Big Daddy Baboon and The Black Tie Affair

I’m sorry everyone, we have hardly had any time to ourselves so I am a few days behind. I will try to post everything as soon as I can. There will be some amazing stories and pictures in future posts. in the mean time, I hope you like this article about the completion of our journey to The Cape.

I left you off as we were driving out of the Cape Section of Table Mountain National Park.  We had just past Mommy Baboon and three of her babies in our van and in the preceding entry we showed you what they looked like as they were entering the park through the gates on the main road to the upper lighthouse. It was exciting to see a part of the baboon troop but where was the Daddy Baboon?

All morning we had talked about baboons and Alan had warned us that we may not see any at all, but if we did, it was hoped that we might come across an A-male troop leader. They are the ones that cause all the trouble and are known to disrupt picnics, terrorize hikers and bikers and break into people’s homes in search of treats. Their favorite foods are apparently junk food. Alan said a can of Coke and a bag of chips are always a huge score.

We felt privileged to see that first part of the baboon troop and as we slowed to exit through the gates we were all on the lookout for any sign of a large male baboon. It was Achmed that spotted Big Daddy first. He was sitting in the savanna on the left side of the road that was on our side of the gate. Achmed slowed to a stop about 20 meters from the gate so that we could observe him.  On the other side of the road two cars had stopped and were angle parked. It looked like the drivers of these vehicles had stopped at the gates to use the bathroom. All of a sudden and not 10 seconds after we stopped, Big Daddy baboon stepped on to the road and started approaching the parked vehicles. Achmed said, “Watch him go open one of those car doors”. I doubted that something as unlikely as that would happen, but as I watched I was dumbfounded when Big Daddy ambled across the street and opened the back door of the nearest car. He then jumped in the back seat. It became more spectacular of an attempted car-jacking when we realized that there was still a human passenger in the car. That is when Alan jumped out of our van to aid the damsel in distress.

Alan walked over to the damsel’s side of the car, which was the opposite side from where the baboon had entered and convinced her to leave the vehicle. Alan knew that these big boys have razor sharp incisors and they will bite if one insists on trying to protect his or her goodies.  This lady turned out to be German and Alan was having trouble convincing her to surrender the vehicle and all that was in it (Alan later told us that she was worried about the CDs in the car and we all had a good laugh over that). Just as Alan was getting control of the situation though, a second large male baboon jumped up on the car behind Alan. Big Uncle was coming to the aid of his brother. Then a park employee came out of the gatehouse with a huge stave and defused the situation. Big Daddy then left his vehicle and Big Uncle joined him as they both fled into the bush. Alan returned to our van somewhat shaken by the second male baboon who had taken him by surprise.

A-male "Big Daddy" swaggers across the street

Big Daddy looking for potato chips in the back seat after he opened the rear door and let himself in.
Alan, our guide is seen on the left consoling a German woman who is worried about Big Daddy stealing her CDs.

Big Daddy exiting scene of crime

The next order of business was lunch and we found an excellent seafood pace at the Seaforth Restaurant, overlooking The Boulders, along the shores of False Bay. False Bay is famous for its Great White Sharks. This is where the big predators breach the surface of the sea when they are hunting seals and where several humans have recently been attacked. Alan told us that National Geographic was trying to document some of the acrobatics of these incredible predators and currently had a boat in the bay, which would be there for several weeks in an attempt to film some of the action. In spite of the threat of shark attack, there were numerous surfers out on the most dangerous beaches and they were catching waves under the supervision of black-shirted shark-spotters high up on the cliffs. These spotters would sound alarms on the beaches if any of the big guys were spotted. I do not think that the spotters would be enough to make me feel safe surfing there. 

False Bay where several surfers have been attacked by Great White Sharks

After lunch we walked from the restaurant down an alleyway in town, to a place called Foxy Beach Boardwalk. This is where we witnessed the Black Tie Affair. Foxy Beach is one of the protected coves that make up a larger beach area that is called The Boulders. The Boulders is where two breeding pairs of Jackass Penguins landed in 1982 and set up shop. Today 2200 penguins call these sheltered beaches home. The curious part about all of this is that these birds have made a home right in a residential area. Everyone in the community had to penguin-proof their homes.

C'mon we are late for the party

Networking

Cocktails on the beach

Do you know where the men's room is?

We climbed out of False Bay and made our way back to our hotel. We would not dine in a restaurant that evening as we were invited to dine in the home of two very good friends of the owners of Micato. The dinner party would be based in a beautiful home, situated high up on the slopes of Table Mountain on the edge of the National Park.  The views from there were spectacular. Peter James, a retired Shipping Executive and his bubbly wife Suzette, treated us to a four course meal in their dining room and had invited another local couple PC and Mieke (an architect and a lawyer) to round out our group. Peter gave us a tour of his incredible wine cellar and Suzette pampered us with an incredible meal which included kudu, strawberry and avocado salad, lotus soup, pumpkin fritters, potato and bean cakes, chicken pie, lamb terrine and a chardonnay jelly for desert. The hostess rang a bell to introduce each dish and explained what it was and how she made it. We were told that the courses were Malay and Afrikaner-inspired dishes that we would not get in any restaurants. It was a truly amazing meal put on for us by two amazing people that we had just met. But the James’ along with PC and Mieke, made us feel like we had known each other for years. I asked our hostess if she would share her recipes and she gave us her business card and said if I emailed her she would send me all her secrets.

Peter and Suzette James' dinner party with (l-r) Dick Brown, Suzette James, Gail Brown, Mieke, PC, The Boss and Gym (Peter is taking picture)