If Namibia was amazing and rustic and adventurous, Cape Town was the polar opposite. It truly is a soft landing into Africa. In fact, it has all of the amenities of home and thanks to the power of the US dollar, it is all half price. The US dollar, today, is 10.20R:$1 making everything VERY affordable and incrementally improving the likelihood that I will come back to Cape Town some day….potentially for good.
Things I love about Cape Town….
1. The Ocean meets the mountains meets the city…incredible
 |
| View from Table Mountain |
 |
| Having a mimosa lunch at the V & A Waterfront in the Central Business District |
 |
| Seapoint and the Atlantic Ocean |
 |
| The "City Bowl" |
2. The food….
I did not have a bad meal in all of South Africa…plus, I did not get food poisoning or weird stomach shit for the duration of my stay.
 |
| Gourmet Boerwor: Osterich sausage |
 |
| Giant Ferrer Rocher and pumpkin marshmallow milkshakes |
My first braii (read: BBQ)
3. Amazing nightlife
Anyone that knows me in real life, knows I love halloween and any occasion there is to dress up. The week AFTER Halloween, a lovely woman named Yolanda had a Cirque Le Freak costume party and everyone that attended went all out. There were corsets and petticoats and circus freaks everywhere. She hired a burlesque dancer, fire jugglers and a 4-piece band consisting of an accordion, banjo, saxophone and guitar…. amazing.
I decided to go as a lion tamer since we all had to go as circus freaks. I figured it was an excellent opportunity to wear my leather pants and I could pull it off with limited funds. I went to a Chinese shop (think dollar store with way better stuff) and purchased some electrical tape, a fascinator and a jump rope and made an amazing whip, bracelets and a studded collar for my tattooed friend. Since I only spend 50R ($4.75) on my costume, I decided to go to a salon and have them create an amazing faux hawk for me….all I can say is SUCCESS. This was an amazing party and a super fun night!
 |
| Home-made accessories from electrical tape |
 |
kick ass faux hawk
|
 |
| ready to go... |
 |
| Random burlesque girls |
 |
| Em, Richie, Gil….circus freaks |
 |
| Fire Juggler |
 |
| Em and Gil |
 |
| Circus band |
 |
| Your ring master….Richie |
The night ended at Orphanage and Aces bars and someone definitely ended up making out with a chick in the bar and then blacking out….no, guess again, it was not me.
4. The beaches…
There are so many beaches in the greater Cape Town area, it is ridiculous. Sara and Fiona took me to a secluded little beach called Langebaan where there friends went kite surfing and we went stand up paddle boarding. Surprisingly, it was my first time actually doing it rather than watching. The weather was a bit windy on the main beach, but in Shark Bay, the weather was perfect and the lagoon was amazingly beautiful.
 |
| Shark Bay at Langebaan Beach |
 |
| I'd rather tan than kite surf, thanks. |
 |
| This is exercise? It's kind of fun. |
5. Amazing outdoor markets
Every weekend, we go to a different outdoor market. Since there are so many, I couldn't even attend them all. I was able to shop and eat in Hout Bay Marketplace, Kirstenbosch Market, Stellenbosch Market, the Biscuit Mill, Woodstock Market, Green Square Market and other that I just found while wandering...
 |
| Chili Chocolate Tarts |
 |
| Berry Pies |
 |
| Boerwor and sausages |
 |
| Proteas |
 |
| The 3 Amigos at Biscuit Mill |
 |
Hout Bay Market
|
 |
| Yeah, Kat, this is delicious... |
 |
| Does this make me African American??? |
 |
| Em and Kat trying to get a photo with the guy with the spear…. |
 |
| success! |
6. (and most importantly) The PEOPLE
Cape Townians and those that have been imported are amazing. I made amazing friends while in Capetown and I'm so, so fortunate to have found a group of people that I instantly connected with so strongly. I truly made a half a dozen friends for life. Sorry guys you're stuck with me….until I unfriend you on Facebook (most likely on your respective birthdays :) )
 |
| My FIRST CPT friend, Kat |
 |
| Corina, Philly, Em…getting dirty on our first date |
 |
| Em, Richie, Corina, Philly, Gil |
 |
| Team Awesome: Richie, Gil, Corina, Em |
 |
| What? Shirley came to visit Cape Town!!! |
 |
| Gil, being Gil. |
 |
| Thank the stars that Corina picked me up at a coffee shop on Day 3 |
 |
| Star, Em, Nisreen, Gil |
 |
| Just 3 awesome people chillin' in a park |
 |
| Sara, Kat, Em… |
 |
| Who cut Fiona out of this "group" photo??? |
 |
| Em and Fiona at the Hout Bay Market - how is this the only photo I have of you? |
 |
| Kat, Garreth, Sara |
7. The Colors.
The stars, the Gods, Mother Nature, whomever... blessed this place with the most magnificent colors in the palette. The sunsets, the grass, the ocean, the flowers and the buildings produced colors that I did not know existed aside from a Pantone Color Chart. They are inspiring and breath-taking. Enjoy some of the colors of Cape Town, filter-free.
 |
| The "table cloth on Table Mountain |
 |
| Camps Bay sunset |
 |
| Clifton Beach #4 Sunset |
 |
| Clifton Beach sunset |
 |
| Sweet treats at Charly's Bakery |
 |
| Kirstenbosch Gardens |
 |
| My rooftop pool |
 |
| Color Me Crazy 5K run at the Osterich Farm |
 |
| Even waiting in queue was pretty |
well said Emily, I knew you would be sorry to leave, I will just have to keep on working on that wine farmer, from a Afrikaans background and a French surname, loads around, and they usually the hunkier ones LOL
ReplyDelete:)
ReplyDeleteAfrikaans is not a prerequisite. Check his bank statement first, I'm hoping to have a promising career as a wife, avid tennis player and full-time volunteer :)
ReplyDeleteSo happy you love it there! It will all be great when we both move there. SA rocks!!!!!
ReplyDelete