Description of Cape Town

Cape Town - It is easy to imagine the thoughts of Portuguese explorer,

Bartholomew Diaz, when he first discovered the Cape in 1488. Arriving from the sea
to that amazing, mountainous splendor must have been truly wonderful indeed. Table
Bay, as it is now called, with the Cape peninsula curved around it, is still as
spectacular today. However, the City of Cape Town has come a long way since its
initial beginnings, first as home to the nomadic Khoi people and later to the Dutch
settlers of Jan van Riebeek of the Dutch East India Company. while the backdrop of
Table Mountain remains pretty much the same, Cape Town has grown into a truly
international city, sprawling around the mountains and hills of the peninsula. One
thing is for sure, the cliches that have been applied to Cape Town are all completely
true. Often called "The Mother City", due to the fact that South Africa actually began
at that point on the continent. Also called "The Tavern of the Seas", due to its
strategic location on the way around the Cape of Good Hope, and also often dubbed
the most beautiful city in the world. Flying into Cape Town International Airport
gives a slightly different impression at first, as you drive through a series of
dilapidated townships and into the city itself. All in all, Cape Town and the Cape
Peninsula of South Africa are well worth the visit and you will never forget the time
that you spent in this marvelous country.