Back then, the British first mate (John Chapman) not only named a beautiful bay after himself, but also named a steep mountain after himself. Chapman's Peak is located between Hout Bay and Noordhoek. It is recognized as one of the most beautiful cliffs in the world. BMW, Mercedes-Benz and other world-famous cars have filmed promotional films on Chapman Road.

In 1910, after the formation of the Union of South Africa, it was decided to build a road ("b" in the route map) by cutting through the cliffs. It took seven years from 1915 to 1922 and cost 40,000 rands. It was built by released prisoners and was completed on May 6, 1922. It was considered a great feat at the time.

But since then, in the past century, it has been closed several times. Once, a pedestrian was killed by a huge rock on the mountain, and the family of the pedestrian took the Cape Town City Government to court for compensation, resulting in the mountain road being closed almost throughout the 1990s; after reopening in the late 1990s, part of the road was closed again in 2002 due to landslides caused by heavy rain.

After reconstruction, it was reopened in 2005 and designated as a toll road. However, it was closed again on June 19, 2008, shortly after it was opened to traffic. It was not until the Cape Town City Government spent a huge amount of money to build a semi-open tunnel at the landslide site and set up multiple protective nets to ensure the safety of passing vehicles that it was reopened in early 2009.

In South Africa, highway tolls are very low, and many roads are free. However, in order to subsidize reconstruction and maintenance costs, this section of only 7 or 8 kilometers charges a fee of several dozen rands depending on the size of the vehicle. Despite this, it still attracts many driving enthusiasts to experience it here, including many motorcyclists and cyclists.

Unfortunately, Yunluo came all the way here, but due to the weather, he was unable to see the magnificent scenery of "the turbulent Atlantic Ocean on one side and the steep cliffs like a knife cut on the other side", but even in the thick clouds, he could still feel the steepness of this cliff road.

In the southern part of the Cape Peninsula, there is a large-scale nature reserve established in 1939, covering an area of ​​7,750 hectares and a coastline of more than 40 kilometers. The famous Cape Point is located in this reserve ("c" in the route map).

In January 1488, Dias' fleet arrived at Ludwigshafen, now part of Namibia, where they encountered a strong storm. Suffering from illness and the storm, most of the crew members were unwilling to continue the risk and requested to return several times. Dias insisted on sailing south despite the opposition. The fleet was caught in the storm and drifted in the ocean for 13 days and nights.

Unconsciously, they passed the Cape of Good Hope. In February 1488, on their way back from Mossel Bay, the fleet passed the Cape of Good Hope again on a sunny day. Describing this exciting moment, Portuguese historian Barros wrote: "The crew stared in amazement at this magnificent cape that had been hidden for centuries.

They not only discovered a protruding cape, but also a new world. "With deep emotion, Dias named it "Cape of Storms" based on his experience.

In 1497, another Portuguese navigator, Vasco da Gama, led his fleet to explore a new route to India. On November 27 of that year, Vasco da Gama's fleet sailed around the Cape of Good Hope and arrived at Calicut, an important town on the west coast of India, on May 20 of the following year. After going through untold hardships, they returned to Lisbon around September 1, 1499.

Today, there are two most common theories about the origin of the name "Cape of Good Hope": One is that after Dias returned to Lisbon in December 1488, he reported his experience of the "Cape of Storms" to John II. John II believed that by going around this cape, there would be hope of reaching the long-desired India.

Therefore, the "Cape of Storms" was renamed "Cape of Good Hope"; another theory is that after Vasco da Gama returned from India with a full load, the then Portuguese King Manuel I changed the name of "Cape of Storms" to "Cape of Good Hope" to indicate that going around this cape would bring good luck.

Regardless of which version is true, it is an indisputable fact that the Cape of Good Hope is prone to storms and rough seas. The formation of huge waves here is not only related to the constant convergence of cold and warm air currents, but also closely related to the local sea conditions and geographical environment. The Cape of Good Hope is located in the prevailing westerly belt, and the westerly wind is very strong.

