Cape Town, South Africa

Cape Town is the third most populous city in South Africa and its legislative capital as well as capital of the Western Cape Province. The city lies at the foot of Table Mountain (3,570 feet, 1,090 meters), so named after its flat top, and on the shore of Table Bay. Cape Town is a commercial and industrial center; oil refining, food, chemical, and fertilizer processing, and the manufacture of automobiles, leather and plastic goods, and clothing are the chief industries. An important port, Cape Town’s exports consist mainly of gold, diamonds, and fruit. With one of the world’s largest dry docks, ship repairing is an important industry. Cape Town is famous for its gorgeous natural harbor, as well as its location near the Cape of Good Hope. Much of the former dock area is now a commercial and tourist waterfront area with museums, craft markets, and restaurants. Because of its location and natural beauty, Cape Town is the tourism capital of South Africa, receiving the largest number of tourists of any South African city. The area is also famous for its unique plant life: fynbos (an Afrikaans word meaning “fine bush”), a shrubby vegetation type similar to other winter rainfall shrublands, in which proteas are prominent and characteristic. Lastly, it is famous for the fine wines produced in the areas of Stellenbosch, Paarl and Robertson.

Cape Town’s docks are in the industrial area “Paardeneilanden (Dutch for Horse Islands)” and are situated on the southwest side of Table Bay. The 1100 meters high Table mountain rises from the port towards the south giving the harbor spectacular scenery. Next to the Table Mountain another conspicuous rock formation can bee seen, called Lion’s Head. In the 17th century the peak was known as Leeuwen Kop (Lion's Head) by the Dutch, and Signal Hill was known as Leeuwen Staart (Lion's Tail), as the shape resembles a crouching lion or a sphinx.