Capetown

I apologize for having kept you waiting for a blog entry for three whole weeks. That is if there are still any readers left to apologize to. South Africa has been a whirlwind of hostels, towns, buses and beaches. I’ve been really busy. Lots of decisions to make. ‘Should we stay in this beach town, or move to the next?’ Should we eat curry for lunch or for dinner?’ ‘Should I turn over on my beach towel yet or not?’

The feeling of continents and countries coming and going through my life has sort of settled in. Can it feel normal to be traveling? We left Buenos Aires after a refreshing stay with our friends and with one last box of dulce de leche chocolates. We lamented the loss of our new friend, South America. I wished that Argentina could come with us on the trip, since it was so enjoyable. We boarded the Malasyian Airlines, 747-ReallyBig plane with the most diverse group of people I had seen in two months. 60 of which, luckily, were 19 year old Argentinian rugby players, off to South Africa for a two week tournament tour. They proceeded to test their seat-backs and trayy tables, ask for endless cokes, crowd around each others video game screens and whoop their driving skills and whistle at the flight attendant for the duration of the flight. So in a way, Argentina did come with us.

Flying into Capetown afforded us great views of Table Mountain, the oceans and sprawling township shacks right up to the runway. Quite an introduction to a country that I have found to be heaving with contrast, activity and youthful fervor. So much has happened here in the last 30 years, and the dust is still settling. Capetown was immediately beautiful to me. The city wrapping around the foot of Table Mountain seemed to be clinging on as to not fall into the sea. We were dropped at the hostel via shuttle bus and the trail of tourism hasn’t slowed.

In South Africa, you can’t just grab a bus and run off to see something you read about in your Lonely Planet book. Its all about the tours. Want to see the coast? We’ll book you a tour, only $40. Want to see the prision where Nelson Mandela and other important political prisioners were held? No problem, the shuttle comes at 8:30 tomorrow morning, and lunch is included in your package! I am a total hater of tours in general, but there were few other options. I suppose that you could just make your way through the area and see things on your own, but there is this fear thing. I will admit that I was a little fearful before arriving of the reputation South African cities have in regards to crime. That was quickly compounded by nearly each local I met telling me it wasn’t safe to walk alone, to watch my bag, to not carry valuables, and to take taxis everywhere I went. I wasn’t about to take my chances after that and we jumped on the tour wagon.

We headed out the next morning to Robben Island. That’s the prison I mentioned where Mandela spent 8 of his 25 years in prison. It was a fascinating tour. The guide was a former prisoner and he walked us through the facility, showed us Mandela’s cell and told us about the racism that existed in the prison for the black, colored and indian prisoners. For me the most interesting part of the tour was not the buildings or the island or the boat trip over from the city, but the emotions that the guides shared with us as they spoke about South Africa. The stories they told about the political prisioners that were there, what they had spoken out for, and where South Africa is now were really inspiring. I felt like my love for democracy is just a formality in comparision to what the people living here have, in light of what they they have been through. They have a taken a place full of century old prejudice and ingrained separation and started a nation where, maybe, very different people groups can live together under one government. The history I have read about this place has really come alive.

Our next tourist stop was Table Mountain itself. We rode a fancy revolving cable car to the top of it and looked out from platforms for 360 degree views of Capetown and the Cape Penninsula. It was incredible! Such a big, flat mountain, right there at the end of the continent and in the middle of a city. We hiked around and enjoyed the views for a few hours. Its always great to see a new city from above to really understand what you are dealing with down there at street level. We hit up a local beach, followed a walking tour of the city center and checked out Bo-Kaap, a literally colorful neighborhood at the upper edge of town.

We also went to church on Sunday. We found a small Presbyterian church and decided to take our chances with the old ladies filing in for the 10am service. It was very similar to what I know from home, minus the english accents and weird white South African national hymns. There were the same prayers, order of events and some familiar songs. We even participated in tea in the hall after the service. We met a few nice people there and I enjoyed being in a church again. It was a fun experience.

We finished up the day around town and prepared ourselves for leaving Capetown in the morning. The Baz Bus was coming to pick us up. The Baz Bus is this backpacker service that picks you up and drops you off at different hostels all along the coast of South Africa. You buy a ticket for a couple weeks, then book pick-ups as you go. It really couldn't have been easier. The social dynamics on the other hand created a love-hate relationship between me and the Baz. I'll have to get into that later. We were ready the next morning to say goodbye to our first South African city and head for the small town of Oudtshoorn, the ostrich capital of the world.