New Year's Eve in Cape Town

We spent our first South African New Year's Eve in rocking Cape Town!

Cape Town was all dressed up and ready to celebrate its designation as the 2014 Design Capital of the World!

Everyone was ready!


















There were several public New Year's Eve celebrations planned ...

There was a big party planned on the Grand Parade in front of City Hall with music, dancing ...
















... and a laser light show dedicated to Nelson Mandela projected on the walls of the humongous City Hall.















We stopped by the party just as it was starting to check it out for later ...












... before enjoying some celebratory drinks at the Taj and a sushi and sake dinner at Haiku, a great Japanese restaurant on George's Alley.

"I came all the way to South Africa from San Francisco for a California roll?" Yes you did! And it was damn good.











After dinner, we strolled outside back to the parade route which was already barricaded off for the midnight Kaapse Klopse or Cape Carnival. We could hear the bands practicing in the distance in the Zonnebloem section of Cape Town. They sounded great!

bought me some flashing earrings on the street!

The parade would begin in front of City Hall, march down Darling Street and would eventually end up in Bo-Kaap where we were invited to view the parade by the Krewe Vince had sponsored last August.

But our Krewe wouldn't be arriving there until maybe 2:30 or 3:00 in the morning! We had a very important date with some penguins the next morning so ...










... we drove back to our penthouse apartment overlooking Gordon's Bay, popped open some Graham Beck Brut Rose (it is summer here!) and instead rung in the new year watching the fireworks light up the sky at midnight all around False Bay.

Happy New Year 2014!