Travel Days

Monday through Wednesday were travel days. We started Monday on the island of La Digue in the Seychelles, spending the morning by the pool at Les Cabanes Des Anges Guest House. At 12:30, we walked over to the ferry.

Our ferry from La Digue made a stop in Praslin before continuing to Mahé, where we disembarked. We spent Monday night at Coral Strand Hotel on the western side of Mahé. The beach was nice, with very active surf, but the hotel itself was undergoing significant renovations. The surrounding area was fine, though nothing particularly special.

On Tuesday morning, we walked around the neighborhood before having lunch by the pool. Later, we took a taxi to the airport. Getting through immigration and security at Seychelles International Airport was a breeze, leaving us with over an hour in the lounge before heading to our gate.

Once again, we flew Ethiopian Airlines through Addis Ababa. Unfortunately, this time, we weren’t assigned Skyline Hotel (which is modern and right across from the airport). Instead, we were shuttled 20 minutes into town to Debre Damo Hotel. Since we were only there for about twelve hours, it wasn’t a huge deal, we had to be on a 6:00 AM shuttle back to the airport anyway.

This morning, we arrived at the airport at 6:10 AM, went through immigration and security, and settled into the Ethiopian Airlines Sheba Gold Lounge. Our six-hour flight left around 8:30 AM.

Upon landing in Cape Town, we took an Uber to the Marriott Cape Town Crystal Towers, about ten minutes outside the Central Business District. When I booked the hotel, there was no availability closer to the CBD or waterfront—apparently, multiple conferences are happening, along with P20, which is South Africa’s equivalent of the State of the Union.

Late this afternoon, we did a two-hour historic Cape Town walking tour, which focused heavily on the Dutch vs. British rule of the region.

For dinner, we went to Iron Steak and Bar, where we both had their specialty flat iron steak.

Meanwhile, the constant stream of news from Washington is incredibly disturbing. Every time we pick up our phones, turn on a TV, or pass a newspaper stand, we’re reminded of the Trump-Musk shitshow. At least being out of the country gives us a little distance from it.