South Africa, Round 3

Having studied abroad in South Africa and visiting again in Spring 2011, there is no denying that this port is one of my favorites. I love the people, the food, and the culture. 

March 18-March23

South Africa

Day 1, March 18

Field Program Trip Liaison, Cape Town Orientation

Day 2, March 19

Travel buddies: Sam, Jonathan, and Alice

Field Program Trip Liaison, Township Homestay

5:30    wake up

5:45    met Sam at reception for hike

6:00    arrive at the base of Lion’s Head

6:10    start hike

6:45    sunrise

7:25    arrive at the top!

10:00  arrive at local coffee shop for walking foodie tour (eat like a local)

Walk over 3km and eat at approx 8 local establishments trying everything from mushroom biltong to beef samosas and pumpkin pancakes with caramel sauce

2:45    take an uber back to the ship

3:00    meet field program participants

3:20    leave the ship to meet tour guide, Push

4:00… arrive at Tambo Village

            meet lead host mama, Mama Knox

            revisit Mama Mavis from 2011 homestay

            tour the township

            eat bbq’d chicken feet and giblets from people selling them on the street

            meet Mama Titi and her granddaughter

            hang out, warm up dinner, and eat together at the dining table

Day 3, March 20

Field Program Trip Liaison, Township Homestay

07:30  Mama Titi woke me up for the day

08:00  breakfast (whole grain toast, cereal and yogurt)

08:30  left the house to return to the lead host mama

08:40  said goodbye to Mama Titi

09:00  welcomed back all student participants

09:20  departed Tambo Village for the Waterfront and ship

10:00  arrived back at the ship

Once we got back I immediately met up with one of our faculty members, Daryl Harris, who had coordinated a group of 15 to meet up and visit a township. Little did I know, we went to Langa…the first township that I visited back in 2008 and we had lunch at the same restaurant that I ate at with friends while studying abroad that summer/winter. We walked the streets, heard amazing stories about living in the township from playwright Fatima Dike, and visited their community center where we learned how to drum, participated in a drum circle, and danced with neighborhood kids to traditional and pop music.

The night was complete with a walk around the waterfront with Laura, our Counselor.

Day 4, March 21

Duty Day!

I accomplished so many things: walking on the treadmill for 1.5 hours, watching the first half of Kindergarten Cop, emails (including my tax extension), instagram updates, cleaning my cabin and some down time!

Dinner was at House of H and Oli, Stacey and I enjoyed bbq brisket, fries, poutine, a sweet gin drink (blueberry gin, lemonade, mint, lemon, and tonic). They played R&B music, we sang along and had a great time!

Day 5, March 22

Travel buddies: Stacey & Oli

Winery day!

Today was all about wine. We took the hop on, hop off bus to Constantia and visited two wineries. The first was groot Constantia, the oldest black winery in Cape Town. The tasting room was a walk-up bar and then gentleman who served us essentially let us taste anything that we wanted. I tried 7 wines and their pours were (dare I say “too”?) generous. After buying two bottles of their smooth and well know Pinotage (a mix between Pino ) and one of their sweeter wines, the Cape Ruby.

The second winery that we went to was . After leaving our previous purchases at the front guard gate we walked up a small hill to a lovely small tasting building and large outdoor seating. We had salami, cheese, fresh bread, and olives. The wines were also quite lovely and we enjoyed the atmosphere as kids played about the breeze swept through.

Here’s where the good day turns. Stacey had purchased wine to ship back in town. We got to DHL only to find out that wine can’t be shipped outside of the winery unless the receiving end had a liquor license from their store or restaurant. So, we packed up and went back to the winery. The tasting room was closed. We lugged everything to the main building, told the manager our situation and, in the end, Stacey shipped her wine for a cheaper price and she got a complimentary bottle of wine for the hassle.

Dinner was at Marco’s and I loved it! The food was local to South Africa. I had the grilled meat platter (ostrich, kudu, and springbock) and Oli had the Impala Steak, which she let me try. We danced to the live music, laughed at our own stories, and ate to our hearts content.

Day 6, March 23

Travel buddies: Laura Thompson (Counselor), Oli and Kelly

Quick trips to the Waterfront for a few snacks from the Pick n’ Pay grocery store, a look at some higher end shops in the Watershed market, and an uber ride to Green Market Square to find a few things before we departed. I found a yard of fabric for mom that is perfect! It’s a continuous piece of cloth that has squares of different patterns. I paid 100 rand for the yard. Additionally, I bought 2 scrunches, 2 postcards, and a pair of wooden tongs for tossing salads and serving food. The scrunches were 2 for 50 rand and the wooden salad tongs were 40 rand. The exchange rate is 14 rand = $1 USD.

I devoured a few snacks while out for the morning, I went back to the ship to meet up with Laura. She and I rented bikes and rode them to Camp’s bay for the afternoon. It was so much fun. The bike ride took about an hour to get there and 50 mins to get back. We stopped to shop in a few stores, got gelato from a creamery, took pictures on the beach and walked up and down the boulevard.

My final moments in Cape Town were spent at the waterfront enjoying a delicious chicken sandwich and fries with Christian. It was warm and sunny and perfect.