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| << May16, 2005 - Turtle Essays ezine no 133 date 16.5.2005 |
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Turtle Essays Edition no 134 dated 23rd May 2005. ** Turn your dog into the best behaved pooch on the park with Secrets of a Professional Dog Trainer Guide Book http://www.turtlesa.com/dt.html ** In this edition: Editor's Blurb Cape Town Suburban Train Travel Train journeys further afield in South Africa. ** Editor's Blurb. Hi there folks! Welcome once again to all my readers new and regular. As promised last week I will move away from the crime theme that I have been writing about of late. Before I do that I would just like to tell you that the person who broke into my home a couple of weeks ago has been apprehended breaking into another home about 300 metres from where I stay. I had the pleasure of questioning him about my stolen goods before he was taken away by the police and was told that he had given them to the Nigerians. That was really bad news as the chances of recovering a gold bracelet of sentimental value to my wife became nil. The good news is that the thief now has to answer to the courts for his actions. I've just found out that he is addicted to heroine and that's his motivation for housebreaking. What a life! Another well known criminal was released this week after 27 years in prison. His advice to criminals is, although the prisons are overcrowded there is always place for one more. Don't do crime! This week I have written two articles about the train services available in Cape Town. Please enjoy! Geoff Fairman ** Cape Town Suburban Train Travel There are four suburban lines from Cape Town to different parts of the Peninsula. The first line runs from Cape Town to Simonstown and follows the main road down the centre of the Peninsula. The trains all run above ground, and as there are no signposts on the streets in the suburbs you will have to ask the locals where to find the stations if you want to use a train. All trains tickets must be bought in advance at the station where you board the train. It's possible to buy single or return tickets at the same time if you intend to return by train. Always purchase a first-class ticket as second class tickets are non existent. Third class is not recommended as coaches are for the masses who use the trains to commute to work and back and cater mainly for standing commuters. These coaches often transport criminals out to make a quick buck robbing commuters between stations. For people wanting to travel to the southern suburbs using the Simonstown line, trains leave every ten minutes at peak times and travel as far as Retreat. As I understand it every second train leaving Cape Town at peak times goes as far as Fish Hoek. During non peak times there are two trains per hour with some travelling through Fish Hoek to Simonstown. At night, the last train leaves leaves Simonstown at 9.30 pm and Cape Town at 10.30 pm. The trip between the two stations is approximately an hour. There are three other lines running from Cape Town, to the Strand through the Cape Flats and on to the outlying towns of Stellenbosch and Wellington. The Cape Flats section of the line is deemed less safe than the Simonstown line as it runs past and stops at stations near the townships that have mushroomed there. Visitors to Cape Town using the Cape Flats line should try and avoid the peak hour traffic on these lines. Getting onto the trains is a lottery and you will find yourself being pushed and squeezed as the masses force their way into the limited space in the compartments. You only need to see one train coming into Cape Town station at peak hour to see why they should be avoided. There are people hanging out of train doors which are unable to close due to the crowding. When the train eventually arrives in Cape Town people disembark from windows, doors and anywhere else they can find an exit. Many of the commuters do not have tickets and then jump barriers in Cape Town station to avoid being caught and being forced to purchase a ticket. The same applies in the evenings at peak hour when the reverse happens. In places such as the UK train travel is safe after dark but that is not the case here in Cape Town. Public transport after dark is not recommended especially when travelling alone. If you must use a train, travel with a group of people as there is normally safety in numbers, and even then stay away from third class carriages. Travelling alone on a train at anytime during the middle of the day could also be dangerous as often thieves board trains at quieter stations hustle commuters before disembarking at the next station. Everything is not as bleak as painted above but it would be amiss of me not to warn potential travellers of the dangers of public transport. The brighter side of train travel is that the Cape Town/Simonstown line takes you through some of the historical places that line the route between Cape Town and Simonstown. A station such as Newlands is well known by sports lovers for its sports arenas where cricket, rugby and soccer are played. The rush to catch a train after a big rugby match creates much the same crush as you will experience on the Cape Flats in the morning. The big difference is that the bulk of the commuters are either happy or sad about the outcome of the match and the comments that fly between them on the station and in the train after the match are sometimes classic and not to be missed. Rondebosch station was well known during the war years as the station where ???Just