Mossel Bay (Mosselbaai in Afrikaans) lies on the southern coast of South Africa, east of the Cape of Good Hope and west of Knysna. It lies on the Indian Ocean coast and is part of the Garden Route. Portuguese explorer Bartholomeu Diaz arrived here on February 3, 1488, thus proving to his sponsors that Africa had a southern tip; making it theoretically possible to sail from Europe to India. Originally called by Diaz Aguada de São Brás (Bay of Saint Blaise), the village/harbour was renamed Mosselbaai (Bay of Mussels) in 1601 by Dutch navigator Paulus van Caerden, as he found the bay to be abundant with mussels. He also called a nearby bay, where he found cattle herders, Vlees Bay (Bay of Meat).