City Bowl

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The Cape Town city bowl as seen from Table Mountain. Robben Island is visible in Table Bay, Signal Hill is on the left, and Molteno dam can be seen in the centre. Ciudad del Cabo desde Cabeza de Leon, Sudafrica, 2018-07-22, DD 34.jpg
The Cape Town city bowl as seen from Table Mountain. Robben Island is visible in Table Bay, Signal Hill is on the left, and Molteno dam can be seen in the centre.

The City Bowl is a part of Cape Town in South Africa. It is a natural amphitheatre-shaped area bordered by Table Bay and defined by the mountains of Signal Hill, Lion's Head, Table Mountain and Devil's Peak.

Contents

The City Bowl in a timelapse

The area includes the central business district of Cape Town (CBD), the harbour, the Company's Garden, and the residential suburbs of De Waterkant, Devil's Peak Estate, District Six, Zonnebloem, Gardens, Higgovale, Oranjezicht, Schotsche Kloof, Tamboerskloof, University Estate, Vredehoek, Walmer Estate and Woodstock.

Central Business District

Cape Town CBD in the City Bowl is a major business district in Cape Town’s metropolitan area and a financial centre of the Western Cape and South Africa. The South African parliament is located in Plein Street, and is the seat of government for six months in the year. The Western Cape provincial government and City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality also have their head offices in the Cape Town CBD.

This district’s inner-city shopping space is currently undergoing a change. The Old Mutual Centre, [1] on the corner of Strand Street and Adderley Street, is being transformed into The Mutual. Anchored by Checkers, Checkers Liquor and Mr Price, the new centre is scheduled to open in April 2024. [2] It will be situated by one of the busiest public transport interchanges in the Cape Metropole with Cape Town Station Deck being a hub for approximately 200,000 daily commuters. [3]

Foreshore Freeway bridge

The Foreshore Freeway Bridge has stood in its unfinished state since construction officially ended in 1977. It was intended to be the Eastern Boulevard Highway in the city bowl, but is unfinished due to budget constraints.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Table Mountain</span> Flat-topped mountain overlooking the city of Cape Town, South Africa

Table Mountain is a flat-topped mountain forming a prominent landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa. It is a significant tourist attraction, with many visitors using the cableway or hiking to the top. Table Mountain National Park is the most visited national park in South Africa, attracting 4.2 million people every year for various activities. The mountain has 8,200 plant species, of which around 80% are fynbos, meaning fine bush. It forms part of the Table Mountain National Park, and part of the lands formerly ranged by Khoe-speaking clans, such as the !Uriǁʼaes. It is home to a large array of mostly endemic fauna and flora. Its top elevates about 1.000 m above the surrounding city, making the popular hike upwards on a large variety of different, often steep and rocky pathways a serious mountain tour which requires fitness, preparation and hiking equipment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devil's Peak (Cape Town)</span> Mountain peak in Cape Town, South Africa

Devil's Peak is part of the mountainous backdrop to Cape Town, South Africa. When looking at Table Mountain from the city centre, or when looking towards the city across Table Bay, the skyline from left to right consists of Devil's Peak, the flat summit of Table Mountain, the peak of Lion's Head, and Signal Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rondebosch</span> Place in Western Cape, South Africa

Rondebosch is one of the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, South Africa. It is primarily a residential suburb, with shopping and business districts as well as the main campus of the University of Cape Town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">N1 (South Africa)</span> National road in South Africa

The N1 is a national route in South Africa that runs from Cape Town through Bloemfontein, Johannesburg, Pretoria and Polokwane to Beit Bridge on the border with Zimbabwe. It forms the first section of the famed Cape to Cairo Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Signal Hill (Cape Town)</span> Hill in Cape Town

Signal Hill, or Lion's Rump, is a landmark flat-topped hill located in Cape Town, next to Lion's Head and Table Mountain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cape Peninsula</span> Rocky peninsula in the Western Cape, South Africa

The Cape Peninsula is a generally mountainous peninsula that juts out into the Atlantic Ocean at the south-western extremity of the African continent. At the southern end of the peninsula are Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope. On the northern end is Table Mountain, overlooking Table Bay and the City Bowl of Cape Town, South Africa. The peninsula is 52 km long from Mouille point in the north to Cape Point in the south. The Peninsula has been an island on and off for the past 5 million years, as sea levels fell and rose with the ice age and interglacial global warming cycles of, particularly, the Pleistocene. The last time that the Peninsula was an island was about 1.5 million years ago. Soon afterwards it was joined to the mainland by the emergence from the sea of the sandy area now known as the Cape Flats. The towns and villages of the Cape Peninsula and Cape Flats, and the undeveloped land of the rest of the peninsula now form part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality. The Cape Peninsula is bounded to the north by Table Bay, to the west by the open Atlantic Ocean, and to the east by False Bay in the south and the Cape Flats in the north.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">N2 (South Africa)</span> National road in South Africa

The N2 is a national route in South Africa that runs from Cape Town through George, Gqeberha, East London, Mthatha, Port Shepstone and Durban to Ermelo. It is the main highway along the Indian Ocean coast of the country. Its current length of 2,255 kilometres (1,401 mi) makes it the longest numbered route in South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Muizenberg</span> Coastal town in the Western Cape, South Africa

