How on earth do I describe Cape Town and keep my description short enough to keep my millions of followers interested? How do I describe this place without coming across jaded and preachy? How do I do justice to a place that I really did enjoy, but left me feeling sick to my core at the same time? I will do my very best as if only for my memory this is a story that needs to be told.
Cape Town is a city of two halves. The most simplistic way to describe the two halves is to split them up - exactly like has been done here - into black and white. This blog is not about Apartheid, it is not a history lesson. It is what I saw during my trip in early March 2017. Apartheid may have ended but this city is divided into black and white, dark and light.
From the moment we arrived you are hit with these massive divides and sometimes what almost feels like ridiculous contradictions. A very organised customs has the standard 'Nothing to Declare', 'Items to Declare' and 'Firearms only' line....as you do! Picked up in an Uber from the airport, our diver nervously exceeds the speed limit on the freeway by about 25km warning us we are passing a Township (see note below) and come hell, high waters or a pedestrian we hit - we aren't stopping.
Note: Townships we have learnt are a very pretty name given to the slums in Cape Town. They are overcrowded plots of land with poorly constructed and poorly serviced corrugated iron dwellings randomly shoved together and populated with poverty, disease and crime - or the 'blecks'. The government attempts to hide the Townships behind large fences, with pretty colours or by placing them next to extremely rich (white) suburbs so the locals have a chance to find employment (maids, gardeners or security guards for the castles surrounding the slums). I'm not a sparky but I understand looking at these Townships why Cape Town has massive blackouts as it seems someone as qualified as me did the wiring.
With the fear of God put in us by old mate Uber explaining the 10 Do's and 1000 Don'ts of Cape Town we arrived in Hout Bay and our mansion for the next 8 nights, and were greeted by host Iris - a German expat living in South Africa (the perfect storm for racism). Much like Will and Carlton we were in the pool house and after the past two weeks on tour we just wanted a hot shower and a comfy bed which we smashed as soon as bags were dropped. Hout Bay is where we stayed and the only thing I can compare it to in my life is Beverly Hills. The houses oversized, extravagant and extremely well secured work their way up the rolling landscape with a township (L.A.) at the bottom. It was the perfect area to base ourselves as it gave us access to everything we wanted.
Our host was lovely and so helpful. We were set up with a hire car - an almost essential in Cape Town - and taught valuable lessons on when to fight for your right, when to back away and when to run. She was also just shockingly racist. Not on her own either. It seems that everyone in the generation 40 and above is pre-conditioned to treat the blecks like slaves. It is horribly confronting to see how they talk and react around them. Of course any restaurant, shop, salon, bar etc is staffed by the larger minority but the whites have the money so seem almost allowed to treat service employees like crap. It's so confronting because it's so open. You have no idea the smile and extra attention you get for being nice.
I feel almost guilty in saying this after my assessment so far but my goodness it was nice being back in a western country. The beauty of Cape Town is sublime. The western coast has mountains that tower to the east while the sun disappears out to South America offering 10/10 shots. The drive from the city to Hout Bay is rivalled by the Great Ocean Road for its beauty and memorable images. The Waterfront area is everything Docklands should be but isn't. People flock here in thousands with access to Robben Island (a let down of a tour for anyone interested), cheap movies (we saw both Denial and Logan and loved both), coffee and food markets that remind you of the Vic Market and restaurants and shopping found in the heart of Melbourne. We spent quite a few days being mall rats which after where we'd been was extremely enjoyable and lead to another big 'spend' as Kate treated herself to a Tanzanite ring, justifying it by the heartache suffered having her engagement ring securely locked up at home. You know the poverty and oppression is somewhere, but it is so well hidden you forget it and succumb to the creature comforts.
The hop-on-hop-off buses which operate very well in this city have a wine tour option. On the recommendation of the Big Dog and much to Kate's and a few of her friends surprise I was all for a day sampling South Africa's finest. I got drunk which I am very good at doing but for now even at the tender age of 35 I remain a staunch beer man. It was a very fun day all the same.
We spent a bit of time in Cape Town doing some forward planning and thinking. The plan after Africa was to hit South America for the next 3 months. The facts are that Africa has been way more expensive than we anticipated, there is so much more that excites us to see in Europe than South America and the budget we have set ourselves while not oppressive is restrictive. The end result is this that we have decided that when we fly out of Jo'berg on the 15th of March, it will be to take a flight direct to Istanbul and start our Europe adventure. For the hundreds excited to see Kate and my nan who can't wait to see me either, we are hoping to be home just in time for the Grand Final (cricket season).
With the trip changed and rebooked for the better, batteries recharged and a fresh outlook on the coming few months we bid farewell to Cape Town. It has been an enjoyable but conflicting few days. I want to say this is a slice of Eden in Africa and it really is, but leaving the safety of the major town you get an understanding where the majority of the 3 million residents live, and it's not pretty. The further you drive the larger and poorer the Townships become. It is so hard to get a grip of the fact there is soooooo much money in this town shared between so so few. I recommend Cape Town, but do not come here lightly and do not be fooled by the posters telling you that Apartheid ended in the early 90s - it is alive and well and it's appalling how it is what it is and no one seems to care.
The next 9 days take us along the picturesque Garden Route to some of the world's great surfing towns. If only I could surf! I am particularly looking forward to J-Bay where I will try to recreate one of the great moments in Australian history.
Until next time - Mighty Out
