Historical & Foodie Walking Tour

This is a fun-filled but active foodie tour. So, slip into your walking shoes, put on a silly hat, and come hungry!

We start off in Rheede Street where we relive the touching story of when wildly popular musician Sixto Rodriguez came to Cape Town, for the first time, and brought the house down.

From Rheede Street we amble past the lovely Old German Church, en route to Bree Street, where we stop in at Jason’s Bakery for a “Cape Town Coffee” and delicious “Pastei De Nata” (Portuguese custard tart).

Next we stroll past Yogi’s Barber Shop, where we meet the man himself; the legend behind this four-generation “old school” barber-shop.

Haircuts, anyone?

Across the street we see the ornate Islamic Mosques of the Bo-Kaap (“Upper Cape”) and down the road we see the famous St. George’s Cathedral, also known, affectionately, as the “Peoples Cathedral”, because of its fierce resistance to the dreadful policy of Apartheid, especially during the tumultuous decade of the eighties.

Shocking remnants of what used to be known a “Petty Apartheid” can still be seen in Cape Town today, like park benches with signs asserting that they were reserved for “whites only”.

The grand old St. George’s is actually the mother church of the Anglican diocese of Cape Town. It was designed by the famed Sir Herbert Baker and built out of sandstone that was sourced from the slopes of Table Mountain.

We next drift on to Haas Restaurant where we will be treated to traditional fare such as fiery ‘Bunny Chow’ and decadently sweet, syrupy ‘Koeksisters’ before we move over to the raucous Taxi Rank to enjoy old-style, mouthwatering ‘Pap ʼn Vleis’.

For “Pap ʼn Vleis” (“Cornmeal and Meat”) we visit the legendary Mama Christina’s hideaway at the Minibus Taxi Rank. You simply have not lived until you have enjoyed Mama Christina’s lovingly-prepared, open-air Taxi-Rank meals; so don’t fill up too much beforehand.

Bidding Mama Christina a happy farewell, we now have plentiful energy for our march to the old market place to see the Adderley Street Flower Market where we take in the charming colours and fragrances of hundreds of beautiful flowers and blossoms.

Who will be the first to spot our proud national flower – the graceful Protea?

From the flower market we make our way to our last stop, the friendly Heritage Square, where we find a cornucopia of coffee shops, wineries, cultural treasures, restaurants, ice cream parlours and even a grapevine that has been thriving there happily, since 1781, without any human help.

Heritage Square was once earmarked to become a parking garage but, luckily, wiser counsels prevailed and today it is one of Cape Town’s most beloved spots.

Our visit to Heritage is also a fitting end to our half-day Foodie tour and just the right place to get off our feet and relax a bit.

Note: Still feeling energetic? Then why not extend it to a full-day tour by hopping on some local transport to the world-famous Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens.

Kirstenbosch is one of the most magnificent and beautiful botanical gardens in the world; it boasts more than 7000 plant species, including the wonderful “Fynbos” (“Fine Bush”) and too many others to mention. You will just have to see it for yourself.

Situated against Table Mountain’s eastern slope, Kirstenbosch is a world-class bit of tranquil awesomeness and the perfect way to end your day.

ACTIVITY LEVEL

• Couch Potato
• Fairly fit  ✔
• Very fit
• Super fit

INCLUDES

• Registered South African tour guide
• Food and wine samples at different venues

HIGHLIGHTS

• Guided walk through The Mother City of Cape Town
• The resplendent history of the Bo-Kaap (“Upper Cape”)
  
• Sampling local food en route
  
• ‘Pap & Vleis’ (traditional maize and meat porridge) with Mama Christina at secret location.
• Historic buildings