While staying in Cape Town for the week, we spent one day driving down the Cape Peninsula to Cape Point & Cape of Good Hope. Along the way, we stopped in Hout Bay, Simon's Town and of course, Boulders Beach.

Hout Bay and Simon's Town were cool stops. We did some rock scrambling up to the bronze leopard in Hout Bay and followed up shopping in Simon's Town with a delicious lunch on Main St. But the main attraction was definitely the penguins.  

I (Grace) love penguins. I love watching them waddle around, throw/plop themselves into the water and then glide gracefully through it like the chubby ballerinas they are. I love how cute the chicks are. I love how they stand awkwardly on the beach like grumpy old men. So, yeah, I love them.

And for anyone who loves penguins, Boulders Beach is heaven. (Minus the crowds of people who also love penguins.)

The African penguin colony is about 3,000 strong and they do not care at all that people are around. A wooden boardwalk ensures that people aren't disrupting the penguins' natural habitat. 

While we were there, many of the birds were in the middle of molting, a process of losing their feathers and growing new ones, during which they aren't waterproof, so they can't go into the water for about 30 days. 

Which meant more penguins on the beach! A few were either finished molting or hadn't started, so we got to see them frolicking in the small waves. We also saw a bunch of couples sitting on their nests. Did you know that penguins mate for life? Yet another reason to love them.

PS. even though I really wanted the penguins to be the highlight of this post, I have to mention the bronze leopard of Hout Bay. Weighing in at 295 kgs, the statue has overlooked the bay since March 1963. It is a memorial to the many wild animals that once roamed the mountains of the peninsula. The last leopard seen in Hout Bay was in 1937.