Afternoon at Mzoli's

My first weekend in Cape Town did not disappoint. There were a few casualties (including my hair - which still smells of braai, despite two washes), but what a way to end my first week!

On Friday the office shut at 1pm, so a few of the girls and I went for an afternoon drink in the sunshine. I had my first glass of South African wine (chardonnay from Durban), although I will reserve my judgement on this front until after I have done some thorough research in the wine region...

Friday night was my first foray into the city. A large group of us volunteers hit up Long Street (apparently the place to be), starting our night at a rooftop bar at a backpackers. After that it was on to a series of pubs and bars where the music got progressively worse (i.e. better) and we met up with more volunteers. I took a number of hits about the Wallabies from a few Springbok fans, which might have ended in more than one bar fight had I been in a less forgiving mood. Two great things about the nightlife in Cape Town: 1. you don't need to get ridiculously dressed up; and 2. you don't need to spend an arm and a leg. And, because I like lists...Things I learned: 1. don't put cheap mobile phones in your back pocket, as they WILL break when you sit down; and 2. if there are chillies in the bottle of alcohol that they are pouring from, you should probably pick another drink.

So Saturday rolled around and I rolled out of bed sometime in the late morning. I had a pretty lazy day, that involved going for a good, greasy breakfast and wandering around the Cavendish mall. It was National Heritage Day (which meant braai day), but I was saving myself for Mzoli's again, so I chilled out around Wynberg Park and decided to lie low for the evening. That night was Latifa's turn to go out, and she looked amazing in her sari:

That's not to say my night was completely without excitement; a cat followed Natalie home and managed to find its way into our apartment (well, maybe we let it in).

Natalie with our feline friend

Sunday dawned, bright and clear, and I packed myself into a van with Meschak and a group of German and Swiss volunteers and headed to Mzoli's. I think I explained the concept behind Mzoli's in my second blog post, but it is entirely different on a Sunday. It seemed that every man, woman and dog (and I am not merely using an expression) crammed into the restaurant, which meant that it took us 2.5 hours to order and get our food! But that didn't matter, because we had South African cider and good company to pass the time.

 "Backstage" in the braai room: where the magic happens!

Not even at full capacity: this is NOT busy!

Enjoying South African cider

Meschak, Martin & Catherina

With some of the other volunteers

 Yes, that is a bucket full of sausage

Maybe it was the sunshine; maybe it was the hundreds of people dancing to the bass-heavy African beats - but it is as if the restaurant takes on a life of its own. The best thing is that it involves the entire community. There are hawkers touting everything from sunglasses to beer glasses, as well as a very illegal trade of alcohol (in that people in the nearby houses sell it, and I very much doubt they have licenses). If the word "vibrant" ever manifested itself in physical form, it would be Mzoli's on a Sunday.

A typical Mzoli's patron on a typical Mzoli's Sunday afternoon

I was meant to go horse-riding that afternoon, but after a grumpy taxi driver and a few miscommunications, a bunch of us ended up in Heathfield at a pizza place, where we spent the remainder of the afternoon/evening. But no matter; I have decided that I am on South Africa time and am just trying to go with it. Anyway, I have a whole lot of weekends ahead of me - and if this one was anything to go by, I don't think I'll want to leave Cape Town!