Muizenberg is a beach-side town in the Western Cape, South Africa. It is situated where the shore of the Cape Peninsula curves round to the east on the False Bay coast. It is considered to be the main surfing spot in Cape Town and is currently home to a surfing community, centered on the popular 'Surfer's Corner'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Table Mountain National Park</span> A nature conservation area on the Cape Peninsula in Cape Town, South Africa

Table Mountain National Park, previously known as the Cape Peninsula National Park, is a national park in Cape Town, South Africa, proclaimed on 29 May 1998, for the purpose of protecting the natural environment of the Table Mountain Chain, and in particular the rare fynbos vegetation. The park is managed by South African National Parks. The property is included as part of the UNESCO Cape Floral Region World Heritage Site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vredehoek</span> Suburb of Cape Town, in Western Cape, South Africa

Vredehoek is a residential suburb of Cape Town, South Africa, located at the foot of Table Mountain and Devil's Peak. It is sandwiched between the two neighbouring suburbs of Oranjezicht and Devil's Peak Estate, the latter of which is often considered a sub-suburb of Vredehoek as they both fall under the neighbourhood watch community called DPV - Devil's Peak & Vredehoek.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M3 (Cape Town)</span> Expressway in Cape Town, South Africa, between the City Bowl to the Southern Suburbs

The M3 is an expressway in Cape Town, South Africa, connecting the upper part of the City Bowl to the Southern Suburbs and ending in Tokai. For most of its route it parallels - though further to the south and west - the M4, which was the original road connecting central Cape Town with the settlements to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brackenfell</span> Town in the Western Cape, South Africa

Brackenfell is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa, situated on the N1 about 30 km north-east of Cape Town and 35 km south-west of Paarl.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Durbanville</span> Town in Western Cape, South Africa

Durbanville, previously called Pampoenkraal, is a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa, part of the greater Cape Town metropolitan area. It is a semi-rural residential suburb on the north-eastern outskirts of the metropolis surrounded by farms producing wine and wheat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">N12 (South Africa)</span> National road in South Africa

The N12 is a national route in South Africa which runs from George through Beaufort West, Kimberley, Klerksdorp and Johannesburg to eMalahleni.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mowbray, Cape Town</span> Place in Western Cape, South Africa

Mowbray is one of the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, South Africa and lies on the slopes of Devil's Peak. Mowbray is at a junction of several major Cape Town highways and has an important multi-modal public transport interchange at Mowbray railway station. Its original name was Driekoppen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peninsula Shale Renosterveld</span> Vegetation type found only in South Africa

Peninsula Shale Renosterveld (PSR) is a unique vegetation type that is found only on the slopes of Signal Hill and Devil's Peak in Cape Town, South Africa. It is critically endangered and exists nowhere else.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foreshore Freeway Bridge</span> Incomplete bridge in South Africa

The Foreshore Freeway Bridge, also known as Cape Town's Unfinished Bridge, is an incomplete section of what was intended to be the Eastern Boulevard Highway in the city bowl of Cape Town, South Africa. Conceptualised and designed in the late 1960s, work began in the early 1970s with the freeway aimed at alleviating future traffic congestion in the city expected in the years to come. However, due to budget constraints in city expenditure at the time, the project never came to completion and has stood in its unfinished state since construction officially ended in 1977. While there has been much speculation in local press over the years regarding the freeway's eventual conclusion, the city council has yet to come to a decision regarding the matter. The structure has become somewhat of a tourist attraction over the years and is also a popular movie and fashion shoot location.

Kloof Nek Road, one of South Africa's oldest roads, was built in 1848 as an access road for the suburban pass with the same name which was used primarily as a look-out post for soldiers and a supply route to Camps Bay. The route starts at Kloof Street on the edge of the city bowl and turns into Camps Bay Road at the end of a mountain pass running between Table Mountain and Lion's Head. Despite being only two kilometers long, it is very steep with an average gradient 1:11. The summit of Kloof Nek Road is a small but complicated intersection that's not clearly visible on approach and often catches motorists unaware. The road's steepness may be a contributor to the regular occurrence of often-fatal accidents on Kloof Nek Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of Cape Town</span> List of links to articles about Cape Town on Wikipedia

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Cape Town:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M4 (Cape Town)</span> Metropolitan route in the City of Cape Town, South Africa

The M4 is a long metropolitan route in the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality in South Africa. It connects the Cape Town CBD with the Cape of Good Hope via Wynberg, Muizenberg and Fish Hoek. Originally, it was the main route connecting the Cape Town CBD with the Southern Suburbs and is thus named Main Road for much of its length. From the CBD to Kirstenhof, it is parallel to the M3 Freeway.

References

  1. "Old Mutual Centre".
  2. "The Mutual - Retail Opportunities Backed by Exceptional Foot Traffic". www.rennieproperty.co.za. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
  3. Africa, Tamaryn (24 June 2019). "City of Cape Town decorates station deck with colourful murals". IOL.

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