The last leg of our trip took us to he beautiful city if Cape Town. Where we spent the last four days of our journey. After a late night arrival to Ashanti backpackers we got ready for four incredible days.
On our first day in Cape Town we went to an exchange with the University of Cape Town (UCT) where we learned about the mineral processing component of their chemical engineering degree. Their focus is on both the mineralogy of the materials and how it affects processing in methods such as flotation and milling.
Since water usage in the mineral processing industry is becoming more and more regulated, a new project in UCT focuses on the conservation of water usage in mineral processing. To hopefully eliminate the use of fresh water and only use recirculating water in future mineral processing operations. Students form different faculties of engineering are joined in order to find innovative solutions to water usage.
We've concluded our visit with a tour of the UCT chemical engineering buildings and laboratories. The new chemical engineering building was designed with the spirit of their department in mind. The building has mostly glass internal walls to emphasize the openness and close ties within the department. A walk to UCT's central campus hub concluded our tour and we set off to explore the rest of the city.
The rest of the day was spent exploring the V&A Waterfront and attending the Stormer's VS. Blues rugby game. For many members of our group this was the first encounter with the sport and it was an unforgettable one. We quickly decided to cheer for the local team, the Stormers, and after an intense game they won!
The following day the group split up in order to explore the city. Hiking the iconic Table Mountain under the shadow of which the city lies revealed breathtaking views of the city and the surrounding hills.
Visiting the famous wine lands around the city brought part of the group to Simonsig and Beyerdkloof wine estates. Where we expanded our palettes with some of South Africa's best vines including the local Pinotage, South Africa's signature wine.
Paragliding from signal hill provided the adrenaline rush as well as another dose of the views of the city
The following day the whole group gathered for a trip to Cape Point, to see the Cape of Good Hope and enjoy the scenic route along the park. We've stopped to take the boat cruise to seal island, a rock off of the coast of the cape where what seems to be over 500 seals lounge and enjoy the sun. We also visited boulder beach almost at the edge of the cape to see one of South Africa's largest penguin colonies.
The following day marked our last day in South Africa. We spent our last morning in Cape Town exploring more of the city by visiting the local street market and gem stores, and once again, Table mountain.
As we headed to the airport in the afternoon we said goodbye and thank you to Alistair who showed us South Africa in the best way and made us want to come back again!