I know that I haven’t been able to post again to the blog…but it took me a while to sort out my password situation. Plus, it always seems like there are people going places and I am always wanting to go along! I have done so many amazing things already, and all of my evenings have been a blast, so it is difficult to know where to start. So I will try to break it down by day:
Day 2:
During the week we go to the University for some lectures. So, on Friday we had 3 lectures, each on a different period of South African history. We got back, changed and went to Pan Asia for dinner. At meal times we sometimes wander down the street from our hotel and see what we find. Cape Town is very eclectic and diverse and as a result there is a variety of fun foods to try. In a few short days I have had: Asian, Indian, Italian, and African. After dinner I went out to a bar high above Cape Town. There were a lot of locals there and great live music.
Day 3:
We all went via ferry to Robben Island where Nelson Mandela was held for 17 years (before being transferred to a different prison). The tour began on the bus trip around the island and then we went to the prison itself. The tours are led by ex-political prisoners. It is interesting to note that people live on the island –those that work on the Island, which is now a historical site. Some of them are former prisoners, and others are former guards! Our guide was in prison beginning when he was just 17 years old. He was caught with firearms and explosives and was sentenced to seven years on Robben Island. He talked about the horrors: the segregation in the prisons, the mundane work designed to break their spirits, how one had to apply to learn (and the process took years), the solitary confinement, the three showers per 60 inmates, and how they weren’t allowed to converse. However, he also talked about the hope. .. how doing this everyday heals his heart a little more. While one might find it difficult to believe that a person can endure that much oppression and discrimination and just move on, I feel that common desire to move forward everywhere in Cape Town, which makes me believe…
We stopped at the V & A for lunch (woo hoo Falafel Special!) and then we took the bus to the base of Table Mountain. From there, we took a gondola to the top. It was a little freaky, mainly due to the 360 degrees of glass windows and rotating floor!! The view from the top was beyond worth it. Since the top is flat you can hike all around up there. Kay (one of the leaders of this trip) told us to listen for the “hooter,” at which point we should return to the gondolas immediately because bad weather was on the way. No worries…we had an excellent hike. We posed on rocks and took pictures up above the clouds. It was so unbelievable beautiful!
We had an insane dinner at Mario’s – an Italian restaurant down the road from our hotel. Our waiter was hilarious and we got to write our names on the ceiling. After dinner we decided to go out to Long Street. It is supposedly THE place to go out in Cape Town. I was a little suspicious when our taxi driver said that it was mostly tourists and young people, and when we got there I thought it was worse that a tourist trap. The streets were jam packed with cars and people. It is a little disarming to be followed down the street by a child begging for money. We had to get money and 4 of us went into a store to get it. I was a little freaked, but we all took care of each other and went into the Irish Pub – The Dubliner. All these people were dancing to Coca Cabana -- which was hilarious! We went upstairs and got a coveted spot on the balcony where we could people watch and talk to one another. The evening took a further decline when two guys fought near our table. It was ok, but I think everyone felt disarmed by the entire situation and we decided to head back to the hotel. We grabbed cabs, and this guy was there “helping” – rushing to open the doors and such. Then he leaned in the doors with a cup for a tip! I threw some change in, so we could just leave. Then, to cap off an already agitating evening, out cab driver charged us double what we paid to get there. It was then that we noticed that he didn’t have a meter! It sucked to feel like we were ripped off. We discussed finding another place, but I think everyone just wanted to hide out in their rooms!