even though the region was a Dutch (and later British) colony, at no time did the Europeans outnumber non-Europeans.

Consequently, we won’t experience racism here, even from white South Africans. It was nice not to have to worry about that.

4. Halal food is common in Cape Town

As a side effect of the previous point, halal food is relatively easy to find in Cape Town. Certainly it is easier than in Europe, and across a wider range of cuisine as well. I mean, you’re not going to be limited to just Pakistani and Turkish food. This makes Cape Town a lot more comfortable for Muslim Malaysians.

Of course, halal is not the default in South Africa. And while it is common in Cape Town, it does get harder in towns and cities outside of it, particularly if it is more “white”. In these places, the difficulty level is comparable to being in Europe. However, because of the presence of Cape Malays, at least restaurant staff usually know what halal is. Crucially, they also won’t get offended by the question. It was nice not to have this minefield for a change.

This means, you can ask them, and they know what you mean. In fact, a Korean place in Simon’s Town all the way south was even able to tell me that while they served pork, they have a special griddle for the halal chicken so that they can offer it for Muslim customers.

5. Cape Town is generally cheaper than Europe

Finally, I put it to you that going to Cape Town is a cheaper holiday than going to Europe.

Sure, the flights are twice as expensive, even though it’s the same distance. (But hey, Africa is going to develop, thus more people will travel to the continent, so hopefully in future the fares should become similar.)

But once you’re there, food and accommodations generally cost the same as in Malaysia. So, comparing the quality you get at apples to apples, it will easily cancel out, and then some. That said, there is an inexplicably wide range of accommodation rates in Cape Town. Some of the 5 star options are very expensive. Of course, I can’t say whether the price is justified. But, having stayed in Asian 5 or even 6 star hotels, it is difficult to imagine what the value for money could be. Avoiding these still yielded quite satisfactory stays.

I also think the cost of living can get better in future, because the root cause is probably economic inequality. I met a Boer farmer and learned that while South Africa produces a lot of food, it makes more sense to export because not enough locals can afford to buy their own crops. This is very fixable.

Six places in the Cape Peninsula with a Malay Archipelago connection

But wait, that’s not all!

What if you’re middle class, but not the ‘holiday in Europe’ type? Well, if you’re Malay², there are several places in Cape Town and the surrounding region that could make it more personal, on top of the iconic experiences I covered at the start.

1. Bo-Kaap (the Malay Quarter)

Firstly, you have to visit Bo-Kaap while in Cape Town. Otherwise known as Cape Town’s Malay Quarter, this cute and colourful neighbourhood was the designated area for Cape Malays under apartheid laws.

However, the neighbourhood is much older. It was founded by Dutchman Jan de Waal, who settled it with mahadijker, or freed Batavian slaves. According to the museum there, they were brought over because apparently the Dutch needed skilled labour to build up Cape Town, and the indigenous people weren’t skilled. (At this point, I couldn’t help but recall that Chinese people were brought over to build up Batavia itself, because ostensibly local Batavians weren’t skilled… or maybe the truth is that natives won’t help colonisers occupy themselves?).

Anyway, over time Bo-Kaap became settled with “Malay” exiles and ex-slaves from the Dutch colonies of Southeast Asia.

Later, when slavery was abolished, the newly freed Africans found they were not allowed to live in either the Dutch or the British neighbourhoods. So the Cape Malays opened up their neighbourhood to them. Many converted to Islam and intermarried. Thus, the term “Cape Malay” came to include Muslim African former slaves as well.

Incidentally, this also means that Bo-Kaap is the easiest place to find halal food in Cape Town. Effectively, eateries in the whole neighbourhood are halal.

The first mosque in Cape Town

The first mosque was established in this period, because unlike the Dutch, the British attitude towards religion was more libertarian. So they didn’t care what religion their colonies followed. Thus, for the first time, the Muslims of Cape Town could practice their religion.

The Auwal Masjid in Bo-Kaap was established in 1794 by a prince from the Maluku islands, known as Tuan Guru³. He was pretty badass and stubborn in the best way.

The son of a qadi (judge), the Tuan Guru was banished from Ternate for plotting against the VOC (Dutch East India Company). He was originally a political prisoner in Batavia, but he was so subversive to other prisoners there that the Dutch exiled him to serve his sentence in Robben Island. They took his Quran away, thinking to deprive him of his religion. But of course, learned Muslim scholars don’t really carry the Quran as a book, but in their memory, so he simply wrote it all out again.

