To the Bottom of the Continent

Next we headed east along the south coast of the continent. It's a very sparsely-populated stretch of the world. To a Californian, it's so wonderful to see miles and miles of coast with not a condo nor a military base in sight.



Most spectacular was that we could see whales from the shore! These are the winter mating grounds of the Southern Right Whales, and some were still hanging around here before making a break for Antarctica for the summer.



Do you San Diegans out there recognize this plant? This is the iceplant we all grew up with, holding back freeway embankments and suburban hillsides. Well, it is native to South Africa so here it is in its native environment. There are all sorts of incredible plants around here. They're thick and hearty and called FYNBOS, and they resist the heavy winds with their stockiness. The Cape has a semi-Mediterranean climate, like Southern California, so what we call iceplant is a convenient groundcover there.



And here are four images from Cape Agulhas, the southernmost extremity of Africa. I'll always remember the rocks on this southern coast. It's as if the entire continent is tumbling into the sea, like the ruins of an ancient temple being toppled by the forces of time.





Some people say that Cape Point is the divider between the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, and others say it's Agulhas. In actuality, its all one great southern sea around here and it's not as if there is a border drawn to divide the two. But in case you wanted to believe there is in fact a big dotted line, here's some evidence for you:



And here is Africa's southernmost portable toilet:



We liked Agulhas so much. It's a beautiful place. And since we'd been driving all day we decided to stay. We drove around and found a little bed and breakfast right on the shore. It's called Ou Pos, which means "old post office"...





...and the mayor's basset hound took drink orders directly from our bedroom window. We slept with the window wide open and drank in the sound and salt of the sea, which seeded our dreams with sailing adventures and desert islands.

Here's the Cape L'Agulhas light, just switching on for an evening of preventing disasters: