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Will there ever be a better or more beautiful Spring weekend to do an easy guided tour into Kirstenbosch?Do you think you know the story of the world's most beautiful garden? Have you ever found your way in through the back door? Are you a human being with adequate senses and aesthetic criteria? Well you've come across the right Saturday and Sunday outing description!
If a traumatic wildfire like April 2021's can ultimately prove to be of meaningful value, it should come by inspiring us to relish the heritage we keep on our doorstep, no matter how beloved and indestructible it may seem.
That’s why I want to take you through Kirstenbosch via Cecilia Forest in the span of one afternoon this Sunday, spelling out the history and litanies of beauty stuffed into the small borders of the city’s favourite world-class botanically-themed amusement park.
To me it seems we don’t quite know how to value greenery beyond being the best incidental scenery, but through the story of Kirstenbosch’s founding and global power as the throne of the Fynbos kingdom, we can discover all we could ever need to know about the contradictions of colonialism, the ‘beloved’ texture of our country, the roots of our gated community and the many varieties of splendour upon which we can base our visions for the future.
There is no more florally biodiverse space in the universe (as far as we can tell), and by anthologising the best of our biome under the sometime shadow of Castle Buttress, the city has spent four generations battling brutal urban planning, compulsory veldtfires, enervating tourists and all the hecticness of the anthropocene to bequeath us with a site that millions of visitors and citizens could hardly have dreamt up before.
You’ll learn about the loneliest tree in the world, the famous 'Bird' bath named after a chap and shaped like a bird, the first still-living vestige of Apartheid and Cecil Rhodes’s half-finished plan for a private highway stretching from his back-garden to the pub at Constantia Nek. And we’ll also point out some nice flowers and birds and smells along the way too.
So let’s gather at 14h00 on Saturday and/or Sunday at the Cecilia Forest entrance car-park with a picnic basket and walking shoes to snatch the first bright beams of the Springtime sun, pay homage to the wonders of our soil, and aspire to finish the day knowing at least two more facts about the fauna and flora of our alien peninsula than we woke up with.
RSVP for places, ensure your transport details beforehand and pay your entrance fee to me (since we're not going through the front gate) so you can join next week’s one knowing you’ve helped spread love and knowledge of our gorgeous home for a few more weekends at least.
Cheers! x
P.S. If you've read this far I'm guessing you'll want even more of the specs, so here goes:
- We'll be starting by the entrance to the Cecilia Forest Car Park and finishing after an hour-long hike and a 90-minute wander around the historic parts of Kirstenbosch, by one of the lakes in the middle of the rolling greens, so happily park on either side or organise an Uber carpool if needs be. I’ll be providing lifts back to the starting point anyway.
- We used to be donation-based but to secure our future we're now doing a pre-booking system whereby you can guarantee your tickets beforehand at R120pp, or you can join the tour on the day for R150pp in cash or EFT et al. Simply WhatsApp us on 076 033 8164 or Message us via the buttons on our home page to secure your place.
- This is a consistently well-reviewed heritage-focused walking tour; which is to say that all you'll need to enjoy yourself is curiosity about Cape Town's past (and History in general) and enough stamina to walk just less than 4km in one afternoon (with stops and snacks).
- If you're rejoining us, please please please please please please consider dropping us a short (or extensive) review on our Facebook Reviews or Google Reviews section as it will help spread our gospel of curiosity and playful appreciation across the internet and across the spectrum of all potential visitors to the Cape. It helps us more than you can believe!
- We've also introduced an optional R10 donation on your ticket which will go directly to the NGO Streetscapes as part of our mission to spread love, enthusiasm, mutual support and respect for all of Cape Town's people and histories. Just think how many people we could help and the difference we could make with a few hundred tours!
- Feel absolutely free to spread the word, invite friends who've been looking for this kind of experience and badger us with every imaginable heritage query. We live for it!
Can't wait to meet ya 🙂
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Cecilia Forest, 48 Rhodes Dr, Cape Town, South Africa,Cape Town, Western Cape