When he got out of Robben Island, he decided to stay among the Cape Malays to teach religion instead of returning to Batavia. Because of course he would.

Bo-Kaap walking tour

A great way to get a summary of Bo-Kaap history, neighbourhood life, local resident artists, as well as tips on Cape Malay food and where to get them in the neighbourhood, is by going on a free walking tour.

On my trip, I was especially lucky to get a guide who was Cape Malay herself. She was happy to see a Malaysian in the group, and told me that Malaysia was one of the first countries she travelled to when apartheid ended in the 90s, “when there was democracy” as she put it. (Malaysia only established diplomatic relations with South Africa after apartheid ended, and not before).

I was a child then, but I felt relief to hear her reminisce that Malaysians had welcomed her warmly as a South African, and that they knew about Nelson Mandela.

By the way, Bo-Kaap has a ‘Murals for Gaza’ initiative, and the entire neighbourhood is covered by murals in support of Palestine and Gaza. In fact, there are so many that I don’t know how the Bo-Kaap tourism photos managed to avoid getting one of these in frame (but I can guess why…). If you want to see what it really looks like, go to the campaign’s Instagram account. I’ll also post my own photo collection by and by.

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2. The prayer room in V&A Waterfront

If I know my people, you’re gonna end up at the V&A Waterfront. Named after the British Queen Victoria and her consort Prince Albert, this is the now-gentrified harbour of Cape Town. This is also where you would depart from, if you were going to Robben Island.

The waterfront now has a mall and museums, and lovely restaurants. However, the interesting bit is the prayer area inside the mall, Victoria Wharf Shopping Centre. (Yes, there is a Muslim prayer area inside this particular mall, just like in Malaysia!)

There is a short corridor inside, hung with paintings of prominent mosques from around the world. Bo-Kaap’s own Auwal Masjid is there. And of course, the famous mosques from Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem, Istanbul, Morocco. Then suddenly there was one from Kazakhstan and… Masjid Selat Melaka!

3. The supply garden of the VOC fleet

Not everything can make it into the history textbook. Like how a little vegetable garden was one of the necessary elements that made possible the VOC fleets which arrived to the Malacca Strait, Batavia, and all the way to the Maluku islands.

Cape Town was an important supply port for VOC ships. It may be among the first towns in history founded not by a people, but by a corporation. The nicest part of the city is a park bounded by Queen Victoria Street and Parliament Street. It is surrounded by prominent civic buildings and museums, including the South African Parliament.

Interestingly, the park was simply called ‘Company’s Garden’. And what other company could that mean, but the Dutch East India Company? Indeed, the Company’s Garden was established here by the VOC, expanding into the pastureland of the Gorinhaiqua indigenous herders. It grew vegetables for the passing VOC ships, so that sailors didn’t get scurvy on the long journey.

4. The living wall of Kirstenbosch and the Commander of Malacca

Did you know that Kirstenbosch gardens has a Melaka connection? The story follows on from the Company’s Garden, but you have to go to another one.

The Portuguese were the first people to sail around the Cape of Good Hope and make it all the way to Asia. However, they did not establish a settlement at the Cape. Generally, they tended to just trade with the native people they encountered there, i.e. metal items for livestock. But then, a publicly-listed corporation decided to use this trade route. They established their own settlement specifically to re-supply ships, and thus the territory conflicts began.

Jan van Riebeeck was tasked by the Company to create this settlement. By his 8th year there was open conflict with his native African neighbours. So he erected a defensive barrier between the settlement and the native people, all the way down to what is now Kirstenbosch. To complete it quickly, he grew local species of wild almond and thorny shrubs, some of which still survive in the garden.

For the part that’s related to Malaysia? Well, after he finished this barrier, Jan van Riebeeck got promoted to another expat role in Batavia, and then after that he got another expat promotion as the Commander of Malacca.

5. Cape Point and the route that led to the fall of Malacca

For peninsular Malaysians, one of our most traumatic historical events was the fall of Melaka. Every child learns in history class that it all began when Bartholomew Diaz found another way to the Indian Ocean, around the southern cape of the African continent. Then Vasco de Gama successfully went the rest of the way to India. By the time Alfonso de Albuquerque arrived in the Malay world, rumours had preceded him along the trade grapevine of rising conflicts with the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean. The age of colonisation had begun.

