[Rockhounds] Hello, Cape Town suggestions?

[Jeffrey T. Cessna]

Hello,

After lurking for quite a while I thought it was a good time to start 
with the recently popular "What should I do while I am visiting this 
place?" question.

First about me - I am pretty much an amateur. I like to do my own 
collecting of minerals and fossils when I infrequently get a chance. 
That usually involves some driving, since I live in Washington DC 
area. I have been stopping at road cuts and hunting for sharks teeth 
at Calvert Cliffs (on the Chesapeake Bay in MD) for years. I now have 
a few more options in local quarries since I joined some local clubs. 
I tend to collect aesthetically rather than scientifically, but 
probably somewhat out of ignorance rather than preference. Club shows 
have also introduced me to buying on a small scale. That seems to be 
where I can get my fluorescent fix for now.

Now the question - I'll be in Cape Town, South Africa soon for a 
conference. It will be my first time in Africa at all. I don't know 
if I will have time to do any collecting of my own, but I was 
wondering if there are any recommended shops in town? Also, is there 
anything I should look for that would be best bought there? I have 
parts of Saturday and Sunday before the conference and part of 
Saturday after the conference. My other priorities are getting to the 
top of Table Mountain (list related) and possibly seeing Kirstenbosch 
Botanical Gardens (a different hobby of mine). Any suggestions or 
information would be welcome.

I have found the following on my own...

Federation of South African Gem and Mineralogical Societies
http://www.fosagams.co.za/

Mineralogical Society of South Africa
http://www.minsoc.org.za/

Geological Society of South Africa
http://www.gssa.org.za/

Council for Geoscience, Republic of South Africa
http://196.33.85.14/cgs_inter/

University of Cape Town, Department of Geological Sciences
http://web.uct.ac.za/depts/geolsci/
including, Geology of the Cape Peninsula
http://web.uct.ac.za/depts/geolsci/cape.htm

None of the shops I have found on-line list brick and mortar addresses.

I haven't had a lot of time to fully explore the sites above. I have 
to get my paper and poster presentation finished before I leave.

Finally, thanks to all the members for the interesting reading I have 
already done on this list.

Cheers,

-jtc