"All the nice girls love a sailor". So says the old song, and I’m sure it’s still true in Simon’s Town, especially when beautifully turned out naval officers march down the main street on parade, brass band playing. The maritime history of this sheltered anchorage is second to none in South Africa. For more than 350 years it’s been the headquarters of first the Dutch, then the British, and now the South African navy. The carefully restored and maintained buildings along historical St George’s Street exude the history and charm of this more than a village but perhaps still a little less than a town. I’m Maureen Miller – come with me on a stroll along the Historic Mile and I’ll tell you stories about navies past and present, Admiralty House, cannons, Jubilee Square, and a dog who was buried with full military honours and whose bronze image is the only statue in Simon’s Town.

I'm an editor and writer who is passionate about travel in general and the Western Cape in particular.