We flew from Nairobi to Cape Town and when we arrived in Cape Town, it felt like we had arrived in the Emerald City. Everything was shiny and glittering and there was no dust. The perpetual breeze combined with the beautiful blue skies of Cape Town enveloped us in a welcoming embrace. The well paved roads and the undented cars reminded us that we had arrived in one of the most developed and cosmopolitan cities on the African continent.
Cape Town has many amazing neighborhoods with luxury homes that look out into the Indian Ocean, like Camps Bay, Bantry Bay, Clifton and Sea Side. We chose to stay in a nearby suburb of Cape Town to save costs. Claremont is only a 15-to 20-minute drive from Cape Town and I really don’t mind staying in more suburban areas because they are usually more family friendly and you can really get a feel for what it would be like to live as a local.
We took an Uber to our Airbnb called St. Michael’s Sanctuary. The moment we stepped inside, we fell in love with the home. AY especially loved the unique design elements like the hand-painted walls and the little knick-knacks and trinkets on display throughout the house. The family who owns the home actually live there and when they get a booking through Airbnb, they move out for the duration of the booking and stay somewhere else. I always love going to other people’s homes, friends and acquaintances or even looking into a stranger’s window, and imagine what it is like to live there. Staying in St. Michael’s Sanctuary satisfied that curiosity in me.
The home is totally unique because it is filled with personal touches that can only exist if someone is actively working on making it a functional and cozy home. The house itself is an old house, probably around 100 years old and has many of its original fittings like wooden beams and old floorboards. It has been expanded and renovated through the years but still retains its charming farm-style feel.
The home has four bedrooms, two of which, including the master bedroom, are at the front of the house and two at the back of the house. It turned out that all of the kids decided to sleep together in the room at the front of the house. The reason is because the back two bedrooms only had a twin bed each and nobody wanted to sleep alone. The kitchen is at the center of the home and we spent most of our time in the home cooking and eating here. Together with the kitchen, the living room, family room and dining room gave us plenty of space to spread out especially during learning time. There was a small table perfect for EY and an old-style school desk that AY claimed as her workspace. RY and DY shifted between the couch, the dining table and the kitchen table depending on their mood and what they were working on.
Just beyond the original part of the home, there was another living area that was fun to relax in, especially because it had a fire place, a TV projection wall and lots of games and books. We spent one evening in the front of the fire playing a game of Cluedo, Harry Potter version. Just beyond the living area were the other two bedrooms that remained empty.
The backyard was an integral part of the home and most days, we kept the glass door to the backyard open to let the sunshine and fresh air in. On the first day that we arrived, the weather was so beautiful and inviting that we enjoyed a picnic lunch on the back deck. We used the gas grill a couple of times and RY was able to perfect his grilling technique over the course of the week. There is a swimming pool in the backyard but the weather was not warm enough to swim, though the kids disagreed.
The neighborhood around St. Michael’s Sanctuary is one that I could imagine living in. There were schools, playgrounds, restaurants and supermarkets all within walking distance. It was easy to slide right into living in this home as if we had no intention of ever leaving. Our week in Cape Town passed by too quickly and when it was time to move on, all of us wished we could stay longer.
Serendipitously, on our last morning in Cape Town, Leo met up for breakfast and a quick catch up with a friend from college that he hadn’t seen in years. It was inspiring to hear his story. In a nutshell, he and his family were living in New York, visited Cape Town on a vacation, fell in love with the city and decided to stay. They love the ubiquitous natural beauty, the outdoor lifestyle, the rich cultural diversity and for the kids in particular, the balance between academics and other interests and pursuits. Sounds about right to me too.