Nuisance??? boarded the train. Any sailor in Cape Town at that time could tell you a tale or two about him. Other stations such as Retreat are built where the Dutch after being attacked by the British way back in the 1700's finally succumbed and surrendered. Muizenberg with its lovely old station building is where the train starts the southern part of the journey travelling along the coastline just metres above the breaking waves of False Bay. When the sea is very rough water sometimes splashes against the train as it travels between Muizenberg and St James and also along the Clovelly coastline. The view of False Bay from the train is fantastic. As you travel through Kalk Bay past the quaint little harbour and around the coastline the vista of the Fish Hoek bay opens up in front of you. From Fish Hoek the train travels further south through Glencairn and past the sites where the British landed before marching around the Fish Hoek bay to take Muizenberg from the Dutch. From July onwards, along this stretch of coastline, you can see the whales swimming close inshore from your seat in the train. Simonstown is the last station at the end of the line and should you be on the last train from town you will have a long wait before the first train of the morning leaves. Sitting in the train in the Simonstown station you can look out over Simonsbay and see the warships at anchor just a few hundred metres away. A walk through Simonstown's town centre with its old buildings will bring back some of the nostalgia of days gone by. As an added attraction the railways have added a breakfast coach to some of the trains travelling to Simonstown and visitors can book a table and enjoy a hearty meal while travelling through the suburbs. When next you visit Cape Town book yourself a breakfast on the train and see the sights at the same time. You'll be glad you did. ** Train journeys further afield in South Africa. For those who love train travel there are a number of train journeys that can be undertaken to all parts of South Africa. The most well known is ??? The Blue Train ??? which was purpose built to pamper those who can afford to travel in it. It is the most luxurious train in the world today. This train travels between Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Johannesburg and Pretoria and as far north as the Zimbabwe border. It's a train trip of a lifetime and is highly recommended for any would be train traveller who loves to be pampered. There are other trains travelling the same routes but they are for normal travellers. The Orange Express is one train that undertakes the trip between Cape Town and the north and travels through the wide open spaces of the Small and Great Karoo. What an experience it is to witness a sunrise over the wide open spaces of the Karoo where on a winter morning temperatures are sometimes below freezing and smoke freezes once it leaves the heat of a fire. Travelling along the Garden route to Mossel Bay, George and Knysna and then further east to Port Elizabeth and beyond is another unforgettable experience. The trip around Mossel Bay to its station near the town is absolutely astounding. The bay with its lovely turquoise coloured waters and the seals basking on the rocks of Seal Island a couple of hundred metres from the shore are just some of the sights you will see. Further east in the George/ Wilderness/ Knysna area a special experience awaits you. A trip on the Choo Choo between George and Knysna where the steam powered locomotive chugs along the mountainous coastline, over the mouth of the Kaaimans river with the sea breaking underneath the tall bridge and on into the Wilderness. Leaving the coastline behind it them steams inland and around and over some of the beautiful lakes in the Sedgefield area. To finish off the trip it then steams out of the lake district and out over the Knysna lagoon before entering Knysna station. A trip on the Choo Choo is highly recommended. The Choo Choo leaves George, not from the main station, but from the recently completed railway museum. In this museum train lovers and especially steam enthusiasts can spend hours climbing on and examining some of the old locomotives and coaches that are on show. Many of the old silver cutlery sets and other knick knacks used on the trains are also on display. Closer to Cape Town day trips are often organised by wine farms such as ???Spier ???which transport visitors out to their farm for a day of wine tasting and picnicking. Day trips to Wellington, Stellenbosch and other wine growing areas are also arranged from time to time. One must just watch the newspapers to see when they are happening. I have also been informed of a steam train that runs around the Epping market on weekends especially for visitors who love steam engines. For further details I suggest you contact the Cape Town tourist office. As you can see there is plenty to do on trains in and around Cape Town. Why not visit us sometime to experience some of the train trips for yourselves. See you here soon. Geoff Fairman. ** ** Turtle Travels new blog is online now. http://turtleessays.blogspot.com There are some interesting new articles being posted today. Be sure not to miss them. * Like to have your own rose garden. Find out how to do it from an expert. Here is his link: http://hop.clickbank.net/?brerrabbit/mcplants ** For my personal details, contact address, and warnings regarding products advertised in this ezine please read the disclaimers which can be found at: http://www.turtlesa.com/Disclaimer.html |
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