If you want to see this cape that was so pivotal to world history, there are plenty of tours that take you to the Cape of Good Hope from Cape Town. However, you need to hire your own vehicle if you want to stop at the Diaz and de Gama monuments near Buffels Bay.

At the end of the Cape Peninsula, you will go to two ends of the Cape. One is called Cape Point, which has the lighthouse and is on a cliff. The other is the actual tip of the peninsula, and is a rocky beach and shoreline. You can hike between one to the other.

It’s quite poignant, if you know your history. Of course, the same event was the beginning of the European Age of Exploration, and our current period in history. It changed their fortunes completely, from the status quo of thousands of years before. In a myriad of complicated ways, it changed everyone else’s too.

6. The kramats (shrines) of the Cape region

And finally, did you know that there are kramats all over the Cape region?

Generally these are shrines of respected teachers, usually of noble lineage. As you might guess from how surprisingly common it is, they were not from the peninsula where the custom is less of a thing. Rather, these were noblemen from present-day Indonesia who were banished to the Cape for anti-colonial resistance against Dutch rule.

Nobility and religious figures (especially if they were both) were influential and charismatic resistance figures. So the Dutch could not imprison them anywhere near their own people. Hence, they tended to end up at the Cape, sometimes even in Robben Island. And yet, these people still managed to amass a following in exile, such that they had shrines built for them upon their deaths.

Usually, Malaysian Muslims don’t intentionally go to visit shrines. However, if you’re curious or would just like to pay your respects, there is a kramat in Bo-Kaap for Tuan Guru, who founded Cape Town’s first mosque. Robben Island also has one, for an eminent person imprisoned on the island and died there.

Is Cape Town safe to visit?

I know, I know. By now you’re like, why didn’t I know Cape Town was so interesting? The next question is going to be, is it safe?

Now, I have no idea if the rest of South Africa is safe. Your friends or colleagues might warn you about all the homeless people, and the crime. But even my old mentor Gavin considered Cape Town as the “last” safe part of the country (I love him to bits, yet he is sooo English sometimes).

However, I didn’t feel like Cape Town was any worse than some other cities I’ve visited, such as Valparaíso or New Delhi. Yes, it’s not as safe as Dubai, but not many cities are, let’s be honest here.

Yes, there are many homeless people in Cape Town. It is a problem there. However – and I don’t really know how to say this – they were the politest homeless people I have ever encountered. They don’t ask for money, but instead will ask if I had food. They generally respect your personal space so I did not feel like there might be pickpockets everywhere. And in the city centre, there are auxiliary police-type people stationed around just in case. Besides, I also felt that local shopkeepers keep an eye on things as well.

However, at night things are different. Unless you’re staying in the “nice” neighbourhoods, there might be unsafe areas. For instance, Bo-Kaap locals tell me the neighbourhood is not safe at night. Not because of locals, but because of foreign gangs. The way up to Signal Hill is also not advised on foot because of robbery incidents.

That said, locals will tell you these things and help you.

Is it safe outside of Cape Town?

Now, this is a completely different question. The apartheid period meant that people from different races and classes who used to sort of live together in the same city, were forcibly segregated into different neighbourhoods, or even totally different settlements called “townships”. Of course, only non-whites had to be evicted from their homes to the townships.

Although apartheid has ended, this unnatural uprooting and re-settlement of people still has an effect on a range of things, like community, opportunity, cost of living, and consequently, law & order. So you have nice places like Stellenbosch which are perfectly safe for tourists, but there might be townships that aren’t safe along the way. As a foreigner, you wouldn’t know which routes are best.

However, this just means you should avoid driving around yourself in the area. Instead, hire a car with a local driver. And if you go on a tour, this is going to be perfectly fine. In fact, you could also go on a cultural tour to a township.

Where to stay in Cape Town

There are a lot of hotel and B&B options in Cape Town. Some are reasonably affordable, but as I mentioned earlier, the upper bound is weirdly high. Cape Town has issues with affordable housing for locals, so please do not stay at an Airbnb unless it’s, like, somebody’s spare room.

I know we like having a kitchen and washing machine. But you can find options that at least have a microwave oven. There are plenty of laundromats in the city. However, they’re not coin machine style. You leave your laundry with a person, and they get it ready for you, usually at the end of the day.