Force 11 gales are commonplace. This is an external reason for the formation of huge waves; the Southern Hemisphere is a hemisphere with small land and vast waters. It has been called the "Water Hemisphere" since ancient times. The Cape of Good Hope is close to 40 degrees south latitude. From here to the Antarctic Circle is a large water circle surrounding the earth. The vast sea area is undoubtedly another reason for the formation of huge waves.

In addition, in the vast sea, the sudden lateral blocking effect of the Cape of Good Hope is also an important reason for the formation of huge waves. Therefore, Western countries often call the prevailing westerly belt in the southern hemisphere the "roaring westerly belt" and compare the route of the Cape of Good Hope to the "gate of hell".

Because of the strong wind and heavy rain, the sign became the only spot where people could take photos. Pay attention! This is the southwestern corner of Africa, not the southernmost corner. The true intersection of the Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean is at Cape Auglhas. Yunluo will go there in 3 days.

We wanted to go deeper, but it was too difficult to walk, so we had to give up, and we didn't feel the legendary stormy waves. There were piles of seaweed left in the cracks of the reefs. Xiao Zhou said that he once took some of the smaller seaweed home and boiled it, but it didn't cook for n hours.

There are as many unknown small insects as there are seaweeds, which makes Yunluo feel a little creepy. Students with trypophobia should not look at the photos easily.

The Cape of Good Hope is a long, thin rocky cape that pierces the seabed like a sharp sword. To see its full view clearly, you have to climb to the Cape Point not far away. There is a road that can be climbed directly from here, which takes about an hour. Yunluo originally planned to take a walk, but had to give up because of the weather.

It only takes 3-5 minutes to drive to the bottom of Cape Point. You can walk on the footpath or take the cable car to the top of Cape Point. Xiao Zhou suggested that Yunluo climb up to see the scenery, but the fog was thick in front of us. There was no visibility at all. After getting off the car, I went to the souvenir shop first and bought postcards and stamped them.

The stamps were in the hotel, and they were sold out, so I couldn't send them on the spot because there was a tour group there, which took a little time. When I came out, the rain stopped, so I resolutely gave up the cable car and walked on the trail.

The air after the rain is fresher. I walked to the top of the lighthouse in one breath, panting a little. Nalan Shiqi is really good. After all, she walks slowly for 2 hours every morning and swims for 2 hours in the afternoon. Her physical strength is much better than Yunluo. This lighthouse was built in 1857. Because there is often fog in the Cape of Good Hope.

The lighthouse did not work well and was abandoned in 1919. It was converted into an observation deck and a sign was erected outside the lighthouse, which clearly listed the distances to the lighthouse from ten famous cities in the world, including Beijing. The new lighthouse was built under the cliff and could not be seen due to the heavy fog.

There is a souvenir shop and an introduction hall under the old lighthouse. I really like the things in the souvenir shop, which are old and antique. Nalan Shiqi and I studied world geography for a long time in front of the globe.

On the way down the mountain, the clouds and fog cleared a little, and I finally saw the true face of the Cape of Good Hope - a big claw! On this windy and rainy day, the cape was surprisingly calm, and the Atlantic Ocean was as calm as the West Lake.

Maybe it was because the rain had stopped, when leaving the reserve, the baboons came out to block the road. Nalan Shiqi wanted to roll down the window to take pictures, but was immediately stopped by Yunluo and Xiao Zhou. When Nalan Shiqi saw the thick cotton coats worn by the staff, he realized that these apes were not so docile.

Heading north from the Cape of Good Hope, we arrived at the last attraction of the day, Penguin Beach, after more than 20 minutes. Located in Simon's Town on the east coast of Cape Town, there is a small bay called "Boulder" ("d" in the route map). In 1982, two pairs of penguins lived here.

As the local residents protect them, the number of penguins settling here continues to increase. The local government and animal protection organizations have designated this place as a nature reserve. After two or three decades of reproduction, the number of penguins living on this 2-kilometer-long beach has exceeded 3,000. The African penguin, different from the species in Antarctica, is also called the spot-billed penguin or the black-footed penguin. It is a relatively rare species. In 1910, there were about 1.5 million African penguins. Due to the large-scale plunder of penguin eggs by humans and marine pollution.

