I am leaving Cape Town for 3 and 1/2 months. I love travelling but I always miss my home city so very much. I will keep the blog going but from the perspective of the differences between Cape Town and wherever I am. Most of my time will be spent in Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England
I know even before I go that I will miss the friendliness of South African people. I will miss blue skies and sunshine. I will miss our perfect avocados and the sound of the Hadeda flying overhead. I will miss our funky vibrant city with it’s mix of cultures and customs. I will miss family and friends. I will miss being able to use local slang and people can understand me. Most of all I will miss the way that South Africans just get on and get a thing done. That no nonsense attitude we have.
What I am not looking forward to is immigration at Heathrow. I can’t begin to count how many South Africans have had awful experiences there. The word Africa on our passports predisposes us to overly harsh treatment. If some of those UK Border Control officers had to visit here they might well find that we don’t all want to come and live in the UK. We only want to visit. Our visit could be enhanced by a friendly welcome. But then what do I know?
In the picture are people playing boules. We went to the Bastille festival in Franschoek for the weekend. Franschoek is where the French Hugenots migrated long ago to live. I’ve got something to say.
Franschoek is a breathtakingly beautiful part of the world. Well worth the drive out. Our accommodation was excellent value and comfortable. The main road was festive and most of the shops and staff were decorated in French colours.
The R100 ticket for the tastings was not worth the money. We got a freebie sherry sized glass and a voucher for only 5 tastings. The tastes were tastes. If we got a full glass of tastes in total, it was a lot. The marquee was way too full. The crowds were reminiscent of a Friday after work at London Victoria before a bank holiday long weekend. My advice, skip the tastings, splash out on a good bottle of your own bubbly and have a picnic soaking in the scenery and festivities.
As for the restaurants that Franschoek is so famous for. I have more to say. If you are happy to part with R300 odd per head and have not more than a tea cup in volume of food, then go for it. I could have done without the fluff and fuss and had a proper plate of food. But then what do I know?
Yes, that is a Zebra in the street. No it’s not real. There were a few initiatives prior to the Soccer World Cup to allow artists free reign to express themselves. Some really wild looking animals pitched up. We also gained a series of statues featuring a young girl in a striped swimsuit accompanied by some wings along the Promenade. It’s all about being young and finding yourself. The girl is staying there for a year.
We don’t get much thunder here in Cape Town. A murmur makes the news here. The highveldt often has spectacular thunderstorms. They can be frightening and even dangerous but then they breed them tough up there. The Afrikaans word for thunder is donder. Now if I say someone is bedonnerd, it means they are either mad or enraged. The Zulu word for loud noise or thunder is laduma. Soccer fans shout long slow laduuuumas when a goal is scored. Isn’t it amazing that in one place and one space, one word can mean so much?
I went to a dinner party last night and there were a couple of tour guides present. The conversation revolved around the Soccer Cup somewhat. What struck me most about what they had to say was this. The visitors they met all felt that South Africa had been portrayed in a negative light prior to the Soccer Cup. The fans had come with reservations and many had decided not to come. The negative publicity was about crime and inflated prices. Their experience was nothing like they had been led to believe and they felt other people had been robbed of a chance to be part of this celebration by irresponsible journalism.
South Africans are also their own worst enemies. They seem to have Green Grass Syndrome. They have this idea that the rest of the world lives in peace and harmony and it’s only us that has problems.
The other topic last night was the road in the inner city that goes … … … nowhere. So many urban legends surround that massive bridge that stops in mid air. Some say that a cafe owner refused to budge and the bridge stopped just above his shop. Some say that the engineer was American and forgot to factor that we drive on the other side of the road. Some say the council ran out of money and one day the rest of the bridge will be built.
We do know this, that road has been going nowhere for at least 40 years.
Picture courtesy P Gillespie
Woke up to a treat this morning. In the picture is a whale. Maybe two? You have to look carefully in the lower middle area of the water and you will see what looks like a dark rock, but it’s blowing water. Whales are not that easy to spot.
The outcome of the British journalist Simon Wright, mentioned a few posts back, is that he paid an admission of guilt fine. He was allegedly involved in the incident where a fan was found trespassing at Cape Town’s soccer stadium. It has been felt that some journalists went to any lengths to discredit South Africa and the Soccer World Cup. This could have been one of those instances. The trial never went ahead so we will never know the truth.
I have to ask, isn’t there enough good news out there? But then, what do I know?
France have had a complete re-shuffle of their football management. The French attitude to bad behaviour resonates with me. Good on them. I’m keeping their flag up for a while longer.
Meanwhile the Dutch are still moaning about the outcome of the final game. We watched the re-run last night and it’s way less stressful when you know the end result. I think the Dutch must accept they got off lightly. Yes, the ref missed errors from Spain but he overlooked way more from Holland. We must all move on.
It’s only a game. Besides, the best revenge in life is … success.
It’s all over! Spain are the champions and so are we. We pulled off a great 2010 Soccer World Cup. Yeehah!
I was indifferent to who would win the final but when Holland got going with dirty tackles I felt it would be wrong for them to win. I have an old fashioned sense that goodies must win and baddies must lose. The fair play award went to Spain. The awards for the most fouls and most yellow cards went to Holland.
Imagine winning those awards? I can see now that Suarez plays in Holland and Forlan plays in Spain.
The theme for this Soccer Cup was to welcome the world back home. The skull of Mrs Ples, believed to be 2.15 million years old, was discovered at the Cradle of Humankind which is now a World Heritage Site not far from Pretoria. Apparently the origins of humankind are in South Africa. The first tools, the first fire, all the firsts happened in Africa.
I love the way Rian Malan describes it here, when he says; “Foreigners think we are nuts, coming back to a doomed city on a damned continent, but there is something you do not understand: it is boring where you are.” I couldn’t have said it better myself.
Picture courstesy P Gillespie
