Cape Town day 2: mountains and museums!

Last night we ended up getting dinner at an amazing traditional African cafe. The dishes were all served family style again and were from different countries throughout Africa. The food was amazing, the ambience and company were good, and the servers danced and sang. I wish I could post a video of their beautiful music. They looked like they were having so much fun, and they were so proud of their heritage. It was such a fun night.




We danced too!


This morning, we took a cable car up to the top of Table Mountain.  Table Mountain is actually one of the seven wonders of the world! One down, six to go. 

The mountain was under the ocean 900 million years ago.  Today, it is about three miles high. There were wild animals on the mountain, including hyraxes, which are the elephant's closest DNA relative. 


Hyrax!


The view was amazing... Mountain air has a totally different smell than regular old air.  It's hard to describe. It is much more invigorating. We couldn't have asked for better weather as well. There were no clouds at the top, which was good, because clouds bring wind and wind means "get the heck off the mountain." You can also hike up and down the mountain, but that's not for the faint of heart. More people die on Table Mountain than on Mount Everest each year. We even saw someone being rescued by a helicopter!


Cable car








Here I am in various "mountain girl" stages:




It was a little chilly on the mountain. The wind comes from Antarctica!!


We then took a drive through the mountains to Signal Hill, with beautiful views as well.



Just noticed the guy in the background. Haha. 



We also took a tour of the city proper. In the neighborhood of Bo-Kaap, residents paint their homes in bright colors and the streets are still cobblestone. It was a great place. 



We stopped by the Company Gardens, in an area where different important political folk reside. It was a beautiful botanic garden and museum.  Many of the plants there are found only in South Africa. 



Hey mr. President (or mayor). 


I befriended this little squirrel. It's because I'm a mountain girl now. 



The sky is so blue here. 


Huge old tree


Is anyone out there?? Tree pod. 



Our last stop today was the District Six museum. In the interest of enforcing a system of racial hierarchy, the vibrant and diverse village of District Six was declared an all-white community in 1966. All of the 60,000 residents (most of them black and Indian) were displaced to other towns and their homes bulldozed. This museum memorialized thousands of photographs, notes, postcards, articles, and artifacts that had been preserved and donated by residents of District Six when the museum opened in the 1990s. It was wonderful to see the way these residents came together thirty years after their homes were destroyed to share their memories of and pride for their village. Ex-residents are invited to write a note on a canvas that hangs from the ceiling, which is then embroidered and hung for visitors to read.  A very moving sight for me.





It's been a super long day. I'm about to take a nap and then head to the waterfront for dinner and some sightseeing. The weather can change very quickly here - way faster than in Chicago. Right now the wind is roaring outside and clouds are covering the mountain. It's so beautiful here - reminds me a little bit of California. A very different feel from JHB for sure. 

Comments

  1. AnonymousMarch 23, 2015 at 8:02 AM

    OH What a World :))

    ReplyDelete
  2. KatieMarch 23, 2015 at 10:50 AM

    Every where you went looks so beautiful! We miss you at the office!! Can't wait to hear all about it.

    ReplyDelete

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