21 November – 24 November
25 November – 27 November
Cape Town was a wonderful place
to have been based for an extended period of time.
During the periods where we weren’t
heading to Stellenbosch, we were discovering such areas as the historic Bo-Kaap
neighbourhood. An historic, colour and culturally distinct area of Cape Town,
located under the shadows of Signal Hill. We took a tour to discover the wonders of
this little neighbourhood, supported by a distinctively Malay community, whose
roots lie within the foundation of this fantastic city.
It was the Dutch that important
slaves from places such as Mozambique, Madagascar, Zanzibar and especially the
Indonesian islands. A number of the descendants of these slaves remain in the
Bo-Kaap area have brought to Cape Town an area of diversity and unique
vibrancy.
Bo-Kaap - Cape Town - South Africa
Bo-Kaap - Cape Town - South Africa
Bo-Kaap - Cape Town - South Africa
Bo-Kaap - Cape Town - South Africa
Bo-Kaap - Cape Town - South Africa
The wonders of Cape Town can also
be experienced from the water, which when viewed provides another fantastic
aspect. We were lucky enough to take an afternoon cruise from V& A
Waterfront, and admittedly, whilst the harbour,
if it can be called that, is not dramatic, the supporting scenery of Table
Mountain, its ‘table cloth’ like cloud cover, and the rich colours of the
Southern Atlantic, makes for a stunning scene.
Cape Town - South Africa
Cape Town - South Africa
Cape Town - South Africa
Cape Town - South Africa
Cape Town - South Africa
As an interesting side note, our
stay in Cape Town coincided with a very drastic water crises in the Cape
Peninsula region. The peak of the crisis was probably early 2018, several
months after our stay, when water levels in dams hovered around the 15%-30%
levels. There was so much talk, even during our stay, of a Day Zero, a reference to a point in time where dam levels would
reach below 13.5% capacity and the taps (access to running water), in the city
would be turned off.
Cape Town - South Africa
Cape Town - South Africa
Cape Town - South Africa
V&A Waterfront - Cape Town - South Africa
V&A Waterfront - Cape Town - South Africa
The severity of the water
shortages are a stark reminder of the type of world we live in and the reality
that will become more pervasive with known global trends, specifically
population growth, diminishing resources, global warming and changing weather
patterns.
V&A Waterfront - Cape Town - South Africa
Cape Town Comedy Club - V&A Waterfront - Cape Town - South Africa
There are major cities around the
world where shortages may cause chaos and disruption. Cities such as Chennai,
Sao Paulo, Bangalore, Cairo, Jakarta and Mexico City, as well of course Cape Town,
are amongst those major cities where water could potentially become critical.
Who, and also, how groups will be held to account for such catastrophic
failings will be interesting, and then, how countries choose to react in light
of dire circumstances will also be telling.