As a tourist, your best location is in the city centre. The part that’s adjacent to Bo-Kaap has more character. Bo-Kaap itself could be nice. However, the neighbourhood sprawls across hill slopes, so you will be doing a lot of uphill walking getting back from a day of sightseeing. I did stay here, at the charming Amina Boutique Hotel.

Unsurprisingly, the areas that used to be “white” neighbourhoods under apartheid are more expensive. So if you want to stay at a beach neighbourhood like Sea Point, it’ll cost more. But then you’ll be far away from anything interesting. Green Point and Gardens are better options, as they are at least near the V&A Waterfront and the City, respectively. Still, for a tourist, I think there isn’t enough upside for the price tag.

De Waterkaant could also be a decent option. This neighbourhood puts you close to both the waterfront and the city centre. It’s a gentrified former warehouse area, and now it’s the hipster part of the city. I hear Woodstock is the OG edgy neighbourhood, but this would place you a little further.

How to get around Cape Town

Provided you picked a good location to stay in, most of Cape Town’s attractions are reasonably walkable. In fact, a good way to get an introduction to the city is to join a free walking tour. I mostly walked everywhere myself. It’s a lot of walking, but I tend to prefer slow travel. I find that walking the same routes over and over is what eventually allows me to notice interesting things.

Alternatively, you could also explore Cape Town on a Hop-on-Hop-off sightseeing bus. I didn’t do this, but I did take an Xplorer bus to Cape Point. I thought it was pretty good even though I don’t usually like large tour groups.

However, Cape Town is also large enough that you may not always want to walk. I considered attempting the bus system, but decided it was too much to think about on my trip. Besides, people generally did not advise me to take the bus. Instead, when I didn’t feel like walking, I took an uber. Uber is also a good option for going to Kirstenbosch. Generally, the fares were reasonable.

Eating in Cape Town

Usually I don’t bother to write this section. I’m not a food blogger. Besides, usually the destination falls in one of two categories for me: (A) it’s easy for a Muslim, or (B) “what’re ya gonna do, you’re somewhere else, and nobody does food like Malaysia anyway”.

However, Cape Town is in that in-between spot that’s actually worth describing to my fellow Malaysians, in acknowledgement of our national food obsession.

1. Cuisine variety

Even the europhiles will admit, even European countries with great cuisine usually feel limited after a while. It’s nothing on them; it’s just that we’re spoiled with variety at home.

Here’s the good news. Cape Town is actually pretty good for food, even for a Malaysian. It took me a long time to miss home foods. Yes, western food is the most common. And unfortunately, the European culture is Dutch and British rather than Mediterranean. However, for the same reason, there are also many other cuisine restaurants.

One thing that I really liked was that I could finally try African food. And of course, when in Cape Town, you have to try Cape Malay food. Just go to Biesmiellah Restaurant in Bo-Kaap.

But there’s a caveat. The food variety is good EXCEPT for breakfast. For some reason, everywhere I went only has western breakfast. It’s ok for a few days, but I was there for a long time.

There wasn’t even Japanese breakfast. Presumably, there has never been enough Japanese businessmen and tourists to make it the norm.

It’s baffling, because it’s not like they don’t have other people there. I mean, South Africa has an Indian community, yet there is no Indian food in any breakfast place. It’s tragic. I wonder if it’s because they evicted all the people who made good food during apartheid. Fortunately, as it was in Bo-Kaap, Amina Hotel always included one piece of Cape Malay food at breakfast, such as a samosa or koeksister. It made the suffering a little bearable.

(I hereby call upon more Asians to go to Cape Town so that this depressing breakfast situation can be rectified!)

2. Food cost

Now, I said earlier that food costs about the same in Cape Town as back home. That is to say, as a tourist. Eating out in Cape Town is like eating out in Malaysia. Most dishes are above 100 rand, which is about RM25. In slightly bougier restaurants, a main dish would be above 200 rand. Of course, you can go to much nicer places as well, and it would cost like you would expect.

What’s missing though, is food priced at the lower level. I think Asians are used to there being some kind of street food, or worker’s food, across the city. But I feel like Cape Town doesn’t really have that. Maybe that’s another outcome of economic inequality (and it’s not like Asia is good at this either, mind you); the working class don’t make enough to eat out, while they’re inside the city?

Anyway, the most affordable food place I found is the Eastern Food Bazaar on Longmarket Street. And it’s halal too. Here, you can get a chicken vindaloo set for 80 rand, and the portions are good. And I guess, McDonald’s is cheap too; a set meal costs 30 rand.

