My first visit to Cape Town was in 1995, only a year after the end of Apartheid. There was incredible optimism in the air, and on my most recent trip, despite ongoing challenges facing the city, I found Cape Town in a fabulous groove. There is a balance of distinctly South African warmth and global sophistication—in its seriously memorable restaurants, new cool boutique hotels and burgeoning design scene. Wedged between the drama of Table Mountain and the splendor of the waterfront, the city sit...