The Company's Garden is the long, leafy spine that runs through the centre of Cape Town from Government Avenue down to St George's Cathedral. It is the city's oldest public space, ringed by most of its main museums — the National Gallery, the Iziko South African Museum, the Slave Lodge, the Jewish Museum — and a useful navigational reference for first-time visitors.
The garden itself rewards a slow walk. There are old oaks, a herb garden, a rose garden, a koi pond, a small open-air café, and a population of mountain squirrels descended from American grey squirrels released by Cecil Rhodes in 1900. The benches under the oaks are a popular place to read in the sun — and on a hot day, the temperature inside the garden runs noticeably cooler than the streets outside.