Throwback Thursdays : 1990 part 1- snippets of Cape Town 25 years ago

January 29, 2015

I’ve split the year 1990 in two parts mainly because I went down to the Cape Town twice during that year. As I mentioned in my previous 1989 ‘throwback’ my Mum and Dad make the big move to Cape Town in early 1990. As a family we went on holiday around Easter time to visit them (our very first Cape Town holiday) and then in October I flew down with Elaine for a short visit. By then my dad’s depression was worsening. My Mum was determined he would come right, being in such a beautiful environment with loads to see and do but it just didn’t work out even with regular visits to a doctor and psychologist. They stayed for three years before coming here to Johannesburg, where they spent two years before finally making the move back home to his beloved Rhodesia. Cutting his ties initially was the trigger … he had never wanted to move in the first place but did it for my Mum who thought it would be good for them both. Even going back he sadly never recovered. He was never the same again.

Two pics before our first of many visits to the beautiful Cape

January : Elaine’s first day at playgroup … and yay .. first friends!!!

March :

April : Cape Town : we rented an apartment (top storey of a house) in Glencairn (between Fish Hoek and Simonstown) 25 years makes a huge difference in ‘then and now’ so I’m showing photos with some background shots. Just wished I had more …

Simonstown on the right. The house overlooked the main road to Simonstown and the main railway line. Early morning trains used to wake us up as their steel wheels screeched around the sharp bends of the bay

Looking left – I’m sure today development has taken over that land across the bay …

Muizenberg …

Simonstown .. statue of ‘Just Nuisance’ at the harbour

This paved area in Simonstown is now packed with curio sellers these days …

From Cape Point looking North ..

Cape Point .. where the Indian Ocean meets the Atlantic Ocean .. and the wind blows a gale !!!

The Portuguese government erected 2 navigational beacons, Dias Cross and Da Gama Cross to commemorate Vasco da Gama and Barthomoleu Dias as the first explorers to reach the Cape. When lined up, the crosses point to Whittle Rock, a large, permanently submerged shipping hazard in False Bay. Two other beacons in Simonstown provide the intersection. This is the Vasco da Gama Cross commemorating da Gama’s first voyage of discovery to the East as he rounded the Cape on 22 November 1497

Table Mountain, shrouded in cloud, from the old Victoria Basin …

This is today the V&A Waterfront. The famous Clock Tower on extreme right (photo below) was originally the Port Captain’s office, completed in 1882 and was restored in 1997. Brief history : The two harbour basins ( Alfred Basin and Victoria Basin) were constructed between 1860 and 1920. Redevelopment began in 1988 to what is now the V&A Waterfront. In 1860 Prince Alfred, Queen Victoria’s second son, tipped the first load of stone to start construction of the breakwater for Cape Town first harbour. The Alfred Basin was completed in 1870. The Victoria Basin was completed 35 years later. (More photographs from the top of Table Mountain)

Rhodes Memorial …. a memorial to Cecil John Rhodes (1853-1902) designed by Sir Herbert Baker

Epitaph written by Rudyard Kipling
” The immense and brooding spirit still
Shall quicken and control.
Living he was the land and dead
His soul shall be her soul”

Rhodes’ statue in the Cape Town Gardens …

Easter weekend …. Muizenberg beach (hubby and my Dad)

From the top of Sir Lowrie’s Pass overlooking The Strand and False Bay (look how empty it is!!!! empty of development and factories etc !

We spent a lovely day with my cousin and family on their apple farm in Grabouw .. (Dale, do you remember we picked you up from boarding school? We came away with the largest apples we’ve ever seen!!!!) My Mum used one apple to make an apple pie !!