The Tourist Smorgasbord Special

Apologies for the delay between blog posts; lack of internet access, coupled with an incredibly busy last two weekends, has meant that I have just not found the time. Rather than give a day-by-day summary of the last ten days, here is the highlights reel:

District Six Museum

A trip to Cape Town would not have been complete without a visit to the District Six Museum, which stands as a beautiful tribute to the lives and stories of the ex-residents of District Six who were uprooted and forcibly evicted during apartheid. The museum is set out such that one can wander throughout the historical exhibits, almost as if walking through the streets and homes and shops of those who lived there before 1966. The attention to detail and the amount of thought and planning that has clearly gone into this heritage project really blew me away. I went on a Friday afternoon with Rachel and Sam. We were greeted at the Museum by Noor, an ex-resident of District Six and one of the curators. He was very kind and allowed us in for free, as we had arrived an hour before closing time. Noor chatted to us about growing up in District Six, what it was like when he and his family were removed and his feelings about going back home, now that they are slowly relocating ex-residents back to the area. He spoke candidly about his apartheid experiences and, like Iris, without any bitterness or resentment. Because one of the Projects Abroad volunteers was working at the Museum, we were then invited out the back to have afternoon tea with all the staff! This is the kind of hospitality and warmth that I have come to associate with Cape Town.

Philisa Abafazi "Ladies Night" Fundraiser

You may remember the Lavender Hill legal clinic that I mentioned in one of my previous blog posts; the organisation we work with (Philisa Abafazi Bethu) is opening another shelter for women, and so they had a fundraiser to raise money to furnish the house. A group of us from PAHRO went along to Club Galaxy to support the event, which turned out to be a great night out.

With Josie, Sam and Rachel

Maria, Dan and Megan

Who would have thought that clubbing in the Cape Flats would be so much fun?

The Old Biscuit Mill, Woodstock

The last two Saturdays I have become a solid convert to this day-long, gourmet food market located in Woodstock. The stalls stock anything and everything worth eating, as well as clothing, crafts, flowers and drinks.

Bethia (my little sister) would have loved these cakes

Florist stall

 Chocolate tart: perfectly acceptable for breakfast at the Biscuit Mill!

The only problem is that I don't think I have enough weekends left in Cape Town to be able to sample everything on offer.

Diwali Festival

Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights, is celebrated in Cape Town with a big bash in Ratanga Junction. Omar (a PAHRO volunteer from Scotland) and I went with Sanjay, his boyfriend, Siya, and his family (Ajay, Elaine and their two adorable little boys).

With Omar...and my roti chicken wrap!

Indian dancers

There was plenty of Indian food, music and dancing. Even the little ones were getting into the bhangra.

Siya and Aron

Afterwards we had a braai at Aj and Elaine's house, where it was agreed that I have to go back at some point at utilise their huge kitchen to make an Indian feast! (Aj's mother is a cook and even had her own show on the BBC, so their spice rack is very well-stocked.)

Elaine and Ajay

Muizenberg Beach

I could have sworn I was back in Cottesloe, amongst the trendsters and surfers, when we headed down to Muizenberg to enjoy the sunset.

Siya, Sanjay and Omar at Moyo

Robben Island Ice Tea

 Fresh wild oysters - so good!

Sunset at Muizenberg Beach

V & A Waterfront

I have now been down to the Waterfront a few times; once to watch the rugby on the big screen, once for dinner after our Robben Island tour and again on Saturday (just for kicks). It's an entirely different Cape Town to the areas I usually frequent: very "white", very upmarket and full of tourist traps. However, it has its own appeal (i.e. nice views and fine dining). I enjoyed a commiseration steak after the Wallabies lost to the All Blacks (the weekend before last); which I definitely deserved after being booed by all the New Zealand fans at the big screen (I was decked out in my Aussie flags):

Not happy: post-rugby blues

But by far the highlight of my Waterfront experience so far has been my meal at Balthazar's: pork ribs, followed by this "baby" seafood platter (consisting of calamari, mussels, king prawns, half a lobster, sardines and a tuna steak):

Possibly the best decision I have ever made...

Table Mountain

Due to a last-minute change in plans, Rachel and I decided a spur-of-the-moment trip up Table Mountain would be the perfect way to spend a sunny Sunday afternoon. We caught the cable car to the top of the mountain, where I felt like we were going to be blown off the edge (generally it is also about 6-degrees cooler at the summit).

At the summit

 View over the edge

It was so cool experiencing the clouds blowing around us (no pun intended), and the coffee and cake at the summit cafe went down a treat. I would definitely like to head up again, although I am hoping to set aside the day and hike up next time.

Robben Island

Probably most famous for being the place where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for 18 years, Robben Island is now a heritage site with daily tours of the prison and surrounds. Rachel and I took last Wednesday afternoon off work and caught the ferry across to the island.

View of Cape Town (and Table Mountain) from Robben Island

The tour was about three-and-a-half hours (including the journey there and back), which included a bus tour and a prison tour with a former political prisoner as a guide. Our guide was imprisoned there between 1984 and 1991, and was a great source of information about life on the island. Once again, I was struck by how much strength people like him seem to have. I cannot imagine what it would take to be able to return to a site of such trauma and be able to see it in a different light. What really stumped me is how the former prisoners - including our guide - now live on the island, some of them alongside their jailors (former prison guards who also live and work on Robben Island). Our guide tried to explain it to us in the following terms: "Apartheid was not a struggle against the whites; it was a struggle for human rights".

 Our guide in his former prison cell (a dormitory-type room)

We also saw Nelson Mandela's cell and were able to wander in and out of the cells of other former prisoners. There are photographs in many of the cells of the men who were jailed there, as well as excerpts of stories about how they came to be imprisoned and what happened to them on Robben Island. It was completely surreal, and I felt like I had been transported to a different world.

 Nelson Mandela's former prison cell

Wine Tour

Despite starting off cloudy, Sunday turned out to be a beautiful day; which was just as well, because 13 of us set out to do a wine tour of the Cape wine region. We made it through Paarl and Stellenbosch, stopping first at Fairview (where we all fell in love with the goats cheese, even more than the wine), Asara (lunch and more wine) and then Uitkyk (brandy and chocolate).

Wine and cheese tasting at Fairview Estate

View from Asara

Four Seasons pizza with wine pairings at Asara

 Dozing on the lawn at Uitkyk Estate

I am having difficulty coming to terms with the fact that I have little over three weeks left in Cape Town. I feel like there is still too much to do, both at the office and outside of work. In addition to everything, I am trying to figure out if there is some way I can get the Fairview goats cheese shipped (in bulk) to Perth. Otherwise, I am afraid that my only option may be to stay in Cape Town (sorry Mum).