Last Saturday was the final leg of the Penguin Waddle which has been walking from Gansbaai to Simonstown to raise awareness of the plight of the African Penguin. The "hard core" pose with their placards and mascot at the start of day 6 at Surfer's Corner in Muizenberg.
The Balmoral Hotel building in Muizenberg. Once the very height of seaside chic, then rather down the drain and very out. Now the elegant Art Deco building has been restored to its former glory.
Rhodes Cottage Museum on Main Road Muizenberg is a fascinating place to visit. It was in the front room on the left of this photo that he died, on 26 March 1902 - almost exactly a hundred and ten years ago. Whatever the current political feeling, Cecil John Rhodes played a huge role in the shaping of the South African nation. Yet this little museum (housed in the cottage that Rhodes bought to tide him over till the big house adjacent to it, Rust en Vrede, was designed and built by Herbert Baker) is rather run down inside, and the displays look like they could do with an upgrade. In comparison with some of the classy museums in our city, this one is rather poor -and sadly in need of a lick of paint and some proper restoration. It seems to be looked after by volunteers from the Muizenberg Historical Conservation Society, relying on the odd donation that gets stuffed into a little wooden box at the door. I wonder why De Beers, the fantastically, fabulously wealthy mining company that Rhodes masterminded, can't spare a million or two to sort it out.
"Swanbourne" is a lovely old house in the shadow of Muizenberg Peak which you can just see on the left. It was designed in 1899 by non other than Sir Herbert Baker, the renowned "arts and crafts" architect who lived and worked in South Africa for a while at the turn of the nineteenth century. It can be found in Beach Road, Muizenberg, and anyone can pop in for a look and a cup of coffee. It was acquired by the great-granddaughter of the founder of the Cape Times, Joan St Leger who bequeathed the house and adjoining properties to create an arts and cultural centre where there are changing art displays, a library, a gallery of evocative photos of how Muizenberg once looked, and a café. Concerts are sometimes held too. This house is also part of a retirement home for the rather affluent. For more on that and its history, click here.
This little cottage, Het Posthuys, on Main Road in Muizenberg is reputed to be the oldest colonial house in South Africa. Records state that it was built in 1673 and was known as Stegman's Rust. It served as a signal station and a fort overlooking False Bay on the slopes of Muizenberg Mountain. At some stage towards the end of the 1700s it was lived in by a "Posthouder", then during the Battle of Muizenberg in 1795 when the British wrested the Cape from the Dutch, it was used by the military again. It is now a museum run by the Muizenberg Historical Conservation Society.
Looking down on Muizenberg's endless beach this morning. Lots of people and surfers. The mountains in the distance are the Hottentots Hollands and the beach is about 40 km long from Muizenberg to Gordon's Bay at the other end.
Stormy skies provided a wonderful backdrop to the kites at the annual Muizenberg Kite Festival on Saturday.
Today I went with my sister and her children to Planet Kids in Muizenberg, which is an eco-friendly, indoor playground designed especially (but by no means exclusively) for children with disabilites. I gather the owner's child has a form of autism and this wonderful place was designed with him in mind. The toys are mostly made of wood like this jigsaw puzzle. 
There are also exciting things for sale like colourful wigs with cockscomb hairstyles.
Cape Town Time