Castle of Good Hope

The vivacious city is known for its blend of architecture and  where better to enjoy it than at the Castle of Good Hope. The oldest building in South Africa dating back to the late 17th century, built as a fort to protect the city against attack but to this date no shot has been fired from there.

This 5 pointed historical  building is open to the public and offers self guided tours with a map in 7 different languages or a scheduled tour Monday to Saturday at 11am, 12pm and 2pm. Like any other castle there are a multitude of stories to be told both funny, horrifying and mysterious.

A traditional key ceremony takes place with all the castle guards  in full ceremonial costume every day at 10am and 12pm on weekdays only.
The Castle’s Military Museum displays Military History in Cape Town and  the splendid William Fuhr Art and Antique Collection depicts life at the Cape from early days when the Dutch  settled here to the mid 19th century. One place that fascinates me is the Lady Barnard Ballroom which is 180 feet long with a table that stretches the full length of the room. If only those walls could talk!!

My favorite aspect of the castle is the views of Table Mountain from the inner courtyard and the castle roof . You can also wonder around the courtyards where you  find the dungeons, old bakery and even the dolphin pool which was discovered when archaeologists were doing some renovations.

If you are luck you may even see the 2 white stallions that live at the castle who belong to Cape Carriage Safaris but that is another review….