My first day in Cape Town got off to a misty grey start –which isn’t always a bad thing; Mists of Avalon and all that— so I pulled up my big-girl panties and made the best of it.

First good thing was Claire from Budget Africa Travel emailed and said she was so excited to meet me, so between her, my delightful AirBNB host, Paul, and google (which was actually the least helpful of the 3), I figured out how to take the train – yes, that same train that a certain self-appointed Cape Town guru told...