By the end of the 20th century, the number of African penguins had dropped by 90%, and is still decreasing. African penguins are about 63 cm long, and their breeding season is from November to March. They usually lay 2 to 4 eggs, which are incubated for 28 days and take 3 months to feed. They mainly feed on fish and often live in water.

They are good at diving and swimming, but they cannot fly. Penguins are examples of monogamy. Once they recognize each other, the penguin couple will always follow each other, inseparable, and stay together for life. I always see a single penguin standing there looking into the distance. I wonder if it is the lone penguin missing its partner.

The road leading to the ticket office is a long plank road, where you can see penguins daydreaming in the bushes. If you don't want to buy a ticket and just want to see real penguins, you can fulfill your wish on that road.

But once you get inside, you'll be amazed. Blue sea, blue sky, fine sand and white beach, thousands of cute little penguins in tuxedos, some looking up at the sky in deep thought, some playing in the sea, some enjoying themselves. This is the penguin's territory, only they can walk on the beach, and tourists can only walk on the special plank road.

There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!

We reluctantly bid farewell to Penguin Beach. On the way back to Cape Town, we saw the railway line built along the coast. It is definitely a sightseeing line. The railways in South Africa are relatively narrow. It is said that this special size can prevent the railway line from being easily occupied by other countries because of safety issues.

Most of the people who take the railway in South Africa are local black people. Later I found that the train station in the small town is simpler than the subway station, just a small house. It feels like this train is like a light rail.

It takes about 40 minutes to drive to the city center of Cape Town. Since they were leaving tomorrow, Xiao Zhou took Yunluo to see "Long Street" ("E" in the route map). He thought the hotel was nearby and they could go out for a walk at night.

I didn't expect it was still a bit far. In fact, the really lively part of "Long Street" is only a short section. Since it was not dark yet, the restaurants and cafes on both sides of the street were not yet busy, but the parking spaces were almost full.

After a round of walking, Yunluo found that what attracted him more than the "Long Street" was a striking "Broken Bridge". South Africa is the country with the best infrastructure construction in Africa, and Cape Town is a very modern city. More than 30 years ago, the construction of viaducts in the urban area of ​​Cape Town began.

When building this viaduct, the government and residents along the line initially negotiated a relocation plan. However, after construction began, the son of the family living next to the "broken bridge" came back. He disagreed with selling the land and persuaded his father not to sign the land sale contract with the government because no land transfer contract had been signed in advance.

The government had no choice but to reroute and close the land. South African law clearly stipulates that personal land ownership is sacred and inviolable. Those who need to be demolished should be demolished, and those who need to be relocated should be relocated. This is why the Cape Town government can confidently relocate the poor or vagrants living on land that does not belong to them in the city to the suburbs.

Now, the son of the family who opposed the sale of the land at that time has become the heir of the land. He has built a large-scale hotel on the land. Facing the "historic relics" left over from that time, he continues to enjoy the pleasure of being a "nail household" leisurely and contentedly.

There are four such "broken bridges" in Cape Town. In addition to the "nail households" that caused them, there are two "broken bridges" that were caused by "shoddy" construction, which remain to this day as a warning to future generations. One of them was due to fraud in building materials, causing the viaduct to collapse halfway through construction.

Three construction workers were killed on the spot. For this, the then director of the Construction Bureau was sentenced to three years in prison. Originally, the government was going to demolish the viaduct built with inferior materials, but the Cape Town radio station broadcast a letter from the family of the deceased to all citizens, which read:

A wound that bleeds will leave a scar forever. A city that does not acknowledge the scar is hypocritical. The city of Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo needs not only beauty, but also a courageous quality. Don't let shame go easily, even if shame contains pain. Let the broken bridge always warn Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo, so that Nalan Shiqi and Yunluo can do better in the future. (To be continued...)