3. Convenience

Of course, no Malaysian expects as much food convenience abroad as at home. In most countries, you can’t just get food (nearly) 24 hours a day. Besides, you’re not really supposed to be out in Cape Town at night – I hope one day it gets safer.

However, Cape Town does have the supérette. These are like tiny supermarkets, smaller than a mini market, and there are lots of them all over the city. You can get snacks and drinks here, and sometimes they even have hot food. They’re also typically owned by Muslims, so the food would be halal. Superéttes open late, so if you happen to stay very near one of them, I think it should be safe to pop over and get something even at night.

Where to go for souvenirs

Cape Town has a lot of souvenir stores. Not just souvenirs for Cape Town and South Africa either, but also from elsewhere in the African continent. If you’re looking to shop for souvenirs in Cape Town, give yourself enough time to browse properly.

The best area for souvenir shopping is Long Street. There are souvenir and craft stores pretty much along the whole street. However, since it is a very long street (hence the name), you might want to limit yourself to the stretch between Wale and Strand streets, which is posher. The stores in this section seem to have better souvenirs.

However, don’t buy before you check out Greenmarket Square. Turn into Shortmarket street towards Burg street and you won’t miss it. There would probably also be some kind of dancing happening!

I didn’t bargain very hard. But as an indication, African print cloth sells for about 200 rand/mtr, and tooled leather belts are about 800 rand.

Should you tip in the Cape Peninsula?

Is South Africa one of those countries where tipping is expected, appreciated, or not at all?

I had mixed information about this from the planning stage all through the trip. It was, in fact, the subject of whispered discussions near the end of the Namaqualand tour; the retired Australians worried very much about finding out what was “correct”.

Online information suggests that tipping is somewhat expected in South Africa. But in Cape Town, I had the impression that it depends. I felt as if originally, tipping wasn’t expected. Restaurants in Bo-Kaap, for example, didn’t have a tipping vibe at all. However, the higher the class of the restaurant, the more it seemed that staff expected a tip as if I were in the USA.

Our tour group in Namaqualand included a few South Africans from other parts of the country (“coloured” and “white”). They left the decision up to us, but told us that lately, due to American tourists, the tipping phenomenon is getting more expected rather than discretionary, which was how it used to be. I gathered that locals actually don’t like this tipping culture encroachment – pretty much for the same reasons why no one else in the world likes such a culture (or at least, what it means for price transparency and worker compensation).

I did tip sometimes, but not always. When it’s clearly expected in the bill, I just went along with it at about 10-15%. In places meant more for locals where it generally isn’t expected, I didn’t.

On tours, I generally did tip, since it either is the tour concept (e.g. free walking tour), or because I felt it was deserved. Unless the locals did not – because I do get their point as well. I mean, if we got harassed for large tips for every tour and dining out trip in Malaysia, there would probably be riots! After all, it makes more sense that regular people should either be paid properly, or simply own those tourism and F&B businesses outright.

Footnotes:

1. ‘Big 5’ refers to the African lion, leopard, rhinoceros, elephant, and buffalo. ↩︎
2. This list is likely to be interesting to Indonesians as well, including those who do not identify as Melayu. However, I discuss all of them as points of interest for Malay people because peninsular Malays absorbed migrants and refugees from the entire archipelago during the unstable colonial period, accepting them as Malay as they assimilated. My own ancestors were among them. Therefore, to peninsular Malays, the culture and colonial histories of all the Nusantara peoples are considered kindred history, because they are the histories of people we have taken as our own. ↩︎
3. A moniker of respect indicating a teacher or knowledgeable person. ↩︎

^a Some people travel to Europe because they genuinely like actual things about Europe – the architecture, perhaps, or elements of its culture, as you might with any other culture you happen to fall in love with. However, some people travel to Europe for classist reasons, i.e. to show that they’re wealthy enough, and identify with “high class” Europe. Obviously, this article is not relevant to the second category.

^b Bear this in mind, when evaluating advice about South Africa, even from South Africans. Which group they were in during apartheid could affect how they perceive the end of apartheid, and it probably influences the advice. Let’s face it, we know this phenomenon too.

Carbon offset information to Cape Town, South Africa

A return flight between Kuala Lumpur and Cape Town via Dubai produces carbon emissions of approximately 5,987 lbs CO2e. It costs about $48 to offset this. 

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